Finally back in the cockpit
27 Jun 2024Armagne
07/05/233019:21
This is not at all what I expected. Almost as soon as we were in orbit, some Crimson Fleet ships jumped towards us. I'm not sure whether they're going after Barrett or the Frontier, but we need to do something about them. Vasco just informed me that they are holed up in an old research lab on Kreet (another moon of Anselon) so it's high time we went there and had a chat with them.
21:04
As soon as we landed on Kreet, I couldn't help but research the local flora and fauna around the landing area and I discovered some useful resources. I need to get back to the matter at hand however: we need to make our way to the local Crimson Fleet leader asap.
So, the facility in question was apparently a top secret UC facility which was started up about 23 years ago, right before the Colony War, in FC space no less. One cannot help but admire the boldness, but on the other hand I was always told we were the ones playing by the rules - so much for that. I've always been a staunch supporter of the United Colonies but the hypocrisy cannot be ignored here...
It turns out the Crimson Fleet here have a "shoot first, ask questions later" policy. I overheard one of them say "You see anything that isn't Fleet, it dies" and boy did they adhere to that principle. My hopes for peace talks with the local leader are slimming, but maybe they'll be more forthcoming if they see the carnage Vasco and I are leaving here. Not very diplomatic, I'll admit, but fear can be very a very effective argument.
This facility tells a gruesome story: the dead scientists here didn't die because of these pirates, they've been dead for way longer... I'd say over twenty years, but I'm no medical expert. The journal left by the facility's leader shed some light on what happened here however... and it's not pretty. I've heard of the Xenowarfare Division but I've never dealt with them directly - I was only around eighteen when the Armistice was signed and the Colony War ended - so I'd always dismissed some of the taller stories as exaggerations. But it's true: they really tried to weaponise a Terrormorph - which completely backfired of course.
At least I have one comforting thought: if that Terrormorph had still been around, there wouldn't be so many damn pirates here.
The Crimson Fleet leader, Brogan, put away his "If it moves, it dies" policy and I was able to persuade him to let the Frontier off the hook. Apparently they were under the impression that the cargo bays were full of treasure but I was able to convince him that the treasures were of purely scientific value (which is true). The research lab full of dead pirates was probably a pretty good way to convince him that Vasco and I weren't to be trifled with. I did take the liberty of looting every pirate in there but I don't know if he noticed.
Now, to haul all of this back to the Frontier...