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MidReal Story
In the depths of space , there is a stolen
Scenario:In the depths of space, there is a stolen pirate ship piloted by an unlikely crew of fugitives and waylayed travelers. As they are drawn deeper into an imperial plot, the crew must decide what they are willing to sacrifice in order to save the very universe.
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"We need to find out what’s on here," I say firmly, turning to Kira.
"You’re sure it wasn’t just a stray chip that got mixed in with the cargo?" "No," she says without hesitation.
"It was definitely placed there deliberately."
I turn to Jaxon, our mechanic and engineer.
"What were you doing running diagnostics on the cargo?"
He shrugs.
"I like to be thorough," he says with a small smile.
"And it’s a good thing I was. Our scanners didn’t pick up anything suspicious about the cargo shipment, but they did detect an imperial tracking beacon hidden inside this little beauty."
He taps the data chip on the table with one finger.
I curse under my breath.
"Which means…" Kira prompts.
"We’re probably being tracked by the empire," I say grimly, cutting her off.
"And if they figure out that we have this chip, then they’ll be coming after us."
As if on cue, our proximity alert begins to blare, and the overhead lights start flashing red as our ship’s computer announces in its soothing female voice that an imperial fleet is dropping out of hyperspace less than a thousand kilometers away.
The computer helpfully supplies some additional information: The fleet belongs to the same imperial faction that controlled the cruiser we just raided, and there are at least four cruisers and two destroyers in their vanguard.
Kira looks at me expectantly, her green eyes wide with concern.
"Captain," she says quietly.
She knows what I’m about to say before I even open my mouth.
"We can’t jump yet," I say through gritted teeth as I turn to face her.
"We won’t be able to shake them if we do," Kira says, echoing my own thoughts.
Our ship is a modified PT-17 transport freighter, designed for speed and agility rather than combat.
It’s not the fastest ship in the galaxy by any means, but it can outrun most imperial cruisers in a straight chase.
The problem is that our ship has been heavily modified over the years—its energy signature is unlike anything else in the galaxy—and we don’t have the proper clearance to make a safe hyperspace jump.
If we try to jump while the empire is tracking us, there’s a good chance that we’ll end up smeared across several parsecs of space instead of arriving safely at our intended destination.
"We don’t have a choice," I say grimly as I take a deep breath and let it out slowly.
"Get ready to engage the hyperdrive."
Kira doesn’t hesitate; she jumps out of her seat and hurries toward the cockpit as Jaxon follows right behind her.
Jaxon nods in agreement as he hurries past me.
I take one last look at the data chip in my hand before slipping it into the pocket of my battered flight jacket and following them to the cockpit.
Kira is already strapped into her pilot’s seat when I arrive, and Jaxon is sitting next to her at the co-pilot console.
I take my seat in the captain’s chair and glance out the forward viewport; several imperial cruisers have dropped out of hyperspace directly in our path.
"That doesn’t make any sense," Kira says as she studies her sensor readings.
"They must have known we’d try to jump."
"Maybe they were hoping that we would," I suggest.
"They probably know that most ships can't make a jump with their current clearance level. If they'd just waited for us to try, they could have picked us off easily."
Kira doesn't look convinced, but there's no time for debate.
The cruisers are moving into attack formation, and their guns are already starting to light up with energy as they prepare to fire on us.
I take a deep breath and try to fight down my rising panic.
"This is going to be close," I say quietly as Kira initiates the jump sequence.
Jaxon nods grimly from his seat next to her as he begins typing commands into the co-pilot console.
"We'll make it," he says confidently as he works.
He's probably right—we've pulled off crazier stunts than this before—but that doesn't make me feel any better about our chances of making it out of here alive.
Kira finishes entering the coordinates for the jump, and the ship starts to vibrate as it prepares to enter hyperspace.
I hold my breath as we get closer to the cruisers, waiting for them to open fire on us at any moment.
But then something strange happens: The cruiser’s guns fall silent, and a few seconds later, we make the jump to lightspeed without incident.
"That was too easy," I say as I let out a sigh of relief.
"Did you manage to shake that tracking beacon?"
Kira nods as she studies her sensor readings again.
"I think so. But we’ll need to lay low for a while, just in case."
We drop out of hyperspace near Asteria Station, the largest space station in this sector of the galaxy, but our relief is short-lived when we see that it's been taken over by the empire.
I curse under my breath as I take in the sight of all the imperial ships swarming around the station like angry bees guarding their hive.
