Checking In

Vaden sits behind a stately desk while he peruses the news on GalNet. In one hand he holds a bottle of wine, drinking straight from the bottle. The other hand holds a small bottle of a clear liquid, stoppered, that he lightly taps with his index finger.

Recorder on. Where should I begin? It began when I moved a jump clone to Curse, to perform duties as fits a loyalist to the Cartel. I was soon assigned an agent who had some work needing to be done. Wishing to prove myself, I quickly smashed the meager enemies I was assigned to kill. Granted, such missions are more for a novice, not a hardened killer such as myself, but I am still untested by the Cartel. Such is life.

In the constellation of Elysium, there was a small star gate that had been overrun by DED operatives. I was tasked with destroying them so the drugs and flesh trafficked by the Cartel could continue moving. My only foray into drugs ended...disastrously, and I am not one for vices of the flesh. But it pays the bill, and my duty was to clear that gate. The fact that I was killing DED operatives made it all the sweeter. I dispatched them quickly, my Retribution class assault frigate making short work of the third rate officers. While scanning the wrecks for survivors and modules, I found one that had not been completely destroyed by the fire of my lasers. In it was the ship pilot, barely alive in a quickly depressurizing cockpit. I retrieved him, and also retrieved some of his ship logs.

Then things got interesting. The pilot, obviously a non capsuleer, had pulled up my record on his computers when his allies were being slaughtered. It had the standard information, the list of thousands I had killed on DED record. However, it had also cross referenced with my record in the Empire. The record on me held little of consequence. But it also contained information on my family. I found I had some questions for the surviving pilot. The pilot, Joma Takale, a Deteis man, was lying unconscious in my cargo bay. I cared little for his health, but I did get him to an infirmary when I arrived back at the dock. I checked in with my agent and told him I'd be needing to return to the Empire. I don't think he cared. One capsuleer is as good as another to him, I imagine, and their are others to replace me. I requested a small amount of goods from him before departing. I then turned my attention to the pilot.

Joma was cognizant, barely. I gave him some adrenaline to wake him up. He was terrified, of course. Being within the belly of a capsuleer controlled ship that just demolished your fleet is a terrifying experience. He resisted, briefly, but some of the drugs I bought from my agent had a way of loosening tongues. He confirmed my suspicions. As the most wanted man to ever be born in Youl, there were numerous agents working for the Empire in collaboration with the DED to apprehend or assassinate me. As I live outside of their influence, it was difficult for them to attack me directly. A while ago, the MIO began a despicable plan. If they cannot go to me, they would do what they could to get me to come to them. They attacked my family.

My father, my mother, my brothers and my sister. My cousins, aunts, uncles, ex-wife...all were arrested and charged with treason three months ago. They had hoped that I would learn of their predicament and turn myself in to set them free. What they didn't account for was my lack of interest in Amarrian news while I lived in Sinq Laison, and that all of their messengers would be destroyed before being able to deliver the news to me in person. Joma told me that he had heard about the task force assigned to apprehending me. Many operatives had died in Rancer or the surrounding area, and were frustrated at their failure of killing me while in high sec. The DED wanted me to suffer, and the MIO was more than willing to oblige. They killed everyone. Every single person in my family.

Upon learning this, I killed Joma. He was dead when I destroyed his ship, he had just been breathing a bit longer. I returned to Tzvi via jump clone and checked the records on board station personally. It confirmed what Joma had said. That the MIO had killed everyone. Now I sit here, a bottle of wine half gone in one hand, and a bottle of Drop in the other. They killed my family. And I honestly do not care. I felt no rage, no grief. Just a dull resignation. My family was dead, and I didn't shed a tear. That apathy scares me most of all. I knew I had disconnected from humanity upon becoming a capsuleer. But I had not realized I had disconnected from my family. All I can think is that I have the Ghosts, and that they are more my family than my father and mother ever were. And, by God, I've only been here five days. I can't think about it anymore.

Vaden stops speaking, but the quiet of the recorder is interrupted only by the subtle 'drip...drip' of Drop being applied to a headband.