Logbook entry

The "Console Split" Controversy and the Secret War

22 Oct 2023Argon Shadowstar
If you spend enough time traversing the space lanes, whatever you do, you will inevitably come across Commanders complaining about the infamous "Console Split". This was an incident which occurred over a year ago whereby the Pilot's Federation refused to grant Odyssey level access to Commanders who were accustomed to, and insistent upon, using a variety of flight systems defined by their control console model. While some Commanders made the switch to the PF's preferred hardware, others did not. As a result, the Pilot's Federation chose to deny them Odyssey level services, and, according to some conspiracy theorists, actually secretly programmed their ships' computers to hide certain sensor readings, data, and provide misleading political information to those Commanders as a form of punishment. Of course, the Pilot's Federation denies these reports, simply stating that the particular flight systems in question were technically incompatible with the Odyssey level hardware, which included a deluxe on-ship armory and personal equipment storage compartment, among other systems. Few believed this story, instead choosing to believe that the Pilot's Federation was simply being lazy, or that they were flexing their dominion over their Commanders, punishing those who defied their whims.

I believe, however, that their reasoning was far more insidious. The Pilot's Federation, among other organizations, have long been behind some of the greatest events in history since their inception, though not overtly. They are among several clandestine organizations whose goal is to secretly manipulate humanity, in order to achieve selfish and nefarious outcomes that align with their own twisted vision of the future. Chiefly among these is the mysterious organization known as "The Club", of whom I have only recently learned, but they are far from the only ones. Whether these groups are opposed to each other and using humanity as pawns in their secret wars, or working together somehow, remains to be proven. There are those who claim the former, and those who claim the latter. I suspect it is probably somewhere in between. Some of these groups are likely allied, but they are opposed by others, and all of them fight their battles behind the scenes, just out of view of the rest of us. For many of us, what may seem to be an interesting event in an otherwise routine day, or a somewhat unusual request made by a client, could be a tiny piece of a much larger play which we will never see. A customer ordering an unusual dish, in so doing passes along a coded message to an agent we'll never see, and sparks a series of events which ultimately lead to the fall of an Imperium.

I often wondered how I passed my Pilot's Federation exam. I never lied about my goals or my reasoning. I had help, yes, from my mercenary friends, and a great deal of combat training prior to applying. These helped with the technical aspects, and for a long time I convinced myself that I passed solely on those merits alone, however the more I learn about the Pilot's Federation and the nefarious organizations they are involved with, I have to believe they'd either be incredibly stupid to empower someone like me, or incredibly brilliant. Perhaps all that I am doing to fight the oppression and bring down these insidious groups is actually all part of their convoluted plan somehow. I find myself second guessing my every move now, wondering if somehow I'm inadvertently furthering their diabolical plan. In the end, I've come to the conclusion that I can't let myself worry about these things. I must hold true to my original convictions, and pursue my goals as I always have. I must trust in myself and what I know to be true, and if it means that in the end my enemies will be stronger, then I will simply fight that stronger enemy and emerge victorious over a worthy foe, or die an honorable death.
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