JUMP! Fornice to Jokotre

LC looks back meeting Bronz's stare with a grin and says in a matter of fact manner;
"A Captain is as only good as the people he leads....but I will endeavor not to Screw this up." he grins

BIC
The Miss Fortune drops into her final approach with a deep, humming resonance that travels through her deckplates like the purr of a satisfied beast.

LC Rains, standing behind the pilot’s seat with one hand braced lightly on the backrest, squints out the forward viewport. Jokotre High Port looms ahead—industrial, bristling with antennas, hangar bays, and gantries. The starfield warps behind it, curling around the edges of the orbital like dust funneling into a drain.

He adjusts the collar of his jacket and leans in toward Tharrok.
"Let’s make it clean, pilot. They don’t need to remember us for our docking."
It’s said with an edge of humor, but LC watches the approach like a hawk.

As the proximity alert pings, a grav-vehicle approaches, its hull gleaming with port-side reflectors. The sign pulses: "FOLLOW ME!"

"Well, now they roll out the welcome mat." LC murmurs, toggling the comm.
"High Port Control, this is Free Trader Miss Fortune, transponder F-MF-387-A7, acknowledging grav-guide. Following to Dock 17, Bay 4. ETA—90 seconds. Appreciate the assist." Referring to the Port Authority Grav-Vehicle.

He taps the console with two fingers and glances over his shoulder.
"Tamm—double-check our docking ring seals and pressure tolerances. Bronz, Lei—stand by engineering interlocks. If the clamps hiss louder than they ought to, I want your hands on it."

A brief smile touches his lips as the docking ring begins to extend ahead.

"Said-Ma, give our med-bay a once-over—nothing says inspection bait like an unsecured medscanner."

LC leaves the bridge and makes his way down to the docking bay. Once there seeing Alice and Rin already preparing for connections, he raises a brow toward Alice and Rin as the port rotates into view.
"Alice, feel like charming our new neighbors? Once we’re hard docked, you’re with me to meet the port reps. Rin, stand by to assist. Let’s give them our best face—genuine smiles, polished boots."

A tremble echoes through the ship as the final maneuvering thrusters flare. Miss Fortune aligns smoothly and the sound of hydraulic clamp engagement rolls through the hull with a satisfying CLUNK-KSHHH. The green lights shift across the main console.

"Docking confirmed. Hard seal engaged. We’re in, folks." LC states the obvious to Alice, Rin and the rest of the crew.

Moments later, the airlock cycles, hissing open as the Port Captain’s representative steps aboard—trim uniform, data-tablet in hand, and eyes already scanning the ship’s interior.

LC greets him with practiced warmth.
"Welcome aboard the Miss Fortune. I am LC Rains, the Captina of this ship, this here is 2nd Office Alice Petrov and Steward Rin Bauer. All ship’s records and logbook are in order." He hands over the dataslate.The rep nods, signs without much delay, and offers a tight smile.
"You’re paid up on your 100-credit wharfage, I hope?"
"Already transmitted," LC replies. "We believe in swift settlements."

The man snorts faintly.
"Heading planetside, I hear. Well... good luck down there. Customs will give you what they can. But Jokotre’s full of corners no map marks clearly. Watch yourselves."

As the official turns away, LC looks back over the crew gathered near the entryway, giving them a nod.

"All right, crew. Docking’s complete. Start the standard post-lock checks, then prepare for in-port rotations. Anyone needs direction, find me. Let’s make this stop efficient—and profitable."

He lets that hang in the air a moment before adding,
"Also… nobody touch anything glowing, humming, or labeled in a dialect you don’t read."

LC stood in the galley-turned-briefing-space with a cup of tea that had long gone cold. The Miss Fortune thrummed gently in its berth on Deck 17, dock 4 of Jokotre High Port, and the air already smelled of recirculated bureaucracy.

He looked around the assembled crew—some seated, others leaning against bulkheads or sipping recaf. His tone was steady, clipped but not harsh, projecting the quiet command of someone who expected things to get done without shouting.

"All right, folks—here’s the lay of the deck for Day One."

He tapped the ship’s tablet, calling up a basic task roster and pushing it to the wall screen.

"First off: no Liberty today. We’re in active port operations, and we’ve got too many plates in the air. Full Crew status, all hands. If it goes smooth, we’ll rotate Liberty starting tomorrow."

He nodded toward Tamm, arms crossed near the door.

"Tamm—take lead on full ship inspection. I want all engineering stations walked, power levels logged, atmosphere and environmental balances confirmed, and report any wear we didn’t log last jump. Coordinate with Leilani and Bronz. Treat it like we’re prepping for re-entry, even if we don’t get the clearance."

He tapped the pad again.

"Speaking of which—our priority task is obtaining a Flight Permission—’Trade Benediction,’ they call it here—to descend to the surface. That means getting through the local religious protocols." He gave a dry half-smile.

"Said-Ma, and Alice—talk to the Station’s posted Sanctifier or Canon-Pilot, whoever’s on duty today. You’ll probably find them adjacent to the Office of Stellar Ethics—keep it polite, keep it clean. See if our documentation from Smugg Enterprises helps. If not, smile, nod, and figure out what they want for a blessing."

He paused, looking around, eyes scanning for Alice, then Said-Ma.

"Said-Ma, Alice—once that’s rolling, I want you on the Merchant Guide Boards. Look for available ready freight, especially short-haul or 'easy off' cargo we can pick up without long clearance. Anything low-risk we can book today, we’ll take. Check passenger boards too—see if anyone’s looking for passage dirtside or outbound. I want to move quickly if we get a jump window."

LC reached for his tea, reconsidered, then let it sit.

"And last—but important—I want crew input on the next jump target. We’ve got a couple trade routes open from here. I need suggestions based on what cargo types we’re aiming to buy here for resale. Give me options, not just favorites—Bronz, you know the drive, think about range. Rin, think of provisioning needs. Everyone else—look at market indexes or rumors on the board. I’ll put a full options brief together before Day Three."

He gave a final nod to the crew.

"Questions? If not—get to it. Let’s make this stop count."

"Aye, Captain." Tamm performs the docking station checks as LC requested.

When the inspectors arrive, they find Tamm in his ship's coveralls, no Oaty Fruity or any of his other "unique" shirts are visible. Even his shipboard boots are clean and have a bit of shine.

Tamm listens to the Captain's instructions and when the meeting breaks up, Tamm goes to Engineering to review the diagnostics.

LC looks over the cargo Manifest one last time

Bronz studies the star charts in silence, eyes narrowing slightly. Half a dozen worlds in jump range—but none with the tech or infrastructure they just left behind.

He turns to LC and the others. "We thinking about setting up somewhere solid, like Fornice? Or just picking a direction and seeing what kind of fortune shakes loose?"

LC rests a hand on the edge of the galley table, studying the holographic star map as it slowly rotates above the display.

"You're not wrong, Bronz," he says after a pause. "There’s wisdom in both paths—and risk in each too."

He glances around at the others.

"Setting up a regular route—say, a circuit between Fornice and a handful of dependable systems—means steady credits. Not flashy, but reliable. Contracts you can count on, relationships you can build. Bit by bit, that sort of work keeps the ship running, and the shares growing."

He turns to Bronz, one brow raised, the corner of his mouth twitching in a faint smile.

"But I think what you’re asking is... do we want to live a little while we’re doing it."

LC then scratches his temple and then looks at the star map displayed above the table in the crew galley area, in three dimensional display projection for everyone to see.

"We could do both if we plan it right..."

Looking at the crew
"We could use the main route picking up multiple speculative cargo sets in 5 ton packages and sell those to low tech worlds, where it is profitable."

"A circuit sounds safe but I don't want to be a privately owned subbie if you all follow. If we pick up spec cargo, we can branch off of our route to sell on lower tech works along it.
If we can manage the turn around, Miss Fortune could offer expedited shipping. We might be able to shave a couple of days off the trip which might be important to some shippers. We'd charge a premium and it would save us a few days' docking charges."

LC nods slowly as Tamm finishes, arms folded, weight shifted slightly to one hip as the star map continues to spin lazily behind him.

"I follow, Tamm. And you're not wrong—there’s a fine line between running a trade circuit... and becoming someone else’s haulage drone."
He offers a faint grin.
"Rest assured, I’ve got no interest in flying under anyone’s corporate flag or getting shackled to contracts that call us by the number, not the name. We built this crew to choose where we go."

He pauses, then tilts his head slightly toward the engineer.

"Now, your idea about expedited shipping—that’s got teeth." He taps the holo, zooming the map to show a three-world loop.
"If we can lock down reliable turnaround times, and some worlds along the route are lean on local haulers, we could absolutely carve out a niche. Charge premium rates for priority freight, maybe even passengers with urgent business. That’s real value."

He lifts a hand, cautious now.

"But here’s where the grind hits: most of our in-port time isn’t just cargo handling, it’s cargo hunting."
"Alice—what’s your take? If we rush the clock to cut down port time, does that kneecap our ability to find good spec cargo? Or do you think there's room to do both?"

**He turns slightly toward Said-Ma, giving her a brief nod.
"Same question to you, Ma—from the purser’s perspective. How tight can we run dockside operations without bleeding into the profit margins? You’ve seen our resupply bills."

LC shrugs lightly, the gesture thoughtful.

"And then there’s Jump time. We could run triple shifts in dock, skip Liberty, grease every port hand from here to Fornice—and we’d still be at the mercy of seven days in Jump. No shortcuts in hyperspace, sadly."

He looks back to Tamm, voice steady.

"That said—if we can optimize our turnaround, if we plan cargo flows a jump ahead, if we use the circuit not to be bound by it but to outpace the others flying it... then yeah, we can carve out something sharp and profitable. Just gotta be realistic about the limits—and clever about bending around them."

His gaze shifts to Bronz and Rin now.

"You’ve worked both sides of the hold, Bronz. From your view in engineering—and cargo—does Tamm’s expedited plan look doable? Rin, you worked both cargo too, taking care of the passengers and cooking up that mean lasagna. Or are we cutting corners that might not survive a rough landing?"

Then to Tharrok, with a flick of a grin.

"And Tharrok, you're the one who has to fly her and deal with orbital traffic and burn windows. If we try to run lean and fast, do you think the ship—and the crew—can keep pace without pushing too far?"

He then looks at Leilani
"Leilani do you have any thoughts?"

He glances around the room, then finally says:

"Everyone here’s got skin in the game. Let’s hear it. If we’re building a plan, I want every voice in the loop."

"I hadn't considered running to backwater worlds but, the idea has merit.
Yeah, J-time & light speed are solid limits but maybe, we could put out feelers for cargo & passengers for the next time we're in a port before leaving it. I think if the manufacturers know when we will be back in port, they would plan their shipments a couple of weeks in advance.
We should consider developing a steady customer base. Say we get cargo & passengers on Fornice. We can negotiate prices for shipping the next lot with us as long as we can establish a name & reputation for Miss Fortune.

The old crew might be surprised by how much Tamm is participating in the conversations compared to when Dolores Biga was aboard. Or perhaps not; the crew certainly noticed that Tamm & Biga spoke together quite frequently. Early on, the old crew may have thought Tamm & Biga had a thing going on but the goodbye on Fornice looked like they are just friends.

LC offers a short nod, the kind that comes from genuine agreement rather than habit.

"Now that’s forward thinking, Tamm." He taps the corner of the holoscreen, highlighting the route they’d been discussing.

"A rolling manifest system—start putting out feelers before we even break orbit. Establishing a reputation not just for delivery, but consistency—that’s what builds trust with buyers and shippers alike. If Fornice knows Miss Fortune is coming back in three weeks, and they’ve got goods that need moving—well, we stop being a risk and start being a solution."

He shifts his weight slightly, eyes sweeping the room.

"Alice, you’re in the perfect position to float the idea with brokers and buyers. If we can build a handshake network—three or four worlds with known players—we can reduce downtime, negotiate better cargo lots, and even push return contracts. Cargo in, cargo out."

He glances to Said-Ma.

"Ma, you’ll want to start tracking reliability metrics—on-time arrival, claims, fuel usage. If we’re going to become someone’s go-to ship, we’ll need the data to back up the pitch. Numbers are the sharpest part of any sales blade."

He turns back to Tamm, a thoughtful expression crossing his face.

"We’ll have to walk a line, though—can’t let bookings lock us into routes so tight we can’t respond to opportunity. But if we frame it right? Miss Fortune gets known not just as a Free Trader—but as a ship people wait for."

He pauses, grin returning just slightly.

"Not bad for a bunch of ‘wanderers,’ yeah?"

Looking around at the crew
"I know the rest of you have some ideas, lets hear them..."

LC then look at Bronz;
"Now if we can figure out how to sell incense to a Sanctifier we would be in business" LC say with a smile.

"Aye, aye, Captain, I'll get right onto it!"

LC smiles at her reply, "That is good to hear that you are thinking that way. What do you think about the procurement of cargo handling droids? You know, to speed up the cargo handling process??