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Chapter One: "Welcome to the Respite"
You enter the dimly lit bar of the 'Junkers Respite' in the Omega-7 system. You stand in the door for a short while as your eyes adapt to the darkness. Few lights are working, illuminating small sections of the bar here and there. The dark orange tint of the Omega-7 system seeps through the small windows, giving the smoked up bar an eerie atmosphere. You see the silhouettes of people sitting at the tables in the shadows, from time to time the embers of their cigars grant you a glimpse of their faces. You can hear muffled voices droning in the background, yet you cannot quite make out what they are saying. "It's probably better that way" you think to yourself.
Your eyes finally adapt to the darkness and you make your way to the bar. You order two fingers of gin. Taking a sip of your drink, you notice the barkeeper glancing at you now and again while wiping down glasses that would never be clean, anyway. You turn and look at him.
He finally breaks the silence.
"You don't look like you're from around here, aye? I saw your ship docking, earlier. A little too shiny, I think." he says, still wiping down glasses.
"Well, not the kind of station I usually consider docking on." you respond dismissively, as you turn to your drink.
Then, you sit in silence again, looking over your left shoulder, then your right. You still cannot make out what the mumbling voices are saying. You are holding on tightly to your drink, taking another sip, as you notice the barkeeper staring at you.
"Well, this may not be a fancy station, or a fancy bar", he says, " - but at least it's safe. I can guarantee that. But if you don't relax a little, people might think you're some kind of law enforcement type. Whatever happens outside this station is really not subject to the rules of this station, if you catch my meaning." he continues.
"What I do is really none of your concern, is it?" you mumble. "So, what exactly is this station?", you ask.
"Hmm...well, people come here to do their business away from the public eye and have a drink, it's a Junker base after all." he says.
You interrupt him. "A Junker base? All the way out here in the Omegas?"
"Aye, a Junker base. Founded by a Junker from Liberty. Guy wanted this base to be something special, like a 'safe haven' of sorts, that welcomes all people who need a rest from...'troubles'." he says.
"I thought they had enough safe havens among the pirates and on their stations in the debris fields? Strange guy, that Junker." you respond.
"Well, I guess he could be considered 'strange' by some. But as always, there's reasons. I could tell you his story, if you have the time?"
You notice the barkeepers eagerness to tell the story and have nothing better to do, anyway, so you nod silently.
Chapter Two: "The early Years"
"Right then. That Junker goes by the name of 'Johnathan Deez'. He's out of Liberty, as you already know, born about 32 years in the Pequena Negra Cloud onboard his family Salvage Frigate 'Bucket'. Some might argue that him being exposed to radiation for an extended period of time explains quite many things about whom he eventually would become...but thats not really all there is to it."
"He started out like most Junkers kids being born to Junker parents. He had little to worry about and usually played around with all kinds of discarded tech, building his own toys and some gadgets. But at age 10 he had to start helping around the ship.
He had to help with keeping the ship afloat and disassembling salvage that they had gathered. Quite hard work, actually. And toxic materials really didn't help his health, either. But he had to do what needed to be done - that Salvage frigate wasn't nearly as shiny as your disco ball of a ship.
Do you have any idea how much work goes into a ship built from scrap to keep it from going back to scrap? So repairs were always needed, and to do repairs you need materials, obviously."
"You're really giving me the long version of that story, aren't you?" you interrupt the barkeeper.
"Well, you don't look very busy to me, aye? Or would you rather sit there all paranoid and in silence again?" the barkeeper responds.
You let out a muffled grumble.
"Thought so. So if you'll let me continue - he spent his days just like that, but kept taking a few parts for his own little project from time to time. In 812 he turned 21 and knew pretty much everything he needed to make it in the debris on his own.
His project was finished just like his learning years, and so he got ants in his pants. He had built a small fighter craft and called it 'Tincan' - thats all it was, really. So at the end of 812 A.S. he had the first ship of his own and decided to leave the Pequena Negra to search his fortune elsewhere."
Chapter Three: "Into the Unknown"
"So there he was. In his ship, the Pequena Negra and the 'Bucket' in the distance behind him, slowly being swallowed by the trails of his engine. It gave him a strange feeling - the feeling of complete freedom, but also a sense of loss. Would he be back? How long would he be gone for? All uncertain.
Once he had reached the trade lane cutting Texas in half, he had to make the first choice already. Head deeper into Liberty space, or head to Hudson? He had met quite many traders from Liberty already, but the stories he had heard of Rheinland space from the ALG pilots, and the beer...oh the beer they shared with him. You couldn't compare it to Liberty ale. Have you ever had any Rheinbeer?" he asks.
"Well, sure. I've been to quite many places already, but I like stronger drink, beer and ale taste all the same to me", you respond. "So, he headed to Rheinland, eh?"
"Aye, he did. He decided to take a look at the New Berlin system first. He had heard about a profitable trade route from there to Kyushu. Something about Diamonds and Niobium. Back then, The Ring was still a small half-circular station. Tiny compared to The Ring of today, really. But things did not really interest him after he had seen the passing traders and the unfriendly Rheinland Military. He did not want to become a long distance trader, anyway. So he rolled the dice and decided to move on to Dresden, where he met a few Red Hessians. The first time ever. And that's also the first time he saw himself pay a fee to not start breathing space.
He figured he could learn alot from those Hessians about profits, and later on maybe even cooperate with them. He had heard of other Junkers working with them to carry...'misplaced' cargo for a share of the profits. So he stuck with them for a bit, until after a day or two they decided to invite him to a station called 'Vogtland Base'. He saw no reason to decline that invitation. So he followed them into an orange cloud of smog, until at some point he saw the silhouette of a massive rock with a docking bay appear before him.
He had reached Vogtland Base and docked. What he experienced as he stepped off his ship really left an impression on him."