One would start a story about a man, with a certain beginning and an end. This story however, is different, as you will soon find out. Silenus is one of those types of people, that doesn't like to talk about himself. He hates it when people talk about his past, about what happened to him, how he came to be a mercenary. It was a thorny road for Silenus, a road full of obstacles, enemies, and sometimes, harsh nights full of alcohol and parties. He never really had many friends mostly because, well, he isn't easy to get along with. His best friends so far have been his ship, and his big ego. But to really get to know him, you have to know how everything began.....
No one knows for sure, but it is presumed that he was born somewhere around 792 A.S. in Omicron Theta, Freeport 9. At least, thats what his papers say, but even he doesn't know for sure. He isn't the type to celebrate birthdays. If there is one thing that Silenus hates, except other people and being sober, its the mention of his name. Its not that he doesn't like his name, he literally hates it. The main reason for that would be his parents.
Nothing is really known about the parents of Silenus, except for that fact that they abandoned him when he was only a couple of months old. They left him in front of a strangers door with a note that only said his name, "Will Williams". One would think that he would at least be enough lucky to be left at the door of some nice people. Unfortunately, that was not the case. He was left at the door of a married couple, and no, they were not happily married.
The man was a drunkard, he was drunk 90% of the day, and the other 10% of the time, he was sleeping. His wife was no better, she was like a ship on lease, everyone could get a ride for the right price. Silenus was never adopted by these people, apparently they didn't want to have a bastard son with the last name which could be associated to some low-life, not that they were any better. This is what he grew up with, for a few years. A drunkard and the local "entertainer". No one would expect such behavior from people that are surrounded by Zoners, but they didn't spend that much time on the Freeport as they were mostly living on their small ship.
Silenus was never lied to, his so called step-parents told him the truth as soon as he could understand what they were talking about. They told him how he was left in a basket, like the biggest lowlife in this universe, with only a note.... He was living surrounded by hate, despair, but he never gave in to it. Instead, he grew stronger and stronger as the years passed. The constant beating that he got from his "step-father" also helped. One day, he grew tired of it, he couldn't take it anymore, his step-mother was away on one of her "joy rides" and his "step-father" was drunk again. He went into rage for no good reason, as he used to do, and wanted to beat up Silenus again. But this time, it was different. As he tried to swing his fist at him, drunk as he was, he tripped and fell down, and by doing so he injured his head and passed out. This was a chance for Silenus, he couldn't take it anymore. He ran to his room, got all his stuff and sneaked on one of the cargo transports that was leaving from the Freeport.
He thought to himself that any life is better then the one he was living with those two. Now, one would usually try to find his real parents and find out why they abandoned him, but not Silenus. He just wanted to forget them forever, and if he ever did find them, he would probably jump on their backs and choke them to death. And this, is where the story truly begins....
...hiding in storage compartments, sneaking from one ship upon another. That was how Silenus lived for some years. What little baggage he took from his so called home, or rather, his hell, didn't help him that much. He took only a few pieces of clothing, stole some money from his drunk step-fathers wallet and quickly took off. He didn't have time to think about the future, he didn't have time to plan out his whole life, to plan out his every step and predict every movement. He was even lucky enough to find a transport to sneak upon and get the hell out of there.
The days were passing, the voyages of these big haulers was long, and they had enough cargo room for Silenus to remain un-noticed. The constant noise, roaring of the engines, shaking of the whole cargo compartment, it was almost unbearable. To live there, to hide in the shadows and steal food just to survive, a reality that could crush the mind of any man. But he had already gone through worse, through much worse. As the transports on which he hid were landing at their respectful designations, he used the opportunity to get to know every station. He walked around, observed the behavior of others, noticed even the smallest details.
Traders, bounty hunters, pirates, scavengers...They were all making deals to survive, to earn enough for a living, for food. He learned from their ways, he listened to every single detail because he knew that what he was listening to now is his future. He couldn't escape it anymore, it is the future that he himself has chosen.
As years went by, Silenus became even more self-centered. It is understandable that one likes to think only about himself when all others abandon you. Things were improving, he even managed to earn a few credits for himself alone by making a deal with some scavenger. He found the scavenger, or how he refers to himself, the "businessman" on a station to which the transport Silenus was currently on had moored. He stole some of the cargo that was on it and sold it to this man, and imagine that, he earned himself his first few credits, and he did it alone.
He liked it, the feel of those hard earned credits....it felt good, it felt more then good, it felt amazing. But, he realized that to get more where that came from, he needed a ship. And well, a ship is not as easy to still as a piece of equipment or a couple of cargo units. It was more difficult. But then again, Silenus doesn't plan his steps, he just goes with the flow. Seeing as how he know held a few credits in his hands, and the transport on which he arrived already left the station, he went to the bar. When he first entered it, it looked like any other, drunkards on the left, drunkards on the right, and the occasional "smart guy" in the middle. They were usually the first ones to get thrown out, no one liked their attitude. Just when he thought that he was wasting his time, and that there was no opportunity here to earn more money, he met a man that changed his life...
..he turned his head around and saw a man, that was somewhat different from everyone else. He was sitting in the far corner of this rugged room, surrounded by mystery and doubt. As obvious as it was that this man wanted to remain un-noticed, and as obvious as it was that he was trying to "blend in" with everyone else, he didn't succeed.
Long hair and a dark look that he had about him were scaring other people away. One small, barely visible weapon was hanging on the right side of his waist. It was being partially covered by a long, black coat that he was wearing. His eyes were surrounded by shadows that were coming from beneath his large hat, but they were visible just enough to scare the living hell out of you. His general appearance was revealing that the previous years were not just "candy" for this man.
As soon as Silenus saw him, he was so intrigued by this man that he could barely keep his eyes off him. He was constantly glancing towards him from where he was sitting at the bar. Silenus was not one to ask for help, but the dark look in the eyes of this man was letting him know that he might have shared the same fate, and that perhaps he could point him in the right direction. The one thing that was stopping Silenus from walking over to him was his common sense. This man obviously didn't want to be disturbed, and well, Silenus didn't really feel like getting shot today.
He decided that the best course of action was not to do anything and just finish his drink. He just continued to glance a few looks here and there, but then, as he turned his head again towards the man, he didn't realize that he was already looking at Silenus. The man noticed that Silenus was "curious". He looked Silenus right into the eyes with that shadowy glare of his. Silenus froze, he didn't know what to do. He didn't want to look away and show some kind of fear, but then again, maybe it would be better to show fear and look away then to get shot because he just showed curiosity.
As they looked at each other in this manner for a few seconds, these few seconds seemed like an eternity for Silenus. But then, something unexpected happened. The man let go of his glass, raised his hand, and waved for Silenus to come closer. At first, Silenus didn't know what the hell to do, seeing as how the man didn't talk to anyone at the bar it was strange that he called him over. But then again, perhaps this man too noticed that they were somewhat similar, with that look in their eyes that showed a lot of torment from the past. There was only one way to find out. He took his glass, stood up from his chair and walked towards the far corner of the room...
...as he was slowly approaching the table at which the man was sitting, his head was full of thoughts. These thoughts were mostly based around what would happen next, would he die, or has he maybe discovered some rich individual that is ready to pay him massive money to do a job. Before he knew it he was there, standing in front of him, the man looked up into Silenuses eyes, tipped his hat upward and spoke with an old, experienced voice..
"I see that you're taking an interest in me, eh?"
Silenus started muttering, he didn't know what to say or how to respond to that. He didn't find his tone to be hostile, but it wasn't friendly either. He cautiously chose his words and answered..
"I-I was just enjoying my drink, and well I noticed that you were the only one who is 'different' here."
"Different my boy? And what is -that- supposed to mean? Eh? You calling me a freak?"the man replied this time in a more hostile tone.
"No no, of course not. You just look like someone who has passed through a lot and well, you have the respect of these people for a reason. I imagined you could maybe..."
The man then stopped him in the middle of the sentence with a laugh..
"You don't say. My name is Jacob, I would tell you my last name too but its not important, eh."he laughed again.."People just usually call me Jacob Stone, but you can call me Jacob. I never liked that damned nickname they gave me. Grab a chair boy, sit down."
Silenus grabbed a chair and sat directly opposite to Jacob. He was surprised at Jacob's behavior, it seemed as he wanted people to fear him, but yet showed great pleasure in talking to those that had enough courage to actually approach him..
"Whats your name my boy? You seem lost in this damned bar, what the hell are ya' looking for here?"Jacob asked..
Silenus then scratched his head and replied with great reluctance..
"I don't really know my real name. I'm an orphan, ran away from a drunkard step-father and a 'feel free to try me out' step-mother. Named myself Silenus just as I was running away from home. Hell I don't even know what it means, saw it on some type of console.."
Jacob laughed again, as if he knew the whole story back and forth.
"Silenus eh? Well I'll be damned, good enough for me. I don't ask about the past of someone else, mostly because I don't talk about mine. But I'll just say that I know where ya' come from."
Jacob then took up his glass again and added..
"You still haven't told me what the hell you're doin' here, and how the hell -I- can help you..."
"Well, as to what I'm doing here.. I just earned myself a few credits and thought I'd come for a drink and try to find another job. And thats kinda hard if you don't have a ship, y'know. What exactly is it that -you- do, Jacob?"
"Well my boy, I'm a mercenary. Good one too, I might add.."Jacob grinned,"..mostly earn money for myself by doing various...eh....jobs. And most of these fools you see here are scared because I have a blaster on mah hip, and I know how to use it."
Jacob then rubbed his chin and thought about things in silence for a while. He then grinned again and made a proposal to Silenus, one that was impossible to turn down..
"Tell ya' what. I'm here with mah small transport. I got some job to transport a particular piece of cargo, and I could use a hand. You come with me, you'll get payed, and maybe I'll even show ya' some things on the way."he laughed again.
Silenus was silent for a few minutes, mostly because he was surprised by Jacobs offer. An offer like that after talking to him for only a few minutes. But Silenus still felt like he could trust him, mostly because he thought that Jacob was doing this because many years ago he walked on the same path Silenus was on now. After pondering over it, he finally answered..
"Hell yeah, I'll come with you. Got nothing to do here anyway, and I sure could use the cash."
"Well thats it then mah boy, lets go."
They both stood, exited the bar and started making their way towards landing pad six. Thats where Jacob had parked his transport...among other things....
...as they were slowly making their way through the hallway that led to the landing pad, Silenus pondered in his mind over and over again the same question. Why would this Jacob be so good towards him and offer him even a job, when clearly back in the bar, he didn't talk to anyone else. As Silenus was very silent all the time, Jacob noticed that something was troubling him. So, he just decided to ask openly...
"Tell me mah boy, whats bothering you? I see that you're very silent, you weren't so quiet back in the bar, eh?"
At first, Silenus didn't know what to say and how to answer him, but then, he just said what was on his mind...
"You see Jacob, at first you seemed like someone who hates everyone else, and doesn't talk to anyone. But.."he paused for a bit,"..you were very open towards me and, even went as far as to offering me a small job. So, I was just wondering why."
Jacob the smiled for a second and replied..
"You see, people don't talk to me because I've been known to cause trouble sometimes, well, alright a lot of times.."he laughed again,"..but you didn't know that when I called you over, and you spoke to me openly without major hesitations. I can respect that. And as to why I offered you a job, well, lets just say that when I look at you I see myself as a young man."He sighed,"Life hasn't treated me well in my early years, and I can see the same scars on you, but oh well, lets leave that for some other time.."
They reached the landing bay doors, and they opened. Inside was a transport. It looked like it went through a lot of trouble and the its look reflected the truth. But still, even thought it looked old and useless it was fairly new, and Jacob himself modified it so that it could serve its purpose perfectly.
For Silenus, the transport looked exactly how he expected it to look. It reflected the personality of Jacob perfectly, at least from what he could see. As he was standing there Jacob went over to some engineer that was standing at the side, to talk to him. Silenus saw as Jacob slipped some credits into the engineers hand, for secrecy he thought to himself. He walked over to the ship to examine it closer, and see every detail. Jacob walked over to him..
"Alright Silenus, everything is ready and the cargo is loaded. It seems that we can undock. Oh and, don't judge the ship by its looks.."he smiled,"..this baby has a lot of juice still in her."
"Oh I'm sure it does, but, you looked somewhat like a fighter pilot to me. I'm surprised that you don't have a fighter of some sort...or do you?"
Jacob laughed because he was expecting that question from Silenus at some point..
"Aye, I do. Don't worry, I'll show you my 'real' ship when we get to our destination. Its parked there. Thats where you'll get payed too..."he grinned as if something special was awaiting Silenus at their destination.
Silenus looked at him with a curios look, he could see that Jacob was planning something, but couldn't quite determine what..
"Erm, alright then. Well, shall we?" he asked with an impatient tone.
"Aye, lets get to it then."Jacob grinned slightly as he released the docking clamps and embarked on their mission...