Issue #56
Tuesday, February 28th, 2006Circle of Enlightened: Saviors of the Oppressed or Brutal Killers? (part 2)
Hyuga del Piero, leader of the Circle of Enlightened sat in his quarters, deep in meditation. He was praying, as he was apt to do at that hour. Praying for courage and strength to continue in the face of adversity, praying for wisdom to guide him in his quest to free the opressed, praying for that bloody z-14 fighter to show back up.
A resonant voice broke the silence of the room: “Incoming Hyuga!” The voice snickered and the radio clicked off. Hyuga opened his eyes and blinked. Incoming? He was safely orbiting Sodaack. Nobody could fire at him. He left his room. The door clicked softly behind him. The bridge was only a short distance from the Captain’s quarters, and a few someday members of the Circle could be seen bustling about their tasks. Several of these were slaves that had been rescued from various Drug Stations and were now being helped to the other side of the galaxy in an attempt to escape their brutal past.
Hyuga sat in the Captain’s chair and ran a trace program to determine the source of the message. It came back blocked. Odd. He tried again. This time he was able to determine that it came from another fighter orbiting the planet. That did not bode well. Hyuga sighed. Was it time to test his worth in battle again? As he reached towards the intercom to announce battle, his teleporter screen flashed. He looked. Thirty very malnourished looking slaves had appeared seemingly from nowhere. Hyuga blinked again. This was odd. “Attend to them!” Several former slaves rushed over to help the new guests and ushered the slaves off the bridge.
Hyuga ran an identification program on the orbitting ships. A hawk, an extender…both unmarked. Still…something didn’t feel right….
Hyuga’s hand drifted towards his intercom again. A private message flashed on his screen. It was from Eldritch, Overseer of the Tiacken Slave Traders. The Traders were an abyssmal group of petty traders, ostensibly dedicated to “freeing” the slaves of the universe. Hyuga knew better. He had rescued only 1 slave from their clutches before, but the stories that slave told had been terrible. They were a tough group to crack. So, Hyuga was interested in seeing what this slaver had to say.
“We, the Tiacken Slave Traders, hereby release these 60 slaves into your custody. Do with them what you will. We’ll be watching.”
Hyuga read. 60? He had only counted 30…This could be interesting. Nowhere in Sodaack was suitable to release slaves. They would all be easily identified and re-sold into the heinous system whence they originated. The Circle was forbidden from associating with the Black Markets (which would certainly not be a viable option for freedom) and all of his Sodaack contacts had fled the area after the z-16 appeared.
A message from a fellow Circle member, Rahvin, appeared on his screen. He had also been the recipient of 30 slaves.
The Slave Traders had planned well. The Circle had not planned on liberating these creatures, and did not have the supplies on hand. What were his options? Hyuga tried his best to think like a slaver…he loathed this part of his calling. What would a slaver do with these slaves? Kill them outright? No, that would be foolish…no profit there. Sell to the market? Of course, but the slavers must know that the Circle was forbidden from doing that. Sell to a class D? Perhaps, but the slave’s future wouldn’t be much brighter than a BM sale.
Hyuga scrambled Ash, another member, on a secured line: “Ash. If a slaver didn’t have room, what would he do with a slave?” Ash had some personal experience in this matter, and his answer was both short and brutal. “Dump it.”
Hyuga shuddered. Of course, that’s exactly what Eldritch would expect him to do. Dump the slaves, save himself the trouble of having to free them, save himself the expense of their upkeep, the discomfort of having to spend some days on short (or no) rations. Hyuga messages his operations officer. “We need to come up with some decoys. See what you can do.”
Not an hour later, Hyuga opened his hull and sent the decoys (mostly empty barrels of fuel) into space. As they were released, he could hear Eldritch and Brackard snicker over the radio as they released their ships from orbit. He thought he caught a parting word between the two about Brackard owing Eldritch some money. Hyuga laughed. He almost couldn’t believe that it had worked. Actually, that was incorrect, he had had faith in the subterfuge. He offered thanks to his Creator that it had gone as planned.
Hyuga sighed. Now that that problem was solved, he only had to figure out what to do with these slaves. That would require some more meditation. Hyuga returned to his quarters. The door clicked softly behind him.
Harriers Beware!
CASH, the Campaign Against Stupid Harriers, found it necessary this week to remove the former spokesperson, Eldritch, from his post. The high command’s reasons were unclear, but seemed to revolve largely around discovering that Eldritch, not Brackard, was the driving force behind admitting a harrier into the Tiacken Slave Traders. This decision was exacerbated by the fact that soon after his dismissal, a known harrier pilot announced his preference for Eldritch’s style in the position. CASH recognized that Eldritch had been far too lax in furthering the CASH mission, and immediately decided to teach Eldritch a lesson. Initial reports indicate that the high command had planned to force Eldritch into a harrier himself for a month. Only intervention by Archeron, CASH’s new spokesman, prevented that punishment from occurring. How Eldritch handles this news remains to be seen.
Editor’s note: since the writing of this article, Archeron has also been replaced by Shini. The reasoning behind the new change in leadership seems to be Archeron’s personal vendetta with the Circle of Enlighteneds. We at the Tribune are sure that many interesting stories will arise from those happenings!
The Universe – More Dangerous?
Empire and Federation scientists alike are baffled by the recent emergence of several new species of creature, all of which are hostile. The West Pardus Rim, and human core has seen a large influx of what are being called “Frost Crystals.” Reports indicate that these crystals are an evolved form of the standard Blue Crystal, most commonly seen in the passes between faction space and the neutral zone. The northern reaches of the known universe have seen the energy fields rebel against them. Swarms of Energy Bees are attacking peaceful travelers en masse. The origin of these creatures is not known. The final report is disturbing indeed: a shadow, blacker than night, which can blot out entire stars, is rumored to exist. The only reported sightings so far have occurred near x-holes, prompting fears that these shadows may be a form of reconnaissance for the old Union.
Scientists are further puzzled by the increased number of sightings of Medusa and their offspring. With thousands of these beasts being slaughtered, scientists are unable to explain away the alarming rate at which these creatures have reappeared.
Seemingly in response to these events, the imperial department of war unveiled several uber-missiles, and some new guns. These missiles have an ART of 6 (!) and are said to be able to inflict incredible damage. This power, however, comes at a price. The King Relon missile (the LESS expensive of the two) runs a cool 1,000,000 credits.
The Federation responded in kind by unveiling a new prototype: the Nighthawk delux! This ship boasts more capacity and armor, making it a new force to be reckoned with in the universe!
As more reports roll in concerning these events, count on the Tiacken Tribune to keep you posted!
Announcements:
In a stunning display of utter laziness this week, the Tribune Announcement team announced that there were no announcements to be announced.
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