The journey begins
08 Jun 2017Keija Suresh
As the video begins, the camera is centered on a shirtless, dark-skinned young man who appears to be pacing around a small cabin, occasionally muttering to himself in another language. He sighs and sits down in front of the console, his eyes vacant as they stare past the camera. After a few moments he seems to compose himself, wiping his hands across his face before pulling a shirt on over his lean torso. He takes a few deep breaths before squaring himself to face the camera fully. “Bit,” he says after a moment, his surprisingly deep voice echoing clearly around the space. “Yes, Commander Suresh? How may I be of assistance?” the virtual assistant responds immediately, it’s vaguely male mechanical voice seeming to come from everywhere at once. “I’m going to be starting a new series of video logs. Please organize them as before, starting with today,” he replies, a tone of resignation in his voice. “Understood, sir. Please let me know when you are ready to begin recording.”“Begin now.”
A red light on the console slowly flashed 3 times before resolving into a solid, steady tone. “My name is Keija Suresh. I am a member of the Pilot’s Federation.” He leans back in his chair, his posture relaxed and confident, in stark contrast to several moments before. “And today I begin my journey into the realm of ‘political activism’.” He says the last with a bit of a smirk. “I’ve decided to make a record of this because...well, who knows? Maybe one day it’ll be the basis for a holo series.”
“I’ve made my way to Cubeo and pledged myself to the service of Aisling Duval. What can I say? She makes a very compelling case for ending slavery in the Empire. I can think of worse causes to fight for.” He shrugs. “At any rate, the pay is decent and I heard her followers have access to some fairly impressive shield tech that might come in handy, so it’ll be worth sticking around for that if nothing else.” He scratches at his stubble for a few moments before continuing. “At any rate, I need to re-establish some of my credit reserves. Kitting out the Distant Horizon has cost me more than I anticipated, and it’s still not finished. So in the meantime, I will be keeping it docked at Smoot Station, in the Chona System. Apparently that’s the home of Aisling’s Angels, the Wing I’ve been assigned to for the time being. The next few days I think I’ll just feel things out. Maybe pick up some courier or bounty work until the wing has a mission for me. I’ve arranged to have the Devil’s Due transported here while I finish the refits on the Distant Horizon. A Cobra will be more suited for the kind of work I plan on doing out here anyway.”
He looks up at the ceiling for a few moments before returning his gaze to the camera. “I guess that’s it for now. Suresh signing off.” He ended with a smirk and a flourish, the red light performing it’s flashing cadence once again before going dark completely. With a sigh, Keija leaned forward, his elbows on the desk and his head cradled in his hands, his veneer of confidence crumbling as the camera continued to silently record without his knowledge.