Date: September 12, 825 A.S. Log Subject: First patrol on my own Encryption: Heavy
I never imagined when I was 19 years old and about to get busted for prostitution that I'd end up here, floating above Trenton Outpost, watching a Liberty Naval cruiser float through space. Well, maybe I imagined it, but I s'pose I always thought the Navy would be shooting at me when I did. It's quiet up here, though, and my first day on the job has been pretty stellar. Uneventful, I s'pose, but enjoyable nonetheless.
New York has always been a busy place. Center of the sector, they say. And they're right. Today I talked to three separate traders, a couple'a freelancers and one from Ageira. No illegal goods being passed. One of the traders, though, broadcasting a name of "White Sands," mentioned that he was attacked in Hudson earlier in the day. I've filed a report with headquarters, though I don't know what can be done about it. He had to give up half his cargo just to get the interloper to let him pass. I feel bad that the guy lost his profit from that trip, but he still seemed in good spirits, so I suppose I can't complain.
On top of that, I came across the weirdest little ship today. It was definitely automated, or at least talked like a computer. It scanned me, checked me out, and was pretty much investigating everything it could in the system. It was harmless, though, so I let it be. T'was a little creepy at one point, though, when it saw a ship entering Manhattan's atmosphere and tried to push it in more. I don't know much about automated ships and intelligence, but I'm going to have to check the law books once I'm settled back at home.
The last treat on my patrol today was running into a new Liberty Navy pilot, just recently recruited, who was broadcasting the wrong IFF. Apparently, he's a great fighter pilot, but not so good with computers. "Dannyps" was his name, or so his transponder said. I went ahead and helped him get his computer reprogrammed so his IFF was correct, and he was off. I'm just glad I'm not in the Navy. I have no interest in foreign affairs. I just want to help people here at home, like I was helped as a kid.
Ah well, that's all I got fer today. Maybe something more exciting'll come along t'morrow.
Date: September 17, 825 A.S. Log Subject: Smugglers & Rogues Encryption: Heavy
I had my first combat encounter with a criminal in Liberty today. A transport with an unclear transponder was sailing right through Liberty space with a load full of Cardamine. He stopped at first, but after a few minutes of talking, apparently decided that obeying the law wasn't acceptable. He opened fire. Thankfully, considering he was in a freighter, outmaneuvering his ship was easy. We fought for quite some time, him yelling at me the entire time for being a "coward" for not positioning myself directly in front of his guns. It was rather amusing, but in the end, he fled into the Jersey Debris Field.
At the end of his flight path, however, I discovered a base I was not previously aware of. Broadcasting as Rochester, it was infested with Liberty Rogue ships surrounding it. It might be a hideout of theirs. I will be putting in a report to the Liberty Police of its location, to see if we can wipe it out for good. Having the Rogues with a base so close to Manhattan is dangerous for shipping in and out of the Liberty capital. The transport docked, though, and managed to protect itself inside the base's defenses, which I couldn't penetrate in my fighter. Furthermore, a particularly adventurous Rogue pilot showed up and attacked. He was a bit better equipped, and forced me to flee and return to Manhattan.
Once I completed the paperwork for the damage to my ship and had it repaired, I went on to Pennsylvania. I ran into a trader there, warned him about the Rogues, but he was just passing through. From there, my patrol was rather quiet. A few Ageira ships, the occasional Gateway vessel. None of them were carrying illegal cargo. I'm pretty proud for my first fight - I defended myself well until outnumbered. The Captain wasn't real happy with the damage to my fighter, and I'm sure he'll dock my pay for it, but that's fine. I got the chance to defend Liberty and her laws. That's good enough for me.
I thought after spending some time planet side, working old connections to help the Liberty Police catch a few of the people who receive stolen goods that smugglers bring into Manhattan, it would be nice to get back into space. Boy was I wrong. I left Manhattan today in my fighter and I wasn't in my ship for more than ten minutes before the Separatists showed up. Needless to say, I ended up getting an earful from my Commander again because of the fighter damage I took.
These Separatists are just a complete disgrace to Liberty. Even when I was on the other side of the law, committing crimes and doing what was necessary to survive, I could never imagine betraying my whole House like these people have. I didn't even get a name from this criminal, just a ship ID - "Alpha.9." I have to say, he or she was pretty impressive as a pilot. They sure beat the hell out of me. But that doesn't stop me from hating them.
Liberty is a good place to live. Liberty is safe, most of the time. I do not understand why anyone would want to overthrow the government. These people need to go down. I just hope that, when the time comes, I will be there to help.
Date: October 13, 825 A.S. Log Subject: Definitely an Eventful Day! Encryption: Absolute
Today is probably the most active day I've had my entire time on the force. I was called to California from my normal patrols in New York and Pennsylvania on an assistance request from the Liberty Navy. When I arrived, I found two Liberty gunboats engaging a Rogue destroyer. What was really surprising, though, was that there were two more Liberty Navy vessels in the near vicinity - and they were not assisting at all. In fact, one of them was referring to the Rogue as "patriotic" over open communications channels. I was tempted to call him out for treachery, but the destroyer turned its weapons on me and I was forced to defend myself.
The battle waged for a while, and we weren't really getting anywhere. The two gunboats were doing some damage, as was the destroyer, but nobody really seemed to be making any progress. Then, a higher-ranking Officer of the Liberty Police showed up in a bomber. That changed the tide of battle in our favor. It wasn't long before the Rogue vessel captain was propping his feet up on his console and taking a final drink as his vessel critically decompressed on most decks. I'm sure he survived, and the escape pod is gone, but it was good seeing us making a dent in crime in Liberty. I was happy to assist.
Officer Lance and I flew back toward New York, and I suspected the rest of our day would be filled with paperwork. Shockingly, however, we caught a smuggler just on the California side of the gate from New York. He was broadcasting a freelancer's IFF, and the ship name was Valer. He was carrying a load of black market light arms. I've heard rumors from my underworld contacts that Ageira is selling to the black market out of Detroit Munitions, and I suspect that's where the load came from, but we weren't able to get any proof. The smuggler not only paid his fine, but dropped his cargo and allowed it to be destroyed. It was rather tame for a smuggling incident.
The best part was that later, filling out paperwork above Fort Bush, we ran across the Valer again - this time carrying legal cargo. It just goes to show you, that sometimes people can be helped, and sometimes the law can rehabilitate. After that incident, it motivated me to put in my application for a promotion. I want to be done with LPI officer training, and I want the real work to begin. It's time to be a part of something bigger, and make the detective - and myself - proud.
The Liberty Police, Inc., Commissioner decided to reject my application for full service with the company. I knew that it was a risk with my record, but I had been hoping for the best. I'm still a little heartbroken, but today's activities helped me get over it. I still have the freedom to participate, and there is at least one LPI officer - John Lance - who has taken me under his wing, and worked hard to teach me how to do this job right. He's helped me set up my ship for optimal efficiency, and even recommended a replacement model. The department has been very good with resources, so we got things configured perfectly. And today, we also got to test it.
We ran into another smuggler outside Manhattan today. This one was hauling over 4,000 tons of artifacts. When we first attempted a stop, he ignored our communications and tried to flee. Once he realized we meant business, he finally stopped. Tried to question Liberty law. In the end, though, he dropped the cargo, and Officer Lance destroyed it. Then, we attempted to issue the smuggler his fine. That didn't go over nearly as well, and he fled. It was disappointing. We could have shown him a better way to make money. Thankfully, there was an Orbital Spa & Cruise liner nearby to disrupt the trade lanes while Lance and I disabled the smuggler's vessel.
I like working with Lance. I may not be a "full fledged" LPI officer, but I can do my part to help keep Liberty safe. I'm going to make something of myself yet. I just hope that I can start helping people give up the life of crime, instead of having to shoot at them. I believe people can be redeemed.
Date: October 18, 825 A.S. Log Subject: A Rogue LSF Cruiser Encryption: Absolute
I got to work with John Lance again today. Unfortunately, we had to destroy a Liberty-made battle cruiser. Although it's computers were putting out a LSF identification, the vessel failed to respond to all communications, and it opened fire on me without warning, destroying my shields as I was still trying to make initial contact. The engagement took us halfway across the New York system and California as well, but just above Planet Los Angeles, the vessel faltered and suffered massive decompression. I hope that Liberty Police will take the time to look into the incident - the idea of a rogue LSF agent taking command of that powerful a ship is frightening.
Other than that, patrols were pretty quiet today. There was a beautiful Bretonian liner ship that was visiting New York, and I ran into them outside Manhattan. Based on the cargo they were carrying, I have no doubt their passengers were having a very good time. It reminded me of the days when I used to be among all the party kids down on the planet. I'm sure that Orbital Spa & Cruise has a bit more class than that, especially from Bretonia, but the reminder came all the same. It was a beautiful ship to look at, though, and the captain was friendly enough. Beyond that, just a brief chat with a GMG ship from the Sigmas.
I hate to say that I want something more exciting for tomorrow, but it's true. Crime in Liberty never stops. I just want to make sure I can find it and stop it.