How long have you been a pilot?

So I got my pilots license at the back end of 3306 when the Pilots Federation were offering to cover the exam entry cost. I mean you would have to be absent minded to pass up on a chance like that. You can make a lot more credits with a license than without, trust me I used to Apex everywhere although convenient I just wanted the option to, you know swing past that planet or this system. You do meet some interesting pilots that way though, now Barbara from Zaonce she could tell a story or two, trust me.

How did you become a photographer?

I got into photography a long time ago, I was on Lave for an assignment with the Imperial Herald when I happened across a jumble sale or flea market if you will. I love my antiques you see, and I spotted an old camera, which I though would make an interesting conversation piece for my apartment. The old boy said something weird about it still having film and he would throw in a whole bunch of accessories. So anyway, I picked it up and for the longest time I thought it was broken. No lights would come on, the screen on the back never came on, it was so dark it was almost as if it was just solid black plastic. So it turned out the thing was fully mechanical, no electronics, screens etc, the little metal cylinders that came with it contained the film, which is where the images you take are stored. Anyway, do not pull the film out of the canister, it’s a pain to get back in and if you leave it out for a few hours, it gets darker. Having a finite number of images I could take with that camera, I invested in a couple of camera drones and requested to be transferred to the photography department of the Herald instead of the fetch and carry role I had since school. To my surprise they accommodated my request, I felt like that David Baily guy from the old comics you know, just without the dressing up as an arachnid and fighting crime on the side.

Do you believe in Raxxla?

Raxxla, no. That’s just a story invented by pirates to recruit young kids, getting them to think they are embarking on an adventure to find riches beyond the imagination. It’s like those old Earth stories of Atlanta, Georgia where it’s swallowed up by the sea, or the Tower of Blackpool that was destroyed by a God because humans were getting to close to the heavens.

I did believe the Clash of the Titans was real at one point, as I saw some documentary footage in a museum once. Turns out it was faked with something called stop motion animation.

I do believe there is a lost place called Hiraeth. I have photographic evidence as well. I found it amongst the job lot of camera gear I picked up on Lave. I have also heard it mentioned in songs, old songs though. On one of my many travels I picked up something called a Disc Man, it’s really good you can put these compact discs in, and I mean these things are flat if you have ever seen them, very compact indeed. My favourite songs are by someone called Bryn Terfel, an amazing voice although I think some of the data on the discs may have been corrupted over time as some of the songs, the words don’t sound like the words you or I would use, but Hiraeth pops up from time to time.