The Explorer- Pt. 2

The craft leapt through the last layers of atmosphere and suddenly I was in the vastness of space. With the planet still below me I began to search the sky for other bodies orbiting the sun. As my ship rotated I noticed a point of light some distance away yet I could not make out what it was. Other streaks of light appeared to be coming and going from this point and with my interest piqued, I decided to inspect it more closely. I pointed my ship in the direction of the strange lights and flipped the auto-pilot on.

As the ship took over the controls I began to more closely study the functionalities available to me. It had an on board scanner capable of reading the atmospheres of planets which would let me know which ones would be worth exploring more fully. The ship had weapons as well which made me feel somewhat safer as the point of light steadily grew in my view screen. A vehicle designed with a sole purpose in mind, the ship was free of useless bells and whistles. My ship was now close enough that I could see that the point of light was in fact a space station with numerous ships flying in and out of it.

The ships ranged in size from small crafts like mine, to much larger warships and trade ships. Strange symbols decorated many of them but one in particular seemed to be much more prevalent. A strange pyramidal shape with a forked bolt running through it. These ships seemed to be following a course in system but I could not make out where they were flying to. Suddenly, to my left laser fire erupted from one of the large warships. I immediately threw my ship in the opposite direction and as I did I saw more ships warping in around the station. These ships wore a star and diamond and seemed hell bent on destroying any craft marked with the bolt and pyramid. A fierce battle erupted among the two factions and I was torn between joining in and retreating until I knew more about the situation unfolding before me. The station seemed less friendly now. The ships with the pyramid and bolt were far more numerous at the station though and quite easily destroying the attacking craft. It seemed they were the power to reckon with in the area.

I retreated to a safe distance to watch the battle while I contemplated my next move. “Who were these strange beings and why were they fighting one another? Are they friends or foes?” I thought to myself. I knew my ship needed repairs to get me out of the system but I wasn’t sure where to find what I needed. A scan seemed like the answer so I set the ship to do a system wide scan in hopes of finding another planet nearby. When the computer finished its search it pinged happily at me, announcing it had found three other planetary bodies.

One of which was also marked as potentially having ruins in which I could find the tech needed to repair my ship. The battle had finally come to a stop at the station nearby and the broken hulls of ships destroyed by the onslaught floated lazily away into the darkness. It occurred to me then I should scavenge what I could from the battlefield before heading down to another planet. No one had actually fired at my ship so I felt reasonably safe as I piloted through the wreckage collecting usable technologies from the fallen ships. There were no components to fix my hyper drive though, which meant I was still trapped in this system.

I decided it would be worthwhile to at least land on the station and find out who or what was in charge. Perhaps I could trade for or buy what I needed to fix my hyper drive. I let the ship take over and hailed the station for landing clearance, throwing on the auto pilot once more to land once clearance was given. Strange sounds floated out from the coms, a language I did not understand. The sounds were not menacing however and it seemed like clearance had been given since my ship had begun moving towards the open landing bay. My ship floated gently down to the platform and I could see other ships docked here as well. Fantastic ships of strange origins, vessels that looked fit for destruction as well as peace. Colors ranged across the spectrum as did the shapes, no two ships were alike. Strangely though I could see no other people moving among them. The station interior seemed completely empty which surprised me.

Where were the pilots? Where was the voice I had heard on my com coming from? A deep feeling of unease settled on me then. Was I alone even here among the many ships on the station? The quiet was deafening as I moved deeper into the station seeking someone or something that could help me understand. I finally found a small computer kiosk in one of the corridors. The on board computer of my suit made short work of connecting me to the stations intranet. Info about the station was scarce but it was a trade port. Serving the Empire of Hillam, the station attracted traders from many nearby systems both for the protection offered by the Empire and the goods available to them. The Hillamese standard was the pyramid and bolt I had seen adorning some of the ships outside.

The kiosk also allowed me to access a list of available goods and ships on board the station. Resources were plentiful although nothing rare or exotic was evident granted that I didn’t know what was valuable and what wasn’t. There were only two ships for sale according to the kiosk. One, a small three-winged affair that looked made for flying headlong into danger. The other ship was less menacing but bulkier, a brick with engines made for hauling things across vast distances. I realized something as I browsed for more information, seeking anything I could make use of, I had no means of actually trading yet. The small amount of salvage I had pulled from the battle wreckage would do me no good here. I needed units as they appeared to be the currency in use according to the kiosk.

I had work to do then, if I was ever to leave this small system. I was still concerned that I had seen no living beings anywhere on the station so I decided it was time to leave. I made my way back to my ship, prepared for launch and keyed in the coordinates for the planet with ruins my scan had found earlier. Flipping the auto pilot on, my ship slowly raised from the platform and then with a sudden burst of speed launched back into the dark cold of space.