Scene Five

The Elsin Rani, Khawaja Majumder’s Light Freighter, has been disabled by a pair of Makara heavy fighters on long range patrol above an unnamed world in the Yami Belt. Our heroes must destroy, disable, or drive off those ships before the Makara can destroy the freighter and render for Khawaja Majumder out of reach – permanently.

The Makara pilots, seasoned veterans both, put up quite a fight, one that seems to overmatch the Fast Courier class ship our Bounty Hunters have at their disposal. In the end, one of the fighters is driven off, and the other is destroyed. Unfortunately, the latter victory required the sacrifice of the Risky Business, and our heroes find themselves faced with commandeering the disabled freighter or Khawaja Majumder or walking home.

Scene 3

The heroes have located fugitive target Khawaja Majumder’s contact and fence Faysal Accha at a resort casino complex on the Beltworld of Mahanadi. This extensive complex is located belowground for the most part, due to the intemperate climate of the outpost above. The independent colony has fairly permissive standards regarding weapons and armor, but the wealthy casino has inversely strict requirements for entry, and the technik and personnel to back the requirements up.

A complicated plan to sneak some gear into the establishment while Faysal is located is executed with the usual flair: it starts well, and ends up progressively destabilizing as time goes on. Business class accommodations are secured in the levels beneath the casino, and the intrigue continues to play out in the half a dozen levels separating the hunters’ room and the high roller suites below. Eventually, one too many technical failures for bypassing security summon a handful of well armed security personnel, and the heroes barely having time to scan the contents of Faysal’s business documents (which include the name of the freighter Ar. Majumder chartered, and a timetable of unclaimed planetoids to visit).

Scene 4

The Risky Business makes an expeditious high speed departure from Mahanadi, while being pursued by a pair of light fighters (either security forces associated with the casino, or mercenaries in the employ of Faysal Accha – it’s never precisely determined). Thanks to some impressive gunnery work by Shiv, the fighters are disabled in low orbit of Mahandi, allowing the ship to escape.

Onward to a series of unnamed worlds in the Yami Belt that the fugitive has survey data for.

A Black Band Warrant has been issued for Khawaja Majumder, a Janya of the Artisan Caste.  He is wanted on the charges of Corporate Espionage, Larceny, and Grand Theft, in an incident on the Yami Province (and Quadrant Capital), Yamuna. Known associates include Kajol Purakayastha, Naisha Chakma, and Prabir Basak, all of the Artisan caste. Expected complications are the Economic nature of the crime (in all likelihood the fugitive has resources to spare), and lots of (charted and uncharted) places to hide in the Belt.

A flash-forward shot for the episode shows all three bounty hunters falling in the darkness of space, apparently extra-vehicular.

Scene One:

The Yamuna Survey Office, and an interaction with a known associate of the fugitive, Kajol Purakayastha. It’s revealed that espionage and theft were of a survey map of remote (and unclaimed) Yami worlds rich in precious metals, as well as samples of the metals in question. Kajol seems ill-disposed towards the fugitive, and through soft-interrogation reveals a possible vulnerability of the target: an expensive Soma habit.

Underworld contacts reveal an extensive network of crime and criminals based on the Beltworld of Wakal, and our heroes are off.

Scene Two: A Soma Den in Wakal

Prabir Basak, another of known associate of the fugitive, is in a highly suggestible state. After intimidating some local low-lives with designs on Prabir’s wallet, the grateful Artisan offers an unexpected discovery: the name and location of the fence that Khawaja Majumder sold the precious metals from the Survey office to (Prabir facilitated the meeting, and has just finished drinking, snorting, and injecting her finder’s fee).

From here, it’s off to the independent colony of Mahanadi, a refinery outpost known for “anything goes” Casinos.

Scene Six

Roslin Syed has been remanded into Inquisition custody on Aruna, and the individual hunters are debriefed separately.  Shiv’s testimony in particular is quite detailed, as zhe was “whammied” on more than one occasion with the shakti disrupting Sādhanā of the spiritualist.

The illicit Red Warrant on Roslin Syed is closed successfully.

Scene Four

This week, on Rockets and Mayhem, our heroes snuck into the space-circus after hours to abduct a heretic spiritualist at the request of the Inquisition (1). Things were touch and go taking a shortcut through the botanical freakshow (2), but thankfully the Raksasa carnies socializing in the laborer encampment were just drunk enough not to notice the bounty hunters technically didn’t have a warrant for their principal.

Scene Five

Also thankfully, the aforementioned principal Roslin Syed had very little prep time to ready zher magics before the door got busted in. Zhe had company in the form of a burly Kravyad Crocotta tamer who put up quite a fight. By the time Roslin was disabled and unconconscious, zher companion Tanoarn Mezec had fled into the darkness, no doubt to bedevil our heroes in the future.

1) “Everybody Owes Somebody”

2) see also: The Trouble with Triffids