A Speedy Delivery

There was another unique ship on offer back at the scientific base; a Rapid Housing design that increased engine performance by another 100 units. I had seen a variant of this before, but with a meagre 218 tonne hull it was virtually a toy. With a 258 tonne hull this one was more functional and could easily fit all of my current equipment on board and have a comfortable 30 tonne spare in the hold. It would be perfect to negotiate a faster delivery schedule for more pay and prestige.

First up was a delivery of VR games to Venus, a fad that's catching on through the Humans. From there it was another quick run taking an unknown substance to Deneb. On the way I dropped off a probe at an unexplored planet in Altair, but picked up more than I bargained for with a Mysterious case of Luatanza spreading over me.


Although not lethal, it pacifies the brain making combat an abhorrent thought. On the flip side, it somehow enhances trustworthiness in the eyes of an employer making it much more likely to negotiate a great deal for completing tasks. Must be less risky giving precious cargo to someone you know won't take it for a ride into battle.

Luatanza only strengthened my resolve to press hard on the delivery schedule, and turned over another desirable run into new territory; Shedire. I had recently bought some additional starmaps to extend the boundaries of where I could travel as I may as well see the galaxy if I'm not fighting. This system had a Maloq planets, which certainly was an eye opener. They didn't trust me at first, but money greases anyones attitude.


The delivery to Shedire was a toothbrush that the Human ambassador had "left behind". Sometimes it's best not to get into the politics and just do what is asked of you. Poor naiive Faeyans.

Back to Earth

I had to report back to Earth after destroying the robot, so another quick jump and I'm back in Sol system. The promise of another good trade coaxed me toward Venus first, but the rock trail led me over to Dream instead.


Uhh, how did they get in there? Maybe they misheard me order the new laser I picked up from The Golden Calf?
Maybe ;)

On Dream there was an AWESOME new ship. It was a special order from the Minnaver Space Docks, complete with droid tunnels for increased droid repair. Don't quite have enough, but it looks like an excellent buy!

Nothing else was worth buying on my way to Venus, so I left the hold empty for more rock collecting. There seems to be quite a bit just floating around the solar system. Why isn't anyone else hoovering it up?

At Venus I may have found the answer. My gripper was almost broken from overuse and took 100cr to fix! Still, that's only ~10 tonne of rock. I must have shunted close to 150 tonne by now.

The Venetian traders also had a repair droid for sale that I had my eye on last time through. It's an early model, but it's been enhanced from the normal 5 units of repair to 13 units. The trader had indicated that they help fix minor damage from, say, running into asteroids, and can also be a godsend in a dogfight extending your lifespan. Well, technically the hull's lifespan, but once the hull goes, you go. So I think the important thing here is ensuring I don't .. err .. go.

Most of my equipment (including the shiny new droid) had to be left behind on Venus to make way for ~230 tonnes of medicine destined for Earth. Prices for Equipment had reversed too, so I made a double trip to keep the trader in me happy.

There was enough in the kitty to head back to Dream to see if that Gaalian hull was still there. It was, and now it's mine. A dream come true! (heh)


There was a slimline gripper on sale too. It was pretty busted up, but worth the 1200 credits to complete the set of lightweight components to go with the new hull. Now I'm flat broke, but grinning from ear to ear!

A Ship of my own!

Streamers and balloons adorned the outer fins of my very own Gravicore Hull Ranger. Sure it was a junker, but it's all potential to me and Dad knew it. He hadn't stayed long, and the ship barely made up for his years of absence in the front lines, but it's what I had dreamed about but never expected.