Heading Home...Just A Little Faster
07 Jul 2018Scubadog
One Last Spin around the cradle of Humanity. It's a might odd to me that for generations you've had to get a permit just to jump into Sol, and the sizeable majority of folks are born anywhere but the Cradle. Hell, more than a fair share of us were born between worlds. Still, Earth is a real pretty touristy spot. Of course, I've seen more gas giants than I could ever count, but Jupiter holds a peculiar magic spell over me. I had to swing by and breath in the place one more time.
I'm headed home! You know that feeling when you go on a serious vacation, and you don't even remember the trip there? And then the feeling when you're headed back to the grind, and the sense of dread over the trip back? Not like a "Oh, God, oh, God, we're all gonna die" dread, but the "Crap, this is gonna feel like forever and I just wanna be home already" kind. Yep, that's me, right enough. So, I took great care in prepping my Chieftain, The Ceti Rena, for storage at Jameson Memorial, not to mention the trip she's gonna make when I have her transported home once I get back. Since I spent considerable time aboard her during my four months in the Core Systems, my "personal touch" was pretty much everywhere. Including, of course, my preference for organic foods, real and actual, over generated foodstuffs that I eat while I'm out in the black. I had to make sure I disposed of all the organics in the refrigerator so my "new car smell" wouldn't be overcome by weeks-old rot when I killed ship's power. I'm certainly not keen on paying an insane energy bill during storage and transport. So, Rena's tucked into bed, nice and proper.
Both the Rena and the Azeria were finished with all the engineering I planned on--including a shiny new Guardian FSD booster for my return trip. God, I love that thing. I have nearly everything I want installed on my Anaconda and still have a 50ly jump range. Nothing to complain about here, no, sir. So, I got my fighter on board in case I happen to run afoul of some pirates (doubtful once I'm well away from the Core) or just want to do a little hotroddin' through some canyons to break up the monotony. And, naturally, I've got my SRV for snatching some materials if I need any. I've got an AFMS and both refuel and repair limpets so I don't end up limping into Colonia like I did the first time I went there in my Debbie. And, who knows, I might run into a stranded soul in need of some roadside assistance, right?
Fuel's topped off, materials for my food generators packed in, and all systems check out. A last-minute firmware update for Eden (she did get a bit twitchy after my run-in with a few Thargoids). I'm lifting off in a few minutes. The next time you hear from me will be at my first rest stop
I'm glad to be heading back to my sky.