Floating in space
21st October 2008 – 8.41 amThe autopilot's warning that I was entering a low-sec system should have been... well, a warning. I have loaded the cargo hold of my Drake up with useful systems that I don't want to buy again when I reach my new corporation's base of operations and am slowly jumping my way across New Eden. I thought I had my autopilot set up to avoid low-sec systems, taking a circuitous but more secure route, so I dismiss the warning. The autopilot is probably just being over-protective. Besides, I need to get to my destination and if the autopilot tells me this is the way to go I don't have much choice. What's the worst that can happen?
The worst that can happen is being warp-scrambled immediately upon entering a system a couple of jumps later before being relentlessly attacked, getting my Drake destroyed and then being podded, leaving my frozen corpse floating in space. I tell a lie, the worst that could happen would be all of that whilst not having an up-to-date clone or ship insurance. Luckily, I have kept my clone up-to-date and, despite forgetting to check my insurance policy before leaving dock, my Drake is insured. My clone wakes up—I wake up—in a medical facility back where I started.
Being blown up and thoroughly killed is a little irritating but in this case it is not a disaster. It is certainly embarrassing to be killed by a gate camp in my most expensive ship loaded to the brim with equipment, all because I forgot to double-check the autopilot settings before leaving on a long and potentially dangerous journey. I was pretty much asking to be targeted. But it's not the end of the world. Indeed, I am travelling half-way across the galaxy essentially to make a new start, so what better way to accomplish this more effectively than to have my most precious possession taken away from me.
It is time to begin my new life. I make arrangements for a new clone to be prepared, buy some simple implants to help me think extra smartly, and get a new ship. I buy myself an Amarr Inquisitor frigate and christen it Funshine Bear, before fitting it with some rudimentary modules. It is difficult to remember from a few months ago how to fit a frigate, although I think I still need to learn what modules are available in the extensive market. Changing to an Amarr ship also changes fitting choices, because of the differences in technology. Well, if you can call Amarr ships technological. Being Caldari I feel dirty piloting the Inquisitor, but I suppose it is good camouflage.
I am not going to take much with me on my journey this time, just a couple of extra modules that I can buy hopefully cheaply in Jita that will be helpful to change my configuration between mission running and PvP. Before I leave dock I make two last arrangements: I buy insurance for my new ship and check that my autopilot is now set to avoid low-sec systems. With both tasks performed I hit vacuum for the first time in a non-Caldari vessel and point myself to the first stargate.
The journey is a blur, entering interesting systems only to pass through them immediately, stopping for nothing. The technology of the stargates changes the further out I go, until I arrive at my designated system. I pick a space station at random and arrange to dock, and the different layout and technology makes me feel a long distance from home. I now need to find a suitable agent to start running some missions to pass the time between roaming in a corporation fleet, and the two in my current station refuse to talk to me despite their low quality rating. My Caldari contacts and reputation mean nothing out here, I almost need to start again.
Investigating the list of agents reveals another confusion, in that I recognise none of the systems listed and have no idea where they are, either relative to my location or on the map itself. I feel thoroughly lost and will need time to become familiar with my new surroundings. But it is getting late and I have had quite the evening. I wandered out of secure space and got myself blown up and killed, then changed everything and started a new life on the other side of the galaxy. Finding my first Minmatar agent to work with can wait until another day. I still have my first PvP encounter to work up to.
One Response to “Floating in space”
Have fun with the Funshine Bear!