"Hello, Ken," said Linus with a smile.

"Tonight we have roast bosk with suls and moonfruit. Of course there's plenty and enough for Keira."

He poured a beer and set it in front of Ken.

"That sounds great Linus.  I can barely exercise enough to keep from gaining weight with your great cooking." Ken took a deep drink of the beer and smiled.  "Ahhhh... that was good.  You should definitely start that star port bar.  I'd gladly invest."

Linus grins.

"I had a starport bar. I sold it to go on the first trip with Lorain and you lot.. as I was saying, the black has seeped into my bones, I don't think I can settle down on a planet any more."

The dinner was excellent, as usual. Lexi and Blake made small talk. She offered to escort him back to her cabin and spend the night shift, if he liked. Lorrain joined Ken and the others for a meal, as did her friend Talia (who'd also been with them during their adventure on Mirayn). With them was the Vargr scientist, Dr. Goezghae.

Overall, the mood of the crew and passengers of the ship was naturally of expectation and a little impatience for Jump to end. Still, there was a little apprehension as to what they'd find at the end of the journey.

They'd managed to shave weeks or even months off their intercept time once out of Jump by locking onto the Mothership's immense mass, much like that of a planet. After all planets were not stationary either, and so ships Jumping from World to World exited Jumpspace at 100 diameters but with the proper velocity. It seemed they could do the same with the Mothership!

Blake spends a quiet evening with Lexi ...

Neva couldn't help but get a bit more excited the closer they got to their stop.  Everybody seemed to be getting more excited.  It was also fun to watch Ken trying to score with Lorraine as well as Blake setting his sights on somebody.  One day perhaps she might get up enough courage to ask somebody out to lunch.

Ken laughed.  "Good point Linus!  I think that we'll have no lack of excitement for the time being between what is happening with the Sky Raiders and the bubbling problems along the frontier with Descarothe."

During the the dinner he chatted with Lorain and the others about the prospects for survivors aboard the enormous mother ship.  "So Lorain, do you think that anyone is likely to be left alive aboard the ship?  It's been thousands of years since they seem to have drifted off into open space."

If Blake ever hears Ken's idea - he will mention something about generation ships, but even that idea has to be pushing tech given the passage of time.  But what if they met the Ancients ??  Yeah, space opera.

"If they were set up as a generation ship they would have a much higher chance of surviving.  Still, if there were survivors they would have had to have lost their Jump capability perhaps due to damage as we've seen no sign of them for centuries."

In reply to Ken Jenkins (msg # 166):

The Vargr scientist decided to answer the question and Lorrain ceded the floor.

"We won't know until we arrive.

"Anything is possible. We just don't have enough data about the Sky Raider mothership's design. It was in continual operation for several centuries. This suggests a modular design and new generations certainly did grow up and were replaced in that time.

"Sublight starships are comparatively rare. We just don't have many examples. By the time a starfaring culture develops them they usually possess Jump drives, mainly through technology transfer via trade, conquest or being conquered.

"One relatively recent example is a colonising and exploration mission launched from Terra, or Earth as it was known then, in its post-spaceflight/pre-starship era several thousand years pre-Imperial. I believe three asteroid ram-ships were constructed and launched. They were neither fully "generation" ships but hybrids. The crew were born, lived, worked and then died for many generations while the colonists slept in stasis pods. These ships all arrived in an area of the Greater Rift that is active in star-forming and found a cluster of worlds, the Islands Clusters. Unable to penetrate the clouds of hot dust, gas and electromagnetic interference that surrounded them these colonies formed their own self-sustaining interstellar economy.

"After the colonists were unfrozen and settled onto planetary surfaces the crew, which had only known deep space for fifty generations, decided to stay aboard their vessels. These  sublight starships were then used to colonise the cluster and provide the main means of interstellar trade and transport between Worlds for thousands of years. What is fascinating is that they continued using the old starships, and building new but similar ones, for thousands of years. It was only the last couple centuries at most since Jump Drive was introduced.

"So yes, there are cases of sublight starships being habitable and operational for thousands of years! Of course these ships had a planetary infrastructure to use for maintenance and production of spare parts. Which is not the case here, right?

"As long as someone is alive, and they have the skills and materials to maintain life support, it's possible someone is alive. The mothership has not been in contact with any Worlds or outsiders for several millennia to take on supplies or manufactured goods through trade or warfare. That we know of. This fact alone argues against any living survivors."

Ken frowned.  "I hope we aren't boarding a huge, space-faring tomb.  It should be safer but I like to hope that the Sky Raiders with all their flaws and aggressions are still alive aboard the ship.  It would make for trouble but I would like to meet them."

In reply to Ken Jenkins (msg # 168):

Lorrain jumped in.

"A big tomb is probably what we're going to find. The records are unclear but it's obvious something caused a large breakaway faction to try and settle a sub-optimal world like Qarant. Our best guess is some kind of civil war.

"Living survivors would be a great anthropological find. New societies are not rare, here in the wilds, but finding one that originated so far to trailing and essentially preserved for millennia is fascinating to contemplate. There was rumours of a lost asteroid colony in the Outrim Void dating back to the Long Night. Allegedly, the inhabitants of that planetoid colony had degenerated into complete cannibalism as other food sources failed. This is utter rot. Without other food supply a population that relies on cannibalism and nothing else will soon both run out of members and die from malnutrition. But one fragmentary report from private explorers a few years about is all I read about, maybe the Imperial Scout Service did some kind of followup.

"Be that as it may there should be a great trove of artefacts. Not just looted valuables from maybe hundreds of Worlds but a glimpse of life as a Sky Raider. If we're really lucky there will be intact data banks."

Tomb ships Blake intoned, or death ships, the tales are always out there, especially for misjumps.  Cannibalism is a dead end, even hibernation is a dead end since those still awake will toss the sleepers out or eat them.  The very last ones in might survive though.  Blake says nothing about the stints working base rescue/salvage watches.  Sometimes between missions they are assigned as 'miscellaneous duty', yeah you get flight pay for being on call ...

In reply to Blake Renfield (msg # 170):

"Intact data would be nice.  Although you need to be careful what you ask for.  Some times we think we want to find out the information but do we really?"

Neva didn't think it would be good to meet up with survivors.  Like Blake had said, how did they survive?  Their ancestors had some dark secrets she was betting.  If there weren't any survivors, how did they die?  Once again the ancestors might have had some dark secrets.

Neva shook her head to clear her negative thinking and smiled as she took another drink.  She was sure that the smile didn't totally reach her eyes but that was ok.  She was sure nobody would notice.

In reply to Neva Alexovna Morozova (msg # 171):

Lorain looked at her watch. "Well, we'll know for sure in about 24 hours. We could exit Jump almost any time now, as Jumps last between 6-8 days and we are at the 6 day mark. But odds are it's another day."

In reply to Blake Renfield (msg # 170):

Talia laughed and sipped her coffee.

"If this is a death ship, it's going to be one of the bigger ones. The mothership is bigger than the biggest colony ships."

In reply to Blake Renfield (msg # 170):

Lexi swallowed the rest of her beer, then grinned. "Oh yeah? Tell me more, Blake. I've heard the legends as well. Ghost Ships from the Long Night, or unknown civilisations. Ships of no known design that just appear and then disappear."

Lexi, I can't speak for myself on those mysterious 'finds'.  But I know enough about salvage and rescue duty.  Successful rescues are the greatest, the others, well lets talk about some better.  Blake's face turns very mournful here, there's a dark side to a lot of jobs out there. Like what working on this ship is like ??  Cargo hauling, expedition start-ups and pick-ups afterwards ??

Ken grimaces. "A tomb ship would be horrible but no worse I guess than digging through any other archeological site."  A thought struck him.  "If this thing is full of artifacts from the raiding era it will be a treasure house as well.  Think of all the gold and loot in the tomb on Miryan.  This place will have thousands of times that amount of value.  We will find the ship and search it but how is it kept intact?  Surely the interstellar powers may fight over it let alone the scavengers like Kalamanuru."

"The act of finding the ship may lead to it's destruction."

In reply to Ken Jenkins (msg # 176):

One of the other specialists, "Lucky Jack" McIntyre, spoke up. "I guess that's the risk we need to take. We have provisions to stay six months, and we can stretch that to a year without too much problem. We'll recover what we can, study what we can. The closest government is the Memnosyne Principality. Much closer that the Zhodani. The Institute has good relations with them and they are an ally of the Free Suns. If they lay a claim to the ship that might discourage counter-claims."

"Lucky Jack" was a Belter from the Free Suns, contracted by the Institute for his expertise in asteroid mining. According to him, his nickname was simply because most asteroid miners were simply lucky to live long enough to retire! But he also found some solid strikes along the way, enough to get him out of the game with his skin intact.

In reply to 'Lucky Jack' McIntyre (msg # 177):

Jeri Marrenda was one of the cutter pilots, hired as crew so not directly employed by the Institute.

"Bear in mind the Zhodani are at war with a much bigger and powerful enemy. While they're fighting the Imperium they won't have the time or resources for a side adventure, even for something as tempting like this. They're very focused like that.

"And I've spent some time in the Consulate, on trade and transport runs. They're not thieves, they respect agreements. I doubt they would seize the mothership, even if they have the opportunity, especially if someone they have a treaty with like the Principality lays claim first.

"With the Zhodani, all bets are off with the Imperium, because of its size and technological superiority. Treachery, subterfuge, covert or overt force, they'll use everything they have. But they've coexisted and traded peacefully with the independent states here in Far Frontiers, even Imperial client states, for centuries without absorbing or destroying them.

"I'm Solomani, descended from Imperial settlers. The Zhodani are not my favourite people. But to give them credit they are an orderly and stable society, maybe too orderly and stable. They are not the types to simply take something simply because the opportunity arises."

They finished their supper.

"That was a good meal. Want to go back to your cabin and relax with a nightcap?"

She was in crew quarters, they wouldn't have a lot of privacy there.

Sure Lexi, I have a bottle for special occasions.  And clean glasses.    But first, a stop by Linus for the dessert special of the night, to go ...

Ken took in the responses.  "It will be up to the science team of course but we'd probably be best to spend that six months exploring.  The ship is probably big enough we could spend years if it is anything like the old generation ships sent out by the Terrans before the Interstellar Wars."  He considered the options.  "Perhaps we should send the ship back to the Memnosyne Principality after a few weeks, long enough to understand the broad strokes of what we are dealing.  The downside would be setting off a gold rush or being cut out of the loop entirely.  Perhaps the Institute might negotiate directly for special access.  Certainly if this thing is a giant tomb some respect should be paid to the dead."

Once we come out of jump and discover the findings ...  Blake just soaks up everything about this asteroid from the science profs.  This is the holy Grail of scouting ...