JOURNEY OF A COMMANDER PART 22
25 Sep 2022Ni6h70wl
19.11.3307 - Novara Expedition Day 57
After 5 days of "rest" on the starport, a lot has happened.
There was another vote about the further course of the journey, primarily about whether the journey should actually last 551 days or whether we should fly back into the bubble.
In the end, the cardinal points of the Milky Way were chosen as the destinations:
• Beagle Point
• Oevasy SG-Y d0 (Salomé's Reach)
• Sphiesi HX-L d7-0 (Erikson’s Star)
• Byaa Thoi GC-D d12-0 (Star One)
• Lyed YJ-I d9-0 (Amundsen’s Star)
• Ood Fleau ZJ-I d9-0 (Magellan Star)[/b]
Star One at this point, is the closest system to our neighbouring galaxy Andromeda and was also set as the target point. With this plan in mind, we were the first to head towards Colonia and from there to Beagle Point.
08.12.3307 - Novara Expedition Day 76
The Novara jumped into the system Phroi Flyuae NE-S c20-6940 around noon and carried out the usual system scans. Generally, a relatively large number of systems have been discovered on the route between Sagittarius A* and Colonia, so I was all the more surprised when this undiscovered system presented us with an Earth-like world, a terraformable water world and a normal water world.
The only downer was that these three particularly valuable planets were over 100,000 light seconds away and orbiting the system's second star.
After just under 20 minutes in supercruise, we reached the Earth-like world.
This has a bound rotation and every "year" the star-facing side moves 415 km further. Exploring such a world and how life there has adapted to this cycle would be really interesting. Nevertheless, we must continue our journey.
In the evening the Novara reached the system Schee Flyi DN-I d10-8604, in this system the DSSA carrier NECFC Huginn is located. This circumstance was used to restore the ship's integrity. The time in supercruise is tearing at the ship's hull and weakening it increasingly. Hull rupture is ruled out, but if hull integrity is lost, a collision or too hard a landing will have serious consequences. The data of the last Earth-like world was handed in to the existing service Universal Cartographics, for sure. As a result, the Pilots Federation awarded us the Explorer rank Elite I, based on our achievements in the field of exploration.
15.12.3307 - Novara Expedition Day 83
On the way to Colonia we jumped into the triple star system Kyloall ZD-B d3480.
The gravitational centre is a class F8 star orbited by an M0 and L0 star.
Much more exciting is the water world orbiting the smallest star. Apparently, the planet C1 moves in a region where liquid water is present.
The class L0 star has a mass of 190 Jupiter masses and is thus well above the limit necessary to fuse hydrogen and to be considered a star.
From 6 MJ, the so-called sub-Brown dwarfs of spectral class Y begin, very cool objects with stellar properties, they need at least 13 Jupiter masses to be able to fuse deuterium.
From 20 MJ, one already speaks of a T-star or methane dwarf, since the spectral line contains a high proportion of methane.
An L star can be formed from 40 MJ, but this class of star needs at least 65 MJ to be able to fuse lithium. We still do not speak of a star here.
From 75 MJ, the celestial body is heavy enough and can fuse hydrogen in its interior and is thus considered a star.
In general, we can say that stars of class L1 or higher are capable of fusing hydrogen and are considered real stars.
The water world found orbits an L0 star and, since it emits mostly only infrared and visibly red light, is bathed in a violet glow. Despite the dense atmosphere of 71.8 atm, the average temperature on the surface is only 260K. Life could not be detected by our sensors.
After the DOS was completed, the Novara continued its journey towards Colonia.
16.12.3308 - Novara Expedition Day 84
Already at a distance of several hundred light years we could see the Colonia Nebula. Embedded in it, the only colony that exists self-sufficiently, isolated from the bubble.
After a few jumps, Colonia was displayed in the jump window, the last jump and then there is a short break for the crew again.
Before flying towards Jaques Station, the VSS scanner registered remarkable stellar phenomena.
A yellowish glowing Croceum Lagrange cloud, Lagrange clouds mostly consist of dust and gases, nevertheless other materials also accumulate here, because this location is stable in the system. In this cloud, we were able to detect the following organic life forms with the composition scanner: Rubeum Metallic Crystals, Prasinum Metallic Crystals and Viride Umbrella Molluscs. These organisms, so called because of their resemblance to umbrellas, are protected by husks that shield them from radiation.
Having fully explored the cloud, we now went to Jaques Station.
Here we are, Jaques Station, an Orbis starport located in the Colonia system. It is owned by the legendary but eccentric cyborg barkeep, Jaques, and is unique among stations in that it is equipped with thrusters and can travel to different systems. All other stations, except the one under construction, are permanently stationary. Jaques Quintentian Still, a rare commodity, is available exclusively at Jaques Station. It is a pocket-sized distillery handmade by Jaques. This device is capable of turning almost any combination of liquids into 10 ml of highly concentrated alcohol in just 3 minutes.
Well, we have no use for such a device on the Novara, especially since our supplies of alcoholic beverages are sufficiently filled.
Most of the crew used the time to amuse themselves in the entertainment area of the station. Star ports are equipped with just about everything one could wish for as a pastime, for a corresponding fee, of course.
And so I am now sitting with my first officer in a bar overlooking the arriving and departing ships.
"So, Jaques Station will be our last regular starport, after that we will only land on Fleet Carriers, are you sure you want to go? For your circumstance a starport or even better an inhabited planet would be better."
"No, that's fine with me, our medical team is competent enough and the infirmary has all the necessary medical equipment should anything go wrong."
"As you say, the little one will probably be born in a system in the middle of nowhere then."
"I realise that, she'll grow up somewhere else anyway. And she won't be able to walk for the first few months anyway."
"Another drink, sir?" While we were engrossed in our conversation, the bartender and cyborg, Jaques, rolled up with a drink menu in one hand and a polishing cloth in the other.
"Yes, a Lave Brandy, thank you Jaques."
"You're welcome sir."
Jaques, after paying off his debts and wanting to settle down somewhere with decent technicians to support him, got a job as a barkeeper at the newly built Peters Base Station orbiting Topaz in Facece. By 3200, after two centuries as a barkeeper, he had secured half the station. Jaques dreamed of buying up the rest of the station, fitting it with thrusters and using it to explore the galaxy.
By 3300, Jaques had realised his dream despite some delays; he had to replace Peter's base, a Coriolis-type station, with a more resilient Orbis. After venturing into several systems near the human Bubble, Jaques attempted to jump his station to Beagle Point, but was unsuccessful due to an unknown artefact interfering with the station's drives. This left Jaques and his station stranded in Colonia, where they currently are.
Well, and now here we are, 22,000ly from the bubble, enjoying the view in a bar run by Jaques.
"Do you have a specific route in mind or just straight to Beaglepoint?" resting her head on her hands, my officer looked at me questioningly.
"Well, actually I would have plotted a direct line as close as we can get at least. We'll have to work with FSA boosts for the last few jumps, but that's not a problem. Still, I'll pick a couple of interesting systems as stopovers."
"Alright, I'll make my way back to the ship now and hit the hay. See you later." There she goes, a real stroke of luck I managed with her then. I wouldn't trade her for any woman in the galaxy.
Lost in thought, I'm watching a Type-9 apparently stuck in the "mailslot", the station's access corridor. After a few minutes, system authority ships arrive on the scene and free the ship from its predicament. "But don't you dare let it happen to a Cmdr of the Pilots Federation. Then you will be mercilessly destroyed by the station," I thought to myself.
The interior of the starports is pressurised and offers a breathable, if not always pleasant, atmosphere. Translucent blue force fields generated at the access corridor prevent this atmosphere from escaping directly into space, but allow spaceships to pass through. Ships with broken cabin glazing and thus on life support are no longer in danger of running out of oxygen once they pass the force fields.
"Another drink, sir?" - "Where did he come from now? "No thank you, charge to account XXX-XX-31."
"Very well sir, will you be staying on this station much longer?"
"No, we will be leaving today, a few more supplies will be replenished and then we will head for Beagle Point."
"Ah Beagle Point, yes I wanted to go there once but now I have landed here in this part of the galaxy and I like it here very much."
"Take care Jaques, maybe we will meet again sometime."
"Goodbye Commander."
On we go, off to Beagle Point.
24.12.3307 - Novara Expedition Day 92
The Novara is now in orbit around the water world Wepua UU-N d7-846 4 at an altitude of 4,500km and is rotating at 6 rpm around its axis to generate artificial gravity.
"COVAS, send hyperspace message."
---To all Cmdrs receiving this message, the crew of the Novara wishes everyone a Merry Christmas---
The festivities of the ancient holiday were celebrated aboard the Novara this time. The Christmas dinner on deck 9 is second to none and the atmosphere is excellent. Hard to believe, soon we will be 100 days underway, time flies.
Christmas is not celebrated throughout the galaxy, only in Federation, Alliance and some independent systems. But New Year's Day and Valentine's Day are celebrated throughout the galaxy.