The gathering in Amarr is well underway. Imperial ships in all their Amarrian glory line up in formation. Comms crackle with anticipation about the imminent arrival of the CVA fleet. PIE pilots arrive in their best Golden Ships to show the flag. Empress Jamyl's anniversary is an event to remember.
I too sit in anticipation, but not on the line with my fellow PIE pilots. I'm in deep space. Combat logs flicker across the neural interface, ship types, CONCORD presence, formations... The firepower on this field is impressive. But I have learned to use confusion to my advantage, and it will be my cloak now.
I recall my last conversation with the fat man, my contact in Amamake...
***
"Got the Intel you wanted, Swatyy," the fat man said, pushing a note over the bar. "My contact says he's gonna be there."
I flip the note over, read it, and drop a black credit disc on the counter. I place the note over a candle on the bar. Flames consume the paper.
"You promised to be my undertaker," I say. "When it's done, they might come for me. If the worst happens, see my ashes are returned to Mi."
The fat man pockets the disc, and then leans close.
"Ya sure this is where you wanna do it, to kill a PIE officer?"
I smile sinisterly.
"It's perfect."
***
I'm pulled back to the present by a blinking indicator. Hiigaren is on the field, just undocked. I spring the trap. My warp drive comes alive and I fall 10 km from my fellow PIE pilot, my superior officer, my target. The hot-lock goes live, pulsing carronades slice into Hiigaren's Harbinger hull. The humming produced by the overheating lasers is musical; the multifrequency lights dancing upon my enemy is pure art. Space ripples in the flash, a blindingly bright explosion. I'm off the field.
It is a textbook strike and escape. Amarr local collectively gasps, but not because the CVA fleet honoring Jamyl just arrived. No, it's the razed and burning wreck outside the Emperor's station that has people talking. Shouts of "heretic!" and "terrorists!" are repeated over open comms, but no one knows what just happened. Confusion and fear grip the faithful who gathered for the celebration, as I jump out of the Amarr system.
***
"He's the traitor!" a man says to a guard as I pass, openly pointing.
"Don't worry, citizen. We are keeping an eye on him," the guard replies, eying me suspiciously.
I once found the brightly lit halls and tight security on the 24th Imperial Crusade station comforting, but not today. Word of my actions, my dishonoring the Empress by attacking a PIE officer, had spread across the front lines. Now I find myself in a place where there are no shadows to hide in, and armed loyalist guards are everywhere.
Whispers and hostile stares follow me. The guard at the Emperor's Corner, a gated community where I own a residence, checks twice for an arrest order before dropping my ID card rudely on the counter.
As I pass, he mutters, "God forsaken pirate."
I may be a pariah, but at least I'm not wanted... not yet anyway. I step into my condo and close the door behind me. Breathing deeply, I detect Mi's perfume. How am I going to explain this to her? I had anticipated blow back, but things are escalating beyond my expectation. Leaning against the wall, I rub my eyes... so tired.
I feel a hand on my shoulder and start. Turning quickly, I see Mi. She is dressed in a white gown, the necklace I gave her gracing the low neckline. Dark hair hangs freely, contrasting with her dress. But it is her eyes that capture me, deep eyes, full of understanding and pity.
Best to just deal with things. I take a deep breath to speak, but Mi puts her finger over my mouth.
"Shhh," she coos, taking my hand and leading me.
I'm too tired to resist. Mi leads me to the bathroom where a hot bath is prepared. She must have been watching the docking manifest for my arrival.
"I have to tell you something," I say.
Mi says nothing and smiles softly as she unfastens my robe's clasp and undoes the ties. I disrobe and slide into the bath, letting the hot water envelope me for several seconds. When I come up for air, I find Mi sitting at the tub's side. She is holding the PIE insignia that was on my coat.
Looking hard at the token, she says, "I'm not sorry you did it."
I blink water from my eyes. Of course she would know. News like this traveled faster than light speed.
"You heard?"
Mi nods, and wraps her arms around my neck, leaning her head against mine.
"I don't know what's going to happen next, Mi," I say, kissing her hand.
Whispering in my ear, she says, "I do."
I turn to look at her, surprised. Mi smiles coyly and drops my PIE insignia into the waste basket. Then she produces a communiqué.
"Your dishonorable discharge papers from PIE, delivered this morning by courier," Mi says, "And this, our eviction notice from the Emperor's Corner for 'unbecoming behavior'."
I should be troubled, but for some reason I'm not. Maybe reality has yet to catch up with me, but for the moment I find the absurdity hilarious. I look into Mi's eyes and can see we share the same thought...
"Yes, we can move back to Amamake."
I slide down into the tub again, Mi's giggling muffled by the water.
*** Multimedia Addendium ***
Eve-Online Forum Post
YouTube Video
Friday, October 9, 2009
Saturday, October 3, 2009
Friends and Enemies
I walk into the Pirate's Cove Bar and Grill, a popular haunt in Amamake. It's a full house. The dance floor is packed with people grinding to loud, trendy Minmatar music. Tobacco smoke hangs thick. The music is so loud, it shakes my body. Slave girls dance exuberantly on tables where free men and women alike toss isk at them. Pills and drinks are strewn on the bar. Glass platters with white powder cut neatly into lines are passed around. Shadows move in the side rooms, bodies moving in unison behind thin curtains.
Normally I frequent the bar during off hours, but today I need to talk with my contact in private. A massively crowded, loud Friday night in the Pirate's Cove is the perfect place to guarantee a discreet meeting. No one even glances at me. Few people in this crowd know who I am, and they are so inebriated or drugged they don't recognize anything but the haze enveloping them.
Moving to the bar, I slide onto a stool. A middle-aged woman rushes back and forth filling orders and sending out trays. I pull out a stack of isk and drop a few copper discs to get the server's attention. In a fluid motion, she scoops the isk, puts a drink in front of me and slides a platter of cut white powder toward me.
I push the platter away. Slowly, meaningfully, I place a black disc on the table. Now her attention is undivided. I point to the large bulk of a man on the far end of the bar. She nods and takes the isk to the fat man. I watch the woman hand him the isk. He glances my way and disappears into the back.
I down the drink and follow through the dark hall way into a dimly lit room. It's a broom closet converted into a small office. The sweet cannabis smoke almost masks the odor of sweat and sex. Music pounds through the wall, rattling crooked pictures indiscernible in the shadows. My eyes fall on the fat man sitting in the corner with a bottle in his hand. A wide smile spreads behind a tangle of dreadlocks hanging over his face. He motions to a second chair.
"How's yer lady? I hear you swept her off to some fancy pansy mansion on the Amarr side 'o the boarder," the fat man says.
"Mi is well," I answer curtly.
"Sure she is," the fat man laughs. "Minmatar women, they don't keep like spice wine, all bottled up."
This conversation strikes a nerve. When I told Mi I purchased her a condo fitting her station, luxurious by any standard, she wasn't enthusiastic. Mi likes her own kind, low born and uncouth. Mi and I are so very much alike...
I produce an envelope and offer it to the fat man, abruptly changing the subject.
"I require information regarding this pilots movement on the Minmatar side of the border."
The fat man eyes the envelope. Pulling the dreadlocks on the left side of his face behind his ear, he looks at me hard and offers a drink.
"Been awhile since you did wet work. Contract killin', that's not what PIE does, is it?"
I sit down and take the drink.
"No contracts. This is strictly personal."
The fat man opens the envelope and pulls out the data sheet. His face cycles through emotions as if he were a performing mime, surprise, disbelief, confusion.
"Yer fucking daft! Hiigaren is the mark, a fucking PIE Lieutenant?"
I down the drink in a single swell and place the empty glass on the table.
I look directly at the fat man, a cold, emotionless gaze, and say, "I'm going to burn him down."
The fat man answers incredulously, "And when yer done fukkin Hiigaren's corpse, what's gonna happen to you? PIE ain't no band o' rags. They ain't gonna like you killin’ yer own."
"Hiigaren is my superior officer, and he called me out in public. That means he leaves his rank in the hangar when he undocks."
"Is them the Admiral’s rules or yours? " The fat man snorts, "You ever been hung, Swatty? 'Cuz that's what PIE does to traitors."
We both know I’m breaking protocol, that these matters should be handled through the chain of command. The problem is that I really don’t care. Hiigaren threw down over open comms., in front of the entire corporation. I’m not going to run to ‘daddy Admiral’ and cry. I’m going to handle it in space like the killer I am, and one of us is going to lose a ship in the process.
I give the fat man a hard look. Nothing more needs saying.
"Fuck it then," the fat man says, filling my glass and raising his own. "Drop another black credit and I'll be yer fucking undertaker too."
==================
*Begin Public Comm. Log*
[23:36:47] EVE System > Channel MOTD: PIE channel for general informal banter and liasoning with close allies in the war. OOC chat is entirely acceptable.
Access requests for alts should be sent to Gaven Lok'ri.
[23:37:10] Raphael Saint > wb Jhae
[23:37:30] Hiigaren > Hey Swatyy!
[23:37:33] Hiigaren > finaly we meet
[23:37:38] Hiigaren > i heared your gonna kill me
[23:37:41] Raphael Saint > lol
[23:37:55] Hiigaren > How does Sunday evening works for you, i have a free moment then
[23:38:23] Jhaelee de'Auvrie > having network issues with my secondary computer
[23:38:58] Swatyy > Am I going to kill you Hii? I suppose Sunday works for me, if you like.
[23:39:05] Swatyy > Um... why am I killing you?
[23:39:30] Hiigaren > I dont know, i normaly dont ask for the reason
[23:40:41] Swatyy > ok. wth, never needed a reason before. I'll be looking for you in space.
[23:41:01] Hiigaren > Yeah i;m in lantron :)
[23:41:40] Swatyy > Let me write down your name so I don't forget you...
[23:41:59] Raphael Saint > That's not going to work
[23:42:04] Raphael Saint > Hiig is very forgettable
[23:42:29] Hiigaren > Dont blame me, lots of ppl wanne kill me
[23:42:39] Hiigaren > Its not like this is a special event for me
[23:43:57] Hiigaren > once a guy try to kill me in a 0.5 system, but forgot he wasnt at war with me, briljant move on his part
[23:45:10] Hiigaren > So swatty
[23:45:19] Hiigaren > how would you like the beating, medium or rare
[23:45:48] Swatyy > I don't even know what that means.
[23:46:00] Hiigaren > Oh come on
[23:46:59] Hiigaren > I got a assasion with no humour after me
[23:47:47] Swatyy > yep.
[23:50:39] Hiigaren > well i guess Assasions arnt what they used to be!
[23:51:29] Swatyy > Hii, your kind of mouthy. Don't know what your deal is, but having another person to shoot is fine by me.
[23:51:56] Hiigaren > Swatty ur the 1 started the whole' should i kill hiig thing '
[23:52:54] Swatyy > I don't even know who you are, and didn't want to kill you until a few minutes ago.
[23:53:05] Swatyy > But its cool. Whatever it is, we will sort it out in space.
[23:53:31] Hiigaren > Thats funny
[23:53:41] Hiigaren > i guess soembody esle is writing on the forums with ur name
[23:54:09] Swatyy > Can you give me the link?
[23:54:55] Hiigaren > Uhm i think its in a post from shalee ^^
[23:55:43] Swatyy > Oh... you were they guy who dressed her down, right? The whole former admeral thing.
[23:55:49] Swatyy > Sure, I'll kill you.
[23:55:56] Hiigaren > Uhm acuelty no i wasnt
[23:56:24] Merdaneth > o/
[23:56:29] Hiigaren > SPeak of the devil
[23:56:37] Hiigaren > hey merd
Normally I frequent the bar during off hours, but today I need to talk with my contact in private. A massively crowded, loud Friday night in the Pirate's Cove is the perfect place to guarantee a discreet meeting. No one even glances at me. Few people in this crowd know who I am, and they are so inebriated or drugged they don't recognize anything but the haze enveloping them.
Moving to the bar, I slide onto a stool. A middle-aged woman rushes back and forth filling orders and sending out trays. I pull out a stack of isk and drop a few copper discs to get the server's attention. In a fluid motion, she scoops the isk, puts a drink in front of me and slides a platter of cut white powder toward me.
I push the platter away. Slowly, meaningfully, I place a black disc on the table. Now her attention is undivided. I point to the large bulk of a man on the far end of the bar. She nods and takes the isk to the fat man. I watch the woman hand him the isk. He glances my way and disappears into the back.
I down the drink and follow through the dark hall way into a dimly lit room. It's a broom closet converted into a small office. The sweet cannabis smoke almost masks the odor of sweat and sex. Music pounds through the wall, rattling crooked pictures indiscernible in the shadows. My eyes fall on the fat man sitting in the corner with a bottle in his hand. A wide smile spreads behind a tangle of dreadlocks hanging over his face. He motions to a second chair.
"How's yer lady? I hear you swept her off to some fancy pansy mansion on the Amarr side 'o the boarder," the fat man says.
"Mi is well," I answer curtly.
"Sure she is," the fat man laughs. "Minmatar women, they don't keep like spice wine, all bottled up."
This conversation strikes a nerve. When I told Mi I purchased her a condo fitting her station, luxurious by any standard, she wasn't enthusiastic. Mi likes her own kind, low born and uncouth. Mi and I are so very much alike...
I produce an envelope and offer it to the fat man, abruptly changing the subject.
"I require information regarding this pilots movement on the Minmatar side of the border."
The fat man eyes the envelope. Pulling the dreadlocks on the left side of his face behind his ear, he looks at me hard and offers a drink.
"Been awhile since you did wet work. Contract killin', that's not what PIE does, is it?"
I sit down and take the drink.
"No contracts. This is strictly personal."
The fat man opens the envelope and pulls out the data sheet. His face cycles through emotions as if he were a performing mime, surprise, disbelief, confusion.
"Yer fucking daft! Hiigaren is the mark, a fucking PIE Lieutenant?"
I down the drink in a single swell and place the empty glass on the table.
I look directly at the fat man, a cold, emotionless gaze, and say, "I'm going to burn him down."
The fat man answers incredulously, "And when yer done fukkin Hiigaren's corpse, what's gonna happen to you? PIE ain't no band o' rags. They ain't gonna like you killin’ yer own."
"Hiigaren is my superior officer, and he called me out in public. That means he leaves his rank in the hangar when he undocks."
"Is them the Admiral’s rules or yours? " The fat man snorts, "You ever been hung, Swatty? 'Cuz that's what PIE does to traitors."
We both know I’m breaking protocol, that these matters should be handled through the chain of command. The problem is that I really don’t care. Hiigaren threw down over open comms., in front of the entire corporation. I’m not going to run to ‘daddy Admiral’ and cry. I’m going to handle it in space like the killer I am, and one of us is going to lose a ship in the process.
I give the fat man a hard look. Nothing more needs saying.
"Fuck it then," the fat man says, filling my glass and raising his own. "Drop another black credit and I'll be yer fucking undertaker too."
==================
*Begin Public Comm. Log*
[23:36:47] EVE System > Channel MOTD: PIE channel for general informal banter and liasoning with close allies in the war. OOC chat is entirely acceptable.
Access requests for alts should be sent to Gaven Lok'ri.
[23:37:10] Raphael Saint > wb Jhae
[23:37:30] Hiigaren > Hey Swatyy!
[23:37:33] Hiigaren > finaly we meet
[23:37:38] Hiigaren > i heared your gonna kill me
[23:37:41] Raphael Saint > lol
[23:37:55] Hiigaren > How does Sunday evening works for you, i have a free moment then
[23:38:23] Jhaelee de'Auvrie > having network issues with my secondary computer
[23:38:58] Swatyy > Am I going to kill you Hii? I suppose Sunday works for me, if you like.
[23:39:05] Swatyy > Um... why am I killing you?
[23:39:30] Hiigaren > I dont know, i normaly dont ask for the reason
[23:40:41] Swatyy > ok. wth, never needed a reason before. I'll be looking for you in space.
[23:41:01] Hiigaren > Yeah i;m in lantron :)
[23:41:40] Swatyy > Let me write down your name so I don't forget you...
[23:41:59] Raphael Saint > That's not going to work
[23:42:04] Raphael Saint > Hiig is very forgettable
[23:42:29] Hiigaren > Dont blame me, lots of ppl wanne kill me
[23:42:39] Hiigaren > Its not like this is a special event for me
[23:43:57] Hiigaren > once a guy try to kill me in a 0.5 system, but forgot he wasnt at war with me, briljant move on his part
[23:45:10] Hiigaren > So swatty
[23:45:19] Hiigaren > how would you like the beating, medium or rare
[23:45:48] Swatyy > I don't even know what that means.
[23:46:00] Hiigaren > Oh come on
[23:46:59] Hiigaren > I got a assasion with no humour after me
[23:47:47] Swatyy > yep.
[23:50:39] Hiigaren > well i guess Assasions arnt what they used to be!
[23:51:29] Swatyy > Hii, your kind of mouthy. Don't know what your deal is, but having another person to shoot is fine by me.
[23:51:56] Hiigaren > Swatty ur the 1 started the whole' should i kill hiig thing '
[23:52:54] Swatyy > I don't even know who you are, and didn't want to kill you until a few minutes ago.
[23:53:05] Swatyy > But its cool. Whatever it is, we will sort it out in space.
[23:53:31] Hiigaren > Thats funny
[23:53:41] Hiigaren > i guess soembody esle is writing on the forums with ur name
[23:54:09] Swatyy > Can you give me the link?
[23:54:55] Hiigaren > Uhm i think its in a post from shalee ^^
[23:55:43] Swatyy > Oh... you were they guy who dressed her down, right? The whole former admeral thing.
[23:55:49] Swatyy > Sure, I'll kill you.
[23:55:56] Hiigaren > Uhm acuelty no i wasnt
[23:56:24] Merdaneth > o/
[23:56:29] Hiigaren > SPeak of the devil
[23:56:37] Hiigaren > hey merd
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