LE #2: War, what is it good for?
22 Aug 2020BaderThanBad
Profits!Where war goes so too does the opportunity to generate more income. Delivering war supplies, sourcing weapons, you name it. You could volunteer for combat, but I never really warmed up to the notion of being inflicted with a hull breach. I guess there are some who love space so much they are even willing to leave their ships in the middle of nowhere and go sightseeing, a terrifying prospect indeed.
My entrepreneurial skills managed to land me a medium sized vessel, which I was very excited for. A trader in the warzone was selling some of his assets, and it seems he was selling a python for cheap. What a steal! It was named the Yersinia Pestis, whatever the hell that means. A ship with ample cargo space and amicable jump distance, just what a trader needs to capitalize in these troubled war times. It was not flashy or anything, and the onboard facilities were satisfactory. Although when things were quiet I could swear there is a beeping sound coming from somewhere, meh its probably nothing.
I know, for her maiden voyage let us take her for a spin through the galactic neighborhood. I picked up some war mission cargo related to the war, and booked it to the nearest refinery. I loaded it up with all the tritium I could find and off we go!
The ship is way slower and less maneuverable than the cobra, but boy if its cargo hold does not put it to shame. I even outfitted it with impressive weaponry and a shield, fending off a couple pirates and scaring the others away who made it a habit to check up on me every once in a while, probably out of concern that I do not sleep on the wheel.
"Don't worry, I do this for a living." Is what I heard over the comm channel as I was approaching the mission destination. Another one has appeared eh, ah well. I slowed down and pointed the overly expensive weaponry at the new ship signature that apparently did not get the memo. Little did I realize that mister Chuck Yoghurt over here was a master of his trade, more experienced and better equipped for a fight than I was.
He gave me a taste of what happens to those who are not prepared.
My shields did not last the first pass, and as I scrambled to escape his second pass my power distributor malfunctioned. One of several side effects of enhanced and engineered weaponry or so I was later told. I did not stand a chance and was annihilated.
The search and rescue team came to pick me up from my emergency escape pod, and salvaged what they could from the wreckage. I was soon vomiting blood after my trip to the insurance office. He took me for all I had, and if that was not enough I had sunk all my capital into that tritium and the mission cargo was floating somewhere in space! I had to get it back, and so took my finally fixed ship out of the station.
"This won't take long..."
It was him again. He was waiting for me outside the station and stayed true to his word. As I was contemplating my life decisions in the same cockpit drifting in space I realized two things. One was that I needed to come up with a solution to my situation in the future, and that my change in attitude from flight to fight was a huge mistake. No matter how many precautions a trader makes, he could never take on a dedicated fighter ship. Second was...
I was broke. Full out broke.
This time the security team that arrived moments before my demise was from the faction I was affiliated with, and they towed me back to HQ. I had lost all my credits and my ship, but there were reports that The Chuck was still being sighted in the vicinity. This was no longer a matter of cargo, someone was targeting my life specifically. I was taken to the security base of operations.
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The air was stale and dry, and the lighting was dim. A bland office room and desk, with the only light source being a desk lamp directed straight at my face. On the other side were two commanders, one of which was quite clearly larger than the other. I could not make anything else out due to the noir style interrogation I was receiving. The larger frame led the conversation.
"So let me get this straight, not only did you lose your ship, but all your credit was in that cargo?"
I nodded hesitantly. After which I heard a low rumbling noise. It was terrifying and I felt a chill.
Wait a second, did that man just growl?
"Blitzkrieg lets sort this one out quickly, the CZ deployment can't wait much longer"
The other commander nodded and promptly left.
He was still staring daggers at me, I dared not make any sudden movements. After a brief pause he kept the door open and left aswell.
That was scarier than my recent brush with death I'll tell you that much. After adding another person on my not to piss off list, I hopped into my cobra and received encrypted messages, instructions from commander Blitzkrieg. We were setting up an ambush and I was the bait. Although I was willing to comply, being the worm on the end of the hook was not pleasant. After arriving at the destination, my orders were to wait. Halfway through my cup of tea the sensors picked up a familiar signature, and lo and behold it was good ol' Chucky. I was in the cobra this time, so speed was on my side. I wondered what kind of warning he was going to issue to me this time.
"You will rue..." he was halfway through when the command "Engage!" was blurted out over the comms. Several ships came out from hiding from the dark side of the close by moon, and chuck started bolting.
Hah, fat chance buddy.
You can't outrun The Khangaroo with that over-sized tin can. So anyway, I started blasting. Now I don't see so good so I missed most of my shots, but the other members of the security team caught up and started hammering him. Everything was going well, but then I felt a chill over my shoulder. Then it happened, the largest ship I've ever seen came barreling down on poor chuck, instantly disintegrating him. The only way anyone would be able to survive that is using voodoo or some sorcery, cause Chucky aint coming back from that one.
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Life was good, I lost some money then I gained it back. As long as you don't let flies have fun when on your time its all good. Apparently we had also taken perlmutter, which i was thrilled by. Take that old hag! Plus it was an entire new market to ply my trade in. I received a message from HQ to come in for a formal meeting, it must be to congratulate me on my efforts and welcome me aboard!
After entering the sector reserved for fleet command I was greeted with a reception hall. Small in size, but relatively high tech. You can tell by the shiny lights. You can always tell be the shiny lights. After a brief wait I was being ushered into another place. The lounge and other facilities were all impressive, well appointed, and fairly populated. I was surprised the outpost I frequented so heavily had a place like this. The doors opened and I was welcomed by the darkness of the room. The contrast of lighting took my eyes a few seconds to adjust to.
What greeted me was not exactly a round table, more like an oval one. It was the kind with holographic tech and impressive features. A window that was looking out into the lounge highlighted the difference between dark and light. On one side was a solitary chair, and on the other side were a dozen or so figures in the dark. Only the portion closer to middle was slightly illuminated by the faint light coming from the holo-desk.
"Commander BaderThanBad, please take a seat."
The voice was formal and distant, but carried with it a hint of authority and well practiced mannerism.
"Ah yes, thank you"
I took my seat as directed. There was something off about the atmosphere and I could not quite put my finger on it. I thought the mood would be a more jolly one.
"From our reports we see you have been active and busy commander. Your activities seem to mostly revolve around trading correct?"
"Why ofcourse, I come from a lon.."
I couldn't help but get distracted. I recognized the person speaking by the several bulletins posted around the media news around here. Commander Nira, leader of our squadron. I could also make out, albeit barely, the frames of the security members of the squad I previously interacted with. It was not due to the one or two recruits who were poking their head from behind the window that I stopped my speech, but there was a figure actively bobbing up and down throwing provoking or funny gestures. Completely breaking the immersion of this grandiose setting, and in full view of everyone. No one seemed to pay any heed though, even though they were aware of it. I was having trouble figuring out whether I thought it was comical or rude. As I was collecting myself and attempting to continue, Nira cut me off.
"You also seem to have squandered your entire wealth almost immediately after obtaining it by being raided, is that correct?"
I gulped.
"Not to mention that your activities and trade behavior has caused localized shortages, creating friction with other groups. Especially the one we currently concluded our war against. Do you have any ideas about how this was all instigated?"
Boy, there must be a leak in the ceiling I was not aware of, cause I just wiped a couple large droplets off my forehead.
"Thi.."
"At any case, we have called you here to be formally introduced and remind you of our code. We are an order that stands against corruption and uphold the nobler virtues of humanity. Is that clear?"
"Yes..."
That one commander was still bobbing around behind everyone. Currently sticking out their tongue behind Nira and doing other things kids do to tease each other.
"Well good. The other members have taken a good look at your face. I believe with that introductions are done, you may leave."
When you are approaching a station in the proper logarithmic fashion, the estimated time for approach hovers around seven seconds. If you talk to a mathematician he could probably explain how the deceleration to a safe docking speed is the most time consuming process of space flight. If you accelerate it even slightly beyond that, you will overshoot the station quite quickly. I bolted out of that room faster than the time I hauled some tobacco through Aislings's territory.
After I managed to get some distance from there I felt a chill and looked over my shoulder.
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"He seemed decent"
"We needed a grunt to do the hauling jobs anyway"
"He has no idea how to make big money"
"Hahaha did you see him sweating?"
The various members were continuing their conversations, while the bobbing one scared away the overlooking recruits by slamming against the window and making threatening gestures. Nira stood up after a while, and it brought an immediate silence to the room.
"At any case hes going to be here for the foreseeable future. Servatrix keep an eye on him he seems to be a trouble magnet."
Servatrix affirmed with a low rumbling growl.
"Why are you so interested in him Nira?" Blitzkrieg asked nonchalantly.
"Are the powerful wealthy or are the wealthy powerful?" Nira scanned the room. All around were trustworthy companions. Nira knew their dispositions well, from the new to the old, and knew most were uninterested in these overly philosophical questions. Nira could tell from Servatrix's threatening glare, one that would spread fear in even the most experienced combat veterans, that he was only thinking of one thing. Steak.