Luxury Liner Shetland

CLASS: Wilde

AMENITIES: Yes

PASSENGERS: 500

Owned and operated by Orbital Spa and Cruise Lines, the Shetland is a moveable feast for the rich and those who service them. Aside from its gourmet restaurants and shopping arcades, guides aboard the Shetland offer tours of the protected preserve of Gaia -- a beautiful, pristine world -- but planetside visas are an extraordinarily rare and expensive item.

## Bribes & Missions Offered

* Orbital Spa and Cruise
* Planetform, Inc.
* Bounty Hunters Guild

## Commodities

* Water
* MOX
* H-Fuel
* Pharmaceuticals

* Luxury Food
* Consumer Goods
* Luxury Consumer Goods

## Rumors

* I'm going on an unofficial hunting expedition tomorrow. I met a Bounty Hunter who says he can find me a blue ground sloth. That would be an interesting addition to the collection of heads in my study.
* I've seen company documents that described negligible amounts of Cobalt on Gaia. It was a ploy for the government to let us in and begin full-scale strip mining of Aluminum and Titanium, the Basic Alloy metals that we have almost exhausted in Stokes. So, the Gaians and Cambridge researchers were not unfounded in their accusations.

* We've been doing a lot of patrols in the LD-14 area, looking mostly for Mollys. We keep running into Gaians and Outcasts, which has been a real puzzler. Enough of work talk. I need one of those Gaian Shooters everyone's doing over there at the bar.
* I'm heading out with a Bounty Hunter today on an Arran Cloud flight. Guess I need some action, even when I'm on leave. He said I could handle the guns if anyone shows up.

* Those Gaians don't really seem to be a bad lot -- maybe a little up in the clouds, if you know what I mean. They haven't had to deal with makin' a living, like us working-class folks. Orbital has brought us here to bring in a few scalps, and that's what I'll do.
* I love this place -- nice scenery, gambling to your heart's content, Food like I've never tasted before. They let you eat all you want -- go figure. This is nothing like my days growing up in Leeds. Joining the Guild was definitely a good thing for me.
* I just made a run into the Arran Ice Cloud. That's Outcast country out there. They make their Cardamine runs into Bretonia through a Jump Hole somewhere in there. They don't mess around, so you'd better be prepared.
* I came out here to hunt for Outcasts and Gaians, but there's more reliable business taking out tourists on trips to the clouds, or down to Gaia. I specialize in a little area of jungle in Pangaea known for its ferocious monster reptiles.
* We run a regular assault patrol into the Islay Cloud. The Gaians usually oblige us with at least one skirmish. What we're really hoping to find is an Outcast smuggler. That pays for more than a few nights in the Shetland Casino.

* Bowex does not officially take a stand on Gaia or terraforming in general. I personally feel that it has been a tremendous waste of government money that could've been better spent in a clean-up of Leeds, or in subsidizing new technology research to make Bretonia more competitive with the other Houses.
* Back in New London, more than a few people are starting to question the official media's version of the Gaians. Instead of engaging in general piracy, the Gaians focus their efforts on Gaia and terraforming-related activities in Bretonia. I must admit, it is a unique planet that represents something that we have lost in Bretonia. It's worth protecting from Cobalt mining, or whatever BMM wanted to do.

* We're supposed to keep an eye out for Cardamine use on the Shetland when we're here on holiday. This ship seems pretty clean, though. It's a little too difficult for the dealers to smuggle past our border station. I've heard there's some Gaian plant that produces an even better effect than Cardamine.
* All these rich people from the big planets make me kind of self-conscience. They spend more on clothes and jewelry in a couple of days here than I earn in a year. I'll just hang out at the buffet and feast, I guess.

* The researchers down on Gaia don't even want us tourists there. They say we introduce alien viruses and diseases to the indigenous animal population. It's been an ongoing dispute between Cambridge University and Orbital Spa.
* We're doing all sorts of crazy research back in Cambridge. They keep bringing in those Alien Organisms, and you have to be very careful with them. Management is hoping to find one that can help us unlock the mysteries of Cardamine, but I'm not sure why they want to do that.

* The best money you can make on supply duty is hauling Luxury Goods and Luxury Foods from New London. These goods are more enticing to the Outcasts, so there is considerably more risk involved. Be especially careful in the West Leeds Smog Cloud.
* Most of our basic supplies like Consumer Goods, Food, and Pharmaceuticals come from New London or Leeds. It can be a worthwhile run for a freelance shipper, but watch out for the Gaians.
* Some of our ships run Luxury Goods all the way from the source in Manhattan to our location. It's one the most lucrative legal cargo runs in Sirius, but it goes without saying that there are a number of hurdles to cross. The Barrier is probably the most difficult.
* Business has been very good on the Shetland. The Bretonian populace enjoys visiting an unspoiled paradise like Gaia. Unfortunately, tourists' impressions of Gaia have served to increase public sympathy for the Gaian movement, making it more difficult to obtain government funds for eradicating the terrorists.
* Gaia is a remarkable planet. We are blessed with a pristine ecosystem that has supported the evolution of higher life-forms like giant reptiles and mammals.
* Orbital does a patrol run across the edge of the Islay Cloud to keep the Gaians in check. We know their base is in there somewhere, but that is a police and Bounty Hunter affair, not our problem.
* The Outcasts have been attacking some of our runs. For this reason we invited the Bounty Hunters to use our ship as a forward base. They are not exactly the kind of guests we like to have on the Shetland, but sometimes one has few choices.
* The Shetland offers discriminating travelers everything they could desire: luxurious buffets with delicacies such as lettuce, apples, and roast hindcow; lavish boutiques stocked with all of the latest Manhattan fashions; and wild, exotic animals.
* Frankly, most people come for the gambling and feasting. The younger set opts for the planetside excursions. Most of the retirees just sit here and gorge themselves. Many are New Londoners, but we get a few of the Leedites, as we call them. They want one big trip before they die of whatever affliction Leeds gave them after living 40 years in that nightmare.

* It's stressful at Gateway. Bowex lobbyists have a lock on the Bretonian government and its contracts. They've made it hard for us to expand much in Bretonia. We're hoping that the ALG and IMG partnerships will eventually allow us to control the Border World shipping business beyond the reach of Trade Lanes.
* Gateway doesn't handle any Edinburgh traffic -- this is Planetform territory. I don't know why they're starting this new project. They haven't even finished Harris or California Minor yet. They should just leave this place alone.

* Gaia has many attractions. There is a beautiful stretch of beaches, a large preserve dedicated to wild animals, and a mountain range this is twice as high as anything I've ever seen in Kusari.
* It is a long journey here from Kusari. I'm stationed in Kyushu on the battleship *Nagumo*. I normally do Tau-29 patrols but never go further than that. Tau-31 is pretty, but Leeds is horribly polluted. We have nothing like that in Kusari.