Malthus Aurelius
Caldari Provisions
Caldari State
36
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Posted - 2017.06.13 16:49:32 -
[1] - Quote
Born and raised on a Sukuuvestaa mining station.
Yeah, yeah, I know, what the heck is a Civire doing in SuVee space? Well let's just say that we had a lot of Achuran neighbors. Nothing wrong with that of course, We're all still Caldari, we're still getting our work done and taking care of what we need to. It's just that on smaller fringe stations, that diversity people are used to over in the tradehubs just doesn't exist. Of a couple hundred thousand, I think there were maybe a few thousand Civs and Dets on the station, and you all have a good idea what sort of offices Deteis tend to hold compared to the rest of us.
I mean, you grow up around a culture, and it may as well be "your" culture, but you still can't help but notice how much you stand out from everyone else. People don't like what's different, and there are some corridors that you just don't walk down. Learned that the hard way.
Education system wasn't too bad aboard the station, we were taught basic math, literary comprehension, sciences, some standard stuff for any decent station, albeit our post-basic schooling took a quick turn to include safety briefs, education on using personal protection equipment, and to not screw with airlocks. Yeah, there's a story behind that. A lot of that education came from watching recordings and live footage, learning to read and fill out the piles of paperwork associated with mining and industry, you name it. "Bring your kid to work" days were fairly common for the other teens whose parents worked on station, but mine were normally out on the mining vessels themselves.
I mean, it wasn't like my parents were gone forever; every day they usually got in early enough so we could share our dinner rations, spend a little quality time. My father used to help me out with my schoolwork. Kids that didn't have guardians to watch over them were normally left at education and training facilities under security's watch, so I had plenty of time to study and exercise. Granted, there wasn't any time to be sedentary either; If you got caught lounging around, the instructors would put you to work. "The common man that complains about labor, yet never labors to better himself will serve the state as he's worth; expendable labor."
Yeah, yeah, I know this is a long story. It might sound harsh to other people, and I've heard SuVee has a bad reputation, but the casualties on our station normally numbered under a hundred weekly. That's what following strict SOPs gets you; less people KIA than on a Matar rust bucket of an industrial complex. The hours were harsh, but we had purpose, and that's something a lot of capsuleers take for granted now.
Where was I? Oh yeah, once I turned sixteen, I went ahead and signed up with the station's security forces. Got trained in the usage of EVA suits, rail rifles, CQC, you name it. Had my bar code stamped on, and served my time as a LEO for the station. Was mainly based around breaking up bar fights and the like, although we had a few situations that warranted live ammunition. One to repel pirates that docked using a stolen mining vessel (They didn't trigger their distress beacon, so we had no idea), and another was a group of dissenting refinery workers that took their foremen hostage.
Some tough stuff, and people died ended up losing a friend in the line of duty. It was about that moment that I had a pretty good idea how much of a death-trap the station was. So, I remembered what my instructor had said before, and used some of that corporate tuition assistance to start studying geology, chemistry, and laser photonics. I finished up those classes, filled out my packet to opt into capsuleer training and turned it into my supervisor.
Here I am now, a former station jar-head turned professional rock-cracker, commanding his own independent mining vessel. It's a small start, but it's a hell of a lot more than other people get. |