Our position was deep into lawless space, 33 jumps from Empire. B13 and I were faced with a long voyage back into the core systems after an excursion which took us through several hostile zones looking for 'opportunities.'
We'd chosen to fly stealth bombers, granting us the ability to pass unseen through enemy territory and take advantage of the incredible damage spike afforded by the 6 cruise missile launchers available between us. The Caldari engineers had worked all day and night to build me a brand new bomber for the operation as my previous ship had been lost to a blockade some months ago. I preyed that a different fate awaited this bird.
After several hours and our ships cargo holds bursting with loot we declared the mission a success. Next we needed to get back home with our spoils. However the route back into Empire became a simple choice.
1. We'd return via the route we had arrived or,
2. We'd take a shortcut through a nearby system, which would cut our journey time and distance down considerably.
We decided that the wisest move would be to take the same old route back. But it would take another hour or so to return home. In addition to this, some local pirates had become aware of our passing, in particular an Interceptor pilot whom had been right on our tail at one point. We had managed to lose him, but only for the moment.
The other route, the shortcut was a bottle neck which lead straight into Empire space. Upon checking the galaxy map statistics we discovered that 9 ships had been destroyed in the system over the last 24 hours. Although the route had fewer systems to traverse, the likelyhood of a blockade was much higher. My gut told me to go back the same old route we'd entered, but after a short discussion about the long arduous journey ahead the second route was chosen to take us home. With the new course set we headed off towards what would be our final destination. En-route my gut began to churn, prompting me to voice my reservations and, duly noted we continued anyway.
Upon jumping into the system we noticed the Interceptor pilot we had seen earlier within the local beacon. Again, my gut attempted to persuade me to reconsider with a twist and a pop , but the decision to proceed was reinforced by logic and reason, and besides we were now very close to Empire.
Upon warping to the final stargate which would take us into protected Empire space we were un-surprised to fly straight into a warp disruption sphere 30 Kilometres from the stargate.
Unable to immediatley jump or cloak we were targeted by small hostile fleet waiting at the stargate. We had only seconds to react and our only chance for survival was to make it to the stargate and jump into Empire. However our ships would not last long under heavy fire. Our only other options available to us were retreating or ejecting, and I am not a fan of either.
We headed for the stargate as quick as our ships would carry us, all the while under attack. The Interceptor we'd seen earlier quicly approached us and B13's tiny vessel dropped back from me as it became webified and warp scrambled. Without any defences on-board, the bomber was blown apart very quickly in a plume of yellow gas and twisted metal.
I retruned the favour by targeting the Interceptor and attempted to jam his targeting systems as he now had B13's POD warp scrambled and was attacking the fragile hull. I ordered my ships systems to into overload as I started flinging cruise missiles at the Interceptor, hoping to distract the pilot. It was no use, B13's POD decompressed as the POD walls collapsed under the barrage of enemy fire and his lifeless corpse froze instantly in the vacuum of space.
Now it was my turn. The Interceptor locked me down as the enemy fleet tore into my ship with a mixed volley of laser fire, missiles and projectiles. My paper thin craft was no match for the ferocity of the barrage and became shredded almost instantly. My escape POD swiftly followed my ships fate. There was a moment of excrutiating pain as my life was taken and I too became a lifeless statue endlessly floating within the infinate blackness of deep space.
Upon jumping into the system we noticed the Interceptor pilot we had seen earlier within the local beacon. Again, my gut attempted to persuade me to reconsider with a twist and a pop , but the decision to proceed was reinforced by logic and reason, and besides we were now very close to Empire.
Upon warping to the final stargate which would take us into protected Empire space we were un-surprised to fly straight into a warp disruption sphere 30 Kilometres from the stargate.
Unable to immediatley jump or cloak we were targeted by small hostile fleet waiting at the stargate. We had only seconds to react and our only chance for survival was to make it to the stargate and jump into Empire. However our ships would not last long under heavy fire. Our only other options available to us were retreating or ejecting, and I am not a fan of either.
We headed for the stargate as quick as our ships would carry us, all the while under attack. The Interceptor we'd seen earlier quicly approached us and B13's tiny vessel dropped back from me as it became webified and warp scrambled. Without any defences on-board, the bomber was blown apart very quickly in a plume of yellow gas and twisted metal.
I retruned the favour by targeting the Interceptor and attempted to jam his targeting systems as he now had B13's POD warp scrambled and was attacking the fragile hull. I ordered my ships systems to into overload as I started flinging cruise missiles at the Interceptor, hoping to distract the pilot. It was no use, B13's POD decompressed as the POD walls collapsed under the barrage of enemy fire and his lifeless corpse froze instantly in the vacuum of space.
Now it was my turn. The Interceptor locked me down as the enemy fleet tore into my ship with a mixed volley of laser fire, missiles and projectiles. My paper thin craft was no match for the ferocity of the barrage and became shredded almost instantly. My escape POD swiftly followed my ships fate. There was a moment of excrutiating pain as my life was taken and I too became a lifeless statue endlessly floating within the infinate blackness of deep space.
Moments later my confused and naked body was rudely ejected from the suspension fluid within my clones holding tank at the Imperial cloning facilites on Sarum Prime. My second damned clone this year. This was becoming expensive. My gut suddenly let me know just how incredibly hungry it was with a bubbling and a boiling which made me feel quite nauseous.
I thought that it was my duty to trust my gut this time and get something to eat.
