His homeworld, Regina, offered little in the way of excitement to Devlin. It was thus at an early age that he attempted to sign on to a free trader. Initially failing to find a suitably “exciting” crew (willing to take him on), Devlin spent his first year in space as an engineering spacehand for a fledgeling trading line, the Obmanskad Traders.

Released by Obmanskad, Devlin signed on to a Free Trader, the Herstadt, for the next few years. It was here, over a woman, that he learned to fight the way that spacers fight: at close quarters, with a cold steel “blade”. Gunter Wagner, the captain of the Herstadt (and an occasional smuggler), soon saw the promise in his young recruit’s intelligence and promoted Devlin. It was during this time that he bonded with his new crew, learning to “carouse”.

Abruptly finding his employment at an end due to the bankruptcy repossession of the Herstadt, Devlin once again joined a fledgeling line, the Marskeg Union this time. His day to day work in the Union taught him a bit about spacing in general, sort of a “jack of all trades” education. During this period Devlin gained valuable “ZeroG” combat experience while repelling Pirates. It was also in Marskeg Union employ, while serving as a Purser, that he developed his “laison” skills, deftly aiding in negotiating transfers of cargo between rival Union captains at a crucial moment. Due to layoffs, however, Devlin once again found himself unemployed.

He next found employment with Captain Faud Amik of the Free Trader Salazar. During many years with Captain Amik, Devlin learned the art of “brokering” trade deals as well as the “legal” ramifications of those same deals. He also learned to utilize a “VaccSuit”, and was trained in the skill of “communications”. Early in his service on the Salazar, Captain Amik, fearing his ship would be repossessed after a run of bad trades, turned for a short time to Piracy. While finding this line of work dangerous and distasteful, both Captain and crew were good at it, their successes leading to a 5,000Cr bonus for Devlin, as well as more “legal” training during an ensuing lawsuit. But the good times ended when Amik was killed during a bar fight at Keng.

Next finding work on the MariBeth, an old trader plying safer routes between Regina and Feri, Devlin learned starship “navigation”, as well as increasing his skills at “brokering” deals and working in “VaccSuits”. Sadly though, the work was not only boring but spotty, providing Devlin little in the way of bonuses.

So it was that Devlin, on the last route of the MariBeth to Regina, delivered his resignation to her captain and struck out for the Sodden Spacer, the station’s wildest bar, to see if life at 34 could be made exciting again…

Finding the Sodden Spacer boring, Devlin took his appetites uptown, to the Purple Oyster. It was there that his knowledge of Regina’s contraband laws helped him extricate a certain Sir Sinclair Chormondley Warner from impending legal complications. “SCW”, as he is commonly known, agreed to hire Devlin as his personal legal consultant (and part-time bodyguard) for a mere 8000Cr per month…

After a series of adventures with Sinclair on Ruie and Forboldn, during a charter voyage to go hunting Tree Kraken on Knorbes, Devlin finds himself honorably seconded from Sinclair’s employ while laying over on Forboldn. There he is offered employment by Captain Richard Von Wolffe, owner of the charter vessel he had been travelling on, the Red Dawn, at a salary of 10,000Cr per month. Having finished their adventures on Forboldn, the Dawn continues on to Knorbes, after which Devlin’s obligation to SCW will end. A hitch appears in Devlin’s plans, however. While on Knorbes, travelling on the Lesser continent, the Dawn’s crew finds themselves in trouble with the law. They are arrested by Marines and taken by Imperial Cruiser to Pixie, where they are imprisoned on the “gash”, a Kinunir class cruiser stripped of its drives and set in orbit around a gas giant as a high security Imperial prison…

Escaping from the Gash, Devlin and friends find themselves aboard an aging trader, owned by one of their fellow escapees, Azax. The ship misjumps on it’s first attempt and flings them 10 parsecs into Vargr space, where they are set upon by a Vargr Corsair, Veng class. Turning the tables on the Pirates, Dev and company take over the Corsair, renaming it the Phoenix Rising, leading to a new set of adventures…

Following a series of adventures in Vargr space (including attacking a mining rig, plundering a derelict lab ship, and engaging in a space battle with a trader), Rich resigns as Captain, leaving Devlin the job. Sarge, always haunted by his PTSD, more so after his massacre of surrendered Vargr crewmen during one of the space battles, commits suicide, his body is shot into the sun at Dhargg…

Leaving Dharrg for Aegg, the crew finds, ariving at Aegg, that glorious Leader Ruhk’s forces are attacking Aegg…allying themselves with the forces of Ruhk, the rising’s crew discover an IISS scout ship under attack and proceed to fight off the fighters waylaying her and then to rescue the surviving crewman, pilot Lev Novikov…

Following this adventure, the crew rescued the people of Ksoraknue by attacking a joint Zhodani/Rukh moon base and capturing an antidote for the plague the Zho/Rukhian agents had unleashed upon them. Out of gratitude, they were awarded Vargr citizenship papers and, with a cash bonus, sold the 400 dton Corsair, the Rising, for a ship they could peacefully pilot back to ImpSpace, a 600 dton Vargr Packet they named the Queen Laghguvka of Ksorraknue. Dev is voted “master” of the new ship.

Reaching Farreach, they took on new passengers and crew, including former IISS pilot Kor Sinclair, engineer Esra Wallenkamp, and a mysterious lady named “Sin-Sasha”. Lev, recalled to IISS duty, left the crew, leading Dev to promote Kor to Ship’s Pilot. Among the passengers were two ImpSec agents, a fugitive and their doctor. Along the way to Mongo, their next stop, SCW accidentally let on that the original crew were fugitives. Bugging the agents quarters led to the party discovering that the Agents planned to turn them in upon reaching Mongo. After much discussion about what to do, Doc Splinter drugged the agents and they were placed into cold sleep in a low berth. The crewmen and Chiefs, both new and old, are each given a 2% share in the QLoK to “tie” them to the fugitives, though, now that they’ve assisted the old crew in subduing and confining the agents, they are all accomplices in the eyes of the law…

Arriving at Mongo, there was again much debate about how to handle the situation, with many argiung the agents should be “spaced”. Others, including Dev, argued for “keeping them on ice” until a plan could be arranged to deal with the long term consequences of their now “blown” Vargr papers. In the end, thanks to Kor’s intervention, the agents are deposited on a remote island just as the QLoK leaves…the island is visited every 8-10 days, so that’s the lead the now fleeing fugitives have…

They flee to Esalin, where Lev’s old IISS and ImpSec contact, a Mr Taylor, gives them an option…help him find out who is committing a string of murders of instructors at his spy school, and he’ll put in a “good word” for the fugitive crew with MoJ authorities, maybe even supply them with fake papers himself. The crew finds out that IneGevar agents have infiltrated the school, and recover proof, but not before their own ineptitude gives them away. They narrowly flee, leaving Taylor behind. Waiting for the next couple of days at the spaceport, selling their cargo and enjoying a new year’s bash with SCW and the Vargr, they wait to hear from Taylor, to no avail. With Xboat notification of their fugitive status only a day or two away, Dev gathers the crew and proposes selling the QLoK, buying fake IDs, and leaving the planet as anonymous “paying” passengers, to land again on another planet, buy a new ship, and start over…but, wait. A mission is mounted to rescue Taylor, he is grateful and issues ImpSec “undercover” chips to the crew, giving them a pass with ImpCustoms…

(updated 10/26/11)

characteristic	score	modifier
strength
dexterity
endurance
intellect
education
social

Mustered Out on Regina

Devlin Michael

basic_info

characteristics

skillsshow

biography

Devlin Michael