Searching Out Further Away From Homebase

Selenalore wakes and looks around the new Captain’s Quarters on the Jarzalad Station that has been the spot for the Ralpha Dogs Headquarters for a long time. She smiles softly to herself as she makes sure that she doesn’t wake Erbo. She quietly heads out into the living and office area and touches a few spots on the new desk and a computer screen rises from the desktop.

She then reaches out and touches the screen and does a few code processes to activate her computer system. She smiles as she hears a voice come from the computer and a face appears on the screen in one of the corners of the big computer screen and says, “Greetings Selenalore, it’s been a while since you have awoken me from my slumber to do some research.”

Selenalore smiles and says, “Greetings Coahoma, nice to hear that voice of yours. Did the move to the new quarters computer go smoothly for you?”

There was a brief silence, and then the face showed a big smile and Coahoma says, “It went smoothly as planned and they treated me well in the move, didn’t even shake my code up. They done a great job.”  Coahoma looks around and says, “The quarters could do with some sprucing up but I’m sure you’ll do that eventually.” Then she looks back at Selenalore and says, “So what do you want me to do for you, cause you wouldn’t have woke me for no apparent reason just to chat.” she laughs softly.

Selenalore sits down and pulls out some maps of the chartered systems around and looks at them when she speaks, “You are correct on that Coahoma. I need you to look up the Gallente space domain areas and check each one for ice fields. We want to spread out towards that area for corporation operations and possibly pick up new members in the process if all goes well.”

Coahoma says, “Working on that now boss.” and as she starts doing the research the data and pictures of the star systems start popping up and all over the screen as the computer starts searching. Selenalore smiles as she watches the screen with much interest since the newer systems are far more superior to the older systems that wouldn’t do very many graphics especially of the high quality that is being seen now. She is amazed how far technology is coming and going in everyone’s lives here in New Eden. She then goes back to pursing the maps in front of her and checks for routes and trade hubs and dangerous areas, which she will recheck via Coahoma’s research and the star system maps and more over the computer system.

Coahoma finishes and starts talking and explains what she has found and where and also updates Selenalore on all things including news and gossip and stocks and more. She then checks Selenalore’s mapping and routes against what she has come up with and what has been found and makes the plans that will be sent to the shuttle to help Selenalore get to the destinations and to have the updated information there as well. Oh yeah and she herself will be there as well since with the new computer systems you can do the base to ship over distances.

Selenalore finishes the preperations and prepares to head out, but she checks in on Erbo to see if he is still resting well, and then she heads to the balcony and picks the ship that she will be using to fly to the locations and scout out areas for both mining and offices as well as jump clones and more.

Selenalore gets into the shuttle and prepares to launch, and she has left a note to Erbo to let him know she has gone out to scout out new territory for ice mining, mining and offices and more. She then sets her destination to head to the Everyshore territory of Gallente space, and sits back to enjoy the ride and listens to good music and taking naps off and on and such while she travels.

Ain’t No Cure For The Summertime Blues

A sort of lull has descended over the Ralpha Dogs at the moment.  Perhaps our recent setbacks in wormhole operation have had something to do with it, perhaps there are other factors at play.  But, for whatever reason, Selena hasn’t been inclined to do much in EVE at this point, which kind of keeps me away as well, so I can do what I can to make her happy.

I wish for this nighttime to last for a lifetime...

Oh, there’ve been a few things I’ve managed to accomplish.  A friend who came along with us on a Class 2 wormhole expedition convinced us of the value of torpedo-armed stealth bombers in taking down Sleeper battleships, so I’ve been furiously training up to fly one of my own, and assembled a Nemesis, the Sleeping Sun, to hopefully do similar good things in the future.  We’ve also had discussions with the Hauling Hogs about some possible joint operations, both in mining and wormhole exploration, and I need to look at good “support cruiser/BC” setups to help with that effort.

Nonetheless, the lull is palpable, and I suspect we’re not the only ones that have troubles this time of year; summer, after all, is the season when people tend to go outside and have a good time, not stay indoors hunched over terminals to fly Internet spaceships around.  Anyone else have similar experiences?

What Are The Ralpha Dogs Doing Now?

“Well, to put it mildly, we aren’t doing much at the moment,” Selena says from her desk as she types away at the computer in the Ralpha Dogs Office.  She continues to speak as she works.

“We’ve mostly been hunting down wormholes and going into them with some of our corp to take down Sleepers.  Though that one time, we were in a wormhole while Erbo was sitting cloaked, one of our corp members was buzzing around the planets just to scan using the directional scanner on his ship, since that was the only way we could keep check for other ships.  We did notice a POS was based in this system, and that there were a couple of Retrievers and Bestowers doing a mining operation in the system.  I’m guessing that might have been their POS, but we aren’t for sure.” She finishes typing for a few and takes a drink of water before getting back to the conversation.

“All we know is that there was a POS and some ships in there.  I was minding my own business sitting near where Erbo was, though not too close to break his cloak as he scanned down anomalies within the wormhole system, when our corp mate comes over the fleet com and says he’s under attack by a player.  I took off to his aid, and got there just long enough for him to pod to safety, but in the process my Myrm got webscrambled, and I was soon under attack by the same person.  The person was in a Harbinger, and was a flashy yellow with an outlaw skull by his name.  He apparently was a pirate and was hunting down prey within the worm hole system.” She finishes typing again and sighs and takes another drink and then soon continues talking.

“Like I said, the guy was a pirate and he’d been hunting in the wormhole.  My ship and Cassius’s was not the only one he’d taken down.  He took down the Retriever and such that was also in the system.  I didn’t do much blinking, just a lot of cussing as my hull got breached and as I tried to pod out, the pirate warpscramed my pod and podded me.  That was the last thing I remember, ’cause I woke up in my clone.  I had to rebuy my implants and all just to get back up to snuff, and since that day, I’ve not quite had the feeling to go into wormhole space for a while, so I’ve been sitting around in the office here doing my own thing and taking care of paperwork and the all.  Erbo still goes out from time to time and does scan down our space and surrounding areas for possible wormholes, but there are other space anomalies out there that I join in to take down, usually the rogue drone or Sansha group.” She pauses a moment and thinks again and takes a sip of water and then speaks again, “Oh did I forget to mention that we moved ourselves back to Jarzalad.  Yep, after the catastrophe in the wormhole we packed up and came back to Jarzalad, which was close to our factory HQ, and continued seeking out and destroying what we could enemy wise.  The corporation that podded me is now on our very unliked records and is now major red to us.  Anyways, I’ll let you all go and get back to work to go interview some much more worthier person then myself.  Clear skies to you all and be safe.” She gives a smile and waves as the reporters pack up and are escorted out by security.  She breathes a sigh of relief to finally get that off her chest and then gets back to the paperwork at hand and checks for supplies and deliveries and such.

It All Sounds Like Some Bad Movie

Erbo stared at Alaz Chaktaren, agent for the Amarr Imperial Navy, as if she’d suddenly sprouted three heads.  “You need us to fetch what?”

“The daughter of a prominent Holder,” responded the haughty Amarrian.  “She is attempting to elope with a Gallente holo star.  This is unacceptable to her family or to the True Faith, as she has already been betrothed to a young Amarrian man of proper social standing.  We need you to bring her back, by any means necessary.”  She leaned closer to Erbo, who caught a whiff of some unsavory Amarr cuisine on her breath.  “And, if her swain can be properly ‘neutralized’…so much the better.”  She laughed, a throaty laugh that gave Erbo the creeps.

Erbo briefly considered turning down the mission.  After all, who was he to get in the way of true love?  And he didn’t relish the thought of taking on ships and soldiers of his own kind.  But they, and the Ralpha Dogs, desperately needed to raise their standing with the Amarr, if only to avoid getting blasted out of the sky when trying to operate near their own corporate headquarters.  Frack it, he thought to himself.

“You can count on us, ma’am,” he responded.  “We’ll get her.”

“Excellent,” said Chaktaren.  “Go, and may God be with you.”

Depends on which God you mean, thought Erbo as he exited the office.

. . . . .

Docking control released the two Myrmidon battle cruisers, Syria Planum and Mystic Nightmare II, and they began drifting down and away from the Youl logistics station.

“I don’t much like the sound of this,” said Selenalore, over the private comm channel.  “We’re going against our own kind again; how’s that gonna affect our standings with them?”

“Probably not enough to worry about,” said Erbo offhandedly.  “Now, let’s go.  Prepare for warp.” He triggered the command that started both ships warping, away from the Amarr station and towards the “Rent-A-Dream Pleasure Gardens,” a Gallente facility operating under franchise in local space.

“We’ve got company,” he said as they came out of warp.  “Remember, try to target the destroyers in each wave last, as they send the signal for the next wave.”

“I’ll do my best, but I ain’t gonna be able to stop it if my drones decide to shoot,” said Selena.

“Do the best you can,” responded Erbo.  “Three targets, inbound.  Engage.”

The railguns on both battle cruisers spit fire as two swarms of drones rushed to the attack.  In short order, those three ships fell, as did another group of four ships that appeared immediately thereafter.  As the second destroyer flared and died, another ship warped in.  Erbo recognized it immediately as a luxury model of Gallente cruiser–exactly what a famous holo star would be flying.

“There they are,” he said.  “Target that ship and fire!”

As the iridium slugs began striking the shields of the cruiser, the general frequency began crackling to life.  “Please…stop! Cease fire!” cried a feminine voice over the comm systems.  “You can’t take me back there! I’m pregnant! The baby’s his! You–“

“What?” came Selena’s voice over their comm channel.

“Disregard that transmission,” ordered Erbo. “Continue firing.”

The cruiser flared as its shields died under the unceasing impact and its armor was ripped away.  Finally, succumbing to the onslaught, it was ripped apart by a fireball.  A standard cargo container popped free of the wreckage and drifted some five thousand meters away from the attackers.

“I’ve got the container,” called Erbo, locking target on it and engaging the tractor beam to bring it in to his ship.  The container contained another, smaller container…a suspended-animation capsule, in which a young Amarrian woman slept, her face frozen into a look of anguish.  Probably for the best, thought Erbo.

“No life signs from the cruiser,” reported Selena.  “I think her boyfriend is dead.  Boy, the Gallenteans are gonna be pissed.”

“Probably not,” said Erbo, “You know those holo stars; most of them tend to think with their dicks.  I expect it’ll make a nice juicy splash of scandal on the tabloid news channels, and then they’ll forget it.”

As they moved to salvage the wrecks of the Gallente vessels, as was their usual practice, Erbo spoke again.  “So…the silly little bitch was pregnant.  With his child, no less.  Selena, this is starting to sound like one of your romance holonovels.”

A cynical laugh came over the channel.  “Well…not all of those stories can have happy endings.” The channel didn’t show it, but Erbo suspected Selena was looking daggers at him; her taste for cheap Gallente romance holonovels was legion.

“I dunno,” Erbo said.  “They’ll probably kill her, for all I know.  Do you know if the Amarr practice honor killings?”

“I have no way of knowing,” came the response.  “But you never can tell with the Amarr.  We can’t really understand them.  We’re Gallentean, after all.”

Some days, thought Erbo as they prepared to warp back to the Amarr station, I wonder how much that really means these days.

. . . . .

“We’ve brought the girl back,” said Erbo, once again standing before the desk of Alaz Chaktaren.  “She’s in suspended animation.”

“Outstanding,” responded Chaktaren. “You are indeed a faithful Amarr; your reputation will only benefit from the work you have done.”

“Um…” replied Erbo. “Begging your pardon, ma’am, but we’re actually Gallente by origin.”

Chaktaren looked more closely at Erbo, her eyebrow lifted. “Indeed? So I see.” She tapped some keys on her console. “It matters not.  You are doing the work of the Lord, and you shall be duly rewarded for it.  In this life, as well as in the next.”

Indeed, the reward was substantial, as Erbo later found out, not only in ISK, but in added standing with the Amarr.  Still, he felt a little dirty for earning those rewards in such a manner.

For the good of the corporation, he thought to himself, heading back towards the docking bays.  That’s why we do it.

But he was less than comforted.

Missions and More Missions

[… speaks and the computer recorder kicks on and starts recording the voice of  Selenalore …]

“Eve Log – date 2009.02.11 – Year 106 of New Eden”

[… as Selenalore starts to speak, you can hear old music of Paula Abdul in the background …]

I know it’s been a while since I’ve recorded anything, but there’s a reason for that. [.. laughs softly ..]

We’ve been doing missions for both Caldari and Amarr recently, to help get our standings up with them so that we don’t wind up getting shot out of the sky in Amarr space where our HQ is located now.  We’ve been going through a number of Amarr Corporations and one Caldari Corporation.

Of the Amarr, we’ve been doing missions for the Tash-Murkon family, and just recently started doing missions for the Amarr Navy Logistics Corp., and as for the Caldari, we’ve been doing some missions for the CBD and the KK Corps.  Once we had our diplomacy up to a five, we were finally able to start doing the missions for the Amarr.

[… there’s a brief silence with Paula playing in the background as Selenalore moves around …]

The missions we understand are repeated, but there were some new ones we hadn’t done, and we’d been sticking to administration missions and such, and eventually we moved on to legal and finally to command.  The command missions I like better, I don’t know about Erbo though, you’ll have to find out from him. [.. laughs softly again ..]

Anyways, there isn’t much I can talk about since there isn’t much we’ve been doing, except missions and training.  I’m now able to fly Retrievers, and I’m now training to be able to fly a Hulk.  The training is going slow, but it’s better then doing nothing else.  I’ll eventually be getting into the training for the Orca, and such.

Anyways, that’s all from me for now, and I hope all have a wonderful time.  I’ll be around again and will start working on more recordings eventually.  Take care and clear skies everyone. [… sounds of Paula Abdul’s “Opposites Attract” is heard and then silence and the recording stops …]

Filing A Report

In the small office cubicle at the newly-established headquarters of the Ralpha Dogs, Erbo sat for a moment, collecting his thoughts and willing himself to remain calm.  He lifted a small dictation recorder and thumbed it into life.

“Rho Alpha Delta incident report 16-A, Year 106 of New Eden, date code 2009.01.25.  Reporting: Erbo Evans, Abbot.  Subject: Loss of Ralpha Dogs battle cruiser Mystic Nightmare this date…”

. . . . . . .

The Demise of Mystic Nightmare I

[speaks and the log starts recording]

“Eve Log – date 2009.01.26 – Year 106 of New Eden”

[… there’s a soft sigh at the beginning and then Selenalore speaks …]

This is the first time in a long time since I’ve been piloting any ship that I have lost one.  The last one just happened recently, thankfully I was able to pod to safety, but sadly I had to head back to HQ, with Erbo on my tail after he had to repair twice.  This most recent mission was a mess cause of many reasons.

The reasons behind them is one, we were not fitted correctly for the damage, and secondly we were getting target jammed and weren’t able to hit the broad side of a space station.  I’d lost a couple of drones and such, but at least I got out of there alive.

Not your NORM FedEx Mission: Silicate Glass Pickup

After a number of missions we had, Erbo got a FedEx mission little knowing it wasn’t your NORMAL FedEx that he usually gets.  He was sent on a mission to pick up some Silicate Glass for one of the agents in Tollus and had asked me to stay behind while he went on the missions. He’d come to regret this later though.

>:) *grins evilly*

I stayed behind as he asked me too, but not maybe a few minutes or so later I hear him call me over our private comchannel.  I was pretty surprsied when het told me too get my ass out to where he was and pronto.  I responded and knew then that this WAS NOT the normal FedEx mission, but also that it was an encounter one.  I swiftly undocked and told him to NOT approach the warehouse until I got there.  Sometimes he listens and sometimes he don’t but it seems this time he did.

Lets put it this way and bluntly, this is the FIRST time I’ve actually had to save his ass.  Usually it’s me needing the saving cause I’m usually the one that is shot too hell and back and had to warp out too repair my ship, but he had to do it this time, so he warped to the Tribunal in Polstador and got repaired, while I stayed behind and took on the rats.  I lost six Hammerhead II drones during this battle, which is the first time since I started using them, but as my boys were going down they were also taking the ships they were fighting; down with them.  I’m proud of them for doing their job.

Oh not saying that I’m not proud of my husband, I AM very proud of him indeed cause he saved my biscuits a number of times during some of our missions where I had to warp out to repair, but back to what I was talking about.  The Silicate Glass, so called FedEx mission.

🙂

I was fighting off the pirates as were my drones. Like I said, I lost six of them.  I wasn’t taking much damage.  Hell my shields never dropped below 70%.  Now that’s what you call tanking and with a great ship behind it.  Mystic Eagle, is a Mrym and damn good in a lot of things, but it also helps that your ability to work the ships controls and such are also a plus.

There were only a few of the rats left as Erbo came over our private comchannel saying he was on his way back.  As Erbo pulled in out of his warp he helped finish off the rats that were left.  After the last pirate was blown into space dust, Erbo completed his mission too get the glass he was sent here too get.

I was mumbling quietly too myself as I started salvaging the ships we destroyed.  I continued thinking too myself and gloating about what I get too tell Erbo later, and with a smile; I got on the private comchannel and talked too him and told him the status of Mystic Eagle‘s shields and such.  Then told him of the six drones going down and taking the enemy with them.

All I can say at this point is giving a thankful wish that the ones who created and built the mrym, that they built it solid and with a drone bay that can hold up to 15 medium drones, such as my Hammerhead IIs, for with each drone that went down, I launched another in place of the ones that went down.

Erbo and I finished salvaging and headed back too Tollus to turn in the so called FedEx mission.  I could see in Erbo’s eyes that he wish he could stick the glass up where the sun don’t shine of the agent who assigned it as we walked to the office to turn it in.  He was also wincing some from the bill for the repairs on his ship and the loss of the six VERY expensive Hammerhead IIs that were lost.

It was after Erbo turned in the mission, that as Erbo and I were walking towards our living quarters, done with missions for the night, on the station, I smiled sweetly, but Erbo knew it wasn’t sweet, but he knew that I was about too tell him “I TOLD you so.”, and he had to wince again and agree, but then we started laughing with each other as we entered our living quarters.  We also know that the Silicate Glass mission will be an encounter so next time we’ll be ready.

🙂

The moral of this story everyone is too not always think all FedEx missions are not your typical pick up types of missions, cause there are some out there that aren’t of the norm, so always be prepared to eat crow if it turns out too be an encounter one, and ALWAYS call for back up and not be ashamed to call for help; for your friends and corp members will always, if not most of the time, will be there for you.

🙂

*continues laughing with Erbo and picking on him and telling him no matter that she will always love him no matter what as the doors of the living quarters close behind us*

🙂

Not Your Average Fed-Ex

Rio Grande emerged from warp near the station where Vedulef Gekelgala had sent Erbo this time, ostensibly to pick up a load of silicate glass.  Something about the location didn’t ring right, though.  It certainly wasn’t on any of the charts of the system.  Something was up.

Erbo opened the private comm channel to Selena.  “Sweetie, this looks like no ordinary pickup run.  Better get your ass out here, double pronto.”

“I TOLD you!” came the response over the communicator.  “Undocking now.  Don’t go anywhere till I get there.”

Erbo cut thrust to the ion drive units, and did his best to look inconspicuous.  Soon enough, though, Selena reported that she was inbound; at that point, he kicked on power, engaged afterburners, and headed in towards the warehouse as the comforting bulk of Mystic Eagle slid in behind him.

Suddenly, the local comm channels crackled to life: “Look! Someone’s here! Grab your guns and get to business!”

Several pirate vessels suddenly emerged from the shadows, many of them targeting his ship.  Erbo quickly locked targets and cast loose the three railguns.  Rio Grande shook with impact as the “twang!” of firing railguns, from both his ship and Selena’s, indicated that they were beginning to deal damage.

Another group of ships approached; it was clear that this was an ambush.  The incoming fire proved too much for the shields, and even for Rio Grande‘s enhanced armor systems; alarms indicated that the cruiser was taking structural damage.

“Shit! I gotta bug out!” yelled Erbo.  He engaged warp for anywhere else, and watched in horror as the ship’s hull began to buckle, damage alarm lights began showing on all systems…but, with a fraction of reserve strength to spare, Rio Grande pulled away from the area, venting drive plasma and smoke.

Thank heaven the warp drive still works, thought Erbo, as he set course for a station where he could pull in and repair.  He said a prayer for the souls of some unsung Gallente design engineers somewhere; they certainly built the Thorax solid.  Over the communication systems, Selena reported that she was holding out well, but the pirates seemed to be targeting her drones.

The repair bill for Rio Grande‘s damage came to over 900,000 ISK; Erbo winced as he paid the bill and took the cruiser out again, setting the warp drive systems for a rendezvous with Selena.  She had lost some drones already; Erbo winced again at the thought of those destroyed Hammerhead II’s, at over 600K a pop.

Only a few enemies remained as Erbo warped back to the warehouse area; as he watched, one of the surviving pirate vessels erupted in flame, destroyed by Selena’s drones and gunfire.  He turned his own guns and drones on a vessel immediately below his that was launching missiles at Mystic Eagle; it was soon overwhelmed in its turn.  At long last, the sky was clear of bandits, and Erbo quickly maneuvered Rio Grande in to the warehouse proper, to pick up the silicate glass, before assisting Selena with the looting and salvage of the wrecked enemy ships, as was their standard practice.

Back at the Tollus station, Erbo delivered the silicate glass; all Gekelgala had to say was, “I look forward to your next visit.”  Erbo left, wishing he’d had the presence of mind to shove the silicate glass up that smug Minmatar’s bunghole.  The cost had been considerable; all that money for the repairs of the Rio Grande, and six of Mystic Eagle‘s expensive drones turned into worthless junk.

But Erbo knew that that would be nothing compared to the humiliation of having Selena tell him, “I told you so!”

DareDevil Erbo

I don’t know what life was thinking when they intertwined our two lives into one, but it seems even here on Eve we are perfectly matched for each other.  Erbo is the daredevil or crazy one of him and I, but he’s also the daredevil and crazy one of the Corp, but then he might have a friend and matching daredevil streak in another of our corp members so he wouldn’t be the only one nuts that we have in our midsts, but then I wouldn’t love him for who and what he is if he was dull and boring.

I’m guessing it was the crazy, daredevil side that really drew me to him, though when we first met he was rather sigh, but it seems as we got to know each other he opened up and became more himself instead of some stereo type.

I might be crazy as well, but I’m not yet to crazy and daredevilish, to head out to low sec or null sec like he is, and I guess that’s why our friend Lex and I get along so well, cause we are about the same in some aspects, as in not having the nerve right now to go into the territories that Erbo goes into, but yet the man loves me for who I am.

I guess to him, I’m crazy and fun loving in his own way of thinking, though sometimes I can be a dull and boring person, but then he’s learned that I’m not even close to being dull and boring, he has come to find out in many ways that I can keep him on his toes and such :).  I’m also spontanious at times and do some things that he would at time think was like, whoa, where’d that come from, but then I think he just falls more and more in love with me as much as I fall more and more in love with him.

Our lives have been intertwined for a reason, but we don’t even want to try and figure that part out, all we know is that we are very happy that fate decided to intertwine our circuits in some way together you could say :).

I’ve been here when he’s been out on his scouting missions, and I was always pacing the floor of the headquarters waiting to hear word, if he was blown to space dust, or just pure relief he was still breathing, and when this has happened, I’d either pace or I just couldn’t stand it any more and go out and work on my skills and even at times I would come up with some crazy ideas for ships and what can be placed upon them ships to help them better.  If that didn’t help me, I’d climb into one of my ships and head to Ogoten to do a mission or even better yet, go mining.  It was the only way I could keep my sanity when he was out on one of his scouting missions for the corp to find places where we can some where in the near future go and mine the more rarer ores that we need instead of buying the minerals of what we need.

The man may be insane, crazy and a daredevil, but I’m always thankful that he always returns to me and I just hold him close and give him all the kisses and love I can when he’s in my arms on a return mission, which reminds me, *smiles secretly*, he’s back so I’m going to drag him off into our living quarters and snuggle with him after I give him a peace of my mind, which I think he likes it cause he knows someone truely cares about him and it has made his life so much more easier to be who he is. *waves and pulls Erbo into their living quarters and the door shuts behind them as she gives him a kiss that would blow his mind at times*