Chapter 1: To The Trading Post

My name is Brian. I serve as a commander aboard a vessel known as Ship. It is one of the last remaining Baglogi Star Cruisers. Our mission includes peacekeeping and dealing with space pirates.

We were en route to a place known as the trading post. I had been there once before when I worked on a freighter, and my former captain warned us about the place. He said it was dangerous, especially if you are visiting on your own. Unfortunately, pirates destroyed the freighter soon after visiting the trading post and all but two crew were lost.

It was my belief that someone from the trading post informed the pirates about the freighter. They provided the information needed so that the pirates could intercept the freighter. Space is huge, and you can’t just find a vessel by accident. They had to have the knowledge of the flight path or they would never have succeeded. That was why we were going back there, to track down whoever was working with the pirates. They were jointly responsible for the deaths of my former crewmates and possibly many others. This was both justice for those who died and also to stop it from happening again.

I was worried that a lot of time had passed since the freighter, the Opolu Naa, had visited the trading post. My calculations had it around 130 Ori days since then. I hoped the trail had not gone cold. It is possible the being or beings responsible had gotten the news that the pirates were destroyed, and they had fled the trading post by now. If that were the case, this might be just the first step in a longer journey.

About a day into our travel, Jem called a meeting. Koluna and I joined her in the main bridge. We sat down and looked to our captain.

“I called us together to plan out our next mission. We are going to visit the trading post. Since I am the only one who has not been there before I would like a briefing on what it is. Koluna?”

“It is a huge space station located in the middle of nowhere. The primary purpose is for beings from different space-faring races to trade goods. Various traders built it over centuries, and I am unclear who runs it. It works on barter,” replied Koluna.

“The Opolu Naa stopped there about twelve days before being attacked by pirates. It is my belief that someone from there informed the pirates,” I added.

“So, we will have to meet with the administrators of this space station and get their consent to conduct our investigation. We have no jurisdiction there, and we need them on our side. Once we have the go ahead, we have to track down who was collaborating with the pirates,” summed up Jem.

“There are a lot of unknowns. My former captain said it was a dangerous place. I’d like to work with Ship to prepare some counter measures,” I said.

“Agreed. Koluna?”

“I will check with our archives for any additional background information,” said Koluna.

“Sounds good. Keep me informed of progress,” said Jem. We then split up.

On my last visit to the trading post I was a new crewmate on my first voyage. It was a dangerous place, and I was scared. I depended on my captain’s advice to get out alive. Now I had committed us to going back in there to track down and deal with a pirate collaborator, a bold move that the old me would never have considered. But I owed it to captain Jegho and the rest of my former crewmates. My life had changed so much. I had to keep going, if I stopped to think about it, I would not survive.

I went to somewhere quiet to discuss details with Ship. This was a large enough vessel that you could get lost. I liked to spend time alone with Ship.

“Ship, I’m going to need your help with this mission. Let’s go over some possible scenarios and figure out what we need,” I said.

“Confirmed,” replied Ship.

For the next several hours we discussed possible scenarios and counter measures. Ship made some helpful suggestions. By the time I was too tired to continue, we had come up with a number of new protocols and items for Ship to fabricate.

I returned to our cabin, ready to collapse into the bed and let sleep take me. Jem and Koluna were there and had other plans.

“Brian, how long have you been working?” asked Jem.

“I’m not sure. There was a lot to do,” I mumbled.

“Have you eaten?” asked Koluna. I shook my head. I was eyeing the bed where I wanted to be.

“You really need to pace yourself. You neglected us again, and you have not eaten. Let’s get something to eat before you rest,” said Jem looking concerned.

I sat down at the dining table. I did not have energy to argue. Koluna handled the food dispenser and brought plates to the table. I hardly recalled what I was eating, but it was soon gone and then we all turned in for the night.

I slept the sleep of the dead. I had overdone it. I did not want to be caught out in a hostile environment because I had missed something that could have been avoided. They might not understand or appreciate my way of working, but I took my role seriously. Failure was not an option for me.

When I awoke Jem and Koluna were elsewhere. I figured (and Ship confirmed) I had been asleep for a long time. I got up and did my usual morning activities, then I checked in with Ship.

“How are we doing Ship?” I asked.

“I have the probes completed and ready to deploy on arrival. The suits are ready for testing per your specifications. I have prepared your other items,” replied Ship.

“Excellent! Now I have a few more ideas, let’s go over them and see what we can do,” I said. We spent a couple more hours in discussion. Mostly I was trying to come up with a response to any threat. Ship would tell me what was reasonable and what was impossible.

After a couple of hours I knew it was time to take a break and check in with Jem and Koluna. Ship informed me they were up on the main bridge. I got myself a beverage when I arrived and sat down with them.

“How nice to see you awake. How are you today?” asked Jem.

“I am sorry about the other day. I pushed myself too far. There are too many unknowns and dangers, I was trying to cover them all,” I said.

“I appreciate you are thorough and you don’t want us to fail,” said Jem, smiling. I sipped on my beverage and smiled back. I smiled more often these days. I grew up among emotionally cold beings, and now I shared a life with beings who cared about me. I did not want to lose them on this mission.

“So are you ready to see some of what Ship and I have come up with?” I asked.

“Sure commander,” replied Jem with a grin. I got up and picked up the items I’d left just out of view from them. I put them on the table and selected the first one. It looked like the device that is used for implanting an ID chip in your arm.

“This first item falls under the get home safely category. This device will implant a second chip which when dormant will appear no different from an ID chip. It should pass any security scans,” I pointed the device to a location and pressed the trigger. The pain was brief.

“Now, if I quickly tap my finger and thumb together five times, it triggers a distress call. Another five taps will shut it off. Ship tells me that the signal can be detected within the same system,” I approached Jem and she held out her arm. I quickly implanted the chip, and then did the same for Koluna.

“That is cool! Thank you Bri-an,” said Koluna.

“Yes, great idea. What’s next?” asked Jem.