Real Name : Valentino 'Val' Lopez
Code Name : the_Fury
Birthplace : Malta
Ship's Log
My name is Val, not that I've heard it for a long time. I guess I'm a bit of a loner. Don't speak much, don't have no-one to speak to mostly. When I do meet folk these days they call me the_Fury, don't ask me why, I don't know, it just kinda stuck. I used to be a bit of a street fighter, got locked up more times than I care to remember but the way I sees it, any man backed into a corner can fight and when you've been thrown around enough cargo holds like I have you're used to being backed into a corner.
Anyhow, I've gone an' got all nostalgic on ya. I guess I'll have to tell ya a little about the old days though, so as you know where I'm coming from.
I was born on Malta, in a little town deep in the rolling Cardamine fields to a large family. I never knew my Ma, she died givin' birth to me but me and Pa, we were pretty darned close. We moved around a lot when I was a kid, me and Pa. Sometimes we'd live with cousins and relatives, othertimes we'd move way out into the rocky desert, 'far away from prying eyes' my old Pa used to say. Can't say I remember much of Malta now, 'cept that we moved an awful lot and that beautiful orange glow.
I've not been back t' Malta in a long while, you see, my tale gets a little sadder from here on in. My Pa never told me what he did for a livin', I don't think he ever wanted me to know, I guess I'm a little like him, keep my cards close to my chest. 'Keep your enemies close' he'd say with a steely glint in his eye. Anyhow, I've lost my train of thought now, I was tellin' ya about how I left Malta.
As I said earlier, we moved around a lot. Well one day back then a groupa Cartel members came lookin' for Pa. I'd never seen any of the druglords before but, course, we all knew what they looked like, they're regular celebrities on Malta. They left but when Pa came back a few days later he looked older somehow, I don't know why, there was just something in his eyes that looked different. Well, we moved around a lot when I was a little kid but this time we were headed into space. I was probably 5 or 6 when we left.
Now we left in an awful hurry, I don't know where we went, we seemed to spend ages just drifting around space. Occasionally Pa would stop to stock up on Cardamine but this is where my memory gets a little hazy, you see, the Cardamine weren't for us. We never got sick. Not even a headache or the blurs, it was as if we'd never lived on Malta at all.
We spent a good many years in space, just drifting around, but I can't say that I remember a great deal about it, it's like it's just gone from my memory. Real occasional I'll remember something, but its always a hazy series of thoughts, barely joined together by anything cohesive. Maybe I don't wanna remember much about that time 'cos it just seemed like I was waiting, you see, by the time I was 16 my Pa would be dead. End Entry
Ship's Log
In the weeks leading up to his death, my Pa became edgier, snappy even which was strange because I don't recall another instance of his being like that. It wasn't until the day itself that he seemed calmer, as if struck by a certain clarity and focus.
Around that time I'd started to take an interest in where we were and where we were going, of course, Pa never told me much, he may have taught me to fly like the best of 'em but he never said much about navigating in space. He focused my learnings on more ethical and moral things, rather than the practicalities of space. He told me I'd figure the rest out on my own, and he was dead right but for a long while after his death his teaching of moral fibre and impeccable character didn't sit easy with me. I'll explain why in time but for now I should tell you about his death.
I'll keep the tale short and try and focus on the facts, to be honest, I can't believe I'm telling it at all but I seem to have been struck by the same clarity that struck my Pa on his death day.
We'd flown into Sigma 17 and docked at Atka. At the time I didn't know what happened at Atka and that Sigma 17 would be so dangerous for us. It was one of the few times I'd met any friends of my Pa. There were 6 of them, 7 counting me, sat round a make-shift table in the back of an old freighter in the landing docks. I didn't hear what they were saying but as it transpires I left Atka with one of the friends. His name was Paulo Ameche and I owe him my life. We waited in his ship for a long while but he didn't say much and then we left, simple as that.
We left in formation with the other table members and headed towards the jumphole for Sigma 13. That journey should have been my worst but, as it happens, it's given me the fondest memories of my Pa that I possess. I spent the whole journey on the comms to Pa, him teaching me about everything and nothing it seems. I won't labour the point but those last memories of my Pa are my best.
Well, as you've probably guessed by now, we never made the jumphole. We were intercepted by Corsair ships. I think there were even gunboats and destroyers out there in space. To be honest, my recollection of the fight is hazy at best. Everything happened so fast and I was young, I remember feeling so helpless, sat there while Paulo fought with the controls to get us out of the system and out of the fight.
My Pa died in that fight, died protecting me. I remember hearing his voice on the comms telling Paulo to get me out of the fight but there seemed to be so many Corsair ships in the space around us. Energy blasts rocked the ship and at some point along the way Paulo got injured. I think one of the power modules in the cabin must have exploded, I can't be sure 'cos the cabin was constantly lit up with energy fire from outside but Paulo was hurt. So I flew the ship. Didn't think I'd have been much good in a fight and I don't think that without Paulo beside me I coulda done it. I don't know the moment my Pa died, I think Paulo did but he didn't tell me, probably best really. Well, somehow, we made it clear, and we jumped through into Sigma 13 as the sole survivors of the group that had sat around a makeshift table in a dirty cargo bay on Atka. End Entry
Ship's Log
Now, where was I? Ah, my escape from Atka and Sigma 17. Well, as I said Paulo was pretty beat up after that skirmish and I was both saddened and angered at the same time when he died in the next few days. He wouldn't accept no medical help and as soon as our cardamine supplies ran out he fell into the coma and passed soon after. I think I told ya earlier that I've never suffered the sickness from a lack of cardamine and that was just one of the things it took me a long time to figure out.
I suppose I oughta tell ya what I've managed to piece together since then. Well, after losing my Pa I was pretty lost for a while. All I had was a ship and a few credits so I just wandered aimlessly for a long time. I was real young then but already felt old. I became very lost, not knowing where to turn, not trustin' nobody. I spent a long while just feeling angry but when that had cleared and the crushing resentment and fear had lifted from my brain I set about finding out why my Pa had died.
I can't remember exactly how I came by all the information, it was mainly pieced together from a variety of sources and I still can't be sure I've got it all figured out right. You see, I knew I was a fugitive from Malta, ha, it seems almost laughable, outcast from the outcasts! But that's what I was, sure, I had few enemies looking for me but even fewer friends. For a while I kinda liked it like that but when the thirst for knowledge overcame me I realised I'd have to go talking.
The long and short of it is this: Cryer Pharmaceuticals at Atka are tryin' to synthesise a new form of Cardamine which obviously don't sit too right with the Dons on Malta. Now, remember I told you about Paulo, well he was an Ameche and his father was Don Duke Ameche. Turns out my Pa used to work for the Don Ameche back on Malta. Now, I don't know how much of the history of Malta you know but Don Ameche was disposed of in a bloody massacre that saw the Don and most of his family culled from society. They was accused of supplying Cardamine to Cryer using the Corsairs as a go between and as far as I know, nobody knows know different to that apart from me.
My Pa and the group that sat around the table on Atka weren't supplying the enemy with Cardamine at all, they was tryin' to destroy research and the station itself for the good of all on Malta. Only, they discovered that someone had been supplying Cryer with Cardamine for research. It turns out that the source turned the tables on the Ameche Cartel and set them up to look like the smugglers. But I know who it is and I'm coming for them. I want revenge. Revenge for lies, revenge for my life and revenge for the death of my Pa. End Entry