Going to Hel and back!
21 Dec 2015Kitsu Sean
They say the road to Hell is paved with good intentions. I guess for me it's true. Maybe I'm still a sucker for the Solstice Holiday. Whatever it is, I flew to Hel (the System) for a job. The contract was to deliver some urgent but small cargo to the Hel system. I had recently bought one of the new Asp Scout ships as a bit of a salute to my old ship, the Explorer. Gods I loved that Explorer! Anyway, the Scout is a pretty fine addition to the line and I'll be keeping her for pretty much ever. She's got the range that I love. Nothing quite like making a 23 light year jump in a single go and truthfully I could get more out of her if need be but I like the way I've got her rigged for now. I'm not looking to do any really long range exploration for a while yet. She's definitely going to get me to Sol for the Solstice though. After delivering the cargo to my contact in Hel, I was told that there was an Community operation in play. Apparently one of the local factions was importing some rather expensive crystal rarities from the Bento system. That is almost 110 light years distance. Nothing really for the Mamba. That's what I decided to name the Scout. Black Mamba. She's black as space just like the Stark Raven, my Python, and she's got a pretty deadly bite if you piss her off. A pair of Class One beamers and a pair of Class Two multicannon make her a pretty dangerous ship. I decided I'd help out since I was in system and I could use the profits to upgrade Black Mamba to a decent degree. Truthfully spending a few days running crystal rarities back and forth over long distances was rather relaxing. Only got interdicted twice. Once by System Authority for a surprise inspection scan. I didn't bother trying to evade since what I was carrying was legal in his or her jurisdiction according to the computer. The second interdiction was more fun. Pirates. A pair of em! One was in a rather beat up Adder and the other was in a newer Diamondback Explorer. That one was more of a threat in my opinion since that under slung Class Three laser could eat my shields pretty quick. The new Asp Scout isn't very fast in a fight but damn if she isn't responsive as all get out. The girl could DANCE in the black almost as well as an Eagle or Vulture dedicated fighter! I got into a rather short lived furball with the Diamondback Explorer but took him out easy. The Adder crew must have been the ones in charge because they tried to keep up but when the DBE went out, they tried to run. I turned in on the Adder so fast that I am pretty sure they weren't able to keep up. I got in the Adder's shadow and tore her apart rather ugly.
I hate pirates so I'm not gonna lose sleep over that crew at all. After getting back to the Hel system with my last load of crystal rarities, I spent the money I earned making some upgrades to the Black Mamba. I even added a planetary vehicle hanger with one of the Scarab SRV's so that I can do some survey work when I get back to Jonai. Already got a client lined up that needs some help chasing down a pirate crew that is operating in the system and likely have a base on one of the Icy moons. Gonna have to get back into some Sweep and Clear action pretty soon I suspect.