Chapter 2.1 - "Refocus"

Without a doubt the scariest thing for Veriasse, while living in Anoikis, was the sheer disconnection. Suddenly thousands of background channels and streams disappeared, the cacophony of civilization quieted by the harsh tyranny of true isolation. The only chatter here was amongst the handful of capsuleers who now staked claim to the far flung solar system - contrasting against the silence made the singular voices both piercingly loud and ominously dominant. Without the overwhelming white noise that all capsuleers filtered when amongst the empires, space felt almost as big as it truly was.

He never had to admit such things to any living being, nor did he, but the introspective nature of the pod pilot made him confront that fact before his trip had even gone half its duration. Anoikis, wormhole space, the domain of the Sleepers, wherever it truly is... stirred a number of feelings within Veri. Only a few could be described as negative, and by far the strongest of all was curiosity. Who were these beings, what was going on, and how did it all connect to New Eden? No answers were found, but pieces of this immense puzzle were quietly and carefully collected by Veriasse while the Imperative explored their temporary home.

The timing was right; the corporation could afford the downtime from sales and the chemists had been begging for an opportunity to review their processes and retool the laboratories. There were always improvements to be made, and the scientists working for the Imperative were amongst the best that humanity had to offer. Several months were carefully planned for, logistics organized, and infrastructure to support the influx of new capsuleers amassed. The Imperative has had elements in Anoikis for a long time now, and we were partnering up with them to further exploit opportunities they couldn't handle alone.

Research and exploration is ongoing, and unsurprisingly the results are far beyond the purview of even many highly ranked operatives of the Imperative. Knowledge is power, as the saying goes, and without a doubt much of the information gleaned from the secrets found in that deep space frontier has been filtering into the labs and facilities of Imperative science teams in New Eden. Veriasse no longer concerned himself with these musings however, as the return of the corporation from Anoikis heralded a surge in activity.

Production had stockpiled an impressive supply of boosters, shipments of which began their journeys across space even before the full return of the corporation's capsuleers. The caretakers who had remained behind were not idle; within hours Veriasse had already signed a deal with a contact and piloted his vessel, a Dramiel class frigate named Incisor, to the pick up location. Life was good, and the idle chatter of endless voices a soothing reminder that others existed here.