A Calling
03 Apr 2016Aaron Starr
It's been some time since my last log entry, and with good reason. So much has happened, I can scarcely gather it all into one coherent story; but I'll try nevertheless.A few months back while I was on a smuggling run from Robigo, I started falling asleep at the helm. My usual crew was away on business of their own, and I had been flying the four hundred ligh-year route solo for two weeks straight. By chance, I happened to be near Wolf 1301, a system that many of the pilots at the shipping docks in Diaguandri spoke about. I'd never been there before, but I was tired and it seemed like as good a place as any to stop and relax a bit.
Dropping out of supercruise in front of Saunders's Dive, I heard the crackle of the comms coming online. After I had explained my situation, a voice assured me that my docking request had been processed. "Well, here's hoping my cargo doesn't get stolen," I said to myself as I lowered my landing gear and gently set the *Zephyr* down onto the pad.
As I walked toward the security office to obtain a station pass for the day, I turned to get one last look at my ship. "She sure is a beauty," I thought to myself. Suddenly, I felt my shoulder bump into someone. I snapped out of my daydream only to find that I had knocked a fresh cup of coffee out of another pilot's hand and onto the ground, where it steamed pathetically in a little brown puddle. Though it had clearly stained his boots, it also gave the recycled atmosphere of the station a peculiarly welcoming fragrance for a moment or two as I quickly tried to think of how to apologize for my clumsiness.
"Damn it... Hey, look- I'm really sorry, friend," I blurted.
"Don't worry about it!" he said. "Nothing a little spit shine can't fix."
"But your coffee- why don't you let me buy you another one?"
"It's really no trouble. I should probably lay off the caffeine, anyways," he exclaimed, chuckling to himself. "But come to think of it, I don't remember seeing your name on the registry before. Is this your first time to the Dive?"
"It certainly is. I've heard good things about it from some of the mechanics in Diaguandri, so I thought I'd stop by to relax a bit. I've been... busy for the past few weeks," I said, hesitant to give too much information to a stranger. "The name's Aaron Starr- wish I could have introduced myself without spilling your drink, but it's nice to make your acquaintance!"
"Good to meet you, Starr," He said, "My name is Zartonis. You know what? It's still early, but I could really go for something stronger than coffee. My meeting isn't for an hour... why don't we go to Modar's Bar? It's probably the best place there is here for kicking back and relaxing. Sounds like you could use it."
"That would be great!" I said. "I'm never against a good glass of scotch."
This concludes part one of my "catch up" log entries. I will continue as soon as I have more time.
CMDR Aaron Starr,
Logging out.