(https://elliquiy.com/elluiki/images/4/42/Clay.jpg)<br/><span class="bbc_font" style="font-family: trebuchet ms;"><span class="bbc_size" style="font-size: 18pt;">Clay, Captain of <em>Thundercracker</em></span></span><br/><div class="spoiler_container"><div class="spoiler_header" onclick="hideSecond (this);" role="button">Character Sheet</div><div class="spoiler_body">Attributes:<br/>Mental D8<br/>Physical D8<br/>Social D8<br/><br/>Skills (Specialties):<br/>Fight D10 (Unarmed)<br/>Fix D6<br/>Fly D6<br/>Focus D6<br/>Influence D12 (Leadership)<br/>Move D8<br/>Notice D8<br/>Shoot D10 (Pistols)<br/>Treat D6<br/>Trick D8<br/> <br/>Distinctions:<br/>Ship's Captain D8<br/>Things Don't Go Smooth D8<br/>Veteran of the Unification War D8<br/><br/>Signature Assets:<br/><em>Thundercracker</em>, <em>Firefly</em>-class transport D8<br/></div></div><br/><br/>We was sitting together, me, then Hope, then Michal, then Li Mei, with the others all around the table.  Noticed Hope getting just a mite cozy, using my body as concealment from the commotion that was a-starting.  Even seen her rubbing her necklace for luck, like she tended to do when things wasn't quite going our way.<br/><br/>"Thought you was going to try to go straight, Hope.  No more lying, cheating or causing in trouble, unless you absolutely had to.  Was that you just blowing smoke, or you being truthsome?  Just look at what we have now.  Some regular folk losing their money at cards, and one about to lose use of a hand or two, maybe permanent."<br/><br/>I turned my face so I was looking directly at her, at them big pretty brown eyes.<br/><br/>"<em>I cannot abide</em>.  Give them back their money and make sure ain't no one is harmed.  Make it right, through honesty or trickery, and I'll back your play.  Or, I'll make it right my own damn self and you can find a new ship to travel on."<br/><br/>Felt all paternal-like.  Showing the young woman the way the 'Verse works, or at least the way it ought to, and how it works for the crew of<em>Thundercracker</em>, the crew that was<em>mine</em>.  Hope had a long history of bad breaks and she was very much a product of her environment, having nearly no one to rely on but herself, at least until she was on<em>Thundercracker</em>.  Just because I seen her as broken, morally in a way, didn't mean I wanted to throw her out.  But if she didn't want to be fixed, I couldn't have her on my ship.  Would just be a matter of time before she crossed me or one of mine.  Saw myself as someone who saw the good in people, people like Hope.  But I was also a force to help bad people get what was coming to them.  And these poker players didn't deserve physical or financial harm.<br/><br/>At that moment, Ryu brought the hammer down.  Roderick yelped real loud... but no damage was done.  Ryu pounded the bar instead of Roderick's hand.  Hard to say whether it was meant as a warning, or Ryu was too drunk to strike true, or Roderick was struggling too much as Roy and Reyes held him.  But Ryu brought the hammer up again, and this time he seemed like he wasn't going to miss.<br/>