[OOC]
Kevin (Kah'liss) has created his own Character Page, with a picture of Kah'liss on it to boot. Check it out from the main page if you like, and if you want to do something similar, you can keep track of your own page as well...I will be keeping notes though, so when that "Wartech 5000 Mega-Bolt Destroyer Gun" pops on your character's equipment, I will raise my brow on it. :)

I'll be sure everyone talks it out before posting the next turn...the lounge scene was a bit difficult because I sent 1 turn out, and then I still received emails from the original turn, so what I did was go back to both turns and put dialogue in, so to not miss anything, you can read them again at the page:
    http://www.inetnow.net/~jeff-b/StarFrontiers/index.html

Again, it didn't disrupt anything, but I did learn to not jump into the fun immediately. That could have been nearly disastrous in combat or some other scenerio. So hopefully we'll be good from there.
I have put the Serena Dawn's map on the page as well.
 

[IC]
Pale. Eastin Hotel. 2nd Evening, 18:00

    Three sleek skimmers line the curb outside of the hotel, their sides emblazoned with the official emblem of Truane's Star. Christina Rook stands before the vehicles, addressing the party and directing the drivers  to store the team's personal gear. She looks the team over. "Well, I hope your stay here on Pale has been a pleasant one. I'm sure you are ready to get things going, however." She glances down at a file computer and reads over a few more things. "The crew of the Serena Dawn are already at the Space Port; they are making their pre-launch preparations and assisting with the loading of the freighter. If you are ready, we'll meet them."
    Moments later the three skimmers pull from the curb. Hovering inches above the ground and purring smoothly, the vehicles make their way into the busy traffic and head for the space port.

Pale. Pale Interstellar Space Port. 2nd Evening, 20:00

    "Excellent, everything is almost ready," Syonik, the Dralasite assistant of Ryseak, says as he looks over his checklist for the 4th time. "Everyone present, equipment loaded...I guess the only thing left to say is...Good luck."
    The Serena Dawn sits before you, 30 yards wide and probably 50 yards in length. A large loading door on the 2nd level is open, a few workers in Streel uniforms walk down the ramp towards Syonik. "Explorer is secure inside the shuttle. They are ready for departure."
    You have seen the crew of the Serena Dawn flitting about making their last minute preparations; for the first time Balou walks up to you, gesturing to the ship proudly. "Well, here she is. If you are ready, she is."
    With anxious speed, Space Port members begin clearing cables from the Serena's path. As the team begins to board the freighter, both Christina with her government entourage and the Streel employees give final farewells and wishes of good luck. The team walks up the ramp to the freighter and watch as the door pulls up, finishing with a metallic clank as it closes.

Serena Dawn. Bridge
    Balou leads you to the bridge. Along the way he gives a brief tour, pointing out hatches, airlocks, and other notable features of the ship. As you near the bridge he points out your quarters, noting that he'll let you fight it out over who gets which one (except for the first cabin on each side - that's for the crew - the beds are bunks, 2 per room). As you enter the bridge, you see Stu and Grynh for the first time, both punching away at keys on their consoles. Naydash sits at her console too, speaking with port traffic control on clearance for takeoff. They ackowledge your presents with a brief wave, then continue with their work. Finally Naydash announces, "Balou, we are cleared for takeoff. Whenever you're ready."
    The captain looks at you in question, "Ready when you are, team."
    "Let's go, what are you waiting on?" Telgar answers.
    Balou nods, tosses his head to Stu. "Take her away, Stu. She's been sitting here too long and she's ready for the stars again."
    Stu grins and engages the engines. The Dawn begins to hum a bit louder, the sound increasing as the engines prepare to launch. "'Pretty as a picture," Grynh adds, monitoring the engine levels at his console. "She's all yours."
    The Dawn lifts off of the ground, begins to make a slow progression past other terminals. After she taxi's a bit, she hits full thrust and rockets off, leaving the Space Port far behind. A few minutes more and the viewscreen shows the blackness of space. A few other ships arriving in orbit are seen, their engines blasting an occasional flash of blue or yellow in the quiet of space. The Serena Dawn continues accelerating and soon leaves Pale behind.
    "Ready for void travel on my mark, 2 minutes..." Stu begins. Grynh studies his console closely. "Two minutes...MARK," the Navigator concludes.
    "Mark, aye, 2 minutes," Grynh responds. He glances to the team. "Ever been on a bridge before, when going FTL? (OOC: FTL=Faster than Light)"
    "Zebulon Route initiated. Astronavigation ready," Stu announces after plugging at some keys. "1 minute....MARK."
    Balou grins. "I always like this part. These guys sound so... official."
    "That's why they're so good," Naydash chimes in. "The talk is half of it."
    Grynh throws a devious smile to Naydash, who shrugs a 'tell-it-like-I-see-it' expression.
    "15 seconds...MARK." Grynh studies his console intently, making a few adjustments where he deems necessary. The hum of the Dawn's engines are now very loud, her inundating rythym increasing rapidly. Grynh and Stu are lost in their consoles.
    "FTL....MARK!" There is a loud CLAP, the stars in the viewscreen blur and grow long tails as the Serena Dawn jumps into the void. The stars on the viewscreen stream by as fireworks would at a celebration. The hum of the engines soften now.
    "Beautiful as always, guys," Balou brags.
    Grynh leans back, satisfied. He glances to the team. "Getting there's the hard part. Now that we're in the void, smooth sailing....Except of course for Stu here, if he's going to win our little wager."
    Stu shrugs, cocking his arm over his chair back to address the Engineer. "She'll need a day to make the calculations I feed her. We'll know by tomorrow what we can put on our wish list, thanks to the team here."
    Balou smiles. "Well, we've got a few days either way. What do you want to do to pass the time?"
 

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Referee's Note:
    Check the map of the Serena Dawn, if you have any questions about it, let me know. Your gear was packed seperately - the Explorer is loaded onto the shuttle. It is recommended you wait until the Dawn comes out of FTL speed before you load everything onto the explorer -- the whole (Items tend to shift while travelling) scenerio. But you can do whatever you want.

If you want to carry on any conversations with your team or the crew, you may do so.

The Crew will definately show anyone around the ship who wants a tour. Grynh will eagerly show off Engineering if asked, and will probably talk you to boredom about the works of Ion technology. He also explains that Engineering can serve as a secondary bridge should anything happen to the upper decks. Each lifeboat holds 4 people and has survival gear in it (a few days of food, water, laser pistol, sungoggles, etc.)

Balou explains that the Freighter can easily be modified to transport passengers, and has been in the past. The rooms are usually single-occupancy, but in this situation bunks were put in. Other storage decks can be used for passengers as need be.

The green airlocks monitor the air on the other side of the door. If a vacuum is detected, it will not open. A guage on either side of the door displays a red or green light, indicating proper air levels. They will not open until a green light is displayed.

Elevators service all three decks. The hatches can be used as well, but it's a lot slower going.
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