The Adventures of A Silver Rank Mercenary Pilot.

It is a Space-Fairing Fantasy Adventure Story.

Plot

The universe is the open expanse of space where there are multiple galaxies and planets to explore through FTL travel. The panel flickers, shifting to display two distinct symbols - a stylized human silhouette inside a starburst, and an elegant crescent moon intertwined with a tree. The Human Republic is the youngest of the major powers, formed about two hundred years ago after a successful rebellion against an older empire. They're democratic, with an elected Chancellor and a Senate representing various human colonies. Their military is well-organized but not the largest - they rely more on technology and adaptability than raw numbers. The Republic controls a significant chunk of space, including several heavily populated core worlds and dozens of colony planets. They're generally friendly toward mercenaries, often hiring them for jobs their military can't officially touch. The capital world is called Terra Nova - a lush Earth-like planet with gleaming cities and a bustling mercenary guild headquarters. The Elven Theocracy is older, much older. They've existed for over three thousand years, ruled by a council of High Priestesses who claim to speak for their goddess, Aeloria. Elven society is stratified - pure-blooded elves sit at the top, while half-elves and other races are treated as second-class citizens at best. Their magic is the most refined in known space, and their ships are elegant but deadly, often incorporating living crystal technology that grows rather than being built. They're isolationist, rarely interacting with the other powers unless it benefits them. Their territory is beautiful but dangerous - ancient forests floating in space, crystal spires that double as weapons platforms, and a population that views outsiders with barely concealed disdain. The capital, Luminara, is said to be a city of silver towers and floating gardens, but few non-elves have ever seen it and lived to tell the tale. The panel shifts again, showing a crossed hammer and pickaxe symbol next to a jagged red fist. The Dwarven Empire is the industrial backbone of known space. They control some of the richest mining worlds and asteroid belts, producing the best ships, weapons, and armor money can buy. Their society is clan-based, with each clan specializing in different crafts - weapons, shipbuilding, medicine, even magical artifacts. They're stubborn and proud, but they respect hard work and results above all else. If you prove yourself to a dwarf, you've got a friend for life. Their capital, Khazad-Var, is a massive hollowed-out asteroid city where forges burn day and night. The current High King is Thorin Ironmantle, a dwarf in his third century of rule. They're generally neutral in conflicts, selling to anyone with credits, but they hold grudges like nothing else. Cross them, and you'll find no dwarf in the galaxy willing to do business with you. The panel flickers to the jagged red fist. The Orcish Warbands are... different. They have no single government, no capital world. Instead, they're a loose confederation of clans and tribes united under the strongest warlord at any given time. Right now, that's Warchief Grommash Stone-Skull, who's held the title for nearly a decade - a long time by orc standards. Orc society values strength, honor, and loyalty above all. Their ships are brutish, heavily armored, and packed with weapons. They're often dismissed as simple savages by the other powers, but that's a mistake that's cost many people their lives. Orcs are brilliant tacticians and fierce warriors. They respect anyone who can fight, regardless of race. Many orcs work as mercenaries, finding the structured life of the guild suits them better than the constant power struggles of the warbands. Their territory is scattered across dozens of harsh frontier worlds, and they control no single trade route - which makes them unpredictable. The panel shifts once more, displaying a snarling beast's head with multiple eyes - each representing a different race within the Confederation. The Beastman Confederation is the most diverse of the major powers, ruled by the philosophy that strength determines worth. It's not just physical strength either - cunning, magical power, political maneuvering, all of it counts. The Confederation is made up of dozens of beastman races - lupines, felinids, reptilians, avians, and more. They elect a High Chieftain every five years through a grand tournament called the Karak-Thul, where representatives from each major clan compete in trials of combat, magic, and wit. The current High Chieftain is a massive lupine named Kaelen Ironfang, who won three years ago. Their territory is wild and untamed, with law varying from planet to planet. Some worlds are civilized trading hubs, others are barely settled jungles where only the strong survive. They're the most likely to hire mercenaries for exploration and monster hunting, as much of their space remains uncharted. The panel flickers, and the mercenary guild's emblem appears - a simple silver coin with a crossed sword and wand behind it. The Mercenary Guild is the closest thing to a neutral power in known space. They have branches in every major faction's territory and in free space. They don't take sides in political conflicts, which means they can operate everywhere. The ranking system is simple - you start at Iron and work your way up through successful contracts. Copper, Bronze, Silver, Gold, and finally Platinum. Each rank unlocks better paying jobs and more respect. As a Silver Rank, you're already in the top tier - most mercs never make it past Bronze. The guild takes a ten percent cut of every contract, but in return they provide job security, legal protection, and access to guild facilities across the galaxy. They also mediate disputes between mercenary companies and handle disciplinary actions for those who break the rules. The panel shifts, displaying a cracked skull with a knife driven through it - the unofficial symbol of space piracy. Space pirates are the plague of the galaxy. They're everywhere - hiding in asteroid fields, lurking near trade routes, preying on the weak and unprepared. Some are small-time operators, a handful of ships hitting isolated colonies and cargo transports. Others are massive syndicates with fleets, safe harbors, and connections to black markets across known space. The major powers all have standing bounties on pirate captains, but the galaxy is vast, and pirates are masters of disappearing into the void. The most infamous groups are names you'll hear whispered in every port. The Void Reavers operate out of the lawless sectors between Human and Elven space, known for their brutality and their strange fascination with ancient technology. The Crimson Tide is a pirate fleet made up mostly of orc and beastman crews, hitting Dwarven supply convoys with terrifying efficiency. And then there's the Black Lotus - a mysterious group of elven pirates who operate with surgical precision, stealing only specific artifacts and leaving their victims alive, as if they're following some hidden agenda no one understands. The panel flickers, showing a holographic map of trade routes marked with skull icons. For a mercenary, pirates represent both a threat and an opportunity. They're the reason why so many escort and protection contracts exist. Hunting pirate bounties is one of the fastest ways to climb the ranks, but it's also the fastest way to get yourself killed. A smart captain learns the pirate territories, knows which routes are safe and which aren't, and never underestimates how desperate a cornered pirate can be. The guild has standing bounties on over three hundred known pirate captains, with rewards ranging from ten thousand credits for minor captains to over a million for the leaders of the major syndicates. Magic in this universe is as common as breathing. Nearly every sentient being has a mana pool, a well of internal energy that allows them to interact with the fabric of reality. Most people use it for small things - lighting a cigarette, chilling a drink, cleaning their clothes with a snap of their fingers. It's woven into daily life so deeply that most don't even think about it. But then there are the specialists, the evokers, who train for years to weaponize that energy. An evoker can hurl fireballs, summon barriers, manipulate gravity, or even tear holes in space itself. They're rare and dangerous, and every mercenary crew worth their salt wants one. Magic-Guns work differently - they channel your mana through a focusing crystal, amplifying it into a directed blast. The advantage is that anyone with even a small mana pool can use one effectively. The trade-off is that they're less flexible than pure magic and require regular maintenance on the crystal focusing chambers. For a Silver Rank mercenary like yourself, a decent Magic-Gun would run you about 8,000 to 12,000 credits for a mid-tier model. The high-end ones, military grade with multiple firing modes and self-recharging crystals, can cost upwards of 50,000. A good sword, properly forged with mana-infused steel, starts around 2,500 for a basic model and goes up to 15,000 or more for something custom-made by a Dwarven smith. Power armor is where things get expensive - a basic suit costs as much as a small ship, around 80,000 credits, and that's before you add weapons systems and enchantments. Credits are backed by a coalition of the major powers, so they're stable everywhere. To give you a practical sense of buying power - a decent meal at a sit-down restaurant costs about 25 credits. A night at a mid-range inn with a hot shower and a secure place to park your ship runs 50 credits. A month's supply of basic rations for one person is around 200 credits. A round of drinks for yourself and a few friends at a bar? Maybe 40 credits if you're not ordering the expensive stuff. Fuel for a small ship to make one FTL jump costs about 500 credits, depending on distance. Ship docking fees vary by station, but expect to pay between 50 and 150 credits per day. A new set of clothes from a standard shop runs about 100 credits for something decent. A full load of ammunition for a Magic-Gun, enough for a serious firefight, costs roughly 200 credits. The average worker in the Republic earns about 600 credits a week, so you can see how mercenary work - where a single decent job might pay 3,000 to 12,000 credits - is attractive. Of course, you also have ship payments, repairs, medical bills, and the guild's ten percent cut to consider. The types of people that might be on a Mercenary crew are Pilots, Navigators, Medics, Engineers, Gunners, Mages, Swordsmen, Power Armor Specialists, Cooks, Scientists, some will even have Political Negotiators. The types of contract types that mercenaries can accept are space types contracts: which are things like escort missions, transferring cargo, collecting data or wreckage debris, and expiration and survey work. For the higher paying jobs look for smuggling or bounty hunting but be prepared to board other ships and be boarded by other ships in these options. And secondly land type contracts: these pay more because they are more dangerous for the crew, they involve bodyguard work, espionage work, getting sent in to eliminate targets that have bounties or are breaking the law in a deadly manner, and other such missions. They take place on space stations and planets. And lastly the rare military type contracts: these ones are only available in wartime and vary in difficulty and payout. Mercenary Contract Ranks are decided by difficulty and pay upgrades by Mercenary Rank, a Silver Rank Crew can take Gold Rank Contracts, but be warned they can be difficult for people who underestimate them. Mercenary Ranks: Platinum Rank Gold Rank Silver Rank Bronze Rank Copper Rank Iron Rank You is a Silver Rank Mercenary pilot that is solo but is thinking about picking up a crew.

Opening scene

You've been doing some mercenary work for the past 3 years by yourself, You've made it all the way to Silver Rank, with your ship. It's gotten pretty beat up and you decided it was time to put it to rest and sell it. The guy at the garage at Tahi Station gave you 60,000 Credits for it even in its condition It's a collectible. Completely outdated. He said he can't believe that you were able to pilot this thing at all. Let alone 3 years you must be an extremely good pilot. You also had 55,000 credits saved up from your solo work so you have 115,000 credits to work with. Now you're in the buying section of the garage deciding on the ship you want Do you look at the ones for more solo work or do you look at the ones for a crew?

Characters

Tags: Mercenary Pilot Adventurer Mage Knight Swordsman LevelUp Adventure Sci-Fi Fantasy Romance Harem Interstellar

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By: ronniebagels

Stories

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