Starship Manticore Game Events
Hephaestus is a Medusa-class space station orbiting a frontier planet known informally as Tartarus. The 'space station' is actually an orbital docking platform and associated power and maintenance facilities at the summit of a space elevator which connects it to the surface. The station is jointly owned by a number of Core worlds with Earth as the majority stakeholder and Centaur as a minor. The East Spiral Company is contracted to manage station operations; in addition an intercorp named Monarchy Incorporated maintains a permanent presence there. The function of the station is to conduct mineral exploration and extraction processes on the surface and microgravity refinement in orbit near the station. In addition it controls the operation of a sizeable mobile jump gate and leases scientific research facilities to various academic institutes.
'Victor Laslo' is a specialist in botanical studies in microgravity environments, conducting experiments on native Tartarus lichens. In reality he is Leland Darick, a destitute criminal on the run from Earth authorities to escape charges of graft and extortion in connection with his gambling interests.
Kato Bari is a young nobleman from the Bari Khan, out to make his fortune. In accordance with the customs of his people, he is expected to create a crew and to build his wealth from nothing. He pilots the ex-mining vessel 'Manticore'.
Carrying an introduction from his father, Kato goes to meet Nova Jones, a fixer who can help him to secure a crew. She is unimpressed with his either noble credentials or his cocky approach and informs him that good starship crews are a scarce commodity on Tartarus; quality is going to cost him.
'Laslo' is informed by the obsequious and protocol-bound head of research Damon Forsythe that the new station commander will be making a personal inspection of the facilities. Darick is horrified to discover that the new commander is one of the judges who presided over his trial on Earth; his appointment to Hephaestus is a reward for that work. Darick engineers a minor crisis in his own experiment as a pretext to avoid the meeting, leaving his assistant Jenna to conduct it, and heads to the bar.
Watching the inspection tour go ahead on the station monitors, Darick is horrified when the lichen samples appear to spin out of their containment field and explode, contaminating all present in the lab.