Captain's Log: End of the War
15 May 2021Pon Pon
Well, looks like my plan worked. I flew out into Alliance space to avoid being bothered by the Federation about fighting Nova Imperium a few days ago. Since then, I've been flying around making millions in the T6. I spend a bunch of time in 78 Ursae Majoris getting all buddy-buddy with the Alioth Independents there, and got far enough into the Alliance's good graces that they issued me a permit to enter the Alioth system. Goodie goodie, that's two capital systems I can enter now (more on this later). Well, turns out I was a bit late to the party. You know the bombings that basically triggered the whole shebang with Nova Imperium? Turns out Donaldson station in Alioth was one of them, and there was some major profit to be had that I missed out on. Now, I only know this because I punched in the wrong trade data into my ship computer and ended up losing a few hundred thousand selling medicine at below market value in Donaldson. What an idiot. It amazes me that I haven't lost millions on some ridiculous trade gone wrong. Anyways, with the permit on my computer, I flew into Alioth and began talking with some of the Lakon guys. Well, as it turns out, there's a 5% system-wide discount in Alioth on all Lakon ships. What a steal! Except, I also heard there were better discounts to be found. Turns out, there are better discounts to be had. Rumors were dodgy, but apparently there's a 10-20% discount at certain stations in LHS 3447. More certain, though, was that systems where a certain Mr. Li Yong-Rui controlled, there were subsidies in place resulting in a 15% discount on ships and modules. So much for Alioth, I guess, but my main goal was to follow some leads, and avoid the Federation Navy head hunters. I'd say I accomplished both of those.
Oh, did I mention that I completely breezed past Eta Cassiopae on my way to 78 Ursae Majoris? Yeah, that's made things kind of awkward. Anyways, after getting my permit to Alioth, I decided to expand my horizons a little. I set the nav to include independent stations as well, and began some high-value trading. Somewhere along the way, my trade rank reached broker, which is pretty cool. Still a ways to go before Elite, but it's an achievement for sure. The Pilot's Federation, of course, didn't bother trying to schedule any sort of meeting or ceremony. I hear even triple Elites just get the message, and nothing more. Well, I've been making pretty good profits over the past few days thanks to lucrative, high-value trade routes through Alliance and independent space, and what would you know? The war's ended! Nova Imperium seems to have won, so I'm glad I didn't help out the losing side. And besides, those guys should know that I'm a neutral pilot--until my squadron makes a call, I'd prefer not to side with any superpower. That does make things awkward though, since I kinda ghosted the Federation contact I was supposed to meet regarding my position in the Federal Navy Auxillary...
So hey, I'm in the Empire now! Would you fancy that? Yeah, it would be super awkward to return to Eta Cassiopae at this point, so I figured I was better off trading in the Empire. For a bit of fun, I flew way the hell out to Bayah, and bought an Imperial Eagle from Mobius Enterprise. I've kitted her out to go fast, and not do much else, but hey it really is a fun ship to fly. I think I'll do some courier missions back and forth, though I guarantee you I won't take her into any combat. Let's just say I'm a freight pilot by trade for a reason. Also, going from a Lakon to a Guatamaya, I'm getting used to the other company's cockpit style. The Eagle's cockpit weirdly exposed compared to the Type-6, but it's something I'm sure I can get used to. And the sleek body lines more than make up for it, though the sounds of the engines spooling up still confuse me since I'm expecting the familiar low rumble of the T6. At the end of the day, I figure I'll eventually be flying a slightly larger Guatamaya: The Cutter. Yeah, I'm not here in the Empire for just a vacation: I'm here to get permits baby! I'll fly the Eagle around for a bit, gaining some ranks in the Imperial Navy Auxillary, before jumping back to trade. I'll probably try to stick in the Empire trading, so I can build up a relation with them, and build up enough to buy a Type-9 by trading in the Empire. Once I switch back to the Type-6, sadly, the Eagle will probably have to go. I've bought a lot of ships, especially in recent months, but I can only fly one of them. The Viper, I haven't flown in years; it's been mothballed at Forbes Terminal in Algorab for who knows how long. I'm thinking, for the sake of cleaning up, that the Eagle, the Viper, and the Hauler all gotta go. I'm keeping just my Lakons.
Yeah, I'm in love with Lakons. Sue me. I do hope that the Eagle will grow on me, though. Me flying a cutter is inevitable--the Type-9, while a glorious beast, simply sounds too hazardous for my tastes. I'm sure that some of the "Flying Coffin" malarkey is exaggeration, but rumours also don't come from nowhere. Well, time to get to sleep. I've got a big day of zooming around in a nippy little fighter tomorrow. I must say, of the non-Lakons I've flown, the Imperial Eagle certainly has me closest to changing brands.