The Lost Goats, 45
Aug. 1st, 2012 12:09 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
avevale_intelligencer(Sorry, Soren, I hadn't quite finished...)
"Jenny," Zander said."How nice to hear from you again."
"You silver-tongued cavalier," Jenny said. "My mother warned me about gentlemen like you."
"Evidently to little effect," Soren muttered.
"I've brought the entire company to give you a tune," Jenny continued. "And if you're wondering, I'm in hot pursuit of a bad debt. A little matter of forty-four hats."
"Twenty-nine," Zander corrected her.
"Plus interest," Jenny said. "And in case that isn't enough, I've got eight Vigilante ships following me. Now I wonder why that could be?"
Zander groaned.
"Have you heard of their latest idea?" the definitely-not-a-pirate continued chattily. "They englobe your ship, and on the inner surfaces of all their vessels are fragile bubble-domes chock full of prisoners. You try to escape, you even touch one of those domes with your outer shields, and poof--all those people shoot out into space."
"The VIgil don't believe in the deathblock," Soren croaked.
"No, they don't, but they're willing to try anything. Now if you just let me board and pick up those hats--and any of those silly old Nyrond coup files you happen to have lying around--I might just let you go before they get here."
"We could just go now," Zander said, making frantic signs to Soren. "We've done it before."
"I'd take that very personally," Jenny said reprovingly. "Besides, while we've been talking, I've done a bit of englobing myself. I may not be able to get through your shields, but my blasters should make a nice big beacon for the Vigil to track." She paused, and Zander and Soren could practically see her lazy smile. "Your move. Only I wouldn't, if I were you."
"Jenny," Zander said."How nice to hear from you again."
"You silver-tongued cavalier," Jenny said. "My mother warned me about gentlemen like you."
"Evidently to little effect," Soren muttered.
"I've brought the entire company to give you a tune," Jenny continued. "And if you're wondering, I'm in hot pursuit of a bad debt. A little matter of forty-four hats."
"Twenty-nine," Zander corrected her.
"Plus interest," Jenny said. "And in case that isn't enough, I've got eight Vigilante ships following me. Now I wonder why that could be?"
Zander groaned.
"Have you heard of their latest idea?" the definitely-not-a-pirate continued chattily. "They englobe your ship, and on the inner surfaces of all their vessels are fragile bubble-domes chock full of prisoners. You try to escape, you even touch one of those domes with your outer shields, and poof--all those people shoot out into space."
"The VIgil don't believe in the deathblock," Soren croaked.
"No, they don't, but they're willing to try anything. Now if you just let me board and pick up those hats--and any of those silly old Nyrond coup files you happen to have lying around--I might just let you go before they get here."
"We could just go now," Zander said, making frantic signs to Soren. "We've done it before."
"I'd take that very personally," Jenny said reprovingly. "Besides, while we've been talking, I've done a bit of englobing myself. I may not be able to get through your shields, but my blasters should make a nice big beacon for the Vigil to track." She paused, and Zander and Soren could practically see her lazy smile. "Your move. Only I wouldn't, if I were you."
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2012-08-01 11:29 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-08-01 11:56 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-08-01 12:54 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-08-01 02:37 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-08-01 04:13 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-08-01 04:32 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-08-01 11:55 am (UTC)"All right," Jenny replied: "But I also don't see you paying your hats -- or, for that matter, handing over the coup files."
"Item, the hats," Soren said: "If, and I beg leave to check the calculations, it is up to forty-four, then they are all in a warehouse, the co-ordinates of which I am willing to provide. They are in a variety of patterns and colours, and all have been recently disinfected."
"Sounds fair," one of the crew murmured, before Jenny caught him at it.
"And the files ?"
"And the files ? You upping the ante ?"
Jenny nodded.
"All right," Soren said. "As indication of good faith, have a look at this." He pulled from inside his coat a (slightly crumpled) roll of papyrus and unrolled it, before handing it to Jenny.
Jenny looked at it, twisted it round, in cliched style, looked at it upside down, then re-rolled it and thrust it back.
"What is that ? Some kind of joke ?"
"No -- it's a coup file. A simple one. Birchbark Canoe."
"It's gibberish !"
"To someone who hasn't trained with them, yes, probably. We all spend years learning the algorithms by which they're coded; even then, some of the older ones take time to decipher."
"But you can do that ?"
Soren nodded.
"Then hand over all the ones that you have, and the co-ordinates for the hats, and your colleague can go his way."
"And me ?"
"Well, if these things are coded and cipohered, I'm going to be keeping you to decode and decipher them for me. Actually, it makes sense, since it means that if anyone steals them from me, they won't have the faintest idea what to do with them."
"All right," Soren said, resignation colouring his tone: "Only -- well, have you ever heard of Nyronds in ..." (he swallowed) "... captivity ?"
"No."
"Exactly."
There was a pause, during which Soren rolled the papyrus up again, and bestowed it back into his pocket.
"So ?"
"There aren't any. We die. Rapidly."
"Pull the other one !!"
"Haven't you ever wondered why the Vigil don't proudly announce how many of us they have locked up ? Good way to ensure your budget, having a dangerous item in your custody, which unless you're fairly paid, you might accidentally be unable to keep locked up. They don't because they haven't. They haven't because we die. Trace elements or something; we wither and die."
Barely-suppressed sobs came from the crew in the cabin. Jenny tired to rally them.
"Then you'll just have hurry up and to decipher tham all before you die."
"Or you'll kill me ?" Soren asked.
"That's right -- or --"
"Smallship to Vicious Not-Pirate vessel -- "
"What is it ?"
"The Vigil have been in contact. It seems that they have in interest in piracy, and now that I've satisfied them that everything aboard my ship is either Nyriond property or receipted for, they want to check all of your stuff. And it's nearly time for Soren's medicine ... you wouldn't like him if he goes unmedicated."> The last word held unquestionable implications of undisclosed consequences.
"Ball," said Soren, in the silence: "Court. Yours."