The Track of the Pocket Miner
The big Eli frowned. He settled back into his chair. Long sun beached hair hung down covering his pointed elf ears. Dressed only in dusty coveralls and space boots, his huge muscles rippled as his sun browned hand reached out for his beer. He took a long drag and wiped the foam from his long scraggly mustache with the back of his hand. "Easy? If it is easy it usually doesn't pay very well. How do you know this Jack Death has anything to steal?"
"Jack Deeth, D-e-e-th," the Fabian whispered. "Don't mention his name again. Someone might hear and put two and two together. And yes I do know what he has to steal. I have been working for the Red Star Mining Co. for the last nine months. He was in our office two weeks ago where he filed a Security Level One report to the home office. He has hit a big strike and has called for an armed ship to meet him out there to transfer the amcrys. We only have twenty three days before the company ship shows up. If we work fast we can split well over 400,000 Credits worth of pure amcrys."
The Eli glanced around the darkened room. The taproom of the Blue Star was almost empty. An old Sandminer sat slumped over a table in the far corner of the room, while the bored bartender stared into the lenses of his Tri-vid viewer. An old rusty bucket head robot limped slowly across the floor listlessly pushing a broom. His eye lights sputtered and flickered, as he moved in jerks and starts. "So what do you know about this Pocket Miner?" (Find out more about Pocket Mining) (Read more about Skysend City in the story "Gleets Can Be Dangerous')
"I know he is all alone out there." The Fabian's pale blue eyes flickered from side to side as he opened his Quickslate folder and pushed it toward the Eli. "Look at this, I tapped his outgoing mail also. Here is a letter to his sister. He says, he is all alone out there." (Read the letter)
The Eli, who was named Wimdit the Xrit, squinted as he glared at the lighted screen of the folder.
"You can read, can't you?" The Fabian asked.
"Of course I can." the Eli growled. "But what is this?" he held up the screen, his horny finger stabbed at an attached holo.
"Oh that's just a Wombat -- an old Imperial APC." The Fabian craned his neck toward the viewer. "Looks like the engineer version with the dozer blade and bot arms." He shrugged and waived his hands, "Hell, those old things have sides like a pop can. He is just using it as a place to sleep. It's probably fitted out as a camper."
Wimdit closed the cover of the folder and shoved it back across the table.
The Fabian folded his Quickslate and slipped it into his shirt pocket. "You know you can hardly turn this opportunity down. If word were to get out that you and your buddies were involved in the raid on the Sandminer Ouroboros
--- well, your remaining life would be measured in hours. I can provide not only a profitable opportunity, but a way off this sun baked, mummified world."
The Eli sat up in his chair, put his hands flat on the table top and leaned toward the Fabian. "On my home world, Shaggre, we have a saying -- 'Let not the cauldron call the fireplace soot covered.'" He leaned over the smaller man and glared into his eyes. "You would be interested in a conversation I overheard while loading a bulk hopper at the Starport. I was taking a short break, lying in the shade of the baggage conveyer, when I heard someone asking questions of the baggage supervisor. Seems he was looking for a deserter from the Fabian Armed Forces. Someone called Vladimire Slonick. Someone with a description matching yours. A wanted fugitive -- with a price on his head. A big enough price to attract bounty hunters."
"OK, OK," Slonick waved his hands, "We are both in the same leaking space boat. We should be working together. It would be best if we could lift off in the next few hours. Can you get your crew together by moondown tonight?"
"Fine I'll have the rest of my men ready with their weapons, Where shall we meet you?"
Be out behind Slick Willie's Salvage yard at moondown. I'll provide transport out to Mr. Deeth's private little world.".
(Find out more about the Disco Nightmare) (Read the stats for the Eli warriors) (See the map for the game.)
For questions concerning this webgame contact John McEwan at john@tin-soldier.com
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