Chapter 1 - The Beacon

A very long time has passed since the last mission, which took place in the Outer Regions of the galaxy. Vlanor called me to escort a merchant carrying a large supply of Bane - a type of mass destruction weapon used by the elites to maintain control of a certain region. I don't agree with their methods, but at the moment I can't afford to pass another mission.

The journey back to Nokradia is usually very quiet, without many anomalies - at least not the ones picked by the low-range communication array. The sense of time is very different when you're not orbiting a star. There are no days or nights here, no dawns to remind you that something has begun or ended. Only the low hum of the drive, a pulse that never changes. Some travelers say it's like being buried alive in motion. Others call it peace.

There are many ways a star traveler can feel at home when traveling through the hyperlanes. Some opt to cryosleep all the way, others try to emulate their favorite environment - tropical humidity, simulated sea air, synthetic skylines of their homeworlds projected across their walls. I prefer to shut every window and face the travel for what it is: a timeless adventure through nothingness. The dark is a kind of teacher. It doesn't answer, but it listens.

I use this time to study the galaxy, to improve my combat routines, to rest, to think. These hours between systems sharpen the mind. When the body is denied movement, the mind compensates. That's the edge I've always counted on to stay ahead of other bounty hunters. It wasn't always possible to live like this. Before the invention of anti-aging accelerators, hunters could only complete a few dozen tasks in their lifetime, since a single mission could take up to eleven years just inside a hyperlane. The ones who didn't freeze themselves aged to dust between jumps...

Continues...