This ongoing sci-fi series will contain non-consensual elements.
Alpha Giraad was a small planetoid in a system where slavery wasn't common. Even though slavery wasn't rampant here, it didn't mean that it was a safe place. Bounty hunters would often keep an eye out for runaways. It was an industrial world that employed people in factories, and other heavy industries.
Before getting there I spent more time with Tyrus. We didn't just fuck, sometimes we would talk. I opened up to him more, and told him about my history with Juno. He found it very funny that I had spanked her. He said, that he wished he could have witnessed it.
There was still the question on how Faith had escaped. Dex guessed that she had set something up beforehand, just in case she ever got into that situation. Her name was rarely spoken at all anymore. It had affected Delphine the most. It was because someone she had trusted had betrayed her in the worst way possible. Trying to get her captured, and putting her daughter though the ordeal of being captured, and tortured.
I had managed to speak to her more about what Procter had told me. My missing memories weren't due at an accident after all. I had been a totally different person. Still, though, I didn't mention that my name had been Emrah. It was hard to come to terms with that. Who was this person I used to be?
I told her about Lilly, and the breeder farm she went to. She was someone who would know my history, and Delphine promised to look into it.
The yacht landed in a dock on the surface. It was being refueled, and was having some maintenance work carried out. The registration was being altered as the ship was still classed as stolen. The livery would be changed too.
The main settlement was called Lode One. It was a large bio-dome that housed a mid-sized city. Even thought the dome was to protect it from the harsher elements on the planetoid, the city itself had a lot of heavy industry, which produced a lot of smoke. The air inside was cleaned as much as possible, but there was a thick cloud of smog that collected near the top of the dome. As we had neared the dome from orbit, the smog gave it a strange glowing aspect.
Our crew stayed on the ship, but took daily visits into the city to buy things, or even just to look around. We were under strict instructions not to tell anyone that we were Red Moon. Our cover story was that we were smugglers.
The amount of freedom I had now was something I wasn't used too. Delphine chuckled as I asked her for permission to leave the ship.
"You can leave when ever you want," she said, with a smile. She told me to keep a weapon on me. Just in case.
There weren't many sights to see. Lode One was a place for industry. The factories and workshops produced parts for starships. There were various bars, and entertainment places for the workers.
It did have a good market which catered to passing ships. That is where I was now. I was looking for somewhere to sell my jewelry.
I came across a little shop tucked into a side alley. It had a sign saying it was a pawn shop. There was a variety of things displayed in the window, from weapons, to entertainment devices, and more importantly, jewelry.
The man inside simile as I entered. He looked the type not to ask any questions. Not that my things were stolen. They had been bought fair and square. It was myself that was the stolen property.
I emptied a small bag onto a counter for him to look through.
"Some nice items here," he said, as he tallied to the cost of them.
Then he stopped and let out a long whistle. He had picked up the necklace I had bought at the collector station. The one that the seller had told me came from earth.
"Now this is very special. Are you sure you want to sell?"
I nodded, as I had no special attachment to it.
"You would get a better price at a dealer," he said.
I told him that what ever he offered would be fair. He made his final tally. Everything other than the necklace came to about fifty thousand credits. The necklace itself came to over one million. It was an astonishing amount. I knew it had been expensive, but not nearly that much.
As he handed over a credit pass, he suggested that I Iook around to see if there was anything I wanted to buy. I declined and went shopping elsewhere.
It felt good to have money that I had sort of earned myself. If I wanted I could say goodbye to Red Moon, and start a new life for myself. My new found wealth represented true freedom.
The first thing I did was to buy some new clothes. I bought some utilitarian outfits. Heavy jackets, boots, and other things to fit with my new lifestyle. Seeing the guns in the pawn shop had given my the idea of getting a new personal weapon for myself.
I found a well stocked gun shop. The owner was pleasant and accommodating and I left with a more compact lazer pistol. It came with a shoulder holster that could hide the weapon under my new jacket.
Once back aboard the yacht, I stowed my new gear in my room, including my new weapon. Afterwards I went to a bar near the docks where some of the other crew were drinking.
Tyrus was there along wih Dex and some others. It was a fairly large place with lot other crews from docked ships. I mostly ignored Tyrus. Alone I could handle him, but in a group of people I found him to be very overbearing. He was always trying to outdo others and prove himself. I bought everyone a few drinks, but didn't tell them about my new source of income. I didn't want to spark any jealousy.
Procter turned up later. Delphine had a long talk with him, and he decided he wanted to go to the safe haven. Red Moon wasn't something that interested him. He couldn't go straight away, as they weren't going to spare a ship just for him. He was happy to stay with us in the meantime.
The yacht was safe in the docks, but Delphine insisted that guards be posted just in case. The whole Faith situation was still on her mind. Some of the crew now left to do their shift, including Tyrus.
There wasn't many left and two of them were keen to go and seek out a little bar they had heard about. They asked me to join them and I agreed. I was getting to like Lode One.
It was quite a long walk. The dock area had hotels, the market and other places for passing crews. We were now entering the heart of the city. We passed factories, and then a large hanger with an assembly line inside. On the belt were bare metal frames that were going to become shuttle craft. We entered an area that was grimier than the rest. It looked run down and some of the buildings looked to be shuttered. I started to wish I had brought my gun, but I did feel safe in our group.
"The place has a Jovian board." One of the crew said. He went on to tell me it was a type of table top game.
After quite a lot of looking down alleys, we found the place. It was very small and looked very run down.
The music was loud, and it was dimly lit. It was filled with factory workers, still wearing their work gear.
I tried to buy a glass of wine at the bar, but the barman just laughed and gave me a glass of clear liquid. He told me it was the only thing they served. It was very strong and burned the back of my throat. The guys I was with loved it, and seemed at ease drinking it.
We eventually got around to the reason we were here. A Jovian board was an electronic game that used hand eye coordination to play, combined with strategy elements. It made it simultaneously appealing to amateurs, and more experienced players. It was for two players, and we took turns playing each other. At first, I found it tricky, but once I got the hang of it, I started to hold my own against the more hardcore players.
Everyone was playing for money, including me. The night wore on and I started to win bigger and bigger amounts. It was really exciting and I could see why the crew wanted to come here.
After some time the crewmen decided to head back to the ship. I told them I was going to stay for a while and I would make my own way back. I was playing with a large woman who was putting up quite the challenge. I was determined to beat her.
