The nine (or debatably ten) planets of Earth's solar system had barely begun adapting to interacting with one another when the strange transmission arrived. Allegedly from the administrators of an alien empire so distant it was as unfathomable as im...
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Captain's Log—Day 0 of the exploratory voyage of USS K'nthalsk
Tomorrow's the big day, I guess. A new frontier has been thrust before the space forces of our solar system. Apparently some alien empire far beyond the reach of our conception—let alone technology—has kindly gifted us with the administration of some indeterminate number of planets near our solar system, but beyond the reach of our current travel limitations. But thankfully, the newly formed Allied Solarian Exploration Force thinks they're up to the task. The Mercurians decided now would be a good time to reveal the fact they've had some sort of major upgrade in the works for years now and want to kindly gift the prototype to the ASEF for the purpose of exploring our new possession.
And guess who they decided to pull out of a humid Venusian hell called prison to command this bucket of bolts? If you guessed they'd pick the independently-minded Earth man Alexander Haynes to do it, you'd be absolutely right.
I've always wanted to command a ship, but watching over an alien-made vessel with a crew 300 strong, filled with strange and disgusting animals who will stare at me with their beady eyes and await my orders...it's not really what I had in mind.
That's why once I came aboard this morning, I made straight for my quarters and had my first officer oversee the last of the cargo loading in my stead. I had no intention of dealing with this circus...this zoo...any sooner than I had to. And apparently, this first officer is a Venusian herself. Records have her down as some Alefstranijaj H'orastan something or the other, and let's just say I'm not looking forward to having a sniveling creature with pointy ears and albino skin standing at my side every day for heaven knows how long.
But life plays cruel tricks, so here I am. I always wanted a captain's chair—well, here's mine. If I'm lucky, maybe the Mercurians will have overestimated their own abilities, and this ship of theirs (which I still can't pronounce the name of) can't even leave our solar system. If not, well, it'll be the longest circus I've ever attended. Come morning, we'll know.
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The grating four-tone sequence of a Mercurian-made alarm clock jarred Captain Rutherford Alexander Haynes out of his peaceful slumber and propelled him into day one of his first voyage as captain. After a few seconds of vigorous eye rubbing, he shot up to a sitting position and threw his covers aside. He leapt to his feet and stretched his sore back with a loud yawn erupting from his lips. Then he limped over to the closet.
He certainly didn't have all too many wardrobe options. Sure, he had red, white, black, blue, and green to choose from, but all were the same strange collared tunic commissioned by the ASEF to be a universal crew uniform. Accompanied by black or white pants of thick or thin fabric, and a pair of sturdy boots, that would be his daily dress every day from now on, until the day this voyage would hopefully come to a conclusion.
