| Planet New London
|
- I always feel uncomfortable here -- this is Bowex territory. You can almost feel the stuffy arrogance of this place. It reeks of the Bretonian aristocrats that won't let go of our country. BMM and Bowex -- what a pair.
- Gateway is in partnership with the IMG, Bowex with BMM. Until we came along, BMM had IMG in a stranglehold since Bowex would refuse to ship their products in many cases, and they simply didn't have the means to ship goods themselves. We've had a rough time ourselves, since Bowex has powerful government connections that insure them many exclusive contracts with the Armed Forces and Police Authority.
- Gateway actually has very limited business on New London. We ship in Silver from our main base at Kensington by the planet Dover. We buy some basic commodities such as Food, Water, Oxygen and Basic Alloys. We also ship Mining Machinery to the IMG in Dublin and Cambridge.
|
| Kensington Shipping Platform
|
- Gateway delivers goods throughout Sirius. It is ironic that we're most restricted in our own home, Bretonia. BMM prefers to deal with Bowex, as do most of the government organisation. The Police Authority is more pragmatic however, and have begun a trial with us to see how we work.
- Gateway handles the supply of most IMG bases in and around Bretonia. We also handle cargo runs from various ALG bases which Republican refuses to do. Republican and Daumann have attempted to keep ALG in a stranglehold, much in the same way that Bowex and BMM tried to keep the IMG in a stranglehold. Now that the three of us are cooperating, that practise no longer works.
- I tried my hand at smuggling recently, heading up through Newcastle to try and sneak through to Tau-31. My little freighter was spotted instantly, and I had to make a run for it back through the Newcastle jump hole. Those Gallic pilots have got far more agile ships then the Mollys and Outcasts ever did.
- Gateway and the IMG are partners. We haul their minerals and supplies to distant markets. ALG has recently joined our partnership, enabling us to expand into Rheinland and take on the Daumann-Republican monopoly, which is eerily similar to our own BMM-Bowex road block. None of them are too happy with our competition.
- One of the key aims of our partnership with IMG is to get along with as many of the criminal factions as we can, thereby lowering our operating costs in the Border Worlds, which will comprise the bulk of future mineral discoveries in the sector. BMM and Bowex take a much harder line, which hurts them with factions like the Mollys and Red Hessians.
- Kensington distributes Consumer Goods throughout Bretonia. Planets, space stations, depots, wherever there is a Bretonian, you'll find us supplying him or her with the finest little necessities of life. It isn't as lucrative as Luxuary Goods, but you're not as attractive a target for pirates either.
- Silver is brought in from the IMG base in Omega-7, Freistadt. Then we ship it out to New London and the terraforming folks. Silver is used in cloudseeding, electronics and jewelry making, so there are a lot of places with a demand for it.
- Our two big cargos for long-range runs to Liberty are Beryllium and Gold. That Gold attracts a lot of attention, especially in the Independent Worlds, although the Corsairs have begun to hit us just outside the base here. Luckily the Police Authority always has a few patrols close by.
- Bowex is far too reliant on their government contracts. They have forgotten how to be efficient, and that will be their downfall. Gateway doesn't rely on bribes and other dirty tricks. We simply outperform those fossils.
- This is Gateway's home base and hub for our shipping operations throughout the Sirius Sector. Bowex made sure that we couldn't use London itself as our base. We've adapted okay. It's actually a little more centrally located - transports coming from Liberty always pass by Kensington if they do business in New London or Cambridge.
- We'd like to get more involved in the Luxury Goods and Food trade, but Bowex has a lock on that. Its exclusive military and police supply contracts are the worst because they make the Bretonian government pay through the nose. That's what you get with centuries of no competition. The Police Authority wizened up and has started to use us for their operations in Poole. Once we show the government how efficient we are, I reckon not even those Bowex lobbyists will be able to hold us at bay.
- I used to haul H-fuel from the Hokkaido system, but now that Leeds is blockaded, I'm trying to find decent routes into Rheinland and Liberty. Although our corporation can go into Kusari again, it's a long haul to go around the Taus to get there.
|
| Sheffield Station
|
- I hate crossing the Independent Worlds. When I signed up for the H-Fuel run from Los Angeles to here I thought it would be an adventure. I'd say it's closer to a nightmare. Gateway doesn't pay me enough to get killed. Gateway's route goes by Sheffield and over Manchester. Our IMG partners often help us out near Freeport 4, but travelling through the Barrier ice fields is quite dangerous. Lane Hackers, Outcasts and Liberty Rogues are on the prowl there.
- Hauling Pharmaceuticals to Sheffield might be the easiest run that Gateway does. Sure, the pay isn't great, but I don't care as long as I have a better chance of making it home.
- I ship Food and Consumer Goods to this base from Kensington. It's a living, and you only have to jump from one system away. Mollys can be quite a problem on occasion, so be careful if you try it. But it is a hell of a lot safer than crossing the Independent Worlds.
|
| Planet Cambridge
|
- We run the supplies to the IMG's Cardiff Station across the system. From there we pick up Beryllium for shipment to Liberty or Rheinland. This is one of our core contracts with the IMG that helps keep us competitive against our rivals.
- From Cambridge the Trade Lanes get much more difficult. I'm heading out to the IMG's Freistadt Station in Omega 7. We ship Pharmaceuticals and Basic Alloys there. That's if the Hessians or Corsairs don't intercept me first.
- I'm on the Kensington circuit. We usually import H-Fuel or Gold. On the outbound trip it could be Luxury Food or Pharmaceuticals. We don't make a lot of profit, but it's a fairly safe trip, since you don't need to cross a Borderworld to get where you need to be.
|
| Luxury Liner Shetland
|
- Well, I say. The boys who ran this ship certainly have a bit of cleaning up to do. But what a fine job they did in bringing her home. I hear it drifted into Dublin in the end - they can be glad the Corsairs or Mollys didn't happen upon her first. Now that would have been a tragedy.
- Gateway delivers several basic commodities to this ship and other bases in the region. Water and Oxygen come in from the South Shields refinery, since we can't use anything from Carlisle for some reason. Biohazard, the grapevine says. Food has to be shipped in from Cambridge for the same reason.
- Gateway hasn't gotten any serious contracts with the military. That is fine with me, I didn't sign up for combat duty, I'm a merchant. Hauling soldiers and weapons around just paints a big bullseye on your hull. Every Gallic, Outcast, Corsair and Molly raider will be on your tail.
|
| South Shields Refinery
|
- I'll be headed to the Shetland next with a cargo of fresh water. Gallic and Molly attacks make the journey quite dangerous, even with such a low value cargo. Gallia just wants to see Bretonia burn. The Mollys aren't much better than that. It's a shame the IMG chose to remain neutral in the conflict with Gallia. This station isn't in a bad spot to base fighter patrols out of, to counter those Gauls that are coming out of the Tau-31 system via the Jump Hole. It's mostly strikecraft, the asteroid fields on both sides are a pain to navigate, or so the IMG chaps tell me. They must have used that path before.
- "End of the line", that's what most of the Armed Forces call this station. It is fitting, that the northernmost outpost in Bretonian space is now an IMG station. Still, the chaps here do good work by producing a little H-fuel, some Hydrocarbons, and enough Water and Oxygen to sate the needs of everyone in the system. It saves the Armed Forces from having to have that hauled from New London.
- With all the Armed Forces now in this system, the lanes have become a lot safer. Well, except the ones south of Scarborough of course, but even the Mollys seem to keep quiet in Newcastle. They're probably wondering if they'll need to defend Belfast again before soon. It's small comfort though, considering the threat of invasion looms over this system like a shadow.
|
| Freeport 1
|
- I make the shipping run to this base from Cambridge. When I come here, I bring Consumer Goods and H-Fuel. When I leave, I transport work Crews who were on leave here back to Cardiff or Planet Cambridge. You'd be surprised how often I get jumped by Corsairs. Aye, they're mean ones. Glad I don't have to tangle with those Hessians too. That would be too much.
- Bretonia keeps this base rather well equipped with basic supplies and Mining Machinery. Quite a shame, it was this shipping run that got destroyed just a while back. All hands lost, including my brother's wife, she was a good pilot too.
- The Bowex crews in the area are frothing at the bit about Gateway purchasing joint rights to the Bretonian transport franchise. The mighty Bretonian giant is having to sell contracts and rights to bail out debts, I've heard. Serves them right for war profiteering and biting off more than they could chew, if you ask me.
|
| Freistadt Base
|
- Much of the Silver that is mined here is shipped into Bretonia. Kensington has need of Silver, so we deliver. I enjoy going back into Bretonia, but surviving the trip is always a bit tricky.
- One of Gateway's more lucrative runs to this base originates in Bonn. We ship Trade Lane Parts here and head back to Bonn with Silver and Copper. It can be quite dangerous since you can be attacked by two of the most vicious groups in all of Sirius.
- Copper and Cobalt is shipped to Dortmund. ALG will use its smelters to turn the raw ore into workable materials. If the miners here were more ambitious, they could do the same.
- This base receives all its basic supplies from Freiburg. More than just the basic necessities; we also bring Mining Machinery and Engine Components. I fear that much of what we ship here, the IMG turns around and sells to the Red Hessians, making our jobs much more perilous.
|
| Planet Curacao
|
- This is the only safe stop in this neck of the woods. Pretty rough on both sides in the clouds. I was stuck here once when the Trade Lane got taken down for a few days. I liked it so much that I try to come back at least once every few years with the missus. The sun's pretty hot though -- I always get burned.
- My ship broke down in the Paloma Cloud yesterday. They're still working on it, so I've got at least another night here to burn on company time. I think I'll head down to the casino and roll the dice tonight.
- This is the best layover you get on Gateway runs. We normally don't stop here much, but when we do, it's a nonstop party.
|
| Norfolk Shipyard
|
- The Robotics shipments we bring in from Omega-3 are a fight all the way to this station. First we have to fight the Hessians out of Omega-3. Once we hit the Bretonian Trade Lanes, we have to contend with the Mollies and Corsairs and in the Independent Worlds there's the Lane Hackers or whomever they've sold our cargo manifests to. Once we get into Liberty space, we have to fight the Rogues off.
- Gateway ships Robotics to this base from Aland Shipyard in Omega-3. The Rogues' ability to sniff out the Robotics convoys seems uncanny. I'm told that they get their info from the Lane Hackers, so they are the real enemy -- the ring leaders versus the attack dogs.
- Even though this run is a dangerous one, we need to fulfill this contract with the Liberty Navy. When this company first began no one believed it would survive, but we grow stronger every day.
|
| Newark Station
|
- We ship Beryllium here from Java Station in Tau-23. Our transports have been coming under Xeno attack, but that is the price of being a shipping firm in Liberty space.
- The Beryllium we supply Ageira with in Pueblo will eventually be used to manufacture Gate or Lane Parts and then sent back to Waterloo in New London to maintain the Bretonian trade lane network.
- We ship Beryllium to this base from Java. Our shipments are frequently attacked in the Independent Worlds; no doubt the goods that the criminals manage to steal will end up back in New York fenced by the Junkers. It's always fun losing cargo containers to Rogues only to get to buy them back from Junkers a few days later.
|
| Baltimore Shipyard
|
- I've heard that some of the Rogues in this system have been tipped off about our Gold shipments to Fort Bush, not by the Lane Hackers but by Bowex. I wouldn't put it past those corporate bastards.
- Bowex will tell you that we don't have the experience or expertise to be prominent shippers of Bretonian Commodities. But the truth is they realize what a threat we are to their firm. We do the same business they do, but for less.
- Gold is brought from Dublin to Fort Bush for safe keeping. DSE uses it for wiring the ships built here.
|
| Planet Los Angeles
|
- Just got in on a Gold run from the Hood in Dublin. Everything was fine until we got to the Barrier Cloud in Magellan. The Lane Hackers were waiting as usual -- pounced on us as soon as we entered the Trade Lane to Freeport 4. We got lucky when a Universal convoy showed up. Still lost one of my escorts.
- You should see the faces of the miners at Graves when I dock with a load of Synth Paste. That look is just priceless.
- Gateway supplies most of the IMG bases in the Sirius Sector and hauls their products to market. Take Freeport 4 in Magellan, for example. We ship them their Food and H-Fuel. We bring Passengers back into Liberty, and Consumer Goods or Basic Alloy back here. Not a killer run, but it pays the bills.
|
| Pueblo Station
|
- We bring in the Beryllium to Pueblo all the way from the Cardiff mine in Cambridge, even though we have no outbound cargo here. It is a quick shot back into Denver where we can fill up for the journey home.
- We'd like to break into the Trade Lane Parts-hauling business, but the Liberty government and Ageira will not allow it. They say it must be a Liberty company that handles their precious cargo. I smell something fishy.
- Liberty does seem to have a lot of criminal problems -- not as tough as our Mollys, and certainly nothing like the Corsairs -- but plenty of them, especially those Rogues.
|
| Lewes Shipping Platform
|
- It's no wonder that the Liberty Navy couldn't handle Military Vehicle production. Running a Navy is a far different thing from running a business. Commanders don't have to care about fulfilling contracts when they can just throw people in the brig.
- I'm hoping to get embedded with a combat crew on Planet Leeds so I can see our Military Vehicles in action. Don't give me that look. I may be a woman, but I can press the fire button just as easily as any man!
- Progress in Alberta is on track, as scheduled. Success there will ensure our profitability for decades to come.
- War is good for business, no doubt about it. Most people worry about wars starting, but I worry about when they end. Who will we sell our new line of military hardware to if all the politicians decide to talk instead of shoot? We need to keep electing warmongers if this company is going to stay on top.
- They tried to convince me to open the bar on Leduc in Alberta, but I wouldn't have it. That system is too much like the frontier for my taste. Not a trade lane anywhere in the system, no thanks. That's a rookie gig.
- This is a pretty good job. There are so many foreigners coming through here that I never get bored from having to hear the same stories over and over again. Sure, lady trouble is lady trouble, but at least the babes have different names.
- Ageira has been supplying the technological innards for Liberty's military hardware for decades, so moving into control of full scale production is not really a stretch for us.
- It may seem strange to you that Ageira has opened a shipping platform, but it's all part of our master plan. Our operation in Alberta required a lot of material resources, and it's best to be able to handle that in house, rather than relying on outside parties to deliver on time.
|
| Bonn Station
|
- We're doing very well on this route since Liberty decided to use us as a secondary source of metals for their factories and smelters. Word was that they didn't trust Daumann anymore and were concerned with the Hessians shutting off the flow of Copper through Dresden.
- The Liberty folks lobbied the Rheinland government quite heavily to allow us to land here. Not quite so sure what their real intentions were, but it's been a boon for the IMG and Gateway. We haul their Copper and Silver from Omega-3.
- Gateway and the IMG haven't had nearly the problems with the Red Hessians that Kruger and Daumann have. We try to tolerate them as much as possible, which specifically means not hiring Bounty Hunters to chase them down.
|
| Essen Station
|
- There are a lot of people at Gateway who aren't sure we should get so close to the Rheinlanders. We were doing fine with the IMG before ALG came along. Now they want to buy Kruger, which will result in a massive corporation like Daumann or Republican. We're being straight-armed by ALG into accepting their proposal, with little or no say in the matter.
- Gateway does not often deal with Kruger. But that could change soon. They say that ALG will soon acquire the remnants of this once-proud company for next to nothing. Can't say it surprises me; Kruger's been on the ropes for decades.
- My ship is picking up a load of Mining Machinery to take out to the IMG operation in Omega-7. We were just over at Dortmund across the way, dropping off some copper from Freistadt.
|
| Freiburg Station
|
- Freistadt in Omega 3 is in need of our services to ship basic supplies and Mining Machinery. The chaps who live out there are crazy ones.
- The lads at Freeport 1 pay us to bring them Mining Machinery and Engine Components from this shipping hub. Strange how much people will withstand to live free of governmental control.
- Gateway crosses the deadly Border Worlds, bringing Gold and Niobium here from Kensington. We took some casualties in Omega 7 from Red Hessians. They hit us hard; most of our escorts got wiped.
- From Cardiff, Gateway brings Beryllium to Rheinland. This is only a supply depot; our shipments continue on to Dortmund.
|
|
