22 November, 3603
Day 10
2,837LY from Cel
There are two different categories of explorers: amateurs and professionals. The only difference is professionals have gone through a training course, like me. Part of that course is psychological preparation for months of isolation, and the stressful and dangerous situations you may encounter. I thought I was ready for anything.
I was not ready to find two destroyed ships within 70 lightyears of each other. As if the wreck of the Starswirl and the data I recovered wasn't bad enough.
So I started out again this morning and almost immediately came across a distress beacon in the first system I jumped to. This one was only a year old. The registry on the black box was Lakon Spaceways Diamondback Explorer VX-362: ESS Sky Skipper owned by CMDR Skip Ray. The registry on the pilot's federation said he also had two other crew.
I quickly managed to access the intact part of the flight computer. It was damaged but again I was able to get the last minute's sensor data off it.
I thought what destroyed the Starswirl was a Thargoid. The data was rough but made out a disk shaped ship with several points like a flower. Like what I thought an extremely low quality scan of a Thargoid would look like...
Now I'm not so sure. The other scan is similar, yet this is apparently a good scan. Like this Diamondback lasted three full minutes. The Starswirl lasted last than ten seconds in a fight against one of these things. Whatever they are. Maybe a new type of Thargoid?
I dunno. I can't help but watch my back, hoping I don't meet one.
I may have lost it a bit after I found the wreck. I had a panic attack and jumped a few systems before super cruising well out system where nopony will really find me. I really didn't want to go any more, fear of encountering one of these things preventing me from continuing my journey.
I spent most of the day on comms with my parents and some friends, as well as Doctor Pad. He may be a physics major but he has done a bit of xenobiology on the side.
Mom and Dad did a good job of calming me down. Thank Celestia for Telepresence spells.
Tomorrow I'm going to go back and actually explore the systems I went by. I think the one with the wreck had a Equis-like world.
Mildly paranoid,
-Con
Today's Discoveries:
PRU EURK VQ-G c10-15:
High Metal tfDistress beacon, PRU EURK JF-R D4-111:
Wreck of Lakon Spaceways Diamondback Explorer VX-362
Black Box, Beacon, and Flight Computer Data: recovered