Eighth Tier Overseer’s Personal Effects

Lonetrek region – Okela constellation
Tsuguwa system – Planet VI
Caldari Navy Assembly Plant Station

16 January YC 127

For the last week or so something was nagging me at the back of my mind. I couldn’t put a finger on it until today, when I browsed the contents of my cargo hangar. There it was – 8th Tier Overseer’s Personal Effects (OPE). After destroying Radiating Telescope at Guristas Scout Outpost, I discovered a bunch of Pithum C-Type modules which cost a small fortune. The overseer’s personal effects were found in the remains of the telescope too but, as you can imagine, they were just a sideshow at that time. Now that my excitement about getting richer by half a billion ISK subsided, I remembered a curious case of 7th Tier OPE which I extracted from a Guristas Frigate wreck some time ago. The effects contained an intact datapad which required an ID and a key for access. I didn’t find a key last time but I wondered if I would be lucky today. In fact, I also got another set of 7th Tier OPE from the Outpost so my chances of finding something interesting doubled.

When I got to the hangar, I called Aura and she also got excited about the pirates’ secrets. I found the crate with the 8th Tier OPE and tipped it on the floor. As I was sorting through the contents, Aura who was watching me via the commlink camera, suddenly cried, “That’s it!”

“What? What?” I asked anxiously.

“The key! The one that we missed last time.”

I looked around but didn’t see it.

“It’s there, near the red box,” said Aura impatiently.

I lifted the box and saw a small security token which was half-hidden under it. I vaguely remembered that I had such a key at my last pre-capsuleer place of work where it was used as a second authentication factor. Guristas, apparently, were as fussy about their cybersecurity as my former employer.

I picked up the token and said, “Great! Now all we need is a datapad to stick it into.”

“And an ID,” added Aura, pointing at a white rectangle.

I took the ID card and continued rummaging in the pile of a dead overseer’s effects. As I spread all the items on the floor, I realised that there was no datapad. It was hard to miss as it was typically one of the largest objects in OPE.

I scratched my neck and snorted, “That’s ironic. Last time we had a datapad but didn’t have a key. Now we have the key but don’t have the datapad.”

Aura frowned but then brightened up, “Can you try these ID and key on the 7th tier overseer’s datapad that we found in December?”

I shrugged, “Why not?”

The idea didn’t prove to be fruitful. When I tapped the ID on the datapad, it informed me that only Dralok Ralkin, its owner, was authorised to use it.

“Nice try,” I chuckled mirthlessly, “Apparently, you need all three items to belong to the same person.”

“How about the 7th Tier OPE that we found at the Outpost last week?” asked Aura.

I checked the hangar plan and found a shelf with the required crate. A thorough examination of its contents produced only an ID. The datapad and the security token did not survive the explosion.

“Damn!” I swore in frustration, “It’s like a lottery. What are the chances of finding all three items in one set of OPE?”

“I don’t know,” said Aura, “but you could improve them by tempering your scorched-earth approach. Try destruction, not annihilation.”

I snorted, “Of all the people or, for that matter, AIs, you should know that I have no control over the precise targeting of my railguns. My skills allow me to improve the turret tracking, but otherwise they are auto-targeting the centre of mass. And even if I could control them, it wouldn’t do us any good. When a thing blows up, it doesn’t ask me if it should be gentle on the overseer inside.”

Aura reluctantly admitted that, indeed, there was little I could do. Then she grinned, “I know a sure way of increasing your chances of winning the lottery.”

I rolled my eyes, “I am all ears.”

Aura made a dramatic pause and said, “Buy more tickets!”

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