The Camaleon Chronicals

[oZoneRanger]

Phillip DeLaFontain was back in the saddle, back on top of the known Universe and back behind his desk.

He wondered where Maria had gone off to. He had not seen her since the LuckStrikeIII departed to Gallia. He had been so excited and absorbed in his shuffle of papers, that he had paid no attention to her absence.

"She's probably hiding out, afraid I'm gonna fire her for taking my ship" he mused. But it had been almost a half a cycle, and she was normally around by now. He was tired of answering his own calls.

He had been busy looking over the trade logs, and searching out office space in and around liberty. He was not having any luck.

He did with pleasure and much gusto send out the 5million to Gallia to pay for the travel permit, and was at the moment, with a dictionary and a book called "Dealing with Royalty for Dummies" typing out a transmission requesting a receipt.

He was smiling when the damaged squackbox on his desk came to life.

**Station2Station Call From Leroy Brown Will You Accept**

Well, of course he would, he thought "YES, Yes, patch him through" Brown had been a big part of the big win for his fledgling transport company.

**Mr.Brown go head please**

"ahh Hey thar boss...Ha you doin?" The Texan in his distinctive drawl.

"Good, Mr. Brown...good, Hey..thanks for setting that up with the Junker, that was smart thinking on your part" DeLaFontain had been counting unhatched chickens all day and was feeling good.

"A..Yea....sure...ahhh ..Boss, we got slight little problem sir.." Regret soaking every word he said.

"Well, I'm sure it is nothing that can't be fixed Leroy" He replied attempting to be as magnanimous as possible, feeling as if everything had to have an easy solution.

"Ahh...sir, it ain't that simple see...I wuz gettin the antenna on ma Ship tinkered with here on Baltimore station..and a well sir, the ah....Mechanic...he is...dead sir."

"Well, sorry to hear about that, I hope you are alright.." DeLaFontain wondering how a dead mechanic had anything to do with the newly purchased Spatial. "What was wrong with the antenna?"

"Oh yea...yea...it got bent up when they put the new armor on sir, then I had that glitch talkin with the Junker about the smokes and the ....ah hell you know all this sir.... I called ya on it yesterday...." The Texan realizing he was telling him things he already knew.

"Oh..yea..sure..I get it..so we need to have the antenna repaired then," Tapping in some notes onto his data pad, Fix one broken antenna, easy enough he thought. "OK..Ill OK the transfer"

"Transfer for what sir?" asked Brown now lost in his own conversation.

"You need a new antenna right?" Fontain stating what he thought was obvious.

"Na...Antenna should be fine, usually you find them in good shape..." continued the Texan.

"So whats the problem then? Where is the antenna now?" DeLaFontain struggling again to find the bottom of this issue.

"Oh..where is it..Should be somewhere out by the TradeLanes to Mojave, at least that's where the Spatials transmitter went dead sir."

There was silence on both ends. DeLaFontain sinking back in his chair.
"Brown what is going on, just spit it out."

"The Spatial sir...it's gone sir..space dust, bunch a parts in orbit.."

"Brown, what the hell are you talking about?" DeLaFontain said in shock.

"The mechanic that installed my armor, he a...well..he took out for a Test flight sir... and a...seems he ran into some Hackers out in California..." continued the Texan.

"..California...what the hell was the mechanic doing in California with your ship."

"..sir I really don't know...he mentioned something about having some kin out there...I figure he got himself into something he couldn't get out off...I mean.. I had all the weapons systems tricked out...If he though he was gonna use that Snack Cannon and be a hero, he should have checked the pilot interphaze wiring...Either way, I caught a shuttle over to Ft. Bush and I'm gonna fill out a lost ship report...and the supervisor over at Baltimore... he is a good old boy I know from way back....He's got another Spatial they took in on a trade, they are gonna let me have it, seeing as the Mechanic took mine without authorization...anyways be a few days and I'll..."

"END transmission" DelaFontain's head started to throb again. This company would drive him to an early grave. "Does it ever end?" He though to himself.

**Beep Beep** "LadyLuck to icT main office" The ship to station transmission coming online.

Now what, he thought "Go ahead," Where the hell is Maria? Annoyed at having to answer his own calls.

"Mr.DeLaFontain, this Shelby Montrose sir..."
"Who?" DeLaFontain had never heard of him before.
"Sir, I'm the lead cabin steward on the LadyLuck sir."
"Yea and what the Frak do you want?, make it quick, I'm busy and if this is about a pay raise forget it right now.." Extremely anoyed at the voice and its feline quality.

"Ahh no Sir...but please Sir..you need to get down here fast sir, to the LadyLuck sir...Your secretary...SHE is destroying the ship...she has poured all of the Wine into the personal hydro bathing unit sir..she has had..these deckhands here, playing DeadmanHigh all night..Sir, she says she is going to live here now....it's Horrible, Sir you must do something...They want to take the ship out to Huron sir and see how close they can get to the atmosphere before the hull catches fire..."

"Put the Captain on..." Demanded DeLaFontain.

"I can't sir, they were the first ones to pass out sir...the whole crew....I've never seen anyone group of people finish off a bottle of Meskalinita 512 before,..sir its...."

"I'll be right down..." DeLaFontain, got up and walked to the door.