[Wes Platt]

Jack Caspar rolls his bicycle to a stop next to an ornate wrought iron bench in Monarch Park in Grand Enaj, with a view of the sun rising over the harbor. He engages the kickstand, then sits on the bench and takes out his datapad. He checks the time and realizes he forgot to stop for coffee. He groans weakly.

To say the… er… conveyance that rumbles up is barely recognizable as a vehicle is a fair statement. The hovercar has undergone some serious modifications, including, but not limited to, a 360-degree sensor array, aerodynamic fairings, various lighting, hover baffles, and what appears to be cabling and conduits routed along the outside, linking all the add-ons. These seem to include power amplifiers for the hover system. Once the vehicle settles to the pavement, the door opens, revealing a black-furred, tan-nosed Castori who waddles out of the driver’s seat, which has been fitted with lifts for the shorter-than-average driver. Filikan is wearing his cleanest pair of overalls, which display his name on a patch in script, with a bandana tucked into a belt loop. Straightening his overalls, he heads over. “Mmmm… Mr. Caspar, I believe? I am Filikan.”

Caspar, a bit bleary-eyed, musters up a lukewarm smile, stands, and extends a hand toward the Castori. “My wife’s lawyer calls me Mr. Caspar. You can call me Jack.”

Filikan takes the offered hand and gives it a firm shake, careful to keep his claws clear. “Mmm… Jack it is, then. Glad to finally meet you in person.”

“Likewise,” Jack replies, gesturing toward the bench. “Please, sit.” He activates the display on his PDA as he settles back onto the bench. “Want coffee or something? I need my morning caffeine.”

“Mmmm… coffee sounds fine. I have an espresso machine built into the Tinkermobile there,” Filikan offers. “Mmm… coffee makes the world go ’round sometimes and helps keep things fixed.”

Jack taps in an order on the datapad. “Is that thing really street legal?”

Filikan lets out a growling chuckle. “Mmm… barely. But it does pass the inspections.”

Satisfied that the information is complete and correct, Jack submits the coffee order for remote delivery. His attention briefly returns to the Tinkermobile. “What’s liable to happen to my engine room if you’re in charge? Coffee machine in the FTL baffles?”

Caspar is met with a guttural, growling belly laugh. Wiping a tear from his eye, Filikan chuckles a bit more before taking a more serious tone. “Mmm… to be frank, my stuff may not look pretty, but it works. I’d stake my life on it. I’m not usually content with just maintaining and fixing something. Mmm… in every machine, there’s potential to be released. I look for that potential and bring it forth,” he says, gesturing to the Tinkermobile. “Found this clunker at a scrapyard, bought it for a couple hundred credits. Mmmm… made it a hobby to fix it up, and I got it back in the air, better than before. Mmmm… 25% better fuel efficiency, anti-gravity generator running at 75% better energy consumption than before. Mmmm… in short, this vehicle, despite its looks, can stay in the air longer and withstand turbulence better than the best luxury hovercar off the lot,” he says, a hint of pride in his voice.

Jack nods. “Improved efficiency’s great. Don’t know if you’ve heard, but Starcrossed is undergoing some financial turbulence, so wherever we can save, that’s fantastic.” He frowns. “Although, I have to wonder: why have you cast your lot in with me? I’ve made some downright shitty choices. Bad enough I’ve got Lord Fagin gunning for me, but my wife took my son and went to live with her parents on Luna.” He scoffs. “LUNA?” He shrugs, waving a hand. “Not your problem. But… yeah, things are liable to be interesting. You want interesting?”

“Mmm… life is full of interesting, Jack,” Filikan says. “It’s what makes life worth living. Mmm… it’s why I’m here, on Sivad, instead of back on Castor running the family repair shop. Mmmm… don’t get me wrong, my brother does a fantastic job running it, but I wanted to see what was out here. Risk is part of the game. I accepted that a long time ago.”

“Yes, well, in the interest of full disclosure, I’d say this job might be riskier than expected, at least in the near term,” Caspar replies. His eyes shift toward a drone whirring down the park’s main thoroughfare with a carrier pod containing coffee for the duo. “If we get lucky with a couple of valuable transports, maybe I can pay off the pirate king and get all the other creditors off my back. Maybe Lil forgives me and comes home.”

Filikan nods. “Mmmm… let’s just say engines and equipment aren’t my only specialty. I’ve made some credits on the side doing some… upgrades to weaponry. Ever seen a pulse laser vaporize a wall?” He raises an eyebrow ridge. “Mmmm… I get what you’re saying, but I have ways to perhaps help.”

That gets a chuckle from Jack. “Guess we’ll have to add some weapons for you to upgrade. Put that at the top of your to-do list.” The drone arrives, and Caspar retrieves the drinks from the carrier pod. He offers one to the Castori. “When can you start?”

Filikan takes the coffee. “Mmm… any time. I’m not tied down, honestly, with any particular steady line of work. I’ve always been the odd-job mechanic, but this sounds like the opportunity I’ve been looking for.”

“Okay,” Jack says. He takes a sip of coffee. Not the best. Not the worst. He waits for the caffeine tingle to kick in—though it’s mostly imaginary. He looks at the Tinkermobile, gesturing toward it with his cup. “Where you keeping that while we’re offworld?”

The Castori looks at it and sighs wistfully. “Mmmm… likely going to sell it. Might get some credits for it, who knows?”

Jack nods. “Well, I’ll tell HR you’re good to go. They’ll give you clearances to access the Diamond Lil. May take a little while to get a full crew, but you can get to work making sure the ship is primed to go when the time comes.”

Filikan takes a good gulp of his coffee and offers a salute. “Aye aye, sir!”

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