{"data":{"id":17081,"title":"Portfolio: Ascension Astro","rsi_url":"https:\/\/robertsspaceindustries.com\/comm-link\/spectrum-dispatch\/17081-Portfolio-Ascension-Astro","api_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/api\/comm-links\/17081","api_public_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/comm-links\/17081","channel":"Undefined","category":"Undefined","series":"Portfolio","images":[{"id":13814,"name":"ASCENSION_ASTRO_LOGO-V2-Copy.jpg","rsi_url":"https:\/\/robertsspaceindustries.com\/media\/jf2km9vkiiei0r\/source\/ASCENSION_ASTRO_LOGO-V2-Copy.jpg","alt":"","size":338066,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","last_modified":"2017-09-20T00:02:11+00:00","api_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/api\/comm-link-images\/13814","similar_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/api\/comm-link-images\/13814\/similar"},{"id":26463,"name":"source.jpg","rsi_url":"https:\/\/media.robertsspaceindustries.com\/weozjmuuh3hwh\/source.jpg","alt":"","size":843046,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","last_modified":"2019-09-19T15:49:32+00:00","api_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/api\/comm-link-images\/26463","similar_url":"https:\/\/api.star-citizen.wiki\/api\/comm-link-images\/26463\/similar"}],"images_count":7,"translations":{"en_EN":"This portfolio originally appeared in Jump Point 5.5.\n\u201cOnly available on Earth and Terra. That\u2019s the type of exclusivity we want,\u201d claimed Candace Cowley in a controversial 2903 interview with the Terra Gazette. Cowley, who goes by CC, was the public face of Ascension Astro, a boutique component manufacturer that found its start catering to the ultra-wealthy. During the interview, CC proclaimed that the company preferred to sell their stealth components solely to an elite clientele, who could then safely travel throughout the Empire without fear of being targeted by outlaws or other \u2018ruffians.\u2019 She also bragged about how their two storefront locations, one in New York and the other in Prime, were invitation-only establishments with a waiting list months long. To some, CC embodied the glamorous and outrageous lifestyle they wanted to live; to others she epitomized everything wrong with the UEE. Few knew that CC \u2014 herself synonymous with Ascension Astro \u2014 was but one of the three founders who catapulted the company from obscurity to one of the UEE\u2019s most exclusive in just a few years.\n\nSomething from Nothing\nAscension Astro was founded in 2901 by CC, Kaitlyn Barwick, and Tim Kraft. CC and Barwick had grown up together. Barwick\u2019s father owned a small repair shop in Shanghai and found four-year-old CC abandoned at a local transit stop. Similar in age but drastically different in personalities, the two still became fast friends. As adults, Barwick married Kraft and took over her father\u2019s repair shop, while CC got a job as a customer service rep at an Origin Jumpworks dealership. Thanks to her persistence, charm and fervent philosophy of only targeting rich customers, she quickly amassed a lengthy roster of highclass clientele.\n\nThen the Origin dealership fired CC for referring clients to Barwick and Kraft\u2019s struggling repair shop. CC argued that her intentions were nothing but honorable and within the best interests of Origin\u2019s clients, as the services she was recommending were not available at the dealership. Notorious tinkerers, Barwick and Kraft had devised a way to dramatically reduce the IR and EM signature of the thrusters that came standard in Origin ships. With these high-end ships often being targeted by outlaws and (even worse) paparazzi, reducing their signature was an invaluable aid in being able to cruise about unmolested. Barwick and Kraft\u2019s intricate process was effective, yet the price point for the time-consuming procedure put what was essentially custom-built thrusters out of range for all but the wealthiest customers.\n\nFollowing CC\u2019s dismissal, Origin attempted to retroengineer the work done by Barwick and Kraft, but couldn\u2019t quite crack their complicated process. When CC heard what her former employers were up to, she took a drastic step and filed a lawsuit against them. Although the courts eventually tossed out the case, the episode became a publicity nightmare for the company, so they attempted to backpedal and offered to hire the duo as consultants. Barwick asked if CC could get her old job back, but Origin refused. Loyal to their longtime friend, Barwick and Kraft turned down the offer. In the midst of all of this, CC had a realization. If Origin was interested in Barwick and Kraft\u2019s work, then it must be valuable.\n\nBackdoor Pitch\nEven though CC built relationships with many wealthy people while at Origin, she knew approaching them out of the blue with a business proposal would probably fail. Instead, she contacted her former clients to notify them of what she described as her already immensely successful venture. The \u201cultra exclusive\u201d mobile modification and repair service would send Barwick and Kraft directly to a client\u2019s hangar to perform the complicated work on their ship\u2019s thrusters. Since the process only worked on certain thrusters, CC had to deftly confirm the person still flew a ship with the appropriate thrusters in it.\n\nCC initially offered drastic discounts to entice these wealthy clients into hiring them. Of course this scheme lost money, as the parts and labor involved far exceeded the price tag, but once in the door, CC worked her magic. She painted the picture of a business so busy she was forced to turn down new clients every day, then adroitly transitioned the discussion to how what they were doing was small potatoes compared to what it could be if only they had the capital to make their own stealth components.\n\nCC\u2019s masterful backdoor pitch worked. Several clients became intrigued and invested in the operation. Ascension Astro incorporated in 2901 and a small number of their stealth components, designed by Barwick and Kraft, rolled off a Moscow production line later that year. Some investors were irate over how few components were produced, and to make matters worse, CC gave away a few of those scarce components to a select group of new contacts while spending significant company credits to build a fancy showroom hidden down a dingy alley in New York City. The location had no official Ascension Astro sign, only a comm channel to be used to set up appointments. For the first three months, anyone who contacted them was instructed to check back later since they had no available appointments.\n\nBut the stealth marketing campaign was a success. The few who were gifted components happened to be the most braggadocious people CC knew. Other elites, not used to being denied what they wanted when they wanted it, flooded the comm channel with appointment requests. When Ascension Astro actually sold a few components, they did so at exorbitantly high prices, and sold out immediately. As the next run was manufactured, the company again claimed that they had no available appointments and refused to take preorders. When the second run was ready, the components were sold at an even higher price.\n\nGoing Nova\nOf course, CC\u2019s shrewd marketing ploy could only work more than once if the product was good. Fortunately, Barwick and Kraft were as skilled in their way as CC was in hers; the components were as outstanding as CC claimed them to be. The couple avoided any high-level discussions about the company, preferring to spend time perfecting their designs and tinkering, and leaving targeted sales techniques and networking opportunities in CC\u2019s hands.\n\nMeanwhile, CC continued to hone Ascension Astro\u2019s public image. She refused to do any traditional advertising, arguing that it would tarnish their reputation by making them like any other brand. Instead, she bribed gossip columnists to report on her partying at trendy establishments with their elite clientele. CC did what she needed to ensure \u201cAscension Astro\u201d made the column\u2019s copy.\n\nPrivately, Barwick and Kraft worried about CC\u2019s increasing obsession with her new lifestyle, but couldn\u2019t argue with the results. Their stealth power plants were named by multiple publications as \u201cThe Must-Have Ship Component of 2903.\u201d That same year Ascension Astro opened a second storefront in Terra, just as low-profile as their New York showroom, and CC gave that now infamous interview to the Terra Gazette. CC had suddenly become a celebrity CEO; beloved by some and loathed by others \u2026 until the following year, when she vanished from the public eye.\n\nExpansion & Maturation\nAt first some assumed CC\u2019s disappearing act was another clever marketing ploy. Then a few publications began to ask what had happened to her when her absence became months long. Meanwhile, industry insiders realized that Ascension Astro had begun to adopt more traditional practices. They opened more locations and eliminated the need to schedule an appointment to visit the store. They also significantly expanded their production capacity, and ran actual advertisements for their components. Their initial marketing campaign was shockingly bland, though it winked at the reputation CC had established. It featured a generically wealthy family comfortably enjoying a journey aboard their 890 Jump under the company\u2019s still-used tag line \u201cEnjoy the Journey.\u201d\n\nWhenever questioned about CC, Ascension Astro representatives simply asserted that she was still involved with the company. Most industry experts assumed that she had been ousted from power. That misconception was cleared up in 2908 when CC returned to the public eye to promote her memoir, Something from Nothing. Although the book chronicled her search to find the parents that abandoned her at that Shanghai hub, she also went into great detail about her part in the rise of Ascension Astro, and how a growing dependence on drugs and alcohol, combined with crippling bouts of depression, ultimately forced her to reduce her role in the company. She praised Barwick and Kraft for their stewardship of Ascension Astro, and after revealing that she had failed to locate her birth parents, declared that they were the only family she needed.\n\nToday, CC maintains a position on the company masthead, but spends much of her time overseeing charities she\u2019s established to help orphans across the UEE. In the absence of her unconventional marketing and sales methods, Barwick and Kraft transitioned to a more traditional business model and expanded the company\u2019s suite of stealth components. They now encourage the purchase of a complete complement of upgrades to ensure better security while flying, driving home the point to their wealthy target audience that a stealth component can only do so much to conceal a ship\u2019s signature if other systems are running hot. Ascension Astro continues to thrive under their steady hands.","de_DE":"Dieses Portfolio erschien urspr\u00fcnglich in Jump Point 5.5.\n\"Nur auf der Erde und auf Terra verf\u00fcgbar. Das ist die Art von Exklusivit\u00e4t, die wir wollen\", sagte Candace Cowley in einem umstrittenen 2903er Interview mit der Terra Gazette. Cowley, der nach CC geht, war das \u00f6ffentliche Gesicht von Ascension Astro, einem Hersteller von Boutique-Komponenten, der seinen Anfang im Catering f\u00fcr die besonders Wohlhabenden fand. W\u00e4hrend des Interviews verk\u00fcndete CC, dass das Unternehmen es vorzieht, seine Tarnkomponenten ausschlie\u00dflich an eine elit\u00e4re Kundschaft zu verkaufen, die dann sicher durch das ganze Reich reisen kann, ohne Angst davor zu haben, von Gesetzlosen oder anderen \"Raufbolden\" angegriffen zu werden. Sie prahlte auch damit, dass ihre beiden Schaufensterstandorte, einer in New York und der andere in Prime, nur f\u00fcr Eingeladene mit einer Warteliste von Monaten Dauer waren. F\u00fcr einige verk\u00f6rpert CC den glamour\u00f6sen und unversch\u00e4mten Lebensstil, den sie leben wollten; f\u00fcr andere verk\u00f6rpert sie alles, was mit der UEE nicht stimmt. Nur wenige wussten, dass CC - selbst das Synonym f\u00fcr Ascension Astro - nur einer der drei Gr\u00fcnder war, die das Unternehmen in nur wenigen Jahren von der Dunkelheit zu einem der exklusivsten der UEE katapultierten.\n\nEtwas aus dem Nichts\nAscension Astro wurde 2901 von CC, Kaitlyn Barwick und Tim Kraft gegr\u00fcndet. CC und Barwick waren zusammen aufgewachsen. Barwicks Vater besa\u00df eine kleine Werkstatt in Shanghai und fand den vierj\u00e4hrigen CC, der an einem lokalen Transitbahnhof ausgesetzt war. \u00c4hnlich im Alter, aber drastisch unterschiedlich in der Pers\u00f6nlichkeit, wurden die beiden immer noch zu schnellen Freunden. Als Erwachsene heiratete Barwick Kraft und \u00fcbernahm die Werkstatt ihres Vaters, w\u00e4hrend CC einen Job als Kundendienstmitarbeiter bei einem Origin Jumpworks H\u00e4ndler bekam. Dank ihrer Hartn\u00e4ckigkeit, ihrem Charme und ihrer leidenschaftlichen Philosophie, nur auf reiche Kunden zuzugehen, konnte sie sich schnell einen langen Bestand an erstklassigen Kunden aufbauen.\n\nDann feuerte der Origin-H\u00e4ndler CC, weil er Kunden an Barwick und Kraft's kranke Werkstatt verwiesen hatte. CC argumentierte, dass ihre Absichten nichts anderes als ehrenhaft und im besten Interesse der Kunden von Origin seien, da die von ihr empfohlenen Dienstleistungen im Autohaus nicht verf\u00fcgbar seien. Ber\u00fcchtigte Bastler, Barwick und Kraft hatten eine M\u00f6glichkeit entwickelt, die IR- und EM-Signatur der Triebwerke, die standardm\u00e4\u00dfig in Origin-Schiffen verwendet wurden, drastisch zu reduzieren. Da diese High-End-Schiffe oft von Gesetzlosen und (noch schlimmer) Paparazzi ins Visier genommen wurden, war die Reduzierung ihrer Unterschrift eine unsch\u00e4tzbare Hilfe, um unbehelligt herumfahren zu k\u00f6nnen. Barwick und Kraft's komplizierter Prozess war effektiv, aber der Preispunkt f\u00fcr das zeitaufw\u00e4ndige Verfahren brachte die im Wesentlichen ma\u00dfgeschneiderten Triebwerke au\u00dfer Reichweite f\u00fcr alle au\u00dfer den wohlhabendsten Kunden.\n\nNach der Entlassung von CC versuchte Origin, die Arbeit von Barwick und Kraft zu rekonstruieren, konnte aber den komplizierten Prozess nicht ganz l\u00f6sen. Als CC h\u00f6rte, was ihre ehemaligen Arbeitgeber vorhatten, machte sie einen drastischen Schritt und reichte eine Klage gegen sie ein. Obwohl die Gerichte den Fall schlie\u00dflich verworfen haben, wurde die Episode zu einem Werbealptraum f\u00fcr das Unternehmen, so dass sie versuchten, zur\u00fcckzutreten und boten an, das Duo als Berater einzustellen. Barwick fragte, ob CC ihren alten Job zur\u00fcckbekommen k\u00f6nnte, aber Origin weigerte sich. Loyal gegen\u00fcber ihrem langj\u00e4hrigen Freund Barwick und Kraft lehnten sie das Angebot ab. Inmitten all dessen hatte CC eine Erkenntnis. Wenn Origin sich f\u00fcr Barwick und Kraft's Werk interessierte, dann muss es wertvoll sein.\n\nHintert\u00fcr Stellplatz\nObwohl CC w\u00e4hrend seiner Zeit bei Origin Beziehungen zu vielen wohlhabenden Menschen aufbaute, wusste sie, dass es wahrscheinlich scheitern w\u00fcrde, sie mit einem Gesch\u00e4ftsvorschlag aus heiterem Himmel anzusprechen. Stattdessen kontaktierte sie ihre ehemaligen Kunden, um sie \u00fcber das zu informieren, was sie als ihr ohnehin schon \u00e4u\u00dferst erfolgreiches Projekt bezeichnete. Der \"ultra exklusive\" mobile Modifikations- und Reparaturservice w\u00fcrde Barwick und Kraft direkt in den Hangar eines Kunden schicken, um die komplizierten Arbeiten an den Triebwerken seines Schiffes durchzuf\u00fchren. Da der Prozess nur bei bestimmten Triebwerken funktionierte, musste CC geschickt best\u00e4tigen, dass die Person noch ein Schiff mit den entsprechenden Triebwerken geflogen ist.\n\nCC bot zun\u00e4chst drastische Rabatte an, um diese wohlhabenden Kunden dazu zu bringen, sie einzustellen. Nat\u00fcrlich verlor dieses System Geld, da die beteiligten Teile und Arbeitskr\u00e4fte den Preis weit \u00fcberstiegen, aber sobald sie an der T\u00fcr waren, wirkte CC wie ein Zauberer. Sie malte das Bild eines so gesch\u00e4ftigen Unternehmens, dass sie jeden Tag gezwungen war, neue Kunden abzulehnen, und dann \u00fcberf\u00fchrte sie die Diskussion geschickt in die Frage, wie das, was sie taten, kleine Kartoffeln waren, verglichen mit dem, was es sein k\u00f6nnte, wenn sie nur das Kapital h\u00e4tten, ihre eigenen Tarnkomponenten herzustellen.\n\nCCs meisterhafter Hintert\u00fcr-Pitch funktionierte. Mehrere Kunden wurden fasziniert und investierten in den Betrieb. Ascension Astro wurde 2901 gegr\u00fcndet, und eine kleine Anzahl ihrer Tarnkomponenten, entworfen von Barwick und Kraft, rollten sp\u00e4ter in diesem Jahr von einer Moskauer Produktionslinie. Einige Investoren waren w\u00fctend dar\u00fcber, wie wenig Komponenten produziert wurden, und um es noch schlimmer zu machen, verschenkte CC ein paar dieser knappen Komponenten an eine ausgew\u00e4hlte Gruppe neuer Kontakte, w\u00e4hrend sie bedeutende Firmenkredite ausgaben, um einen ausgefallenen Showroom zu bauen, der in einer schmutzigen Gasse in New York City versteckt war. Der Standort hatte kein offizielles Ascension Astro Zeichen, sondern nur einen Kommunikationskanal, der zur Terminvereinbarung verwendet werden sollte. In den ersten drei Monaten wurde jeder, der sich mit ihnen in Verbindung setzte, angewiesen, sp\u00e4ter wieder vorbeizuschauen, da er keine freien Termine hatte.\n\nAber die Stealth-Marketing-Kampagne war ein Erfolg. Die wenigen, die begabte Komponenten waren, waren zuf\u00e4llig die prahlerischsten Menschen, die CC kannte. Andere Eliten, die es nicht gewohnt waren, das zu verweigern, was sie wollten, wenn sie es wollten, \u00fcberfluteten den Kommunikationskanal mit Terminanfragen. Als Ascension Astro tats\u00e4chlich ein paar Komponenten verkaufte, taten sie dies zu exorbitant hohen Preisen und waren sofort ausverkauft. Als der n\u00e4chste Durchlauf hergestellt wurde, behauptete das Unternehmen erneut, dass es keine freien Termine habe und weigerte sich, Vorbestellungen anzunehmen. Als der zweite Lauf fertig war, wurden die Komponenten zu einem noch h\u00f6heren Preis verkauft.\n\nGoing Nova\nNat\u00fcrlich konnte der clevere Marketing-Trick von CC nur mehr als einmal funktionieren, wenn das Produkt gut war. Gl\u00fccklicherweise waren Barwick und Kraft auf ihre Art und Weise so geschickt wie CC in ihrem; die Komponenten waren so hervorragend, wie CC sie vorgab zu sein. Das Paar vermied alle Diskussionen auf hoher Ebene \u00fcber das Unternehmen, zog es vor, Zeit damit zu verbringen, ihr Design zu perfektionieren und zu basteln, und \u00fcberlie\u00df CC gezielte Verkaufstechniken und Netzwerkm\u00f6glichkeiten.\n\nIn der Zwischenzeit verfeinerte CC weiterhin das \u00f6ffentliche Image von Ascension Astro. Sie weigerte sich, traditionelle Werbung zu machen, und argumentierte, dass dies ihren Ruf sch\u00e4digen w\u00fcrde, indem sie sie wie jede andere Marke machen w\u00fcrde. Stattdessen bestach sie Klatschkolumnisten, um \u00fcber ihre Party in trendigen Lokalen mit ihrer elit\u00e4ren Kundschaft zu berichten. CC tat, was sie brauchte, um sicherzustellen, dass \"Ascension Astro\" die Kopie der Kolumne machte.\n\nPrivat machten sich Barwick und Kraft Sorgen um CCs zunehmende Besessenheit von ihrem neuen Lebensstil, konnten aber nicht mit den Ergebnissen argumentieren. Ihre Tarnkraftwerke wurden in mehreren Publikationen als \"The Must-Have Ship Component of 2903\" bezeichnet. Im selben Jahr er\u00f6ffnete Ascension Astro eine zweite Schaufensterfront in Terra, genauso unauff\u00e4llig wie ihr New Yorker Showroom, und CC gab der Terra Gazette dieses inzwischen ber\u00fcchtigte Interview. CC war pl\u00f6tzlich ein prominenter CEO geworden; geliebt von einigen und verabscheut von anderen.... bis im folgenden Jahr, als sie aus der \u00d6ffentlichkeit verschwand.\n\nExpansion & Reifung\nZuerst nahmen einige an, dass CCs verschwindender Akt ein weiterer cleverer Marketing-Trick war. Dann begannen einige Ver\u00f6ffentlichungen zu fragen, was mit ihr geschehen war, als ihre Abwesenheit monatelang wurde. In der Zwischenzeit erkannten Brancheninsider, dass Ascension Astro begonnen hatte, traditionellere Praktiken anzuwenden. Sie er\u00f6ffneten weitere Standorte und machten es \u00fcberfl\u00fcssig, einen Termin f\u00fcr den Besuch des Ladens zu vereinbaren. Au\u00dferdem bauten sie ihre Produktionskapazit\u00e4ten deutlich aus und lie\u00dfen aktuelle Anzeigen f\u00fcr ihre Komponenten schalten. Ihre erste Marketingkampagne war schockierend fadenscheinig, obwohl sie dem Ruf, den CC aufgebaut hatte, mit einem Augenzwinkern folgte. Eine allgemein wohlhabende Familie genoss eine Reise an Bord ihrer 890 Jump unter dem immer noch verwendeten Slogan \"Enjoy the Journey\".\n\nWann immer sie nach CC gefragt wurden, behaupteten die Vertreter von Ascension Astro einfach, dass sie immer noch in das Unternehmen involviert sei. Die meisten Branchenexperten gingen davon aus, dass sie von der Macht verdr\u00e4ngt worden war. Dieses Missverst\u00e4ndnis wurde 2908 aufgekl\u00e4rt, als CC zum \u00f6ffentlichen Blick zur\u00fcckkehrte, um ihre Memoiren Something from Nothing zu promoten. Obwohl das Buch ihre Suche nach den Eltern aufzeichnete, die sie an diesem Knotenpunkt in Shanghai verlassen hatten, ging sie auch sehr detailliert auf ihre Rolle im Aufstieg von Ascension Astro ein, und wie eine wachsende Abh\u00e4ngigkeit von Drogen und Alkohol, kombiniert mit l\u00e4hmenden Depressionen, sie schlie\u00dflich zwang, ihre Rolle im Unternehmen zu reduzieren. Sie lobte Barwick und Kraft f\u00fcr ihre Verantwortung f\u00fcr Ascension Astro, und nachdem sie enth\u00fcllt hatte, dass sie es vers\u00e4umt hatte, ihre leiblichen Eltern zu finden, erkl\u00e4rte sie, dass sie die einzige Familie seien, die sie brauche.\n\nHeute h\u00e4lt CC eine Position im Impressum des Unternehmens, verbringt aber einen Gro\u00dfteil ihrer Zeit damit, Wohlt\u00e4tigkeitsorganisationen zu beaufsichtigen, die sie gegr\u00fcndet hat, um Waisenkindern in der gesamten UEE zu helfen. In Ermangelung ihrer unkonventionellen Marketing- und Verkaufsmethoden wechselten Barwick und Kraft zu einem traditionelleren Gesch\u00e4ftsmodell und erweiterten die Palette der Tarnkomponenten des Unternehmens. Sie ermutigen nun den Kauf einer kompletten Reihe von Upgrades, um eine bessere Sicherheit beim Fliegen zu gew\u00e4hrleisten, und verweisen auf ihre wohlhabende Zielgruppe, dass eine Stealth-Komponente nur so viel tun kann, um die Signatur eines Schiffes zu verbergen, wenn andere Systeme hei\u00df laufen. Der Aufstieg Astro gedeiht weiterhin unter ihren ruhigen H\u00e4nden.","zh_CN":"This portfolio originally appeared in Jump Point 5.5.\n\u201cOnly available on Earth and Terra. That\u2019s the type of exclusivity we want,\u201d claimed Candace Cowley in a controversial 2903 interview with the Terra Gazette. Cowley, who goes by CC, was the public face of Ascension Astro, a boutique component manufacturer that found its start catering to the ultra-wealthy. During the interview, CC proclaimed that the company preferred to sell their stealth components solely to an elite clientele, who could then safely travel throughout the Empire without fear of being targeted by outlaws or other \u2018ruffians.\u2019 She also bragged about how their two storefront locations, one in New York and the other in Prime, were invitation-only establishments with a waiting list months long. To some, CC embodied the glamorous and outrageous lifestyle they wanted to live; to others she epitomized everything wrong with the UEE. Few knew that CC \u2014 herself synonymous with Ascension Astro \u2014 was but one of the three founders who catapulted the company from obscurity to one of the UEE\u2019s most exclusive in just a few years.\n\nSomething from Nothing\nAscension Astro was founded in 2901 by CC, Kaitlyn Barwick, and Tim Kraft. CC and Barwick had grown up together. Barwick\u2019s father owned a small repair shop in Shanghai and found four-year-old CC abandoned at a local transit stop. Similar in age but drastically different in personalities, the two still became fast friends. As adults, Barwick married Kraft and took over her father\u2019s repair shop, while CC got a job as a customer service rep at an Origin Jumpworks dealership. Thanks to her persistence, charm and fervent philosophy of only targeting rich customers, she quickly amassed a lengthy roster of highclass clientele.\n\nThen the Origin dealership fired CC for referring clients to Barwick and Kraft\u2019s struggling repair shop. CC argued that her intentions were nothing but honorable and within the best interests of Origin\u2019s clients, as the services she was recommending were not available at the dealership. Notorious tinkerers, Barwick and Kraft had devised a way to dramatically reduce the IR and EM signature of the thrusters that came standard in Origin ships. With these high-end ships often being targeted by outlaws and (even worse) paparazzi, reducing their signature was an invaluable aid in being able to cruise about unmolested. Barwick and Kraft\u2019s intricate process was effective, yet the price point for the time-consuming procedure put what was essentially custom-built thrusters out of range for all but the wealthiest customers.\n\nFollowing CC\u2019s dismissal, Origin attempted to retroengineer the work done by Barwick and Kraft, but couldn\u2019t quite crack their complicated process. When CC heard what her former employers were up to, she took a drastic step and filed a lawsuit against them. Although the courts eventually tossed out the case, the episode became a publicity nightmare for the company, so they attempted to backpedal and offered to hire the duo as consultants. Barwick asked if CC could get her old job back, but Origin refused. Loyal to their longtime friend, Barwick and Kraft turned down the offer. In the midst of all of this, CC had a realization. If Origin was interested in Barwick and Kraft\u2019s work, then it must be valuable.\n\nBackdoor Pitch\nEven though CC built relationships with many wealthy people while at Origin, she knew approaching them out of the blue with a business proposal would probably fail. Instead, she contacted her former clients to notify them of what she described as her already immensely successful venture. The \u201cultra exclusive\u201d mobile modification and repair service would send Barwick and Kraft directly to a client\u2019s hangar to perform the complicated work on their ship\u2019s thrusters. Since the process only worked on certain thrusters, CC had to deftly confirm the person still flew a ship with the appropriate thrusters in it.\n\nCC initially offered drastic discounts to entice these wealthy clients into hiring them. Of course this scheme lost money, as the parts and labor involved far exceeded the price tag, but once in the door, CC worked her magic. She painted the picture of a business so busy she was forced to turn down new clients every day, then adroitly transitioned the discussion to how what they were doing was small potatoes compared to what it could be if only they had the capital to make their own stealth components.\n\nCC\u2019s masterful backdoor pitch worked. Several clients became intrigued and invested in the operation. Ascension Astro incorporated in 2901 and a small number of their stealth components, designed by Barwick and Kraft, rolled off a Moscow production line later that year. Some investors were irate over how few components were produced, and to make matters worse, CC gave away a few of those scarce components to a select group of new contacts while spending significant company credits to build a fancy showroom hidden down a dingy alley in New York City. The location had no official Ascension Astro sign, only a comm channel to be used to set up appointments. For the first three months, anyone who contacted them was instructed to check back later since they had no available appointments.\n\nBut the stealth marketing campaign was a success. The few who were gifted components happened to be the most braggadocious people CC knew. Other elites, not used to being denied what they wanted when they wanted it, flooded the comm channel with appointment requests. When Ascension Astro actually sold a few components, they did so at exorbitantly high prices, and sold out immediately. As the next run was manufactured, the company again claimed that they had no available appointments and refused to take preorders. When the second run was ready, the components were sold at an even higher price.\n\nGoing Nova\nOf course, CC\u2019s shrewd marketing ploy could only work more than once if the product was good. Fortunately, Barwick and Kraft were as skilled in their way as CC was in hers; the components were as outstanding as CC claimed them to be. The couple avoided any high-level discussions about the company, preferring to spend time perfecting their designs and tinkering, and leaving targeted sales techniques and networking opportunities in CC\u2019s hands.\n\nMeanwhile, CC continued to hone Ascension Astro\u2019s public image. She refused to do any traditional advertising, arguing that it would tarnish their reputation by making them like any other brand. Instead, she bribed gossip columnists to report on her partying at trendy establishments with their elite clientele. CC did what she needed to ensure \u201cAscension Astro\u201d made the column\u2019s copy.\n\nPrivately, Barwick and Kraft worried about CC\u2019s increasing obsession with her new lifestyle, but couldn\u2019t argue with the results. Their stealth power plants were named by multiple publications as \u201cThe Must-Have Ship Component of 2903.\u201d That same year Ascension Astro opened a second storefront in Terra, just as low-profile as their New York showroom, and CC gave that now infamous interview to the Terra Gazette. CC had suddenly become a celebrity CEO; beloved by some and loathed by others \u2026 until the following year, when she vanished from the public eye.\n\nExpansion & Maturation\nAt first some assumed CC\u2019s disappearing act was another clever marketing ploy. Then a few publications began to ask what had happened to her when her absence became months long. Meanwhile, industry insiders realized that Ascension Astro had begun to adopt more traditional practices. They opened more locations and eliminated the need to schedule an appointment to visit the store. They also significantly expanded their production capacity, and ran actual advertisements for their components. Their initial marketing campaign was shockingly bland, though it winked at the reputation CC had established. It featured a generically wealthy family comfortably enjoying a journey aboard their 890 Jump under the company\u2019s still-used tag line \u201cEnjoy the Journey.\u201d\n\nWhenever questioned about CC, Ascension Astro representatives simply asserted that she was still involved with the company. Most industry experts assumed that she had been ousted from power. That misconception was cleared up in 2908 when CC returned to the public eye to promote her memoir, Something from Nothing. Although the book chronicled her search to find the parents that abandoned her at that Shanghai hub, she also went into great detail about her part in the rise of Ascension Astro, and how a growing dependence on drugs and alcohol, combined with crippling bouts of depression, ultimately forced her to reduce her role in the company. She praised Barwick and Kraft for their stewardship of Ascension Astro, and after revealing that she had failed to locate her birth parents, declared that they were the only family she needed.\n\nToday, CC maintains a position on the company masthead, but spends much of her time overseeing charities she\u2019s established to help orphans across the UEE. In the absence of her unconventional marketing and sales methods, Barwick and Kraft transitioned to a more traditional business model and expanded the company\u2019s suite of stealth components. They now encourage the purchase of a complete complement of upgrades to ensure better security while flying, driving home the point to their wealthy target audience that a stealth component can only do so much to conceal a ship\u2019s signature if other systems are running hot. Ascension Astro continues to thrive under their steady hands."},"links_count":0,"comment_count":24,"created_at":"2019-05-15T00:00:00+00:00","created_at_human":"6 years ago"},"meta":{"processed_at":"2026-04-26 01:13:21","valid_relations":["images","links","translations"],"prev_id":17080,"next_id":17082}}