Entry 17: First Expedition, Pleiades
24 Feb 2020Worldbuilder92
Current System: MaiaIt's been a long 3 days, but we finally made it to the Pleiades. The Mobula has held up surprisingly well as a trader, and it's performed beautifully after its exploration refit; the Fuel Scoop was the single most useful piece of equipment for the entire trek, if I may say so.
I first stopped in the Atlas system, but turns out the station there is a bit of a hike from the drop-in zone, so I opted instead to make Maia my central hub for exploring; even if the major factions here are Fed-leaning, I don't think the recruiters will be as great a problem out here. I first stopped by Obsidian Orbital, and immediately got a pop-up request for someone looking for... Ionno, a "Thargoid Pretzel", or something? I had no idea what he was talking about, and I'm kinda glad I didn't take the job, cuz it sounded incredibly fishy. Honestly, how do I know "Thargoid Pretzel" isn't some really weird slang term for narcotics or something? Yeesh...
After refuelling, I landed at Darnielle's Progress and sent a request to ship the Mobula's freight components over; the idea is to learn the nearby trade routes as I'm hunting for Thargoid barnacles. In the meantime, I've decided to look over the places in the local systems. Merope and Pleione are nice, but Maia's where all the fun stuff is. I've got plans to explore the Palin Research Center by SRV, which I hear is abandoned but swarming with Thargoids. If I handle things properly, maybe I can get close without risking my ship. I heard they only attack when you provoke them, so as long as I don't provoke them, there shouldn't be anything to worry about!
And of course, to commemorate my safe arrival to the Pleiades, I decided to take the Mobula and skim by the infamous Black Hole, Maia B. I got as close as I felt comfortable going, and got the picture below with a camera drone; it's a bit tricky to see at this range, but it's there if you know what you're looking for. ;)
