Private Old Ship and Older Friends

[Noah Corek]

Outer Rim
Former ORC Shadowport
Docking Bay 135
Jorus Q. Merrill

Noah sighed as he groaned and cracked his neck as he labored away in his personal armory of the Solomon, the ship which had been his companion long before he had even married either of his wives and before he had any children. As of late he had found very few reasons to take the ship out but with the recent fall of the Confederacy there was a rash of pirate attacks in the Outer Rim as they no longer had anyone to keep them in check.

Being a good citizen of the galaxy he had decided to deal with some of these dregs of society and take the Solon for a spin once again. It was for this reason they were stopping in a former ORC Shadowport, now privately ran, both to get repairs, take on provisions and for the crew to relieve some tensions. It was for this reason that he was almost alone on the ship, not much more than a skeleton crew, he doubted with his reputation in the Outer Rim that anybody would be dumb enough to try and steal it.

And so Noah sat in his armory, tinkering away with his vast array of weaponry.

 

[Jorus Q. Merrill]

One of the shadowport's mechanics, an old human, came into the armory and set down his toolbox with a clatter.

"Hey, Noah," he said as if they hadn't last seen each other years and years and years ago. "I know these welds. That's Dingo Darr's work, him and Shenna'vala. Did the Hive do a refit on the Solomon after I retired?"

He offered his very old friend a lopsided smile.

"Nice guns as ever. Remind me to go shopping one of these days, not that I need'em much nowadays."

Noah Corek

 

[Noah Corek]

Jorus Q. Merrill
As soon as the door to the armory opened Noah shot up from the workbench, a fully assembled pistol in his hand, loaded and ready to drop the intruder. When he saw it was a mechanic he lowered his pistol to a low ready position but finger still on the trigger. If Jorus was still as attentive as he was in his younger years he'd notice Noah was just a hair slower than he used to be.

When the main said his name Noah raised an eyebrow as he was sure he didn't know him, though the voice seemed familiar. He scanned the mans face and looked at the features, mentally removing the beard and other features before he let out a snort. He finally completely lowered the pistol and placed it back on the workbench.

"Well damn Jorus...where the hell have you been the last...what has it been? A decade? Decade and a half?" When Jorus mentioned the refitting of the Solomon Noah gave a nod to his question. "Yup, had the Hive refit her oh about the same time you disappeared, I was gonna get you to do it honestly."

When Jorus attention turned towards his guns he gave his friend a similar smile. "Well I do have a reputation as a gunfighter to keep now don't I?" When Jorus mentioned shopping Noah walked over to a nearby rack and picked up a shotgun before putting it on a table near Jorus. "Here, see if this meets your fancy."

 

[Jorus Q. Merrill]

Noah Corek - sry, missed the reply


Jorus hefted the shotgun. "Oof. Thing'a beauty. I can't shoot an eight-gauge anymore, but back in the day I'd have been all over this. I like the look and the breakdown, though. Classic work."

He offered Corek a grin. "I figured you'd still be trucking along. Heck, I even own a little HKDI stock. The feth is going on with those pump-and-dumps? I blink and some dick's jacked the price up and down like a Ruusan Bouncer on liquid speed."

 

[Noah Corek]

Jorus Q. Merrill

He nodded at his words about the shotgun and chuckled. "Yeah...you are looking a little old there buddy." He grinned at Jorus before taking the shotgun from him and looking at the racks again before putting the shotgun back and pick up something else before holding it out for Jorus to grab. "Here try this one for size. Submachine gun, cheap yet reliable, a little bit on the heavy side but it's got virtually no recoil. It's still in the pre-production phase but that's as about as close to the finished product as you'll get."

When the matter of the stock market was brought up Noah shook his head and threw up his hands. "I have my mother-in-law handling all those things for the company...oh yeah by the way I'm married by the way. To two women...at the same time...and I've got a hell of a lot of kids too."

 

[Jorus Q. Merrill]

Noah Corek

Jorus looked up from admiring the gun, which deserved plenty of admiring. Noah being polyam didn't throw him for a loop after the better part of a century bumming around the galaxy.

"Gotta be double the husband. More power to ya for making it work. Feth alone knows I've struggled to be a good husband to just the one."

Ah, Alna. Alndys D'Lessio-Merrill, love of his life for more than thirty years whether together or apart. Salvager, explorer, master shipwright.

"What your kids up to?"

 

[Noah Corek]

Jorus Q. Merrill
As Jorus admired the gun he had handed him Noah grabbed yet another off the racks and placing it on a nearby table. "Here, try this one on for size too. Rifle caliber round in a submachine gun sized package. Marketing it as a survival carbine to keep in your cockpit."

He nodded at his friends words about his marriage and decided Jorus deserved an explanation. "I met Alex first when I was working for the New Republic, started dating and all that. She admitted to me she had a lover and I was surprised that I wasn't jealous and asked to be introduced. Well she introduced me to Yasha and I fell for her as well. Alex was...overjoyed to be honest and we all became...entangled I think is a good way to put it...and now a decade later we're all married and have a gaggle of kids. Speaking of families how are Alna and Mara?"

When Jorus mentioned his kids Noah sighed and stared up at the bulkhead. "They're getting along for the most part. Our oldest Adara is off with Tuuli Miles, Aedan Miles' son. Our oldest set of twins Magnus and Girak split their time between home and elsewhere. Our middle set of twins Morgan and Noah Jr. are just approaching the end of teens and deciding what they want to do. And lastly our youngest set of twins Alexander and Cahira...well their still toddlers so yeah."

 

[Jorus Q. Merrill]

Noah Corek

Jorus hefted the new gun, the survival carbine. "Ugly," he said admiringly.

"So you're full polyam? What do the kids callit, a throuple? Sounds like a component, heh. Got a fluctuation in the power throuplings. Alna and I never reeeeally went that way, though there was a thing like thirty years ago with...well, that's not my story to tell. Not really the same thing.

"As for Mara... That's an even longer story and not a happy one. Guess I'll need to live my grandpa life vicariously through you."

 

[Noah Corek]

Jorus Q. Merrill

Noah smiled at Jorus' summation of the looks of the carbine he had put into his hands. "Well you know me Jorus, function over firm is always my first concern. You could throw that thing down a flight of stairs, submerge it water, cover it in mud, sand and dust and it'll still cycle a full magazine."

When Jorus next spoke about his marital status he chuckled and nodded. "That's exactly what Yasha called it when the three of us officially tied the knot on the whole thing. We make it all work very well, we've got our respective jobs and such as well as our...private times. But in the end we all end up together at the end of the day."

He gave a little frown at his mentions and words about Mara before giving a small nod. "I've got a similar situation going on with Magnus and Girak so I can understand. Trying to get them to be...better but it's hard."

 

[Jorus Q. Merrill]

"Well tell me about it." Jorus found a spot to sit and kept fiddling with the survival carbine. It really did come across as durable, tough to mess with. "So the twins, Magnus and...what was it, Girak? Grown men, right, or are they young? What're they getting themselves into that's got you folks worried lately?"

Noah Corek

 

[Noah Corek]

Jorus Q. Merrill

He watched Jorus, somewhat concerned with the lack of spring in his step since their last encounter but chalked that up to age, hell even he himself was a bit slower in this day and age. Though only a bit, something he'd proudly mention to anyone who mentioned it.

When he brought Magnus and Girak he sighed and leaned back and stared at the ceiling. "They're getting involved with people me and their mothers rather them not get involved with. They spend about half their time away from home nowadays. We try to influence them when their at home but..."

 

[Jorus Q. Merrill]

"Yeah, that's a story I know."

Jorus set the gun aside and got up aimlessly, rubbing his knees.

"Magnus and Girak, Magnus and Girak...why the feth does that ring a bell? Something in Rave's files maybe. Did you ever know my sister?" Or maybe not: those kids would have been actual kids when Rave died. Jorus grimaced as Noah's tangible worry sank in.

"Who's it they're tangled up with, Noah?"

Noah Corek

 

[Noah Corek]

Jorus Q. Merrill

Noah let out yet another sigh and then let his gaze drift from the ceiling back towards Jorus, nodding when he mentioned his sister. "I met your sister once or twice, a few of the components I used in my armor I sourced from her, most alchemized leather. Good for negating certain force powers."

When Jorus pushed him on who Magnus and Girak were involved with Noah sighed yet again and fixed him with a stare. "Certain...darksiders is all I can say. Me and the wives have agreed to keep in the family, you'd have to meet them before I could say anything else...but for now I've got a proposal for you."

Pulling a datapad off of the table he handed it to Jorus. On the pad were various starship specs, materials and components. It was obvious what Noah wanted, yet another refit for the Solomon. "If I supply you with money and manpower you think you could refit the old girl again?"