Space Race: 1998

Tortuga Station, Somewhere in the Asteroid Belt

Doctor Henry Beringer sighed as he set foot into the seedy tavern - "The Hammered Oyster", it apparently was called - trying to find his contact. The young man, slight of build, with wavy blonde hair and blue eyes, felt incredibly unsafe here... yet was well-aware that this was really the safest place in the solar system that he could be - far away from the prying eyes of the Americans, Soviets, or anyone else who could try and claim the artifact in an attempt to shift the balance of interplanetary political power. A few seconds later, one of the waitresses - a pretty, raven-haired Nyriim clad in a tight white blouse and skirt so short it served little practical purpose approached him, a welcoming smile on her face.

"Hi! Welcome to the 'Hammered Oyster'!" she began. "Anything I can help you with?"

"Oh! I'm uh... looking for... ah! There he is! Excuse me..." With that, Henry slipped past the waitress who had greeted him, before nearly running over to the table where his contact was sitting.

"Um, hello. Captain Marston, I presume?"

Marston looked over at the Doctor and cocked a brow, eyeing him over, "Yes?"

"Doctor Henry Berigner!" he said with an awkward smile. He extended his hand in anticipation of a handshake. "I was hoping we could talk business, now that I have both the money and the..." he looked around, trying to make sure no one else was looking. "Cargo."

Marston stared at the Doctor and quirked a brow, he then asked, "Is it by any chance about 6 feet by 6 feet?"

Berringer laughed.

"No no... much smaller than that. Or at least, the fragment I have is." He then threw a small bag in front of Marston.

"There's half your payment - fifteen thousand bucks, all cash. You'll get the rest when we reach the Trojan Asteroids - the Greek camp, to be specific." The Trojan asteroids, as all space captains know, are the two asteroid clusters that share Jupiter's orbit, sitting 60 degrees ahead of and behind the giant planet. The "Greek Camp" being the cluster that orbit ahead of Jupiter, the "Trojan Camp" being the cluster that follow. "I'll let you know which asteroid in particular once we depart. You know how it is."

"You'd be surprised at the amount of reports that deal in human transportation," Marston responded, leading the Doctor away.

"You'll be allowed to look over my ship before we depart, and we get your cargo loaded."

Berringer smirked slightly at Marston's comment.

"Well, I can assure you that there's no sentient trafficking here. And thank you, for letting me tour your ship." His smirk turned into a full smile. "Now then, shall we order some drinks and snacks before departing?"

Elsewhere in the station...

"Are you sure he's here?" a man dressed in a black three-piece suit asked his informant - a scruffy-looking young man clad in a hooded sweatshirt and cargo pants.

"Positive." the other man replied. "Saw him walking into the Hammered Oyster just a few minutes ago. And it looks like he's got the artifact with him." The man in black smirked.

"Well then..." he said, grabbing a laser pistol. "Gather the boys. I'd say it's time we... convince... the good doctor to hand over his little discovery."

Hey, so it's been quite a few months. Is the RP dead?