04-29-2010, 01:48 PM
Not many people know this – even among those who I’ve let on board.
This ship is haunted. It is haunted by the thirteen men and women who formed her first crew under the Liberty Rogues. Those same thirteen people who joined the Maelstrom in death, accompanying her into the dark, freezing expanse of space, where she drifted for years in peaceful slumber.
Upon the ships resurrection under my authority, I became almost immediately aware that she had brought back something of her own from the grave.
The very first incident I recall occurred within the dry-docks of Puerto Rico’s Vieques Shipyards. A young welders’ apprentice had been removing panels on the lowest deck of the craft, where behind one such panel he found a small utility room which had blown out during the decompression. The boy found the body of one of the original crew members – eyes blown out, frozen blood still stuck to the persons’ face, the source being, quite clearly, their eyes, nose and ears. The person had been literally exploded by the vacuum of space, before being almost perfectly preserved by it.
The lad, having of course dealt with such an unsightly thing many times before in his career as a Junker fixer, sought assistance at once by running out through the maze of hallways and rooms making up the destroyer’s body to collect his superiors. Upon returning to the room, the boy and his assistants found nothing. The body had vanished. There was absolutely no trace of it ever being there, except, however, the grotesque blood stains covering the entirety of the room.
The young worker was denounced as a prankster at the time and his story dismissed, however other things would come together to add weight to - and eventually make canon - his claims the ship had some paranormal presence within.
Soon after, during the refurbishment of the vessel, a variety of strange incidents occurred - ranging from things like mysteriously re-located tools, doors and hatches opening and closing without input from anyone, to voices with no body to accompany them and unexplainable cold chills throughout the decks of the ship.
I, of course, was sceptical at first. Just the ramblings of some crazy Junker fixers with not much to keep themselves occupied. I stayed on board one day.
One day.
I am now certain beyond any doubt the ship still bears the souls of those who went down with her that day all those years ago. The thirteen men and women who followed the Maelstrom to the grave rejoined her in this life at the same time as their proud vessel.
These people are not hostile to me; I believe they are thankful that I have given the Maelstrom the life she deserves. Although they cannot be here in physical form; their souls ride with me and the rest of the ship’s current crew as silent watchmen, looking over us.
If you travel to the lowest deck of the ship, you might be able to hear them. The voices of the men assigned to fuel the engines, or those tasked with manning the gunnery platforms. When the ship is silent, if you stand still, in the dark, they will talk to you. They will not scare you; rather nonchalantly engage in the sort of meaningless banter that would have been the daily routine during their lives. You can feel them moving through the ship - stirring up breezes which should simply not be possible in such an environment - disturbing the fine layer of dust and leaving behind tell-tale evidence of their passing. The unnamed navigator still resides on the bridge, guiding me and my own crew as if he were corporeal himself.
Every so often, whilst meandering through the less frequented areas of the ship’s core, I may find an ancient photograph, as if deliberately placed where I will encounter it. I have nine such photographs now, each one containing a blurred and grainy image of one of the original crew. Far too many images, in far too many seemingly random locations for this to be a coincidence. Each such photo has the full name, age and role of the person written on the back. They are communicating with me. It is their wish to be known as the crew of the Maelstrom and I shall see it fulfilled.
"This ship has twenty people on board, including yourself, Eva Jones. Do you still wish to fulfil our wager?"
This ship is haunted. It is haunted by the thirteen men and women who formed her first crew under the Liberty Rogues. Those same thirteen people who joined the Maelstrom in death, accompanying her into the dark, freezing expanse of space, where she drifted for years in peaceful slumber.
Upon the ships resurrection under my authority, I became almost immediately aware that she had brought back something of her own from the grave.
The very first incident I recall occurred within the dry-docks of Puerto Rico’s Vieques Shipyards. A young welders’ apprentice had been removing panels on the lowest deck of the craft, where behind one such panel he found a small utility room which had blown out during the decompression. The boy found the body of one of the original crew members – eyes blown out, frozen blood still stuck to the persons’ face, the source being, quite clearly, their eyes, nose and ears. The person had been literally exploded by the vacuum of space, before being almost perfectly preserved by it.
The lad, having of course dealt with such an unsightly thing many times before in his career as a Junker fixer, sought assistance at once by running out through the maze of hallways and rooms making up the destroyer’s body to collect his superiors. Upon returning to the room, the boy and his assistants found nothing. The body had vanished. There was absolutely no trace of it ever being there, except, however, the grotesque blood stains covering the entirety of the room.
The young worker was denounced as a prankster at the time and his story dismissed, however other things would come together to add weight to - and eventually make canon - his claims the ship had some paranormal presence within.
Soon after, during the refurbishment of the vessel, a variety of strange incidents occurred - ranging from things like mysteriously re-located tools, doors and hatches opening and closing without input from anyone, to voices with no body to accompany them and unexplainable cold chills throughout the decks of the ship.
I, of course, was sceptical at first. Just the ramblings of some crazy Junker fixers with not much to keep themselves occupied. I stayed on board one day.
One day.
I am now certain beyond any doubt the ship still bears the souls of those who went down with her that day all those years ago. The thirteen men and women who followed the Maelstrom to the grave rejoined her in this life at the same time as their proud vessel.
These people are not hostile to me; I believe they are thankful that I have given the Maelstrom the life she deserves. Although they cannot be here in physical form; their souls ride with me and the rest of the ship’s current crew as silent watchmen, looking over us.
If you travel to the lowest deck of the ship, you might be able to hear them. The voices of the men assigned to fuel the engines, or those tasked with manning the gunnery platforms. When the ship is silent, if you stand still, in the dark, they will talk to you. They will not scare you; rather nonchalantly engage in the sort of meaningless banter that would have been the daily routine during their lives. You can feel them moving through the ship - stirring up breezes which should simply not be possible in such an environment - disturbing the fine layer of dust and leaving behind tell-tale evidence of their passing. The unnamed navigator still resides on the bridge, guiding me and my own crew as if he were corporeal himself.
Every so often, whilst meandering through the less frequented areas of the ship’s core, I may find an ancient photograph, as if deliberately placed where I will encounter it. I have nine such photographs now, each one containing a blurred and grainy image of one of the original crew. Far too many images, in far too many seemingly random locations for this to be a coincidence. Each such photo has the full name, age and role of the person written on the back. They are communicating with me. It is their wish to be known as the crew of the Maelstrom and I shall see it fulfilled.
"This ship has twenty people on board, including yourself, Eva Jones. Do you still wish to fulfil our wager?"