Part 27: Federation - Part 02 - March 21st, 1179 NC: Hell Ship
March 21st, 1179 NC: Hell ShipFederation Preamble uploaded! This actually spoils most of the storyline, though if you've been following along you can guess what's being planned.
We spent quite a long time trading - over a year in-game, though that only translated to about an hour in real time including side missions and screwing about. Having a slow-jumping ship like the Leviathan and playing at 2x speed really makes time fly.
On our way to Helen, I attempt to check in with Rebel II to restock on missiles. The political officer on board isn't too happy with this decision.
Looks like we'll have to find another source of missiles. We reach Helen in the Eeniar system.
Helen posted:
The inhabitants of Helen numbered many ecologists in the early days of settlement, and as such, much effort was made to hide evidence of human habitation. Most homes here are either underwater or underground, and many of the major cities straddle the line between coast and tidal breakers. Most power comes from thermal layer inversion pillars, which provide relatively low levels of power, but an inexhaustible supply of it. A green world with many different types of plant, Helen exports small amounts of plant material for use in expensive clothing. The line 'Made by Helen (tm)' is worn by the elite throughout the Federation.
Helen's Bar posted:
Many of the patrons are wearing some of the latest 'Made by Helen(tm)' fashions that are only available on this planet. You shake your head, for you realize that these flimsy fashion garments will never last long, probably not even long enough for the next fad in the fashion industry.
Shopping aside, we came for a reason.
quote:
As soon as you land you see a team of four Federation soldiers leading a bedraggled apathetic prisoner. After stowing their charge in your cargo bay the leader of the team comes forward and in a polite tone tells you that they are ready to go any time you are.
Returning to Earth, we deliver our charge.
quote:
You look on as the prisoner is dragged away under heavy guard.
The leader of the team you ferried back here comes over and thanks you for your help. He tells you that Commander Krane would like to see you before you go.
quote:
After asking the dockmaster for directions, you are directed to what appears to be a deserted office. You enter somewhat self-consciously.
"Come in and shut the door," comes the beautiful female voice of Commander Krane. You quickly comply, feeling a little awkward.
"No troubles I take it?" she asks and you shake your head, immediately feeling foolish for doing so in the dark.
"Don't worry," she chuckles, "I can see you clearly.
"Nonetheless you did good work," she continues more seriously. "You will find your bank account a little healthier for your little jaunt, and I am willing to continue your test. If I want your services I will send someone to wait for you in the bar. Until then your time is yours. Good day, Captain Kirk Picard."
If you're a female pilot, there's no mention of the voice being beautiful or female at all. Commander Krane immediately has another job for us.
quote:
You feel a tap on your shoulder and you turn to see a young soldier who indicates that you should follow him. You are shepherded into the room with the single spotlight facing the door.
"Ah, there you are," begins the lovely female voice of Commander Krane. "As you have no doubt guessed, I have something more for you."
You hear the familiar creaks of her chair as her weight shifts.
"Are you still with me?"
quote:
"By now you should have guessed that you are working for the Bureau of Internal Investigation," she shifts her weight again, her chair whining in protest. "The reason I tell you this is to explain the reasoning behind your mission.
"We are a large organization, and consequently security is a problem," she continues gently. "We are continually looking to plug leaks and we believe we have found one.
"Apparently a counter-intelligence team has apprehended someone hacking into high-security information," she breathes. "They are currently holding this alleged spy on Port Kane in the Kania system. Same as last time, I want you to retrieve them.
"Another thing," she warns, "we believe that the pirate organization that calls themselves the Rebels have been sniffing around the planet, so watch yourself out there; I wouldn't want to lose you so early in the testing."
quote:
As soon as you land you see a team of three uniformed men and one woman leading a bedraggled and apathetic female prisoner. As she draws closer you begin to doubt whether this broken woman would have ever been capable of summoning the courage to try to hack her way into a protected system. You shrug, bemused.
After stowing their charge in your cargo bay the leader of the team comes forward and in a polite tone tells you that they are ready to go any time you are.
Reporting once more for debrief:
quote:
You look on as the prisoner is dragged away under heavy guard. You cannot help wondering what was done to the woman to change her from a daring spy into a pathetic and spineless shadow.
You shake yourself out of your reverie as the leader of the team you ferried back here comes over and thanks you for your help. He tells you that Commander Krane would like to see you before you go.
quote:
You head to the same, seemingly deserted office and once again enter self-consciously.
"There you are," sighs the wonderful voice of Commander Krane. "I was wondering when you would make it back.
"I guess that everything went relatively smoothly?" she asks and you shake your head, testing to find out if she can really see in the darkness.
"I can still see you," she confirms chuckling, "but it is good to see someone who has got good instincts."
Her chair creaks as she shifts slightly.
"Well it seems as though you have made it through part two of the test," she continues more seriously. "I have already transferred some money to your account for services rendered, and for now the testing will continue. You are doing well so far, but don't get overconfident.
"I will send someone to wait for you in the bar if I need you again," she states dismissively. "Until then your time is once again yours. Good day Kirk Picard."
GLi-Tech-nia posted:
As the salesman says: "If you want weapons, you have come to the right place!!" Home of the GLi-Tech corporation (formerly known as GLiMMER until the discovery of the Glimmer system), this planet has only one export, weapons. GLi-Tech is one of the few commercial weapons manufacturer of note, and the oldest by far, as it was created in 2045 AD (approximately -735 NC, some 1900 years ago). So if you want weapons of any kind, from portable flame throwers to the enormously successful radar missile system they invented, you can get it all here. However, it does not come cheap; if you want it, you have to pay for it.
GLi-Tech-nia's Bar posted:
This bar is full of salesmen, most of whom are discussing business over lunch with some of their clients. Every wall has hundreds of pictures of the weapons systems created by the GLi-Tech corporation in its nearly 2000 years of operation.
quote:
As you move around, browsing through the various possible outfits on offer, a tall slim woman with long dark hair wearing a GLi-tech uniform comes over to you.
"Are you Captain Kirk Picard, pilot of the Enterger 9?" she asks in a very feminine voice, and you nod. "I'm Sharon Masterton, manager of engineering services here at GLi-tech, and I was wondering if you were prepared to get some parts for us?"
quote:
"Glad to have you on board," she says with a measured smile. 'We need a shipment of parts for experimental weapons we are working on. ... If you are successful, we might consider giving you more missions of this type."
Thror posted:
Thror is to Thraine what Luna is to the Earth. Thror has been strip-mined for some decades now, and it continues to provide much of the raw material for Federation activities throughout this sector of space.
quote:
When you walk into the ship outfitting area you quickly spy the dark hair and formal suit of Sharon Masterton as she sits at a table near one of the corners of the large room and you decide to go over and say hello.
"I'm glad you dropped by," she tells you in a professional tone, "we need someone to do a few final field tests of a weapon before we start selling it to the Federation Navy. The nature of the tests isn't entirely legal, and until you complete the mission you will be under a fair amount of danger so don't say yes if you're a little squeamish."
quote:
"We like to test all of our weapons in real combat before we start marketing them to anybody," Sharon explains quietly. "So to facilitate this we have offered the captain of the pirate raider 'Lone Horseman' a substantial sum of money if he can defeat you in combat. As a part of the deal he has to share with us his sensor logs of the battle, so that we can find out if the weapon performed up to expectations. The same restriction applies to you, but we will be giving you the Polaron Cannon to use against him.
"You will find the Lone Horseman in the Naka system waiting for you," she tells you quietly. "Good luck."
You find yourself a little stunned at the tactics used by GLi-tech to get battle data on their weapons, but in the end you suppose that a weapons manufacturer wants to be absolutely sure that their weapon will do what they say it will when the crunch time comes.
Polaron Cannon posted:
Polarons are the new kid on the block in Direct Energy Weapon (DEW) systems. Polarons pack a punch with little generation loss, although they are hard to control out of the barrel. In some ways this cannon is rather like a Tesla coil in space, as it arcs rather than fires. You will need to be close to other ships to use this weapon effectively. The Polaron generation technology is very new, so it's also very expensive.
quote:
As soon as you land a dozen or so engineers begin swarming all over your craft demanding all your logs and taking all kinds of readings. Shaking your head you comply with all their demands without comment until you see Sharon making her way over.
"You did well," she compliments you, " but then that's why we chose you for this mission. Keep an eye out, we will have more of these missions for you in the future."
quote:
As you browse through the many ship outfits on offer you see the slim figure and dark hair of Sharon Masterton walk into the room and you wave her over.
"I need another weapon tested," she tells you in a professional tone. "It's the same deal as last time - we need someone to do a few final field tests of a weapon before we start selling it to the Federation Navy. Again, this test isn't entirely legal and it is quite dangerous so don't say yes if you don't think you're up to it."
quote:
"This time we are testing the new etheric wake missile," she tells you quietly. "We will be giving a missile launcher to you, as well as a few etheric wake missiles for it.
"Like last time we have hired a pirate raider," she informs you in a professional voice, "this one is called the 'Lone Horseman', and it will be paid a significant sum of money if it destroys you. It will once again be located in the Naka system. When you are finished, return here with all your data."
The pirate went and bought themselves another ship, it seems. The Etheric Wake missile would be good except for its very slow launch rate and mass requirements. Ignoring jamming isn't very notable except when the missiles are used against you.
Etheric Wake Launcher posted:
The launcher for the new Etheric Wake missile is a streamlined unit perhaps as long as three fully grown men. It contains ultra high-tech cybernetic connectors for the next generation of onboard ship computers, and damping field generators for the positron warhead that the evil-looking missile carries. Cooling vents longer than baseball bats hiss and squeal as the EW missiles load into place inside it.
Etheric Wake Missile posted:
Because of the unique graviton emissions of the Wraith, a new targetable fire-and-forget weapon had to be devised to combat them. The Etheric Wake missile uses a little-known principle of subspace disturbance to track Wraith through their flight path by detecting their wash in space-time. Since the Wraith and the Polaris both use Etheric Wave hyperdrives (although the Wraith version is much more sophisticated), it has been theorized that this weapon will work well versus Polaris jamming.
We obligingly use a few before tearing the pirate's new ship apart. The maurauding viper to the lower left is captured and upgraded for escort duty.
It seems like violence is today's forecast, so I decide to up-gun the Enterger 9. The Enterger has every mass expansion available, giving around 250 tons of free space. Taking the hypergate to Moash nets us 2 200mm railguns and 4 150mm railguns. 3 Hellhound launchers - arguably the most useful missile in the game provides anti-fighter coverage. A handful of Marine platoons and a fusion pulse turret for giggles tops off our armament. With all the mandatory speed and turn boosters we can get, we reach a warship level of maneuverability with a capital ship's armament. The very low shielding afforded to Leviathans keeps things interesting.
150mm Fixed Railgun posted:
A slightly larger version of the 100mm railgun, this weapon requires a much larger generator, and a power supply to match. The 150mm pellets are made from a copper/cadmium mix, and are drop-forged with care by Auroran weaponsmiths.
200mm Fixed Railgun posted:
The mother of all railguns. Firing a 200mm copper/cadmium pellet, this railgun looks like nothing less than a deck gun from an ancient Earth ocean-going warship. The electrode rails get so scored during battle that they must be replaced at every landfall. Luckily the rails are very cheap and easy to manufacture. Some have even been constructed of old armor plates in times of emergency.
Hellhound Missile posted:
Without a doubt, this is one of the most devastating missiles out there. Although technically radar-guided, it will burn through most forms of radar jamming, making it nearly impossible to shake, and it lasts just a little too long before detonating. With an excellent turn rate and a hefty payload, the hellhound missile is an excellent addition to any arsenal.
Ready to take on more of the universe, we return to Gli-Tech Nia but there's nothing available for us. Commander Krane fills in for them admirably back on Earth.
quote:
You feel a familiar tap on your shoulder and you turn to see a young soldier who indicates that you should follow him. You are lead to the room with the single blinding spotlight facing the door.
"Ah, you dropped in," begins the lovely female voice of Commander Krane. "Good! I have something that I could use your help on."
You hear the familiar creaks of her chair as her weight shifts.
"Do you still want to continue working with the Bureau?"
quote:
"This mission is a little more delicate," she explains, shifting her weight. "But, as I am sure you can understand, we at the Bureau have to look beyond the little people to the people behind them.
"Occasionally we get lucky," she continues explaining, "and we manage, by hook or by crook, to track down somebody who is surreptitiously raising credits to pay for the activities of our various enemies.
"Apparently a team of computer financial analysts managed to track down one such person by looking over his accounts and transactions," she breathes. "So we sent in a counter-intel team to round him up and guess what? They need to be retrieved. Go to Gineia in the Outpost 819 system to pick them up.
"Once again," she warns, "I understand that the Rebels have been showing up in that area, so take care of yourself."
A Rebel thunderhead named "Courageous" also greets us. At least the name was accurate.
No other trouble is encountered.
Gineia posted:
The atmosphere of Gineia is heavy on chlorine, and humans can only survive in the completely airtight habitation domes. Pyrogenesis maintains a heavy presence here in order to harvest the abundance of chlorine gas. If you are prepared to part with enough money, one of the pilots of the atmosphere scoops will take you on a wild ride that you will never forget through this turbulent and extremely hostile atmosphere.
Gineia's Bar posted:
This quiet bar serves some of the finest drinks you have tasted anywhere in Federation space. "Just because we live out here doesn't mean we have to drink rubbish," says the bartender, noting your surprise. You whole-heartedly agree.
quote:
As soon as you land you see a team of two uniformed men and two women leading a bedraggled and apathetic male prisoner. As they draw closer you notice the prisoner's hard callused hands. You start wondering about how a supposed financial whiz managed to get the hardened hands of a physical laborer. You feel a couple of suspicions starting to surface in the back of your mind as you head back into your cockpit.
After stowing their charge in your cargo bay the leader of the team comes forward and in a polite tone tells you that they are ready to go any time you are.
quote:
You look on as the prisoner is dragged away under heavy guard. The suspicions about his true occupation remain, but you remain silent as he is marched off your ship.
You shake yourself out of your reverie as the leader of the team you ferried back here comes over and thanks you for your help. She politely passes on the message that Commander Krane would like to see you before you leave.
quote:
You make your way to the seemingly empty office. This time you manage to walk in with some self-assurance.
"Much better," comments Commander Krane on your entry. "It is good to see your confidence rising.
"By the look on your face I can see that this last mission is causing you to ask some questions regarding what is actually going on," she continues smoothly. "Good, that is exactly what I want. Just remember that the whole point of these missions is to test your loyalty, and you should do okay.
"The next few episodes should tell whether you are with us," she continues pleasantly after a slight pause, "or against us."
Her chair creaks as she shifts slightly as you mull over her last statement and its implications.
"Regardless, you are doing well so far," she praises sincerely, "and, as a result, you will find your account a little better off because of it. Keep it up.
"If I need you again, the usual deal will apply," she states dismissively. "Until then your time is once again yours. Good day."
Next time: Doubts! Chairs! Despair?