Crossroads
20 Dec 2020Elkyri
Jameson Memorial3306.12.18
Sirius Atmospherics was still paying extra so I headed back to Betancourt to dump the survey data I had collected going to and from the guardian site. Word around the terminal was that bonus payouts will continue until the fund Sirius Corp created runs dry. I briefly considered running another wide survey loop through the Coalsack but instead plotted a course to Shinrarta Dezhra. There were closer places to have an FSD booster installed using the material I had gathered but I was anxious to follow-up on the open permit I had recently received. Frankly, I was excited about the prospect of access to Jameson Memorial but I still took the time to scan each system I passed through. I plan to return to Betancourt at least once more before Sirius draws their purse strings tight.
First impression? Underwhelmed. It's a standard Orbis starport. The fleet of ships in the storage moorings is larger than most, hinting at how many pilots base here, but otherwise it is just like any other station -- on the outside, that is. It's what's inside that makes the place special and once the docking clamps were secured my impressions began to change.
I left Nayla in the hanger and headed for the tech broker with the idea I would have the booster installed straight away. That route took me through the concourse where the shipbuilders have their sales offices. Every single one of them has a storefront on that concourse. More than that-- from the displays it looked like every ship in their line is available there. Until that very moment I had not even considered a ship upgrade but I found myself stopping to check my credit balance.
They say sharks can sense one drop of blood in a million drops of water. Salesmen are just like that in a way. Faulcon DeLacy got to me first. He started with small talk.
"Where are you coming in from?" His name tag read Blake. He looked like a Blake. You know the sort -- the well liked kid who excelled in sports but struggled through academics. The kid everyone knew was going to get an athletic scholarship and eventually make it into the big leagues. Only he didn't so he ended up as a salesman.
"The Coalsack," I answered as I put my tablet away.
"Oh, right. I heard Sirius has plans for an expansion there. You were surveying?"
"Making a go at it. It's not my usual line of work."
"Yeah, it's becoming a specialized field nowadays, isn't it? You pretty much need the right kind of equipment to keep up. You know, just two years ago Faulcon DeLacy introduced a ship perfectly suited to that type of survey work. If you're interested I can give you a VR tour from our booth."
Against my better judgement I donned the headset and explored a VR version of the Krait Phantom while Blake babbled on with the ship's specifications, highlighting the advantages he claimed it had over rival Lakon's much more affordable Asp Explorer. I only half-listened. Instead I was considering my budget, now swollen with the payouts from Sirius, and thinking through my options. I realized two things -- Sirius had put every one of these ships within my reach but I was at a crossroads. The choice to turn left or right on one path or the other had to be made before I could make a sound decision on a ship upgrade.
Blake was still babbling when I removed the headset. Lakon's booth was just across the walkway and their wall-sized display screen scrolled to feature their Type 7 just as I looked in that direction. The screen flickered as it switched from a glamour shot to display a schematic with callouts highlighting the various features.
Glamour shot -- as if there is anything at all glamorous about a Lakon design. That's what I like about them, actually. They are straightforward utilitarian designs with no nonsense, no frills, and no wasted space. Speaking of space, the T7 easily triples Nayla's cargo capacity with room left over for a few things like limpet controllers. Or I could give up a small cargo rack to make room for a vehicle hanger and still haul enough to get a good economy of scale going.
Blake was quick to catch on and interrupted himself mid-sentence "... but if you're more interested in cargo capacity let's have a look at a Python. You wouldn't believe it from the looks but it has nearly the same capacity as a Type 7. That's right; a difference of less than twenty tonnes."
I glanced at the display he called to life on the screen showing a comparison between the two ships. Blake was right -- a difference of only sixteen tonnes if fitted for max capacity. The cost difference is significant but I could see where it is coming from. The Python has the T7 beat hands-down when you start looking at power production and handling.
"Here's the kicker," Blake said. "That sleek profile isn't just about looks. It's practical. It lowers the overall height of the ship so it will fit into a medium hanger. You can't do that with a T7. I'm sure you know some of the best commodity prices are found in places where you can't land a ship as tall as the T7."
He had me there. More than once I had seen big ships forced to pass up a lucrative run because one end of it was on a small outpost. Those ships are hauling six or seven hundred tonnes so they can make up for a smaller profit margin elsewhere just based on quantity. The T7 can't do that. It's in the crack -- too large for landing on an outpost but too small to make up a margin difference with capacity.
Blake switched settings so I could take a VR tour of the Python. The first thing that struck me was a second seat in the cockpit. "Why is there a second seat in the cockpit?" I asked. "Is the ship so complicated it takes a crew of two to operate?"
A second pilot would allow twenty-four hour operations, so that's a plus, but I wondered if I would be happy in such close quarters with another person. I had always thought of space-trucking as a solitary enterprise unless on a large freighter with a full crew. I was quite comfortable being commander, helm, navigator, engineer, purser, and steward all rolled into one even if it did mean talking to myself now and then.
"Oh, no," Blake assured me. "Standard COVAS comes equipped, as required, and all the usual automation makes it easily handled by a single pilot."
I knew Blake knew he had me. When he mentioned any ship sold at Jameson came at a straight ten-percent discount with no room for negotiating on price we got down to the real business at hand -- refitting the base model to meet my specifications. I stressed I wanted my upgraded Detailed Surface Scanner swapped over and arranged to have the FSD engineered while all the other work was being done.
"We'll also take care of getting the booster installed," Blake said as he slid the contract over for my thumbprint and signature. "All we need is a name so we can code the transponder and complete the registration."
"Yalena," I said. "Let's call her Yalena."