The Other Shoe
19 Feb 2022Utmouse08
Ughhh...Look logbook, my head is still halfway splitting from the last...jebus, how long has it been since I've been mildly sober...
Shit I don't even want to think about it...
So, my dear logbook. The past has a way of kicking in your front door, showing up when you least expect it.
I think that old author, Hunter S Thompson said it best,
'There is no such thing as paranoia. Your worst fears can come true at any moment.'
From my last journal, you know a few things.
- I got out of dodge while I was still somewhat of an unknown in the sector
- I called a friend and got some information
- I called in a few favors and paid a few favors out
- I'm out in the deep black to let some of the heat die down
- I'll be working on the inside of...well...I'll leave that out but, not for my old haunts or known associates for a while
If I did save that message log, you know I reached out to a fellow pilot, let me get you caught up on what I found out, and what I know.
Shortly after I read the initial top-sheets of the data-packet I received during the listening posts, I saw some information that spooked me hard.
Hard enough to freak out.
Hard enough to let the memories flood my cognitive and rational parts of my brain.
Hard enough to substitute the Centauri Gin for the Engine De-greaser.
Once I started seeing the ghosts, I knew I had to go to ground. Being away for 4 years, and only knowing people in the Federation, I knew I couldn't go to them. I had to go to an independent source. So, I called up Rory, my new friend from Deciat/TSCG. We'd talked on and off since we figured out we liked Lakons and ships and such. She's a cool cat and a cool customer. Not only that, but like, she's got this vibe of like, always knowing more than she lets on. But I digress.
Anyway,
So, I reached out to her. Asking to meet me out on the FC that was going to be going out of the bubble. Told her only the basics. Once she got to the FC's bar however, lets just say, I wasn't in the most exactly of stable places mentally. I know I poured my guts out a bit too much, told her a few too many things about my past, but it was important.
It was necessary
After my...some number north of 10...th round and without food, Rory was rightfully concerned. She asked if I wanted to sleep off the alcohol and then we could talk somewhere out in the black. I agreed.
I woke up...some time later, not even sure how long I was passed out for, but we were floating around a really nice Type A Star out in a Sector near a nebula that our Squad is currently looking at. Rory told me I slept well, for someone with that much paranoia going on.
She walked me around her new ship. Krait Mk 2. Beautiful huge ship, with lots of lab space. Faulcon DeLacy sure knows how to build a roomy mfer, but their engineering choices and ship layout is somewhat to be desired. Of course, I told Rory as such, seeing as I can't help but to talk about ships, especially when I'm freaking out on the inside.
We chitchatted for a while, I could tell she was just letting me get back to regular Mouse cognitive functionality. We mostly talked about how the Krait feels like a stolen Lakon design (I mean, tell me its not, especially when you consider that they basically put an oversized frame on an undersized FSD and thruster matrix, combined with the whole powerplant to weight ratio...anyway too much ship talk)
I also commented about the overjuiced and undersized powerplant Rory specifically asked for in the build. Not a choice I would make mind you, but Rory knows what she's doing.
She asked me to guess how far it could jump though...(I played slightly dumb but I knew right away what it could eek out on her build) and guessed a smidge over 50 but not over 55. She called me a smartass and told me 53.4. Then she got this goofy grin on her face and hit the back lights on the cargo bay...She fucking installed a 6-craft Fighter Bay in an Explorer Krait. She's crazier than I am (6 Taipans, girl knows her fighters too).
After a minor geekout from me, she finally asked me what was up.
I just handed her an oldschool data disk and an encryption key.
"My Past"Is all I said, like it was some nuclear device waiting to blow up in both our faces.
She wanted to know what the heck she was supposed to do with it.
I told her Quote:
'Its the reason why I had to hang up my wings for a while. She's supposed to be dead...dead, you understand, and I killed her, because the Federation said so. What I need to know is, Is this a ghost, or is this someone playing a trick on me. I gotta know, Is the data legit?'
Unquote
Rory wanted to know who she was.
She... is my sister.
I could feel a part of my conscious mind finally feel at peace telling someone else my deep dark secret.
But part of me also needed to know if this was someone trying to get my to make a mistake or someone legit tracing my history.
Rory, bless her heart and soul, took it well, if I'm being honest. She asked me, well, first she asked Why Her, and secondly What I needed.
I told Rory that I couldn't trust any of my old Fed contacts, because going to them was questioning a higher authority within Fed Command. And if it came back on me, they'd erase me like they made me erase my sister 4 years ago. As for what, I needed a lead, somewhere to go with this, and to also make sure I wasn't losing my mind or getting the ghosts haunting me.
Then I told her the real bombshell, "I got the data from the Imperial Listening Posts"
She looked shellshocked, like suddenly there were ghosts in her life clawing at her psyche. She dropped the datapacket and the encryption key on the floor, paced a bit, cursed a lot, and then pounded the coffee machine to make a fresh pot.
"Ghosts fucking suck dont they?" was all I could ask
"Yeah" was all she could respond with.
After the coffee dinged, she instantly relaxed and started going through the background review, "Okay. So your dead sister shows up on an Imperial intelligence feed and you're convinced the data is Federal because... reasons, I guess? And you need me to verify its authenticity..." and took a drink of coffee that clearly was too hot for consumption, but kept going, with a clear change in vocal tone and timber, almost as if she was shifting into a different Rory, a different Ghost "Alright. Let's see if we can't bring this baby into the world, shall we?"
I asked, a little meekly, because of the sudden change "I..I see, well what do you need me to do?"
"Not a damned, thing, lemme work this data packet and we'll have it all sorted in a moment"
After a few moments of her taking off the comms pannels and plugging things into the unit, she starts talking "DeLacy... has a deal with the Pilot's Federation. All packages run through their systems -- and that's all DeLacy, not just the Core Dynamics Subdivision -- all of it is encoded into the transponder signal." Her voice going back to a more normal tone..."The Federation of Earth, has the encryption key to this signal, and through it, gets to monitor all primary computer core functions at their leisure. So yes, if you've flown DeLacy recently, anyone who knows the private key can monitor your activity."
"Fuck" I say, as a few of my fleet ships (the TRUMAN ALDRICH [Krait Mk 2] and WILLIAM FROUDE [Python]) are DeLacy's, and hand her a microspanner to pry the hardcase off the data box.
After a few more moments of her rooting around in the data packet, she says..."Damn, theres a ton here, It would help if I had a Name or something else to go by"
"Try Kat or Katie or Katherine...that was her name...before I sent her off to the dark"
Rory snickered, "Kat and Mouse...fun"
Well, it might have been fun, but she got the looks, I got the brains, she got the height from Dad, I got the curves from my Mom.
Rory couldnt believe that my sister got the looks. "Look," I said "whatever you may think, my sis and I were like oil and water, and if you need another query for the search, try Megan"
After a few more minutes, I hand her an encryption key and a pre-formatted filter. "These might help refine down the search to the relevant files"
She plugged them in without looking and immediately winced, "Oh...oh my."
I asked her "Final judgement and all that?"
Rory said "Well... Three things. First, this is absolutely a genuine imperial datastream. Two, your filtered packets definitely come from a Federal source. But three... under that Federal package... is an Imperial standard hail. The hail is just a standard server handshake. The message...Okay, this is weird. It was sent from a console in Lembava?"
WTF...What does Lembava, LYR and Sirius have to do with anything.
Rory had no clue, all she could do was point me to a data terminal on one of the planetside bases in Lembava. At least it was a start.
I suggested I'd defect and join up, get a hot-shot pilot to put a few holes in me, make it seem legit. She told me she was getting out, she had plans...
I told her I owed her, big time and asked her to name her price.
She took one look at me side long and asked "I need you to vouch for me with the Federal Authorities."
Done. I practically saluted Rory. Its easy enough when you've been flying for the Federation for as long as I have, you make contacts, you know how to respond when direct questions are asked of you.
Rory looked flabbergasted, like she couldn't believe my audacity...or my gall. "Wait...what?!?" was all she could ask.
I reached into my 'back pocket' "Here, It might get you in good with some folks near Sol. Its a standard invitation packet for some folks who work in federation space, specifically 501st Merc Corps, Federal Liberal Command, Federal Galactic Systems, and the god damn Federal Security Administration. Lets just say I've been working for the Federation for a long long time and have a lot of contacts, take your pick"
But needless to say, I've got a plan and for once, I don't feel like having to look over my shoulder.
WHEW
What a whale of a post. I guess I'll leave it here for now.
Maybe I should go to the bar and get another drink.
Until then,
Fly Safe and Stay Sane
Mouse, the Engineer.