Entry 1 - Hesitation and Calculations

The comm-channels are buzzing like a disturbed hive. That damn Alcor-Cygnus conflict finally boiled over. Two factions, the “United Alcor Concord” and the “Cygnus Free Coalition,” going at it like enraged space-bears. Forty top-of-the-line dreadnoughts is what the Concord boasts, while the Coalition throws hundreds of smaller, faster ships into the fray. Idiotic, frankly, but it’s making waves across the whole of the sector.

Normally, a war like this would have my fingers twitching. Excess stations, resource dumps, the kind of quick-profit opportunities that build fortunes. Buy low while they're emptying their pockets for the war effort, sell high when the fighting inevitably grinds to a halt. But… these aren’t skirmishes. These are full-scale fleet actions. The kind where you get caught in crossfire and your freighter ends up as so much cosmic debris. Frankly, I’m not feeling the risk appetite right now. I’ve been building a nice little cushion of credits, and that's more important to me than taking a shot at instant riches. Let the vultures pick at the scraps for now. I'll bide my time watching the markets. For now, I'll stick to known routes and safe cargo runs.

Entry 2 - The Siren Call of Profit

Damn it. Damn it all to the black. I tried to stay away, I really did. I kept on chugging along on the trade routes, but the numbers... they're impossible to ignore. The reports streaming out of the Cygnus system are insane. The domestic goods market is completely shattered. Pre-conflict, basic supply boxes were going for 50 credits, now they're over 200! Two hundred credits for a box of nutrient paste, medicine packets, and damn plumbing parts! I must have moved over a couple of thousand of them this cycle, mostly along secure routes.

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The people down there are desperate. The Coalition must be cutting off supply lines, or diverting everything into their war effort. Either way, the need is real, and the supply is non-existent. It's… a moral quandary, I admit. I’m profiting from other people's pain, but at the same time, they need what I'm selling, badly.

It's too much, too good an opportunity to pass up. I crunched the numbers again at least a dozen times. I can realistically ship at least a few thousand of these boxes straight to Cygnus with their population at any station and make a killing. I went ahead and took out a line of credit. I bought another freighter, a battered but reliable "Stork" class. She needed some work, but I can’t wait to get started. I went all in on insulating the engines, the best passive dampeners I could afford. Should give me a much smaller profile on scanners. It's risky, yes. But this could set me up for life. I'm going in.

Entry 3 - Sweet, Bitter Reward

I've never seen such a mess. The jump point into the Cygnus system was a chaotic mess, with transports, refugees, and even a few battle scuffles in the distance. My ships all worked well. The insulated engines seemed to work a treat. A few near misses with patrolling Coalition ships but they never saw my vessels coming.

I managed to steer clear of any major conflicts, navigated the debris fields, and got to the pre-arranged trading stations. They didn't haggle for a second. They bought everything I had, everything, at my price. The holds were empty by the last jump to the third station. I made a killing. It's sickening the amount of credits I made. I’m talking about a total turnaround of more than 1200%, including all the expenses involved. I'm not sure I can even believe the number. Every credit went back into my account within a space of maybe 12 hours.

Now, the question is - what to do with it? I could finally afford those hull modifications I've been eyeing, ECM package; transmission jammers, flares, an integrated targeting, you name it. I could even get a shield generator! Only one mind you, but Phoenix would be invulnerable practically, as long its flux doesn't go over. I could also pick up a six to eight frigates as nimble escorts. So many choices.