STGOD: DAS: Main Game Thread.

[Shinn Langley Soryu]

Sol
Just outside Earth orbit
Bridge of destroyer Char Aznable

"No response," Flag Admiral Hernandez said resignedly. "If they really didn't want us to show up, they would've blown this ship to pieces as soon as they detected our presence in this system. Diplomatic equivalent of the cold shoulder, I would assume?"

"Just be patient," Elizabeth replied. "They'll give us the approach vector and landing coordinates soon."

"Whatever," Marshal Nguyen said. "I just hope that this whole thing isn't a monumental waste of our time."

----------

Northern frontier of CCS space
Bridge of carrier Haruhi Suzumiya

Admiral Erica Hirano looked out upon the empty expanse that was deep space with a bored expression on her face. This was obviously not how she envisioned her career in the Space Command Navy. She had desired action, adventure, the sheer joy of watching enemy armadas go down in flames as the ships under her command tore massive chunks out of their superstructures; instead, she was relegated to patrol duty along the fringes of CCS space, with only the occasional pirate or merc company providing her with the opportunity to test the weapons on her ship.

Admiral Hirano visibly perked up when a crewman delivered a piece of paper to her. "New orders from Fleet Admiral Hwang, perhaps?" she said to herself as she took the paper and started reading it.

Code: Select all

-::MESSAGE FOLLOWING::-
-::CC: ADMIRAL ERICA HIRANO::-
-::MESSAGE BEGINS::-

The Liancourt Station sensor relay has picked up a flurry of activity coming from Nephilim space. Warp trails have been identified as coming from approximately 250 or so ships assembling within that territory. At this point in time, we are unaware as to what the purpose of this fleet is; you are advised to put your ship and the rest of the 1st Fleet on alert in case further fleet movement is detected. Communications are still being intercepted and decoded as of this message; please stay aware of further updates as new information comes in.

Fleet Admiral Helen S. Hwang
Chief of Naval Operations, Congressional Space Command Navy

Admiral Hirano put down the paper, then summoned her XO. "Captain Yuizaki?"

Captain Caitlin Yuizaki, a slight, long-haired brunette wearing the standard-issue sailor fuku of the Congressional Armed Forces, ran up to the admiral as soon as she heard her name being called. "What is it, Admiral?"

"How long ago did we receive this message?"

"We just got it a few minutes ago, Admiral."

"Tell me something, Captain Yuizaki. What would you personally make of all these developments?"

"I wouldn't have the slightest idea, Admiral. I heard something about the Golden Sun Combine being involved, but aren't they on the other side of known space? What business could they possibly have with the Nephilim and the other northern powers?"

"Beats me."

"And what's this I've heard about the sudden rash in pirate activity around Nephilim space?"

"It's probably the Bootswellington folks up to their usual tricks. We shouldn't be too concerned unless they turn around and start attacking our shit. Nobody messes with the 1st Fleet. Nobody."

"So, what's our course of action, Admiral?"

"Bring the entire fleet up to DEFCON 3. Make sure everyone is at their posts. I don't want to take any chances regarding this situation."

[Imperial Overlord]

Cochrane System
Logos Centrality

In the outer system, the Archer class cruiser Wasp detached itself from the Second Fleet to join up with both Hunter Squadrons. The Centrality shifts vanished in a flare of FTL drives as the small task force went pirate hunting.

[Redleader34]

Fleet Command Ship Fury of George
Sector T-15 Nephilim Space

The fox was tired. Just coming from a vacation from Earth, he was almost abducted or as the diplomat cor might say, "Forcibly Escorted to a cruiser" is what they said, and assigned to this ship, The Dreadnaught Fury of George. "There will be hell to pay" he thought, as he was escorted into the shuttle, which would dock with the waiting dreadnaught. The ship would fire up its ion engines, which everyone in the continent of Africa could scan. "Wait a second!" the Fox exclaimed" Isn't launching like us going to get us shot down?" The Pilot, a bunnygirl, probably from the Ryanac responded in a rustic accent "Now don't you get y'als nickers in a bunch. I got this here diplomat pass, that lets the African Space Control know we are' a common, so just sit down and by the way..." She tossed him a backpack "These here clothes are yours to change into, because you got to see the Council about some "Operation or other..." The Fox seemed upset, as he put up the privacy curtain, and changed into his Commander's uniform, the pale blue colors looking like a dramatic contrast to the Grey insides of the fairly long Delta Flyer class shuttle.

***

The Shuttle landed in the lower bay of the Dreadnaught Fury of George, named after the Ship which brought the Uche control over Africa, but the Fox was not thinking about history. In fact the Fox, however was not happy with this arrangement at all, "Damnit, Ryand knows that I was on Vacation, and he probably sent me on assignment to deal with some pirates?" Were his thoughts, while he exited the shuttle, and walked to the turbovater, which took him into the 32rd floor, where Ops was. When he arrived on the operations deck, he would see the Council, and Ryand, all as holograms waiting for him. "Council, Ryand, I am suprised to see you waiting here for me.." The confused fox started, before he was cut off by Ryand's stern voice. "Listen McSirrus, we have a mission. A large portion of the fleet is preparing for a major operation. Details are limited, but be prepared to invade lands... You must fight for Not only yourself and glory, not just for the CoOperative... but for the entire NGTO. Remember, thousands are relying on you Admiral McSirrus. Can you command this fleet?" Ryand's voice had a tone of slight desperation, as he looked at the Kitsune, the hologram waiting for an answer. "Yes, I can, and if the People will it, I will." He said, with a swagger in his eye. "Now, by the power invested in me by the Trans Genetic Coperative Alliance, I Promote you to the rank of Fleet Admiral." Ryand seemed to have a sense of elation around him, as he revealed the uniform of an Admiral, placed inside a box on the desk of the Ops holoprojector. As the rest of the Supreme Military Affairs Council clapped, Ryand, with a tear in his eye said, "Now Admiral, go out there and show the galaxy what we are made of." The Kitsune would Salute the Council officials, and then bring up a screen to the rest of the fleet. One of the captains, a young man from the city of Kapmala would ask "Admiral, what are your orders? The Fleet is waiting for a response." McSirrus would respond "Warp factor 9, to the Meeting Co-Ordinates!" As the ships would go into a high warp factor, McSirrus would think "could send some of these young citizens to die out there, but I must deal with that later. Now, we deal with the forces of these "Heralds", he was saying, as the Dreadnaught, and many other ships warped and headed towards the Meeting point...

[Academia Nut]

Crulmax System
Crulmathi
Plaza of the Ancients

"Ah, here come the Bear representatives now," Alraszi comments as the delegation comes onto the plaza from the adjacent shuttle pad.

Bowing as the bears come up, Alraszi makes a round of introductions and then says, "And we all welcome you in the spirit of friendship and cooperation to our world and our Federation. As a token of our appreciation we give you this, the Saga of the First Ones." Alraszi then proceeds to explain its significance to Ambassador Pitsiark.

Eyeing the hoversled the delegates brought with them, Alraszi then says, "And what have you brought with you, noble ambassador?"

[Redleader34]

The Mothership sent a quick transmission, as well as several of the few remaing OtherKun frigates to the new ship, with a message being transmitted to them by a strange bouncing orb, with facial expressions similar to the classic smiley faces, and whit ears which appeared to open and close at odd rates.

Code: Select all

Hello Strangers. We are the African branch of the Trans Genetic-Coperative Alliance. We welcome you to Earth. We have scanned some ships from your space via long range hyperwave networks but we have only heard the minimal about your people. I am captain Richard's AI, Sennia, and I have currently taken the form of a Haro, and I am here as a welcoming reminder of home. These Frigates, as well as a flight of Valkires will escort you to the Poles Space Elevator, and we will call ahead to alert the local authorities about your impending arrival.

The real Captain Richards, an modified human, who appeared to have large, angel like wings, would sent a dransmission from the Mothership "hello there, Welcome, May I be the first to welcome you to Earth. I am Capitan Reed Richards, of the CoOperative Mothership Fuzzy.

[Academia Nut]

Borders of Straltoc Space

"Is the entire 2nd Colonial fleet truly necessary for this action?" A minor lieutenant asks rhetorically while working on the bridge of the Lurdoc-class cruiser Formali.

"Yes, which is why we have had a Xelguth-class battlecruiser attached to us from the 1st Expeditionary Fleet just in case. The politicians are considering this a 'proactive defence of Straltoc holdings' and a 'peer bonding exercise with the Logos Centrality'," Admiral Aquirz say dryly. He then adds on, "Besides, while those lazy bastards in the 1st Colonial Fleet get to wander about the colonies checking up on them we get to do some actual action. Apparently the brass want to actually capture a major base for some purpose or another, which is why we're getting troop transports assigned to us too."

Less than a minute later, the 33 strong fleet jumps to FTL and are on their way.

Shutting up, the lieutenant goes back to work.

Nodding, Aquirz announces, "Lay course for these coordinates, and no grousing about them being in the middle of nowhere. The middle of nowhere is where pirates like to hide. It's where we're supposed to meet up with the Logos boys before we go hunting."

[SirNitram]

~Fascinating. Someday I would very much like to see your world.~

Train yourself in how to interact with powerful hiveminds. Our Gestalt has, regrettably, absorbed individuals before, because while their psionic talent was great, their sense of self was insufficient to withstand the contact.

~If I was to assume this was more then a botched pirate operation I would pose that question to the Oberin battlegroup. Do you suppose they deploy that many resources every time a ship near their territory reports trouble?~

Meanwhile in the rear of the ruined freighter, "Oberin vessel, docking clamp operation has been restored and cargo is prepped for transfer. You may dock when ready."

We suspect the reality is deeper than the three powers assembled here. We cannot process the data sufficiently with only a single mind in range. We will require the full Gestalt to unravel the possibilities. But the Oberin battlefleet is.. Curious. We will speak with them soon.

[A-Wing_Slash]

Crulmax System
Crulmathi
Plaza of the Ancients

And we all welcome you in the spirit of friendship and cooperation to our world and our Federation. As a token of our appreciation we give you this, the Saga of the First Ones."

Ambassador Pitsiark cupped the small Saga in his large right forepaw, slowly feeling it surface with his left. "Alraszi, I don't know what to say. I'm simply stunned that you would give me, give my people something of such value to you. I hope that my action will indeed warrant such an unprecedented gift. I will examine it in detail as soon as I am able, as will my superiors, I assure you, once I return to my homeworld." Motioning to his aide, the ambassador passed the slate to her, directing her to protect it.

"And what have you brought with you, noble ambassador?"

"My friend, I bring a gift that may not match yours, but that holds a very special place in the hearts of all bears. "The ambassador ordered the bear controlling the hoversled forward. Floating in front of the ambassador, the hoversled slowly descended, allowing the large crate it caried to be carefully lifted onto the ground. A bear proceeded to remove the top of the crate, alowing each side to slowly fall to the ground. Inside stood a statue carved from a golden stone. A solitary bear, with gashes and clawmarks covering his body, looking towards the sky with longing.

"Alraszi, this is one of the greatest works of art in the history of the bears. It depicts the mythical leader known only to posterity as the Golden Bear, the bear who first united the bear clans that went on to found my nation. It also has deep religious signifigance to us, for the Golden Bear was truly imbued with the spirit of the Great Bear in the Sky, who you can see his looking us to. It is the work of the great scultor Kalnow, who died almost a thousand Earth years ago. I must confess I am not much of an art critic, but this sculture's beauty is clear."

[Academia Nut]

Crulmax System
Crulmathi
Plaza of the Ancients

Alraszi is stunned silent for a moment before saying, "You would even bring such a sacred item of your people here? I must say I am truly and deeply touched by this gift, and I feel ours pales in comparison to yours."

Straightening up, Alraszi announces, "It seems today is a day for origins. Come, to the Palace of Transcendence where we might discuss such tales at leisure."

Leading the delegates off of the plaza, they enter a large, transparent train car that immediately whisks them away from the plaza at high speed, quickly leaving the island chain behind and diving beneath the waves, revealing a gold and cerulean world of glowing, underwater spires that rise up from the blackness beneath. Aquatic craft of all sorts zip between the structures and creatures of all sorts can be seen swimming about.

Within about ten minutes they approach a massive, sprawling complex seemingly made from frozen air bubbles and spun sunlight. Reaching it in their train car, it quickly and efficiently docks, leading to the bright lights of the palace.

Quietly clicking across the tile floors, Alraszi says, "Come friends, we have a grand dinner prepared for you where we might speak of the past, present, and future."

[rhoenix]

Crulmax System
Crulmathi
Plaza of the Ancients

Her eyes opening the instant the Grand Republic of the Sky bear delegation's shuttle had breached the atmosphere, Archon Aya Brea observed the tentative first steps of the Sky Bears on this beautiful homeworld of the Straltoc.

As all three groups boarded the transport, tentative small talk began, getting to know one another. Upon seeing their Archon more relaxed and calm, the two GSC Templar relaxed a little as well, even to the point of joining in with some of the conversations on the way to the Palace of Trancendance. All of the Golden Sky Combine delegates watched the scenery outside of the transport with approving wonder, even while they stayed fully involved with the conversations.

After a perfectly appropriate amount of time, the transport slowed swiftly to a stop, allowing all three groups to disembark. Despite their weight, the three Golden Sky delegates made far less little noise that one would expect crossing the tile, looking around in somewhat guarded wonder at the beauty of the Palace.

Quietly clicking across the tile floors, Alraszi says, "Come friends, we have a grand dinner prepared for you where we might speak of the past, present, and future."

At this, all three of the Golden Sky delegates smiled, though Archon Brea was the one who spoke. "I am honored yet again, Alraszi, as well as hungry. I look forward as well to talks of the past, present, and future with open arms."

EDIT: Punctuation

[Beowulf]

Okitaka
The Pyramid

An Field Marshall in full dress uniform entered the chamber and kneeled. "Events are transpiring in the south that we could take advantage of to damage an abomination against God, Son. A coalition has formed to attack said abomination. We use their attack as a distraction to perform an attack of our own"

The Son of the Sun asked, "Have you already prepared a plan?"

"Yes, my lord. The basics of the plan are: We plan to move two Home Fleet divisions to offensive status, and redeploy two more divisions to cover the hole that lack would result in. Also sent would be a few cruisers and frigates to prevent escapes. Our battle fleet would move above the ecliptic, and then traverse to the choose site. This would help mask our fleet's origin, and prevent any for determining our location, or who carried out the attack. The attack will occur after coalition's battle has started. After the majority of the defense fleet leaves, the battle fleet arrives, defeats the remnant, and begins bombardment of all centers of military value. After completion of that task, our fleet leaves, going in a direction not directly back to our space, travels for a few days, and then sets course for home. No ground combat is expected. It's a straight forward orbital purge."

"Very well. The fleet may begin preparations for this task. You have a full outline of the plan with you?"

"Yes, my lord. Pearl of Wisdom: transmit the battle plan to the Son's device."

"Hai, nushi."

"Once I have finished reviewing this plan, I'll give final approval. Remember though, the survival of our Home Fleet takes top priority, above smashing the abomination."

Taking that as a dismissal, the Admiral stood and bowed toward the Son of the Sun, then backed away before turning and leaving the chamber.

[Covenant]

A few seconds later, long range sensors would have detected a large thermal bloom from the Implacable, culminating within a few seconds to a much, much larger thermal bloom of the shell exploding within the corona of the star. Responding as predicted, the star vomited a large solar flare into space, visible for lightyears. Also as predicted, the solar flare never touched a planet or one of the GSC ships.

Off the Implacable's Port Bow
Aurora-class Special Intelligence Picket

The small vessel decloaks, allowing the Troodon to breathe deeply and remove his helmet. It floats off to the side of the canopy where it sticks to a magnetic strip, and lights bloom back on. An SR-71 normally operated with nearly all systems down, and the crew restricted to spacesuit only for the duration of their relatively short patrols, but the rare occasion to disable cloak and do more than peek around was a luxury.

The sensor operator activated an all-clear for the ship's systems and unlocked the rest of the "Noise" filters, and the Electronics Warfare scramblers quieted for a moment, leaving the vessel strangely silent. Twip scratched at his neck-feathers and activated communications as the small sleek ship settled in alongside the GSC starvessel.

"Confederacy picket here. You rang?"

[rhoenix]

Somewhere south of Golden Sky Combine space

The sensor operator activated an all-clear for the ship's systems and unlocked the rest of the "Noise" filters, and the Electronics Warfare scramblers quieted for a moment, leaving the vessel strangely silent. Twip scratched at his neck-feathers and activated communications as the small sleek ship settled in alongside the GSC starvessel.

"Confederacy picket here. You rang?"

An observer would have noticed power draining from the guns of the Implacable with shocking speed following the message from the small picket ship. The slightly light-distorting particle and energy shields of both GSCN ships also dropped, allowing the picket ship to scan both ships with impunity.

The reply came a bare second later from the comm officer of the Implacable. "Salutations, Confederacy picket. One moment while I transfer you to Archon Inzeti, aboard the Sun Glare."

Just as swiftly, the line was picked back up by the Archon. "I am honored that you replied to us ringing your doorbell so quickly. I am here to discuss matters of peace and honorable accord, such as trading of items and culture officially with your people, should you be interested. Whether you are or not, I have gifts for your people."

[Bugsby]

"There are two kinds of spaceships," Cpt. Trellen thought as he gazed out the large viewport of the shuttle. "The big kind and the fun kind." Trellen was used to the fun kind. He had been a member of the Oberin Marine for nearly two decades, since he was old enough to enlist. Dropships and shuttles had been his life, and he had performed well. Too well, in fact. Now his position was on the big ships, lost in miles of cold steel corridor. He was a commander now, and deemed "too valuable" to go out on actual missions. He rarely got to hold a rifle anymore. His life was one of paperwork, of telling men what to do instead of doing it himself. It was frustrating, but at times rewarding - financially speaking, that is. The pay was MUCH better.

Trellen was the commander of all marine forces within the Second Armada, a position of high importance. He would never have dreamed that he would be assigned to a boarding party, but to his surprise the order came down from the admiral that he was to take three men and personally oversee the examination of the downed freighter. The admiral thought that it would be best to send someone of rank, to handle the situation in the most diplomatic manner possible. Trellen laughed to himself at the thought. Diplomacy indeed! He was a soldier, not a politician. Still, there did seem to be some diplomacy required here. He wasn't fully aware of the situation outside - he had barely been briefed - but a simple tactical readout of the fleet positions had been enough to tell him that force wasn't required in this situation. If it was, the whole mess would have been over an hour ago, and he would be sailing home. No such luck. Trellen smiled as he patted the pistol at his side. It wasn't a rifle, but he rarely even got to carry a sidearm anymore.

Trellen looked outside the viewport as his shuttle cruised around the front of the freighter to reach the docking port in the rear. He could see the section of the nose missing where a missile had struck it. He sighed, disappointed. He knew this model of freighter - they wouldn't find any flight recorder. Well, there were two of his objectives out of the way already. No recorder to find, and the cause of this ship's distress seemed fairly obvious.

"Oberin shuttle, requesting permission to dock," the pilot sung out from the front of the shuttle. Trellen couldn't hear the reply from the Novas, but the shuttle quickly swung around and Trellen could hear the maneuvering jets humming. A few seconds later, the familiar "woosh" of a cycling airlock came from the hatch of the shuttle, and the door opened soon after. Two marines stepped out in front, and the third followed Trellen. Trellen still felt uncomfortable being guarded - in full armor and with a rilfe he was sure he could take all three of his own men on at once - but he had long grown used to the discomfort, and shrugged it off.

"Well, boys, it looks like the recorder is gone, but head up to the bridge and see if there's anything to find. After that, check the cargo area, then do a sweep of the ship. That should be enough to keep you busy."

"Sir!" two of the marines saluted and marched off sharply in the direction of the bridge. The third stayed behind. "Aren't you going with them?" Trellen asked, annoyed and a bit surprised that he was being disobeyed.

"Sir, my orders were to ensure your safety. Sir." The marine looked confused. Conflicting orders were always confusing.

"It is assured," Trellen sighed. "We got a whole damn armada out there. No one is going to start anything. Including us. Clear?"

"Crystal." The marine turned and jogged off after his two companions. Trellen watched him leave with satisfaction, but at the same time he was quite glad of the pistol hanging at his side. You can never be to careful...

Forcing his most diplomatic smile, he turned to the Nova, who had been waiting patiently. "Sorry about that. Captain Llam Trellen. Just here to look things over and answer any questions you might have."

*****

Tristan Artelme paced around his quarters nervously. He knew he should not be nervous. He was a prince, a great leader of Oberin. He knew that it was his duty to keep a calm demeanor at all times. But now he found he could not sit still. He should have heard something by now. Something, anything! The door opened, and Tristan turned to greet his generals. To his surprise, it was his sister that walked in.

"Petya!" he cried out, but the surprise in his words quickly turned to venom. "What are you doing here? Where are my generals?"

"Indisposed, at the moment." Petya replied softly, taking a seat on one of Tristan's chairs. Uninvited. Tristan scowled, but let the slight pass. "I asked them if a sister could be allowed to deliver a simple message to her dear brother, and they were happy to oblige me. You need not disturb our finest soldiers to have them act as errand boys for you."

Tristan's scowl returned. He was the High Prince of Ober, heir to the throne. And if he wanted to confer with his generals, he had every right! Who was his sister to send his advisors away, like young boys begging for sweets? It was clear she had some influence with them, and he knew all to well how she got it.

"Tell me, dear sister, how many of them have you slept with?"

"Jealous?"

"You make me sick," Tristan spat. "And I did not just request a message, I also wanted their counsel. We have a fleet in the field, and I demand to be appraised of their status at all times."

"Of course," Petya said quickly, casting her eyes down. "I am sorry, borther, I should have realized. But the status of the fleet, that is the message they sent me with. We have found the freighter, dead in the sky. Nova mercenaries were performing a rescue mission, and the dwarves and Wanderers arrived as well. We are aiding the rescue mission, then returning to our home systems."

"Aiding - aiding the rescue mission?" Fury was growing in Tristan's eyes. Petya shrank back, clearly afraid of her brother's rage. "Aiding the rescue? My god, what about the pirates? What about... the Nova! Mercenary scum! I ordered an entire armada sent, can't they do SOMETHING?"

"An entire armada?" Petya asked, impressed. "Whatever for?"

"The pirates!"

"My message said nothing of pirates," Petya offered.

"So it must have been the Nova! And yet we... we aid the rescue? No wonder we are seen as weak. We should be attacking!"

"Why?"

"Why? Because they are right there! The Nova blew that freighter, clear as day. We found the smoking gun!"

"Gun?" Petya asked, confused once again. "I thought we found a ship."

"I have difficulty believing that even you are that stupid," Tristan sighed, sitting heavily on his chair. He sat across from Petya, but would not meet her eyes. "Aiding the rescue. Well, nothing to be done, I suppose. Even if I sent another message now, by the time the armada received it they would already be on the way home. Dust and thunder!" he cursed.

"I'm sorry," Petya offered, reaching out to take her brother's hand.

"What are you still doing here?" Tristan smiled at the look of hurt on his sister's face.

"You do not love me, brother." It wasn't a question.

"Go."

"Very well, then. I will go talk to Daddy. He is much more pleasant to be around." Tristan waved his hand at Petya, and she left in a huff. Tristan did not bother to watch her go. He was trying to control his fury. A chance to show some strength against criminals - dangerous criminals! - operating near Oberin space, and the armada had not been able to perform even that simple task. Unforgivable!

Tristan grabbed a nearby decorative vase off its stand and threw it at the wall, where it shattered. He felt a bit better. He had heard somewhere that that vase was priceless.

[Dark Hellion]

Herald Space

Freighters pushed asteroids from the various belts of the systems, their destination orbits around the planets and colonies of the Heralds. Peppering these asteroid clouds surrounding the planets were thermonuclear mines, dumbfire rockets hidden on the scarred metallic surfaces of the rocky bodies orbiting. Boarding pods floated, covered in stone camoflauge, one shot rocket boosters on standby, designed to send a hundred Terrordrones into the heart of the enemy ships, chaos and confusion sown by their suicide strikes. Freighters, filled with anti-matter, hid behind large rocks in low orbit, while frigates and cruisers positioned themselves for other ambushes. Decoy sensor pods floated everywhere, any sensor system in system that did not know the proper IFF codes would be flooded with millions of signals. On the planetary surface construction drones worked furiously, hedgehogs of industrial scrap where placed upon any suspected landing site, nuclear landmines buried in the mess. Anti-Orbital Artillery assumed firing position under optical camoflauge nets, massive sensor jamming towers covering the cities in interference. Tanks, grav. choppers and IFVs positioning themselves in deep dug vehicle bunkers, ready to meet incoming ground forces, as overhead swarms of Aerospace fighters, torpedo bombers and heavy strategic bombers flew, blacking out the sky as thier patrols screamed by. In the manufacturing complexes and ground based drydocks Terrordrones scuttled into small hidden passages, stealth systems turned to maximum, waiting.

The lone Emissary in charge of organization examined the various reports flowing in from various sources. The defenses were proceeding satisfactorily. The fleet would probably take a month to arrive, and by that time, the asteroid swarms surrounding the planet would make navigation a near impossibilty. Hundreds of hours would be wasted blasting them from the sky. The boarding pods would ensure that every asteroid was destroyed. Nuclear mines and missiles would prevent any fighter craft or landing pods from sneaking through. And then the ground battle would begin. The Emissary at the Coalition had seen the Jotun of the Combine, and his scans proved that these troops would be, in sufficient numbers, nigh impossible to stop. The other troops were much weaker though. The casaulty count would be horrendous for the ground troops. Bombardment would be required, which would play into the Heralds hands at the Coalition, and the deep dug bunkers and undergound facilities and tunnels would minimalize military casualites. The grinding combat would take months, or even years. Patience was on the Heralds side. They had already waited 2700 years to find The Purpose, a year of fighting was nothing. The Emissary smiled internally

Bring it on Heretic bastards. Come and see the true strength of Our Faith. Let it be the last thing you see, before you die. We are the Heralds of Angels, who are you to stand against us?

[Noble Ire]

Staging Area ‘Echo’
Preeminence System Designate C-027021
Sector T-15, Nephilim Space


From her bridge at the heart of the Phage-class planetary assault cruiser ATF-005 Tenth Dawn, Princep Hiares watched as the featureless black matte that represented the unfathomable dimension known as the Void abruptly vanished from her close-range tactical displays, replaced by a familiar, glimmering starfield. Her command ship’s sensor assemblies immediately sprung into action, sketching preliminary long-range readings of the star system before the warship, and adding each vessel in Hiares task force to the battle display at the center of the chamber as they entered realspace in quick succession around the Tenth Dawn. Two other planetary assault cruisers and five heavy troop transports, with a pair each of Ossea-class carriers and Lymphocyte-class cruisers as escorts. Not quite an awe-inspiring force, the Princep reflected as she moved to her Communications coordinators, but it would serve its purpose well. Besides, they were not the only FEA warships that would see combat in the coming months.

With a gesture to one of her adjunct officers, she began to speak. The hail was audio only; Preeminence warships didn’t employ direct visual communication as a rule. There was no point in wasting the system resources required for a hologram or 2D image when voice would suffice, especially when face-to-face contact was bound to follow.

“All NGTO vessels, this is Princep Hiares, commander of the Tenth Dawn and Anterior Flank, the squadron of Preeminence combat ships to be attached to this task force. Please identify the presiding flagship; I wish to meet with the fleet commanders as soon as possible. Relay this vessel proper entry vectors and protocols for my Flank, and I will instruct my cotes… ah, captains, to bring their ships into formation.”

[SirNitram]

Captain. The Wanderer's voice was in the man's very head, and she hadn't done more than glance his way. The voice wasn't even properly female; it was a symphony of voices speaking in perfect harmony. This freighter was not tampered with by the mercenaries. I have inspected their minds and found no teachery. Something deeper is at work, someone who seeks unrest in the Galactic South.

[Bugsby]

Trellen frowned at the Wanderer's announcement. "Unrest in the Galactic South? That's a bit extreme, don't you think? Still, you might be right. I still have no idea why Fleet Command sent a force this size to investigate suspected piracy. Maybe someone higher up knows something I don't. That's worth thinking about, but I admit it's a bit over my head. My duties are to examine this ship and verify its cargo for transport to its destination. But I will be sure to include your suspicions in my report."

[SirNitram]

Consider carefully your superiors. Someone had reason to send this many warships for a freighter's distress call. The Wanderer continued. I begin to suspect the goal was that the first meeting between us to be violent. Humanity is well capable of such treachery, and they have reason to harm both our peoples.

[Bugsby]

Trellen nodded thoughtfully. "I have read my history, and am no stranger to the treachery of humanity. In my, uh, capacity as representative of the Oberin Imperiate," he continued, stammering over the unfamiliar words, "I assure you that we take your words very seriously. A violent meeting between our people would have been tragic. Throughout our long history, the Oberin have sought only peace."

[SirNitram]

Peace and security, sadly, is only purchased with blood, and too often, the blood of the best of our respective kinds. There was an emotion entwined with the words; the grief was more than any human could express with words. When this is complete, we would travel with you. If you prefer, we can construct our ship again, or we can journey aboard your ship. We imagine your security might be off-put by the idea, though.

[Bugsby]

"Well, here you have approached a subject that I am familiar with. As director of Marines for this fleet group, I am in command of the security onboard all Second Armada vessels. I have no problem allowing you onboard one of our vessels, but I am afraid I can only stretch courtesy so far... you will have to be escorted by guards, and I cannot allow you free reign of the ship. Military secrets to protect and all that. Still, I am sure we would be honored to welcome you onboard. We will be making a quick stop to deliver this cargo, then returning to Ober, where you can meet with a more official diplomatic corps. Or you could just see the sights, if you prefer. Ober is a beautiful planet." Trellen trusted this being, as far as prudence would allow. It was the flood of grief at the mention of war that did it - After ninetenn years in the service, Trellen knew the grief of war all too well.

[rhoenix]

Nephilim Assembly Grounds, Nephilim Space

“All NGTO vessels, this is Princep Hiares, commander of the Tenth Dawn and Anterior Flank, the squadron of Preeminence combat ships to be attached to this task force. Please identify the presiding flagship; I wish to meet with the fleet commanders as soon as possible. Relay this vessel proper entry vectors and protocols for my Flank, and I will instruct my cotes… ah, captains, to bring their ships into formation.”

One of the largest ships nearly all alone of its design philosophy, a rounded dagger-shaped vessel, hailed them in return. A tall, tan-skinned woman with green eyes that almost seemed to smolder appeared on the holocom, dressed in a comfortable but official-looking uniform. "This is Templar Ayadi Prasad, commanding the vessel GSCN Conflagration, and flagship of this task group. My lead astrogator will provide you with proper entry and exit vectors, protocols, and telemetry data. Please have your lead weapons officer contact us as well, so we may go over tactical proceedings."

[SirNitram]

We will travel with you then. The Wanderer nodded simply. We will abide by your security decisions. We have become aware of the paranoia that can surround a race who does not issue physical forms of identification, and will endeavour to not alarm anyone.

[Covenant]

Just as swiftly, the line was picked back up by the Archon. "I am honored that you replied to us ringing your doorbell so quickly. I am here to discuss matters of peace and honorable accord, such as trading of items and culture officially with your people, should you be interested. Whether you are or not, I have gifts for your people."

"We happened to be in the neighborhood," the Troodon replied, working with the sensor operator to put them in contact with the base underground back in planetary orbit. It wasn't much of a base, but this was the usual way that contact had been made, however infrequently. "Please hold... we're patching you through, I think base'll want to hear your offer. Best of luck," the slight dinosaur offered, and the line clicked over.

The response came as particularly excited text, transmitted from the unseen base to the SR-71, and then to the GSC vessel. The Troodons flipped on the radio instead, and allowed negotations to proceed without them.

*PLEASE ALLOW ME MYSELF, EXCEPTIONALLY ESTEEMED EMISSARY OF THE 4TH ECHELON OF THE 9TH RANK OF IMPORTANT PERSONS, COMMANDING AMBASSADORIAL AMBASSADOR TZI, TO EXTEND IN MOST SINCERE GRACIOUSNESS AND HOSPITALITY, NOT TO MENTION, MY HOPES AND DESIRES FOR A MUTUAL AND HIGHLY PROFITABLE EXCHANGE NOW AT THIS TIME, IF I MAY, SO TO SPEAK.*

The message paused, as if losing it's train of thought. Diplomacy was not a Dinosaur forte, and diplomats were as ill-trained in their craft as can be expected from a species that generally avoids contact if at all possible. The chance to actually submit a message could make or break a diplomat's meager career, and and it was likely the lucky officer was nearly hyperventilating from the opportunity.

*WITH CONSIDERABLE APLOMB, NOT TO MENTION POISE, I, AMBASSADORIAL AMBASSADOR TZI MAKE RESPONSE TO YOUR HAIL. IT MAY BE THAT YOU YOURSELF ARE INTERESTED IN QUERYING ME AT GREAT LENGTH ON SIGNIFICANT MATTERS OF INTEREST AND GALACTIC IMPORT. I MYSELF SUGGEST COMMUNICATIONS AS A SUITABLE MEANS TO THIS END.*

The teletype-style message relay paused again.

*YOU BROUGHT US GIFTS?*