Post by EmperorMyric on Jun 5, 2023 12:59:47 GMT
Silver Cradle: Union Space
The sight normally would impress him, such a huge gathering of ships from across the whole Naval fleet.
But it did not, not this time. He had gazed upon this same gathering before, just before it was sent to Aedleshaven, and now it had returned it was not the same gleaming and idealistic force as it was. Rather it was battered, scarred, and blackened from the fires of likely the most intense and largest fleet combat in Ancerious history. The fleet yards were packed with ships being repaired, whole hull segments devastated by weapons fire were being cut out while other ships had weapon emplacements added to damaged areas or armour plates replaced. The work needed to bring the fleet back up to full readiness would take months at full capacity, not to mention the death toll from destroyed or damaged vessels. So many crews lost, so much life now gone.
Hargun couldn’t help but gaze upon the Aedleshaven taskforce and feel a sense of exhaustion and shame. It should never have come to this.
He didn’t even realise he had said the last part out loud.
“Admiral?” Dewitt turned to look at him, the commander of the Aedleshaven taskforce and Captain of the Transcendent Angel, the super dreadnought which had gone toe to toe with the Coronan flagship and won, at great cost. Engineers were still even debating whether she could be repaired altogether. She had only been constructed months ago as part of the new fleet initiative.
“Ah forgive me, I am just airing my thoughts. If this ceasefire had come earlier your force would not have to lose so much. So many lives could have been saved at Aedleshaven” Dewitt raised an eyebrow, the Cylaurian clearly not seeing as such.
“With all due respect Admiral, I believe the ceasefire hindered our operation. SAGA forces groundside were making excellent headway and our own fleet elements were in a prime position to cripple Corona. If we had not chosen the easy way out, we could have taken Aedleshaven for SAGA and crippled CONA outright as well as brought down Corona like has already occurred” Hargun felt a darkness entering the conversation. Was Dewitt already compromised?
“I would hardly call diplomacy and the cost of Tarns life the ease way out. SAGA forces would have taken enormous losses taking that planet like every time before, and our forces were in no position to have come out on top against the two fleets” Harguns tone was flat.
“My opinion of Tarn Eiasten-“
“Is well known Dewitt. But he died for a cause, just as those under your command did. He merely walked a path devoid of conflict. That is a precarious and dangerous path, and he did it, he secured the ceasefire at the cost of his life. This is a pointless war; nobody will be victorious” Dewitt stiffened.
“This war is the result of fanatics getting what they deserve, Orillia is no different to Eos. It is our job to uphold the peace, to protect the galaxy. We cannot do that while tied up with red tape, our military has shaped this galaxy for near a century, we cannot choose not to continue to do so out of misaligned ideals and optimism” Dewitt’s barb was clear, Hargun snapped.
“Curb your tone, Admiral Dewitt. Those ideals are the very things the Union is founded on. If you take such an Umbridge with them then perhaps you are not fit for your command” That comment caused silence for a moment. The two of them had fought through the 1st and 2nd Ancerious wars, overcome serious odds, and saved countless lives to keep the nation going. But now with the shadow of subversion behind the scenes even old comrades found themselves on opposing sides.
“Perhaps it is time that our ideals changed. Good day Admiral Hargun” Dewitt gave only a curt nod before walking off.
Hargun wondered how many more lives and friendships would be lost before that darkness finally came into the light.
Unknown Location: Union Space
“It really is a chaotic hellscape. Is all this intelligence accurate?”
“To the best of my knowledge, and as accurate as we can make it. Now that the Mirdiff swarm fleet has been destroyed the road to Corona is open. We have received all of this from datarunners.”
“Quite impressive how things have gone this far to hell. At least the galaxy seems to be pulling its weight against Synopticon Korona. Their destruction of our psionic research facility was a major setback” Esme leant back into her chair surveying the large holographic map of the Coronan theatre and the chaos that was occurring across the territories.
“I am aware Madam Prime Minister. We are doing our best to repair and rebuild. I take it you have seen that Askandar is under siege from the Panopticon?”
“Yes. We had no QRF forces to send, HICOM assured me. A terrible shame with Elwar so incapacitated, still we must focus elsewhere. Yog Narr has undergone a form of… Mitosis, yes?”
“As far as we know yes Ma’am. Our token force in that area is standing by but it won’t be near enough. As for Corona, I think it prudent to send the Ghost Fleet and a taskforce quietly.” Lumis plainly laid out the facts, the two of them in the dark room purely illuminated by the illustrated chaos of Corona.
“Why is that? Surely the Ghost fleet would be of better use harassing CONA hardliners? The sooner they break the ceasefire the sooner we have the high ground” Lumis flicked her fingers to replace Corona with various casefiles about the notorious secret weapons known as Guardians.
“While that would be beneficial, we have received intelligence that the Silent Weapon known as Las Osscuridad, planted in Corona decades ago under strict orders from Admiral Hargun, actually survived and has been spreading.” Esme looked tense.
“A rogue Guardian? That cannot be allowed” Lumis nodded.
“Not a Guardian ma’am, their predecessors. We need the clean the situation up ASAP.”
“Permission granted to send whatever you need. Now about Plan Black… Do you have anything for me?” Lumis looked awkward.
“We have been running simulations but so far nothing. We do however know the Princess has gone to aid against the Panopticon” Esme grunted.
“Jarral won’t kill her, our own forces wont be of any use and it has to be quiet. I guess we shall hope the Panopticon does it for us. That Angel will be a problem, we know the direction the Union must go to survive here and yet she would hold us back from it. The Angels should be guidestones not leaders, but if she speaks out, or creation forbid calls home we are done for”.
“We will keep trying Ma’am”.
“See that you do”.
Ession System: NCR Space
Dreagon ran.
The city was a warzone anyway, the forces of the Mandate attacking in force. But he had been guaranteed safe exit, a place in Mandate society, he should be leaving orbit right now!
Blast it, someone had planted a bomb on his personal shuttle, killed his personal guards. Dreagon had run after that, no point dying to some assassin, his men were loyal, and they had done well to delay the assassin and ensure their master could leave. He was a senator of course, but the senate had been a sham. Progressivism and liberalism, what nonsense. Dreagon had been part of Inaras government once but had managed to change his identity and physical appearance during the occupation to ensure he could regain power and ‘help’. The NCR had been quite willing to give him what he wanted for his skills, but the NCR was done for now. He was an opportunist, and so he had helped feed the Mandate information behind the scenes.
It wasn’t anything personal or ideological, it was just business.
His handler had been eager to meet Dreagon in Mandate space, but now he had to rely on a backup plan, another small personal shuttle two streets away.
The fighting was intense, NCR forces backed up by SAGA were holding out, but the Mandates technology and well-trained Standard Bearers were proving to be more than capable. It would be good to work for Strixx, her ideology and nation had real promise for a man like him.
Crossing another street filled with broken glass and rubble he thought he heard a whistling sound before tripping over and spilling the contents of his suitcase across the floor. He cursed out loud, trying to crawl forward to pick up a particular set of identity papers before he realised, he could not, his left leg was cut at the knee.
Dreagon screamed as a figure materialised in front of him. Tall and swathed in darkness the armoured man knelt and placed an armoured gauntlet over Dreagons face that was now contorted with despair. Preventing his scream. He made a sign of silence with a finger to his helmet, the glowing red eyes piercing into his soul.
“W-What do you want!”
“Dreagon Usul. Or should I say, Zelen Sorka. You are sentenced to death for treason against the NCR. Your messages never reached the Mandate, but your co-operation in unearthing the network of moles is most helpful. The Union of Worlds sends its regards”.
Before the man could speak the black blade in the assassin’s hand swept up beheading him in the street.
Jarral picked up the suitcase carefully and looked around.
“Mission completed; target eliminated. Spectra Legionnaire requesting new target”.
Silver Cradle: Union HICOM Facility
With the opening of Corona and the defeat of the Mirdiff swarm fleet HICOM was abuzz with activity. Reports of Yog Narr reproducing, AOTS-K being pushed back, NCR warfront updates, Allumiarian Intercept transcripts and arrivals of the Old Invaders every member of the personnel was being roped in along with every AI on the mainframe to process the data and build up a better picture. The Union was stretched, but it still had resources to use, and they needed every piece of information to ensure those assets were placed in the best interest of the galaxy.
Sacule was looking over the latest reports from the taskforce blockading Alluminaria, reading over an intercept log from the legendary pilot Herbert Herringer when Admiral Volkus barged in.
“Do you even knock?”
“Sorry, sorry I know things are crazy at the moment with the new information but you have to see this” The mans face was lit up with joy. He handed Sacule a piece of paper which she looked annoyed about.
“You could have just sent me- What the fuck.”
“I know right! Finally a government is actually giving a shit! We are at war and finally we are getting the funding and support we need” Volkus praised. Sacule looked in horror at the paper, it was an official funding increase for the armed forces of the Union. Once 3% of the Ancerious nations total GDP, it was being increased to 6%. While not sounding like much, it was a titanic increase, doubling their available funding and resources.
“Where did the Congress find the funds for this?”
“Does it matter? We can finally ensure the replacement fleet forces get put through, the logistics are secured and official training for new entrants can be rushed into place. No more damn waiting! Means Dewitts pride and joy ship can be fully repaired now too” Volkus saw Sacules unhappiness “Why the long face? We have been wanting this since forever” Sacule sighed.
“We just sighed a peace agreement in Eiastens blood, now we get our military budget doubled after the civilian government spent years telling us we didn’t have the funds. Now apparently, we do? In a recession of all times? Doesn’t that sound a little suspicious to you? If this means reducing civilian life quality…”
“Oh, come on, they just know the seriousness of the times, especially with the report we are about to compile for them on the Corona theatre let alone everything else. Besides I am pretty sure an Orillian invasion will impact the citizens lives more than having to cut a few things out of their diet” Sacule shot Volkus a glare.
“You would have questioned these years ago just like I am, why are you so joyful despite the clear issues this will cause?” Volkus sighed in response.
“Because I am tired of getting the short end of the stick. I never liked Tarn, but this new government is shaping up to be one that really puts the Union where it needs to be. Yea it means we will have to live hard for a while, like in 2AW, but if it means we can prevent the likes of Asuras again then it will be worthwhile in my eyes. I don’t want anyone else losing family like I did, if that means a tough era then so be it” Sacule did not looked convinced.
“Well thank you for bringing this to my attention, ill be sure to include it in all of my tasks now I have funding. If you will excuse me, I need to read through these Alluminarian reports” Volkus held up his hands.
“Of course, of course. Sorry I troubled you. But you should give the new folks at the top a chance. I think we have great things coming our way” He saluted and left the room.
“I highly doubt that.” Sacule whispered to herself.
Far Reach: Union Space
Another mission successfully sent.
The warp bubble simply disappeared as it went FTL travelling well beyond the huge guns barrel and on its way to the Halo. Within 8 hours another return bubble was expected to drop out in system, carrying the latest wares from the Halo nations along with hauls of Monopoles and other resources. Far Reach was extremely lucrative, and many other nations had jumped onto supporting it including the Svarthans, Tetheranya, Red Bulwark and more.
Still as the systems worked like clockwork to ensure the safe and expedient transport of the various users the dilemma came ever closer.
The Union simply did not have enough Ancerium to keep Far Reach going. The prices involved and the sudden budget increase of the military meant Far Reach was already on the decline in terms of operating time.
Now that operating time was nearing the critical point.
A PA was put out to the Far Reach nations, quietly, those who had helped build and gotten first rights to whatever was found, that the project would likely run out of Ancerium in a matter of weeks. The Union needed aid in keeping Far Reach running, if it did not get the Ancerium needed it would have to heavily delay the firings as to not entirely cut off the Halo. But that would occur, should the support not come.
It was a problem, but one the new government wanted to avoid becoming public.
The military budget increase was already having drastic effects.
The sight normally would impress him, such a huge gathering of ships from across the whole Naval fleet.
But it did not, not this time. He had gazed upon this same gathering before, just before it was sent to Aedleshaven, and now it had returned it was not the same gleaming and idealistic force as it was. Rather it was battered, scarred, and blackened from the fires of likely the most intense and largest fleet combat in Ancerious history. The fleet yards were packed with ships being repaired, whole hull segments devastated by weapons fire were being cut out while other ships had weapon emplacements added to damaged areas or armour plates replaced. The work needed to bring the fleet back up to full readiness would take months at full capacity, not to mention the death toll from destroyed or damaged vessels. So many crews lost, so much life now gone.
Hargun couldn’t help but gaze upon the Aedleshaven taskforce and feel a sense of exhaustion and shame. It should never have come to this.
He didn’t even realise he had said the last part out loud.
“Admiral?” Dewitt turned to look at him, the commander of the Aedleshaven taskforce and Captain of the Transcendent Angel, the super dreadnought which had gone toe to toe with the Coronan flagship and won, at great cost. Engineers were still even debating whether she could be repaired altogether. She had only been constructed months ago as part of the new fleet initiative.
“Ah forgive me, I am just airing my thoughts. If this ceasefire had come earlier your force would not have to lose so much. So many lives could have been saved at Aedleshaven” Dewitt raised an eyebrow, the Cylaurian clearly not seeing as such.
“With all due respect Admiral, I believe the ceasefire hindered our operation. SAGA forces groundside were making excellent headway and our own fleet elements were in a prime position to cripple Corona. If we had not chosen the easy way out, we could have taken Aedleshaven for SAGA and crippled CONA outright as well as brought down Corona like has already occurred” Hargun felt a darkness entering the conversation. Was Dewitt already compromised?
“I would hardly call diplomacy and the cost of Tarns life the ease way out. SAGA forces would have taken enormous losses taking that planet like every time before, and our forces were in no position to have come out on top against the two fleets” Harguns tone was flat.
“My opinion of Tarn Eiasten-“
“Is well known Dewitt. But he died for a cause, just as those under your command did. He merely walked a path devoid of conflict. That is a precarious and dangerous path, and he did it, he secured the ceasefire at the cost of his life. This is a pointless war; nobody will be victorious” Dewitt stiffened.
“This war is the result of fanatics getting what they deserve, Orillia is no different to Eos. It is our job to uphold the peace, to protect the galaxy. We cannot do that while tied up with red tape, our military has shaped this galaxy for near a century, we cannot choose not to continue to do so out of misaligned ideals and optimism” Dewitt’s barb was clear, Hargun snapped.
“Curb your tone, Admiral Dewitt. Those ideals are the very things the Union is founded on. If you take such an Umbridge with them then perhaps you are not fit for your command” That comment caused silence for a moment. The two of them had fought through the 1st and 2nd Ancerious wars, overcome serious odds, and saved countless lives to keep the nation going. But now with the shadow of subversion behind the scenes even old comrades found themselves on opposing sides.
“Perhaps it is time that our ideals changed. Good day Admiral Hargun” Dewitt gave only a curt nod before walking off.
Hargun wondered how many more lives and friendships would be lost before that darkness finally came into the light.
Unknown Location: Union Space
“It really is a chaotic hellscape. Is all this intelligence accurate?”
“To the best of my knowledge, and as accurate as we can make it. Now that the Mirdiff swarm fleet has been destroyed the road to Corona is open. We have received all of this from datarunners.”
“Quite impressive how things have gone this far to hell. At least the galaxy seems to be pulling its weight against Synopticon Korona. Their destruction of our psionic research facility was a major setback” Esme leant back into her chair surveying the large holographic map of the Coronan theatre and the chaos that was occurring across the territories.
“I am aware Madam Prime Minister. We are doing our best to repair and rebuild. I take it you have seen that Askandar is under siege from the Panopticon?”
“Yes. We had no QRF forces to send, HICOM assured me. A terrible shame with Elwar so incapacitated, still we must focus elsewhere. Yog Narr has undergone a form of… Mitosis, yes?”
“As far as we know yes Ma’am. Our token force in that area is standing by but it won’t be near enough. As for Corona, I think it prudent to send the Ghost Fleet and a taskforce quietly.” Lumis plainly laid out the facts, the two of them in the dark room purely illuminated by the illustrated chaos of Corona.
“Why is that? Surely the Ghost fleet would be of better use harassing CONA hardliners? The sooner they break the ceasefire the sooner we have the high ground” Lumis flicked her fingers to replace Corona with various casefiles about the notorious secret weapons known as Guardians.
“While that would be beneficial, we have received intelligence that the Silent Weapon known as Las Osscuridad, planted in Corona decades ago under strict orders from Admiral Hargun, actually survived and has been spreading.” Esme looked tense.
“A rogue Guardian? That cannot be allowed” Lumis nodded.
“Not a Guardian ma’am, their predecessors. We need the clean the situation up ASAP.”
“Permission granted to send whatever you need. Now about Plan Black… Do you have anything for me?” Lumis looked awkward.
“We have been running simulations but so far nothing. We do however know the Princess has gone to aid against the Panopticon” Esme grunted.
“Jarral won’t kill her, our own forces wont be of any use and it has to be quiet. I guess we shall hope the Panopticon does it for us. That Angel will be a problem, we know the direction the Union must go to survive here and yet she would hold us back from it. The Angels should be guidestones not leaders, but if she speaks out, or creation forbid calls home we are done for”.
“We will keep trying Ma’am”.
“See that you do”.
Ession System: NCR Space
Dreagon ran.
The city was a warzone anyway, the forces of the Mandate attacking in force. But he had been guaranteed safe exit, a place in Mandate society, he should be leaving orbit right now!
Blast it, someone had planted a bomb on his personal shuttle, killed his personal guards. Dreagon had run after that, no point dying to some assassin, his men were loyal, and they had done well to delay the assassin and ensure their master could leave. He was a senator of course, but the senate had been a sham. Progressivism and liberalism, what nonsense. Dreagon had been part of Inaras government once but had managed to change his identity and physical appearance during the occupation to ensure he could regain power and ‘help’. The NCR had been quite willing to give him what he wanted for his skills, but the NCR was done for now. He was an opportunist, and so he had helped feed the Mandate information behind the scenes.
It wasn’t anything personal or ideological, it was just business.
His handler had been eager to meet Dreagon in Mandate space, but now he had to rely on a backup plan, another small personal shuttle two streets away.
The fighting was intense, NCR forces backed up by SAGA were holding out, but the Mandates technology and well-trained Standard Bearers were proving to be more than capable. It would be good to work for Strixx, her ideology and nation had real promise for a man like him.
Crossing another street filled with broken glass and rubble he thought he heard a whistling sound before tripping over and spilling the contents of his suitcase across the floor. He cursed out loud, trying to crawl forward to pick up a particular set of identity papers before he realised, he could not, his left leg was cut at the knee.
Dreagon screamed as a figure materialised in front of him. Tall and swathed in darkness the armoured man knelt and placed an armoured gauntlet over Dreagons face that was now contorted with despair. Preventing his scream. He made a sign of silence with a finger to his helmet, the glowing red eyes piercing into his soul.
“W-What do you want!”
“Dreagon Usul. Or should I say, Zelen Sorka. You are sentenced to death for treason against the NCR. Your messages never reached the Mandate, but your co-operation in unearthing the network of moles is most helpful. The Union of Worlds sends its regards”.
Before the man could speak the black blade in the assassin’s hand swept up beheading him in the street.
Jarral picked up the suitcase carefully and looked around.
“Mission completed; target eliminated. Spectra Legionnaire requesting new target”.
Silver Cradle: Union HICOM Facility
With the opening of Corona and the defeat of the Mirdiff swarm fleet HICOM was abuzz with activity. Reports of Yog Narr reproducing, AOTS-K being pushed back, NCR warfront updates, Allumiarian Intercept transcripts and arrivals of the Old Invaders every member of the personnel was being roped in along with every AI on the mainframe to process the data and build up a better picture. The Union was stretched, but it still had resources to use, and they needed every piece of information to ensure those assets were placed in the best interest of the galaxy.
Sacule was looking over the latest reports from the taskforce blockading Alluminaria, reading over an intercept log from the legendary pilot Herbert Herringer when Admiral Volkus barged in.
“Do you even knock?”
“Sorry, sorry I know things are crazy at the moment with the new information but you have to see this” The mans face was lit up with joy. He handed Sacule a piece of paper which she looked annoyed about.
“You could have just sent me- What the fuck.”
“I know right! Finally a government is actually giving a shit! We are at war and finally we are getting the funding and support we need” Volkus praised. Sacule looked in horror at the paper, it was an official funding increase for the armed forces of the Union. Once 3% of the Ancerious nations total GDP, it was being increased to 6%. While not sounding like much, it was a titanic increase, doubling their available funding and resources.
“Where did the Congress find the funds for this?”
“Does it matter? We can finally ensure the replacement fleet forces get put through, the logistics are secured and official training for new entrants can be rushed into place. No more damn waiting! Means Dewitts pride and joy ship can be fully repaired now too” Volkus saw Sacules unhappiness “Why the long face? We have been wanting this since forever” Sacule sighed.
“We just sighed a peace agreement in Eiastens blood, now we get our military budget doubled after the civilian government spent years telling us we didn’t have the funds. Now apparently, we do? In a recession of all times? Doesn’t that sound a little suspicious to you? If this means reducing civilian life quality…”
“Oh, come on, they just know the seriousness of the times, especially with the report we are about to compile for them on the Corona theatre let alone everything else. Besides I am pretty sure an Orillian invasion will impact the citizens lives more than having to cut a few things out of their diet” Sacule shot Volkus a glare.
“You would have questioned these years ago just like I am, why are you so joyful despite the clear issues this will cause?” Volkus sighed in response.
“Because I am tired of getting the short end of the stick. I never liked Tarn, but this new government is shaping up to be one that really puts the Union where it needs to be. Yea it means we will have to live hard for a while, like in 2AW, but if it means we can prevent the likes of Asuras again then it will be worthwhile in my eyes. I don’t want anyone else losing family like I did, if that means a tough era then so be it” Sacule did not looked convinced.
“Well thank you for bringing this to my attention, ill be sure to include it in all of my tasks now I have funding. If you will excuse me, I need to read through these Alluminarian reports” Volkus held up his hands.
“Of course, of course. Sorry I troubled you. But you should give the new folks at the top a chance. I think we have great things coming our way” He saluted and left the room.
“I highly doubt that.” Sacule whispered to herself.
Far Reach: Union Space
Another mission successfully sent.
The warp bubble simply disappeared as it went FTL travelling well beyond the huge guns barrel and on its way to the Halo. Within 8 hours another return bubble was expected to drop out in system, carrying the latest wares from the Halo nations along with hauls of Monopoles and other resources. Far Reach was extremely lucrative, and many other nations had jumped onto supporting it including the Svarthans, Tetheranya, Red Bulwark and more.
Still as the systems worked like clockwork to ensure the safe and expedient transport of the various users the dilemma came ever closer.
The Union simply did not have enough Ancerium to keep Far Reach going. The prices involved and the sudden budget increase of the military meant Far Reach was already on the decline in terms of operating time.
Now that operating time was nearing the critical point.
A PA was put out to the Far Reach nations, quietly, those who had helped build and gotten first rights to whatever was found, that the project would likely run out of Ancerium in a matter of weeks. The Union needed aid in keeping Far Reach running, if it did not get the Ancerium needed it would have to heavily delay the firings as to not entirely cut off the Halo. But that would occur, should the support not come.
It was a problem, but one the new government wanted to avoid becoming public.
The military budget increase was already having drastic effects.