IW 10 - Orbital decay

Context

The CAMEROON made it through rocky fields and radiation belts to the low orbit of Prometheus IV. They are to deliver 60dT of crated components to build a large Gauss accelerator. However, the Vilani-owned Khurram TOLSOI station is in an unstable orbit and is periodically going over periods of atmospheric friction.

IW 9 - Diffuse danger

Context

The operators of the TCIV CAMEROON are licensing the use of a Hero-class free trader from a Terran cooperative based in Douala, Cameroon. They scored a rare freight job in a very out-of-the-way location: Khurman Tolstoi station in low-orbit of Prometheus IV. For a reason or another, the UWO has licensed a Vilani company to build a mining station. They have purchased a Gauss accelerator to ferry material between mining locations. However, this type of hardware is highly restricted as it can be rigged into a very large caliber ballistic electromagnetic gun. There is a reason why no Terran corporation has applied for a prospecting license...

Location

Prometheus IV is a distant gaz giant, some 47 AU from the main world. The area is considered "high density planetary belt", with a unusually high radiation belt, and unpatrolled.

Location: Westchester Regional downport, Terra, Terra
Terran timestamp: May 25, 2170 AD

Aeryn arrived in Westchester about 20 minutes before the planned departure. She sneered at the crew and threw her kitbag into her room. She had intended to stay on Terra, but got impressed in no unequivocal terms that she was under contract, and owing a cash advance and thus is in no position to walk away.

Molly confirmed the last of the diagnostic tests on the jump drive. Tom checked the seals on the crates containing the accelerator's parts. Diane ran blu, the pet roboraptor, around the guest accomodation. Anika and Jane were having breakfast in the common room. Everyone went to station. The CAMEROON took off into orbital space for what could be a very long journey as they meant to head into Vilani territory this time. However, the next jump would be the far reaches of Prometheus.


Location: 100D orbital boundary, Prometheus IV, Prometheus
Terran timestamp: June 2, 2170 AD

The jump was tricky and Jane had to redo the calculation twice. Still, the exit turned out to be in a fairly high velocity vector relative to the planet. An ancient planetary event left Prometheus IV's ring into a diffuse shamble. As a result, the approach to the planet would be delicate. She planned a course that would have a net forward vector of 53 mps. At this velocity, any rocks under 3lb would bounce off the hull's armour. Anything larger would either have to be vaporized with the 10MJ laser, or avoided. The reaction time from detection to collision in the worst case scenario would be about 60s. Jane plotted an approach through a lower density route, Anika sat at the gun's station with a large smoothy, and Molly put her finger on the engineer console to manage the power between the thrusters and the laser. The CAMEROON began its 30h journey into what looked on screen like a fireball of radiations. Diane reported no contact with the Khuram Tolstoi station at that time.

Radiation belts are real downers.

Location: 40 light-second from Prometheus IV, Prometheus IV, Prometheus
Terran timestamp: June 2, 2170 AD

Diane picked up a suspicious item on the fringe of its detection envelope, some 25,000 miles away. Its vector not too far off the CAMEROON's, and currently accelerating to match. The radiations were too much to establish connection, so everyone slipped into battle station. Tom, promoted to tactical commander on the bridge ordered a steady course. The contact, probably smaller than the CAMEROON, attempted a maneuver. However, a dense field of rocks forced it into an opposite vector. Diane kept the array's focus, but the contact kept on blinking in and out of sight due to a mixture of radiation, ice crystals and space rocks.

The CAMEROON still couldn't make connection with the Tolstoi. Although no one on board could notice, Jane kept on pushing forward while dodging rocks as the ship's inbound vector component reached 53.2 mps.

Time passed, the radiation grew into a raging fury ionizing the edges of things on the ship's outer shell. Aeryn started to vomit and had to lie down. The crew otherwise was feeling as if they could get ill, but trusted the protection of the nanodrug that they popped when they arrived.

A hero-class free trader entered the situational display. It was clearly on an interception vector. Communications at 10,000 miles in this radioactive mess wasn't possible. Molly readied the power boost routine, but Tom didn't made the call. Jane plotted an escape deeper into the rings and worked a vector against the contact's efforts. The free trader kept a parallel course but slowly faded into the torrent of noise on the array. Diane then reported extreme fatigue, skin-level blisters and nausea.

Location: low-orbit, Prometheus IV, Prometheus
Terran timestamp: June 3, 2170 AD

The Khurram Tolstoi entered the sensor range when the CAMREOON made it out of the inner radiation belt. Radiation levels went below the danger threshold for medium-term exposure. A solution to the station required about 6h to interception. It became clear that KT station was in the early stage of orbital decay. Diane reported a high temperature surface on the station as its perigee brushed against the troposphere.

Dr. Aarlen Smi-Tolstoi, the station's commander, finally established contact and reported that the station was in difficulty. They needed orbital correction, and some 20 Vilanis were seeking evacuation. They ultimately wanted to go back to Nusku, but would be amenable to simply catch a ride to Prometheus' mainworld to buy commercial passages. Without orbital correction, which the station was no longer able to perform with their weak RCS thusters, they would not accept the delivery.

The crew started to brainstorm on ways to monetize the trip. They could use the CAMEROON's powerful thrusters to perform the correction, but this would require a multi-body EVA to somehow fasten the ship and the station together in some kind of way to align the center of mass to the thrust vector. That rescue ought to be worth good money. They also looked at the 20 evacuees as premium passages, possibly going as far as Nusku (6 pcs, 3 jump-2). All of the payoff was, however, contingent to the rescue of the station from turning into a fireball.

Character Cast

• Tom Anders: Retired Marine, gruff, good hearted. Now get off his cargo hold.
• Diane Ayetou: born rich and far less qualified than given credit for. Gets an A for A-fort.
• Jane Calhoun: Business-like business end of things. Reluctant pilot, appreciate spirits and solitude.
• Anika Kaprescu: Recluse. Did some time, killjoy. The ship’s cat.
• Aeryn Lorien: Stumbling steward, athlete and nurse. Gets the ribbon for caring the most.
• Molly Pepper: Engineer and ship’s puppy. Her giggles are wasted on the crew.

IW 8 - Sake at Gonpachi

Context

The crew is chilling in Japan, if at all possible. While three of them are investigating a sham NGO in the city of Tsukuba, Diane Ayatou is shopping in the strangest of places.

Location

Tsukuba is a city to the North of Tokyo. It is of interest in this story because a research group in the University of Tsukuba has a track record of publication in the reviving of saurien genomes. It is the home of the Rising Sun Mission as well.

Campus of the University of Tsukuba

Location: Tsukuba, Terra, Sol system
Terran timestamp: May 14th, 2170 AD

While Jane and Anika are heading to the restaurant to meet the director of the NGO, Aeryn decides to split. She withdraws an advance of 2KCr from the ship's funds and disappears into the subway station underneath.

Jane and Anika arrive at the restaurant, clearly underdressed. They turn around and Jane bankrolls some clothes shopping. Jane returns as a business woman while Anika insists in sporting her dreadlocks with a schoolgirl combo. The doorman let them through this time. The hostess is polite, and offer them delicacies. Jane inquires about Mr. Toyo and passes along her business card. A young man, calling himself Yuji, tests the water until it becomes clear that the two women appear to know about the water purifier scam.

Some 15 minutes later, they are led into a private room and catch the eye of an important looking man on the way. Jane gets the chill at his sight. In the private room, Mr. Toyo informs the crewladies that there is not enough raptor meat produced to sustain the market on Terra. Jane tried real hard to convince him that she has the team to supply, but comes out sounding naive and baffled.

The two walk out of the restaurant and head for a lower-class joint for many beers, a burger and a lot of karaoke. When the night is as good as done, the two jump on the bullet train to return to Tokyo.


Location: Tokyo's Regional downport, Terra, Sol system
Terran timestamp: May 14th, 2170 AD

Tom and Molly busy themselves in the CAMEROON. Tom cleaning the cargo hold and Molly with the jump-drive. Molly is cheerful and her laughter makes the play stay alive. Tom convinces her to lear the basics of self-defence and passes along some of the basics. Clearly, Molly sees the whole thing as a novelty.

As they are lying on the floor of the main hold, Diane enters the room and get a droid to drop a large box. She pops the box open, and from it comes out a 3' tall robotic raptor. She laugh hysterically.

"It is the new ship's pet.", they look at her, perplexed.
"It's got a fire-extinguisher that's builtin."

Molly and Tom stare at the mini raptors, then back at Diane.

"Its name is Blue."


Location: Tokyo's Regional downport, Terra, Sol system
Terran timestamp: May 15th, 2170 AD

On the following day, Aeryn confirms that she will catch up with the CAMEROON by the 25th at the latest. The crew gets cleared to leave Japan and fly at the edge of space to New-York city to meet with a arms dealer called Atlantis. There, they binge in the purchase of all things weapons without the constraints of regulations. Anika gets herself an automatic shotgun, a loadout gauss pistol and a carbine. Jane and the others buy a number of 3mm needlers.

They still don't know what is going on with Aeryn in Japan, but the crew intends to up the ante and travel far from Earth. Over the next 10 days, Molly heads to Vancouver Island to see the family, Anika spends it at the rifle range, Tom relaxes in New York while Jane drinks on her own in her cabin. The next score will be a big one. Time to unwind.


Location: New York, Terra, Sol system
Terran timestamp: May 25th, 2170 AD

The crew of the CAMEROON are taking possession of its cargo today. The main cargo is rated as highly restricted: it is made of 60dT of packages parts to make a large gauss accelerator. It is restricted because it could be used to make a supergun. However, it is destined to Prometheus IV, a gas giant on the frontier.  The terms of the shipment forbid the recruitment of passengers.

The station on Prometheus IV is a private venture. It is a station in construction and what appears to be an unstable orbit. The entire orbital zone is cluttered with the rocks from a diffuse ring system. The radiation levels are such that the crew has to sink 10KCr in anti-radiation nanodrug. They shall earn their 626KCr for what this is worth.

Meanwhile, Aeryn has yet to report to the ship.

Character Cast

• Tom Anders: Retired Marine, gruff, good hearted. Now get off his cargo hold.
• Diane Ayetou: born rich and far less qualified than given credit for. Gets an A for A-fort.
• Jane Calhoun: Business-like business end of things. Reluctant pilot, appreciate spirits and solitude.
• Anika Kaprescu: Recluse. Did some time, killjoy. The ship’s cat.
• Aeryn Lorien: Stumbling steward, athlete and nurse. Gets the ribbon for caring the most.
• Molly Pepper: Engineer and ship’s puppy. Her giggles are wasted on the crew.

IW 6 - Human trafficking

Context

The CAMEROON has rescued one of its client, and three "targets". They are now trying to find a way to maximize profit amid a legally and ethically dark grey area while remaining on the high ground.

The air is thick enough to make soup with it.

Location

Prometheus is the oldest Terran colony. Brethrow is a distant developing nation where little laws are in effect. The air is thick, the temperature an uncomfortable 35C(95F). The topography is made of mountains covered by a dense jungles. The hunting ground is located 700km North of Brethrow. The environment is best described as somewhere between a mangrove and a jungle.

The insertion spot (purple), the creek (orange), the cave entrance and exit (blue).

   

Location: Hovering over the jungle canopy, mainworld, Prometheus system
Terran timestamp: May 1, 2170 AD

Marion's mangled body is hoisted on the sickbay's table as Aeryn, Molly and Flo are planning the surgery. While Tom jumps in the shower, Diane and Jane are most interested in the three "targets". One of the target, Porfirio, seems to be a man of higher stature. He explains that the hunters purchased 11 prisoners to act as raptor bait for a life-sized capture the "flags" adventure. He shares the location of the base camp, where the game master probably is.
The two other targets, who look more like tough cookies, reveal gladly that after Philip's death, they decided to use Marion as a bait to give a few of them a chance to escape. The plan went badly and only one of them had seemingly escaped.
Porfirio then reveals that the mayor/dictator in Brethrow, Hijo Stamellas,  had sold their lives against a large-scale water purification system. Porfirio offered a good sum to take his revenge on Stamellas.
The crew members were more interested in recovering Philip's body from the cave so that a claim on his life insurance be made. Anika and Tom decided to head back down shortly after Tom managed to put the 10mm Gauss railgun (dinosaur gun) together.


Location: Jungle floor, mainworld, Prometheus system
Terran timestamp: May 1, 2170 AD

Diane used the sensor array to identify movement under the canopy. She guessed that these were 2-3 raptors circling around the cave entrance. As Tom and Anika geared to descend in the air raft, she engaged with a sustained fire downward to burn the foliage to the ground. Amid the wood cracking in the steam and smouldering foliage, Tom struggled with the raft. They landed on the floor more or less blinded by steam, smoke and the impenetrable green of the jungle. With them, Rey, a psychopathic-looking target whom they equipped with the ship's shotgun.

Hey, Anika, you smell like lunch.

The advance in the foliage was slow and noisy. It got interrupted when they reached the pile of bodies and a raptor ambushed them out of the blue. Tom snapped a few 10mm shot and tore the raptor's left leg with the overpowered gun. The beast struggled, but soon the bodies of the three dead targets were on board. Anika, shaken from the ambush, trader her Gauss pistol for Tom's rifle. She had no intention to head down into the tunnel. Tom jumped in, shortly followed by Rey. 

Anika never saw the second ambusher until its fangs had penetrated her nanoweave suit and punctured her lung. In the struggle, the raptor nearly cleaned the flesh from her left arm's bone, severing the main artery and vein.

As her eyesight blurred by the fountain of blood, she could see Flo rapelling from above and the shots of Rey's shotgun felling the beast.



Location: Brethrow, mainworld, Prometheus system
Terran timestamp: May 1, 2170 AD

The medbot "Flo" saved the lungs but admitted defeat with the arm. Anika, an exceptionally strong woman, had survived the shock and the hemorrhage, but her arm was still more or less detached from her body. The CAMEROON flew to Brethrow after contacting a surgeon there. They rushed Anika to his practice. There, Aeryn, Flo and Molly spent the next three hours assisting the surgeon on a very difficult procedure to save Anika's arm.

In the ship, the guest became reckless. Porfirio demanded to be released so that he could get his men to bring him to a safe place. The two other targets showed no interest in returning to Brethrow where they were convicted criminals. After some tough negotiations,  Porfirio transferred 5KCr and waited for the night to exit the ship.

Anika returned late in the evening, stable but still in a critical conditions (-20HP). The CAMEROON left Prometheus and dropped the last two targets in a low-orbit transit station. As the ship sped to the 100D line for a return jump to Terra. They agreed with Marion that he would pay 25KCr for his safe return home. The crew wanted more, but the threat to turn him over for human trafficking rang hollow as they would have gotten no money out of following this option.


Location: Jumpspace, Terra-bound
Terran timestamp: May 2, 2170 AD

The crew decided to look into the business opportunity granted by the presence of farmed raptors on Prometheus. No one really knew how to capitalize this, but it smelled like a high-profit venture.  The all settled for the quiet drone of the jumpdrive for the next 7 days.

Character Cast

• Tom Anders: Retired Marine, gruff, good hearted. Now get off his cargo hold.
• Diane Ayetou: born rich and far less qualified than given credit for. Gets an A for A-fort.
• Jane Calhoun: Business-like business end of things. Reluctant pilot, appreciate spirits and solitude.
• Anika Kaprescu: Recluse. Did some time, killjoy. The ship’s cat.
• Aeryn Lorien: Stumbling steward, athlete and nurse. Gets the ribbon for caring the most.
• Molly Pepper: Engineer and ship’s puppy. Her giggles are wasted on the crew.

IW 4 - Hunters

Context

While crossing the asteroid belt at 2000 miles per second, the TCIV CAMEROON was recruited by the UWO Interplanetary Police to engage a corsair. The engagement was brief, and left the ship with a hull breach through the habitat. Lucky for them, the UWO covered the repairs and medical bills of their passengers. The crew is now in Low-Earth-Orbit (LEO) while Molly tests the new Jump-2 drive and the UWO shipyard patch the old trader.

Location

TSS Obama is a Class A space station largely employing UWO personnel. It is a hub of interplanetary travel, which leaves the drydocks for jump-capable ships slightly underutilised.


Location: TSS Obama, LEO, Terra system
Terran timestamp: April 15, 2170 AD

The CAMEROON entered a pressurized enclave for large scale repairs. The crew was offered to attempt to obtain a deputy license. The crew was enthusiastic as the insurance coming with the deal was rather attractive. Diane, officially dead to avoid prosecution by the Wheat Board and a messy divorce with her wife, made herself invisible as the UWO inspected the ship. Jane, Molly and Tom got certified while Aeryn failed her attempt at the medical officer placement. Anika and Diane took a pass on the events.

A holomail came in on the 27th from the belters that were saved by their intervention. It turned out that their 100MJ laser fused the corsair’s maneuver drive, breaching the hull. Most of the crew perished before rescue could arrive on the scene. The corsair ship was sold for scrap and the proceeds used to pay the insurance premium of the belter community. As a thank you, the belter recorded a folk song and had it sent to the CAMEROON as a thank-you gift. The crew was the hero of a community of about 20 souls. As if this day had not been good enough, the Sisters of Mercy transferred the passage of the two nuns. One of them suffered a stroke, but the other called from the hospital to thank the crew.

Brethrow: come for the client, stay for the drinks.

Location: TSS Obama, LEO, Terra system
Terran timestamp: April 18, 2170 AD

The CAMEROON loaded up nearly to capacity the holds with packaged good bound to Prometheus. They settled the hunters into the high passage cabins and went on their way. The pre-jump thrust was uneventful. For the first time of their contract, the CAMEROON jumped.

Location

Prometheus is the oldest terran colony. With a jungle-like environment, some 850M terrans are living a colonial life mostly in high tech installations. The population is mostly of the Mormon faith in the centers. Gravity is 0.93G, temperature is around 30C-25C. Control rating is 3 and TL 10.


Location: Prometheus, 100D line, Prometheus system
Terran timestamp: April 25, 2170 AD

Philip was a dentist and Marion owned a 3D printing manufacturing business. They paid good money for the crew to insert them into a corrupt backwater on Prometheus named Brethrow. The terms: no paperwork filed to the highport and 3 dT of mystery cargo. Tom figured out that they were on some poaching kind of trip while Aeryn found them easy to keep happy as passenger. Tom noticed that they were preparing very high-caliber rifles for their trip. 

When the CAMEROON arrived, they made a beeline for Brethrow. The place was more or less an unregulated space. They landed on a Class E strip barely big enough for the Hero-class to land in the jungle. 

The hunters debarked, the crew stopped for a drink and soaked up the 35C, dense and moist atmosphere for an hour. They then departed for the UWO lowport to deliver their cargo and wait for the hunters for their call back home.


Location: Prometheus, Low-port, Prometheus system
Terran timestamp: May 1, 2170 AD

Six days went by at the lowport. Aeryn disappeared into the gym/MMA scene while Tom rounded up a few passages back to Terra. An ex-scout agreed to a medium passage and so did two needy and irritating pompous aristocrats. Diane managed to get the hulls full of jobs while Jane tried in vain to locate speculative cargo. 

The timing was rather good because a message came in, weak, from Marion. The message was garbled, video and audio failed. It fell back to text:

Help!
Philip is dead.
I’m trapped, we’re surrounded.

A set of coordinates then got uploaded. Diane rallied the crew into the bridge to await more details. Twenty-five minutes later, the CAMEROON came in LOS and scanned the coordinates. It was dense jungle, mist and 700km North from Brethrow. Diane found a pond some 400m to the east where the airraft could be inserted as the tree canopy around appeared to be some 60m high. By then, there was only 5 minutes to the entry window.

The crew decided to gear up for an extraction to recover Marion, the sherpas and the corpse of Philip the dentist. Someone pointed out that they never got around to purchase personal weapons other than the dazzlers lasers that Diane got in Douala. The exception was the carbine in the ship’s locker. In the interest of time, they voted against dropping by Brethrow to purchase better weapons.

The CAMEROON approached the coordinates. The 100m low precision became obvious when they realized how difficult the terrain turned out to be. More text streamed in:

()*(*ASDSDHLKSJDHSHAGU kslkjfs raptors sjkldkshlkjhflskjhd wd w9809udsjnl high-powered rifles kjsdjkhlakjdhfd9809adfpahdflandf asfkdj;f ;;;;

Tom and Anika suited up and boarded the air raft as the ship sliced through the jungle mist just before dawn...

Character Cast

• Tom Anders: Retired Marine, gruff, good hearted. Now get off his cargo hold.
• Diane Ayetou: born rich and far less qualified than given credit for. Gets an A for A-fort.
• Jane Calhoun: Business-like business end of things. Reluctant pilot, appreciate spirits and solitude.
• Anika Kaprescu: Recluse. Did some time, killjoy. The ship’s cat.
• Aeryn Lorien: Stumbling steward, athlete and nurse. Gets the ribbon for caring the most.
• Molly Pepper: Engineer and ship’s puppy. Her giggles are wasted on the crew.

IW 2 - King Saud's ice paradise

Context

The licensees of Charter 22 are about to launch TCIV CAMEROON to Callisto. There, they expect to find a second hand Jump-2 drive to replace the old and tired one on board.

Shatah: Saudi colony on the fringes.

Callisto

The Saudi royal family founded a colony on Callisto some 50 years ago. The colony’s main economic activity is intercept refueling for starship transiting through the Terran system without stopping at the main world. Callisto is a 100km-thick layer of ice (water and carbon dioxide) over a 10-20km deep subsurface ocean. Some 45K people, mainly arabic-speaker live there.   

IW1 - Advertising faux-pas

We had a very brief session. But we are sorting out how we want to play this game.

Douala’s Tramp freighter market, March 10th 2170AD 

The meeting with Pierrot ended by early afternoon. The contract for charter 22 was signed, but the CAMEROON was still in low-earth orbit at TSS Merkel. Molly, Aeryn and Anika bought a shuttle ticket and caught the burn upward just as the gate was closing. Some two hours later, they keyed in the passcode and entered the tramp freighter. Molly ran a few diagnostic, Aeryn . Aeryn checked life support then the kitchen. Anika looked in vain in the ship’s locker for armament, then established contact with orbital control to obtain the permission for a reentry to Douala regional spaceport. The last crew were smokers and the ship felt filthy. With minimal system’s running, Molly made the first of many burn and plunged into Terra’s atmosphere.

IW0 - Inception

Doualé, Cameroon, Terra; March 10 2170 AD -- Life had been cramping Diane Ayatou's style like a dead bird hanging over the porch. Her dreams of the next big thing, of unfettered pop explosion seemed dead in the water for years. However, that stalled ship had sailed: she read once more her obituary and giggled. Of course, her wife will take a while to heal, but this is the cost of loving someone like her. Most importantly, the gremlins from the Atomic Energy Board were certain to get off her tail for as long as she was no longer a player in Western Africa.

Diane Ayatou

Diane Ayatou

152 points

female, 31 y.o. Cameroonian
ST 10 [0]; DX 10 [0]; IQ 10 [0]; HT 10 [0].
HP 10 [0]; Will 12 [10]; Per 10 [0]; FP 10 [0].
Basic Speed 5.00 [0]; Basic Move 5 [0].

Social Background

TL: 10 [0].
CF: Terra [0].
Languages: Anglic (Accented) [4]; French (Native) [0]; Portuguese (Broken) [2]; Low Vilani (Broken) [2].

Advantages

Academic Rank 2 [10]; Charisma 1 [5]; Fitlhy Rich [50]; Free Trader Rank 1 [5]; Status 4 [15].

Disadvantages

Debt 2 [-2]; Obsession (market a pop culture fad) (12) [-10]; Odious Personal Habit (Incessant Optimism) [-5]; Overweight [-1]; Secret (Faked my own death) [-10]; Unfit [-5]; Xenophilia (12) [-10].
Quirks: Distractible [-1]; Dreamer [-1].

Skills

Administration (A) IQ+1 [4]-11*; Area Knowledge (Terra) (A) IQ+2 [8]-12; Area Knowledge (Prometheus) (A) IQ+2 [8]-12; Area Knowledge (Junction) (A) IQ+2 [8]-12; Area Knowledge (Lagash) (A) IQ+2 [8]-12; Computer Operation (E) IQ [1]-10; Cryptography (H) IQ+1 [8]-11; Economics (H) IQ-2 [1]-8*; Electronics Operation (Comms) (A) IQ+1 [4]-11; Electronics Operation (Sensors) (A) IQ+1 [4]-11; Finance (H) IQ [4]-10*; Freight Handling (A) IQ-1 [1]-9; Intelligence Analysis (H) IQ+1 [8]-11; Market Analysis (H) IQ+2 [12]-12*; Merchant (A) IQ+1 [4]-11*; Propaganda (A) IQ [2]-10*; Research (A) IQ+1 [4]-11; Savoir-Faire (Business) (E) IQ [1]-10; Writing (A) IQ+1 [4]-11.

Equipment

• Small, Fast, Hardened, Rugged computer with integrated datapad. Complexity 6, $8,016, 1.68 lbs., 2B/18 hr. LC4.
• Stylish Nanoweave undersuit [Torso, Groin, Arms, and Legs]. DR 12/4*. $2,320, 3.87 lbs. LC4.
• Stylish Nanoweave cape [Torso]. Covers back only. DR12/4*. $400, 0.67 lb. LC4.
• Rugged Tiny radio communicator earpiece [Ear]. Basic encryption. 2-mile range. $100, 0.06 lb. each. 2A/10 hr. LC4.
• Rugged mini laser flashlight. Can Dazzle targets (Blindness for 1 minute x MoF) in a 1-yard cone (p. B413). HT-5 aff, Acc 6, Range 170/500, Shots 3600(3), Bulk -1. $20, 0.3 lb. B/3600 shots. LC4.
• TL10 Nursebot. Non-volitional AI. Sculpted body. Fast Personal computer. Complexity 8 (IQ10). Skills (Diagnosis-12, Electronics Operation (Medical)-12, First Aid-12, Pharmacy-12, Physician-12, Surgery-12). $504,000, 150 lbs. 2D/24 hr. LC3 (Licenses).
• Crash Kit. +2 to First Aid, improvised equipment for Surgery. $200, 10 lbs. LC4.
• Medical Supplies. 500 man-days. $5,000, 50 lbs.
• Rugged Pocket Medic. Automatically bandages a wound and treats shock with First Aid-13. $2,400, 2.4 lbs. (each). B/10 hr. LC4.
• Good Software Tools for Finance, Market Analysis, Merchant, Propaganda for me and Jane. $8,000.
• Fine Software Tools for Finance, Market Analysis, Merchant, Propaganda. $20,000.

Background

Diane was born into a very wealthy Cameroonian family of mixed European and African descent. While pursuing her MBA, she met and fell in love with an Industrial Designer from Spain name Rosa, and the two married soon after graduation.

Early in her business career, Diane made some questionable deals that resulted in a few units of He3 being redirected away from a spaceport in Ecuador to a research lab in Peru in which Diane had invested. This drew the attention of the IAEA, who spent the next several years hounding her and her ventures across the Terran system.

Her feud with the IAEA put a terrible strain on Diane's marriage. In the end, to avoid a drawn-out divorce and further government interference, Diane paid a mercenary group to stage her death in a shuttle accident. She then signed on with the TCIV Cameroon, looking to get out of the system for a while and seek her fortune among the stars.