Oh, well Happy Goddamn New Year to me! I just got passage as a medical assistant on the USS Valhalla, the med evac/transport vessel for the Nova Americus navy. The Valhalla is a charming ship; she carries mostly wounded and permanently disabled ground troops and the occasional mech pilot to various comfort and hospitality worlds, which is fine. And the naughty nurses, it’s said, know where it hurts and how to make it all better…Honestly. It’s great. I’m here because my Daddy decided that I “need to learn a trade or a skill, and stop drinking away the inheritance!” Yeah, thanks Dad.
So let me explain. I’m Lord Peter Zaa, 3rd and youngest son of Pater Pretorius Zaa VII, of the illustrious House of Zaa. The House is responsible for maintaining food and agriculture production on planet Tamsin. Tamsin is the center and source of ALL competitive flower and herb growing in the sector. The House of Zaa has placed First in every major flower contest for the last 100 years. My job is make sure all the plants are watered every day. Needless to say, it’s not a really fulfilling line of work. Yeah, I water flowers. All day. Every day. That is, however, in between the time I spend learning about flowers, how they grow, why they grow, who makes them grow, and what can be done to make them grow better. Can you understand now, why, I’m at the very least a Gentleman Drunk, and a potential drug addict? Oh, it’s lifeboat drill time now. I’ll get back to you.
3 Jan 3308
That was interesting. Along with being a bedpan emptier, I also was voluntold that I also get to stand watches and be ship security! Yes, I did my 4 years in the Army. No, I never had any training on repelling boarders or some such. Regardless, the Captain is happy that I know how a standard infantry shotgun works. The reality is that pirates are a real concern. I would happily blast a pirate straight through a bulkhead rather than explain to another poor bastard grunt that I have no idea how the vac-U-suc toilets work.
I’m in my quarters now. See, I got this job because science. I did take biology and chemistry classes, and I did, like I said, 4 years in the Royal Army of Tamsin. Not infantry, but I did get a small taste of the trooper’s life, and I know how guns work. My job in the Army was pretty simple. I was a gene sampler. Every Tamsin trooper, officer or enlisted, has to submit a DNA sample for identification or study. I selected different samples and moderated experiments. Yes, it was perfectly legal to do. We weren’t cloning anyone. Maybe cloning parts, but not actual people. Plus, it was for the greater good anyway. Who knows? Some trooper’s DNA might contain the secrets for organ and limb restoration. That would help out the poor bastards for whom the only choice is prosthetics.
Betwixt me and thee, there is a certain herb that can only be found on Tamsin. This herb, which I helped make, is used as a religious sacrament amongst certain cultic groups. I’m told that that the cultist either find religion, or lose it using the herb. And I get paid royalties! So, my “education” wasn’t entirely pointless. Okay, Journal, time to feed my Dragon Ivy. The Dragon Ivy is an interesting plant. He’s a carnivore and an opportunistic one at that! My security crew found a rat in the galley. My plant will be happy.
15 Mar 3308
Goddamn pirates!!! Alright. I’m a prisoner on a pirate ship. Yes, that sounds so cool to say, I won’t even lie. Nonetheless, here I am. The pirates attacked yesterday. They were looking for scientists, geneticists, and roboticists. They got a couple of technicians, all the medical staff except the nurses (dammit!!), the Chief and Master Engineers, a plumber, the immunologist, and me.
The pirate boss was interesting. He explained how he wasn’t out for taking a ship and he had a list of the types of people that his employers wanted. I tried to ask him why he’d picked out such an odd bunch, but he said he was just doing a job. He told me that none of the troopers were relevant and not to worry about them because he was leaving the nurses and when they took whomever they wanted, they’d activate the emergency beacon. And then he asked me if I wanted to stay on board or go with the captives. Of course, being stupid, I asked why I had a choice.
He asked me if I had skills or education. I told him my background and what I did. He didn’t seem terribly impressed and he radioed his bosses, presumably, about what to do with me. Clever, clever bastard. While I don’t actually think he really know exactly what his bosses wanted, he had some idea of what they were doing, and I did have a certain value as it happened.
Goddamn pi-….crap. Be right back.
16 Mar 3308
Who’s Tori and who the hell is Dr. Drake Novum? And Novum Dolorum? Never heard of them. But, that’s where we’re going.
