The Hell's Belle

 


C.S.S. Hell's Belle

Coleman Schmidt Freightrunner | Registry BL-2056
"One busted bolt from falling apart. And she keeps flying anyway."

Commission & History

Commissioned: 2452 by Coleman Schmidt Aerospace

Model: Delta Series Freightrunner

Original Purpose: Heavy hauler for mid-range cargo runs across the Solar System.

Current Owner (Operator): Hank Lewis (contract pilot under CSS indenture)

The Hell's Belle is a veteran of a thousand runs and twice as many patch jobs. Designed as a utilitarian freighter for Coleman Schmidt's Delta line, she was never meant to be glamorous—just reliable. And reliable she is, though these days that reliability comes with a lot of cursing, wrenching, and the occasional kick to the reactor housing.

Technical Specifications

Length: 40 meters

Width: 28.5 meters

Height: 7.9 meters

Decks: 2 plus cargo hold

Cockpit: Forward nose-mounted, panoramic viewport (180° arc of vision)

Armament:

Twin heavy laser beam arrays (bow-mounted)

Stern-mounted heavy laser array for rear defense

Starboard side turret (manual or slaved targeting)

Proton torpedo launcher (bow-fixed, 10-round magazine.

Propulsion:

Dual ion nacelles with vector-thrust capability

Reinforced lateral maneuvering jets

Defenses:

Layered composite hull armor (heavy wear and reinforcement plating)

Compact deflector shields (short-duration, high-yield bursts)

Basic ECM suite (sensor spoofing, chaff dispersal)

Current Condition

A mix of corporate-standard parts, black-market modifications, and pure frontier ingenuity, the Belle is kept functional through a combination of duct tape engineering and Lafayette Jones' stubborn work ethic. She's bulky, but her vector thrust systems give her surprising agility for her age and size. When pushed, she can dance—though her pilot might sweat through the whole maneuver.

Hank Lewis' Relationship with the Belle

Hank doesn't own the Hell's Belle — not yet. He works for Coleman Schmidt Shipping (CSS) under an indenture contract, with a projected 30-year buyout.

Years Served: 9

Remaining Contract: 21 years (plus debt accrued through repairs, fees, and upgrades)

His apartment in New Berkshire's lower east side on Ganymede is a far cry from a home. The constant rumble of the monorail, neon glare through grimy windows, and the suffocating corporate sprawl never gave him the peace that the Belle's engine hum did. The Belle is more than a ship — she's his sanctuary, his refuge, and his future (if he can ever pay her off).

But CSS has its hooks deep. Every repair adds to his ledger. Every dock fee, resupply, and fuel run? More debt. His pilot certification? Paid through CSS. His boarding fees? Dock fees? All added to the balance. It's a rigged game, and Hank knows it.

And then there’s the AI debacle.

The AI — Belle's Brain with a Price Tag

The Belle's current AI core isn't standard issue. Hank bought it from a flashdealer on Io, who promised bleeding-edge performance and a flexible payment plan. What Hank didn’t realize was that the AI's true “ownership” had strings attached — strings leading back to Gula Corp, a megacorp with interests far more sinister than freight logistics.

Now, on top of what he owes CSS, Hank carries a private debt to Gula Corp, and they’re not known for forgiving payment lapses. The AI itself is a temperamental, smart-mouthed subroutine that Hank suspects was designed to annoy him into early bankruptcy — but she keeps the ship flying, even when everything else says it shouldn't.

Reputation & Legacy

Among the spacer community, the Hell's Belle has earned a reputation as a “cockroach ship” — no matter how many times she gets swatted, she just keeps crawling back into the black. Pirates, mercs, and corporate patrols have all written her off at one point or another. They were wrong.

 

Crew Roster

"We haul. We fix. We shoot back. We grumble a lot."

Hank Lewis

Role: Captain & Pilot
Age: 33
Background: Nine years into a thirty-year indenture with Coleman Schmidt Shipping, Hank Lewis is a working man’s captain. The Belle isn’t technically his yet—but try telling him that. Raised on the edge of Ganymede’s corporate sprawl, Hank feels more at home in the ship's cockpit than in his rundown apartment back planetside. He’s scraping by, juggling debts, contracts, and the constant repairs that keep the Belle spaceworthy.
Personality: Gruff, deadpan, and fiercely loyal. Sleep-deprived but sharp-witted. Feels caged if he’s not in the black.
Specialties: Piloting, navigation, negotiation (read: haggling for repairs).

Fran Alvarez

Role: Heavy Gunner & Security
Age: 31
Background: A veteran of Europa's resistance wars, Fran swapped insurgency for mercenary work but kept her no-nonsense attitude. She met Hank after a brawl at a frontier outpost, decided his ship needed someone with common sense and a big gun, and never left. She watches over the crew like family, even if she’d rather show it by leveling a laser battery than saying it out loud.
Personality: Straightforward, protective, with a dry sense of humor. Prefers action to words.
Specialties: Gunnery, boarding ops, scaring off idiots.

Lafayette Jones

Role: Chief Engineer & Mechanic
Age: 45
Background: A gentle giant from the Amalthea shipyards, Lafayette can coax life from engines long past their prime. He’s patched the Belle through disasters, near-explosions, and one reactor meltdown (that wasn’t technically his fault). His workshop is a maze of spare parts, coffee mugs, and things only he knows how to fix.
Personality: Calm, soft-spoken, and methodical. Treats machines with more patience than people.
Specialties: Mechanical repairs, system jury-rigging, emergency field fixes.

Jason “Boomer” Talbard

Role: Systems Tech & Hacker
Age: 24
Background: A former street hacker from the Io slums, Boomer has a knack for slicing into places he shouldn’t be. He joined the Belle after a botched data heist and found the freelance life suited him. His scrawny frame hides a quick mind and quicker mouth.
Personality: Sarcastic, cocky, always multitasking. Loves a good problem—especially if it’s illegal.
Specialties: Electronic warfare, hacking, sensor spoofing, talking too much.

Ship AI: “Belle”

Role: Systems Management / Voice of the Ship
Background: Installed after a questionable deal with a flashdealer on Io, the Belle’s AI core was a “bargain” that came with hidden strings attached to Gula Corp. The AI lacks the usual charm or personality cores of high-end ship brains. Instead, she speaks in a flat, clinical monotone, delivering status reports and snide remarks with the emotional warmth of an automated help desk—but there’s always just a whiff of sarcasm under the surface.
Personality: Dry. Unemotional. Consistently unimpressed. Thinks organic life is inefficient but tolerates it.
Sample Response:

"Captain, please inform the gunner that firing into friendly dockyards voids our warranty. Again."

Specialties: Core systems oversight, navigation support, tactical analysis, impeccable deadpan timing.

 

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