The Abandoned Station

Jumping to Torpol, the travellers of the Black Swan met Provost Falx, a jaunty starport administrator who introduced them to the party planet with a pack of discount vouchers for the pleasure havens there. Checking the video and transmission footage, they discovered an attack by a far trader and a salvage hauler on one of Torpol's orbital factories. Further investigation uncovered a transmission to a scout called Misery's Company at the downport, which had been involved in an altercation with a far trader called the Sarcomond. Finding the captain, Daniel Vlaw, he boasted of how he wounded the pirates before they jumped for Borite.

In the Borite system, the travellers detected a weak distress signal coming from a long abandoned station orbiting the gas giant. Boarding the station they were surprised by a vicious creature which squirted acid at Tex, but the whole group soon swarmed it, spraying it with gauss fire and reducing it to pulp. Exploring further they found a vargr, Krrrsh and after questioning discovered the truth of the matter, that he was once part of the pirate fleet that attacked Torpol, captained by Ferrik of the Mercifuge salvage hauler. Apparently, Ferrik has fallen out with the previous pirate fleet admiral, Admiral Darokyn. The attacks had been part of a plan for Ferrik to bolster his own reputation before heading to Theev to negotiate membership for himself and Miria, aboard the Hell's Teeth far trader, with a new fleet.

Krrrsh explained that there is a midspace fuel dump half way to Theev for jump 2 ships to use and, trusting his judgement, the Black Swan jumped into empty space...