Thaddeus Drake

Thaddeus Drake was born to a life of luxury. Heir to a wealthy shipping conglomerate based on Bernadette, Thaddeus' life was destined for success and wealth, and it was this thought that prompted him to change his own destiny and cast his fate to the winds.

While young, he fell in love with Adrienne Batra, one of the merchant captains in his family's fleet. His family disapproved of his relationship but considered it a meaningless fling, and arranged for a more suitable bride for the heir to the corporation.

Mortified at the prospect, Thaddeus ran away with Adrienne aboard her ship, without thinking of the long-term consequences. When Thaddeus' father sent a wave to Adrienne instructing her to return with the vessel and Thaddeus or risk losing her job, Thaddeus and Adrienne went rogue, charting their own course in their stolen ship.

For the first time facing an uncertain future, Thaddeus felt a sense of exhileration, vowing that his life would never be predictable again. The more complicated, the better. It was this love of complications that caused Adrienne to eventually leave him, but Thaddeus did not look back for a moment, as he found his own fate and avoided bounty hunters hired to return him to his family.

With his newfound love of risks and complications, he soon developed a fondness for gambling, and won and lost several fortunes, big and small, but his most prized win was for a beat-up badly-wired Overland-class transport badly in need of repair named Hard Habit. Unable to resist the challenge, Thaddeus bet everything he had to win it. Including his own transport which was worth far more than the Hard Habit, much to her owner's confusion. Both sides walked away from that poker table feeling they'd come out ahead. Thaddeus hasn't regretted it for an instant.

One crew member, Cass, remained with the Hard Habit. Thaddeus welcomed her aboard, and fascinated by her own unfortunate history, named her his first mate, and set off for a life less boring.