Post by EmperorMyric on Mar 22, 2021 16:48:40 GMT
It had been three days since the Trebuchet had left its home system far behind. The ship had worked far better than expected, with no major faults found or malfunctions occurring. Still, the total lack of contact with home left the crew of the ship, Captain S'dara most of all, troubled. There was no way to know if there was even a home to save. They could only hope. Still, the vessel pushed its way onward. Every now and again, the ship's sensors would pick up an abnormal energy spike from somewhere in deep space. Someone else's FTL, no doubt. A constant reminder they were in a galaxy full of nations ahead of them.
"Captain, if the map data we recovered is any indication, we should be approaching a system belonging to one of the Unanimity's allies. ETA 50 seconds."
"Good. Keep defences at the ready. Prepare to drop FTL, give me a countdown."
A small screen lit up, displaying a timer with the seconds ticking down. If S'dara was any more tense, he was afraid something on his exoskeleton would crack, soft or no.
"Alright, ETA 10 seconds! Standby to enter sublight transit!"
"Transluminal drive shutdown procedure ready!"
"Weapons on standby!"
"Armour nominal, radiation spike within manageable limits! Engine temperature nominal!"
"Dropping FTL in 3...2...1...dropping!"
The ship's approach was obvious on anything watching the system's edge, though it was far less powerful than the more advanced faster-than-light methods some interstellar powers had achieved. As it approached and entered the system's outer boundaries, it became clearly evident that it was being propelled by an alcubierre drive. One that, seconds later, wavered and fell, the vessel dropping back into slower-than-light speeds.
It did not take long for early warning probes at the edges of the system to pick up the Trebuchet's presence. Military patrols of three Serpent-class frigates were despatched to investigate while officers in command orbital stations watched the ship's movements carefully. The system of Karvoskaya, the capital of the IRS territories in Ancerious, was used to newcomers from various parts of the galaxy coming either by accident or to trade and visit so there was no need to point the thousands of defence platforms at it.
"Sir, long range scans indicate its a military warship. Your orders?"
"Standard procedures ensign. Tell it to stay put, power down and ask for their intentions while the patrol scans their vessel."
"Yes sir."
A text message was beamed to the Trebuchet that read in galactic common; "Unknown military vessel. You are in the sovereign territory of the Interstellar Republic of Singapore. Stay put and power down while a patrol scans your vessel. State your intentions for arriving in the system."
As scanning ships and probes got closer and took a better look, it became quickly evident that by even some of the less advanced nations they had encountered, technologically the Trebuchet was positively archaic. It classed, by size, somewhere in the cruiser region at almost 5 kilometres long. There was no sign of energy shields or emitters of any kind; indeed, it seemed the vessel had none to begin with. White ceramic-composite armour adorned with blue stripes here and there covered the vessel's hull, and the ship was adorned with multiple electromagnetic induction weapons. Chemical rockets, though far more efficient than those usually taught about in history classes, sat hot at the back, steadily cooling. And, of course, the two Alcubierre rings that had brought the ship to the system. The most notable weapon the vessel carried was the substantially large railgun on its prow; even despite the ship's technological inferiority, there was no doubt it could do some harm.
"Captain! Message coming in now. Feeding through recovered translation software." An officer called. S'dara knew the software had been captured from what few Unanimity ships the Staebh had disabled, and the ship techs had struggled to make it compatible with their own computers. He worried for how effective they would be. His gaze brightened when he saw they'd done a better job than they themselves had thought; while a few words, like whatever 'Singapore' was, came out fuzzy and confused, the message for the most part came out clear. S'dara's many eyes narrowed.
"Disable the guns, but keep the capacitors charged. Keep engines on standby. Make sure the flak gun ammo feeds are still in place."
"Aye aye sir."
"Don't trust them, sir?"
"Our first contact with aliens got us into this mess, I don't have a great disposition towards strangers with less than four arms and eight eyes."
"Fair point. Should we respond?"
"Yes. Open outgoing comms."
"Aye aye."
A moment or two passed, before the lonesome ship responded, steadily drifting forwards. Inertia was a cruel mistress.
"This is Captain S'dara of the SUSNS Trebuchet, hailing from the Staebhic Union. We have come seeking aid for our people; we have been looking for members of an 'AGA' our attackers seem connected to."
"Processing your request, SUSNS Trebuchet. Wait one." a text message replied. The commanding officer of the system's defence fleet deliberated over the nature of the Trebuchet's presence and after a few seconds placed it under 'Request for Dialouge - Political'. The request was then immediately beamed to the Foreign Service office below, who would then relay the message to the Administrator's office. The usual procedure for foreign newcomers from neutral nations was to assign a junior diplomat, freshly graduated from the academy, and bring them around to visit town but the mention of an AGA member attacking this Steabhic Union would be more than enough to picque the interest of the Civil Administrator himself.
"SUSNS Trebuchet, the Civil Administrator of the Interstellar Republic is ready to receive your diplomatic delegation for talks on Karvoskaya Prime. Follow this nav coordinates and dock at the designated shipyard. A security detail will escort you down to the planet surface and take you to the Administrator's office." another text message was sent five minutes later.
"Understood. En-route now." Came back in the Staebhic tongue before the Trebuchet's engines lit up again. For such an outdated ship, the engines were evidently far more efficient than they looked, the vessel crossing the distance at a remarkable pace, control thrusters burning to align it to the docking bay, electromagnetic clamps activating.
"We're docked, Captain."
"Alright. First Officer, you have the bridge. Get me some Marines, too."
"Aye aye. Good luck, sir."
When the Captain stepped through the docking umbilical, he was clad in some kind of environment suit. Even with the air reading as breathable, the risk of pathogens wasn't one he was willing to risk. The Staebh, as it turned out, were a humanoid arachnid race, two large, primary eyes each aided by three smaller ones. Two arms hung from each side with a third pair of limbs concealed under folding suit panels on their backs flanking a rather pronounced structure on their backs. He was flanked by a pair of SUSN Marines, each clad in a rather heavy suit of white and blue power armour, and each carried what was quite clearly a GMG.
The Staebh caused few complications on their way down the spire, most issues caused by language barriers and unfamiliar translation software. Eventually, they arrived at the office. S'dara's stern gaze and straight posture concealed an unwavering, core fear. Unfamiliar territory. Unfamiliar faces. A race that looked a little too much like their own aggressors, though these did not glow or come in a great variety of colour. Still, he had a job to do.
Civil Administrator Barenkovic Shimm cocked one of his eyebrows upwards as the Staebh entered his office in heavy power armor and what effectively looked like large heavy machine guns, impressed by the stark contrast of lightly equipped security troopers in urban camo BDUs and lightweight nano-kelvar vests that stood at attention beside his desk.
"Welcome, uh...people of the Staebh," Shimm stood up, hesitating for a moment as he struggled to pronounce their name correctly, in the end saying it as 'Stub'. He reached out his hand for a handshake. "I believe you said something about an AGA member attacking your nation? Which one, may I ask?"
Captain S'dara awkwardly reached out to shake the hand with one of his four; evidently an unfamiliar gesture to the Staebh.
"A pleasure. I am Captain S'dara. Apologies for the heavy armour...dealing with other nations is something we're unfamiliar with." he explained, his enviro-suit's translation systems stumbling here and there but otherwise getting the message across.
"Ah, yes. What intelligence we have is limited, of course, but I believe they call themselves the 'Unanimity'. Are you familiar with them?"
"Yes and no," Shimm sat down and gestured his guests to sit on the sofas if they are able. "Yes, because we fought together in an AGA joint operation to destroy an enemy superweapon - the Crucible if you have heard in the galactic net, and no, because bilaterally we have very little diplomatic contact with each other."
"Still, as an AGA member, I would have expected them to act as the peacekeepers we sought out to be not aggressors," Shimm mulled over. "Detail to me the conflict between the Staebhic Union and the Unanimity. How it came about, and how it is currently."
"Indeed. Their small numbers seem to indicate their actions being deliberately limited, if their estimated size is correct, so I suspect only a few have acted against us." S'dara started.
"First contact occurred a few months ago, when several of their ships appeared in our system with virtually no warning. In an admittedly rash move on our part, the Staebhic Union responded aggressively with every weapon we had at our disposal, though no shots were fired. They left, but apparently chose not to leave it at that. The SUSN was formed to defend our system from further intrusion, but every engagement we've had with them since, small as they might seem to an interstellar power, has had mounting losses for us. Including our victories." He explained.
Before continuing, he placed a holographic projector in front of him, lighting up to display projections of the various battles. Each time, a second later every ship lost turned red, and every ship significantly damaged turned orange. First, the encounter over Isrekis, less than 10 ships.Then, the attack on the monitoring station. The station did not change colour. Multiple Staebh ships did.
Next, the Battle for Aubos, the first in which any Artifician ships turned red, but few Staebh ships remained white.
Lastly, the engagement over Staebha itself. No ships changed colour here. All in all, less than 100, perhaps even 50 ships had fought during the past several skirmishes, but from the sounds of it, the Staebh held only a single system. So, the scale was much worse for them.
"In truth, we do not know how the battle over Staebha, our homeworld, ended; the Trebuchet left system before it was resolved. I dearly hope the SUSN was able to fight them off, but I cannot say with any certainty, nor can I say if any engagements have happened since. Our...comms systems are not advanced enough to contact them at this distance. We lost contact soon after leaving our system. I was present for every engagement, however."
"I am curious on the nature of your borders with the Unanimity space. Where is your system on this map?" Shimm brought up a holographic map of the galaxy, zooming in onto the Unanimity's territories in the Palar Rift.
S'dara muttered something to himself, tapping a few buttons on his wrist-mounted computer. A moment passed, unfamiliar and quite technologically disparate systems interacting as data was handed over. After processing the data, the system popped up as a dot on the map.
Dead in the centre of Unanimity space.
"...Ah."
Shimm sighed. "As a fellow interstellar power, I can honestly understand the nature of this conflict. Since your system lies very deeply in their sphere of influence, securing your home has become a matter of both internal and external security."
"But nevertheless you have my support in this matter; Staebh's system is your home and thus should remain as your sovereign space. If you ask why I would this for a small system, its because the fact you have FTL and have used it to escape encirclement means you are free to go around and garner support against the Unanimity. And I can't have you tarnishing the image of the AGA and invite our enemies, the APP bloc, to invade the Unanimity and free your people which would then force the other members of the AGA to intervene under the mutual defence pact. So thus this is what I can reasonably do; I will send a communique to the Unanimity and tell them that the Trebuchet has arrived in IRS space. I will demand that they cease all military operations and withdraw from your system in the interest of maintaining the AGA's image as peacekeepers not belligerents. I will then request diplomatic support from the Union of Worlds, the de facto leading power of the AGA, and request both parties to conduct peace talks in secret so as not to attract unnecessary attention."
"And here; consider this a diplomatic gift for our first contact," Shimm signed out a cargo manifest containing billions of tons of food, water, fuel, medical supplies, raw materials, metals, tools, weapons and ammunition along with five unmarked logistics freighters devoid of any IFF tags, electronics or anything that could immediately be associated with the IRS. "I cannot say for sure that our efforts can take immediate effect so use this to prolong the defence of your worlds and buy time for the peace talks. And if anyone asks, say these supplies were procured from other neutral nations, not the IRS."
"Of course. Asking for more would be rude of me. On behalf of the Staebhic Union, and from me personally, you have our deepest thanks. I will keep what you have said in mind, and relay it to my superiors as soon as we return home. I have the suspicion those freighters will arrive before we will, but that will be a matter for when we get there." S'dara nodded, his face visibly beaming next to the somewhat downcast look he had when he walked in.
"I...will say though, your mentions of an 'APP', this galactic net and whatever war you are on about...the Staebh have never managed to contact anything outside our system. You are the first nation we have met that has not come to our borders first."
"Currently there is a galactic war going on right now, between two multinational blocs - the Ancerious Galactic Alliance, the AGA, and the Ancerious Pivotal Powers, the APP," Shimm went on to explain. "The AGA was formed at the Union's initiative to safeguard the peace of the galaxy, even going as far as to militarily intervene to end large conflicts if necessary. The APP was, on the contrary, formed to oppose the AGA and believed that the strong should be free to reign as they please, even it meant wanton aggression and warmongering."
"And just recently, the APP employed a superweapon, the Crucible, and wiped out a number of AGA star systems whole by forcing their stars to go supernova. Fortunately we managed to track it down and in a massive joint operation managed to destroy it though not without large numbers of casualties. This was where we fought side by side with the Unanimity."
Shimm transferred data files on the war, along with a galactic maps pinpointing the AGA and APP nations as well as major warzones, into a flash drive and handed it over to Captain S'dara. "More information can be found here, and I insist that you stay clear of the APP. If you'd like to garner more support, the Union is a good start and they'd likely consider your case as well being the peacekeepers they are."
"I...understand." S'dara nodded, taking the drive. Nations throwing around weapons that could annihilate star systems was a concept that, to a nation yet to even colonise a second system, was nothing short of terrifying. He felt lucky the war had stayed clear of the Staebh's region of space.
"I'll...keep all you've said in mind. It took us days to reach your space alone, I don't think we're in a fantastic position to be heading even further away from home. With that said, unless there is nothing else to be discussed, then again I thank you for all you have done. I hope your talks with the Unanimity go well." he made a slight bowing motion.
"I hope we will not be too late. Stay safe Captain," Shimm stood up and bowed back. "If you need a place to refit and repair you have our nav coordinates."
"Of course. Good fortunes to you too, Shimm." S'dara nodded as he made to leave the office. "And, to clarify, it is pronounced 'Stay-b'. Until next time, Administrator." he made what could only be assumed to be a grin, showing off the Staebh's...many narrow, needle-like teeth, before he turned to leave, headed back the way he and his escorting Marines came.
Time was of the essence. Hopefully the engineers would have made the necessary maintenance checks and fixes by the time he got back to the bridge.
URGENT DIPLOMATIC COMMUNIQUE TO THE UNANIMITY
STAEBHIC WARSHIP HAS WARPED INTO IRS SPACE AND HAS MADE US AWARE OF YOUR MILITARY ACTIONS IN THEIR SOVEREIGN SPACE.
IN THE INTEREST OF MAINTAINING THE IMAGE OF THE AGA AS PEACEKEEPERS NOT BELLIGERENTS THE IRS FIRMLY REQUESTS ALL UNANIMITY MILITARY ACTIONS TO BE CEASED AND THAT THEY WITHDRAW FROM STAEBHIC SPACE AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. THE IRS WOULD LIKE TO SEE DIPLOMATIC MEASURES, AS MEDIATED BY OTHER AGA POWERS, TO BRING THE CONFLICT BETWEEN THE UNANIMITY AND THE STAEBHIC UNION TO A PEACEFUL END.
THE IRS STRESSES THAT ANY FURTHER MILITARY ACTION WOULD PROMPT THE STAEBHIC UNION TO GARNER INTERGALACTIC SUPPORT AGAINST THE UNANIMITY, WHO AS A MEMBER OF THE AGA, WOULD THEN ATTRACT THE INTEREST OF THE APP AND THE POSSIBILITY OF APP INTERVENTION INTO UNANIMITY SPACE UNDER THE PRETEXT OF LIBERATING THE STAEBHIC UNION.
THE IRS TRUSTS YOUR WISDOM IN THIS MATTER.
/////////
URGENT DIPLOMATIC COMMUNIQUE TO THE UNION OF WORLDS
DETAILS OF THE CONFLCIT BETWEEN ONE OF THE AGA MEMBERS, THE UNANIMITY, AND A SMALL NEUTRAL NATION KNOWN AS THE STAEBHIC UNION IS ATTACHED TO THIS COMMUNIQUE.
THE IRS HAS STRONGLY REQUESTED THE UNANIMITY's WITHDRAWAL FROM STAEBHIC SPACE AND ADVOCATED FOR PEACE TALKS TO END THE CONFLICT. THE IRS INVITES THE UNION TO ATTEND, IF THEY DO AGREE TO HOLD PEACE TALKS, AS MEDIATOR.
THE IRS ALSO REQUESTS THE UNION FOR POLITICAL SUPPORT IN ENSURING THE STAEBHIC UNION'S SOVEREIGNTY WITH THE UNION'S AUTHORITY AS A LEADING AGA POWER AND TO MOBILISE THE AGA IF THE UNANIMITY REFUSES TO CEASE BELLIGERENT ACTIONS AGAINST THE STAEBHIC UNION.
A STAEBHIC UNION WARSHIP HAS MADE CONTACT WITH THE IRS AND IS FTL CAPABLE. THIS MEANS IF THE AGA CANNOT GUARANTEE THE STEBHIC UNION'S SURVIVAL THEY WILL CONTACT OTHER POWERS ESPECIALLY THE APP FOR ASSISTANCE. THIS WOULD BE DETRIMENTAL TO THE AGA'S IMAGE AND AND SECURITY.
"Captain, if the map data we recovered is any indication, we should be approaching a system belonging to one of the Unanimity's allies. ETA 50 seconds."
"Good. Keep defences at the ready. Prepare to drop FTL, give me a countdown."
A small screen lit up, displaying a timer with the seconds ticking down. If S'dara was any more tense, he was afraid something on his exoskeleton would crack, soft or no.
"Alright, ETA 10 seconds! Standby to enter sublight transit!"
"Transluminal drive shutdown procedure ready!"
"Weapons on standby!"
"Armour nominal, radiation spike within manageable limits! Engine temperature nominal!"
"Dropping FTL in 3...2...1...dropping!"
The ship's approach was obvious on anything watching the system's edge, though it was far less powerful than the more advanced faster-than-light methods some interstellar powers had achieved. As it approached and entered the system's outer boundaries, it became clearly evident that it was being propelled by an alcubierre drive. One that, seconds later, wavered and fell, the vessel dropping back into slower-than-light speeds.
It did not take long for early warning probes at the edges of the system to pick up the Trebuchet's presence. Military patrols of three Serpent-class frigates were despatched to investigate while officers in command orbital stations watched the ship's movements carefully. The system of Karvoskaya, the capital of the IRS territories in Ancerious, was used to newcomers from various parts of the galaxy coming either by accident or to trade and visit so there was no need to point the thousands of defence platforms at it.
"Sir, long range scans indicate its a military warship. Your orders?"
"Standard procedures ensign. Tell it to stay put, power down and ask for their intentions while the patrol scans their vessel."
"Yes sir."
A text message was beamed to the Trebuchet that read in galactic common; "Unknown military vessel. You are in the sovereign territory of the Interstellar Republic of Singapore. Stay put and power down while a patrol scans your vessel. State your intentions for arriving in the system."
As scanning ships and probes got closer and took a better look, it became quickly evident that by even some of the less advanced nations they had encountered, technologically the Trebuchet was positively archaic. It classed, by size, somewhere in the cruiser region at almost 5 kilometres long. There was no sign of energy shields or emitters of any kind; indeed, it seemed the vessel had none to begin with. White ceramic-composite armour adorned with blue stripes here and there covered the vessel's hull, and the ship was adorned with multiple electromagnetic induction weapons. Chemical rockets, though far more efficient than those usually taught about in history classes, sat hot at the back, steadily cooling. And, of course, the two Alcubierre rings that had brought the ship to the system. The most notable weapon the vessel carried was the substantially large railgun on its prow; even despite the ship's technological inferiority, there was no doubt it could do some harm.
"Captain! Message coming in now. Feeding through recovered translation software." An officer called. S'dara knew the software had been captured from what few Unanimity ships the Staebh had disabled, and the ship techs had struggled to make it compatible with their own computers. He worried for how effective they would be. His gaze brightened when he saw they'd done a better job than they themselves had thought; while a few words, like whatever 'Singapore' was, came out fuzzy and confused, the message for the most part came out clear. S'dara's many eyes narrowed.
"Disable the guns, but keep the capacitors charged. Keep engines on standby. Make sure the flak gun ammo feeds are still in place."
"Aye aye sir."
"Don't trust them, sir?"
"Our first contact with aliens got us into this mess, I don't have a great disposition towards strangers with less than four arms and eight eyes."
"Fair point. Should we respond?"
"Yes. Open outgoing comms."
"Aye aye."
A moment or two passed, before the lonesome ship responded, steadily drifting forwards. Inertia was a cruel mistress.
"This is Captain S'dara of the SUSNS Trebuchet, hailing from the Staebhic Union. We have come seeking aid for our people; we have been looking for members of an 'AGA' our attackers seem connected to."
"Processing your request, SUSNS Trebuchet. Wait one." a text message replied. The commanding officer of the system's defence fleet deliberated over the nature of the Trebuchet's presence and after a few seconds placed it under 'Request for Dialouge - Political'. The request was then immediately beamed to the Foreign Service office below, who would then relay the message to the Administrator's office. The usual procedure for foreign newcomers from neutral nations was to assign a junior diplomat, freshly graduated from the academy, and bring them around to visit town but the mention of an AGA member attacking this Steabhic Union would be more than enough to picque the interest of the Civil Administrator himself.
"SUSNS Trebuchet, the Civil Administrator of the Interstellar Republic is ready to receive your diplomatic delegation for talks on Karvoskaya Prime. Follow this nav coordinates and dock at the designated shipyard. A security detail will escort you down to the planet surface and take you to the Administrator's office." another text message was sent five minutes later.
"Understood. En-route now." Came back in the Staebhic tongue before the Trebuchet's engines lit up again. For such an outdated ship, the engines were evidently far more efficient than they looked, the vessel crossing the distance at a remarkable pace, control thrusters burning to align it to the docking bay, electromagnetic clamps activating.
"We're docked, Captain."
"Alright. First Officer, you have the bridge. Get me some Marines, too."
"Aye aye. Good luck, sir."
When the Captain stepped through the docking umbilical, he was clad in some kind of environment suit. Even with the air reading as breathable, the risk of pathogens wasn't one he was willing to risk. The Staebh, as it turned out, were a humanoid arachnid race, two large, primary eyes each aided by three smaller ones. Two arms hung from each side with a third pair of limbs concealed under folding suit panels on their backs flanking a rather pronounced structure on their backs. He was flanked by a pair of SUSN Marines, each clad in a rather heavy suit of white and blue power armour, and each carried what was quite clearly a GMG.
The Staebh caused few complications on their way down the spire, most issues caused by language barriers and unfamiliar translation software. Eventually, they arrived at the office. S'dara's stern gaze and straight posture concealed an unwavering, core fear. Unfamiliar territory. Unfamiliar faces. A race that looked a little too much like their own aggressors, though these did not glow or come in a great variety of colour. Still, he had a job to do.
Civil Administrator Barenkovic Shimm cocked one of his eyebrows upwards as the Staebh entered his office in heavy power armor and what effectively looked like large heavy machine guns, impressed by the stark contrast of lightly equipped security troopers in urban camo BDUs and lightweight nano-kelvar vests that stood at attention beside his desk.
"Welcome, uh...people of the Staebh," Shimm stood up, hesitating for a moment as he struggled to pronounce their name correctly, in the end saying it as 'Stub'. He reached out his hand for a handshake. "I believe you said something about an AGA member attacking your nation? Which one, may I ask?"
Captain S'dara awkwardly reached out to shake the hand with one of his four; evidently an unfamiliar gesture to the Staebh.
"A pleasure. I am Captain S'dara. Apologies for the heavy armour...dealing with other nations is something we're unfamiliar with." he explained, his enviro-suit's translation systems stumbling here and there but otherwise getting the message across.
"Ah, yes. What intelligence we have is limited, of course, but I believe they call themselves the 'Unanimity'. Are you familiar with them?"
"Yes and no," Shimm sat down and gestured his guests to sit on the sofas if they are able. "Yes, because we fought together in an AGA joint operation to destroy an enemy superweapon - the Crucible if you have heard in the galactic net, and no, because bilaterally we have very little diplomatic contact with each other."
"Still, as an AGA member, I would have expected them to act as the peacekeepers we sought out to be not aggressors," Shimm mulled over. "Detail to me the conflict between the Staebhic Union and the Unanimity. How it came about, and how it is currently."
"Indeed. Their small numbers seem to indicate their actions being deliberately limited, if their estimated size is correct, so I suspect only a few have acted against us." S'dara started.
"First contact occurred a few months ago, when several of their ships appeared in our system with virtually no warning. In an admittedly rash move on our part, the Staebhic Union responded aggressively with every weapon we had at our disposal, though no shots were fired. They left, but apparently chose not to leave it at that. The SUSN was formed to defend our system from further intrusion, but every engagement we've had with them since, small as they might seem to an interstellar power, has had mounting losses for us. Including our victories." He explained.
Before continuing, he placed a holographic projector in front of him, lighting up to display projections of the various battles. Each time, a second later every ship lost turned red, and every ship significantly damaged turned orange. First, the encounter over Isrekis, less than 10 ships.Then, the attack on the monitoring station. The station did not change colour. Multiple Staebh ships did.
Next, the Battle for Aubos, the first in which any Artifician ships turned red, but few Staebh ships remained white.
Lastly, the engagement over Staebha itself. No ships changed colour here. All in all, less than 100, perhaps even 50 ships had fought during the past several skirmishes, but from the sounds of it, the Staebh held only a single system. So, the scale was much worse for them.
"In truth, we do not know how the battle over Staebha, our homeworld, ended; the Trebuchet left system before it was resolved. I dearly hope the SUSN was able to fight them off, but I cannot say with any certainty, nor can I say if any engagements have happened since. Our...comms systems are not advanced enough to contact them at this distance. We lost contact soon after leaving our system. I was present for every engagement, however."
"I am curious on the nature of your borders with the Unanimity space. Where is your system on this map?" Shimm brought up a holographic map of the galaxy, zooming in onto the Unanimity's territories in the Palar Rift.
S'dara muttered something to himself, tapping a few buttons on his wrist-mounted computer. A moment passed, unfamiliar and quite technologically disparate systems interacting as data was handed over. After processing the data, the system popped up as a dot on the map.
Dead in the centre of Unanimity space.
"...Ah."
Shimm sighed. "As a fellow interstellar power, I can honestly understand the nature of this conflict. Since your system lies very deeply in their sphere of influence, securing your home has become a matter of both internal and external security."
"But nevertheless you have my support in this matter; Staebh's system is your home and thus should remain as your sovereign space. If you ask why I would this for a small system, its because the fact you have FTL and have used it to escape encirclement means you are free to go around and garner support against the Unanimity. And I can't have you tarnishing the image of the AGA and invite our enemies, the APP bloc, to invade the Unanimity and free your people which would then force the other members of the AGA to intervene under the mutual defence pact. So thus this is what I can reasonably do; I will send a communique to the Unanimity and tell them that the Trebuchet has arrived in IRS space. I will demand that they cease all military operations and withdraw from your system in the interest of maintaining the AGA's image as peacekeepers not belligerents. I will then request diplomatic support from the Union of Worlds, the de facto leading power of the AGA, and request both parties to conduct peace talks in secret so as not to attract unnecessary attention."
"And here; consider this a diplomatic gift for our first contact," Shimm signed out a cargo manifest containing billions of tons of food, water, fuel, medical supplies, raw materials, metals, tools, weapons and ammunition along with five unmarked logistics freighters devoid of any IFF tags, electronics or anything that could immediately be associated with the IRS. "I cannot say for sure that our efforts can take immediate effect so use this to prolong the defence of your worlds and buy time for the peace talks. And if anyone asks, say these supplies were procured from other neutral nations, not the IRS."
"Of course. Asking for more would be rude of me. On behalf of the Staebhic Union, and from me personally, you have our deepest thanks. I will keep what you have said in mind, and relay it to my superiors as soon as we return home. I have the suspicion those freighters will arrive before we will, but that will be a matter for when we get there." S'dara nodded, his face visibly beaming next to the somewhat downcast look he had when he walked in.
"I...will say though, your mentions of an 'APP', this galactic net and whatever war you are on about...the Staebh have never managed to contact anything outside our system. You are the first nation we have met that has not come to our borders first."
"Currently there is a galactic war going on right now, between two multinational blocs - the Ancerious Galactic Alliance, the AGA, and the Ancerious Pivotal Powers, the APP," Shimm went on to explain. "The AGA was formed at the Union's initiative to safeguard the peace of the galaxy, even going as far as to militarily intervene to end large conflicts if necessary. The APP was, on the contrary, formed to oppose the AGA and believed that the strong should be free to reign as they please, even it meant wanton aggression and warmongering."
"And just recently, the APP employed a superweapon, the Crucible, and wiped out a number of AGA star systems whole by forcing their stars to go supernova. Fortunately we managed to track it down and in a massive joint operation managed to destroy it though not without large numbers of casualties. This was where we fought side by side with the Unanimity."
Shimm transferred data files on the war, along with a galactic maps pinpointing the AGA and APP nations as well as major warzones, into a flash drive and handed it over to Captain S'dara. "More information can be found here, and I insist that you stay clear of the APP. If you'd like to garner more support, the Union is a good start and they'd likely consider your case as well being the peacekeepers they are."
"I...understand." S'dara nodded, taking the drive. Nations throwing around weapons that could annihilate star systems was a concept that, to a nation yet to even colonise a second system, was nothing short of terrifying. He felt lucky the war had stayed clear of the Staebh's region of space.
"I'll...keep all you've said in mind. It took us days to reach your space alone, I don't think we're in a fantastic position to be heading even further away from home. With that said, unless there is nothing else to be discussed, then again I thank you for all you have done. I hope your talks with the Unanimity go well." he made a slight bowing motion.
"I hope we will not be too late. Stay safe Captain," Shimm stood up and bowed back. "If you need a place to refit and repair you have our nav coordinates."
"Of course. Good fortunes to you too, Shimm." S'dara nodded as he made to leave the office. "And, to clarify, it is pronounced 'Stay-b'. Until next time, Administrator." he made what could only be assumed to be a grin, showing off the Staebh's...many narrow, needle-like teeth, before he turned to leave, headed back the way he and his escorting Marines came.
Time was of the essence. Hopefully the engineers would have made the necessary maintenance checks and fixes by the time he got back to the bridge.
URGENT DIPLOMATIC COMMUNIQUE TO THE UNANIMITY
STAEBHIC WARSHIP HAS WARPED INTO IRS SPACE AND HAS MADE US AWARE OF YOUR MILITARY ACTIONS IN THEIR SOVEREIGN SPACE.
IN THE INTEREST OF MAINTAINING THE IMAGE OF THE AGA AS PEACEKEEPERS NOT BELLIGERENTS THE IRS FIRMLY REQUESTS ALL UNANIMITY MILITARY ACTIONS TO BE CEASED AND THAT THEY WITHDRAW FROM STAEBHIC SPACE AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. THE IRS WOULD LIKE TO SEE DIPLOMATIC MEASURES, AS MEDIATED BY OTHER AGA POWERS, TO BRING THE CONFLICT BETWEEN THE UNANIMITY AND THE STAEBHIC UNION TO A PEACEFUL END.
THE IRS STRESSES THAT ANY FURTHER MILITARY ACTION WOULD PROMPT THE STAEBHIC UNION TO GARNER INTERGALACTIC SUPPORT AGAINST THE UNANIMITY, WHO AS A MEMBER OF THE AGA, WOULD THEN ATTRACT THE INTEREST OF THE APP AND THE POSSIBILITY OF APP INTERVENTION INTO UNANIMITY SPACE UNDER THE PRETEXT OF LIBERATING THE STAEBHIC UNION.
THE IRS TRUSTS YOUR WISDOM IN THIS MATTER.
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URGENT DIPLOMATIC COMMUNIQUE TO THE UNION OF WORLDS
DETAILS OF THE CONFLCIT BETWEEN ONE OF THE AGA MEMBERS, THE UNANIMITY, AND A SMALL NEUTRAL NATION KNOWN AS THE STAEBHIC UNION IS ATTACHED TO THIS COMMUNIQUE.
THE IRS HAS STRONGLY REQUESTED THE UNANIMITY's WITHDRAWAL FROM STAEBHIC SPACE AND ADVOCATED FOR PEACE TALKS TO END THE CONFLICT. THE IRS INVITES THE UNION TO ATTEND, IF THEY DO AGREE TO HOLD PEACE TALKS, AS MEDIATOR.
THE IRS ALSO REQUESTS THE UNION FOR POLITICAL SUPPORT IN ENSURING THE STAEBHIC UNION'S SOVEREIGNTY WITH THE UNION'S AUTHORITY AS A LEADING AGA POWER AND TO MOBILISE THE AGA IF THE UNANIMITY REFUSES TO CEASE BELLIGERENT ACTIONS AGAINST THE STAEBHIC UNION.
A STAEBHIC UNION WARSHIP HAS MADE CONTACT WITH THE IRS AND IS FTL CAPABLE. THIS MEANS IF THE AGA CANNOT GUARANTEE THE STEBHIC UNION'S SURVIVAL THEY WILL CONTACT OTHER POWERS ESPECIALLY THE APP FOR ASSISTANCE. THIS WOULD BE DETRIMENTAL TO THE AGA'S IMAGE AND AND SECURITY.