I've managed to deliver a couple cargo holds full of supplies: food, water, medicine, oxygen. I hope it gets to the right people. It's the first time in quite a while that I've wished I had a larger cargo hold.
Later, I was on my way to deliver some supplies to Planet Harris. As I flew through the half-completed trade lane from the Leeds gate (will they EVER get that thing operational?) I was startled to hear the standard "pay up or die" routine that pirates use. Oh space, I thought. I slowed down as I approached, and sure enough there were nearly half a dozen pirates blockading the planet. There were also a few trade ships, trying to get past the blockade. My stomach curled as I saw a bright explosion near the planet, punishment inflicted by the pirates on a transport that tried to leave without paying them.
Blast it all, no way am I going to get through this, I thought. As much as I would have liked to help the pinned-down traders, the Aedos was very much outmanned and outgunned. Where's the blasted Bretonian Navy?, I wondered. Wasn't there usually a battleship parked in orbit?
Uh oh. I'd waited too long, and had been spotted. One of the pirates was closing the distance in a Titan-class fighter. Time to get out of here, I thought, engaged cruise, and put some distance between myself and the pirates. I vaguely recall saying something cheeky to the pirate before I left, and then I was gone.
Most of the day was pretty uneventful, except for a drawn-out tangle with a Molly gunboat.
![[Image: aedos_mini.jpg]](http://students.cs.byu.edu/~sushi/aedos_mini.jpg)