All for 400cr!
16 Jul 2020G8trdone
I made my money in mining. A lot of money. Enough money that an old man like me kept thinking about what he wanted to do with it all. If I was ever going to see where it all began, I was going to need a permit for Sol.I remember my buddy Tex told me the easiest way to get that permit was to run messages for the ass hats at the Federation. He sent me a postcard from Mars so I knew he made it.
Running messages for months, and the occasional load of cargo if it was going the same direction I was, the system started getting pretty hot. Avoiding interdictions became my new normal until eventually, they got me. I was angry. I was angry at the pirates. I was angry at the "security" forces. I was angry at the Federation. I'd finally had enough. I knew which clan was causing all the trouble and I was going to do something about it.
I took a planetary scan gig and brushed the dust off my old sidewinder, Champ. I didn't know what I was doing and I didn't want to blow up one of my nice ships. The mission was less than 8 LYs away so I pulled the Fuel Scoop, added a planet scanner, and was on my way to deliver hell.
The mission went off without a hitch. I blew up a few defense turrets, got my scan, and took off. I incurred a 400cr fine, and smiled at what a piece of cake this was.
When I got back to the station expecting a ticker tape parade and was a little miffed that I had to dock anonymously for a 400cr fine! I said to myself, "Self! Let's go pay that schmuck his 400cr, then reap the reward you deserve!" But it didn't really pan out that way...
Oh, I paid the 400cr but they incarcerated me too! I woke up in Champ, near 400 LYs away! I didn't make it 3 jumps before I knew I'd have fuel trouble. The nearest fuel was only 7 Lys away so I headed there. I got the 10% fuel warning as soon as I landed. The Research facility was over 100,000 LSs away but what could I do? I scanned the system and it was filled with alien signals! My fuel stop dropped me in the middle of a thargoid system! Now, I've heard of Thargoids of course but I'd never seen or heard any Thargoids. And now I had to run through the entire system to get enough gas to get out of here.
At 54,000 LSs I got the 5% fuel warning. Shit. At 3,400 LSs, my fuel tanks ran dry. I lost power. I lost life support.
Was I going to leave a beautiful corpse to the Thargoid menace? Better not. I learned two things the night on that dark, desolate stretch of black. One, I hate working for the Federation. And two, where the self-destruct button was.
All for 400cr.