006: New Ship, New Affiliations, New... Curses??
07 Apr 2021Piratescribe
Date: 7-4-3307Locn: Orbiting GenShip "Thetis" [NEFERTEM]
I've come to realize if I try to remember and comment on everything that happens to me, that I do and see, I'm going to go unstable. So much has happened since my Thargoid encounter! I landed on "Mitterand Hollow" for example, as it flies around "New Africa" [EPSILON INDI]! I accomplished this by essentially performing a mitigated crash onto its surface head-on. Thank the Universe I've had my shields engineered! While there, I got to experience the absolutely stunning eclipse that occurs every hour or so, just amazing! And, discovered crashed probes guarded by Sentinel Skimmers! Which, evidently are marked as "Wanted" by the Hutton Orbital Truckers, which is weird but hey, I'm trying to get in good with them, so I zapped them.
But that's just one of the many experiences I've had lately! I joined the Communism Interstellar Squadron, and am working on making a difference in the galaxy!
I also found some massive crystal patches that have given me so much raw materials, I got my Dolphin engineered up about as much as it possibly can be! It can easily reach 43LY per jump now! I also got myself a Krait MkII and have started work on it to be my bounty hunting ship.... I have just about everything I need in my personal fleet, now.
...so weird to think about the fact I have my own fleet of ships! One for every use. I suppose I could use a better hauler or cargo ship, maybe even an Anaconda! But my goal for being able to afford and acquire a ship for every need, has been met, and I don't know how to feel about that. Have I worked enough to earn them?
But I also learned something else -- I will NEVER acquire a Federation and absolutely never an Imperial ship! I've learned too much about the Empire to every support them in any way, and while I really very much would like to visit Sol, I have no plans to support the Federation either.
Statement of Intent: From here on out I will always and ever only accept jobs, missions, and customers from Independent factions! Or co-ops or unions or other worker/people-focused groups. Never from a megacorp or the superpowers that they are inseparable with. If that means never getting a Federal Gunship or an Imperial Cutter, then that's fine -- all independent equipment for me for the rest of my career will be a badge of honor!
...in fact, sadly, I'm reconsidering my Dolphin, "Nyr Leidangur". I love that beautiful ship, but, considering who manufactures it... yikes! But the fact I got it second hand means at least the Saud family didn't get any money directly from me. I'll certainly keep her, she's special to me, was my first deep space exploration ship! But I'm thinking about seeing what other, independent ship I can construct that will allow me to transport passengers in style.
See, I've fallen in love with my mission to only accept passenger jobs from "economy" and sometimes "business" class passengers, and giving them my Luxury cabin! Why should the wealthy be the only ones to travel in comfort?? I have the ability to give ordinary workers and people an experience they don't normally get. I think if I can use a second-hand Saud ship to do that, it may be worth the angst of flying a Saud!
Oh, which reminds me, I'm writing this in my Dolphin floating within visual distance of the doomed generation ship, "Thetis". I just downloaded and listened to the last logs of the comms officer, and am a little freaked out. Horrifying. I also listened to a garbled transmission in the ship files that, I think, might be the mysterious transmission she mentioned people were hearing just before everything went to hell. Fortunately, I'm a pretty skeptical, rational guy, so it's not like I feel like I'm cursed for certain, heh. But sitting here in the black, watching this tomb slowly spin outside the comfort of my comfortable ship -- I'm feeling discomfited. My thoughts keep drifting to that transmission, and I know if I don't do something, I'm just going to obsess over it and that's certainly no good!
I've decided I'm going to explore all the systems in a 15LY radius around NEFERTEM and see if I can find anything, any clues, about the supposed source of the transmission. Unfortunately, "15 light years" is the only clue as to where the "Thetis" picked it up, so it's kind of a needle in several haystacks... but at least it's something. Something to distract me while I obsess over what could cause a ship of thousands to murder themselves.
Cmdr Keyton "Piratescribe" Magnusson