Melanie Armstrong: Mel is the oldest daughter of Anne Marie and Hans Armstrong.  Raised aboard their ship, she thinks of space as her home, though she still visits her parents’ homeworld of Century on occasion.  Excited by tales of her grandmother’s military service, she joined the Harlequin Station Military Academy, where she was on track to commission as an officer in the UN Star Guard Fleet.She certified as a pilot and ship’s officer as a midshipman and qualified on a variety of vessels, from single seater warp-drive fighters to multi-megaton warships, she received high marks for her piloting skills.    As a Guard Fleet Officer, she would have risen in the ranks to command her own ship.

This future ended when a terrorist attack killed her parents.  She resigned from the Academy and took up guardianship of her teenage brother, Rawn, as well as ownership of their parents’ freighter.  In the years since, she and her brother have run into hard times.  A hired crewman, Marcus, stole most of Mel’s savings.  Not long after that, a series of bad luck events cost her several steady contracts and meant Mel had to scrounge for jobs.

Mel’s fortunes had finally seemed to pick up when she picked up a contract to the Dakota system.  The past few years have been rough, but she’s certain that her luck has finally turned around.