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As per majority vote, Ian has been assigned the post of Chief Scientist. He'll hold this spot until someone better comes along.

The first new planet we can visit should sound familiar: Alatyr, one of the planets involved in the current feud. Perhaps we can do some reconnaissance!



Oh dear...that could be trouble.

: Wow, look at all these ships!

: Well, they're right in the middle of a dispute. It's no shocker they'd mobilize this many. I'll bet Driutesk has even more than this.

: I can't even imagine a war with this many ships. That's a frightening thought.

: I hope we can do something before it comes to that.

: Not a fan of war, kid?

: I don't really know much about it, but I'm opposed to the idea of war in general. I'm sure there are times it might be necessary to fight...But I think that if it can be avoided, it probably should be.

: Yeah. I think you're probably right, kiddo.

Aside from this bit of intel, there's not much on Alatyr to interest us. Moving on!

On the next world, Zarub, the bartender asks if we know who Argun Narevin is. We don't, of course. Turns out he's the local pirate lord, who uses Medyn as his base. Apparently he's famous for using any dirty trick he can get away with. Sounds like a mean dude, if you ask me. Sadly, the bartender has no jobs for us, as this area is controlled by the Novgorod Pirates.

Finally, we can visit Ian's homeworld, Gorodok. I didn't intend to come here, especially once I realized what happens on this planet, but I had already saved by the time I figured it out
Pro-tip: Never use your primary save slot when doing idle exploration, lest you be stuck in a situation that you can't back out of. That's what multiple save states were invented for.

Anyway, when we enter the tavern we are greeted by a young woman:



: Oh, what a nice surprise! We hardly ever get this many customers way out here on the frontier. It must be the scenery. My name is Melania Sabik, and I'll be your server today. Please make yourselves at home!

The bartender is also pleased to see us, promising to serve us right. First-class treatment! Sadly, he doesn't have any jobs for us. Let's talk to Melania instead.

: You guys are really gonna get rid of all the pirates? Wow! Ya know, the boys around here are all too freaked out to even say his name! Honest! You and your crew must be so brave! Call me crazy, but I have to tell you, I could tell you were different from the moment I first laid eyes on you.

: Ya could? Heh heh heh.

That wasn't creepy at all, Torlo.

: R-Really?

: Oh please...

: Ah ha ha! She's just flattering you, guys. Get over yourselves already!

: Men are so simple.

: ...

: By the way, there's a meteoroid storm not too far from here. Is your ship going to be all right?

: A meteor storm?

: Small particles of debris in space. Like the tides, they're pulled back and forth between the gravitational forces of two planets. Of course, if anybody were to attempt to travel through such an area unprotected, their ships would suffer great damage.

: Huh. So how do people protect their ships then?

: (sighs) Sometimes it's just shocking how little you know. That's what deflectors are for, Yuri. Does that not ring a bell? Deflectors prevent objects from colliding with your ship. We're talking about the most basic of basic spacefarer knowledge here.

: Oh.

: Anyway, without a deflector, we ain't gettin' through nothin', that's for sure. We oughta hurry up and check out all the module design companies we can!

: Oh, yeah. I guess you're right.

: Good. That's settled, then. And now it's time to party!

: What?!

What comes next may disturb overly-sensitive viewers.



Oh dear.

: Ha ha ha! Well, aren't you two just the cutest little things?

: Ack!

: Come on Nia. You've had your fun. Let him get changed--

: Grus no! He lost the game, so he's gotta stay that way until the sun comes up, like we said!

: This was not part of my job description.

Fadeout. It is early the next morning when...

Bartender: Wake up everybody! Oh, Grus! You've got to wake up right now!

: Huh? What's the matter?

*Blinking against the light, Yuri and his party wake up groggily*

: Could ya please stop yellin'? Hey, what's the matter?

Bartender: A gang of pirates just came in here and...and...They carried off Melania and Ian!

: What?!

: Melania I get, but what's with Ian?

: The way he was dressed, maybe they thought he was a girl.

: Those people are terrible!

: Come on! We have to go after them! Hopefully they haven't gotten too far!

Well, heck.

Quickly! After them!



Oh dear...we're very close to Medyn. With any luck, we can still catch them. Speaking of--



There's the pirate ship! Meanwhile, onboard...





Pirate A: Heh heh heh heh! Why don't we have ourselves a little fun before we hand her over to Argun?

Pirate B: Okay, but we gotta be quick about it. But that won't be a problem for you! Heh.

: Wait! Wait! You're making a mistake! I'm a guy!

Pirate A: What?!

Pirate B: A guy?!

: ...

Pirate A: Huh. Well, whaddya know?

Pirate B: Even better, if ya ask me! Heh heh!

: What?!

*BOOM!*

Pirate A: Wh-what was that?!

That's us shooting at you, you pieces of Grus!



This is simple. Just a Rurik A-class cruiser, no backup. We can't melee, but I almost never do that anyway. Two Normal attacks bring it down before it can even scratch the paint.

Afterwards, back on the RUSALKA:

: ...

: Ha ha ha! Whew! I'm glad we got to you in time!

: Don't even talk to me. It's all because of you and those stupid clothes that this happened to me at all!

: You could be a little more grateful. If it wasn't for Yuri here and his quick thinking, who knows what would've become of you? I think you at least owe him a "thank you".

: Hmph. Well, Yuri, having you rescue me was the single most mortifying moment of my life, but I can't say I'm not grateful.

: Um, you're welcome?

: (That was a "thank you", wasn't it?)

: (I think he meant it to be.)

: Aw, whatever...Melania wasn't on the ship! Where the Grus is she?!

: She was on a different ship from the start. They must have brought her to Medyn already.

Crap!

: We've got to go after her, then.

No can do, Yuri. Can y'all guess why?



If you said "because of the meteor storm", you get a cookie for paying attention.

: As you can see, it's tantamount to suicide to try to get through here without a deflector.

: Looks like Ian's right.

: I guess we'd better turn back.

THIS is why I'm kicking myself for screwing up the saves. Not only do we not have deflectors, we literally CAN'T GET THEM at this point. Now, instead of charging heroically to save Melania, we have to go do some other plot in the meantime, leaving her in the pirate's clutches for who-knows-how-long. Well, I suppose this is slightly more realistic. Doesn't mean I like it.

*sigh*. To the Lutsk Sector, I suppose.



I'M NOT IN THE MOOD



>:C

Well, after a lot of hunting through Lutsk, I think I finally found our man!

: Excuse me, but...Is your, um, name Gennadiy Alabyshev by any chance?

: Well, well! Yes, that is indeed my name, but from where did you learn it?

: Well...

(fadeout)

: Ah. I thought something like this would happen one day over the resource planets of the Buzhsk Star System. And I suppose the CEF have their hands tied, don't they?

: We've got to do something before it turns into a full-blown war! Will you help us?

: Hm...Well, I suppose I can hardly sit idly by when such an entreaty is brought to me by such an earnest youth. I will accompany you and help you.

: You will?! Oh, thank you, sir!

: But I do have certain conditions. I have thrown off my old tie and am traveling unfettered under the name "Gen Nadiy". You must understand that I will have nothing to do with the Elgavan military.

: Yes, sir.

: Fine, then. Well, it has been ten years, but it looks like I will be returning to Central Elgava. Are you ready, Alik?

: Y-y-Yes, Master Gen.

Whoo! We've found "Gen", and can get outta here! The pirate forces here are more of a nuisence than anything else. Just as we enter the Central Elgavan Sector, Gen pulls Yuri aside for a quick chat:

: Can I have a word with you, my boy?

: Of course. Is everything all right?

: We've come up with a plan. We need you to take us to Deviagorsk now.

: A plan? That's great! All right, Deviagorsk it is then.

That will have to wait for next time, however. Tune in for secret operations and Xanatos gambits!