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Rust and broken hull panels; dark corridors and antiquated industrial machines. That ship ia a wreck, we found it floating around in an outskirt of the desolate Humboldt system.

But that was maybe the first really good finding since this expedition started.

After mapping the entire Kansas system, we soon realized that accomplishing our goals would be far more work that we thought. Four planets, several asteroid fields and two interesting clouds in that system...even to explore this system and check for useful resources would take a vast quantity of time.
But I think it could be worth it, this remote, solitary system is a perfect spot for a hideaway. A place for those who are looking for a place to be, far from the common violence and hate of the more populated worlds.

But first, there is a lot of work to do. We towed the wreck to the old junction station; no one knows who build this station and no one knows why it was destroyed as well.
There've been rumors around saying that the NTF was trying to repair this station before they were forced out of this system by the LSF. At least one section is still intact and can be repressurized, but since the docking system is completly destroyed, we couldn't board that station yet. Maybe we'll find another way in, someday, but for now we cannot do anything here.
For now, there are so or so other tasks to do. I'll move with a small amount of people over to that wreck, and see if it's repairable. Well, it still in one piece, almost, and the life support is partly working. The possibilities that this ship would gave us are great; it looks like it has been made for exploration and work. At least after it's repaired and a lot of things replaced.

I told Mister Vox, the leading scientist of the Scientia, that he shall move the ship to Planet Wichita. It seems that there is a huge amount of usable water. Rumors also say that there is Palladium under Wichita's surface. Anyway, a water supply would be a first step of creating an independant colony. Maybe it's possible to settle on one of those planets. Future will show.

I hope we get this flying garbage can to work. It fascinates me, that industrial, unusual, decayed look. Somehow I felt the urge to restore this ship. I so or so planned to travel around the stars again and this ship feels like the right horse to do this ride. There are still a lot of spots I haven't seen before...and it has been always a pleasure for me to discover unknown shores.



It's alive...again. Life support finally working without problems, some light bulbs are still working and most of the broken stuff has been jettisoned. The engines are difficult problem. While we managed to replace the thruster and repair the impuls engine, cruise speed is still not available.
Most of the hull breaches are temporary fixed, but we need to make an appointment with a shipyard to repair it properly. I don't want this ship to fall apart once the cruise drive is working again.

Anyway, we moved it to Newark and rent a mooring point, arranged some deliveries to get necessary parts and supplies. We just started to replace the sensor system with scientific scanners for every case, short and long range, geological, everything what's needed for exploration.

The repairs are going well, faster than expected, although there is still a lot to do. But, isn't that that what makes the fun? Having something to do.


While me and the rest of the crew were waiting for further parts, I had some interesting chatter with the folks around and observed some interesting things in Liberty. So it happened that a Orbital Spa & Cruise convoy was attacked by Siege Cruiser, transmitting a gallic signal.
Sensors indicated that more than 1600 people were onboard that liner when it exploded. We managed to tractor the pods of 1395 people and brought them to Planet Pittsburgh. The big cargo hold of this ship is quite useful. However I don't want that something similar happens again.
A few hours later another navy vessel destroyed a starflier, claiming he's an outcast. Without a warning missiles were launched and the "threat" eliminated.
Such things makes me asking myself, who is the greater threat for the people.
One of the folks at Newark was a Navy officer, Rex, who made a good statement. He said, "we should rename liberty to Wild West..."

But there are also good news. I was about to send repair requests to the Norfolk and Batlimore shipyard, when Mister Hoban from the USI came by onboard his train.
I told him what I'm looking for and he told me about Duluth shipyard and that he's heading there.
He offered me to follow and assured me that the engineers there could do the necessary repairs.
Best thing that could happen. No paper work.

After a while and a short stop where I payed a donation to a rogue to let my ship pass, we arrived in Minnesota.
Finally after a "long" flight, everything is long when your cruise engine doesn't work, we arrived at our destination. I transfered the standard fee for repairs to Universal and Hoban got us a permission to dock with Duluth.
I guess today won't happen a lot anymore. At least not for me. I will look for a hidden spot in this ship, away from all the noise the repairs will cause.


What a fail. I was preparing a trip to Sigma 13 to pick up some nuclear devices to install the new nuclear, MOX-powered engine on my new ship, which I named Mysterium, when I met Anna Smith in space and asked her to join me. She agreed and so we hit the lanes via Kusari to the Sigmas.
So far no problem. We arrived at Helgoland station, loaded in the devices and travelled back.
I was about to dock with Newark, when the LSF stopped me, claiming I'm transporting contraband and forced me to drop it right away. Because there is more or less no choice when two heavy fighters want from a local authority make a demand, I did what they wanted.
All the run, for nothing. Looks like I need to get the Mysterium to Sigma 13 and install it there. I hope the police wont force me to rip out the engine once it's build in.

Later today I received a message from the Duluth Shipyard that they finished the hull and engine repairs on the Mysterium.
After I pick up my new toy and headed back to Newark, all the normal things started to happen again. A police officer claiming everyone a criminal (even other employees of the LPI and the navy) and shooting everyone, common skirmishs between authorities and pirates, and of course some visitors.
This place is getting more and more weird. Or insane.
But also some good things happened. I never wanted to spend much money on weapons. Never. But most of the stuff available on the civlian and black markets is crap. Luckily I met a Zoner, Sister Joanna, who offered me some "Onyx" called weapons for a reasonable price. Still having an empty slot on my Spatial, I decided to buy a single Codename weapon from an arms dealer. I payed 150 percent of the amount I payed the Zoner to the dealer. For a single gun! That business must make you rich.
Anyway, I think the investment is worth the money.



Great. But kinda expected. Political issues with the Junkers. They are not very happy that a non-Junker has currently one of their ships. Until that problem isn't solve, the Mysterium stays grounded.
I recently borrowed an old Hegemon and hired a crew for it to start a small mining business in Kansas.
I got a report from them that a carrier of the Black Navy Guard was around in the iridium cloud there. They said there have been reports of unknown ships in the area and that they are looking for something strange.
I assume they mean that thing we found on our first expedition tour through Kansas.
The commanding officer of that carrier, Captain Veers, said that there is a reward if anybody could lead them to the unknown object. I might contact them...



Alright, all problems solved. I already spent too much time on this. I concentrated so much on the ships that I almost forgot why I am doing this. I planned to travel to the stars and explore new worlds, not sit around on a station, solving diplomatical and technical problems.
Actually, my plans change pretty often.
The Scientia has completed her work and returned from Kansas. Seems like that system is not as empty as I once thought. The iridium cloud attracts a lot of miners, and now with even the navy around...not that quite place I was looking for.
I started to make a list; there is such a lot of places out there...I don't even know where to start.
I got some good tips from Popess Concordia and Salem Jansen; Omega-11 with a sun dying and becoming a super nova, the mysterious Omicron Lost system which seems to be empty, Hokkaido, remote and desolate, quite unexplored...
How ever. That salvager is past. History. It's done. I got rid of it, also of the Atlas transporter and put my last credits into a Democritus yacht. A fine little ship, and contrary to the old Mysterium, no rust, no dirt, just shiny corridors and rooms.
The replacement for the Atlas is an used Enterprise Liner. The main reason why I am now on the rocks.
But, I need a useful, and for some regions, a well armored ship.
However, the last supplies are loaded onboard both ships right now. We're ready to departure. Finally.
I still need a destination...maybe I will decide spontaneously tomorrow. And than start with the morning dawn.


Some delay occured. Such a big ship, and so many stuff everywhere. It will take me at least another day to get everything stored at the right place. Or better, it will take those workers I hired another day.

Since I got a free day due to this, I made a trip to Edinburgh and bought some cats. Once we departured, it might get boring and lonely here; well, I like it when animals are around...makes everything so peaceful.

Later that day, at Newark, I met that girl, Alice, who's alone aboard a Ahoudori. I presented her with one cat, I'm sure she likes it. She named it Testsubject#472. How cute, isn't it?
Actually, there is something strange about her...maybe I find out what it is...

So much about making plans. After I told Alice about my work she offered me to show me something special, an unstable jump hole in Coronado. Well, why not, I thought. Sooner or later I will go there, so or so.
She also invited LPI Officer Tavish Degroot to join, who wasn't sure at first, but finally he decided to come with us. So we hit the lanes and headed to Coronado.

I must say I never really explored Coronado, the short route between the Cortez and Baffin jumphole was always sufficent for me. We flew to a remote region of the system, in direction to planet Baja.
After a while, we got closer to Baja. My sensors did not show anything at first, but as soon as we were close enough it became visible.
It was really unstable, no jump was possible. But Alice said, it's stabilizing and might be working in a few weeks. She seems to know a lot of things...
While we were sitting there, at this new hole, Alice told us that she can show us another special thing, but only after Tavish would promise not to tell any other authorities. He agreed and she lead us away from Baja into ice cloud.

We went deep into the cloud and Alice told us to deactivate everything that is not necessary. Long range comms, cruise engines, weapons, everything. We kept a low profile and drifted even further in the cloud.
She said, if we 'wake' it up, 'bad' things might happen.

I wasn't so scared for quite a while when I saw what she wanted to show us. Another of those things. It looks very similiar to that one I found in Kansas weeks ago. Now at least I definitly know what those things are: Ancient jump gates.
This gate seemed inactive, skeeping, but not dead. It still has a low energy signature, like the gate is...waiting.
Well, since I cannot do anything more right now than observe I tried to gather any possible hint. A bactrian freighter wreck was floating in the middle of that and I was able to retrieve some artifacts from it.
Alice said, they are useless, but...it's maybe worth to take a closer look.

After that exciting and scary excursion to Coronado we returned to Newark Station. She asked me about Kansas and what I want to there. I told her, since the 'gate' there is not as inactive as the one in Coronado, I want to go through it and see, what it is on the other side. She told me, that this wouldn't be such a good idea. She mentioned that old earth myth from the Odyssee about sirens. Bad things will happen there, when I hear someone singing or even imagine that is someone signing, it might be too late.
Usually I don't care about myths and such things, but since she knows...things...I trusted her somehow in this point. We came to the conclusion that an AI controlled drone might be the right way to find out, what is there. But due to my current financial crisis that drone project has to wait.

I was about to go to bed when Alice asked me if I'm a medic. I told her that I had a paramedic training and asked, why she needs one. She left Newark and started looking for someone. I followed her right after, but she warned me, that, if I would go to assist her, 'bad' things might happen.
We located a strange signal near the badlands, when I was closer I could identify it as an order fighter, but...it wasn't 'only' a fighter anymore.

The ship seemed to metamorphose into...something nomadic. As I got closer to that ship, I began to hear voices, feel feeling, that were not my own. "The sirens", I thought. Those 'bad' things started to happen now.

The pilot of the ship was infected, fighting against the foreign influence. The pilot's name was Kate, so much I could find out, and that she is 'friend' of Alice. And obviously she was an order pilot.

Alice moored with the fighter and brought Kate aboard her Ahoudori to take care of here. We tried several medicines, painkillers, everything to at least slow down the process of infection. I have never seen an infected human before, I felt kinda helpless there.
Kate said, in the few moments where 'she' was there, that we need to bring her to someone called Michael Golanksi, or so. I'm not sure anymore.
The girls decided to move and this 'Golanski'. Alice told me, that their way is going through Zone 21 and there would be no chance to go back using the same way. She offered me to stay in New York, or to follow them at my own risk.
Intuitively I decided to come with them...all of this was strange enough, brought more new questions than answers...I could not just move away now.
So we broke into Zone 21, roamed through the green nebula and strange asteroids. We arrived at a jump hole near a planet and went through.
I never imagined that what happened then. We were in Omicron Minor.
Alice send a transmission into the system and asked for Golanski. And, short after that, Order ships appeared. At this point I shut up and just observed, listened.
The order was pretty surprised about what we brought them. They brought Kate somewhere where she is safe, and not long after that Alice told me that we are now going to leave this system.

We fought some nomads, roamed through some places I have never seen before and finally managed it to get to Sigma-13. We docked at Yanagi Depot, and decided to stay here a while until everything calms down.

I'm not sure what all this means and how deep this really is. I will move back to New York later this day, act like nothing happened. At least I shouldn't tell anyone what happened.



I've been back for almost a week now, the strange feeling after that little nomad 'incident' is almost gone, but I still feel a bit different. Anyway, this was like a teaser, I will defintly move to Kansas and find out more about the nomads. The world is about to change, maybe I do not get another chance.

I did some paperwork, got the required permission to install a nuclear reactor onboard the Scientia, but my request to carry artifacts within Liberty is a bit more difficult. The LSF is already asking questions. Exactly that what I wanted to avoid. I really don't need the LSF to watch me...

And I met that Zoner girl again, Connie; we went away from the loud New York system, to the rings of planet Salina and....talked for quite a while. But suddenly she was gone, I maybe felt asleep and she left...or none of this was real. Sometimes I'm not sure anymore what is real and what is not...

However, the departure is scheduled for around 8p.m. sirius time. I just cannot sit around any longer...something must happen...too much confusion...



Plans have changed again. I met Alice, and she told me some interesting stuff. There are rumors that the Order started the evacuation of Minor, and there is an increased zoner acitvity at the nearby freeports.

Alice is pretty sure that both that this and the arrvial of Kate Miller are connected. She said she wants to check on rumors, maybe ask Golanski.
I might check it out myself, I'm now on the way to Omicron 74 for some business.


The last days were pretty busy. I finally managed it to start the expedition to that Kansas gate.
It wasn't that successful, but new stuff happened, so that the Kansas gate and everything beyond is no longer my main priority.
The drone's database system was corrupted after it returned and a mercenary that was just too curious and followed the drone, got more or less a bit insane. Actually the only thing I really know now, is, that this gate doesn't work into both directions. The drone and the merc were tossed out near the Texas jumphole in Pennsylvania.
However, there is no way to activate the gate in Coronado. Not yet, at least.
I acquired the knowledge that so called derelict artifacts are used to power such gates. By creating a singularity inside the gate.
But before I could find that out, I met a cutthroat from the Independant Neuralnet Division. And he had something interesting. The sensors showed a pretty strange energy signature (similiar to the signature of the gates) when I scanned his ship, and I asked if that, whatever it is, is for sale.
For the ridiculous high amount of twenty million serious credits I purchased it. Just to get swarmed by the Liberty navy's primary fleet a few miuntes after the deal.
They said my new toy is dangerours and I shall give it to them and blahblah.
Before I even realized what the hell actually is happen, I was surrounded by dozens of heavy guns, waiting for me giving them the artifact.
Of course I agreed, when I would be dead I would have so or so no longer a use for that artifact.

Few days later I found out that thing was such a derelict artifact, that alien energy cell.
Well, bad luck, or so.

But really interesting was the scene that happened not long ago in New York.
I dont even know how that occured; we were having a get-together at Newark, like always, when suddenly several nomad ships appeared.
One of this really big ones, swarmed by several smaller 'things'. It seemed like a civil war, a purification...
The smaller 'things' attacked the giant nomad creature.
The world is about to overthrow. I think it would be better to go somewhere...safe.
I already talked to some people about initializing a research programm, something new.
Future will reveal anything...maybe.

My work in Liberty is done for now and I decided to go back 'home'.
Actually I wasn't sure for a long time if I should do that. But time changes, people changes, everything changes. When I was analyzing that intel on Gallia, I found disquieting things. Gallia seems to be even bigger than every one thought. Considering the royal navy attacks on Alpha in the last weeks and months, this could mean even more problems. It is a lot of data and it will take time to examine it in detail. But it looks like that there is information on how to find the 'other' gallic system. I wonder what else will be revealed.

When I received the intel a few days ago, I decided to inform the Ghosts about it. Didn't take long until I got a response and I settled for taking the chance to move back in the Omicrons.

We arranged a meeting. At around 12pm sirius time today the Scientia arrived at Ames research station in Kepler. I cancelled the crew's contracts, payed them and asked them for leaving the ship.
Short after everyone, except a rudimentary crew to operate the ship, has left the vessel, three ships showed up on sensors. Apollo Venkman, Stefan Mortensen and Alfonso Ramirez from the 101st arrived and told us that they will be escorting us to Cartagena. I spotted a zoner ship when we left, I wonder what he thought about that scene.

We jumped to Shikoku and avoided the lanes for the obvious reason to not get found.
There was some interesting chatter on the flight, they told me that this civil war, purification or whatever the nomads did is now over. The great Harbinger has been saved and the order been restored. Mortensen seems to have a kind of unique connection to the nomads. He said, he feels them, everyone of them.

They also, more or less accidentally, confirmed my information that Toledo is about to get annihilated by the nomads.

The flight ran without serious problem, until we arrived in Tau 37. Something happened to Mortensen, and to Venkman as well, it is pretty confusing, but however that was, they solved it with liquid cardamine.
Note to myself: Maybe pick up some cardamine research projects. That stuff seems to be...sapid.

When we continued our flight, the Scientia's cruise engine failed to work. I already had a bad feeling since we arrived in Tau 37, but shorter after this things revealed.
The reactor partially exploded, we needed to jettison our mox fuel reserve and therefore a jump was not possible. While powering up the auxiliary systems, Alice appeared.

She said, she checked my past and called me a horrible person...again. It was not really unexpected to see her there, but a bit confusing. I ordered the crew to work faster and get the jump drive back online.
I told the Ghosts who or what that freelancer was and everyone prepared for trouble.
But before any further problems could develop, the jump drive got operational again.

We jumped, to Omicron Alpha, set course for Omicron 80 and headed straight there. Alice jumped to Alpha as well, but didn't follow us any longer.
Well, she is now really dangerours for me. But I also know a lot about her. I assume she won't run to New York and tell everyone. Maybe some cooperative work is possible someday.

Anyway, we continued to Omicron 81 and moved towards the shipyard. At this point I felt safe, in this remote place you see rarely enemies. After a couple of minutes flying through the highly radiated area we arrived at Cartagena. I transfered the the classified data to Senor Mortensen and moored the ship with Cartagena.

And so here I am. I will take a ship later to Galacia and do some sight seeing around my new workplace. As soon as I feel like at home, I will start to analzye the data about Gallia and maybe plan some first exploration journeys there...



I went to Gallia. Pretty interesting. Almost unbelievable that they could develop so far without getting discovered. Didn't spent there much time, just a more or less quick flight through the systems, to get familiar with this new world.
I decided to devote my time to more important projects. I met some people in Omicron 81, and it looks like we're going to establish a proper government and administration over this system. Some kind of syndicate.
The 81 Syndicate.
There will be a lot of work, but I'm sure it worth the afford.
Our current primary goal is to organize the cardamine smuggle, gather money for further projects and spreading our influence.
Personally, organizing cardamine convoys is not my favorite job, but everything needs to start somehwere. Sometimes, you can't just jump into action. But I definitly see here a great possibility learn a lot, how things work, what happens when you do something, how people behave and think under specific circumstances...and to create something; this remote, desolate system could be much more. With further terraforming on Planet Soledad we could gain more place to live.
But I think for now I will focus on hiring useful people as smugglers and gathering information how things could be done. New ships, for example.
We sent a small convoy to Liberty this night. Two old, rusty ships. One pirate train, the Commodus, and my old Firefly, which vegetated on planet Malta for quite a while and is now flying for the Syndicate under the name Negotii.Furtivum.
The ships decided to take the route via the Taus and Coronado. Soon after they departured a message from the ships arrived; there was colonial acivity Tau 23 and they decided to avoid those ships by flying via Kyushu to Tau 29. Their sensor logs showed that two colonial ships discovered them while jumping to Baffin.
They last message I got was, that they were stopped near Barrier Gate Station by a colonial fleet.
The connection got lost and any trace of the ships disappeared.
At least we now know that the Colonials gained ground in Coronado, making it impossible to smuggle through there without being blown up.
Looks like a bad start, but this information is valueable. This mistake won't be done twice.

Anyway, I thought about new ships and saw the new Renzu releases. I think I found what I could need, and maybe even the Syndicate. Since the common borderworld stuff is overused, by each and everyone.
We're no dirty, criminal pirates. At least, I'm not a dirty criminal. Maybe sometimes, but sometimes everyone needs to be a scumbag.
I ordered a catalog about the new ships, they have pretty interesting stuff.

Saishi (Stats):
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Anki (Stats)
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Touketsu (Stats)
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Renzu Liner (Stats)
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That were some days of hard work; and even more will come. But, our development is going fast; faster then I expected. Two days ago the Negotii Furtivum departured to it's first successful flight to liberty under the flag of the Syndicate.
I decided to be on board anf fly that ship myself. We filled the cargo hold with tons of cardamine and headed for the Taus, which have become quite unusaly quiet since the Colonials 'moved' to Coronado.
We decided that no one will take the Coronado route ever again, and we're not going to use the Sigma route. We come to the conclusion that it would be best to fly via Kusari. This part of space is mostly safe and has a low acitivty. I hope it remains like this. Couldn't imagine a safer and more beautiful route to Liberty than this.
Anyway, the journey elapsed without any bigger problems. I flew the ship to Rochester and while the crew was unloading the cardamine, I tried to contact Niverton and see if there are any people ready willing to leave Liberty and start a new life far away from oppression and capitalism.
It's always been a good business, for both sides. You bring those people were they think they could find their luck; and they pay you very well for the transport.
But while trying to get information from Niverton, I heard people talking in the bar, that there are now people on planet Pittsburgh, who organize refugee transports as well.
I decided to thing a while about that, and brought back a load of luxury goods this first time. I bet same people in the far Omicrons will be happy about that, since this stuff is rarely transported in those remote areas.
I left the ship after this trip and stayed at Cartagena to do a lot of paperwork, calculating and planning stuff for our gallia expansion.
The Negotii Furtivum did some further runs to Liberty and back, bringing additional tons of cardamine to that insane garbage disposal they call a nation.

Yesterday I took the Epiphania and hit the road to resupply the new maltese base in Lorraine together with the Commodus. We brought a cardamine load to Torino base, near the Burgundy jump hole. With our first ships docking there and delivering supplies, we can now say, our gallia business has been started.
After unloading at Torino, we contiuned our flight to the Maquis base called Verdun. Once the holds were filled again, this time with light arms, we headed back to the minefield where we came from. When we reached familiar territory again, we set course for Cartagena. After quite a while without any special events, we arrived at Cartagena and delivered what we had.
I still don't know why the need so many light arms there, but it's boosting our economy, so...why not.
Cartagena stores a lot of unused ship parts, most people would call it scrap. So we acted as waste disposal, filled the ships with any scrap we could find there and headed back to the maltese homeworld. Not long after that, we approached Valetta shipyard and stored the scrap there.

Later that day, when my Firefly came back from Liberty, I told them to dock at Valetta and load on as much scrap as possible. While gathering information about Gallia I found a junker facility in Languedoc. Lodeve Space Port or so. The station must be a big industrial complex floating in space or something like this.
Anyway, we flew there, and offered them our scrap. Well, they offered no ridiculous high prices, but there was still profit. And the point is: From the profit we made of the scrap metal, we could buy a full load of manifolds, which can be used at Cartagena to produce new ships.
I think I just found a way for effective recycling. And I finally got a message from Corsica. My former ship, the MNS Aequalitas Ascendant, a Sarissa class battleship which was heavily damaged many months ago by gallic forces, has been repaired, upgraded and moved to Valetta shipyard. I might going to ask the Ghosts if it's possible to transfer this ship to the Syndicate. Omincron 81 may be quiet and remote, but this is no guarantee that it will be like this for ever.
However, we're going to make some public announcements soon and really start big business. And then other stuff. What will happen; no one knows; future will show us.

Addendum: Death Runner decided that it is about time to establish diplomatic relations. He asked me to bring a gift to the Legion des Damnes. And so I took the Negotii Furtivum one more time and headed for planet Malta, where some tons of food and water were already waiting to be loaded onboard.
While we were flying to Torino base to get the missing part of our gift, 500 tons of wine, I checked all maps I got and had to realize, that I didn't have any idea were I should fly to. The orders were, bring it to the Brigands. Somewhere were they could use this stuff.
I remembered rumors about a Legion base in Dauphine, something they use as a supply storage or something like this. And the folks at Torino told me about a new jumphole not far from the base, which leads to a system with a connection to Dauphine.
I set course there and enroute we passed a freeport in the desolate Franche-Comte system, owned by the Brigands. I reconsidered my plans and decided to dock there.
The people there were pretty confused by a Firefly coming to this remote part of space. I told my crew to unload the goods and told the people there; "Take this gift from the Syndicate".


Paperwork is keeping me busy; I never thought it could be that exhausting.
In the last weeks I was pretty busy in Gallia. Cardamine to Torino, cardamine to Versailles Residence...this and that back to the Omicrons...
Anyway, I found pretty interesting stuff. It seems that the nomads are not the only alien race in this part of space. I recently got some artifacts from Gallia which indicate this.
They're are not analyzed yet and I only heard rumors about them in Gallia, but I'm sure that there might be something deeper...if they are not just cheap fakes.

Besides that, time flows slow here in Lorraine. I've been reassigned to Torino base, our only station in Gallia, to coordinate our operations here. A small, not very homey rock near the Burgundy jump hole.
From here we organise any cardamine shipment into the gallic core systems...with an effectual success.
We have some customers, not many. They don't even know that we're working for the outcasts.
I think it's better that way. If the rumors are right, no one here really is a friend of the maltese nation. They are all pretty xenophobic.
At least some Royal Navy and Maquis ships have been spotted attacking our patrols around Torino. But well, future is still unwritten, so everything can change.

"...anyway, that was a quiet interesting trip, Sam", Sil looked out of the window at Pueblo station when the ship was passing by.

"A memorable journey, I've never seen such things before", Sam Guevenne responded; "I think I need some time to understand that all, but, whatever, I'm needed on the bridge, we're almost in New York."
"Yes...", Sil answered in an absent voice, obviously concerned with his own thoughts, "I think I will wait here until we arrive at Newark."

Sam strided along the drawn-out table and left the room, taking an elevator to the bridge.
When he arrived there, a crewman was already waiting for him.
"Mister Guevenne, we have something on sensors."

Sam looked on the screen, and saw two ships near the lane to the New York gate.
"A coalition signal...how interesting...", he said and turned to the helmsman, "Get us closer, that might be interesting...and call Sil."

To be continued~

The first thing he felt was the warm air touching his skin. He awoke and opened his eyes. The bright sunlight in addition to his hangover made his head terribly hurt.
He was at a sandy beach, it should be around midday, the sun was high and small waves arrived at the coast, vanishing into the sand.
He got up and saw an empty booze bottle next to time. He shruged and looked around, trying to find where he was.
There were wreckparts, scattered all over the place ... he realized that he must have crashed onto the planet.
"What the hell happened...?", he thought, and went through the debris, searching for something that is still working; maybe a data chip or the black box.
After a few moments he stopped his search, and sat down on a rock near the water, lighted a cigarette and tried ignore his hangover.

Then pictures flashed through his head.

"An order ship...", he said to himself, "That is how it started..."
He remembered that he was after an order and a corsair ship from Manhatten to Fort Bush.
Did they maybe shot down his ship? "No", he thought, "I would not be here if they did that..."

Then he remembered a planet, destroyed, completly ruined, a genocide happened there.

"Toledo ... it was Toledo ...", he lighted his cigarette again, "I was there...at least...I must have been there.
Lennox ... he was there too, and there were others..."

Everything seemed to be a big mystery, his memories were pretty patchy.
He went throught the remainings of his ship again, something must be there, something that could give him a hint. He kept searching and finally found a damaged data storage unit.

He put the chip into his PAD, but the files were corrupted. Except one.

He looked at the picture..."Cooper...she joined me at Fort Bush, chased the same people as I did. We went to Alaska ... she gave me the permission to join her ... the order ship was destroyed near the gate, and we chased the corsair till Minor. We destroyed the ship. Yes, yes, we destroyed the Titan.
And then I asked her if we could check something ... Oh lawd, I was drunk enough to fly pretty straight to Toledo with a primary fleet officer!"

He took a deep breath, obviously he got himself into trouble once more.

Sitting down again in his rock, smoking another cigarette, he tried to figure out what happened after they went to Toledo.

He remembered that there were two ships near Toledo... Lennox, he was there, and a Core Mako.
"I hailed them ... we talked about the Toledo incident ... and that captain of that Mako knew me...however; even Lennox started to remember me after a while."

Then he stucked, he completly forget about any details; and he couldn't find the black box.

Another part of his memories came back in this moment. Somehow, the Mako just has vanished and Lennox did some mind control to Cooper. Sil could not remember what exactly happened, but he was sure that Lennox must have some telepathy skills. Telepathy like the nomads.
The next thing he remembered was Cooper and him flying back to Alaska. She was obviously very confused, told him that Lennox put random stuff into her brain. Or so. Something like this. Sil wasn't really sure anymore.

When they were back in New York, Aleesha told him that there will be no official report. Rather they would handle it like it never happened.

Everything was confusing, and Sil was sure that it will take a while to fix that puzzle. And he still had no answer why he crashed into the planet.

In this moment ... he noticed the empty booze bottle. He shaked his head, rolled his eyes, lighted another cigarette and started moving towards the next city...


Almost one day has passed, and now he was onboard Aleesha's ship, enroute to a more civilized placed on Manhatten.

He was thinking about how to retrieve the black box. The information on it were too important to just let them rot at the ground of the sea. And, if anyone else would get it before him, he would get into serious trouble, preconditioned this one would be able to decrypt it.

He had to find a subspace com system, somewhere on this planet must be one, he thought.


Rodriguez was staring out of a window; ships were passing by and the Sun was shining at her. The drank a coffee and hold a PAD in her hand, working through some supply lists.
She had the order to wait at Valetta until sevral supplies for Torino arrive, but it seems that actually no one cared about sending these supplies.
She was on this station for over a week now, and it was getting really boring. And Sil was pretty much overdue. She wondered what could have happened. He said that he would be in Liberty for only one or two days.
"Computer, list all people working for the Syndicate currently aboard Valetta", she stood up, put the PAD on a table and stretched.
"At the moment one person beloging to the Syndicate is in this station", the computer answered her with its artificial voice.
"Who is it?" "Security guard fourth class, Stanley Tweedle". She never heard of him, must be some low ranked worker. "Computer, tell him that I want to see him."

A few minutes later the door opened and a man with a red suit and a hed, with the number "4" on it stepped in.
He was a nervous, unsure man: "You wanted to see me, Sir?"
Rodriguez raised an eyebrow: "Congratulations, you're reassigned to the Sacajawea now, mister Tweedle. We have a job to do."


"Finally...", Rodriguez took a deep breath while the blue planet got into sight. "Tweedle, get us closer and get a landing permission. And make sure we don't get shot, or die otherwise, somehow. It already took long enough to get here."
The man in the red suit turned around from his console, looking at her: "Don't worry, I got this. We're approaching, 10 clicks to the planet."
"I hope so. As far as I remember you said the same thing when we where on the Sacajawea the last time. Do you remember that? That ship is now space dust. I don't know where you learned to fly a ship, but...hey...there is something blinking. What is this?"

Tweedle turned around, looking at the display Rodriguez mentioned. He stood up and entered some commands into the computer.
"It looks a short range distress signal. It's an outcast transponder."
Rodriguez leaned back in her seat: "That must be Sil, this was his last known location. Can you get more information?"

"No, it is just the distress signal, nothing more. I can barely locate the origin of it. It looks like it comes from the nothern hemisphere, between landmass and an ocean. The signal is clear, so it can't be underwater. At least I think so. But that's all I can tell."

"Alright, here is the plan. Tweedle, you will deliver that load of fuel as it was planned. Then you leave this planet, move to Rochester or so. If you don't hear anything from me in the next two days, leave the system and return to Sergio Refugio, got it?", while she spoke the last words, she jumped off her seat, heading down to the cargobay, where also the airlock is, preparing to do some sightseeing on Manhatten...


After two days walking around the endless streets and high-rises of Manhatten, Rodriguez finally tracked his signal and sat now in a bar. Sil was sitting at a table with a woman. She could see her only from behind, young, brown hair, that's it. But that was not the reason why she was there.
She look at Sil, waiting for him to notice her, and after a while he stood up and went out of the bar.

He lightened a cigarette when he heard the sound of someone opening a door.
With folded arms he watched the busy metropolis, starships and other flying things everywhere. Lie a bee's nest.
"Actually, I didn't expect you.", he flipped his cigarette over the balustrade, falling probably hundreds of meters down.
"Your signal was too weak. It never reached the Omicrons. A ship is ready to bring us back. We should leave soon, there were some incidents in the last time and the police is kinda suspicious of us. The ship is at the common place."
"Alright, I'll be there soon. Just have to say goodbye to someone."
"Who is that women?"
Sil turned to her and laughed a bit. "Someone who helped me. Seriously, I just met her, I have no idea 'who' she is. And humans always change, right? Can you ever 'really' know someone?", he shrugged and returned to the bar.

| Location: Arausio Sanctuarium | Date: 9th, Rain's Hand, 819 A.S. |

After days of flying through remote regions of the Sirius sector, I finally got back "home". Enroute I was informed we started to build our own outpost. Somewhere far away from the common places, in unknown space. Trying to establish new hope.

According to the reports I've read in the last days pretty much happened, and we've a lot of work to do. Pretty funny actually. Once I dreamed of a sanctuary in a remote place. And now that is true. Not my personal place though, but this doesn't matter. It is a symbol of new hope.

I just put my first steps onto the Arausio Sanctuarium. It's not impressive like the Corsica outer Sanctum, but it is a start. A step.

We've put much effort into this, worked hard for this. We're only a few, most people even don't know that we exist, but the people of Omicron 81 are trying their best.

They call us smugglers, slavers, criminals, murderers, but morality is a double double-edged sword. Good things, bad things... just a matter of the point of view. Nothing more, nothing less.

| 20th, Last Seed, 819 A.S. | 81-S|Aeternalis~Iniuria | Humboldt |

"It feels strange", she said. "Surreal... it's hard to realize that we're now really here. I was in quite a lot of battles, but never in anything like this before. I feel courage and fear at the same time."
Fossilized they were staring out of a window on the observation deck on the huge flying machine. They didn't spean any word for a while now, just looking at the grey cloud ahead of them. They had no idea what would be awaiting them. No one had.

| Few hours earlier | Torino Base, Lorraine |

"...let's sum this up. Three pilots alive today, that makes all in all nine "test subjects". I assume that should keep those doctors busy for a while.", Sil was in Torino's briefing room, discussing the curent situation with several people who are eventually important for the daily business in Lorraine in some way.
"Not a bad result for day three of our operation. Everybody, dismissed."
When he finished his sentence, the room slowly emptied. "Lieutenant, please stay for a moment."
Xev Rodriguez turned around and sat down again. "You look thoughtful, anything important?"
"We have a new mission." He paused for a moment and leaned against he wall.
"The Liberty Rogues declared war on the Hellfire Legion; I'm sure you read about them in our database. The nation maltese will fully support the Rogues in this war.", he stopped and let her a few moments to realize what he said. "We will go to Liberty. We will fight with the Rogues."
She was aphasic, just staring at him for a while. "Well, the Novus~Spes is not really a warship, I don't know if this is a good idea. I can imagine that this is a unique opportunity to show teeth. But still..."
"Don't worry about this. We're not going to take this ship. I told the dock crew to prepare the Sacajawea. The shuttle will bring us to Valetta shipyard, where we will find something special. A refit of my old ship, while I was still serving in the maltese navy. It was heavily damaged by corsairs, over a year ago, but not finally the repairs and the refit are done.", he went over to a display which was built in the wall and pressed some keys until a schematic appeared, showing a Ranseur class ship.
"The Aeternalis Iniuria."

| In the middle of the night | 81-S|Aeternalis~Iniuria | Vespucci |

"Keep firing, we need to deal ceaseless damage to the base.", Sil stared at the screen, watching how a lot green and orange projectile hit the small Hellfire outpost.
The joint fleet of Liberty Rogues and Outcasts was swarming around the base for around ten minutes now and there was still no sight of the guards. But everyone knew it was just a matter of time before the capital fleet of the Hellfire Legion would appear.
"Hellfire battleships in sight!", reported a fighter pilot.
The allied fleet moved into postion, waiting for the Legion's ships to charge.
"Nine klicks to go, we're in weapon range in around 30 seconds.", Rodriguez told the bridge crew while she made some final adjustments to the weapons.
Suddenly a hostile battleship appeared next to the Aeternalis Iniuria. "More boogies... , target it and fire at will!", Sil said hasty. I didn't take long until the Arbiter exploded, since it directly jumped in front of the entire Outcast and Rogue fleet.
The other Legion ships however used that distraction.
Several heavy projectiles hit Sil's ship.
"Evasive maneuver, get us away from their fire!", Sil shouted and everything became confusing. The enemy ships were now only two or three klicks away from the fleet and everyone was exchanging fire.
"Shields down to 50%, they've focused their fire on us!", Rodriguez ran around the bridge to another terminal, rashly typing something. "Going to transfer power fromt he engines to the shields."
"We need to destroy them before they destroy us, running won't safe us. Target the Manticore, give them everything we have!", Sil made a gesture which indicated the helmsman to start charging towads the Manticore. Already weakened from the other ships, the Manticore couldn't stand the Ranseur's fire for long.
While everyone was astonied looking at the huge explosion in front of them for just a moment, even more plasma and whatever hit them.
Some relays exploded, light started to flicker and the ship was shaking. "Shields down! We're not going to survive much longer!", Rodriguez screamed while trying to assign repair times to different sections of the ship were hull breaches have been reported.
Sil stood and and moved to a console at the end of the bridge while telling the helmsman to turn around and move out: "Activating the cloak device, 60 seconds to go!"
The big warships slowly turned around while more and more stuff hit it, cutting off several parts of the armor.
"Damage report!"
"Shields not functional, weapon energy is low. Several hull breaches all over the ship, hull armor down to 60 percent."
Suddenly a devastating plasma projectile hit them from behind, destroying a huge part of the armor around the main engine, hitting the main machine room.
"Our core has been hit! It's status is getting critical. It will explode!"
"Prepare to eject the core...", Sil said to Rodriguez and then spoke to himself: "Come on... cloak in 20 seconds..."
"Okay, got it! Core ejection in five seconds!"
The ship was about to cloak, only a few moments before the cloak actuallly went on, when the core as ejected. Still very close to the ship when the cloak turned on, the core got reached it's critical point. Shields were down and the core exploded only a few meters away from the ship, ripping half the ship apart.

| 26th, Last Seed, 819 A.S. | Fortaleza base | Humboldt |

Xev Rodriguez was drinking a coffee, sitting at a table in Fortaleza's mess hall.
"That's it, the war is over.", Sil threw a pile of files in front of her.
She looked at him with a puzzled face, raising an eyebrow. Sil stared at her for a moment looking quite serious. Then he shrugged and sat down. "At least for us. Here are the final damage reports. The ship is scrap and will never fight a battle again. It will be decomissioned as soon as possible." He sighed.
"That ship served me well for two years, and it's hard to except the loss. At least it had a glorious death." He paused a moment and ordered something to drink.
"Well, we will take a shuttle back to Alpha tomorrow morning. From there we're going to Sergio Refugio, where we will pick up supplies."
"That's unexpected... I thought we would be here for a longer time.", she ran over some pages of the reports. "Most of the crew is dead... that was a massacre... somehow I'm glad we're leaving.
So, are we going back to Gallia?"
"Yes. But this time, we're going deeper."
"Deeper? Doing even more dangerours stuff then we did before? Exploring strange new worlds?"
"Indeed, we will fly as far into Gallia as we can,... when necessary. Our mission is to establish contact to locals who are interested in cardamine trade. Gallia is a new market, and besides that, we can influence it once cardamine has spread."
"Any ideas where to look for those business partners?"
"Well, we once had a short conversation with the Gallic Brigands, wasn't really heartwarming but at least we talked instead of instantly shooting each other. I personally brought supplies as a gift once to one of their stations. A small freeport in the middle of nowhere, I think they called that empty spot Franche-Comte or so.
There is also that Junker base in Lorraine, and I'm sure they have some other places under their control as well. Though, I don't trust any of one. Neither the Junkers nor the Brigands. And they don't trust us either. Maybe we can change that."
"Sounds promising. Who will be involved in that operation?"
"Mainly...we. For now. And with we I mean you, and me, and the rest of the Novus~Spes' crew."
"A single ship? In deep gallic space? We don't have any place there where we can restock supplies, or dock for repairs. But I assume you know about the problem."
"I do. And I already have a plan for that issue.", someone finally brought him his drink and he picked it up while rising from the bench he sat on, slowly moving towards the exit. "8.00 a.m. tomorrow, don't oversleep, Lieutenant."

1. The deployment of a ship acting as forward outpost into inner gallic space.

Currently assigned ships:
Novus Spes; Studies and Observations Group Gallia, light maltese reconnaissance cruiser
Sacajawea; shuttlecraft

2. Establish contact

We are going to gather as many information as possible. We will try to get people working for our cause or even insert our own people into the gallic society. Although we currently lack the required information of their society to send in a successful spy.

3. NOX

The gallic black market is dominated by a organic drug called NOX.
This is our main business competition there. I think it might be a job for a marketing agency to make Cardamine tastier then NOX, but it would be definitely good for our business if people would take their cardamine instead of NOX.

The chances may seem not so good, but future is not determined yet.

~ Sotha Sil
Commander of the Novus Spes
Supervisor Torino base

| 20th, Frostfall, 819 A.S. | 81-Syndicate, Studies and observations vessel "Novus~Spes" | Torino Base, Lorraine |


... Mission log "Vagari" ...

Day one

We have arrvied at the Burgundy system today. Spending the first hours scanning and mapping the surrounding areas, nothing special was encountered. After we were done with the locations around the trade lanes, we investigated the huge planet in the middle of the system. While approaching the planet a hostile patrol attack us, but was defeated soon after. We met a lone Brigands ship there; the pilot wasn't very interested in talking, just looted the wrecked and flew away.

Day two

We held our location behind the huge planet and used a faked EFL transponder distress signal, which we got from a stolen gallic transporter moths ago, to lure prey. Unfortunately, they were too eager.
A destroyer and a battleship were enroute to the Novus Spes, so we hit cruise speed and tried to get away.
We got stopped after around half an hour. I contacted the commading officer of the gallic battleship via a private channel and talked with him about the world. I told him that Gallia might be powerful and strong, but to conquer is easy, holding is hard. Gallia won't be this strong forever, so it might be good for him to make some friends.
Despite initial hostilities and the will to destroy our ship, he told us to think about it and ordered his mininions in the cruiser to not attack us but escort us out of Gallic space.
We convinced them to take the way via the jumpholes to avoid attention. While being almost at the hole to Lorraine alone with the cruiser, I gave the order to attack and destroy it in order to keep Torraine base hidden, where we intended to moor.
The first phase of the battle went quite good, our shields held and the enemy ship was heavily damaged, when suddenly the battleship appeared again. The inteferences of the asteroid field we were in distraced our sensors.
One moment of inattention and we got some direct hits. Shields failed and our hull got severe damaged. I ordered to eject the core, which resulted in a heavy explosion and a nice light show with all those crushed asteroids. The Gallic ships should think they have destroyed us.
We moored at Torino soon after and are going to repair the ship which will take about a week.

Day three

We returned to Burgundy for some final scans. While the Novus Spes is being repaired, we are using the shuttle Sacajawea. This way we are at least not such a good target for those frog cattlesheeps.
During our flight, we encountered the same battleship which has fought us, orbitting a planet in Burgundy.
They didn't pay any attention, probably they did not spot us. We continued our flight and encountered a trading vessel which we stopped and demanded map information for the entire system.
After that meeting, we used the new gained information and flew to a system called Dauphine.

Day four

Found another trader today. He gave us a good chase. We followed him from to Dauphine to a place called Provence (he told us the name after we stopped him). Finding ourselves in a nebula in the middle of nowhere, we finally convinced the captain of the vessel to stop.
We got a lot of new map information from him about Dauphine, Provence, and a system called Maine.
After two days in space our scout mission is over and we are returning to Torrino for evaluate the gathered information and plan the next steps.
Lieutenant Xev Rodriguez will go to Omicron Alpha for a few days, in order to inspect the repairs of the Aeternalis Iniuria.