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Our first stop in Central Elgava is a small, minor planet called Paozero. It's the only path we can take from the Void Gate, so it's an ideal place to get some info.



Along the way, we have our first battle of Central Elgava. Yet another variant of the Sokal class of small ships, these are a bit tougher than their Lutsk counterparts, but still nothing special. Two normal attacks or a single barrage each are enough, but the LOTUS took a decent amount of damage.

The bartender on Paozero has some very useful information for Yuri and friends:

Bartender: Did you know that the group that calls itself the Medic Organization is headquartered on Nerekhta? The Medic Organization is a group of volunteer that goes around to different war-torn and messed up areas to treat the sick and the injured. It's completely not for profit, and runs all on public donations. It's a mighty fine organization if you ask me!

Talking to Torlo reveals that he's a bit of a realist; he doesn't really buy into the whole Epitaph legend about changing the universe, he just wanted to steal Yuri's so he could sell it.

Other than that, this planet doesn't have a lot going for it. I do take the time to add Radimir to the crew as Chief Engineer, but then it's time to head out! From Paozero, we have two choices of destination; another mostly-empty planet called Chernesk, and the far more interesting Zvenigorod. Astute readers will remember that Zvenigorod is home to the Central Elgavan Fleet's headquarters, so that seems like a good place to go!

Meanwhile, at the Headquarters...

: I hear that your favorite youths have just entered the port.

: Yes, I just got the report myself.

: Are you planning on using them for the current situation?

: Yes, well, I guess that's up to them...

: Hmph. You're from Alatyr yourself, aren't you, Commander?

: Yes, sir.

: Of course, the CEF can't be deployed too hastily in a situation like this. That must be frustrating for you.

: ...

Okay, enough of that garbage, let's look around! Zvenigorod has a shipyard and remodeling shop, which is nice. Especially since this planet is the first to offer Level 2 AS Lasers! These babies provide fairly substantial firepower boosts at no reduction in range or accuracy. The downside is that they cost a fairly hefty sum: 200G for a small laser (for the LOTUS), and 1000G for a medium laser (LOTUS and PANSY). Make a note of this, people; should we upgrade our ship's weapons or not?

Aside from exciting opportunities in destruction, Zvenigorod is probably the busiest planet we've seen yet:



Let's start from the top, shall we? To the tavern!



As opposed to the old west style saloons we visited near the beginning of the game, this one is pretty high-tech. Looks pretty awesome. Sadly, this is the most interesting part of this place, at least for now >.<

In any case, at the Central HQ we meet an old friend:

: Ah, Yuri, here you are! I've been waiting for you. I'm glad to see you. All the way from Ropesk, eh?

: Yes, thanks to all the help I got from Nia and my friends.

: But that's the way of the spacefarer, is it not? There's no need to be ashamed of getting a little assistance along the way. Now then, down to business. I have several things to discuss with you.

Awwwwww. I wanted a vacation

: Ah yes, about those Epitaphs...

: Did you find anything out?

: Not yet. A close examination of all our space flight data is taking quite a bit of time, I'm afraid.

: Oh, I see. Oh well.

: So that Balik bastard is still free as a bird, ain't he?

: Yes, I'm afraid so. We got a report from Sector Patrol that a ship, apparently Balik's ship, was seen heading toward Medyn.

: Where's Medyn?

: It's a remote artificial planet, the base of Argun Narevin, another major player in the Novgorod Pirates. Now that Balik has lost all of his men, I can only assume he plans on joining up with Argun.

: Grus! We can't just let Balik go runnin' around out there, doing whatever he wants! Not after what he pulled with Tats' bro! Ain't that right, Yuri?

: That's right. I haven't forgotten about him, believe me.

: In that case, please help us get rid of these pirates. We will, of course, do everything we can from our end as well.

: Did something happen to Lieutenant Galkin?



: Yes, well, this is the situation. There's a dispute between the planets of Alatyr and Driutesk over an area with resource-rich planets located between them. We've sent Lieutenant Galkin out on an intelligence mission to try and solve that dispute. But, unfortunately, he's having a very difficult time of it. I was hoping that you might assist us.

: What, so now we have to do another little job for ya before you give up any Epitaph info, is that it?

: No, no. That's not the case at all. This is just a personal request, a favor, if you like.

: Hmph.

: That's fine. I don't know how much help we can be, but we'll do what we can.

: Are you sure, kiddo?

: Yes. After all, Lieutenant Galkin helped us out when we needed it. Besides, it's just a dispute right now, and we don't want it turning into a full-blown war. That would mean the loss of a lot of innocent lives. If we can help solve the problem before that happens, I think we should.

: ...

Whoa. When did Yuri turn into Lloyd Irving?

: I'm grateful to you, Yuri. Right now, Lieutenant Galkin is operating out of the planet Nerekhta. I'd like you to go there and get in touch with him directly.

Well heck, we were already thinking of going there.

: And that's all I have to discuss for now.

: Whew! We just came here to get some info, and you end up sending us out on all kinds of errands!

: I apologize. I plan to do everything I can to make it worth your while. Please stop by my quarters at the officers' lodgings later, if you wouldn't mind.

Eh, later. First, we have someone to visit at the hospital...



*In a private room, Zakhar lies motionless in a treatment capsule. Just as he promised, Vladykin is apparently seeing to it that Zakhar gets the best care possible.*

Doctor: About the servonin, I'm afraid that all we can do for him is keep him stabilized at this point. If only we had someone here from the LMC who knew how to treat him...

: ...

: Don't worry, Tats. We'll go all the way to the LMC ourselves if we've got to. Won't we, Yuri my man?

: That's right. Once we get a little more experienced and capable, we'll go to the LMC or wherever we need to.

: Thank you.

Welp, visiting hours are over and at least Zakhar is in good hands. Let's go meet with Vladykin.

: I know this is small thanks for what I'm asking, but I'd like to instruct you in the theory of making the best use of your fleet. Do you have some time for that?

: Sure. That would be great.

: Good, then. Some of this might be difficult to follow, but please do your best. First of all, let's talk about CIC information sharing...

*fadeout*

: That's all. Let me give you these blueprints as well. Please make good use of them in your journey!

Watch, we'll probably get the Derpy or whatever that other destroyer he offered before was--

You got blueprints for a Borodino-class battleship!



You acquired the Special Skill, "Fleet Leader Lv. 3"! You can now have up to three ships in your fleet!

: Huh?

*Yuri's party leaves the room, but Nia remains behind*

: Can I help you?

: Just thought I'd have a little word with ya.

: I'm listening.

: And I'm talking. After this is over, you won't be using Yuri for any of your little schemes again, you got that?

: Using him?

: You heard me. I know what's going on here. The Reform Faction, the Conservative Faction, and all the regional forces, they're all squabbling over power. So you're trying to get around all that by using Yuri and his crew, because you know they've got no ties to any of them.

: Hm. I can't deny it, but I don't want you to think that's all there is to this. The truth of the matter is, I've taken a real liking to the boy.

: I'll be nice and pretend to believe that. But this is the last time you use him to do any of your dirty work. You got me? I don't want you getting that kid mixed up in your messy political Grus.

: Understood.

We have one more thing to do before calling this update quits. Bear with me for a while, because this is kinda awesome.

We go to the other planet mentioned earlier in the update, Chenesk. The only thing here is a tavern. The bartender claims that there is a ship deign company on this planet that works directly for the Elgavan military. Sadly, they do not sell to the public.

The other person of interest here is a middle-aged man. His daughter requires a special medicine called polyphermin, and she's running out. It's only sold in big hospitals, and there aren't any like that here on Chenesk. Clearly, it is our duty as RPG heroes to help him!

To the hospital on Zvenigorod! Polypherin costs 150G, a small sum for us but likely beyond most folks. Back to Chenesk!
(note: I earned three times that much from random encounters on the way back )

: Here you go.

Middle-aged Man: Is this polypherin?! You bought this and brought it all the way back here for me?! Thank you! Thank you very much! Here, please take these! It's a token of my gratitude!

You got blueprints for a Novik-class destroyer! You got blueprints for a Gnevny-class destroyer!

: These are Novgorod Pirate ships...Are you a...?

Middle-aged Man: Heh. I did a lot of foolish things when I was younger. I used to think my daughter's illness was punishment for my past. But now that I'm leading a decent life, people like you have come along to show me the way. I sure am glad I changed my ways all those years ago!

Ugh, another update distinctly lacking in actual gameplay. On the other hand, holy crap have we got some choices to make. First off, the Borodino's stats:



It's big and it's powerful, but it's also slow and quite expensive.



Here's the Novik. It's a little faster than the Orfey-class, and has slightly better firepower. It has less armor and livability though. It might not replace the PANSY as our flagship, but we could conceivably replace the LOTUS.



And finally, we have the Gnevny. At first glance, this thing seems terrible. Less firepower than the LOTUS, slower and less defended than the PANSY, so why would we want it? One word: fighters. This is the first ship we can get that has fighter capacity, though we do not currently have the blueprints for hangar space or fighters to load.

We also have the Rurik cruiser from a couple updates ago, but I think it was decided not to use it.

Sadly, we cannot currently afford any of these. Some money-making is required no matter what we choose. I will grind out whatever amount of money is needed off-screen, so don't worry. I want us to have a kick-ass fleet.

Also keep in mind that we can have three ships in our fleet now. We'll need to be at full capacity before very long to have the best odds of survival, but we can get by with only two ships, or by adding the DAISY to the fleet, for a while.

Well, I suppose that's everything. Tune in next time for awesome new crew members, fleet ownage, and the power of medicine!