After months of hiatus, Polite Defiance has begun its long voyage home. We have rendezvoused with the fleet carrier Primordial Dreamer which has been summoned all the way to S171 31 in the NGC 7822 cluster for the purpose of safely unloading billions worth of exobiology data.

Unfortunately, the journey back to the bubble now requires the Dreamer to refill its tritium reserves. After some tedious searching, Defiance has located a perfect double-hotspot in the rings of Plaa Eurk WD-K b9-0 planet 8:

The Imperial Cutter Penumbral Destiny has been dispatched into the ring to acquire a few hundred tons of tritium.

After several months out in the black, Polite Defiance has arrived in Heart Sector IR-V b2-0, docking at the asteroid port Farsight Expedition Base, close to the magnificent Heart nebula, selling its astrocartography and exobiology data for a total of almost two billion credits.

From here, Polite Defiance will likely explore the nearby nebulae and make further surveys within the Elysian Shore sector before heading out further into the void. The target is the Formidine Rift sector, and eventually reaching the galactic rim.

After just over 5,000 lightyears of travel, Polite Defiance has crossed from the Sanguinous Rim into the Elysian Shore sector in Phraa Eaec EH-S d5-30.

The Heart and Soul nebulae, our next waypoint, have been faintly visible for a while now, and are growing steadily closer. They are still 3.5kly away - we are well beyond the midpoint of this journey, but the trip to the Formidine Rift has only just begun.

After a brief stop at the asteroid ports Sagan Research Center and Hell Port, Polite Defiance has turned her prow toward the galactic west.

My destination is the mysterious EAFOTS sector between the Heart and Soul nebulae in Elysian Shore, and thence the infamous Formidine Rift. This is a journey of more than 11,000 ly, and I do not anticipate a return to the Bubble any time soon.

Polite Defiance is on the way home. We are taking the scenic route instead of the neutron highway, hoping to collect some bio-samples from this relatively pristine sector of space.

After a few days of exploration, we have made it to the asteroid part Sagan Research Center in the Thor's Helmet Nebula. It was a minor detour from the way back to the bubble, but the view is well worth it - not to mention banking a billion credits' worth of astrocartography and genetic data.

We will be taking a well-earned vacation here, and then decide whether or not to return to the bubble or set out into another direction. Maybe the Formidine Rift...

Having arrived in Oochorsch PO-X d2-1, Polite Defiance has verified the following orbital parameters of the only planet in the system:

• orbital period of 32670.9 days (89.5 years)
• semimajor axis of 19.69 AU (9825.4 ls)
• eccentricity of 0.999266
• current distance - at 2024-01-21 01:00 - of 4274 ls from the star.
• mean anomaly of 6.1373807458.

Based on this data, I predict periapsis on 2026-02-16 14:41:41 UTC. The planet will, over the course of approximately 2-3 hours, slingshot around the star at a minimum distance of 6.78 lightseconds before beginning its long journey back to the outer extremes of its 89-year orbit.

The DBX-class survey ship Polite Defiance is heading to the Oochorsch PO-X d2-1 system to check up on an unusual planetary orbit.

The orbit is reported to be extremely elliptical, with an eccentricity of 0.9993. The planet orbits once every 89 years, with periapsis at just over 6.87ls and apoapsis at over 19kls. The planet is currently approaching periapsis, with an estimated date in February 3312, just over two years from now. The survey will seek to obtain a more precise estimate.

The unnamed Imperial Courier hull was outfitted for light PVE combat and racing, and named Perpetual Devotion.

A new Krait Mk2 ship was outfitted for light AX combat and named Pegasus Device.

The Python Polar Domain was refitted as a civilian freighter in order to participate in the June 2023 Booze Cruise event, riding the 8kly ladder to the extragalactic outpost of Rackham's Peak and making a total profit of approximately 5 billion credits.