Junker's Remorse

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TEXAS SYSTEM
LIBERTY SPACE, 09.18.823 A.S.

Walsh bolted upright in his cot, his breath racing and body drenched in cold sweat. The uneathly shriek still rang in his ears as his eyes tore around the room. Nothing moved in the shadows, no phantoms leaped to attack, and no amount of logical reasoning could calm the irrational terror pounding through his veigns.

He ground his fists into his eyes in frustration. Almost a week had passed and still this strange insomnia plagued him. He was always tired, but could never sleep. When he did nod off his dreams were filled with inexplicable images of terror. Why? Why was this happening?

With great effort, he rolled out of bed and turned on the lights. The small room aboard Beaumont Station was adequate and homey, if a little utilitarian. Then again, that was Junker hospitality for you. His hand closed upon the coffee flavored synth paste and he trudged over to the loo. The events of the past few days replayed over and over in his mind, each time seemingly different and contradictory to the last.

Had he flown to the Omicrons or the Sigmas? Why had he been out that far to begin with? He felt as if he were searching for something, but those details were always just outside the grasp of his sleep-starved mind. He had returned early because there was a problem. A problem with the cargo? With his ship? He didn't know anymore. All he could think about was sleep. His body had stopped caring about anything else.

There had been a ship. The... .:j:. Tanker? Had contacted him to respond to his distress call. But he hadn't sent a distress call, had he? Not in the ship's logs. No, the Soldiers.Fortune hadn't sent a distress call. Wasn't in the logs.

And then there was the Navy gunboat that stopped him from docking. Said he was transporting counterfeit software or something. Not a lot. Just one small blip. But that couldn't be right. His ship was carrying light armaments and munitions. Had three other Junker help talk the Navy gunboat down... what were their names?

So. Tired.

Cory's head slumped as he nodded off in front of the lavatory counter. For three glorious minutes he lay motionless, until he woke with a start.

Someone had called his name...

It didn't make any sense, and yet he was almost certain a voice had come from the hangar. A chill worked its way down his spine as his listened intently. But there was nothing. He moved to get up from the floor, supporting himself heavily on the counter. Movement in the mirror caught his eye and he spun toward the door to his room, the hair on the back of his neck standing on end.

There had been a woman in the mirror. Just for an instant. She had been standing in the doorway, her face contorted in a silent scream. Her eyes had been staring straight at him.

But looking at the doorway now, she was gone. Cory Walsh didn't waste another minute. Within the hour he was back aboard the Soldiers.Fortune burning through H-fuel with reckless abandon. He didn't know where he was going or what he was running from. But with each passing hour he began to have the incrasingly uneasy feeling that he wasn't getting any farther away from his troubles...

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Characters:

Cory Walsh - Unknown
Ari Kova (Yaroslava Ivanov) - Active
Declan "Owen" Quinn - Active
Agent 1854 - M.I.A.

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