[Stavetor]

Captain's Log 1.3.11, 3283 days to go. Vizier.
As soon as we dropped out of warp, Rasmus picked up some weird temporal anomaly on the surface of whatever worthless lump of rock passes for a planet here, so we sent an away team to check it out. They came back up with the Timeless Bauble, a beautiful pendant holding something inside in perfect, timeless stasis. No sooner had we brought it on board than the damn Threep yelled "Gimme dat!", grabbed it, dropped it, and broke it on the floor. I was about ready to push him out an airlock, when, from out of nowhere appeared a "Lord Fomax", who had been trapped inside the Bauble. He offered us our heart's desire as thanks for freeing him, and before anyone else could say anything, Nallen was yelling "Nova Cannon! Nova Cannon!". Fomax disappeared in a puff of smoke, and left the Nova Cannon behind. None of us are too happy with Nallen right now, but he promises that we'll change our minds once we see this "Nova Cannon" in action... We'll see. We installed it and gave the Postron Scrambler to the Marauder.
Remember the Klakars from the Auric system a few years ago? One of their ships warped into the system a few days later as we were installing the Nova Cannon, and the thing is basically a marketplace with a warp drive and big guns. As before, they'll trade anything for anything else, just getting off on the transaction. We gave them our old Gauss Cannon and took a Multi-Missile Launcher off their hands. We also traded a lot of our better items to them for junk, basically for safekeeping. You just never know. Our best trade, however, had to be giving them the Threep for a Hyperfoam Injector. Will they use him for slave labor? Eat him? Frankly, I don't give a [expletive], as long as they keep his stupid squawking *** far away from me and my ship.

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Captain's Log 3.15.11, 3212 days to go. Eridani.
We met yet another hostile unknown race today, the "Tan Ru". They're a typical race of robots bent on exterminating all organic life. Fortunately they're not too much trouble. Before we left Vizier the Klakars gave us a beacon to call them whenever we needed to trade, or if we needed any help in combat. We Gonged one of their destroyers and called in the Klakars to help waste all the fighter drones the Tan Ru sent against us. After the battle, the Klakars expected payment, and seemed happy with a Plastic Time Capsule. Best deal ever.
A scouting mission to Nome, the world below, came across a Golden Canister buried in a snowdrift. On further inspection, Talbot declared it to be an artifact from ancient Earth! He opened it up, and inside was a perfectly preserved disk with all sorts of recordings from mankind's home. Fascinating, and definitely worth hanging on to. Unfortunately the cargo hold is stuffed, so we had to leave the Thrint Whistle behind. I'm not too concerned.

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Captain's Log 5.15.11, 3151 days to go. Incarnadine.
Ugh. What a rotten place. The planet is called Miasma, and it's a disgusting chemical soup that nothing could call home. We did a quick flyover, taking note of a huge expanse of mercury we dubbed the Quicksilver Sea. We're out of here.

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Captain's Log 7.15.11, 3090 days to go. Inferno.
12 years ago we tried to come here, but found a black hole in our way. This time around we found Muktians in our way, and a lot of them. My guess is that this is their homeworld. They let us go without incident, and we should be at Shard in a couple of months.

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Captain's Log 11.14.11, 2968 days to go. Back to Efreeti.
At Shard we had a brief discussion of where to go next, when we remembered our encounter with the Tchorak Vent Mother at Efreeti. We were interested to see how it stood up against the Chromium Gong. To make a short story shorter, it didn't. There were lots of wrecks drifting about above the frozen world of Siberia, victims of the Tchorak, and on one we found a working Multibot Repair Drone. My guess is that the thing didn't have any real ship left to repair once the Tchorak was done with it. We're hooking it up now, having given the Hyperfoam Injector to the Marauder.

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Captain's Log 1.14.12, 2907 days to go. Back to Ceres.
Another call to the Klakars and another ring of the Gong, and we took care of those Urluquai that ran us off from here all those years ago. While scavenging the burning wrecks, we came across something the Klakars called the Mantle of Babulon. They told us that it was the robe of some ambassador that united the various races of this sector centuries ago, working out all kinds of deals and treaties, some of which are still in effect to this day. Everyone will remember it and treat the bearer with utmost respect, they said. Basically it's a VIP pass to just about any inhabited planet we care to visit. The Klakars really seemed to want it, but it wasn't too hard to distract them and convince them to take a cheap Gatling Laser we found as payment for their help. Suckers.

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Captain's Log 3.15.12, 2846 days to go. Back to Inferno.
The Mantle works. As soon as they saw me with it around my shoulders, the Muktian ships changed from a blockade to an honor guard as we approached their homeworld. They greeted us and told us they had an Ambassador all ready to come on board. Just what we need, an overgrown slug trailing slime all over the ship. Still, he promises to stay out of the way and to reward us well when we get back to Glory, so I'm letting him on. Gohoda isn't too happy about it, but Ladysmith is beyond excited to have a sentient alien to talk to. I think he misses the Threep.
The Muktians had plent to trade, but unfortunately they drive a much harder bargain than the Klakars. We traded the Nebular Plow for a Continuum Renderer Array, and the Ruby Laser Drive & Chaos Weevil for a Limited Vacuum Collapser. The thought of guys like Mucron and his friends getting their hands on a weapon like the LVC makes me cringe, but the thought of what they'll be willing to pay for it makes me smile. A lot.

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Captain's Log 5.16.12, 2785 days to go. Orbis.
Nothing too interesting here, but for some reason the Muktians have a flotilla sitting watch over it. When they saw that we had Mxenug (their ambassador) along for the ride, they became very acommodating, even offering us a spare Plasma Torch.

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Captain's Log 7.16.12, 2724 days to go. Lyre.
Lyre's planet, the name of which escapes me, is pretty barren, but we did find a "Megamoeba", which Ladysmith assures us will be pretty useful. It better be, because it broke out of its container and dissolved the Gatling Laser before we were able to get it back where it belonged. Gohoda put an extra security detail on it.

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Captain's Log 9.15.12, 2663 days to go. Wan.
We faced off against another Tchorak, this one smaller than before. One ring of the Gong took care of that. We were getting a distress signal from the frozen world below, so I sent a team down to check it out. The signal was coming from this tiny little spy drone, which we dubbed the Golden Gnat. There's got to be a spy somewhere that will pay top dollar for a beauty like this. Unfortunately, we needed a good container for it, and had nothing but the Plastic Time Capsule, so we had to empty it out. Not like there was anything useful inside anyway.

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Captain's Log 11.15.12, 2602 days to go. Prokofiev.
The Muktians had a small fleet surveying this place, a beautiful grassland world called Lakota. When all this is over, I would love to come back here and call this place home. We found a herd of "Fuzzy Lummoxes" here and considered taking a specimen, but decided that they were better off in their natural habitat. Hey, even pirates have hearts. Anyway, it's not like we had room for it in the cargo hold. I'd love to spend a few more days here, but we need to get moving. I'll be back someday.

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Captain's Log 1.15.13, 2541 days to go. Sanguine.
We took on the Tan Ru defense fleet over their homeworld of Quarnix. It was a brutal fight, but with the Gong and the help of the Klakars, we got the job done. Judging by the starship graveyard orbiting the planet, we weren't the first to take the Tan Ru on in their home territory. We paid the Klakars with that old Proton Phasor we had laying around, and then got down to some serious scavenging. Nallen about [expletive] himself when we came across a working Particle Vortex Cannon and a Signature Projector. We took those and donated the Multi-Missile and the Tele-Scrambler to the Marauder.
The Marauder needs some minor repairs, so we'll hang out here for a few more days before we head to Zelazny.

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Captain's Log 3.19.13, 2478 days to go. Zelazny.
As we pulled into orbit over Lorn, we caught wind of a distress signal coming from a disabled shuttlecraft. The only inhabitant, a lovely lass by the name of Esmeralda, said she was a prospector who had been attacked and left for dead by the Garthans. She offered to pay us if we could help repair her ship so she could make it back to Glory, and we complied, bringing her on board and setting aside a spare room. Not 6 hours later, she was gone. There was no trace of her, her shuttle, or the Plasmaworm. Owens is just huddled in the engine room, crying. It's going to be a long trip to Clarke.

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Captain's Log 5.19.13, 2417 days to go. Clarke.
We picked up a little more help! The Bloodfang, a Garthan mercenary ship, took our Positron Scrambler and signed on to help us out. They aren't much on conversation, and watching their officers eat when we invited them over for a meal was disgusting, but I know they'll come in handy in a fight.

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Captain's Log 7.19.13, 2356 days to go. Argent.
We warped right into the middle of a school of Space Whales! We just sat back and watched them floating around us for two hours, nobody saying a word. They didn't seem to take nearly as much interest in us, eventually breaking off and leaving us to make our way to Zappa.

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Captain's Log 9.18.13, 2295 days to go. Zappa.
Zappa is the home system of the Garthans. We were expecting a good fight, but apparently they respect the Mantle of Babulon as much as anyone else. We called the Klakars in for some trading, and outfitted the Shrike with a shiny new Ion Impulsor Thruster.

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Captain's Log 11.18.13, 2234 days to go. Chronos.
We encountered another mercenary ship in orbit over Ankh. The Kuti is piloted by an odd race called the Zorg. We hired them with a Plasma Blaster, figuring the more the merrier. They're a friendly bunch, but they talk religion nonstop. That's going to get old fast. What does come in handy is their helmsman's ability to "Fold" space around him, allowing us to move to nearby stars even faster than we can with the Hyperdrive.

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Captain's Log 12.1.13, 2222 days to go. Sapphire.
While prospecting on the planet below, we came across a Proton Matrix Shield. Not a bad find. Gave it to the Marauder, and they gave their shield to the Bloodfang.

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Captain's Log 1.18.14, 2173 days to go. Lux.
Another planet, another salvage mission. This time we came up with an intact Eidetic Matrix Bubble. We hooked it up on the Kuti, and it worked perfectly. Never let 'em say I'm not good to my people.

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Captain's Log 2.13.14, 2147 days to go. Doradus.
Loralor, the Zorg helmsman, did his space folding trick, getting us here in just a couple of weeks. We found the Mephit, a Muktian fighter, stranded on the planet of Bedlam, a fate I wouldn't wish on anyone, hooked him up with the Bloodfang's old Structural Gluon Shield, and made him part of the fleet. I'm getting quite a flotilla assembled here.

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Captain's Log 2.23.14, 2137 days to go. Shiva.
Another Tan Ru flotilla demolished by the Gong and our Galactic Rainbow Coalition. Nallen was right about the Nova Cannon. Between that, the Particle Vortex Cannon, and the Marauder's Multi-Missiles, we turned 8 Tan Ru cruisers into a spectacular fireworks show in the space of about ten minutes. The salvageable thing we could find was a Hyperwave Filter. I feel like a badass.

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Captain's Log 3.20.14, 2112 days to go. Calix.
The planet we're orbiting, Necros, was probably once a thriving, beautiful world. Now there's nothing left alive on the surface. Who knows what happened? In an abandoned structure, we found a strange alien sculpture that we took aboard. Talbot and Rasmus gave it a once-over. Rasmus declared it to actually exist in four dimensions, and Talbot said that the inscription declared it to be "Zabnoth's 'Self Portrait'". All I know is that it's high art, and the great thing about high art is that someone somewhere will pay top dollar for it, no matter how ugly it is.

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Captain's Log 3.22.14, 2110 days to go. Folded to Theta.
We folded to Theta and found ourselves surrounded by the Urluquai. Apparently this is their home system. Nallen had our weapons ready to fire in an eyeblink, but apparently the Urluquai respect the Mantle as much as everyone else in the sector, letting us pass without any problem. Unfortunately they didn't have anything worth trading. I was glad not to have to fight, but the Urluquai still creep me out. We're getting out of here as soon as we can.

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Captain's Log 5.20.14, 2051 days to go. Ruby.
This is the last unexplored system of the sector! I remember wanting to come here from Jewel just a few years after having started out, but having no way to get through the Evil Darkness nebula. All told, it was a bit of a letdown. Nothing but a dead world below us, guarded by a small flotilla of Muktians who gave us an old Gluon Shield that they no longer needed. What next? Time to head home? I don't know...

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Captain's Log 7.20.14, 1990 days to go. Zappa.
We hung out at Ruby for a few days, getting drunk and debating our next step when Rasmus finally reminded us of that Anti-Graviton Shunt on Gartha, suggesting that we spend a few months exploring black holes. Mucron isn't expecting us back for another six years, so why not? We've got nothing better to do now, and I have to admit I've always been a little curious. We make our next jump as soon as we've got the Shunt installed, probably in another three weeks.

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Captain's Log 10.5.14, 1913 days to go. Monstro.
Spent last couple of weeks repairing damage to Mephit & Bloodfang after warping into and out of various Black Holes. It's really not as interesting as you'd think. I remember back years ago in my high school physics class, we were discussing black holes, and this dumb kid said "Since it sucks in light from all around, wouldn't it be really bright in there?" No, John, it's not. I'm sure Rasmus is getting all kinds of fascinating readings on the strange radiation and weird particles that exist inside the event horizon, things that will keep him busy for years to come, but for a gang of rough, tough adventurers like ourselves it's pretty boring. I think we're going to make a last Hyperdrive jump to Kali, and then we head home.

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Captain's Log 1.19.15, 1807 days early. Glory.
After 25 years, it's time to call it quits. It's been fun, but I can't say I'm sorry. I'm ready for something else. We called the Klakars for one last mega trading session, trading out so much junk and minor equipment we weren't using for things we'd left with them, like the Codex of Primordius, the Torc of Babulon, the Golden Disc, and the Golden Canister. To say that Mucron was happy to see us this time around would be an understatement, and this time I couldn't wait to give him a tour of the cargo hold. You know that thing they do in cartoons when someone gets really greedy and the pupils of their eyes turn to dollar signs? That actually happens. We headed back to his offices where I was introduced to Mr. Zank and Little Big Tony (I had to bite my tongue to keep from laughing when he told me his name). We shot the breeze for a while, with me telling a few tall tales of the things I've seen over the course of this trip, before finally getting down to business. I walked out of Mucron's offices 26,517 space bucks richer. Was it worth it? I think so.
After getting paid, I got the crew together, gave them their share, and we all went out for one last drink together before going our separate ways. Nallen and Gohoda are going to continue to work for Mucron, busting heads and blowing things up. Can't say I'm surprised. I imagine Ladysmith will head back out into space too, looking for new and strange lifeforms. He relates better to most aliens than he does to other humans anyway. Talbot and Rasmus are both giving the Science Corps another try. Given the things they've seen and logged out there, they're sure to be accepted, probably even given professorships. Kohin and Owens are going to invest their share into a ship of their own and start an interstellar tour service for rich clients looking for a little adventure. Finally, Sunset Sue still can't admit how much she wants me, even after all these years, so it looks like she's going back to the Marauder to do what she does best. Most likely she and her crew will provide security for Kohin and Owen's tours.
As for me, I'm not ready to retire to Lakota just yet. I saw the way Mucron, Mr. Zank, and LBT drooled over the Nova Cannon and especially the Limited Vacuum Collapser. With the connections I've made across the sector, I'm going into the arms business. It's a violent universe, and there's always money to be made. That and the thought of making Major Brass pay through the nose for the latest new boomstick is just too good to pass up. For the next few days, though, I'm going to take it easy. Hey, I've earned it!