<div align="center"><strong>-= Lex Rake, Eavesdown Docks, Persephone =-</strong></div><br/>Lex stretched once more when he got out of the transport. It hadn't exactly been cramped in the back of the vehicle, but he was tired and sore and stretching felt good. He'd worked hard these last twelve days - harder than he had in some time - and had the bulging credit account and coin purse to prove it. The stretch brought a few looks from some of the people standing around outside the dockmaster's office, but not as many as we would have liked.<em>Must be losing my touch,</em>he thought, with an internal smile.<br/><br/>He paid the driver before turning to enter the office and find out where<em>The Gamble</em>was berthed. His training made him more than usually observant - a talent which had saved his skin more than a few times out here away from the Core - and he saw from the corner of his eye a couple of toughs paying more attention to him when he had his wallet out. There was likely to be trouble later.<br/><br/>The dockmaster's office was cramped, busy, and stinking. There was a press of people gathered around the counter, but there didn't seem to be any kind of line. He elbowed his way up to the counter and laid a coin on the counter with a very audible click. One of the clerks looked up, noticed him, noticed his coin, and came over.<br/><br/>"I need to know where a ship is docked.<em>The Gamble</em>."<br/><br/>The clerk reached for the coin, but Lex pulled it back toward himself and raised his eyebrows. The clerk looked at him once more before turning to a terminal and doing a quick check.<br/><br/>"Docking bay thirty. That's three-zero."<br/><br/>Lex smiled and pushed the coin across the counter to the other man. "Thank you."<br/><br/>Well, at least he wouldn't have<em>that</em>long of a walk to get to the ship. But he doubted the toughs looking to mug him were going to wait very long after he came out of the office. They had no idea how long of a trip he had in front of him, after all. Taking a deep breath to steel himself before the inevitable encounter, he stepped out of the office.<br/><br/>He kept his eyes peeled without looking too much like he was being wary as he made his way along the crowded lanes between shipping containers and docked ships. His bag would be a problem if the muggers brought friends. If he just dropped it in order to fight, someone else could snatch it and run off. There wasn't anything absolutely irreplaceable in it, but it would be an inconvenience, and he was in no mood for inconveniences right now. He slung it across his back, making it look like he was just trying to relieve a sore shoulder. And sure enough, that's just when they jumped him.<br/><br/>Luckily, it was just the two of them. They must have thought that with his slender frame he wouldn't be that much of a challenge. They were wrong. All Companions received combat training, and Lex in particular had excelled at it.<br/><br/>He easily dodged the first one's hastily thrown fist and positioned himself for the other one's charge. In moments, the second would-be mugger was flat on his back after being flipped over Lex's shoulder, and the first was coming in to make another attempt with his fists. Lex blocked the clumsy blows easily enough. He wondered if these guys were ever successful, fighting as pathetically as they did.<br/><br/>The second was back on his feet and circling around to try to get behind Lex. The first lunged forward with such force that Lex was able to duck under him and redirect his momentum so that he ended up falling into his friend. Both men fell in a heap.<br/><br/>"Go hwong tong, my friends. Go on, git. You'll get nothing from me I won't take outta your hides first." He sounded rough and intimidating, not his usual self at all.<br/><br/>The two men looked to each other as they struggled to their feet, then turned heel and ran. Lex rolled his eyes. They took him for an easy mark and got proved wrong. Let them find some other poor sap.<br/><br/>He checked his bag to make sure it was still secure on his back and then continued on his way to<em>The Gamble</em>, wondering if they would be stupid enough to shadow him, waiting for a more opportune moment, but he didn't see them again.<br/><br/>Finally, he arrived at the ship, but it was still closed up tight. They were probably having a meeting of some kind before disembarking. That was all right, he could wait. He took a look around to make sure there were no other likely troublemakers before taking a seat next to the entrance. When they did open the hatch, he'd be the first person they saw.<br/><br/><hr/>Go hwong tong = Enough of this nonsense