Jack of Harts

The War forced changes in most of our lives. Even those who never raised a weapon in anger felt the effects of increased prices of civilian products. The combined industrial might of entire interstellar nations and alliances poured into building the weapons it took to fight the Shang and their allies. There just wasn’t a lot left over to make new cars, phones, or even toys for kids. People had to keep what they had working, because replacements were hard to come by. That took some people a long time to figure out.

I grew up on the lakes of the Minnesota and Canada border. I fished in summer and winter, under warm sun or through frozen ice. I burned fires in summer nights to celebrate being alive, and on deep winter nights just to stay alive. It was all I wanted back then. I was never going to leave. Then the Shang came and ended that life forever. They forced me to change. No, that’s not fair. I didn’t have to change. I didn’t have to grow up. I chose to do it. I wanted to make them pay. Not the best motivations I grant you, but that was the genesis that made me what I am today.

Forge of War on Amazon

There are thousands of us Cowboys out in space now. We travel around in our little ships, hauling cargo and acting like normal transports. There’s a lot of work in small end cargo you know. Luxury foods for people who like real home cooking, high end electronics to less self-sufficient worlds, and even some rare gems or furs or other stuff. Almost all worlds can make their own food and other consumables, but they often aren’t fully satisfactory. People often want stuff they don’t make on planet. That’s how us Cowboys make money and make most people happy to see us. We bring stuff they want. And we tend to disregard pesky little things like import tariffs.