The Diary of a Space Scoundrel: The Storm Passes
06 Apr 2020Seth Bradwell
15:00 - Cauchy Horizons, HIP 71931"...so that's the story. Chairman Willows will call an emergency meeting in one hour's time where he is expected to remove Heenan from the board and call for his arrest, alongside Martin and Yates, and call for a full investigation into their actions." Marlon finished. Our journey to '931 had been fairly painless, and Marlon, Nate, and Anastasia had encountered little resistance, and once Marlon had been allowed to supply the System Authority with the evidence we had gathered he was welcomed abroad and able to open a direct channel to Willows, where he passed on the information which incriminated the three of them. As a result, all warrants for our arrests were put on hold until the matter was settled.
"So is that the end of this?" I asked.
"All over bar the shouting. Those three will probably go into hiding, and I suspected it will be a fair while before they re-emerge. Considering that Moon Dock still needs to undergo repairs after the attack by the Brothers of HR 5473 and how this place is still not fully up and running after the hostage crisis, their capture is low on the Partnership's list of concerns." replied Marlon.
"So their crimes will go unpunished?" asked Morgan indignantly.
"Very likely, for now. The Partnership just does not have the time, credits, or resources to properly hunt for them." said Marlon.
Morgan sighed. "I suppose their reign here is over, and that is the main thing. But they are sure to raise their head elsewhere, and when they do..."
"...you will be no more able to get to them than you are now." interrupted Anastasia. "This galaxy is not a fair place, you should know this by now. Everyone here has been betrayed at least once, and have learned the hard way not to have to much faith in the powers above."
"I will still watch out for them, though, and look for a weak spot." said Morgan.
"Sometimes there are greater things to concern oneself about." I said. "I am certain that a prominent faction had been responsible for putting a kill order on me just over a year ago. Thankfully other than spending the whole of last year in stasis, I survived, but the people responsible are too powerful for one person to take on. In the end I just got on with life."
"It just leaves a bitter taste. We should have got people to go and grab them when we won back Moon Dock." said Morgan sadly.
"It's probably for the best that they did get away. Remember, we didn't come to overthrow the Partnership, and if we had, the retribution would have been swift and brutal." Nate said.
"I suppose it is for the best. But if there's a chance of bringing them to face justice, I will take it." said Morgan.
"Well you may get your chance, but that will not be today." said Marlon. "For now let's focus on not having to go into exile ourselves. Chairman Willows will be contacting us for our testimonies, and will decide whether we are still welcome in their space or not."
"Okay then. I'm going to the bar." said Morgan. "Kongga Ale for Seth, Void Extract Coffee for Marlon and Nate, vodka for Anna, and rum for me, right?"
16:30
The holoscreen burst into life and the form of Chairman Willows appeared. "Greetings, people." he said. "I see that there has been a bit of bother recently, and several of you have some questions to answer. I will start with Mr Bradwell and Mr Morgan, who it is alleged started a riot in Moon Dock. Is this true?"
"You are more diplomatic about these things than me." whispered Morgan to me.
"No, Sir." I replied to Willows. "In fact we were upholding the authority of the Partnership on Moon Dock by highlighting how treacherous elements were in place there, and assisting in restoring control of the base to its rightful owners."
"That is an... interesting answer, Mr Bradwell. You do realise that your friend, Arthur Morgan aka the "Captain", is a most colourful character. We have had our disagreements in the past." said Chairman Willows sternly.
"I would be hard pressed to find a system where he hasn't caused disagreements." I said.
"Not true!" retorted Morgan. "I am well respected in at least 20 systems within a hundred light year radius, and only have outstanding bounties on 12 of those." He grinned.
"Enough." said Willows sharply. "Mr. Morgan, in spite of your more... dubious activities since coming to the attention to us, you have proved invaluable in trying to tackle the pirate problem here, alongside your fellow pilot here. What's more in spite of your subversive nature you have foiled a nefarious plot to overthrow me by Allan Heenan and his friends, and also brought to light some heinous examples of torture and brutality at the hands of the erstwhile Head of Security at Moon Dock, Tarquin Yates. Furthermore when my security team arrived this afternoon Moon Dock appeared to be functioning more efficiently than it had for months. I have therefore decided to drop all charges against you and your accomplice. But I will be watching you, Morgan." He continued, "Now, there is the issue of Moon Dock's alleged renegade Deputy Head of Security. Now normally I would not have approved at the way you handled Yates, but in light of recent events I must commend you for you role in exposing this plot, and therefore am not only just reinstating you but also promoting you to Head of Security on a permanent basis."
Everyone applauded.
"However," Willows continued, "I will be keeping a close eye on your activities, and will not tolerate any subversion. As for Blue Vision Services, they are allowed to resume business at Moon Dock and in HIP 79131 as of now, but I request their security services now restrict themselves to their own holdings, and not infringe on Partnership activity. Anything else you would like to bring to my attention?"
"There is the small matter of where those three have got to, and how to deal with them." I said.
"We will deal with the matter in whatever way we deem fit, Mr. Bradwell. You will hear with good authority when a bounty is likely to be issued. Now, if you don't mind, I have other matters to attend to. This will be a busy time for the Partnership as well deal with the aftermath of these events." said Willows.
"Thank you, Chairman. Be assured that Moon Dock will remain secure for the interests of the Partnership and all friendly businesses". said Marlon.
"Very good. Willows out." said Willows, who disappeared from the screen.
"Guess we should get back to '938 then?" said Morgan, feeling bittersweet about the outcome.
"Might as well. Heard there's a celebration going on down the Diamond Moon. Guess you'll be there." I replied.
"You can count on it." said Morgan.
At this moment the manager of Cauchy Horizons appeared on the holoscreen.
"Camorra vessel approaching, requesting to dock. I was going to turn the gun on them after what happened with the hostage taking but they particularly wanted to speak with you, and claim to be under a white flag." he said.
"We'll meet them outside the entrance to the hanger." Marlon said.
A ring of guards stood outside the entrance, plasma rifles raised. The hanger entrance opened to reveal Cameron, Liam and Rita.
"You have a real nerve..." one guard aggressively began.
"There is no need for that." ordered Marlon. "To what do we bring this pleasure?"
"We found your rouge executive and his cronies, including the abominable Tarquin Yates." said Cameron. "Also we bring you a body, sadly not Yates."
"We would have rather you brought him alive, whoever it is." said Morgan angrily.
"He didn't die at our hands..." began Cameron, as she told her account of their encounter.
HIP 73321 - two hours earlier
"Cameron Sanchez's personal log: We have tracked down Yates and his superiors fleeing Moon Dock 30 minutes ago. The Toqui is getting ready to interdict their vessel and capture Yates, and deliver him to the Big Boss. We are also under orders to disable their ship and alert Purple Electronics of their location, for reasons best known to the Big Boss."
"Getting a fix on their vessel now. Ship is heading towards Scheerbart Vision, approximate time to interdiction range: two minutes." announced Rita.
"Excellent. Very soon Yates will be in our hands, pleading for the Big Boss' mercy. They will not get away from us this time." said Cameron smugly.
"I wouldn't get your hopes up until he is safely frozen and packaged in a stasis pod. Who knows what allies he has." said Liam cautiously.
"I would like to see them try and deny us our glory. The Partnership has washed their hands of them, so they are all alone with nowhere to go." said Cameron. "Preparing to interdict."
The Toqui engaged her FSD interdictor and soon subdued Heenan's Dolphin, bringing them back into normal space with a jolt.
"All right! We've got ourselves a big fish! Targeting drive!" shouted Cameron as she boosted into weapons range.
The Dolphin's pilot tried to engage defensive fire and boost away, but was no match for the Toqui. Very soon the Dolphin's shields were down, and its drive was crippled after a sustained volley of multicannon fire.
"Partnership vessel. This is the Camorra of HIP 71931. Surrender us Yates and we shall let you live. Failure to comply will result in your destruction. You have two minutes." Cameron announced over comms.
"What are we going to do now?" cried Martin hysterically.
"I don't want to die!" shouted Yates frantically. "There is no way you can consider -"
"Keep calm. Our friends will be on there way very soon, and they will deal with these pirates." said Heenan smugly.
"Well they had better hurry up! I can't believe we have been slung out like this. Why are we on the run? You said your plan was perfect, and now look at us! I should have kept my nose clean right from the start!" rambled Martin.
"Partnership vessel. One minute. Then you die." declared Cameron on comms.
"Your friends need to get here fast!" shouted Yates.
"I have complete confidence in their abilities." said Heenan confidently. Suddenly the Dolphin rocked as the Toqui opened fire again.
"They are targeting the power plant, sir!" said the pilot. "Shall I try and reboot the drives?"
"Negative, Commander. I will deal with this." said Heenan. He opened comms. "Camorra vessel. You want Yates? We'll give you Yates!" He then pulled out a railgun pistol.
"NO!!!" screamed Yates. "How could you -"
There was whoosh and a dull thud as Martin fell to the floor.
"Yates, drag his body to the airlock, and prepare to jettison him." commanded Heenan.
"With pleasure, boss." said Yates, smirking.
"Camorra vessel. We are now about to eject Yates' body. Unfortunately there was an accident and he is now one with the Void. We plead that you then leave us in peace." announced Heenan to the Toqui.
"Partnership vessel. We are glad that you have seen wisdom. You have our word we will allow you to leave once we have picked up Yates' body." responded Cameron. She cut off comms. "Crew, prepare to scoop him up."
The Toqui slowly approached the homing signal of the body, and guided the cargo scoop nearer and near to it, until it was successfully scooped inside.
"We have him. The Big Boss is going to be very pleased, even if he rather we took him alive. Prepare for departure." said Cameron.
"I will just check on the body." said Liam.
"An unnecessary task but go ahead. We shall head for home in one minute." said Cameron.
"Camorra vessel, I am sure that everything has been done to your satisfaction?" announced Heenan.
"We now have the body. We thank you for your cooperation." responded Cameron.
Suddenly the internal comms bleeped. "What is it now, Liam?" Cameron snarled.
"The body... It's not Yates!" cried Liam.
"What? You sure?" shouted Cameron. "Bring it in front of the camera!"
"Already done so, boss!" replied Liam.
Cameron set the holomonitor to the cargo bay's security camera and looked upon Martin's body, still frozen stiff from its time in the vacuum of space.
"So, he thinks he's tricked us..." she snarled. "Partnership vessel. Your treachery has been uncovered. Prepare to die!" she shouted fiercely over comms.
"I don't think so." Heenan said. "You have been very entertaining but we really must be on our way. Whilst you have been recovering our erstwhile colleague's body our friends have been closing in. They are well armed and your pitiful vessel will be no match for them. I suggest you return to whatever scumhole you originated from, or else there will be deadly consequences for you." Cameron looked at Heenan with disgust as she cut comms.
"Boss, two vessels approaching. Two Kraits, both with fighter bays and equipped for combat." announced Rita.
"Who do they belong to?" asked Cameron, realising they were about to fall into a deadly trap.
"The Bureau of HIP 73321 Conservatives, boss. They shall be in weapons range in three minutes." said Rita.
"As much as this pains me, prepare for retreat." She opened internal comms. "Liam, secure that body and head back here. We have been betrayed, and are about to be attacked."
"Aye aye, boss." said Liam sadly.
"Rita, set course for HIP 71931." said Cameron.
"We are just heading back to base? The Big Boss is going to be disappointed, as will Captain Leighton." said Rita, disheartened.
"That cannot be helped. But we shall not go home just yet. I plan on making a small detour..." said Cameron.
17:15 - back at Cauchy Horizons
"...and here we are. I am guessing the body we have on board is that of the disgraced former manager of Moon Dock, Hector Martin. Must have outlived his usefulness to Heenan." finished Cameron, handing a data slate to Marlon.
"Yes, that's Martin." said Marlon. "Heenan is far more ruthless than any of us thought. But why come back here to tell us this? We are grateful, of course, but you have no reason to help us."
"Actually coming here is to the mutual interests of both the Camorra and the Partnership. We will still not rest until we Yates is dead, but realise that he will now be well protected. Whilst the Camorra will still hunt for him, we are pragmatic enough to accept his demise by someone other than our hands. Also we have now evidence of who was pulling Heenan's strings." answered Cameron.
"The Bureau of HIP 73321 Conservatives." said Morgan.
"Indeed. They used to be our main weapons supplier, but also armed our rivals, so we distanced ourselves from them. Their actions today now mean that there is a feud between them and us." said Cameron.
"Playing both sides against each other and reaping the profits. That sounds like the Conservatives." said Morgan, angrily.
"There is little anyone can do right now, regardless. Anyway, we need to return to our headquarters. We shall tranfer Martin's body to your custody in return for granting us safe passage off this outpost." replied Cameron.
"It's the least we can do. Whilst the Partnership and Camorra will never be friends, let alone allies, I bid you farewell, and thank you for what you have done." said Marlon.
"Farewell, Mr Briggs, and indeed farewell to you too, until we meet again, Misters Morgan and Bradwell." said Cameron.
"I hope it will be while till then, no offence. Anyway, farewell." I said.
21:00 - Moon Dock
Things were back to normal when we got home. Marlon authorised our payments for the completion of our mission, Morgan getting 2 million credits, whilst I got 3 million, the extra million due to my work in defusing the hostage crisis at Cauchy Horizons. Anastasia and Nate were also given 1 million credits a piece for their role in stopping Heenan's plot. Morgan and I got a grand reception, and the Diamond Moon was full of people celebrating a brighter future without the corrupt mismanagement of Hector Martin or the brutal oppression of Tarquin Yates. The whole colony seemed to be celebrating, but I was still unable to get into the party mood. Morgan felt similar.
"Hey, Seth." Morgan said to me. "Do you think that Willows was using us?"
"In what way?" I replied.
"Well, it occurs to me that the Partnership's illustrious Chairman wasn't that oblivious to Heenan's machinations at all. Heenan's behaviour was so suspicious, and the way that Heenan was able to get away with so much, particularly after the attack here, anyone on the board could see he was up to no good when he kept sticking up for Martin and Yates and vetoing action against them. I have a hunch that Willows knew what he was doing, and allowed Heenan to carry on until he was in a position where he could be swiftly removed, allowing Willows to consolidate his control on the company. I heard that the Chairman's own daughter is being tapped for the job of the base's new manager. Seems Willows was playing a shrewd hand, and has an excellent poker face." explained Morgan.
"Your theory sounds plausible, and Willows is certainly ruthless enough when it comes to dealing with his enemies. However you must acknowledge this colony has a brighter future now, and the ethics of the Core do not help anyone survive here in this world of cut-throats." I replied.
"Heh, treachery is the name of the game out here. Although some are more honest to admit it than others." said Morgan.
"You talking about the Camorra?" I ask.
"I'm talking about criminals in general. They know they are beyond the law, and don't pretend otherwise. Whilst others claim to uphold the law, but only when it suits them." said Morgan, cynically.
"You will find that goes for many places in the galaxy. Just out here, it's a lot more overt with less skulduggery behind the scenes. In times and places like this, you just have to make the most of what opportunity you are given." I said.
"Hey Morgan! Have a drink on us!" called a miner.
"Go on, I shall be back shortly." I said, as Morgan joined them.
I sat alone in the colony's observation dome, looking at the permanent night sky, seeing the stars of the Empire twinkle as their light, photons that were emitted back during the reign of Hender Saik Duval and Hesketh Duval, completed their journey after over two centuries to arrive on an obscure moon in an obscure system that I just happened to call home, at least for now. With our mission completed I had a lot to think about. Whilst I had found meaning and community here in '938, my true home was in the Empire. Yet I remained as unsure as ever of where I stood in regard to the Empire's competing interests. What happens in this sector is just a microcosm of the galaxy in general. Maybe I am more suited to being a big fish in a small pond. However, as they say, you can take an Imperial out of the Empire and all that. I start to hear footsteps as someone climbed the steps to the dome. It was Anastasia.
"Not feeling particularly celebratory?" I asked, as she sat on the bench beside mine.
"I rarely do, Seth. Besides, the noise was getting to me. I like my solitude." she replied.
"Me too. Now that this adventure of ours is finished, I have been deep in thought. I came to this rock wanting to forget about my past. Now I am thinking about what I have left behind, both good and bad." I said, gazing across the galaxy to where Nyalayan was shining, although the light of the K-type star was far too feeble to be seen with the naked eye from this far away.
"I see you are looking towards Imperial space, towards home." said Anastasia.
"It's not really home anymore. My family all but perished in a pirate attack. I do have a foster family, but I never felt completely one of them." I explained.
"A sad tale. But do they still care about you?" she asked.
"In a way. They kept me from going off the rails when my real family died, but since adulthood I have been drifting from place to place. I once fought for the Empire and all it stood for after I got my pilot's licence, but as you can see, in some ways they are no better than the factions around here." I replied.
"But you can still see them, and be welcomed. Well listen to me, Seth. I strongly recommend you see them whilst you still can. I have a home far away too... however I can never go back." she said sadly.
"I suppose you are not willing to go into details regarding why?" I asked.
"Okay then, we have been through enough together that I feel comfortable opening up about this. Morgan might have told you I was once fought for Yuri Grom. In fact I was considered one of his most feared pilots, and there are plenty of people in what remains of Grom space will vouch for me." she said.
"You are not one for boasting, so shall take that at face value, and from what I have seen of you, that reputation is well deserved." I said.
"Thank you, Seth. Anyway, my home world was in the heart of Grom's realm, and I committed myself to upholding his rule and protecting my people, until one day we were all betrayed, indeed all of Grom's subjects were. The largest organisation among Grom's military suddenly disbanded and their pilots abandoned him, scattering to the four corners of the galaxy. You may have heard about this on Galnet." she continued.
"I heard that the main body of pilots that backed Grom, indeed helped establish him as a major galactic power, abruptly decided to dissolve and cease their support." I replied.
"That is it. The result of this cowardly abandonment was that Grom has effectively lost the ability to uphold his rule outside of Euryale and a few nearby systems. As I speak, Grom's sphere of influence grows smaller and smaller every day. My system was taken over by a criminal faction with close ties to the Kumo Crew. Thousands were slaughtered in the forthcoming weeks as they established their reign of terror. I fled to Euryale and pleaded with High Command to organise a fight back, but was turned away. Indeed rumours soon spread that I had run away and left my people to burn, and it later became knowledge that the originators of these rumours had close links to Yuri Grom himself. So I was doubly betrayed. So I too left Grom's dying realm and never looked back. My only loyalty remains to my home system, but the criminal scum who run it now are very powerful and well organised, so were I to jump into there they would send half a dozen of their finest pilots to hunt me down. Furthermore, these false rumours against me have reached my people, who now consider me a traitor, and they too would kill me on sight." Anastasia said, bitterly. "So be thankful you have a home you can go to, because you never know what will happen."
"We are fairly alike in our paths, Anastasia. The Kumo Crew wiped out my home system, and there were people in authority who did nothing about it, indeed the local patron was later found to be deeply corrupt and was providing the Kumos with information. It is only due to the patron from a neighbouring system that I am not a slave toiling down a mine or on some agricultural world in the Empire. As I grew more and more disillusioned with how the Empire rarely operated according to its principles, I set about wandering aimlessly too." I said.
"Life is what you make of it. Good luck with that, if you find out the secret of how to live a satisfying life, do let me know." said Anastasia, raising a smile.
Loud footsteps rang up the stairway as Morgan joined us.
"Hey, you two! I wondered where you had gone. The bar is getting a bit lonely, we are all missing you, after all, it's thanks to your valiant efforts that the little people scored a little victory, and you help keep those pirates off our back!" Morgan shouted cheerfully.
"You do your contribution too. If it wasn't for your hacking skills and piloting ability, those pirates would be a lot less fearful." I replied.
"Well, you know, not many can face ten Anacondas and a hundred skimmers..." said Morgan.
"Yeah, yeah. I know all about your prowess in an SRV, Captain." said Anastasia, with a mischievous grin. "A man without any equals for sure."
"So anyway, come back down the Diamond Moon. You can be morose about what life has thrown at you another time. For now let's drink and be merry." said Morgan.
"Speaking of drink, you still owe me four, unless, of course..." said Anastasia.
"Oh yes, the bartender has managed to procure some Euryale Standard vodka, and has kept it hidden till you returned. It would be a shame to disappoint him." said Morgan happily.
"That's an offer I cannot refuse. What about you Seth?" asked Anastasia.
"Well I say lets go back and drink to our little victory. It's been a while since I had any good news, so I will enjoy that to the full." I said.
"Amen to that, let's go and celebrate our victory over those that harm us!" exclaimed Morgan, as the three of us walked down from the observation dome, standing shoulder to shoulder, taking pride in our achievements as we celebrated the beginning of a new chapter in our lives.