Skips and Misjumps Pt. 3

 That lost city of the Ancients turned out to be a bunch of fuel tanks. That treasure map only made money for the guy who sold it to you. You were adventuring or jailed or lost and as a result, you missed the last few (or six) payments on your ship. What now?

A bank will recognize extenuating circumstances. A bank. Not your bank. Where's the fun in that? 

If your ship is interned for various reasons the Bank might actually take your side and bring its considerable influence to bear. At the very least they might allow you to continue your mortgage at a slight increase in pay until you are no longer in arrears. they do this for people who have proven they can make money for the Bank -by on time payments or paying down the principle. A new shorter term mortgage at higher rates is also possible. 

Piracy of course all get a response. The Bank will put a reward out on the pirates. You are still expected to keep up your payments or the Bank will finance a slightly damaged ship for a new owner. A new shorter term mortgage at higher rates is also possible. 

Forced landings or other operations accidents? A new shorter term mortgage at higher rates is possible. Are you sensing at pattern here? 

Now there is one phenomena that could put you out of the Bank's cold, iron grasp: the misjump. Hence, my title. Took me a while to get to it. 

Misjumps are the strange phenomena that send you far astray due to bad math (sort of like Las Vegas). They can send you up to 36 parsecs in a random direction. 

This can make you extremely hard to catch. Mail (and warrants) usually travel 4 parsecs a week. A misjump on average will carry you 9-12 parsecs, putting you 2-3 weeks ahead of the cops. If your ship just  keeps jumping 1 parsec a week, the mail will take three weeks to catch up to you. If the Bank waits another week before putting out a trace request, you're a month away from where you started and the Bank doesn't look as big and scary. A 30 to 36 parsec misjump puts you 10-14 weeks ahead of the cops and likely a subsector or two away.

Now a misjump is not an automatic get out of debt free card. You still need new ID, a new transponder,  and have to clean the computer of all the little backdoors the Bank stuck in there. Not to mention finding all the other dirty tricks and neutralizing them. 

Maybe you should subject the people flying with you to an interview process similar to what the Bank made you submit to.

Or you can make lots of money and share it.

Congratulations. You escaped your debt. In exchange, you ae looking ver your shoulder the rest of your days, wondering when you'll slip up or be ratted out. Because the Bank will not give up. Their rewards will not go away and now they'll have given your specs to the Patrol and Navy.

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