I've never written fan fiction before. But this game is so incredible I've been inspired to attempt to give my CMDR a backstory. So, without further ado, I give you the Genesis of Crocodylus Pontifex. I hope you enjoy it.
** BEGIN TRANSMISSION **
Crocodylus Pontifex: “...most feared bounty hunter in the Empire”??? Listen, bub...I only agreed to this interview because my bounties have dropped 30% since your paparazzo started reporting my every move. In fact, I lost an Asp just yesterday while on an assassination mission in Cemeiss. If this is the drivel GalNet is going to write about me, we can just end this right now.
GalNet: Please, forgive the sensationalism. Let’s just get right to it, shall we? Let’s talk about your genesis as a bounty hunter.
CP: Can we just dispense with the pleasantries? I know what you want to hear. You want to hear about my childhood. My past.
GN: Well, yes. It’s quite fantastic. Former slave sheds the shackles he wore his entire life only to become a famous bounty hunter.
CP: Please. Again with the superfluous praise. This adulation is all GalNet’s doing. You need sensational headlines to get eyes on your newsfeed while waiting for cargo to be loaded while docked. Yes. I am a former slave. But the truth goes much deeper than that.
GN: Then please, let’s start at the beginning…
CP: I was born in 3266, I think. On what I was told was the day of my birth, my Sol day, my former master would put little wax sticks in a sweet roll and then light the ends on fire. He would have me blow out the flames and make a wish. He said it was an ancient custom originating from Sol. Isn’t that ridiculous? Wishes for a slave? Spare me. There is only one wish for a slave. Freedom. The last one he brought me had 26 of those wax sticks...
GN: But you were a slave for the Empire. It is an honorable thing to be…
CP: Honor? Honor?? Don’t speak to me of honor. At one time, yes. I was a slave of the Empire. But this wasn’t always the case. I don’t have many memories from the time before my slavery. I don’t remember much of my parents...just fleeting memories, really. I remember my mother’s hair. It was red and curly and smelled of lavendar. I know my father was someone important. We would attend dinners at large palaces. Everyone treated him very deferentially. I never understood why.
GN: Incredible! Do you think he could have possibly been a senator?
CP: Again. I do not know. I don’t think so. I was so young when I was taken, but my father had none of the attendants you usually see clinging to a senator’s heels. Now, do you want to hear this or not?
GN: Yes, please, continue. How did you become a slave?
CP: I was with my family. We were at another of these extravagant dinners. This one was different, however. The usual throngs of people in attendance were missing. My mother and I were dining in a secondary, smaller dining room. I remember a little girl was there. The daughter of the host. And her mother. But she didn’t look like our host. I remember being very self conscious around her. She was...different. There was an air of regality about her. Maybe she was a princess...I heard my father refer to our host as “Prince” a number of times. Suddenly, I became very drousy. Almost like I had ingested too much Onionhead. It was like I was dreaming while awake. There was shouting and I heard a crash from the next room. I fell from my chair. I was willing myself to get up, but couldn’t move. I couldn’t even turn my head. The door crashed open, and I heard the voices of many men. My mother fell to the floor beside me. My last memory of her is the look in her eyes...that empty, far off look. Something wet spread across the floor and into my face….I couldn’t even turn my head. Then, everything went black.
I awoke in the cold dark. I could hear the whine of engines. I slipped in and out of consciousness. Later I learned what I was in was one of the shipping containers smugglers use to move slaves undetected through space on their way to anarchic systems to deliver their quarry. I don’t know how long it was before we finally docked. I felt my prison being hoisted and finally placed at rest. Light poured in, and that was the moment of my rebirth as a slave.
GN: Amazing!! This is absolutely amazing. Do you have any idea in what system you were sold into bondage?
CP: Yes. It was Toco. A small refinery system at the edge of the Empire. I was sold to a man named Algis. He was harsh and worked us hard.
GN: Us?
CP: Do you think I was the only slave in Toco? There were hundreds of us. I was the youngest for a time.
GN: For a time? Meaning more children came to Toco?
CP: Oh, yes. Many children. None lasted long. Accidents claimed most. Some were sold to other systems. Some became victims to the slavers’ more...carnal...proclivities. Never me, though. Algis would never allow that. Finally, though, the Emperor’s influence extended beyond Toco and some sebalance of civility was imposed. Suddenly we were free. But what does one do when one is so young? With no money and no family? For a couple months I made my way as a cabin boy for an interstellar trader. He didn’t pay me. I was a former slave...what did I know of being paid for my toils? My salary was two meals a day, and a small closet in which to sleep. Eventually we found ourselves in HIP 21991. And that’s when I met Eridanus. He offered me a new existence. That of an Imperial Slave.
GN: And you accepted. I’ve heard mention of Eridanus before.
CP: Yes. I have spoken of him before. He became as a father to me. And I, a son to him. He taught me to read and write. He taught me to fly. I was mining asteroids around HIP 21991 2 mere weeks after I came under his ownership. He said I took to it as a “duck to water”...whatever that means. He said it is an ancient phrase from Sol. He was very infatuated with Sol and its planet Earth. He said it was always good to know from whence one came. It was he who would bring me the flaming sweet rolls on my Sol day. The first had 10 wax sticks.
However, Eridanus had a weakness for gambling, and it eventually became his end. He owed a lot of credits to some very unsavory people. Eventually, they came to collect. They came on my Sol day. My sweet roll had 26 wax sticks...
GN: What happened next?
CP: Once again I was sold into slavery. Again, I found myself on Toco. But this time it would be different. I wasn’t a frightened boy anymore. I learned the slavers’ routines. I learned who ran the various factions. I learned who the other slaves found influential amongst our ranks and befriended them. We bided our time. All the while watching, learning, and scheming. The “leader” of a local pirate faction in Toco was a pig of a man...his name escapes me. He was very braggadocious and boisterous. I learned it was he to whom Eridanus owed his credits. I also learned he was expecting a large shipment of personal weapons. This was our chance.
GN: Are you trying to tell me you were involved in the Toco Slave Revolution of 3294?
CP: Involved? I fomented the damned thing. We planned and schemed for years. When we learned of the expected personal weapons, we knew this was our chance. We didn’t know the exact time of delivery, but we had the day. My lieutenant, we called him Cowboy, arranged for me to be working in the loading docks the day of the shipments arrival. Finally, a Federal Dropship arrived. A Federal Dropship...can you believe it? Those fascist s talk a good game about freedom and the abhorrent nature of trading in human chattel, but there they were. Selling weapons to these pirate scum and giving them the firepower they needed to extend their influence in the system. Some Federal General and his entourage. I guess the lure of credits can be too much for even those with..what did you call it? Oh, yes. “Honor”.
GN: Yes, General Arturas. His body was found amongst the carnage along with 3 of his special forces officers. There was always speculation as to why he was on Toco. The Federal government claimed it was a diplomatic mission.
CP: Yes, yes, we’ve all heard the official line. It is a fallacy through and through. Once the crates were unloaded we sprung our trap. Cowboy was the first through the door and planted his hand axe square in the middle of the General’s forehead. The rest streamed through the door and tore his entourage to pieces. You said there were special forces amongst them? I guess when you have a hundred angry slaves bearing down on you, even special forces training isn’t going to be enough. When it was all over, there were hundreds dead on both sides. But in the end, we were victorious, and no one was spared. I found the pig barricaded in his living quarters. The coward had taken his own life. Those of us who survived split what we could find as evenly as we could. I left Toco with 1000 credits and a Sidewinder. The rest has been covered ad nauseum. Now you know the story and we’re finished.
** END TRANSMISSION **
** BEGIN TRANSMISSION **
Crocodylus Pontifex: “...most feared bounty hunter in the Empire”??? Listen, bub...I only agreed to this interview because my bounties have dropped 30% since your paparazzo started reporting my every move. In fact, I lost an Asp just yesterday while on an assassination mission in Cemeiss. If this is the drivel GalNet is going to write about me, we can just end this right now.
GalNet: Please, forgive the sensationalism. Let’s just get right to it, shall we? Let’s talk about your genesis as a bounty hunter.
CP: Can we just dispense with the pleasantries? I know what you want to hear. You want to hear about my childhood. My past.
GN: Well, yes. It’s quite fantastic. Former slave sheds the shackles he wore his entire life only to become a famous bounty hunter.
CP: Please. Again with the superfluous praise. This adulation is all GalNet’s doing. You need sensational headlines to get eyes on your newsfeed while waiting for cargo to be loaded while docked. Yes. I am a former slave. But the truth goes much deeper than that.
GN: Then please, let’s start at the beginning…
CP: I was born in 3266, I think. On what I was told was the day of my birth, my Sol day, my former master would put little wax sticks in a sweet roll and then light the ends on fire. He would have me blow out the flames and make a wish. He said it was an ancient custom originating from Sol. Isn’t that ridiculous? Wishes for a slave? Spare me. There is only one wish for a slave. Freedom. The last one he brought me had 26 of those wax sticks...
GN: But you were a slave for the Empire. It is an honorable thing to be…
CP: Honor? Honor?? Don’t speak to me of honor. At one time, yes. I was a slave of the Empire. But this wasn’t always the case. I don’t have many memories from the time before my slavery. I don’t remember much of my parents...just fleeting memories, really. I remember my mother’s hair. It was red and curly and smelled of lavendar. I know my father was someone important. We would attend dinners at large palaces. Everyone treated him very deferentially. I never understood why.
GN: Incredible! Do you think he could have possibly been a senator?
CP: Again. I do not know. I don’t think so. I was so young when I was taken, but my father had none of the attendants you usually see clinging to a senator’s heels. Now, do you want to hear this or not?
GN: Yes, please, continue. How did you become a slave?
CP: I was with my family. We were at another of these extravagant dinners. This one was different, however. The usual throngs of people in attendance were missing. My mother and I were dining in a secondary, smaller dining room. I remember a little girl was there. The daughter of the host. And her mother. But she didn’t look like our host. I remember being very self conscious around her. She was...different. There was an air of regality about her. Maybe she was a princess...I heard my father refer to our host as “Prince” a number of times. Suddenly, I became very drousy. Almost like I had ingested too much Onionhead. It was like I was dreaming while awake. There was shouting and I heard a crash from the next room. I fell from my chair. I was willing myself to get up, but couldn’t move. I couldn’t even turn my head. The door crashed open, and I heard the voices of many men. My mother fell to the floor beside me. My last memory of her is the look in her eyes...that empty, far off look. Something wet spread across the floor and into my face….I couldn’t even turn my head. Then, everything went black.
I awoke in the cold dark. I could hear the whine of engines. I slipped in and out of consciousness. Later I learned what I was in was one of the shipping containers smugglers use to move slaves undetected through space on their way to anarchic systems to deliver their quarry. I don’t know how long it was before we finally docked. I felt my prison being hoisted and finally placed at rest. Light poured in, and that was the moment of my rebirth as a slave.
GN: Amazing!! This is absolutely amazing. Do you have any idea in what system you were sold into bondage?
CP: Yes. It was Toco. A small refinery system at the edge of the Empire. I was sold to a man named Algis. He was harsh and worked us hard.
GN: Us?
CP: Do you think I was the only slave in Toco? There were hundreds of us. I was the youngest for a time.
GN: For a time? Meaning more children came to Toco?
CP: Oh, yes. Many children. None lasted long. Accidents claimed most. Some were sold to other systems. Some became victims to the slavers’ more...carnal...proclivities. Never me, though. Algis would never allow that. Finally, though, the Emperor’s influence extended beyond Toco and some sebalance of civility was imposed. Suddenly we were free. But what does one do when one is so young? With no money and no family? For a couple months I made my way as a cabin boy for an interstellar trader. He didn’t pay me. I was a former slave...what did I know of being paid for my toils? My salary was two meals a day, and a small closet in which to sleep. Eventually we found ourselves in HIP 21991. And that’s when I met Eridanus. He offered me a new existence. That of an Imperial Slave.
GN: And you accepted. I’ve heard mention of Eridanus before.
CP: Yes. I have spoken of him before. He became as a father to me. And I, a son to him. He taught me to read and write. He taught me to fly. I was mining asteroids around HIP 21991 2 mere weeks after I came under his ownership. He said I took to it as a “duck to water”...whatever that means. He said it is an ancient phrase from Sol. He was very infatuated with Sol and its planet Earth. He said it was always good to know from whence one came. It was he who would bring me the flaming sweet rolls on my Sol day. The first had 10 wax sticks.
However, Eridanus had a weakness for gambling, and it eventually became his end. He owed a lot of credits to some very unsavory people. Eventually, they came to collect. They came on my Sol day. My sweet roll had 26 wax sticks...
GN: What happened next?
CP: Once again I was sold into slavery. Again, I found myself on Toco. But this time it would be different. I wasn’t a frightened boy anymore. I learned the slavers’ routines. I learned who ran the various factions. I learned who the other slaves found influential amongst our ranks and befriended them. We bided our time. All the while watching, learning, and scheming. The “leader” of a local pirate faction in Toco was a pig of a man...his name escapes me. He was very braggadocious and boisterous. I learned it was he to whom Eridanus owed his credits. I also learned he was expecting a large shipment of personal weapons. This was our chance.
GN: Are you trying to tell me you were involved in the Toco Slave Revolution of 3294?
CP: Involved? I fomented the damned thing. We planned and schemed for years. When we learned of the expected personal weapons, we knew this was our chance. We didn’t know the exact time of delivery, but we had the day. My lieutenant, we called him Cowboy, arranged for me to be working in the loading docks the day of the shipments arrival. Finally, a Federal Dropship arrived. A Federal Dropship...can you believe it? Those fascist s talk a good game about freedom and the abhorrent nature of trading in human chattel, but there they were. Selling weapons to these pirate scum and giving them the firepower they needed to extend their influence in the system. Some Federal General and his entourage. I guess the lure of credits can be too much for even those with..what did you call it? Oh, yes. “Honor”.
GN: Yes, General Arturas. His body was found amongst the carnage along with 3 of his special forces officers. There was always speculation as to why he was on Toco. The Federal government claimed it was a diplomatic mission.
CP: Yes, yes, we’ve all heard the official line. It is a fallacy through and through. Once the crates were unloaded we sprung our trap. Cowboy was the first through the door and planted his hand axe square in the middle of the General’s forehead. The rest streamed through the door and tore his entourage to pieces. You said there were special forces amongst them? I guess when you have a hundred angry slaves bearing down on you, even special forces training isn’t going to be enough. When it was all over, there were hundreds dead on both sides. But in the end, we were victorious, and no one was spared. I found the pig barricaded in his living quarters. The coward had taken his own life. Those of us who survived split what we could find as evenly as we could. I left Toco with 1000 credits and a Sidewinder. The rest has been covered ad nauseum. Now you know the story and we’re finished.
** END TRANSMISSION **
Last edited: