ALL NOVEL Dragoon Ship Industries
We requested to dock at the shipyards and were guided to the docking station at the end.
They did ask what we were here for and I had to tell them that we were here to purchase a ship. I was then told that a representative would be there to greet us when we landed.
I realised there weren't a lot of ships inside the hangar bay as I brought us in for a landing. In fact, aside from us, there were only like five or so other ships docked there.
"Not a lot of visitors huh?" I muttered to no one in particular while bringing the ship down on the hanger bay.
"It's not really a tourist spot after all," Ries answered, being the only other person in the cockpit with me after Amber went back to her ship. "The only people who would be here are either workers who would already live on this station and have no need for ships… Or people like us trying to get a custom ship and we're not that common in this section of the galaxy."
I guess what she meant was that not a lot of people can afford to buy a custom ship here. I'm assuming most people would just buy a premade ship or something which would be much cheaper than what we were trying to do right now.
The only people who might come here for custom ships would be those with a lot of Credits to spare, and such people are practically non-existent around here.
That's not to say there weren't any since I could see at least two ships that were docked here definitely belonged to someone with good money judging by how well it was equipped.
As I completed my landing sequence, I left the cockpit with Ries to see Lea already waiting for us outside.
"Mistress," She greeted me.
"Ready to go?"
"Of course, Mistress."
I led the two girls towards the ramp as it lowered onto the hangar, revealing Amber already standing there waiting for us as well as a woman I don't recognise.
The girl had a bob cut black hair and was wearing a suit with a pencil skirt that reached her knees, giving way to a pair of pantyhosed legs that continued down to a pair of professional black heels.
She gave me a wave, "Hello! Welcome to Longren System's Dragoon Ship Industries shipyard!"
Longren system? Oh right, it's the name of this system. I forgot.
I descended from the ramp and she stretched out her hand towards me, "I am Felicia! I shall be your sales representative while you are here! Are you looking to purchase a new ship or to have your current one serviced?"
I raised an eyebrow while I shook her hand, "You service ships here too?"
"Yes we do! We have different packages as well if you would like to take a look?"
Umm… For some reason, I can feel that she really wanted me to say yes.
That was when I realised she must be interested in the Verlandi.
I shook my head, "We're just here to buy a new ship today. For the servicing… I guess we'll decide later if we want to proceed with that."
She looked a little disappointed but she managed to hide it by stepping aside to gesture towards the station's interior, "That's ok! May I guide you to one of the salerooms to introduce some of our ships to you?"
Although we already have a ship in mind, I guess it didn't hurt to just take a look around.
I nodded for her to go ahead and she led us away from the hangar and into the station proper.
"Not a lot of security here for a station this far out from the inner colonies," I noted.
She turned her head to smile at me, "Oh but we do! They're in the form of hidden turrets and security drones controlled by our security team, so you can rest assured of feeling perfectly safe here even if this station was attacked!"
Huh… Good to know, I guess? Though that wasn't what I was worried about.
She then brought us to what looked like a small hall where there were holograms of various ships on display on top of pedestals.
"Pretty elaborate for a shipyard all the way out here…" Amber mused.
"Oh, this is a standard for all our shipyards!" Felicia explained with a proud smile. "We always have a hall dedicated to displaying our ships!"
She then led us to the first pedestal where a ship in the shape of an upside down "T" was displayed.
"This is one of our newest fighters! The--"
"Carrius Wing fighter. Twin engines, quadruple weapon mount, single seater capacity. The best selling point of it is the large space for the shield generator located in front of the cockpit, allowing it to hold generators meant for larger sized ships despite being an A Class," Ries finished for her.
Felicia turned to smile at Ries, "Oh wow! A fan I see? Is that why you chose us?"
Ries shrugged, "Not really, I just like ships."
I had to hold back on completing her sentence with 'and big guns'.
The sales girl nodded without commenting on it and moved to the next one where a ship that was circular in shape with a dome on top.
"This one is the--"
"Hopper Bomber. Triple engines, dual weapon mounts with quadruple secondary weapon mounts capable of housing both torpedoes and kinetic bombs. Dual seater capacity offering a four eighty degree view around the ship while seated inside the cockpit area allowing pilots to spot any potential targets of opportunity," Ries finished for her.
The sales rep was giving Ries a look, "Did you use to work for us as well?"
"Hmm? Not at all. I just really, really like ships."
The sales rep seemed to be thinking about something for a moment before intentionally skipping the next two to point at the third pedestal.
The hologram projected was a ship that was shaped like a cheese wheel that had been cut in half. Don't ask me why that analogy came to mind.
"This one is--"
"The CXW-two-one Heavy Fighter. Currently still in testing phases and yet to be released but preorders are already being accepted. This one sports quintuple engines with six weapon mounts and two turret mounts. Single seater capacity."
The sales rep turned to look at Ries in surprise, "The existence of this ship is only known in the inner circles of the company and the investors… It's not even slated to be announced to the public until--"
"Next week, I know. I follow your news about it."
"How do you even get our news? Anything about this should have been hidden!"
She shot her a peace sign, "Apparently not hidden well enough from die hard fans like me~"
The sales rep seemed quite conflicted about this revelation.
Well… I mean, Ries just pretty much showed her that she was pretty much useless here in terms of introducing the ships to us.
I kind of feel bad for her so I decided to just cut the introduction short since I could always just ask Ries about the ships if I was really interested in them.
"Umm… Felicia, we kind of have an idea of what we want already. Are you guys still building the Broadsword Combat Freighters?"
Her eyes lit up, "Oh yes! We most definitely do! I see you aren't planning on replacing your ships but upgrading them! In that case, is there a particular model of the Broadsword you have in mind? We have the classic V-seven in stock right now. We also have the S-two variation that is focused on speed at the cost of removing one of the cargo bays. The D-three variation that has thicker armour plating and shields but lower top speed, or are you looking for the A-four variation with twice as many weapon and turret mounts as the classic?"
I raised my hand, "We're… Actually interested in a custom order."
Her eyes widened and she almost dropped the tablet she was holding before she managed to catch it.
"Wa… Wait… A custom order? You're looking for a custom order?" She asked, repeating the question twice.
I nodded, "We have several specific requests you see… One of them is that two of the cargo holds need to be remodelled to be hangars and I would also like to customise the living area of the ship. Is that possible?"
It took her a moment to register my words, "Oh, yes, yes! Of course! Please follow me to the office! I will record down any orders you might have and make sure you are satisfied!"
She then quickly turned and led us out of the hall while muttering under her breath.
I'm pretty sure I heard the words "rich clients", "Big commission" and "Promotion" coming out of her mouth.
Well, not like I don't understand her since I also used to work in sales so I know that this would definitely be a big deal for her.
Oh whatever, as long as I get the ship that I want, I have no complaints.