Chapter 23. What Is Happening
08 Feb 2021Black Llama
February 8, 3307Awyra Flirble, Eurybia system
Say what you want about the Federation - yeah it's corrupt, it neglects the little guy and it fosters a consumerist culture where everything is a throwaway commodity - but you have to grant one thing: it seems to take freedom of speech pretty seriously. I've seen people get shot in the head for much lighter pieces than what The Federal Times is publishing about the Starship One bombing. Well, either that or this Ethan Takahashi fellow has one hell of a security detail.
So it's Admiral Vincent and Jupiter Rochester. Vincent has been found guilty, and Rochester is apparently on the run. I never gave the Rochesters much thought, and honestly I always confused one brother, the CEO, with the other, the ambassador. It seems Jupiter carved out his own personal chunk from the Core Dynamics group, including the HIP 54530 Gold Universal Group corporation, which controls the independent, permit-locked HIP 54530 system and has now apparently assumed the identity of "Jupiter Division". This new entity is reported to be moving assets and ships into HIP 54530, in preparation for... armed resistance? Economic warfare? Are the Rochesters setting themselves up as a new galactic power? More worryingly for all commanders, another of the Core Dynamics subsidiaries which is also apparently under control by Rochester's people is Vodel, the manufacturers of our beloved Scarab SRVs. How this will affect supplies of vehicles and spares is unknown.
The latest news claim that Hudson is off the hook, as no evidence has been produced to prove that he was either a co-conspirator or that he knew about the whole deal and chose to remain silent. Yeah, he could have been innocent, or this could be Federal Intelligence in action, erasing inconvenient stuff. Skinner claims that Hudson is much more popular within the intelligence services than Halsey or Winters ever were. In my case, it's not so much that I like the guy, but rather that I still hold a grudge against the Liberal Party for abandoning us during the civil war in my home world.
Imperial officials must be rubbing hands together with glee seeing how the major defense manufacturers for both the Federation and Alliance are left in turmoil, while Patreus's rearmament plan is still ongoing.
I wonder who handles security for the Times's staff. Maybe I should hire one of those guys.
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In the latest ongoing galactic community goal, Liz Ryder is requesting supplies to make a special module, a fully engineered Seeker Missile Rack with thermal cascade, widely available through technology brokers. I have just delivered over 500 tons of Bromellite and Lithium Hydroxide here at Awyra Flirble. This amount of materials should be enough to secure one of these weapons. This time, instead of having to deal with pirate interdictions along the way, I had to struggle a lot with my Cutter's firmware, which kept throwing up 'Scarlet Krait' errors. But I managed to dock eventually; I'll have to find a reliable Gutamaya service to get a systems overhaul. But before that, my next stop will be at Liz Ryder's workshop for some tweaks to the Outline's armor.
In other news, there's been a reversal of fortunes in the Zandu system. The latest civil war between the Star Chasers and Zandu Jet Comms Inc has ended in victory for the Chasers. These factions are constantly at odds with each other, but ever since I established my headquarters in Zandu I think this is the first time I've seen the Chasers win. They now control both White Depot and Beaufoy Beacon on the surface of Zandu 6 A. I flew missions for the Chasers with my Federal Corvette, this being the first time I let it loose on high-intensity conflict zones; Skinner and me, we're both very pleased with its performance. And by swapping a few internal modules around, I can fly it as an armed trader when I need to deliver cargo in high-risk environments.
I set aside my mobile - enough news for now - and turn to the surface scanner results. Before going mining, I visited LTT 1935 and cruised the system, sending probes everywhere in an effort to find the NMLA's secret workshop. I check and recheck the logs, but find nothing new. If there really was a NMLA workshop in the system, it's either very well hidden (perhaps even underground), it's inside one of the facilities or starports in the system (and the local authorities won't allow a simple freelancer to go inspect every nook and cranny), or it was thoroughly destroyed. I sigh, scratching my head as I ponder my next move.