Onboard an inconspicuous freighter

[Petitioner]

"You are my payday and I want to collect!"
"Assisting my sister!"
"Oh, goodie, another notch for my guns. Engaging!"

The bounty hunters swooped in towards the gunboat. One, two, three, four of them. Spouting their typical uncreative nonsense, their pulse cannons quickly stripped the Legion gunboat of its shielding. Almost as quickly as it began, it was over - the captain was no fool, and ejected as the vicious antimatter cannons of the bounty hunters bit their way into the ship's central reactor, reducing it to scrap.

As they departed, the freighter slowly approached the scene, leaving the protected vicinity of West Point. Its cargo bay opened, quickly swallowing up the secure metal pod.

---

[Corsair]

Sam Fauk fumed silently in his pod. Its basic sensor equipment told him that he had been picked up by a Police vessel, Grizzly class. Hopefully it was his old classmate Rommie, whom he had been chatting up just minutes earlier. He had been conducting base-level recon on West Point, monitoring through traffic and all. The Bounty Hunter gunship on its own hadn't been a significant threat, and he had nearly defeated the interloper when an additional four Hunter strike craft leaped into the fray. He just knew that unpleasant things would happen soon. Whether they came from the Liberty Navy, or his own superiors when he told them that he'd lost one of their Inquisitors.

But, if he came back with a willing recruit in tow.. Sam's dour expression lit up slightly. He might be able to save his own ass.

---

[Petitioner]

Rommie piloted the freighter to a small clearing in the Detroit field. He knew it well - it was an occasional drop-off point for less-than-legitimate transactions conducted by the police. After powering down his vessel's considerable weaponry, he rose from the pilot's seat and ventured into the cargo hold.

He knocked on the escape pod once or twice. "Anybody in there?" He laughed a bit and grabbed his electric multi-tool, easily busting the simple escape pod open.

---

[Corsair]

Sam lurched forward and stumbled out of his pod, catching Rommie's arm to stop himself from smashing his face into the wall. The pod smoked behind him as the gas filtration systems busted with the influx of new air. Sam's Hellfire Legion uniform was ruffled and slightly scorched, and his cap was gone, consumed in the fires of his deceased ship. Sam's grip on Rommie's arm shifted from support to a handshake, firmly grasping his old friend's hand and looking him in the eyes.

"Good to see you in person, bud. You haven't aged much."

---

[Petitioner]

Rommie returned the handshake, a big smile on his face. "You look a bit, eh, ruffled. After that last encounter. Damn hunters are getting better and better equipment every day, you know. Hell, you know it better than I do, I'm sure. Can I get you anythin'? Coffee, beer, peanuts? And where do you need me to take you to?"

---

[Corsair]

Fauk rolled his eyes, standing straight and fixing his uniform. "The Bunters swarmed me is all. I could have taken one or two of 'em." He looked out the viewscreen to check their surroundings.

"Detroit debris field, right? Hmm. Well, for now-" he paused, and looked at Rommie. His expression was serious.

"I just want you to realize that now you're committed. There's no doubt the Navy is sniffing my trail already, following us back here. And when they find, they'll take us both prisoner. You might get off with some[b] light interrogation, but I'll have to take my cyanide like a loyal officer. So," he said, his speech over, "Will you join me, or throw me to the wolves?"

---

[Petitioner]

"Ah, Sam, you know me better'n that. I can't leave a friend in a situation like this." Rommie brushed his hair back, looking around. "So what's the plan gonna be?"

---

[Corsair]

Sam moved into the cockpit and sat in the co-pilot seat. There wasn't much time to lose. When Rommie was seated, he began giving instructions.

"Get us to Freeport 4 in Magellan. We'll need to go through California. There isn't much time 'till the boys in uniform catch up to us, so hop to. You always got us out of the party in time back in school."

---

[Petitioner]

Rommie wasted no time in following Sam's instructions. As they were docking with the California gate, he turned his head and spoke. "Almost feels like old times, doesn't it? Funny how we're runnin' from the law again, isn't it..." As they came through, a squadron of navy fighters came out of the trade lane, one at a time, hurriedly lining up to jump through to New York. "Two guesses as to what they're after." Rommie laughed and entered the lane when it was clear, and switched on the police radio. "Might give us a bit of an advantage, no?"

---

[Corsair]

Sam nodded. He heard the usual babble but perked up when someone said, "..wreckage of an Inquisitor-class gunboat."

"They've found the Forsworn's remains. Odd, they were pretty deep in the badlands. Must have sent in sensor probes. Let's just get out of Cali before they stop us for inspection.."

---