Having quickly gulped down lunch, you order Xabel to cancel interview with Arcadia and head back to your aircar. In the next thirty minutes you use the vehicle's data terminal to find whatever information is publicly available on one Hadar Alioth and his ship - the Neon Spirit.
Walking to the auction you share what you found with Xabel, shaking your head in disbelief. The Neon Spirit, it turns out, has been destroyed by Imperial Navy warships in (-5, -7, 0), a quadrant on the outskirts of developed space. The Empire's official charge was "Piracy and attempted Murder". Supposedly the Neon Spirit demanded the Empire's craft surrender and when they refused, Hadar's ship opened fire, only to be completely annihilated without causing any major damage to the warships. Obviously, it was a lie. Imperial ships never patrolled alone, even in remote regions. Attacking them would be madness. Besides, there was nothing to be gained from such an attack - warships do not carry valuable and durable cargo, like precious metals, that could be scavanged - if you blew one up there'd be nothing to loot. Clearly, it was the warships who attacked Hadar, but why? Just like Hadar had nothing to gain from blowing up the Imps, they would not be able to recover much of Neon Spirit's value. Was it to get their hands on Hadar when he escaped his ship in a survival pod? Then why did they sell him like a common slave?
"More questions than answers," you think.
Thankfully, you get a chance to ask him yourself, when he is sitting in the back of your aircar one hour and about ten thousand credits later. Xabel is driving, while you help Hadar out of his collar. "Accursed thing!" Hadar throws it on the floor and rubs his neck, enjoying the freedom. "Thank you, ," he says. "It'd be unfortunate if I had to spend the rest of my life laboring for some prick." He bows deeply, as far as the aircar's interior allows. "I owe you a big one!"
You wave it off: "don't mention it, Hadar, the roles could've been easily reversed." You grab a drink from the aircar's minibar and offer Hadar one. "I'm sorry to bother you with questions before giving proper hospitality in my home, but I'm very curious how you ended up in such a desperate position."
Hadar finishes his drink and takes a new one you offer considerately. "Briefly, the Imps took us for a gold miner returning home, caught us and destroyed my ship, hoping to scoop up our load. Only we were empty. I can't tell you much more than that now, but , I have a very lucrative proposition for you."
"Go on."
"As you can see, I have little wealth left. My ship is gone and insurance wouldn't cover losses due to combat. But, I do have information, which, if used properly, can make us both very rich. I am talking about an expedition to retrieve some very valuable cargo from a planet in a remote system. It will be guarded on the ground, but the way to and from ought to be safe, so you're not risking your ship."
"Is that what you were doing when Neon Spirit got blown?" you ask.
"No. Yes. It wasn't the job itself, just recon and intel gathering. I'm telling you it's safe, the Imps didn't know what I was doing, if they did, I wouldn't be here talking to you. Just my lousy luck. Listen, provide the funds, the ship, and legal cover and you keep 75%. That's a fat chunk, wouldn't you say? And I get my freedom back and enough money to restart my business. What do you say?"
"Sounds very attractive, Hadar. Tell me what exactly we're talking about, and you'll get my final answer."
"Pilgrims."
"Pilgrims?"
"Yes, you know, in the 21st century way before warp engines were invented a lot of settlers left in huge generation-ships to travel sub-light for hundreds of years to far stars."
"I don't need a history lesson, Hadar. What about Piligrims?"
"That's the thing. I discovered one of their settlements. A bit over 200 light years from Solar. Think about it: a couple thousand men and women, with 900 year old technology and nobody knows about it in the entire world except us! If they were to, say, suddenly disappear, nobody would notice. Ever. Nobody would inform any authorities; nobody would investigate the attack. Only those involved in it will be rich." Hadar grinned. "What do you say?"
You consider the proposition. It does sound lucrative, but the thought of enslaving people who just go about their daily business is not the most pleasant thing. In addition, if you are caught, it will cost plenty. |