The Conquest of Gitxsante
08 Apr 2021Orion Blacksun
It started with a conversation I had with Aide Hickman over an irradiated coffee in the deep space diner in Schmitt ring. I had just returned from a bounty hunting mission and was carrying a bundle of skulls that had been freshly steamed and strung togeather."Really Commander, must you bring those horrid things back every time?"
"There's still space on the pile Hickman" I said, indicating the huge mound of skulls in the foyer. It was getting close to fifteen feet high now. While it was verging on ridiculous, I was really curious just how many skulls I could actually get away with piling up before someone dismantled it. Lots more than I thought it turns out. What can I say, everyone needs a hobby. And seeing Hickman's face each time I bring more back makes it worth it.
"So, I notice we've set up an office in the nearby Haydes system." I said to distract him from the skulls. "Whatever for? It's a rubbish system. All it's got are a couple of stupid ground bases."
"Look Commander, the process of expanding into a new system is very complicated. We have to go into systems where we can excert our power subtly and carefully. The best way to do that is to move into minor systems and gradually increase our influence bit by bit. I can tell you more if your interested?"
"Sure thing Hickman. Meet in Arucane's in an hour and you can tell me all about it."
As soon as his back was turned I lobbed the skulls on the pile and went to have a shower. Minor systems? Subtly and carefully? I'm sure we could do better than that...
Three coffees and a couple of isotope brandies later and I think I had the jist of it.
"Right, so the way it works" I summarised, "is that we build up resources through trade, bounties and other profitable activities. And when we have enough we spend it on setting up offices and infrastructure in a new system."
"That's correct Commander. But we can only expand.."
"Yeah", I interrupted him "into a system that has fewer than seven other factions currently present. Because of some idiotic reason that makes no sense."
"As I was attempting to explain, it's because there is a certain threshold at which the influence peddling market becomes saturated. New players actually detract from the total net worth of the bulk available and this results in.."
I had totally tuned out by this point. My eyes settled in the barmaid and my mind had all the information I needed. If we want to get into a decent system and it was full we'd have to make a gap. I asked Hickman how to go about this and he just answered with some nonsense about political preassure and market forces and it taking months of careful plotting.
I reckoned I could get a faction to retreat in less than a week. All I had to do was destroy their credibility somehow. I left Hickman with the bill and went back to my room to consult the star map and plan what to do next.
I was looking for a system that was relatively close to Kuwema, but also worthwhile. Enough of ground bases and outposts, it was time to take a coriolis. We have one in Kuwema of course, but no others. There was a system that stood out, Gitxsante. Close, good outfitting, good mining and a coriolis. I jumped into a ship and headed over to check it out. It was a fine system, as an added bonus there were RES sites near the starport and the starport itself was a very pleasing shade of red. I wanted it. I reckoned we could take it, but the only issue was that the system was full. Seven factions had offices in the main station, I visited them all and chatted with the staff pretending I was interested in their current missions, but really I was looking for weakness. Who could we kick out so that we could move in?
The Workers of Obotra Alliance looked to be in the most vulnerable position. I could tell that they weren't well liked and they were pretty desperate to recruit my aid. I accepted a load of time critical missions for them and then went off to do something else. I returned a few days later to find their position even weaker but they took one look at their screens and then glared at me when I went to see them. They wouldn't offer me any more work, which was understandable really. In an effort to get into their good books I went to another system where they were present and did all sorts of work for them there. They loved me. "An ally like you is always welcome."
I went back to Gitxsante but this time I wore sunglasses as a disguise and asked them for work. They looked at their screens and offered me loads of work. Idiots. I promptly agreed to do a load of missions that I had no intention of fulfilling. This could work, I reckoned that I could get their standing so low in Gitxsante that they would have to leave.
Before going any further I met up with Ubermeg, the leader of the AESA, to see what he thought about the situation.
We sat at a table in Arucane's with a nice view of the skulls. I knew he didn't approve but he approved even less when they were filling a room in the Shakelton.
"So what do you reckon?" I asked him, "you've had a look round Gitxsante. Shall we try to take it?"
"Well," he replied, "I do like the system and that station is quite fancy. Do you think you can pull it off?"
"Absolutely. But I might need some help from the squadron doing missions and the timing will be important."
He wasn't convinced, but several cocktails later he didn't really remember and the next day I acted like he'd agreed to support the operation and he went along with it.
So with the squadron at my disposal we went about trying to evict the workers from Gitxsante. Their standing in the system plummeted and before we knew it they were packing up and planning to leave the system. Another week of pressure and they were gone. Hard work but success! Now we needed to expand into the gap and from there we could take the system. This was easy. Nothing to it really. Again, the squadron was mobilised and we worked on getting everything ready in Kuwema for the expansion. It wasn't long before we had what we needed and now just had to wait for the expansion fleet to be prepared. I could tell that Hickman was impressed. This was so much easier than he had made out. It was still not clear whether the expansion fleet would go to Gitxsante or to Piek ek. They are stingy with the fuel and will useually go to the closest system. We had a bet on as to where it would go. Finally after what seemed like forever the fleet left and we met up in Arucane's to see where it would go. We looked at the screens in anticipation wating to see who would win. Gitxsante or pien ek. The monitors came to life. We were both nervous. The destination was... Anges.
We looked at each other in shocked horror.
Anges? What the hell?
We quickly looked it up on the star map. Two outposts. Both over 25,000LY from the primary. And that's it. What a dump. It was even worse than Haydes.
"But, what, how?" I tried to figure out what had just happened. All that work. And we get Anges.
Hickman was also decidedly unchuffed. "I'll find out what happened" he said. "Let's meet tomorrow."
"And? How did we end up in this situation?"
"Well, Commander" Hickman actually looked embarrassed. I wasn't going to like this. "You see, well, as you know, at AESA we actively mentor newly graduated pilots and teach them the ways of the Commander."
"Yeah, so?"
"So we do the same with the support staff. All the administrators, security forces, politicians and so on. It takes a lot of people to manage the day to day operation of the squadron. It's not just flyng about in a ship you know. We even have a diplomatic corps which we use to interact with other factions and try to maneuver them to our own advantage."
"Hang on Hickman, you're not going to tell me that some work experience newbe caused a faction to retreat from Anges so that we would expand there are you?"
"Um." He looked at the ground.
I won't record my responce here but suffice to say it wasn't pretty. The skull pile was mentioned.
"Please commander, Ubermeg himself has said how important mentoring is. We can't just kill someone who makes a mistake."
A few irradiated coffees later and I was less angry.
"OK. I'll think of something suitable. In the meantime we need to try to expand again and get into Gitxsante." The squadron weren't going to like this.
Interlude.
"Hey Mum, guess what!!"
"What is it Love?"
"You know how I was working as a spy for the AESA?"
"Of course Dear, a spy. Of course you were."
"Well, I helped them expand into a new system! And guess what? I've been promoted!!!"
"Really?"
"Yeah!! Personal recommendation from a Squadron Leader!!! It's aboard the DSSA carrier. It's a year long posting but I really want to do it. I can go can't I? Pleeeeease."
"Well, I suppose so. I mean I'll miss you and.."
"Yay! I'm gonna go pack right now! They said I'll get to see Sag A*!!! WOW!!!!"
https://youtu.be/BnWcUjr6Nrs
Interlude ends.
"Well Orion, we're not in Gitxsante."
"No Uber, I know. Something went wrong."
"You said you could do it and I mobilised the squadron for this."
"Yeah. I mean, I can do it. We will expand into Gitxsante. I just need a bit more time and some more resources. We need to expand again from Kuwema as quickly as possible. We just need to ask the squadron to.."
"I don't know Orion, I think I'd rather consolidate the systems we have and ask the squadron to do that instead."
This wasn't going well. Luckily I'd anticipated some resistance and had set something up with Arucane.
"You know Uber, there's a new cocktail in Arucane's. It's called the Megaton."
"Sounds interesting..."
"Yeah, it's made with heavy water and has a half life of 5 minutes so you have to drink it quickly. Want to try one?"
Five megatons later and my head was spinning like there was no tomorrow, but I had a signed order allowing me to deploy the squadron. This time there would be no mistakes.
In Kuwema preperation was underway for the expansion. I was determined that this time it was going to be either Gitxsante or Pien Ek. To this end I carefully studied the nearby systems. Was anyone in a closer system poised to retreat? No. Good. Was anyone nearby making preperations of their own to expand into the gap in Gitxsante? Well, actually yes. Dammit! I checked the distance several times and there was no doubt. Nuitu Services were poised to expand into Gitxsante before we did. Our expansion had already begun and couldn't be delayed. The only thing that we could do was to cause another faction to retreat from Gitxsante to create a second gap for us to expand into. But could it be done in time?
There was a hipster faction in Gitxsante which could be evicted, they were not well liked. I went to their office and accepted all the missions they could offer me. I turned to head back to my ship when I heard a chuckle behind me.
"Heh heh heh boy, I reckon I know what you're contemplating."
I turned to find a hoary old commander chewing on the end of a cigar. His clothes were old and cheap and he wore a cowboy hat and boots. He had the look of someone who's been in space too long. I've met people like him before. So much time alone in the black that they can't readjust to life in the bubble. Many of them are half mad and I've heard more than one account of old timers just fying into a star after coming back from a long trip. It's usually interesting, but also disturbing to talk to them. But they could be a great source of information if they're willing to impart.
"There's a better way to do it. Buy me a drink and I'll consider enlightening you."
"Sure thing, why not. I'm Orion."
"Well now, thats mighty hospitable of you. Name's Jake. I'll have an Indi bourbon and a Kamitra cigar." he said, spitting the remnants of his stogie on the floor. So pretty much the most expensive drink in the station and a luxury cigar. Was this a con?
We went to the bar and I ordered.
"You'd better not be trying to trick me."
"Why sir! A man might take offence at such a suggestion. I ain't conning you, but I only tell my secrets to my friends. And you can show your friendship qualities by buying me a drink or two. Perhaps a meal, and maybe some accommodation in this here fine station."
"What? This had better be worth it."
"It surely will be boy," he said with a smile "now tell me, have you heard of the terror taxi?"
Well, it cost me over 10,000 credits in the end what with food, drinks, their best room for a week, and he even wanted a power plant. But I did learn the details of the scheme. It couldn't work could it? I had nothing to lose at this stage so flew back to Gitxsante to give it a go.
I have a ship that I use for passenger transport. It's a python and is quite handy since it's small enough to land in outposts. The last time I used it was to evacuate refugees from burning stations after a Thargoid attack in the Witch head nebula. The inside of it still smelt of smoke faintly and a palpable aura of fear clung to it. I made a few adjustments to the lighting and cleared up most of the charred remains. All set.
I headed to the Hipster's office to get some contracts. They checked my id and looked at their screens.
"Orion Blacksun. An ally like you is always welcome here."
"You bet. I'm looking to transport some passengers. Rich tourists, explorers, that sort of thing."
"Of course. Please look at our boards. You have suitable cabins on your ship I presume?"
"Yeah, I've got a ship. Not exactly in the top 1% or anything but still pretty good. She's tough!"
I made my way down to the docking pad and waited for the passengers to board. Once they were all in their cabins it was time to put the next phase of the plan into motion.
"Welcome aboard ladies and gentlemen to this Hip 29312 corporation flight. Please sit back and relax as we leave the station."
Right, take off, leave the station, request docking permission and chuck a uey.
"There is no cause for alarm, we have detected a minor fault with the ship's reactor. Please don't panic. There is no cause for alarm. None at all. So long as we land gently there is minimal chance of a radiation leak."
Now switch the lights in the passenger cabins to disconcerting strobe effect and play discordant music. Drop the shields and display the warning message on the screens in the cabins. Now head towards the landing pad but don't deploy the landing gear and make as if to land. With a big thump. Play the audio message from the corvas warning of hull damage.
"Please remain calm. A fault has occured with the landing gear and the reactor is venting only a small amount of radiation into the ship. There is no cause for alarm. Hull integrity is still above 50% and the electrical malfunction is far from catastrophic."
Play some static. Bump the landing pad again, harder this time. Vent some steam into the cabins. Now listen to the cabin microphones. Screaming, weeping, Shouting, death threats. Perfect. Deploy the landing gear and touchdown.
"Ladies and gentlemen, please disembark in an orderly manner. We apologise for any inconvenience caused. Please claim a refund from our desk in the station, and do go to a medical facility to check for radiation posioning at your earliest convenience. We hope you've enjoyed your flight and will choose Hip 29312 corporation airlines again in the future."
I watched them disembark from the external cameras. They looked angry, and stormed into the station in a mix of rage and terror. I gave it half an hour and then went back to the hipsters desk.
"Hello, I'm back."
The receptionist glared at me.
"Had some trouble with the ship but it's all fixed now. Got any more passengers?"
"Well, your standing has dropped considerably but there are some you could take. This better not happen again."
"Of course not. Total one off."
Back in the ship I terrified another load of tourists and then dropped them off and quickly flew to a different system where the hipsters had an office. I picked up a couple of delivery missions for them and donated some of the reward back to them. They were well pleased as they updated their system.
The next day it was back to Gitxsante and into the hipsters office. The receptionist gave me a look of open hostility.
"What are you doing back here? You almost ruined us! Get out of here."
"I've come to do some passenger missions."
"You've got a nerve. You must be crazy if you think we'll let any passengers get on board your ship."
"Ahem, why don't you check your screen?"
"My screen? I don't know why you want me to... Oh no. How did you.?"
"Say it."
"Please no, don't."
"SAY IT."
"An.. An.. An ally like you is always welcome here."
"Yeah Baby! All aboard!"
Before long the hipsters were packing up their stuff to leave Gitxsante in a hurry before they were mobbed by angry tourists. So it was now a case of seeing which would happen first, our expansion or their retreat. These were tense days. I knew if we ended up anywhere other than Gitxsante that Uber would be unlikely to trust me with such a task again. I did what I could to delay our expansion and accelerate the hipsters retreat and then the day came when the fleet left. I sat with Hickman drinking a coffee and watching the monitors. It was really tense. A report came through from the expansion fleet that they had had to take action to avoid another fleet going in the opposite direction. I contacted them to make sure they recalculated the closest system, I hoped that the other fleet could be the hipsters leaving.
Then we got the message from the fleet. They had arrived.
In Gitxsante.
Hickman was a good sport. I bought him several drinks and we were both half cut when a load of other squadron members turned up. We had a proper night of it to celebrate. I felt like only now was I worthy of the squadron commander rank I'd been given and I tried to motivate the guys for the upcoming war that we were about to wage. I don't remember how well it went, but then again, nor did they so I suppose that's ok. The next day (in the afternoon) I went to Szentmartony dock with Uber to oversee the final stages of the installation of the office. It was in the same location that the hipsters had had and there was still broken glass and some charred remains around. Apparently the tourists had rioted and tried to burn it down. Uber looked at me and raised an eyebrow but I just shrugged.
"So here we are. You did it."
"Not just me, the whole squadron helped."
"So what's next then, Orion?"
"We take the bases. All of them. Not only that but we take them back to back in one long glorious campaign."
"If you think you can convince the guys to fight in four wars in a row then go for it. I'll support it. But you can organise it."
"Yes sir!"
There followed a period of intense war. We had a setback in the first conflict and lost some battles. It probably didn't help that we went srv racing one of the days and totally neglected the war effort. So much conflict can be tiring. I tried to keep it fresh by using different ships. I was mocked for using my asp scout. I'll admit it's not exactly my most potent warship but it does have maneuverability going for it. Nothing else though. I even indulged myself and purchased a second corvette between conflicts. There were enough willing pilots that there was always someone to fight for the faction. The stations were all controlled by Lodere & co, a powerful federal organisation. They didn't take too kindly to us challenging their dominance. As an act of spite they took out all the snazzy red bulbs from Szentmartony dock when we took over control. Still, it didn't deter us and little by little we started taking the stations in the system. After we had taken the third station they realised what we were up to and refused to engage in conflict with us. It took a lot of effort to make our position seem weak and theirs look strong so that they felt confident enough to deploy their fleet to launch an attack. It was, of course, a ruse. We had been working behind the scenes manipulating the data that they saw. We defeated them in the final conflict and took the last station. They brought mercenaries in towards the end, but too little and too late. We crushed them too.
Gitxsante was ours.
When it was over I sat in the new franchise of Arucane's deep space diner located in Szentmartony dock sipping an irradiated coffee contemplating whether the decor would be improved by a few skulls. So much effort, had it been worth it? I was certainly weary of war and intrigue and needed a rest, but I looked back at what we had achieved. We now controlled a second important system, and more importantly had learned how to do it efficently (sort of). We had recently expanded again, this time into Pien ek. I expect that Hickman was pleased. With that move we were now at liberty to choose from several other systems that we could expand into. One had an oculus starport, another had a material trader and there was talk of acquiring a planetary port. As for me, I'm off for a holiday and then after that, well we'd have to see what the future would bring.