Samnitics Shakedown
22 Jan 2019Nisme Dalheidis
Personal Log, Macgregor DockThat didn’t take long.
No sooner had I gotten the power calibrations done on the Cuvera than a follow-on contract came in from Grady. I guess the company’s move in Pared has gone farther than some of the locals are willing to tolerate. Tip came in that the VP should expect an unfriendly visit, so I was asked to intercept. I don’t typically go for this kind of job, rather put the res-rats through the meatgrinder so the miners can harvest in peace. If I’m in that kinda mood. But... for well over a mil, it beats another hour chauffeuring suits between meetings. I was game to try out a bunch of weapon systems I’ve never tested on a platform that’s seen fewer than ten duty hours. Totally sound decision-making.
The drop into Pared was immediately hot. Hadn’t so much as locked the nav beacon before the first FSDI punch came. After I broke it, the dictor hi-tailed, but the scan revealed it was our guy. Easily 200k Ls to the signature... he had all the time in the world to reconsider. Guess he must have been pretty smalltime, something to prove. And... there he was, waiting right out in the open where we expected. Whoever sent him should have spent more.
Rails sure do mangle shields, so I learned, but damned if I can land them proper. My pursuits lagged a little, which didn’t help, though the ship made up for my scuttling and held range. Manoeuvres were definitely rusty. Muscle memory shone through in the end. Good call from the jocks on GalNet about the bi-weave, too, it pops up almost before I realize it’s down. Anyway, one less cheap killer to pester my present benefactors, and the Cuvera was successfully shaken down. Making my own luck? I'll drink to that.
Still leaves the question of who called in the hit. Obvious answer is the Pared Family, since their stake is the biggest to lose. We’re on good terms now... something tells me that won’t last forever.