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Howdy Belter, 

Yeah I got a solid copy on those Q's and I've got the A's. Let's see if we can't shine a little light on the pinch points, how's about? 

1. "Navigating" is the part where you deal with the oracle's mechanical bit. "Transiting" is where you go from module to module and make a Gas check. Fictional grounding for that 4 of Spades prompt, Lights Out (which is the one I'm thinking you're meaning here), is that the standard illumination banks on your bird have gone out and if you don't have some juice in your Omniflash, you're going to find it just a little harder to do your job in the dark. Think of it like being at a Disadvantage to start. You can, of course, spend Gear to cancel that out and roll standard, or Grit to take the mixed success option automatically as normal. But it is indeed one of the more punishing twists of Bad News.

2. That nothin' part is going to take some cred and time to replace is the basic idea. Your upkeep goes up by one this time around, but it doesn't stay there like getting a whole mess of upgrades. Basically, you're spending that extra cred--whether it's coming out of your day's take or your savings doesn't make much nevermind to the knuckledraggers back homestation who gotta replace your pneumatic pressure bearing or recalibrate your thermal regulator gasket housing. It's going to cost you a credit, period, dot, end transmission. The mention of Upkeep was just there to make sure you remember how many times you had to take that option on a single outing. Mark the upkeep and clean it up when you get back to station. No one's there to take your money on the Bird...unless you got Pirates. 

3. If you spend your last Grit, if your personal track empties, if you find yourself on a Bird and marking off your last pip, you generate a Threat. If you got Grit back on your Bird that's great. You'll probably need it to deal with that Threat what's just generated.  

Hope that's clarifying the kludge there, Belter. Sounds like you've had a hard run of luck of late, and I'm hoping that you fight your way clear of it. I'll spot you your next bulb of Valor Black down at the Last Call when you come on home again.

Chariot, out.