It wasn't an especially important ship. Not then, anyways. It was, in fact, rather unimportant, and no one really payed it any mind.
Why even mention it?
This ship is pretty insignificant, long term. A ship is just a vessel. It might set you free, but it's also an iron cage. You can't escape it without dying. And yet humanity discards them regularly, like a conch might its shell. But of course, that's what a ship is; a shell. And in the long run, really, a ship is fairly temporary. No matter how it was heralded at launch, whether a slapped-together bit of junk that only flies five feet before falling apart or a mighty warship that participates in hundreds of battles, all ships will die. That's pretty much universal around here; everything will die at some point or another. Immortality wasn't something humans could grasp, really. And if you can't figure out how to give yourself something, how're you going to give it to a chunk of metal?
Face it, ships die. And when they're dead, there are the corpses. Lots of corpses. Empty, hollowed-out hulks. Bits of twisted steel, innocuous until they rip a hole in your ship the size of your head. And you can't have that. Someone has to take out the trash.
People are usually fairly dumb, so they will tend to dump their trash off in a corner where they can't see it at first. And then it grows. And then other people show up, see the trash, and go "how disgusting is that?", not realizing that their own places are the same way. It works just the same in a house or in space. And when the trash piles up too high, you call in the Junkers.
Back to our ship. See, as it went, this wasn't an especially important ship. It wasn't some great warship, risking the lives of some men to end the lives of other men. It wasn't even a transport, hauling vital supplies to the far reaches of space. It was a freighter. A little, dinky old thing. It didn't even support a crew, just one pilot.
See, the ship is never important. It's the people inside it that are.
Suzume frowned at the console of her little freighter. It was significant in that it was hers. Not a lot of things were at the moment. But at the moment, she was frowning at it. The ship made an odd noise - something like a crow cawing and an old man sneezing - and started moving again. Suzume breathed a sigh of relief. See, while it was her freighter, it had been several other peoples' freighter for a very long time before it was hers. It was dying.
Suzume was a scrapper. She wasn't involved in politics or anything, like some Junkers. She'd never even heard of Gallia. She just cleaned up trash, and did it to survive. She wasn't even technically a Junker in the usual way. She just worked for them, helping to shrink the field of trash behind Southampton Shipyards. She didn't even look like a Junker. Just under five feet and with rod-straight raven hair that fell to her waist, she looked very Kusarian. Even her unusually pale complexion and large, brown eyes didn't help offset that image. It wasn't something she could help, but it did get her a lot of trouble here in Bretonia. Particularly around the Junkers.
Glancing around the cabin, Suzume herself would have been the first to admit that that scrappy little freighter wouldn't last long. She needed to do something about that, and fast. But not many Junkers would work with her. Trying to tear down an entire field of scrap isn't easy, but stopping every five minutes to haul the junk away doesn't make life any easier. Add to that the threat of claim jumpers, a few cocky Corsairs, and the ever-present threat of dust flying around at supersonic speeds, and Suzume's life was pretty hard. But she made the best of it.
Now, for instance. She was going out do what she did every day: tear tiny bits of trash off of the larger chunks, pile it up in the back of the freighter, and haul it back all day long in hopes over being able to afford a burger that night, not to mention this week's rent and repairs to the slowly fading freighter.
Suzume cruised out into the field. She liked scrapping near the edge. It was safer; easier to bolt into open space. As she went, she hummed a little tune. She liked humming; it was one of those things that'd kept her from going crazy in these last few months. Or maybe it was a sign that she was crazy. You never know.
Then she stopped the freighter. For a moment, Suzume thought that she had been right. Maybe she was crazy. Was that what she thought it was?
No, it couldn't be.
But it was.
Suzume couldn't believe her eyes. Could it really be? But the hulk of the Dunkirk was nearly intact. Well, no, it was no where near intact. But comparatively, it was only slightly broken apart. It looked like most of it was still there. There was even an engine section. Suzume's brain started working at about a mile a minute. This was the opportunity of a lifetime. Taking trash apart was one thing. But this... if she could get this out, if she could get this working... it would certainly be a lucky break, at the very least. At best, she could end up rich again.
But then another thought darted through her mind. Perhaps it was crazy. But what if... what if... it worked? She had to try. But she'd need help.
And for some reason, that very thought brought tears to her eyes. She'd had a hard life, and she'd never exactly been a paragon of mental fortitude. But enough of that. Dwelling on the past doesn't help anyone, does it?
When she was done crying, Suzume started thinking. It was something she wasn't bad at. She'd never had a chance to have a full formal education. She'd been withdrawn from school early under circumstances entirely beyond her control. But she had a brain.
Junkers aren't especially trustworthy people. She'd have to have some help from them, and it would take money to get them to help her at all, much less keep their mouths closed. But you know, there was an awful lot of scrap clinging to the chunks of that ship that would need to be removed...
Suzume gaped. She hadn't noticed before, but there was an awful lot. More than she'd thought. Scrap can be fairly lucrative. See, the local authorities just pay the Junkers to get rid of it. They don't care what happens to it afterward. But sometimes, people needed metal. And they'd pay for it, even if it was impure and... well, trashy... because it was metal, and it was cheaper to get it and purify it than to find some already purified. And with that much scrap...
Suzume had found her bargaining chip.
It didn't take long. She did know some people, you know. She used these people. And soon enough, she had a very small band of helpful - if somewhat morally questionable - men. No women. That alone was enough to make Suzume uncomfortable. But it would have to do.
Sora sighed as he hurled his backpack onto his bed.
The day had been a long one. I decided to take control of the Clear Sky my very own transport. In truth I had missed being on board the Clear Sky. I had handed control to my navigator Kareem Emir so that I could help with the salvaging rather than the transporting.
In truth, the salvaging bores me. I have a good education, better than most. How did I end up delicately taking apart a stupid battleship for no good reason other than it makes money. Another thing that irritates me is the goddamn Junkers. Good for nothing lowlifes. I hate having to work with them. On the plus side, theres Miss Suzume.
Ive offered to take her to Kusari to visit Honshu, my birth place. But she consistently dodges it, focusing on her work if I bring the subject up. Miss Suzume is like a delicate flower surrounded by a cesspit. She acts a bit odd, too secretive; too well too much like a Junker. I think it is such a shame.
Well. At least thats what I thought she was like until tonight. Turns out shes a idiotic cow with no sense. She seems to think shes some kind of business genius. Worst of all! She believes that Kusari are the instigators in the war against Bretonia! Her own nation! She has fallen far from the tree. I only wish her father knew.
Sora shakes his head slowly, even more agitated now than he had been before.
I dont know. To be honest, all I do know is shes a liar and shes a very bad one at that. She consistently trips over her own lies. First of all she was born on Honshu like me. Then she isnt. Then she suddenly remembers that she was in fact born on Honshu. Supposedly her father was an evil man that tried to kill her mother. Oh and she blew up a Border World Transport while she was inside. What in gods name. How is that even possible? I give up.
He unzipped his bag, carefully taking the food out that hed bought from the market. Sitting on his bed he ate it quietly and slowly, grimacing with nearly every bite.
Ugh. I hate this food. The Junkers and their associates really have no sense of culinary taste. I would give an arm and a leg for some sushi or even some plain rice Id even settle for one of those disgusting Libertonian, heart stopping burgers. I may take a trip to New London tomorrow, hopefully the brutes on that planet would turn on me for being a Kusarian.
Putting the food wrappers in the bin, he laid on his bed and slept.
Somewhere along a tradelane in the Manchester system...
The battered DL Class transport 'Treasure Chest' hurtled across the desolate Manchester towards the New London Gate.
Geoff Desmond sat alone on the bridge, drumming his fingers on the dirty white plastic frame surrounding one of many consoles. The time spent travelling across systems was taxing his patience; the constant arguing between Sora and Suzume moreso. He was looking forward to only one thing, and that was the sight of Trafalgar, the Southampton Debris field and the ancient husk of a Dunkirk. Or was it a Victoria? Geoff didn't really care. All that mattered to him were his credits and scrap.
'Ye'd wonder when they'll just shut up,' he murmured to himself. So far he seldom spoke, making money from the scrap which he coveted as 'Treasure' had been his top priority. Now, scrap was beginning to wane on his priority list. He needed something new. Something different. He looked around for inspiration, but only saw what could be described as decay and wreckage on the very bridge itself. The absence of any kind of crew gave the bridge an eerie feel.
Geoff stood up and made his way to the back of the empty bridge, stumbling over wires, pipes and the gaps in the floor. He grabbed a bottle of wine and took a swig. Then he looked back at the radio. Nope, they were still bickering like firestorm. As he took yet another swig, an idea hit him. What if he threw a spanner in the works? Create an imbalance, maybe? Geoff smirked at the thought. Scrap alone wasn't good enough anymore. He needed some action, and this was a perfect opportunity for it.
The bottle slipped out of his hand and smashed on the floor, throwing glass and maroon wine across the floor. He chuckled, and began the long trip to the radio to join in on Sora and Suzume's 'conversation.' Life was just about to get that bit more interesting.
So I went to New York today to find someone to replace Sora.
Since we've fired him, things've been a bit slow. I mean, he's a horrible person, but we've been a bit low on manpower.
Harry decided to come with me, too. He didn't like Sora any more than I did. I guess he wanted to make sure I didn't get anyone like that again.
On the way, though, we ran into a bunch of strange people. They said they were called the Vagrant Raiders. Actually, they were kinda falling all over themselves to help me...
I wonder why?
Anyways, we talked for a bit, and they decided to help escort us to Rochester. Somewhere along the way, I mentioned we needed a power core... I didn't say why, of course, but they started talking about all the ways they could help me. It was actually kinda funny listening to all the ridiculous things they planned to do. They actually want to steal one right out of a working Libertonian Carrier for me!
After we talked for a bit, I managed to convince them to do it a little more simply. It'll still come out of a working carrier, but it'll be a lot safer this way. I'm going to pick the target. That's good, too; there're a lot of bad people in the Navy, but not everyone's bad. I don't want good people getting hurt...
After we'd talked for... wow, four hours? Anyways, they left. Harry'd already landed on Rochester to find someone to replace Sora. I landed, but I couldn't find him...
I did find a help wanted poster, though. Some poor girl had broken her Transponder IF/F signature, and needed help fixing it. I met her, and helped her... and actually, she was kinda unemployed, too. She'd been born a Junker, she said, right there on Rochester... but she wanted something a little more permanent than odd jobs. I offered her a job helping us with that old wreck... and she accepted!
After I found Harry, we all went back to Trafalgar. So now Juliet Bennet is working for us!
She's not the only person we found, though. Harry found someone else, too! He said he was called Langdon. I haven't met him yet, though.
I don't think I'll need the Raiders' help, after all...
I was following a big Navy carrier... I think it was called the Glorious. Anyways... the captain - Abrams, or something - was... awful. Horrible. A really bad person. I knew that'd be our target.
But...
Someone else got there first.
I followed it off into some system I've never seen before. It's all... weird. There are blue glowing... I'm not really sure what they are... like little blue balls or something. They're everywhere in the system. Lots of clouds and stuff, too...
Well... while I was watching, he met a bunch of other people. Neo Terrans, they called themselves. It sounded like they'd met him before, and they didn't like him at all...
... I guess that makes them good guys.
Anyways, they actually fought the thing... and they blew it up! Well, actually, they didn't. They tore a lot of it apart, but it was still in... um... three pieces.
But know what? The reactor didn't explode!
I went and got a bunch of other my employees. This was a great chance!
So... we found it. But they'd left people there. A gunboat - an actual gunboat - called the Hinton, and some guy named Drake Averos.
... Weird name.
Anyways, they didn't want us taking anything... and then they did... and... it was kinda confusing.
I tried to get them to let us have the core... but they wanted to give the whole thing to the Hellfire Legion or something.
Actually, there was this nice girl called Tanus... Tanus Skye. Sounds like she was on the Glorious when it went down... um... but she doesn't like the Navy any more. Or something, I guess... she said Abrams was a horrible man... I mean, I know he was, but it sounded like there was something else. Like... he was like... like... like he tried to... take her.
I didn't get much chance to talk to her, though... I'll have to come back and do that some time.
So... yeah. They eventually actually let us have the core. And for free, too! It took forever to get it out, and Tanus thought we were going to blow something up... but we did get it out! We got it!
Oh, and I took pictures!
So we moved it away from the wreck. I'm guarding it, now. We're waiting for the Kivuli to show up so we can take it back to New London and hide it. I think it'll stay in the Kivuli for a while... that way no one can steal it or anything.
Wow... things are looking good. Maybe we can actually do this!
Suzume stared at the wreckage of the Dunkirk. To the casual observer, it wasn't so different than it had been nearly two months before, really. Maybe a bit less trash-coated, but it was still mostly trash itself. But to Suzume, it was a beautiful thing.
Two months of hard, careful work. Two months of cleanup, just to get to where they were now. But finally, the whole area around the wreck was cleared of unrelated debris.
Suzume and Eric Dresmund - one of her employees - were floating there in their respective ships, observing the wreck.
Finally, Suzume broke the silence. "S- So I guess it's fin- nally cl- cleaned up...", she said tentatively. This would be the difficult part; keeping her employees to their contracts now that the primary source of income was exhausted.
"Yeah.", Eric said, barely nodding as he worked the arms of his ship, feeding the last bits of scattered debris into the frigate's cargo 'maw'.
"S- so... this is wh- where the hard part st- starts, I g- guess." she pressed, an almost inquiring tone coming into her nervous voice.
"Suppose so. Should be interesting, us hauling it out, eh?"
Suzume almost sighed in relief at the reply. Here was what she had been waiting for; evidence that her people wouldn't run out on her. Of course, Eric was one of the more reliable Scuttlers, so it was by no means a set thing. She caught herself before letting out the sigh, however, and instead replied cheerily; [color=#F7F7111]"It'll be someth- thing new! I've n- never heard of anyone haul- ling whole chunks of sh- ships out of a fi- ield before. Most peop- ple just break it ap- part and sell it as sc- scrap, like we d- did with all the trash aro- ound it."[/color]
Eric smirked at her comment, stretching his arms out as he disconnected from the frigate's systems momentarily. "Yeah,, well, first time for everything."
"That's r- right!", came the giddy reply.
"By the way, what'd you say earlier abou-" Eric tried to say, but he was cut off mid-sentence by Suzume
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