Mysterium

[SothaSil]

| Location: Yanagi Depot, Sigma-13 | Comm ID: Sotha Sil | Research Vessel Mysterium | Date: 13th, December, 818 A.S. |

So much about making plans. After I told Alice about my work she offered me to show me something special, an unstable jump hole in Coronado. Well, why not, I thought. Sooner or later I will go there, so or so.
She also invited LPI Officer Tavish Degroot to join, who wasn't sure at first, but finally he decided to come with us. So we hit the lanes and headed to Coronado.

I must say I never really explored Coronado, the short route between the Cortez and Baffin jumphole was always sufficent for me. We flew to a remote region of the system, in direction to planet Baja.
After a while, we got closer to Baja. My sensors did not show anything at first, but as soon as we were close enough it became visible.
It was really unstable, no jump was possible. But Alice said, it's stabilizing and might be working in a few weeks. She seems to know a lot of things...
While we were sitting there, at this new hole, Alice told us that she can show us another special thing, but only after Tavish would promise not to tell any other authorities. He agreed and she lead us away from Baja into ice cloud.

We went deep into the cloud and Alice told us to deactivate everything that is not necessary. Long range comms, cruise engines, weapons, everything. We kept a low profile and drifted even further in the cloud.
She said, if we 'wake' it up, 'bad' things might happen.

I wasn't so scared for quite a while when I saw what she wanted to show us. Another of those things. It looks very similiar to that one I found in Kansas weeks ago. Now at least I definitly know what those things are: Ancient jump gates.
This gate seemed inactive, skeeping, but not dead. It still has a low energy signature, like the gate is...waiting.
Well, since I cannot do anything more right now than observe I tried to gather any possible hint. A bactrian freighter wreck was floating in the middle of that and I was able to retrieve some artifacts from it.
Alice said, they are useless, but...it's maybe worth to take a closer look.

After that exciting and scary excursion to Coronado we returned to Newark Station. She asked me about Kansas and what I want to there. I told her, since the 'gate' there is not as inactive as the one in Coronado, I want to go through it and see, what it is on the other side. She told me, that this wouldn't be such a good idea. She mentioned that old earth myth from the Odyssee about sirens. Bad things will happen there, when I hear someone singing or even imagine that is someone signing, it might be too late.
Usually I don't care about myths and such things, but since she knows...things...I trusted her somehow in this point. We came to the conclusion that an AI controlled drone might be the right way to find out, what is there. But due to my current financial crisis that drone project has to wait.

I was about to go to bed when Alice asked me if I'm a medic. I told her that I had a paramedic training and asked, why she needs one. She left Newark and started looking for someone. I followed her right after, but she warned me, that, if I would go to assist her, 'bad' things might happen.
We located a strange signal near the badlands, when I was closer I could identify it as an order fighter, but...it wasn't 'only' a fighter anymore.

The ship seemed to metamorphose into...something nomadic. As I got closer to that ship, I began to hear voices, feel feeling, that were not my own. "The sirens", I thought. Those 'bad' things started to happen now.

The pilot of the ship was infected, fighting against the foreign influence. The pilot's name was Kate, so much I could find out, and that she is 'friend' of Alice. And obviously she was an order pilot.

Alice moored with the fighter and brought Kate aboard her Ahoudori to take care of here. We tried several medicines, painkillers, everything to at least slow down the process of infection. I have never seen an infected human before, I felt kinda helpless there.
Kate said, in the few moments where 'she' was there, that we need to bring her to someone called Michael Golanksi, or so. I'm not sure anymore.
The girls decided to move and this 'Golanski'. Alice told me, that their way is going through Zone 21 and there would be no chance to go back using the same way. She offered me to stay in New York, or to follow them at my own risk.
Intuitively I decided to come with them...all of this was strange enough, brought more new questions than answers...I could not just move away now.
So we broke into Zone 21, roamed through the green nebula and strange asteroids. We arrived at a jump hole near a planet and went through.
I never imagined that what happened then. We were in Omicron Minor.
Alice send a transmission into the system and asked for Golanski. And, short after that, Order ships appeared. At this point I shut up and just observed, listened.
The order was pretty surprised about what we brought them. They brought Kate somewhere where she is safe, and not long after that Alice told me that we are now going to leave this system.

We fought some nomads, roamed through some places I have never seen before and finally managed it to get to Sigma-13. We docked at Yanagi Depot, and decided to stay here a while until everything calms down.

I'm not sure what all this means and how deep this really is. I will move back to New York later this day, act like nothing happened. At least I shouldn't tell anyone what happened.

| Location: Newark Station, New York | Date: 18th, December, 818 A.S. |

I've been back for almost a week now, the strange feeling after that little nomad 'incident' is almost gone, but I still feel a bit different. Anyway, this was like a teaser, I will defintly move to Kansas and find out more about the nomads. The world is about to change, maybe I do not get another chance.

I did some paperwork, got the required permission to install a nuclear reactor onboard the Scientia, but my request to carry artifacts within Liberty is a bit more difficult. The LSF is already asking questions. Exactly that what I wanted to avoid. I really don't need the LSF to watch me...

And I met that Zoner girl again, Connie; we went away from the loud New York system, to the rings of planet Salina and....talked for quite a while. But suddenly she was gone, I maybe felt asleep and she left...or none of this was real. Sometimes I'm not sure anymore what is real and what is not...

However, the departure is scheduled for around 8p.m. sirius time. I just cannot sit around any longer...something must happen...too much confusion...

| Location: Somewhere in Omicron Delta| Date: 18th, December, 818 A.S. |

Plans have changed again. I met Alice, and she told me some interesting stuff. There are rumors that the Order started the evacuation of Minor, and there is an increased zoner acitvity at the nearby freeports.

Alice is pretty sure that both that this and the arrvial of Kate Miller are connected. She said she wants to check on rumors, maybe ask Golanski.
I might check it out myself, I'm now on the way to Omicron 74 for some business.

| Location: Newark Station, New York | Date: 24th, December, 818 A.S. |

The last days were pretty busy. I finally managed it to start the expedition to that Kansas gate.
It wasn't that successful, but new stuff happened, so that the Kansas gate and everything beyond is no longer my main priority.
The drone's database system was corrupted after it returned and a mercenary that was just too curious and followed the drone, got more or less a bit insane. Actually the only thing I really know now, is, that this gate doesn't work into both directions. The drone and the merc were tossed out near the Texas jumphole in Pennsylvania.
However, there is no way to activate the gate in Coronado. Not yet, at least.
I acquired the knowledge that so called derelict artifacts are used to power such gates. By creating a singularity inside the gate.
But before I could find that out, I met a cutthroat from the Independant Neuralnet Division. And he had something interesting. The sensors showed a pretty strange energy signature (similiar to the signature of the gates) when I scanned his ship, and I asked if that, whatever it is, is for sale.
For the ridiculous high amount of twenty million serious credits I purchased it. Just to get swarmed by the Liberty navy's primary fleet a few miuntes after the deal.
They said my new toy is dangerours and I shall give it to them and blahblah.
Before I even realized what the hell actually is happen, I was surrounded by dozens of heavy guns, waiting for me giving them the artifact.
Of course I agreed, when I would be dead I would have so or so no longer a use for that artifact.

Few days later I found out that thing was such a derelict artifact, that alien energy cell.
Well, bad luck, or so.

But really interesting was the scene that happened not long ago in New York.
I dont even know how that occured; we were having a get-together at Newark, like always, when suddenly several nomad ships appeared.
One of this really big ones, swarmed by several smaller 'things'. It seemed like a civil war, a purification...
The smaller 'things' attacked the giant nomad creature.
The world is about to overthrow. I think it would be better to go somewhere...safe.
I already talked to some people about initializing a research programm, something new.
Future will reveal anything...maybe.