B: The Local System
Your father smiles and claps your shoulder before telling you, "You were always one for adventure, Robert. I will make all the necessary arrangements. Speak to Admiral Menthas once you have packed your things. He will be handling the organization and logistics of the expeditionary forces." He turns to your brothers, "Eric you will reestablish diplomatic ties with those worlds on which we have trading outposts, renewing leases where necessary. Francis, you will handle the charting of our great world's many nations. I am sure a great many alliances can be made in our backyard." Your father sips his own champagne glass, "A toast then, to adventure!" You all give three cheers before Emperor Malcolm is called away, the conversation with your brothers continues long into the night... as does the drinking. Before you know it, you are in a lavish guest room wildly hungover.
The Admiral -- later
Ready to get underway, you hover just outside Admiral Menthas' office. You manage to slip inside between crowds of naval officers and civilian captains. The smartly dressed, silver-haired fox addresses you, "Ah, Prince Robert, how pleasing to see you again. I have heard that you will be... accompanying us on our great quest!" You begin to speak up, but he cuts you off, "I am afraid, however, that since we have reopened our spaceports we have been dealing with a high volume of traffic. Understandably. Unfortunately, we have recently received threats of terrorism from some more... conservatively minded members of society. As such, The bulk of our fleet is wrapped up in peacekeeping and border control activities. Not that I expect you to disagree, but let me make it clear Emperor Malcolm has given me full authority in this matter. That leaves us with fairly limited options to explore our local system. For your use, we have refitted an old Bearclaw-class Frigate. I am sure you will find it to your liking. And once last thing--I have prepared a dossier on the expeditions preparing to depart. Take a moment to decide whom you wish to accompany." He tosses you a file with the bios of ship captains and their fleet complements.
Which Expedition do You Join?
A.) Captain Josian and the expedition to Asteriod J-117. The smallest expedition with only 4 ships. The colony of J-117 was a simple mining outpost, does it still operate?
B.) Captain Yousef and the expedition to Royria VI, The Garden Moon. 7 ships. The colony on Royria VI was a rural community supporting a terraforming project. That technology has since been lost; can it be recovered?
C.) Commodore Wesley and the expedition to Highpoint Station. The largest expedition with a staggering 20 ships. Highpoint Station was an almost legendary installation involved in weapons research--its location is not precisely known. That data could modernize the Empire's ancient space fleet.
D.) Demand your own expedition. With blackjack and hookers!