Castle in the Sky (Kaori, Jorus Merrill, PM for Invite)

[Kaori]

[member="Jorus Merrill"]
[member="Juro Tanaka"]

It was then that Kaori appeared next to them. She was clad once again in her Asahian uniform. She had, of course, been listening to the entire conversation with great interest. How in the universe could this man push a hyperdrive higher than 0.5...? Already, she was working to solve that mathematical dilemma. As such, she was... a bit distracted, and it took her a moment to notice them. When she did, she somewhat nervously cleared her throat. "Oh. So sorry, Captain. I was just listening to mister Merrill's explanation, and got rather caught up in analyzing the mathematics involved in such an undertaking."

She sighed again, realizing she'd become distracted. With a slight frown, she addressed Jorus. "Mr. Merrill. I'd be quite interested to see how your hyperdrive is integrated with your ship. I may be able to help design something suitable for the Asahian vessels..."

 

[Jorus Merrill]

[member="Juro Tanaka"] [member="Kaori"]

"Analyze away," he told the AI after a long pause. "Seriously, go right ahead. Anything I can do to help. Now, there's very little chance of getting such a fast drive on the command ships you want to use -- I'm not sure how much of our earlier conversations you heard-"

He was, he realized, getting a little nervous. The Daragon was heavily, heavily automated. An AI could wreak havoc here. Not that they would, but still.

"I do know some people who could help with that, though. Former employees of mine."

 

[Juro Tanaka]

Tanaka bowed slightly in thanks at Jorus' compliments on his research team and waiting as [member="Kaori"] finished speaking.

"We hope to have new hyper-drive on Akagi very soon," Tanaka stated politely. "If Kaori help make faster hyperdrive possible... There are endless possibility."

At this, one of the scientists appeared and said something in Asahian. Juro nodded once and turned back to the other two.

"My research team has informed of being complete with scans and..." Tanaka waved a hand around, searching for a word. "Die-ahg-nas-sticks? They are done."

He'd get the hang of Basic one of these days. For now, this would have to do.

[member="Jorus Merrill"]

 

[Jorus Merrill]

[member="Juro Tanaka"]

"Sounds like it's time for the return trip, then. I'll give you the greatest hits tour -- there's a course I plotted once that I always wanted to use. An' if your people can get anything useful from this, they're welcome to watch me, the drive, the sensors, same as before."

Jorus' fingers whitened on the arms of the Daragon's command chair, and the Pathfinder jumped out of the universe. Hyperspace blurred past, faster and faster. When they emerged to realspace, a galaxy stretched out before them -- a different one. "Companion Aurek," he said. "The Rishi Maze. Closest and biggest of the seven that orbit the one we live in. I've got friends all through the Maze, people that used to work for me, friendly ports and traders. It's a good place, but way off the beaten path. Only access to it is through Rishi, a galaxy away from you." He grinned. "Or through a handful of exit points, like the one I used to get out here in the first place, points only I know. Flaws in the hyperspace disturbance around the galaxy. Brodo Asogan secret." Needless to say, he'd gone out here without a plotted course, his hyperwavefront controlled as much by his mind as by the ship; even with his hyperdrive data, it would cost any research team decades and lives to find that galactic exit point.

He assumed the military implications didn't escape Tanaka. Jorus Q. Merrill knew how to get warfleets from one corner of the galaxy to the other without bothering with complex jumps, hyperlanes, tolls, monitoring -- and had no intention of telling anyone.