Peri gets a PA called Ralgo Droom. Hopefully he can book restaurants.

Info from lip reading: “Be on look out for a guy called Recusant.”

Peri and Trick 'interview' Sir Bestran de Ventillia. Claims that he is just here for a stopover, for a business meeting about a former colleague called Recusant who renaged on a contract. Provides us with a list of planets where Recusant has been causing problems. Ventillia had some cargo that was on the Profit Margin.

Recusant knows too much about their operations in Hasaroth Abyss.

Apparently the Profit Margin left soon after the arrest. Peri puts in a request to have it grabbed before it can reach warp distance. In the mean time Trix is left alone with the prisoner.

He was instructed to tell Drak Frexan about Recusant. He is some sort of business contact. He provides contact details. As Trick pushes him further, he starts making stuff up.

Trick offers him the chance to become a mole for us. He seems to be very keen.

Meanwhile… the Profit Margin is refusing to turn back, so a frigate begins to chase it down.

Peri finds information on the six worlds mentioned by Ventillia. Lots of pirate activity, raiding outlying settlements. One of the worlds has completely fallen off the psi net.

Trick starts getting nasty, asking about their communication and encryption systems. He starts yelling “I can't tell you”. His cover personality breaks. He gives some info, then he starts convulsing, and grey tendrils grow from his nose and ears. His face begins to rot quickly. Peri and Trick leave the room, and biocontainment teams arrive.

Peri runs off to judge a cake competition. Um…

Frigate Lance of Righteousness engages the Profit Margin, which returns fire. Profit Margin is disabled with heavy damage.

Information from encrypted messages mentions the Planet Boluon. Looking at information on the pirate attacks, Cain reckons there are 3 other worlds which would be ripe targets but which haven't been attacked. Boluon is one of those.

Cain arranges passage on the 'Spear of Vengeance II'. We will be leaving in the morning.

Peri insists on another PA, called Jenkins. He is to fill the position of field scholar.

Boluon is an agricultural world, which farms the Zug (a very large cow). Extremely placid and very tasty. Mayor Frangle is Imperial Commissionor on the planet.

Before we leave, one of the biospecialists provides info on the gooey stuff. Some sort of very nasty fungus spores. Very deadly. Peri manages to requisition a Rhino for us to take with us. Trick decides that she wants to be known as Vayder now that she is an interregator, since 'Trix' sounds too fluffy.

Anyway… we leave and reach our destination in a couple of days. It's a pretty fast ship.

Reaching the system, the SoV2 scans the system and detects recent warp activity and signs of one or more ships in the system near the planet. As we approach the planet, data resolves to a single frigate in orbit around the planet. Seems to be leaking plasma from the drive, so not great condition. It soon breaks orbit and starts to leave.

Ignores our requests for communication. We head to intercept.

Communicate with Mayor Frangle, who reports that the ship was a pirate ship, and was in the middle of raiding the colony at the time. There are still pirates on the planet, who are raping and pillaging.

Petty Officer Loomis flies our shuttle down to the planet, whilst the SoV2 heads to intercept the pirate ship 'Good Ship Such and Such'. Once we reach planet side, it would appear that the habitability of the world has been greatly exaggerated. It is effectively Elbonia.

We take the Rhino towards an area where smoke is rising from, and it would appear to be where the pirates are. Reach remains of village. Very dead and very very large scaly orange cows (Zug) are around the village. There are survivors here.

Peri and Trix talk to the village head man. The pirates have been raiding for goods and food. We get a tracker to take us to where the pirates are hiding out. Head some of the way by Rhino, then the rest of the way on foot.

Track down a couple of pirates camped down for the night. Zuriel and Cain creep up on them and silently 'take them into protective custody'. The others turn up, and begin questioning. One of the pirates tries to attack Peri, but is cut to pieces by Zuriel before he can make a noise.

The other starts talking. Recusant is their leader, and is in the main camp. Recusant has gone slightly mad, and has brought them to this planet for some unknown reason. He is accompanied by four… things. They have four legs plus guns implanted in their limbs. Very alien, very strange. Very wrong. There is discussion about bombardment from orbit, but we need to take Recusant alive. They are heading for a shuttle which is a day or so away. Recusant has been taking prisoners and interrogating them, though our captive doesn't know why. Apparently they must be after something.