I've truly been enjoying my time in Alberta, I can say that for certain. Not only do I find the sight of moving asteroids and blue gas compelling, but I've come upon a sincerely delightful pastime: observing the species Rattus Universalus in its natural habitat. These rodents dwell in the oligarchical power-structure of Universal Shipping Incorporated, and in their starships they skim to and fro across the inky blackness without a care in their pitiful little minds. Naturally that makes it my job to antagonize them in whatever ways I find most amusing.
In the audio recordings below we find a prime specimen of Universalus who believes he's harrying me on a merry chase. As is the custom, I toyed with his feeble mind as I evaded his ship, later arriving at Airdrie with not even a minute of delay in my busy smuggling schedule.
[23.10.2015 22:15:46] [*USI*]Easley[S]: leave the system
[23.10.2015 22:16:03] [*USI*]Easley[S]: at once
[23.10.2015 22:16:16] LH~Maxwell.Tarn: What about at twice?
[23.10.2015 22:16:50] [*USI*]Easley[S]: not the right way
[23.10.2015 22:17:19] LH~Maxwell.Tarn: I appear to have lost control of my ship! Oh my!
[23.10.2015 22:17:22] [*USI*]Easley[S]: youve been warned
[23.10.2015 22:17:34] [*USI*]Easley[S]: tun around now
[23.10.2015 22:18:34] [*USI*]Easley[S]: do not reenter alberta agian
And now, for today's episode, we explore the minutiae of contact with the enemy and once again engage in a tête-à-tête with the subhuman species known as the corporate ship-captain.
It's become a habit of mine to skim within a few thousand clicks of the the shipping platform at Camrose during high-traffic times using a broadcast-spoofer and a gimbal-mounted target-painter to fool the sardines within. While I could go on about the particular joys of convincing a coffee-addled radar operator that an Outcast battleship is lighting up his station with a ranging laser, it was on this occasion that I discovered a surfeit of mining ships huddled within the gnarled branches of Camrose's docking arms.
I cannot say these were sincere conversationalists, seeing as Rattus Universalus and his distant cousin Myocastor Deepspacicus are of feeble cognitive abilities, but I was intrigued with how readily they divulged information about their destination and dealings. The following is a snippet of recorded conversation highlighting their interest in the mining base known as Platinum Inc.
[07.02.2016 05:54:08] LH~Maxwell.Tarn: Back woods? Closer to my front yard. Too close.
[07.02.2016 05:54:30] DSE)Comstock: Hey, New York, how about that base over there?
[07.02.2016 05:54:40] DSE)Comstock: Looks like our front yard, amiright?
[07.02.2016 05:55:11] [*USI*]New.York[P]: Ya Platinum Inc. Seem's we have a bigger foothold here little guy.
I felt as if that name rang a bell, so I followed up on the lead in the hopes of finding the source for the sudden increase in thugs and rock-smashers loitering on our doorstep. I found the station in the orbit of Planet Edmonton as records indicated, and traveled from there to the ore field in order to confront these would-be vandals with their figurative trousers down.
As I thought, there was an increased level of mining activity in the area. However, I was unable to collect a donation with the vessel as I was caught in the act by an agent of the illegitimate Libertonian oligarchy. Though his guns should have made my smuggling ship into scrap metal, I was able to evade him and escape the field unharmed. The amount of firepower allotted to the defense of a single mining vessel has me suspicious of the potential motives for the increase in Platinum mining I have seen over these past months. Is Liberty gearing up for a significant increase in shipbuilding due to the conflict with Gallia? Are they manufacturing Platinum-based stealth technologies? Does the Grand Poobah of Deep Space Engineering want a platinum-lined swimming pool? All these questions were swimming through my head after the experience. I am sure to follow up in the future, and hopefully with some more success as to the motives involved (not to mention the destruction of the offending ships).
Furthermore, it is my opinion that this drastic increase in mining traffic should not go unchallenged. I alone am not enough to stall the efforts of this veritable army of corporate stooges, and a great deal of profit can be made by interdicting a calculated number of these mining vessels on their return journey to the processing facility. We need not attempt to destroy the station, an act that would be beneath our intellect, but we can exploit the efforts of our foes and profit tenfold from the sweat of their brows if we so wish.
All in all it was a night of frustrated efforts on my part, but I feel that I can learn from my failure in this regard. Next time these miners will not be so lucky, and I am eagerly plotting the humiliation that they will come to experience at my hands.
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