Cepheus Engine Leviathan SOLO campaign - Unskilled OK Part 0.4
Interview Room 101: Part One
Somewhere along the approach to Berengaria Main, the planet itself had started to acquire detail, and gradually a small speck appeared in a high orbit around it. At first small and unimposing, the speck grew gradually and imperceptibly until Sue-lin looked out of the screens once more and it almost filled them up.
"We will be docking at BT Orbital in approximately ten minutes." A mechanical voice, no attempt at more than the basic human inflections and tonality.
Sue-lin pulled her sac closer to her and tried to think about what questions they might have in store for her.
An hour later, emerging from Visitor Control, Sue-lin looked around for an obvious place to freshen up and get ready. Before she could, a uniformed official, with youthful hair but plastic surgery scars not quite faded, approached smiling and began to shake Sue-lin's hand. "Welcome to the Barraccai Technum Orbital Station," he said without letting go of her hand. "Johnson Weber, Deputy Factor, Barraccai Technum, at your service. There's a short cut through the marketplace to where your interviews will be held." And when she looked at him frowning he replied, "The usual medical, psych evaluation, and main interview. Why, will you want to freshen up first? I'm sure that can be arranged. Come, let's get you there before the jump-lag kicks in."
The interview room was empty apart from a table, two chairs, and a medical unit with wires and pads. It reminded Sue-lin too much of her cell back on the Cyan hulk. Hopefully she would not have to wait in here alone for long.
On the desk were some written instructions, with an annotated diagram. Following them, she took off her outer clothing and applied the pads to her skin in the positions indicated.
She was deep in thought when the door opened, and a man entered, closing the door behind him and taking a seat opposite without offering her his hand, a drink, or any pleasantries at all.
"Sue-lin Huawei." His voice was deep, authoritative. He wore a monocle in one eye. Sue-lin found herself concentrating on that detail.
"Yes Sir."
"42 years of age, raised on Cyan, formerly employed by Arkesh Spacers, later of McClellan Factors. Pilot." He raised his eyes to look at her.
Sue-lin nodded. "That's right Sir. 20 years experience as a Pilot and related expertise."
"I see. You saw action in the last Frontier War."
"Yes Sir. Pretty much my first mission out of training."
He looked her straight in the eye. "Keep talking."
Sue-lin cleared her throat. "I was 18. I'd completed training on Cyan and was shipping out to my first commission with the Spacers on the Seagram. I'd done well in training and I was going in as a commissioned Crew. We were on our first jump out of Bantral, headed for the Foederate. We came out of jump and almost immediately went on full alert battlestations. We were being lit up by two Outworld Coalition destroyers. They hailed us, relayed the declaration of war, then ordered us stand to and prepare to be boarded, else they'd loose their missiles on us."
He nodded, his face impassive, with perhaps a hint of a smile in his eyes. "Continue."
"We went evasive. Our Captain was old man Rogenos and he-"
He raised an eyebrow at her hesitation. "Go on."
"If you'll pardon me Sir, Captain Rogenos, he wouldn't take shit from the Emperor himself."
"You survived that encounter."
"Yes Sir."
"And earned a promotion."
"I did OK for myself. I was getting more Pilot experience and it was doing me a lot of good."
"I also understand from your records that you've flown a Leviathan Class Merchant Cruiser several times before?"
"Sir, yes Sir."
"You were on the Amuar in '90, '93 and '94. You started out as 2nd Pilot and on your last mission you were Pilot Acting 1st Officer." He looked up from the notes in her file, regarding her over his monocle with one eyebrow raised. "And you were the Pilot 1st Officer on the shakedown flights of the Shoji in '96. Then you took her out on her first mission, which resulted in a trade deal with the Senlis Foederate and your employers."
"That is correct, Sir."
"Impressive. We're certainly fortunate to have a former Leviathan pilot applying for this post." He seemed to say this without any hint of irony or sarcasm, which Sue-lin noted as she relaxed a little.
He looked through another page in the file, running his finger down several columns as if looking for something. "Our records also indicate that your financial situation is particularly dire."
"Well, I wouldn't say-"
"I would. I would say that owing just shy of Cr100,000 split between three subsector banking institutions is exactly that: dire." When Sue-lin did not reply, he continued. "In fact, since your employment with McClellan Factors was abruptly terminated in 1102, you haven't officially earned any taxable income at all."
"There was my pension-"
"Pension?" He scoffed. "Where have you been living these last four years, that you can survive on that meagre pension?"
Sue-lin swallowed. "I've been back home on Cyan," she began, "my parents are getting old and-"
He nodded. "You're lucky to still have them."
Sue-lin waited for him to press for more details, wondering how she might answer without alerting the monitors that she was lying.
(cont. in Interview Room 101: Part Two)
(... To Be Continued ...)
Credits:
http://zho.berka.com/stuff/lbb-covers/
I made my header graphic using P-O Bergstedt's superb Traveller LBB Cover Generator at the Zhodani Base website.