Session 41

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Flight Prep and Favour Calls (2025-05-31)

Checking the Hollow Spark

• The group continues inspecting the newly-claimed ship, the Hollow Spark. Det investigates the workshop, finding the labeled crate ("DO NOT OPEN") and a partially functioning autodoc.
• Mia checks the cockpit systems, noting most are operational but in need of calibration.
• Siz contacts Charles to request support, while Mia pings Abrar for a maintenance crew—tapping into the local economy of favours and informal deals.

Charles, Chimes, and the Ship’s Past

• Chimes confirms the Hollow Spark's onboard AI is active—obsolete, yes, but reliable and non-hostile.
• He shares his personal history with the ship and with Magrete Steel:

 *"I didn’t just fly with her. I lived here. Assisted her. Argued with her. Recalibrated her coffee machine twelve thousand times."*

• Chimes grants access to Mia, Det, and Siz. He notes the ship's AI never had a name—just “the ship”.
• He warns them not to joke too much: "The life support once locked a senator in the shower." (Probably fictional.)

Conversations and Jokes Gone Too Far

• Det asks if the ship might store extra data from Magrete’s research. Chimes agrees to check the navigation and data systems.
• Mia suggests preparing the ship for external crews with a proper systems report.
• Charles, watching via video, grows suspicious:

 *"Are you three doing okay?"*

• When Siz requests weapons, explosives, and muscle, Charles insists on a proper assignment brief and headcount.

A Plan Forms

• Det and Mia explain the situation:

 - Margrete was last seen in or near the asteroid station **ARS-8**, linked to strange math and dangerous anomalies.
 - The team suspects involvement of mercenaries or a doomsday cult.
 - They need backup—and spacesuits that fit both Mia and Siz.

• Charles grumbles but agrees to help, asking for their exact coordinates.
• Chimes jokes about "sawing off horns" for suit compatibility—earning glares and electromagnetic threats.
• Det sends Charles the location, noting to be kind to any large feline wandering the hangar.