(( Tucked away in a server cabinet in a cold server room inside a facility on a planet orbiting a bright yellow star, there lies a series of files connected to the Vitruvian Woman, Dewell's inherited ship, by way of a hyperspace link. Although she's not quite sure of the security measure put in place to protect those files, she assumes that they're probably pretty secure. )) [01.MAV] I haven't done this sort of thing in a while. I suppose it was just laziness on my part. I mean, what kind of non-insane person would even want to talk to some voiceless machine for hours on end about their day? [There appears to be a few seconds' pause in the audio.] Eh. It's cathartic, I suppose. Million thoughts running through my mind, need some sort of outlet to release it when nobody's around to stand my endless navel-gazing. Reading can do that to you, I guess. [There was another pause, interspersed with the sounds of idle tapping on a hard surface. There was a wistful sigh.] This is the part where I talk about my day, right? Well, it's not very exciting when compared to what happens in the fiction I consume with reckless abandon. I came down on a quaint little planet somewhere in wild space, sent out the drones and started geological surveys. Identified surface-close ore veins, sent out the other drones, waited. It rained for a while. Clear, cool, refreshing. Felt good. No encounters with unruly wild animals or uncooperative natives. That was also good. Yeah, I know it's unethical to exploit untouched worlds like this but a girl's gotta make a living somehow, right? Columbus was... Actually, no. I'm not going to make that comparison, Columbus was kind of a dick. I don't know where I'm going with this, but whatever. That's what happened. Boring business. I suppose I should thank W for being such a faithful partner, cocky little... I dunno, nerdlord hero-wannabe that he is. Oh, and W, if you somehow hacked my computer and are now listening to this, love ya. I just blew you a kiss. You would see it if I bothered to set up the video settings, but whatever. Hope things work out between you and your girlfriend. Anywho, moving on. What else did I do? Oh, yeah - caught up on my reading. Hegel, Phenomenology of Spirit. I don't know if it's the drudgery of my everyday life or if it's just a fabrication of my mind, but I might be reading slower. [There was another pause, longer than the last one.] Well, I suppose that's it for today. Ramblings of the mind, personal thoughts, et cetera. Extract what esoteric meaning you can from it, Future Me, if you ever decide to dig around in your files. Also I'm sorry if something I do now impacts you negatively in some way or other. I fully understand it if you feel like you want to wrap your metal-lined gloves around my soft, scarfy neck and choke me until I die and you follow because of the laws of causality. Oh geez, that's not a good way to end my first audio log in a long while. Uh... Goodbye diary, I suppose. Yeah, that sounds better. [EOF]
[02.MAV] Started reviewing the little red books again, starting with Marx. Sure, a lot of his ideas seem silly in retrospect but you've got to admit he's got a little something in him. I mean, he's still influencing people hundreds of years after he died. That's the kind of legacy that people are looking for. It's the kind of legacy that makes someone a Caesar, Shakespeare, or Napoleon. They all had that special something that made them stand out against a sea of otherwise forgotten names in history. It's got me thinking about my legacy, what I'll leave behind. And to tell the truth, it's actually kind of depressing. I mean, what have I got going for me? Pixels, furniture, a lot of planets and asteroid fields mined to hell by a swarm of drill-equipped flying fuckbots. Is any of it going to last long enough to make any difference? Probably not. I don't need to waste time whining about how cruel and uncaring the universe is - a lot of people have already written, spoken, and made award-winning feature films about that. I need to focus on living in the moment, I guess. That's what people always tell you. It's all "don't worry too much about the future" or "just it one moment at a time" or "life goes by fast. If you don't stop and look every once in a while you'll miss it." I mean, I get the sentiment, I do, but sometimes I wonder if I'm really living up to it. [There was a sigh, followed by the sounds of rustling cloth.] That's enough navel-gazing for today's entry, though. What did I do today? Well, as usual, there was business. Sent the sixty over to the forge, forty over to the refinement plants. Went on a couple of trading trips - mostly mercenaries and small interest groups for today. Went over to the Outpost for a while, talked to some folks. Took someone out for a trip. [There was a pause.] Well, that was short. What else do I want to talk about? [Another pause, interspersed by a series of tapping sounds. A pencil repeatedly striking a hard desk.] Yeah... I think that's about it. Itinerary for Future Me: Look for the old FN models. Find one of those bullpups. Find W - he hasn't been to Chara in a while. Get the blueprints. Also, if you ever discover time travel, kiss her. You know who I mean. Bye. [EOF]
[03.MAV] The universe is just full of surprises, isn't it? Call me paranoid, but I have a sneaking suspicion that there might be something wrong with me. I mean, there's something wrong with everybody, sure, but it's just that I have that vague feeling inside me that tells me something's just... I don't know, wrong. Call it a sixth sense or whatever, but something's not right. It's the feeling that sits there, in the back of your spine; a chill that just won't go away. I try to convince myself I'm not going insane, and I'm probably right. It's probably just hormones... [A weary sigh.] Right, moving on... What did I do today? I met new people, did new things, and thankfully there was a lack of boring things to do. Discovered an old Floran temple, abandoned with rotting corpses everywhere. Nobody there to claim it, so I went ahead and christened it my Beta Site - a place to rest when I can't reach Chara. Borrowed a couple of W's old tricks, set up some defensive turrets housing Sable's weapons and did some really basic wiring systems in order to get things secure from anyone who might want to claim vengeance for their fallen comrades. The old bricks they laid here are tough, but the facility looks to run deep underground. Haven't ventured that far down yet, though. I'm considering it, but something tells me that's probably not a good idea. In other news, I've discovered a special little something while I was trudging through a sun-baked desert world while scrounging for oil. It looks like some fancy magic water, and it basically acts like a calming agent or something. Scans show that it's clean of morphine, drugs, et cetera, but here's hoping it's not addictive. I found a couple of old blueprints from a trader for old gun models, might be able to put them into the forges soon. Finished reading the red books again, moved on to the Romantic stuff. Byron, for starters. Angsty, I know, but it's all about cultural enrichment. On that note, I end my log entry on a hopefully optimistic note. A little advice to myself - perk up, chin up, brace up, and all of the other ups. You'll have your day in the sun one day, trust me. That's how it works, doesn't it? I hope it does... [Another sigh.] I hope it does...
