An uneventful week passed by. Samantha worked a few late nights at the office, finished reading one novel on the train, started reading a new one the next day, and had a few dreams she couldn't remember. She also experimented with a new beef casserole recipe, made far too much, and spent two days living off the reheated leftovers. The most exciting thing to happen was her parents dropping by on the Saturday with, amazingly, tales of a very similar casserole. Apparently, her dad had made it after finding a recipe online, and thought it might be to her tastes.
Sunday afternoon arrived. It was time for the next session of the game, and Samantha still hadn't done more than exchange cursory greetings with her new housemate. She'd learned her name was Jessie, that she'd moved into the house because it was closer to the university where she was working on her thesis, and that she was studying radiology - and that was it.
Still, Sam reflected as she sat down, there'd be plenty of time to get to know her while they played.
After one last check of his notes, the GM began. "Samus, you're standing in the now-airless chamber of the supposedly-derelict ship in which you fought Ridley. With the initial burst of decompression over..."
With the initial burst of decompression over, Samus regained her footing and disengaged her grapple beam. Even with the atmosphere gone, the derelict's artificial gravity was still functional - and that in itself was a clue. Space Pirates rarely bothered with creature comforts while on salvage operations; They wouldn't have bothered repairing the ship's gravity and life support unless they were planning to dig in for a while.
She glanced around the room, knowing her suit's sensors would automatically highlight anything with a power signature or signs of tampering, but nothing stood out besides the artworks - and Ridley had been ignoring those completely, which made her doubt they were part of his plans. She made a mental note to report the found items to the GalFed authorities once the system was secure.
The space dragon had escaped, but it was possible there was some clue as to his whereabouts elsewhere in the derelict ship... Which meant her next course of action should be-
Her visor beeped, an reported a text-only communique from the Galactic Federation authorities. She pulled it up.
To: Samus Aran
Due to the abnormally high danger of your current mission, another bounty hunter has been assigned to assist in its completion.
As per Galactic Federation law, your respective rewards for success have been adjusted to incentivise co-operation.
The new bounty hunter is currently en route, and is expected to arrive in 00:02:18.
Please meet with the other bounty hunter at the attached co-ordinates.
The profile data for the other bounty hunter attached to the message, but there wasn't time to read it now. The remaining time given in the message was ticking down rapidly: 00:02:16, 00:02:15, 00:02:14...
The "attached co-ordinates" indicated an airlock a short distance from Samus' current location, but she'd have to move quickly if she was to meet this new hunter on time. She jogged through the derelict's corridors, her power armour's boots clanking on the metal floor. She arrived in front of the airlock just in time to see the door cycle open. Out of it stepped a naked blonde with a perfect smile, a willowy figure, and breasts the size of Daibanian kyomoto-melons. She smiled, and-
Samantha gaped incredulously. "What. The. Fuck."
The girl on the other side of the coffee table smiled mischievously. "He said to describe my character. That's what my character looks like: Blonde, naked, and stacked." She held up her hands as if cupping melons that extended some distance from her actual chest.
"Really? Really?" Sam slumped back in her chair, unsure whether to laugh or stare in disbelief.
Jessie shrugged, still grinning. "I heard your game didn't have a 'that guy,' and figured there was an opening."
Sam shot the GM an incredulous look. "And you're OK with this?"
He shrugged, sheepishly. "It's not as bad as she's making it sound. Her character's got a bunch of useful abilities focused on infiltration and utility, so it's definitely viable. And we talked about how to make it work in serious situations when comic relief isn't appropriate. Plus, she wrote a whole backstory justifying it in-setting, so..."
Samantha shook her head in disbelief and looked back at the other girl. "Seriously? You have got to let me read that."
Jessie gave a beatific smile. "I think it'll be more fun to discuss it in-character. Right?"
Samantha stifled a laugh, then sighed theatrically. "All right, if we must."
After one last glance at his players' amused faces, the GM glanced down at his notes and resumed narrating the scene. "The two of you stare at each other a moment. This is, after all, the first time you've met, and you both give a remarkable first impression-
Samus stared in disbelief at the completely incongruous sight before her: A very female, very attractive, very buxom, very naked woman who smiled and posed invitingly while standing in the dusty corridor of a derelict spaceship.
Just in case, Samus ran a biometric scan against the profile that had been attached to the message. It was a match. This had to be the bounty hunter who'd been dispatched, but that didn't make her appearance any easier to believe. Bounty hunters were noted for being unique, but this girl took the cake. Or possibly jumped out of it.
"Hi!" the naked woman said. "You must be Samus Aran? I'm Jugs!"
"Ah..." Samus took a moment to find some acceptable words. "Yes, that's me. Are you... Do you usually dress like this for missions?"
"Only when I expect things to get physical... I look less threatening this way, and it makes it easier to move. Besides, most bounty missions don't involve humans, and non-human species don't care what I look like naked."
"You don't need armour? Or weapons?"
"Nope! I'm a Federation-certified telepath, and I learned telekinesis the hard way. The only weapon I need is up here." She tapped the side of her head. Then she pushed up her naked jugs with her hands, which they overflowed. "I can't deny that these make a good Plan B, though."
She looked up at Samus again. "I usually specialise in undercover penetration and exploration, in case you're wondering. That's why I'm au naturale: I only have my gene mods and my psionics. Nothing that shows up on a scan. Or a search. Or when someone is checking me out."
"You don't need... Well, pockets?" Samus asked.
"I have a large chest that defies gravity," Jugs explained, smiling.
Samus didn't see how that was relevant until Jugs stepped to one side and patted the box that had followed her out of the airlock. A quick scan revealed that it did, indeed, have a built-in anti-grav system strong enough to make it hover.
"I keep some clothes and a few essentials in there. I can also put things in my box if I want, but it's pretty tight, and I feel better when I use it for its intended purpose."
Samus decided not to ask. "So," she said, changing the subject, "Were you given a briefing?"
"Just a basic one," Jugs admitted. "I was told roughly what your abilities are, and that we're to investigate and stop space pirate activity in this system."
"That's about it," Samus agreed. "It looks like they're doing something big here, but I've yet to find out what. I'm currently searching this ship for clues."
Jugs bounced up and down excitedly. "Ooh! I didn't mention, but I'm also very sensitive. I'll see if I can feel any psi signatures nearby..."
Thu May 18 12:37:10 2017
2 comments Last updated: Thu May 18 21:58:01 2017