One Year Ago


Atlantis City, Capital City of the Alaraian United Celestial Empires

The young empress Alliya Alarai stood in the great underwater courtyard of the Alarain palace. To her left and right, various councillors and advisers stood, watching the proceedings. The Capital was celebrating the lunar new year of Atlantis. Everywhere on the streets of Alarai there was celebration. Choirs sang hymns and in the imperial courtyard, with the Empress in the audience herself, was the Imperial Choir.

The Alarai people all swam throughout, with vendors and merchants excitedly selling food, trinkets and memoirs for colonists of other planets to take back to their own worlds; a momento of the Alarai home. Families held banquets on the outside balconies of the capital apartment districts, beckoning passing friends to join them. There were many celebrations in store - there would be singing and dancing, and the Atlantian Flag Fleet, the greatest and biggest of the Alarai Flag Fleets would be doing a cruise parade above Atlantis in celebration, followed by a parade.

For Alliya, it was her first ever Lunar Celebration as the Empress and as such she was still extremely new to the throne. To her right stood Admiral Davinri Katuya, the Vice-Admiral of the Atlantis Flag Fleet - the position of Admiral for the Atlantian Flag Fleet always held to the Emperor or Empress. However, nerves and stage fright wasn't the only reason she was nervous. Alliya was about to announce the completion of an initiative begun by her late mother; an initiative that would extend the Alarai's place in the universe like never before.

Later into the night, as the feasts ended but before the lunar viewing was to commence, the Empress addressed her people. She spoke of thanks for their loyalty and the people in turn praised the Empress. She spoke of the deeds of exemplary individuals who she honoured in her speech. However, there was one more important issue to announce.

The Departure of the Pearl Fleet.

The greatest and most daring adventure the Alarai had ever set on, the Pearl Fleet was a massive, self sustaining fleet of several hundreds of the finest ships the Alarai could create. Warships. Great Massive Carriers. Elegant, regal Envoy Ships laden with Alarai treasure and art; gifts of peace and offer for those who they would meet. Aquarium ships which held the wildlife and even a small city inside what was effectively a shipborne colony, growing the food and supplies needed to keep the fleet independent for as long as possible. The Flagship of the Pearl Fleet was not a warship but in fact the greatest feat of Alarai engineering: Resembling a space station more than a ship; it was a massive circular ship known as the Zhang He which held the first ever mobile Lunar Warp Gate; allowing the Pearl Fleet to evacuate back to Atlantis - and even better, to bring envoys and visitors from those the Pearl Fleet met to Atlantis so that one could meet them. Long had the Alarai been alone through the stars and long have they sought to make contact with friends; anything to prove they were not alone.

Under the command of one Admiral Treis Hei, the Pearl Fleet departed with the blessing of the Empress and the Alarai people, hopes and expectations high as they departed through the Atlantian Lunar Warp Gate to the edges of known space and flew onwards.

XXXXX
Deep Space, Present

Admiral Treis Hei floated in the command centre of the Zheng He, watching as space floated by. The Pearl Fleet moved through the empty void of space, still as majestic and regal as the day it had departed Atlantis.

They were sure to find someone. They were sure. Treis was sure. They could not be alone in the universe - to think it so was horrifying.

And so the great Pearl Fleet continued its voyage, waiting for her isolation to be broken as she moved through the empty void.

The Core

A set of heavy metal doors dissipated as the exploration team approached the Core's Chamber, their helmet lights flickering and waving throughout the pitch black hall. Columns ran either side of the walls, and in the center, was a sight that made them freeze in their tracks, unsure of what they were looking at. Hanging from the ceiling via hundreds of tubes and beams was a large sphere like device, almost three times the height and breadth of an Iscandarian. It's surface was a gunmetal grey, and glowed slightly, with veins where wisps of purple haze escaped in thin trails, fading from it. Three red lens-like devices in a triangular formation quickly glided over it's surface from the side to stare at the intruders, and narrowed menacingly, almost burning a hole into their very being.

This Witch, however, was unable to do anything, and sat in mere silence, watching them as they secured it. The Magi watched it, fascinated, as he paced in front of it, and it's 'eye' tracked his movements, widening and narrowing as if it was studying him. He got a sudden chill, and urged his team to hurry up the transfer, uneasy about the fact he could sense hundreds of beings dwelling within the Core. Hundreds of powerful and evil beings. Fortunately, Teams 2 and 3 hadn't had such a harrowing experience as moving the Core.

Team two found that the Matrons and Sisters were equally as hollow as the ship, with almost no apparent electronic or mechanical systems, save for a smaller version of the Cathedrals generator in it's torso and a weird, solid glass-like disks in each one. It was more like armor than anything else, except there were no bodies to fit inside these suits. The outer casing coursed with thick, black fluid, that accidentally sprayed a soldier with no harmful effects and was more disgusting than dangerous. Beside the hooks were cases full of the blade like weapons, intricately shaped in varying sizes and full of bizarre, dangerous looking systems too complex for them to understand. Fortunately, they were wise enough to not tinker with said internal components.

Meanwhile, the third team's scan showed what appeared to be humanoid figures inside the dark pods, all dead and hailing from an unknown species. Tubes seemed to enter their bodies from various entry points along the spine, neck and head. From the dust and lack of care on the metallic sheen of the pods, they had been there a very, very long time.

Mars

"I'm starting to see what's going on here... This is most definitely a space-faring species. They are terraforming this planet, that's why the algae is present." Sage was fascinated by their crude drawing, their knowledge of at least basic interplanetary travel was obvious. "So, perhaps the third planet is their main territory? They appear to have colonized this entire system... This is good, Madam Tiy."

Happiness crept over her face, and she looked the human who drew it in the eye. The Warden stood up, pointed to herself, then to the sky, and made urgent movements. With a little luck, these beings would be willing to help, if they could understand her motions at all.

Various Locations across the galaxy

After their victory at New Condia, the Sazkarjhit and Iscandarians saw little of their new enemy over the next few weeks, which soon turned to months. However, worrying signs began to show. Lone ships such as freighters, exploratory vessels and civilian star ships would disappear at the edges of their territories occasionally, with no warning or distress beacons. All that was found was the empty vessel, abandoned, with signs of gunfire and blood accompanied with scorch marks and black ooze on certain decks. But surprisingly, no damage to the ships at all, they were found to be in total working order and definitely space worthy.

Another disturbing occurrence was the detection of mysterious ships by both civilization's fleets as they moved about, which would disappear as soon as they began to approach. One incident had over five hundred unidentified vessels on screen at one point. It was clear what was going on: They were being watched, and studied themselves.

The Core
The magi initiated a short range teleport, using several arcane crystals as to amplify his magic enough to do so. The team along with the Witch was taken to the interrogation chambers, where the Witch was knocked out with some kind of spell.

Team 2 took a few samples of the strange black goop, to be taken back to the labs for analysis. They carefully went down and took scans and documented the parts of the generators, not taking them apart like they did the matrons, for fear it would explode. They took a few matrons with them back to the lab for further analysis, and sent all their data into the central computer of the lab.

Team 3 opened up a few of the pods, using scans meant for biological creatures on them. They took a few scrapings of the skin, as well as attempting to retrieve samples of them. A few of the samples were put into a field analyzer that picked up DNA signatures. After that data was uploaded to the lab's computer and Team 3 began heading back to the Facility.

Interrogation Chambers
When the Witch awoke it found itself in even stronger magnetic and magical fields. The chamber it was in had a strange purplish glass, and was a pure sterile white. Through the glass the witch could see a scientist, the scientist began speaking.

"My name is Dr.Vahlen, I have setup a translation spell for us so we need not worry about our language barriers. I have several questions, first though tell me your name?" spoke Vahlen.

Alas Prime/Gliese, the Palace
David looked out over the jungles of Gliese, a blank expression on his face. He was worried about everything that had been going on, and he had been forced to issue a decree along with the rest of the immortals, expanding the previous order for two fleets to four. Tensions rising with the UTF, as well as the recent incidents with the Ethereals had forced the Eternal Union's hand. David did not like this expansion, but it was necessary if they were to retain the stability of the Eternal Union and combat any further threats. He saw the reports that the patrol ships had been redirected and were defending trade routes and ships on the outer rim, in hopes to ward off this Ethereal spying.

Ironbones approached, a nick name given to the current Supreme Commander of the Eternal Union Military, as he did not like his real name. He wore a typical black Eternal Union military uniform, it was decorated with many of his commendations and his rank. His wings were tucked behind his back, and a light blue flowed through his veins. He had had a gruff gray beard, and wore stony gray eyes.

"I see that my request for four new fleets rather then two has been filled, but I have another matter I would like to talk to you about David." spoke Ironbones, pausing next to David.

"What would that be Ironbones?" asked David.

"I would like to start a anti-matter weapons program. New fleets are good and all but we will need more weapons as well." said Ironbones.

"We already got the request from R&D and we approved it. I do not like this, not at all, but if it is necessary for the stability of the Union, then we shall allow it." finished David, as ironbones turned and walked off, the same stare and expression as ever.

Near Gliese, E.U.V Starfire
Fergus was awoke by Basil, a outfit was in Basil's hand. It was a fine red coat, along with pure white pants.

"We are orbiting Gliese right now Fergus, put this on, I had it made so you would look nice for the Immortals." spoke Basil.

Sazkarjhit Colony Near Sol
A small group of what appeared to be Eternal Union vessels arrived on the outer edges of the system which the colony was in. Rather then a military patrol however there were four large freighters, as well as what looked like two mercenary vessels defending the group.

"Greetings, I'm a spokesperson for a rather large Eternal Union mining company, known as Seegson Resources Inc. We heard that this colony is a bit under-developed, and unexploited asteroids to be mined. We have a deal for you, simply put it, we would like permission to setup mining operations on the colony itself as well as these asteroids. We would use entirely Sazkarjhit personnel as well, exceptions being freighter crews and asteroid mining crews. 20% of all materials mined would be transferred to Sazkarjhia for whatever use you would have out of them, and we would also like permission to setup a station orbiting the colony for non-sazkarjhit employees."

Deep Space, Near the Pearl Fleet
When the Pearl Fleet arrived they already saw a few smaller frigate like vessels. After a few minutes a small presence could be felt in the minds of the crew, it did not seem evil or bad, but rather good, and it brought about a unknown under-standing.

"Greetings new contact, I am Captain Magnus, representing the Eternal Union. Our goals are to achieve peace and prosperity for all nations."
Despite the fact that the Eternal Union was alien and completely new, the message seemed to have been in the language of the Alarians.

Combat Information Centre, Zhang He, Flagship of the Pearl Fleet

Admiral Hei was in quiet discussion with his officers regarding the newly discovered vessels when he saw his head science specialist swim up to him. "Doctor," he said in a hushed tone, "What have you got?"

"From what I can tell, the communications seem to be telepathic in nature." the science officer reported. "It seems to be no coincidence that these communications came soon after we encountered these frigates. This "Eternal Union" we have encountered does not appear to be warlike. I do believe that dialogue is in order."

"What about the language barrier we had worried about?" Hei asked. "They were able to communicate us so easily."

"I actually believe that no language barrier was actually ever penetrated." The Science officer explained, raising Hei's eyebrows. "Allow me to elaborate. Due to the telepathic nature of the communication, it is very possible that we are actually communicating through minds directly, allowing us to commence communications in the form of thoughts and ideals that we mutually understand, and these ideals are then formed by our internal subconscious thoughts as words, hence the lack of a proper "language barrier"."

"...I see." The Admiral muttered before finally sending a reply to the Eternal Union through a public broadcast. "Greetings, members of the Eternal Union," he said, wondering if, taking into account what the science officer said, they would even understand the Alarai communications. "We are the Pearl Expeditionary Fleet from the United Celestial Empire of the Alarai, and we come in peace."

The Pearl Fleet
Magnus breathed a sigh of relief, confirming that the translation spell had worked. He sent another transmission to the foreign ships.
"That is good, peace is always the best option. We also apologize, you may have felt a presence in your minds. That was merely a translation spell, making our languages sound like eachother's, removing that particular barrier. It works across any form of transmission."

Combat Information Centre, Zhang He, Flagship of the Pearl Fleet

The Admiral muted the communications mike again and turned back to the chief science officer. "...so, magic." he said with his eyebrows raised to a now much more shocked looking science officer. "Opinion?"

"Highly unlikely." the chief science officer said. "Could be cultural differences. 'Magic' to us defined as things "impossible by conventional science". What "conventional science" is could differ dramatically due to the infinite nature of the universe." he exposed.

"So you don't believe in their "magic" business?"

"False. To them, this "Magic spell" could very well be a form of science not even they recognize as science. At the very least, do I think that this "magic spell" is possible with our conventional knowledge of science? Absolutely not. Do I believe that this "Magic Spell" can be explained through conventional or future science? Definitely so. Another thing to note," the chief officer continued, "No matter whether through science or magic, fact remains they were somehow able to see into our thoughts. Our knowledge. Our ideas. In this case, while they may say it was "a magic spell that only affects language" the fact remains that they were able to openly see our "idea" of language."

"What is the point?" the Admiral asked, already having a bad feeling of to where this was going.

"We don't know what other "ideas" that this Eternal Union can openly read from us." The chief officer voiced everyone's fears. "If they were able to take our "idea" of language, what's to say that they don't take our idea of, say, economy? Our idea of maps? Or the thought of home? The thought of one of our star charts? Simply thinking about our star charts could very much tell them the location of Atlantis. Or if they steal the "idea" of tactics and strategy from you, sir, they could very well understand each and every one of our strategies and tactics, giving them a complete edge in battle - even during the middle of a battle potentially, allowing them to read the mind of the enemy commander. Strategy, plan, force composition, every and all available assets, all an open book. To add on to that, aside from the word of one minor vessel we don't have any indication as to their culture. Truly peaceful? Hopefully. Possibly deceptive hiding an imperialist, expansionist conquest-driven society? Very much possible."

Admiral Hei was silent for a moment, taking all of this information in before unmuting the communications again.

"I understand." Admiral Hei nodded, now feeling a much greater sense of danger than he could originally feel. "Captain Magnus, I am Admiral Hei. We feel no trouble from your magic spell and we thank you for returning peace with peace. We have come a long way from home, searching among the stars for fellow sailors of the stars."

Saturn's Orbit
Roberts hand tensed.
This man could be lying to him. But his eyes appeared to hold nothing but truth.

The captain lowered his weapon. Mandalore wasn't ready for a galactic war with an unknown enemy.  His warriors followed suit.

"If you would kindly bring me to your superiors we can out this all behind us."

Roberts face twisted into a grin at the Admirals reaction. His gloved fist reached out to the Admiral for a handshake clearly showing an Eight pointed star upon it.

I'm baaaack.

And if you still haven't solved the problem i was unable to solve last time, i'll fly to the airport nearest to your house and choke every single cat in your neighborhood.

Including yours.

Planet Nouvelle, Frontier town of Cherac
First contact with alien species known as Sazkarjhit

Captain Reynald rose from his kneeling position to stand bowing, watching these metal clad beings begin to speak amongst one another, or, what seemed like it. Their tones and language were indecipherable, let alone barely able to be heard above the crackling flames of the fire the still burned in the town center. He hoped to himself, that if these beings were the “Angles”, that he had not offended them. Still holding his side arm, Reynald replaced it within its holster, and button the leather flap closed.

Captain Reynald fought the urge to take a step back as the largest of the beings strode forward. His armor had black stripes that stood out upon it, different than the other metallic beings. He finally completely rose from his bow, to look upwards at this being. Tall, much taller than he was, metal skin with some sort of colored visor where a face should be. Reynald smiled politely, trying to alleviate the fear and doubt he had at the back of his mind.

The being was a sight to behold, and after a moment of looking upon the Nouvellian, it spoke in its native tongue, before doing something. It pulled out some sort of tablet, a pill of sorts, and then lowered its helmet in a folding manner. After this, it ingested the tablet, letting out a few gruff coughs, before standing upright once more. It was then, that Captain Reynald could behold the true form of these metal beings.

Reynald could not help but stare at this new and alien being. The drastic differences were many, and so profoundly life changing. It was though a reptile of this planet had evolved into what stood before the Nouvellian. Or, perhaps, these were the “Angels” true form, the metal but an outer protective skin. Either way, Captain Reynald was deeply in awe when the creature spoke.

The creature’s mouth moved, followed by a disembodied voice shortly afterwards, in a peculiar dialect of the Nouvellian language. It was similar, but, much more… lacking flair, or rather, it seemed to be favoring a simplified version that had more emphasis on brevity and directness, rather than the flowing way Nouvellians spoke. Still, Captain Reynald was able to understand the being, in all he wished to convey… or, at least Captain Reynald assumed it was a male.

“It is a great honor to be among the first whom get to meet with you, honored representative of the Empire of Sazkarjhia. Allow me, Captain Reynald of the Cherac garrison, welcome you to our planet, Nouvelle. I am but a humble servant of her Majesty, Queen Sabine. Yet, I do not doubt she would be most honored as well, if not more, to welcome true disciples of the gods… of Tem’plar. Captain Ranan Suren’kum, leader of Marine Brigade, ‘Angel’ from the Might of a Thousand Suns… we are all your humble subjects. Only the gods could ever possess such might and glory to come from the skies. How can we, the people of Cherac, be of service to you, ‘Angel’ Captain Ranan Suren’kum?”

By now, most of the local populace had come out from their homes, to look in awe among the beings that they too felt were ‘Angels’. Many had knelt down, bowing before these beings, others stood bowing, and some stood, too engrossed in the moment to do much more than stare. These people all looked at the exchange between the Captain of the garrison, and this new being, this ‘Angel’ Captain Ranan Suren’kum, awaiting for what was to happen next. Had the gods finally returned, after all these years, had their divine beings taken notice of the people of Nouvelle?

Nouvelle, Capital City of Hollie
Royal Palace, Throne Room

Queen Sabine watched her quests bow before her, suppressing the urge to laugh at the awkwardness of the males when they performed their bows. Still, they honored her even with their lack of court manners. On the other hand, their leader, the female was very well practiced in the idiosyncrasies of the royal court. Her form was nearly perfect, only flaw in that she had no dress to complete the look that the gestures of her hands would have done. Sabine took notice of this one, curious as to who she was. She quickly called one of her retainers over, whispering something to the man, before he bowed, and turned, running off in some direction. She turned her attention back to her guests.

The woman spoke, not only with authority, to show her station above her comrades, but also with respect, the tone that one who had experience with nobility, or at least, people whom were in a seat of power, would have been spoken to with. Curious, indeed. The leader went on to speak of their current situation. Sabine could not help but smile, as these people from a far off world spoke of their own problems, how they travelled her in a ship that was incomplete. Brave, bold, a sense of honor.

On the other hand, what did concern Queen Sabine greatly was the talk of being conquered, the very real chance that something or someone could have come to this planet with anything other than peaceful intentions. She leaned forward in her throne, taking a closer look at the Terrans before her. The level of technology these beings possessed was not readily apparent, until she looked at their side arms, the craftsmanship alone many, many years ahead. These people, these beings from beyond the stars, could offer much, teach the people of Nouvelle more than they hoped to learn for many lifetimes, but at what cost?

Mining rights could be just the beginning. Sabine closed her eyes for a moment, remembering the history she was taught of her people. The wars, the genocides, how the nobility was almost completely wiped off the face of the planet. She took a deep breath, opening her eyes up once more, to look upon her quests. She smiled at them genuinely, before holding up her right hand, indicating that she was going to speak.

“It is early still, and our people have just met. And, much to my dismay, I know none of your names, and I would surely dishonor both myself, and you, if I were to merely speak to you if you had no names. This will not do. No, before we can speak any more, I will need to know your names, to better partake in these talks. No doubt you are tired and weary from your journey. A hot bath and clean clothes would suit you well, and, of course, make you seem far less… conspicuous. I will have Sergeant Caudill escort you all to the guest quarters, where you will be given a room, clothes, and a fresh bath. I have enjoyed this conversation thus far, but, I too must make the preparations for further interactions. And… sadly, I also must take care of some other business. We will reconvene in two hours’ time. That is sufficient for both parties to be ready. I look forward to talking to you all then, especially you…” Queen Sabine pointed to the female leader of the group.

With that, Queen Sabine stood up, smiling to her guests, and fellow Nouvellians, before turning to head out behind the throne, through hanging banners and out an unseen door. She of course, would have waited for the appropriate bows from her people and the quests, even returning a bow to them, before she would leave. That left the guests to the company of Sgt. Caudill. He smiled at them, and pointed to a set of double doors. He motioned them to follow him, before he would lead them to a different part of the palace from which they had entered. “This way please, we have to get you all ready for your talks with the Queen. This is a great honor.” He bowed his head to them, and would wait for them to follow.

Nouvelle, Capital City of Hollie
Central Trade District, Plaza De Leone

By now, many people had come from their homes to see all the commotion that was going on. The young, old, and everything in between had gathered around these strange new beings. Along with the influx of citizen, came an influx of police forces. The fought through the ever growing crowed to make their ways to the front, doing their best to begin forming a barrier to keep anyone from getting too close. The people were peaceful, but, of course, with anything new, never before seen, everyone wanted to get a look at what was going on.

The people, to include the police, were very interested in these beings that had arrived from the skies, these “Angels” of the heavens. A few mounted police had arrived by now, but they were staying in the rear, providing over watch and reserve if they would be needed. The three original police officers in attendance had come together, all standing before these beings. They spoke amongst one another, before deciding who would be the main one to converse with the “Angels”.

Sergeant Bower let out a low sigh, nervous, and then nodded to his men, taking a step forward to be more readily available for the alien beings. The two front “Angels” had handed off what the Sgt. Bower surmised to be weapons of some sort. The two leader beings were flanked by other, more ominous beings, no doubt some form of warrior “Angels”. Still, even without their weapons, they probably still possessed power well beyond that of the young police officer.

The beings were joined by two more, not the warrior ones, but different. Auxiliary beings, Bower could only guess. Before he could truly figure out what they were, these two new ones, and the two before him, all strode forth to stand before him, and began to speak in an unknown language. It was completely foreign, nothing like he had heard before. It was low, almost quiet, as though they were speaking inside of a library. He did however figure out that they were asking a question of some sort, based off how the inflection at the beings spoken words end changed.

Sgt. Bower stood in quiet collection, trying his best to make sense of the situation as it unfolded. He looked at these new beings, and then back to his own people, trying to figure out what would be best for not only himself, and the people of Nouvelle, but also for these new visitors. He looked back at them, unsure of what they were doing. They seemed to be standing still, perhaps exchanging words with one another. They may have moved slightly, but he was not entirely sure of that either.

Before he could put any further thought into the matter the beings, in particular, the lead one, addressed him. Its tone, and odd way of speaking the native tongue of Nouvelle was hard to grasp at first, but, after a few moments, Sgt. Bower understood what was being asked. They wanted to speak with a leader, perhaps his captain, or, more likely, the city police General. He turned to his fellow police officers, and began to speak with them.

As he spoke with his comrades about what had been said, one of the beings, a warrior “Angel” strode forth to speak with its leader figures. What was said was too low to be heard, but, whatever it was, the leader figure paused, and seemed to do something. Probably thinking. After a while, it turned its attention back to the beings that it was with. It must have ordered them to do something, because the beings moved about, most returning to their vessel, and they closed the doorway behind them.

Their vessel transformed considerably, as metal plates extended downwards to protect the struts and wheels of the vessel, completely blocking them off from the world around them. This was followed by the wings folding inwards, retracting and reducing their size. The wing closure coincided with the appearance of two turrets, one by each wing that appeared from within the vessel. These new changes were of a defensive nature, to the people of Nouvelle, and the turrets were there not as a threat, but rather, a deterrent if the need arose.

As that finished, the lead being turned to the police officers before it, and spoke to them. After it finished, Sgt. Bower looked among his two comrades, and nodded to them. The turned to their captain, sitting atop a horse to rear, and indicated that they were asking to see command. The captain nudged his mount forward, and rode to meet the Sergeant and the new beings. He spoke quickly to the Sergeant, before nodding, and ridding off towards the palace.

Sgt. Bower turned to the beings, bowing before them, and then motioning for them to follow him. “We will escort you to the palace gates, where you will speak to the General of the Royal Police. It is up to him whether or not you will go any further. It is only a few blocks away. The police forces here will ensure no one tampers with your vessel, and will have the roads blocked off so that we make all due haste to the palace. These new “Angels” you spoke of, are they with you, or, are they with someone else?”

Planet Orbit N-1, the Explorer
As the telepathic message came through, the Tinkerer and the Hunter both stared at each other, with their peculiar way of doing so, and then used short-range communications to discuss the situation with the Captain and the Council representative that arrived with a passenger ship some far distance away in orbit. After a short conversation, it was decided to keep the Tinkerer that had originally brought in the foreign creature to go on and make contact, while another Tinkerer replaced him in the task of taking care of the dog-creature-thing.

In short order, a Tinker was standing outside the door with a sort of electronic nudge-leash pointed at the alien creature, and the original Tinkerer and Hunter pair jumping off the surface of the Explorer, armed with ZGMMPes, or Zero-Gravity Mounted Maneuvering Packs. With these, the two representatives, both of which had explosives in the form of two grenades and two high-explosive charges each, just in case a message needed to be made if they were attacked inside. Probably wouldn't majorly damage anything, but it's a living creature and having an explosive go off in your belly shouldn't feel too pleasant.

After a few minutes of drifting through space, the two began to feel slight gravity from the very large space-creature, and prepared themselves for what was to come. The Hunter readied his shoulder-mounted weapons, and the Tinkerer readied his thoughts and his handgun for first contact.

Nouvellian Plaza
The Tinkerer mouthed the words as the Captain spoke them, deciphering the more complicated words and getting a little bit more understanding of the language and the tenses. After a moment, the Tinkerer responded. "No, they are a different kind of Angel. Ours are all-seeing of the space around us, and they are not," he assumed, "for they are closer to your form than our own. Do so lead on."

With that, the three 'Angel' representatives followed the Captain to the 'General' of the police.

Nouvelle, Frontier Town of Cherac

Captain Suren'kum temporarily deactivated his throat mic. Speaking in side conversations to his other soldiers.

"A monarchy? Definitely not a member of the Terrans' own federation." Higher Kordal Yurin'tum murmured.

"But they speak of gods. Perhaps they have understandi-" another soldier began to say before being cut off by Ranan.

"Don't be stupid!" he hissed, "If these primitive creatures knew anything about the Supreme Being we would know of their existence. Given Sazkar Major's proximity from here they are no doubt a planetbound species; ones to even regard the fierce warriors of the Peoples' Military as 'angels' and disciples of gods! Pah! Clearly they have no notion of space travel as they regarded a heavily-armed warship as an 'angel' itself." He paused for a minute, wondering. "Regardless; it will be sometime before a warfleet comes here, so I suppose some time of leave is in order while our ships arrive. No doubt something to take to the Marshal, though."

Captain Suren'kum reactivated the throat mic and began speaking to the Captain of the militia.

"Captain Reynald, we a truly flattered. Your respect for us and your reverence is appreciated." he started, he turned up from the man and looked towards the rest of the crowd. "I am absolutely certain that many of you are frightened. It seems that you of Nouvelle are a planetbound one--whether that may or may not be certain--and have physiology radically different from your own. We've often been attributed the derogatory term 'Lizard' for this reason. We can assure you that we do not mean any sort of harm." he turned back to Reynald. "Captain, I'm certain you would like to speak with my superior. She is the captain of Might of a Thousand Suns and things will be clarified there. We can provide airlift if you do not have your own transportation."

Interrogation Chambers

There was no response from the Witch, it just sat there and watched her briefly through the thick glass, eyes narrowing and widening as it studied her, before suddenly, it spoke. But not out loud, it spoke all around Dr.Vahlen, in her mind, rendering the translation spell useless.

"Names... An organic creation, used to give meaning to their existence, as if they had an actual preordained purpose or their life actually mattered. Such labels are useless to us. We exist, in a state so much greater, and yet more terrible, than you can ever hope to enjoy. We have pierced the Veil of Eternity, as you fumble at it's precipice, afraid of what lies Beyond. We have peered into the Depths of Time, while you wither and die, failing to see the majesties around you. We are your Masters, and you are our Servants."

Facility A-1

The mummified bodies fell out of each pod one by one, suspended by the tubes that hooked viciously into their backs. Underneath their dark, wrinkly skin the piping could be seen to wrap around their bones, especially around their rib cages, their toothless mouths open in silent screams that ended long before the scientists analyzing them had left the safety of their caves and crude fires. Each specimen was the same, and showed a violent and painful looking process where their insides had turned to machines, for some unknown purpose. It was almost certain that these creatures had faced the Ethereal Gathering and lost. With luck, the Union would not fail as these poor people once had to defeat them.

The reactor core was nothing more than a white energy sheet, rippling at the edges and blending the lines between this universe and the next. Glowing points of exotic particles fell from it's edges, and the floor panel would glow as they hit the ground, accelerated and directed to their required destination for power generation. This machine was indeed a portal of some kind, though it wasn't for transportation. No living thing could enter that chamber and survive to get close, as dangerous beams of light shot out and were also absorbed by the walls.

Facility A-1
The teams documented their remaining notes as they headed back to the facility. The drones came back out, and began scanning yet again, but this time it seemed to be focused on the weapon that had been used on the Sazkarjhit. The scans seemed to be focusing on the exact structure and way to power it, as if they planned to replicate the weapon.

Interrogation Chambers
Upon the Witch saying that the Iscandarians were slaves and the Ethereals the masters Vahlen laughed. A very evil and creepy laugh.

"I think you will find that I'm the Master and you the Slave." finished Vahlen, as she flipped a lever connected to the Witch's containment chamber. The magical fields seemed to intensify for a minute, before flashing. The Witch then experienced a extreme pain, affecting it's entire ability. Whatever it was seemed to have been intentionally designed to affect the Ethereal's being.

"Now, with that established, can you translate these for me?" spoke Vahlen, holding up part of the map they had acquired from the Shard Guide.

No response was made, as the magical field intensified, and the Witch made no movement.

"Those who came before you were the same. They felt pain, fear and despair. So they used it against us, in an attempt to pry our secrets from us. And they failed, for the pain we feel is not physical. Our bodies we're lost long ago, long before your kind took to the stars. Our pain is that of a Disharmony with our Essence, a feeling of a shattered mind, broken and forgotten in the Void, a million realities screaming to be attended to. Your weapons, your powers can only hurt or destroy our tools... Nothing more."

As Dr. Vahlen asked for the translation, the being's eyes narrowed.

"So, you wish to follow in the footsteps of those who came before you? Such an aspiration will doom your race, in ways you cannot comprehend. Once, we held that throne, a shrine to our hubris We were infinitely more powerful and wise than you. And we surely crumbled, our kind burnt to ash, much like yours will be in the End. Only a God can wield what is wrought by the Pieces. The Outer Lord, Crawling Devourer... And the next in line: Govra, Queen and Maker of the End."

"Our goals require the same path, but lead to different endings. So, perhaps, we should walk it together? I will translate for you, and in return, you forfeit my body? The Cathedral, Unrelenting Retribution, Destroyer of the HIgh Ol'tiu of the Perveus Arm? Then, we will see who indeed is the more worthy..."

Facility A-1:

The cannon of the Cathedral was almost bare bones, just a smaller power generation setup and strange reflective crystals, four lined up in a row. They glowed, and seemed to absorb the light from the survey team's head torches, storing it in the center. It seemed to pulsate, and was otherwise inactive. It could be possible to understand it further if they were to begin taking apart the tubing and struts connecting it, but it was incredibly risky. It would be almost pure chance whether they could work out it's function, or detonate the entire ship.

| The Mantle -- Acheron, North-Eastern Hemisphere |
"-- sounds good. I'll see you then." There was a momentary pause, nodding, then he spoke again. "Mm. Yes, goodbye." There was a tone to his voice that made him seem robotic, and blank. One of those tone's that you use to be polite when you're speaking to an acquaintance, or co-worker. Someone you haven't exactly clicked with. Yeah, it was one of those conversations.

Domn stood beside the floor to ceiling windows in his office. It was sleek, and 'retro modern' if you could get past the slight contradiction of those two words. Retro-modern. But very white and neutral to the point that it was annoying, and made him feel like he was working in solitary confinement or something. His only solace was this little red lava lamp his nine year old son gave him for his birthday some years ago, the lamp didn't seem to work though.

Reaching up to the corner of his face, he slid off his glasses, blinking several times thereafter. Domn's eyes adjusted as the heads up display no longer filled his vision, and he began to see things as they were naturally. Outside was a tumble -- no, that's not right -- a jungle of shimmering lights, skyways, noise, and steely skyscrapers which hugged the outer districts of the great Mantle. Domn tucked his glasses through the collar of his regulars, and folded his hands against the small of his back as he gazed out.

For more than a kilometer in diameter stretched the maw of the Mantle, a giant gap cut into the center of the city in the shape of a three pointed star with rounded edges. This was the bay, as his colleagues had adequately named it. It was even more stunning with the inner partition that wrapped around the bay, separating it from the city that hugged around the Mantle. It was a wall flush to the ground about a hundred feet thick that became a marvel of engineering. They didn't want it to be completely ugly though, so with some landscaping the city officials put a tiny park along the length of the wall that you could walk through. Nice touch.

But, even if you tried to surround it with beautiful trees, sidewalks, and fountains.. It was still a giant hole. A distracting giant hole too, in both the good and bad ways. While absolutely stunning as it was, there was a constant buzz of drilling and construction echoing from the depths of the Mantle. A metallic hum of ships coming and going from the bay area, cranes and hydraulic platforms hauling and groaning, a constant flickering of flashes and sparks.. It was definitely not prime real estate, at least not now. Deep down though, the inner kid in Domn exploded with excitement over the thought of watching the first caravels descend from the stars upon the Mantle -- and disappear into the veil of a Jump Gate, off to discover whole other star systems. Wouldn't that be a sight?

Domn thumbed a glowing console at the waist of the window, bringing up a small display before him. He flicked through an option or two, checking recent emails that were being imparted from his desktop computer. He glanced at the time, and was disappointed at how slowly the day was going by. It was late evening, and the last light of the sun was finally disappearing from the edge of the sky.

A small alert came on-screen in front of him, and with an indicative wave Domn activated it. Domn's mouth dropped and he reached for his glasses as he read the briefing; it was a critical subpoena from his project manager, summoning him to head down to the bay. With consecutive 90 hour work weeks, it was supposed to be his day off.. But then Domn saw it out of the corner of his eye. A decorated Confederate Flagship cruising over the city. He knew who's flagship it was. This was why he hated politics.

. . .

Interrogation Chambers
"Hmm... I'm displeased my spell did not work, but it is a acceptable deal." said Vahlen. She left the room, returning with the actual Shard Guide in a special chamber. Vahlen carefully sat her self aside, having a small computer like device as she began preparing to write down notes.

Facility A-1
The crews began preparing to dissemble the weapon, first by increasing power to the shields surrounding the Cathedrals by a extreme amount, as to prevent any accident from completely destroying the facility. Ships surrounded the area to provide aid in-case it was needed, adding their own shield strength to the already massive one surrounding the Cathedral. A few brave scientists moved in, setting up some shields around themselves to protecting from damage. With that done the scientists began careful disassembly , preparing to understand this weapon.

The Pearl Fleet
"Now, there is not much more to discuss, but we would like to know if you be interested in a few trade routes."

Sol, Asteroid Belt
Dozens of gigantic, cubical freighters lumbered through the void, their plasma engines burning brightly as they accelerated towards Terra. New vessels left drydock, being turned over to their new owners. With the more efficient warp drive and negative energy factories, FTL had became accessible to civilian businesses. Since all large corporations were nationalized, no civilian could leave Sol, but with FTL capability within the system, trade would no longer require kilometer-long cubical titans to move materials. Just one of the new in-system FTL ships could move, in a single month, a hundred times the cargo a Cubeship could in a year.

At the scrapyards, former Cubeship owners were selling their ships to the military in order to buy an FTL freighter. The military had promised to pay a fair sum for any used Cubeship, as their sheer size made them valuable as scrap. The plan was to use their materials in new interstellar warships like the Försvarere av Humanity. However, there was also a new Dreadnought initiative. Since it was obvious that the Dreadnoughts currently in use were painfully obsolete, many of these Cubeships were being sent to be forged into new Dreadnoughts, armed with triple-mode turrets instead of a single, spinal railgun. The turrets would be capable of firing either standard railgun slugs, plasma-coated ones, or pure plasma bolts. The standard slugs would be used in engagements against Terran vessels, the plasma-coated ones would be the most commonly used ammunition type, and the pure plasma bolts would be used against vastly superior enemies. Of course, having made contact with Nouvelle, it was possible that plasma bolts would become a stable of Terran vessels, especially with the government able to build interstellar vessels cheaply for the first time.

Out of the military shipyards, a single interstellar vessel emerged. It was a giant cylinder, with a shuttle bay in the front, which contained five heavy VTOL SSTO planes. It had warp rings built into the cylinder, making them harder to target. There was a ring of plasma engines surrounding the shuttle bay, and a giant wall of them at the back. RCS thrusters were positioned across the hull, allowing for the entire ship to rotate in order to provide artificial gravity. On both sides of it, the name "Pride of Ceres" was written in stark white letters, standing out well against the grey hull of the ship and the black of the void.

The vessel immediately accelerated towards one of the many large stations in the Belt. It was going to pick up a cargo that nobody had actually been told about. The official story was that it would simply be a dummy cargo taken to Alpha Centauri, but nobody on the crew actually believed that. Negative energy was too precious to waste on a test, but it didn't make sense to deliver anything to Alpha Centauri. They suspected that it might be a trade run to an alien planet, some entertained the imaginative idea that they were smuggling something into another nation. The sensible members of the crew just waited to see it.

Hilariously, they were all wrong. They were so caught up with the idea of aliens that they completely forgot that it might not even involve them.

Levant, Former Israel
A child played in the streets of a makeshift village, the only thing she had ever known. She didn't know it, but her father was a soldier for a terrorist cell. Everyone there was, but all she knew was the radioactive remains of the city her parents said had once been the center of all attention in the entire region. They never said it, but it certainly wasn't positive attention. Another thing she was never told was the fact that the only reason they were there was because of the nuclear weapons left behind by the nation that formerly controlled the city. Her world was tiny, just that little village.

Very few noticed it, but a missile flew through the sky towards the village. It must have seemed like a fair response to the UTF, they destroy Paris, retaliation comes. It was a very human way of thinking, but regret was also a very human feeling, and it always seemed to come with such decisions. There wasn't any time to react, no cinematic scene with the last screams of those who died. It was instant, the entire village was obliterated so fast that there was barely any pain.

Though the village was gone, warheads still remained inside the missile silos, lying in wait for whoever would venture into the wasteland to take them.

UTF WarpComm Broadcast
"Paris is dark. Repeat: Paris is dark. A curfew of 9:00 PM GMT will be enforced by the Ground Army across all territories. Any suspicious activities must be reported to an Army officer immediately. Capital will be moved to Luna Station, all spacecraft must call off to the nearest port. Any vessel that refuses to identify will be intercepted and destroyed. If you live in the Western Europe region please report to the nearest bomb shelter. Updates as situation develops."

Siberia, 2045
Explosions went off in the distance, shaking the tiny hut. Inside was a girl, no older than fourteen, cowering in fear. Coilgun shots resounded in her ears, as well as shots from weapons ranging from eleven to over seventy years old which still used gunpowder. She knew what was happening, and she was damn well happy about it. The UTF had finally taken notice of the atrocities going on in Siberia, and had sent in a force. The archaic weapons being used by the local so-called "Tsar" were no match for the coilguns used by the UTF.

So it came as a surprise when she heard the screams.

They were long, and not a single one ever ended. No shots could be heard, nothing but screaming. Having to know what was happening, she looked outside. There was a small vehicle, with a faded American flag painted on it. There was a large dish on top of it, pointing down at a mass of soldiers kneeling and rolling on the ground, screaming. It was an Active Denial System, a weapon that had been outlawed after WWIII. It was designed not to kill, but to immobilize the target with extreme pain, like that of being on fire. It looked like the UTF soldiers were being tortured, probably as a warning to anyone else that dared oppose the "New Tsar".

Then one of the soldiers dropped dead. It wasn't just crowd control anymore, they were feeding enough energy into the weapon to make it lethal. As if by instinct, she ran out right into the area of effect. The m1oment she left the hut, her skin began to boil. She kept running though, listening to the screams of the soldiers on the ground. She'd worked outside at sub-zero temperatures wearing almost nothing. She figured that if she could stand that kind of cold, then she could stand this kind of heat.

Running over to one of the soldiers, she grabbed his coilgun pistol from it's holster. She ran straight at the vehicle, burn marks beggining to appear on her skin. IT felt like she was being burned at the stake, but she kept running. After what seemed like an eternity, she lunged towards the vehicle. It's door window was nonexistent, having been through so much combat without seeing any repair. Ever since the collapse of the United States, Humvee parts were practically nonexistent. Without any thought, she jumped through the window and landed right on the lap of the operator. He reached for his pistol, but she fired first, hitting his head.

The pistol had little recoil, due to it's design. As blood dripped from his head onto her, she reached for the controls. The pain was greatest inside the cabin, the operator was wearing a radiation suit to protect him from the effects of the weapon. Still, she reached up and flipped the switch marked "Aктивировать" (Activate). The pain dissapeared immediately, and she breathed a sigh of relief. The soldiers outside got up, five more had been killed while she was trying to stop the "Heat Ray" as it was often called. Looking down, she saw a block of C4 explosives. It was obviously a self-destruct. Being a rare piece of equipment, the Tsar would have it protected from falling into enemy hands at all costs. It had an activator right on it, which also happened to have a timer on it.

It appears that even the Tsar can care for someone's life. She thought, setting it to a five-minute fuse.

The moment she activated it, she opened the door and ran. She managed to reach a safe distance just before the explosives went off, throwing shrapnel all over the village. The Federal troops looked to see what had happened, and they saw her coming towards them, with the smoke still in the background. At first they couldn't believe that she had done it, but then they saw that she was holding a pistol that was still cooling from a high-power shot. Her clothes had splotches of blood on them, and her breathing was heavy but orderly. She was exhausted from the ADS, just like all the soldiers.

"English?" She said once she reached the UTF lines. The enemy soldiers were being held captive, apparently they had surrendered.

Surprised at the question, the commander stood up to answer her.

"Yes, I'm Commander Mael, 21st Infantry Division. How do you know English?"

"Taught self, old books, instructions." She responded in a thick accent. "Grammar... confusing. Too many rules, not like Russian. Name is Praskoviya, Praskoviya Lovisa."

"What are you doing here? Why are you carrying a Federal pistol."

"Assault rifle too big for window." She said, smiling. It surprised the commander, he was told to expect any child to be traumatized, not joking. Especially not about weaponry.

"I mean, why do you even have a weapon?" He asked, clarifying.

"I saw weapon, A.D.S. War crime. Could not allow use, deactivated it, destroyed it."

Everyone within earshot looked shocked, they simply couldn't believe that she was the one who destroyed it.

"How?"

"Head-on attack. Enemy did not expect me, I killed operator, turned it off. Then destroyed to prevent future use."

The Commander's jaw somehow dropped even further, she had rushed an A.D.S. on lethal settings head on. Not only had she survived, but she had destroyed it, and the only weapon she had was a pistol!

She dropped the pistol on the ground, then continued.

"Good luck with war." She said "Geneva Conventions say you protect me now."

"There is no war now, those were the so-called Tsar's last forces. They say he was operating the A.D.S. himself."

She simply stood there, her mouth opened slightly in shock. She hadn't thought about it until then, but she had succeeded where so many trained soldiers had failed. The Tsar had taken everything she had, her family, her possessions, and everything else. To think that she had been able to kill him... it was an astounding thought. Unknowingly, she began to smile.

"You attacked an A.D.S. head on, without giving in to the pain." He continued "You should consider joining up someday, it seems like you like toppling evil regimes."

"No, I would rather go to space." She responded. "Freedom in space, no people like Tsar."

"Then the Star Forces are going to have one hell of a recruit."

Nouvelle, Present Day
After bowing their heads in return, the three followed the Seargent.

"Your people put a lot of emphasis on names." Said the Captain, taking great care to step slowly and gently in the lower gravity. "I apologize for anything we did wrong, these two are District Dwellers, they've never met royalty. They also don't have a reputation for diplomacy either."

"We took the non-verbal first contact course at the academy!" Said one of them indignantly.

"Your people are the reason that protocol involves kneeling and holding up a sword." She responded. "That reputation will wilt away the moment we repay the universe for what we have done."

"Good point." Said the man, surprisingly putting up almost no fight.

Mars
The woman nodded, her movements indicating understanding. She spoke to one of her crew, who went and opened the outer airlock door to one of the vehicles, which slid open with a quiet hiss. The wind began to pick up, dust flying in from kilometers away to obscure their vision. She motioned to the two aliens, asking them to follow her to the vehicle.

Saturn
The Admiral reached his hand out as well, glad to see that the Mandalorians still had some human culture left. He shook the Captain's hand, it was a weak handshake, not the kind one would expect from someone in the military.

"The third planet is our capital, the largest station above it's only moon is where the Council currently is. Depending on how long the peace talks with the other species took, you might have to wait. You won't have to worry about any sort of battle though, it turns out that the other species wants peace almost as much as we do."

Near Gliese, E.U.V Starfire
Fergus looked at the suit, specifically the pants. It was quite obvious that he wasn't paying much attention to the coat.

"I love the color." He said, a smile on his face. "You know, I wasn't going to say anything, but when you described Lahnha... I knew who you were talking about. I knew someone just like that many years ago, back before the war. She's who made me realize that I was from Gliese, it was indirect, and took advantage of subconscious thoughts. I knew there was something different about her, I always thought she was just another one from Gliese. I guess I was wrong."

Special Forces Group 1
Two man Recon team
Unknown Planet ( Cherac,Nouvelle)
Sgt. Decroix ( Kacha)
Cpl. La’vrue ( Ura)

The situation on the ground was getting more interesting by the second, first the discovery of a new species kept the pair busy writing reports but the introduction of these new beings really put them on alert. These new beings were obviously a space-faring society, and given the quality of their powered armor they also looked fairly advanced. Ura the spotter in the sniper pair was busy, observing the two beings converse and drawing a sketch of the area. All of the buildings, terrain and features were document and labeled with ranges and dimensions. He also had rough sketch of both beings, their height, estimated weight and muscle structure. Kacha who was the shooter of the pair, was busy furiously typing a report to send back to their ship in orbit.

Their hide was a small trench cut into the mountainside, just big enough for both of them to lay side by side. They did an excellent job of camouflaging the hide, the trench was deep enough to lay down in without being seen and covered with fairly rigid sheet with the natural dirt and vegetation on top. Towards the front of the trench was a small slit for the rifle and spotting scope to see through. The mission was only supposed to last a couple hours but it had been extended twice now, the pair had been out in the field for a day and a half, eating cold rations and bagging their own waste.

With a sigh Kacha closed the armored laptop, pushing it over to the side as he looked through the rifle scope once again, “ Anything change?” he said obviously uninterested with the answer. Ura’s response was a chuckle and a quick “nope”. Kacha sighed a little louder then normal and moved his eye back behind the scope, moving the crosshairs over the torso of the armored being, making a gunshot noise with his mouth before letting go of the rifle and turning over to lay on his back. “ When is our extract” he said, turning his head towards Ura who held the long range radio for the pair. “ Good question, tomorrow? Maybe later tonight?” Ura said as he switched on the radio laying between them and put on his helmet. “ STC Syren, this is Hawk 2….” he said quickly as he waited for the response from the ship.

STC Syren ( BH-109)
Running Stealth protocols around the planet Nouvelle
Cmdr. Vellais

“ Are they fucking insane!” Cmdr.Vellais nearly screamed as the communications officer relayed their message. “ The could compromise our position!, do they even know the situation up here?!”. The communications officer shrugged, obviously completed drained from spending the past day under stealth conditions. At this point uniforms became optional, men and women walked around in armor underlays and underwear to combat the heat. The deck was slick with the constant sweating of the crew and the smell was that of a gym that was not allowed to be aired out. During Stealth protocols all heat-sinks and engines are masked, with their exhaust being recycled back into the ship and purified. The result is a dramatic increase of temperature inside the ship while removing the thermal presence of the ship completely. Radar dampening and communications discipline make the ship a virtual black hole on radars, someone would have to visually locate the ship the detect it, which would be very hard in space.
“What should our reply be ma’am?” he said turning his head towards the commander, watching her struggle to decide what to do. The commander looked at the star chart on the display for a moment“ We will extract them tonight, brief the pilots and lets move off to a good stand off distance. There we can disengage these bloody protocols and relax a bit”. There was a collective sigh of relief from the crew as she announced her plans and they quickly set about completing their newly assigned tasks.

STC Jaques ( BH-44)
Recon patrol over unknown planet ( New Condia)
Cmdr. Deaxja

The commander sipped his tea as he walked around the bridge, looking into the different stations to make sure everything was functioning properly. It was the off hours and only a skeleton crew was on the bridge, everyone else was asleep or on their way there. Things had been quiet since they left Tasoshe, save for the occasional vessel that shot past. The cruise was peaceful so far and he liked it that way, a far cry from his previous assignments.

“Sir?….Im picking up a radiation warning on the long range scanner, looks like a……weapons discharge” The commander took a couple steps back and barely got a glimpse of the reading before the beam hit the vessel towards the stern knocking one of the port engines out. The shot could be felt throughout the ship, violently shaking the bridge. “ Damage control!, get me reports now!” the commander yelled “ Get Everyone to combat stations”. Alarms sounded throughout the ship as people began to react to the attack, staggering to their posts as they fought the worsening vibration throughout the ship. Commander Deaxja read the damage reports as they streamed across his command display, quickly assessing the condition of the ship. The port-side external engine was completely destroyed and firing rapidly, threatening to cause the other engines to ignite as well. “Shutdown the port side” propulsion he screamed towards the propulsion officer before another explosion racked the vessel, this time from within. The entire rear port side exploded as the destroyed thruster cooked off the remaining damaged boosters on that side, sending the ship into a gentle counter-clockwise spin towards the planet. As the reactor cut out, the emergency protocols activated, sending a long rage ‘Mayday’ transmission into space.

Combat Information Centre, Zhang He, Flagship of the Pearl Fleet

"Not much more to discuss?" The admiral said, frowning. "But there is so much more to discuss! Meetings, formal declarations, exchange of cultures, everything is a possibility."

The Admiral paused to reign in his excitement before continuing. "While we would definitely be willing to discuss the possibility of trade routes, I do believe that it is not something that should be decided between the military." Admiral Hei explained. "If you would like, we can send an envoy to one of your planets, or if you would prefer it we would be more than willing to welcome an envoy aboard the Pearl Fleet."

Space Around Nouvelle

The calm emptiness of the space around the planet Nouvelle was soon rent asunder as PNS Assault Fleet 012 came out of Slipstream Space. The fleet was comprised of about two dozen frigates, a dozen destroyers, many corvettes, a slew of specialized ships and a single Marku-Class Battlecruiser under the designation PNSS Zephyr of Ascendence, and the flagship of the warfleet. However, it did not take Fleetmaster Kuraya Tin'yum long to realize that they were not alone.

Certainly the fleet would draw a presence, but ignoring this sent a Rakora-Class corvette down to the last pinged location of PNSS Might of a Thousand Suns for assessment and to bring needed supplies.