[color=chocolate][center][h2]Of Khans, Khagans and Khan-Khuus[/h2]
[i]Those who claim descent from the Mongols of old collide over New Gift.[/i]
Credit to [@SgtEasy] and Enigmatik.[/center][/color][hr]

Due to how close the Gateway was to New Gift, as close as two celestial objects can be with each other on different orbits, its twinkling light was still ever-present in the skies, both blue and black. Even now, it shone brightly, a reminder of the greatness of their predecessors, how wondrous they must have been to construct such a marvel of technology. A testament to humanity and the spirits left behind.
 
It was also a security risk of epic proportions.
 
They had fielded many a satellite, many an observatory pointed to the stars. They were there for science and communications, none were for protection. For [i]war[/i]. There was enough war to go around on New Gift, enough for the Khans to focus inwardly rather than towards the cosmos. To keep the myriad city-states in line, to keep the peace on New Gift, to look out for Caesar’s remnants and to clear the jungles of his filth, it took up much of the administrative and military power of the Khanate. There were some concerns as always, brought up by many scientists and advisors, but it was always shelved to the back end of priorities. The Gateway had been closed for hundreds of years, why would it open out of the blue?
 
Yet they were wrong. [i]So wrong[/i]. Like a cruel cosmic joke, the Gateway had opened when its orbit with New Gift was as close to each other as it could possibly be. It made the trip for the [i]Terra Supremus[/i] much faster than it usually would be, having set off as soon as possible under the steady guiding hand of Admiral Sun-sin. They had fielded a small communication probe in the Gateway’s orbit as a just in case, an early warning system to whatever observatory/satellite was close enough to receive its signals first. They had expected the first warnings to be from the [i]Terra Supremus[/i] itself, reporting back on what was out there in the cosmos.
 
Instead, it was a fleet. An ungodly number of ships of unknown make that rung alarm bells that still went off. The apes operating Neo-Hubble, the first waypoint of the early warnings, were scrambling. The Republic of Freemen city state, their benefactors, were sent into a frenzy of excitement and terror once they were awakened by the scientists manning the telescope. Messages were sent to the Khan, informing him of the presence of the armada that had come to New Gift’s doorstep. Messages were sent to the Legion, sending them into a state of high alert not seen since the War to End All Wars. Messages were sent to the various allied city-states that were closest to the Freemen, messages filled with speculation and warning, to prepare for negotiations with a foreign power, to prepare their dignitaries, to prepare for a potential [i]war[/i].
 
In contrast to the flurry of responses from Legion commanders and city-states both, the Khan’s response was succinct and to the point. [color=cd5c5c]”The Freemen will be our first point of contact with these intruders.”[/color]
 
And so here he was, President Galilei, bedecked in pomp and splendour, powdered wig sat on top of his head, what once felt like a crown now a reminder of the responsibility weighing on him. Golden lapels and a flashy red cotton coat, dressed in an outfit reminiscent of the Europeans within the Age of Enlightenment. He stood among scientists, politicians of his party, local and Legion military advisors along with the local Khanate representative. They were congregated on the Freemen state’s tallest spire, the seat of his government and now, the first waypoint of communications with a foreign power. This was not how he imagined his first weeks of office was going to be like.
 
The young chimpanzee broke out of his musings when a technician popped from his hastily assembled monitor.
 
“President Galilei, we have connected a line of communications with the foreign ships.”
 
A mask of smooth confidence settled over the young ape’s features. He had climbed to this seat of responsibility. He had campaigned for months, climbed the political ladder for years, fought many a duel against those who would besmirch his honour. If not the Khan, there was no one else more suited for this moment than him. He would prove it, right here, right now. He shuffled his eye to the son of the Khan, representative of his benefactor. A small nod was given.
 
“Aye, technician. Open communications then, make sure to present my image and voice in as flattering a way as possible. A Freeman gentleman cannot meet with potential aliens without propriety and splendour, befitting a strapping ape like me.” Some small nervous chuckles broke out in the room at his self-flattery, but these fell silent as the tapping of the technician filled the air. And with a finality, the monitor buzzed. It was showtime.

“Unknown ships, this is President Montagne Bellevue Johannes Galilei of the Republic of Freemen city state, inheritor of mankind, a [i]Pongo Pygmaeus Supremus[/i], elected among the Freemen, beneficiary of the Khan. Who are you, such intrepid adventurers of the cosmos, who have shown themselves to the doorsteps of the Khan?”

Orda Khan had roared with laughter the first time he gazed out over this new system. How could he not? Almost nine hundred years after humanity had first stepped into space, and here stood a system, once strong enough to traverse the stars themselves, now without any of the hallmarks of civilised space. No mines churned at the surface of asteroids or planetoids, no tankers hauled ice and slough from remote stars to beating industrial centers. It was… Primitive.

Luckily, it turned out that they weren’t [i]entirely[/i] savage, those who still lived in ‘New Gift.’ When his flagship received a hail, he settled himself into his bridge-throne and flashed a full set of pearly white teeth, expression settling into a self-assured sneer, his long, whisker-like moustache bristling as the monitor opened up and the translator hurried to make this messenger understood.

For a moment, as the connection established itself, the pair simply stared at each other. On one end, there was Orda Khan-Khuu, Lord of the White Horde, Breaker of those who forswore their oaths, crusher of the Confederacy of Itügen, Sky-Shatterer. A prime example of the imperial Soyulani, eyes aflame with an orichalcum glow, physique shaped and sculpted by genetics and effort, long synth-silk garments twisting and flowing about his form in a way that the eyes couldn’t help but slide off, back towards his face.

On the other hand, there was this ‘President,’ who was a monkey in a wig. A [b]talking[/b] monkey in a wig, but a monkey in a wig nonetheless. For a moment, there was nothing but sheer, unadulterated surprise across Orda’s features, especially as the man’s words declared that they had arrived at the ‘doorstep of the Khan,’ and he did nothing but stare at the projection of Montagne Galilei before him.

Then, slowly, he rumbled out a response.

“You stand at the foot of the great Orda Khan, Sovereign in Tengri, ruled by none beyond its borders. We are the representatives of the Great and Mighty Khaganate, [i]I[/i] am son eldest of his Imperial Majesty Genghis Temüjin Khagan III, I stand now on the bridge of the great flagship Baatar Ogtur and you speak to me of arriving at the Khan’s doorstep? If you have one as truly great and deserving of such a title, surely he should be who I talk with.”

It would take a moment for Galilei to respond, as shocked as he was. It took him a few seconds to register just [i]what[/i] he was looking at. A figure, human and Mongolic looking, reminiscent of the traditions favoured by the Khan, rosegold eyes staring back with an audacious confidence. Pleasing to the eyes, if you were a human or a Humanist zealot. Or one of those fetishists he declined to think about at the moment. The visual confirmation that other humans had survived was shocking, to say the least.

None of this confusion was revealed on his powdered face, unlike some of his colleagues who were flapping their gums at the first human they have ever seen. Galilei stood stoic, as all Freemen gentlemen aimed to be, staring back at the “Khan” with all the confidence his years of politicking had granted him. He had been ordained to speak first and he was not going to be a face of weakness to this interloper. 

Not to mention a mere human who obviously did not understand whose space he was occupying. The true Khan was, and [i]is[/i], mighty. Powerful and all-seeing. His lineage has proven time and again to be truly worthy of ruling over the supreme apes, this would brook no argument. Every Freeman hated a tyrant but even they must bow in deference to the greatness that ruled this planet. The title of “Khan” did not fall to whatever schmuck had decided to pick up a title on the way to the Mongolian cosplay store. 

The entire intrusion smelt like an overripe banana ready to blow. Legion forces were mobilising across the planet, the call for war readiness turning the cogs of the great military apparatus into a frenzy. Even now, his ear chimed in constant INFOWAR reports flooding from across the Khanate, updates on his own automaton’s and the nearby Legion’s movements, on the retreat of their humans into the depths of the monasteries, on the readying of city states both near and far afield. This must be obvious to those humans, far above in the cosmos, but this suited an ape’s tastes.

Better to shine your teeth at the newcomer and know who they are messing with, lest they get any ideas.

Galilei bared his teeth in a mockery of a human smile, gums flapping back on themselves to reveal metallic blades in between his coloured red lips. He was polite yet sharp in his response, to the frequent nodding approval of the Khan’s representative to his side.

“And [i]I[/i], President of the greatest city state in the entirety of the Federal Khanate, am ordained to be your first point of contact, Orda [i]Khan[/i]. It would not be wrong to say that you, a descendant of mankind’s greatest, are interloping upon [i][b]the[/b][/i] Khan’s realm with no prior warning. You are on no one’s doorstep but his, as great as your flagship must be. If you would like to meet him in the halls of Great Ulaanbaatar, you must state your intentions and give reason to why you have brought an [i]armada[/i] to the home of the Supremus, inheritors of mankind?”

Orda adjusted himself in his bridge-throne, a slow, steady smirk crossing his face and a single meticulously groomed eyebrow raised up. He brought his hands up slowly together as he processed Galilei’s response, then began to clap - slowly, almost sarcastically at first, and then with just enough speed to make it sound genuine, the Khan nodded his approval even as the clapping petered out.

“Very well then. If the Khan is half as fearsome as his point of contact is, perhaps I will not be disappointed after all.” Stretching out and rising to his full height, he swept his arm out wide and began making his declaration. 

“This ‘armada’ is but a portion of the fleet I command as Khan-Khuu of the White Horde. We come to scour the stars, to crack asteroids and skim giants, split stones, seize metal, smash ice and gather the slush. We are here because the Great Khaganate is an ever-hungry beast whose maw must be fed with the choicest of delicacies. I look out over this system and I see a great bounty before me, unclaimed by even your Khan… Yet my fleet is here now, their drills and reactors ready.” He clenched his first tight, as if holding a bundle of leashes. “Should I let slip my fleet I could scour this system for everything it’s worth, shatter your skies and sink every ship that rises above the paltry limit that is the horizon. Your Khan has left gold lying scattered on the beach, and now wonders why the jewellers are here to claim their prize?” He chuckled slowly. 

“But I am a gracious and beneficious man when it so suits me. If you are [i]Supremus[/i] as you claim, surely we can come to agreement, and neither of us will need to see ships crumpled and fields aflame.” 

Orda’s offer would be followed by a long pause as Galilei stewed in his thoughts. A chime in his ear, sounding out before the human’s narration had begun, indicated to him that this conversation was being live streamed directly to the Khan’s quarters. His powdered “crown” grew in weight as he pondered on an appropriate response.

The threat was obvious but there was little that could be done about it. The flamboyantly dressed President inwardly kicked himself for his own short-sightedness. He had been one to advise the Khan to focus on the inner struggles of the Khanate and the rising number of Caesar remnants. He had believed, foolishly in retrospect, that the development of the space assets of the Khan could wait for the consolidation of the Khan’s hold over an increasingly chaotic Khanate. This sort of thinking was now biting him in his hairy behind. 

Here was a direct threat to the Khanate, a threat to its civilisation and prosperity, a threat to the Supremus species’ and those they care for. A deal must be made with this clearly unstable human, whose benevolence seems to run hand in hand with his patience.

These sort of things would normally be under the purview of the Khan and his representatives. But given the [i]unique[/i] nature of the representative assigned to the Freemen, as a sideways glance to the adolescent Khan-son would confirm, he needed to overstep a part of his boundaries here. A luxury, he knew, only afforded to him as a close friend of Khublai Khan himself. He let out a long breath to collect and steel himself, grey eyes meeting rosegold through vast distances. Even across displays, the resolve of each side could not be more evident.

“We will treat with you then, jewellers. You hold mastery over traversing the cosmos, that is clear. We hold the resources required for your hungry peoples. We are both, clearly, war-minded people. Peace and prosperity lies in the path of our cooperation, destruction and ruin lie in the path of our conflict.”

By the information feed in his ear, he knew that countless cannons and innumerable missile batteries were pointed to the skies. The intruders had been in the system long enough for the city states on this side of the planet to point their orbital defense systems on target. The use of void-modified drones in the endless conflicts between nation states had led to interventions like these; complicated, overlapping fields of fire that could pierce the atmosphere. No ape likes to fly but the same could not be said of his artillery.

The President clenched his own paw, unnatural musculature rippling under his garb as blood red veins popped into the whites of his eyes. “However, let it be clear that a war between our peoples will result in your corpse hanging from the rafters, limbs torn and cast off into the oceans. Unlike what your sensors may tell you, the Khanate is not the only one under threat here. You cannot traipse into someone’s yard and expect the guard dog to yip happily to your tunes, [i]human[/i].”

The odds were still against them, they could not prevent the raping and pillaging of the asteroids further afield but any ship that tripped across New Gift’s orbits would be blown to the realm of the spirits. He could rely on the stubborn attitude of apes in war. 

The President of the Freemen relaxed his posture and interlinked his hands in a more reserved stance.

“We can strike a deal to the benefit of both our nations. An exchange, one wanting for cosmic industry and ships, another wanting for ripe virgin resources. Further scientific and economic exchanges can be made further afield as relations between our nations settle. Cooperation between our peoples. What do you say, Khan-Khuu of the White Horde?”

For a long time, the image of Orda Khan hung on the President's screen - long enough, perhaps, for the ape to worry that something had gone wrong - or Orda had cut the line and gone to plunder as he had suggested. Then, slowly, a small smile worked its way across his lips, starting at the very center of his mouth and spreading across to crease its edges, until he finally barked out a laugh that spilled out and on until he was practically roaring with laughter.

"Excellent! Excellent indeed! I can see you have fire in your heart and strength in your soul, President. Your Khan has chosen wisely if he has appointed one such as you to argue on his behalf. Very well, I can abide by these terms. Though we are rent by distance, I raise a cup of arkhi to you and yours, and hope in turn that I may set eyes on your Khan, and see what mettle he holds to inspire such ferocity from his vassals." He nodded slowly. 

"For now, I must manage my fleet. Baatar Ogtur out. We will speak again, 'Galilei.'"
[hr]

[color=darkturquoise][center][h2]A New Input for the Machine Part 2[/h2]
[i]The gears churn as the Accord prepares for what comes next.
Featuring Executive Optimiser-Cog Dai Yi[/i][/center][/color]

Dai Yi sat, motionless except for the soft rise and fall of his chest, eyes closed, implants dumb. There was nothing else beyond the world but him, there was nothing beyond him but his breath. He focused without focusing, the in-and-out, the movement of air down into his lungs, the way it swirled around inside them, held inside, and then slowly released. When he struggled to be mindful he sometimes thought of it as waves - rolling along to the shore, crashing on the in breath and slowly drawing back with the out. In... Ou-

The iso-pod roof above him beeped twice, evenly spaced apart. Twenty minutes gone, just like that. He opened his eyes slowly and sighed, implants sparking back to life as he turned the door's lock and stepped out, blinking rapidly as his eyes adjusted to the practical overhead lights that never fully departed the halls of the Executive machine. Thirty-six new notifications... But he could at least take a little comfort in knowing none of them were marked urgent or classified... Even if it did mean that almost two a minute had come through and been deemed important enough to cut past the layers beneath him and demand his personal attention. Taking a seat across from the iso-pods, he rested his elbow on his knee and pressed his thumb to his temple, an act as useless as it was important to [i]him[/i]. Even if you looked a little foolish, at least like this people knew you were deep in your own head and not to be disturbed unless absolutely ne-

"Optimiser-Cog Dai? My apologies, I know you were just in the iso-pod and you're likely gathering your thoughts, but..." The aide - whose name had finally settled into his mind as Ye Ai, spoke in a soft but insistent tone from next to him. "It's about the Gateway, Optimiser. A report arrived from the Interplanetary Defence Force." He opened his eyes and looked up, seeing a little of himself mirrored in her. The stress, the tiredness, the slow grinding down of one's faculties over the course of handling so much. She rose from her half-bow and brought her omnilink up, the optimiser's overlay showing the flashes of IR light from its screen as she interfaced with it hands-free. 

"How bad is it?" Yi gave her a serious look.

"Something to be aware of, but not something we can adjust. As you know, we've entered somewhat of a lull in the Great Struggle, but the Gateway's reactivation has... 'set them off,' if you will. QIDF Systems Skywatch has spotted a lance-fleet leaving the outer system on an intercept trajectory with the old megaconglomerate buoy." 

The only sign of recognition from Da Yi was a slight puff from his nose. "And we've sent an overwhelming response, no doubt?"

"Indeed, Optimiser. Two of the expeditionary battlewings have been recalled to meet the threat, and the Jingyu battlefleet will provide long-range support. Because of the communications delay we won't learn the full outcome until the engagement is complete and they can assemble an after-action report, but as you've been placed on the Gateway board, you're a priority when it comes to updates like these."

"Understood. What do the admirals say we should be expecting?" Dai Yi finally rose to his feet, mentally dismissing the rest of the notifications for now - he had a meeting to attend to and there'd be another hundred or so of them once he emerged, so there was no use in fretting about last-minute responses now.

"They're preparing for a full-scale engagement, Optimiser-Cog. Recovery vessels are on standby, the shipyard NBIs are being adjusted to meet the capacity, and..." She grimaced. "We're looking at predicted casualties in the low thousands." 

"More names for the Great Wall," Yi nodded slowly. "Such is the nature of the Struggle. What about the Gateway itself? Any news from that front? Has the Voice of the People responded?" The pair were once again pacing through the halls of the Harmonious Engine, passing by a steady stream of other officals, aides and bureaucrats.

"Nothing," Ai shook her head. "Not unexpected from the Voice of the People - they may take several days to assemble and send the report back through, but no foreign vessels have been spotted yet. If I may, I'm... I'm a little glad?" She had a pensive look on her face as Dai Yi raised an eyebrow.

"How so? If there are others out there - if Earth or another colony has survived, we have a real chance at shifting the course of the Struggle."

"Yes, and I understand that, Optimiser-Cog, but surely [i]nothing[/i] is preferable to more threats? Not to mention with this new fleet... What if we [i]did[/i] receive visitors, only for the Shenjian to reach them before we could? I-"

"[i]I[/i] understand your concerns, Ai, but that is precisely why we are reacting so swiftly to this incursion. Think positively, think harmoniously. We can only control what we hold in our hands, yes?"

"... Yes, Cog-Optimiser." A flicker of reassurance passed across the aide's face. "I can see you've got an event coming up now, should I leave you to it?" 

"You'll have to but let's touch base again tomorrow. Remember, if you're concerned, the Wellness Harmonisers are just upstairs, and there are iso-pods dotted hither and thither." He gestured vaguely about. "Don't burn yourself out worrying on these things for now." 

The pair exchanged a brief bow and went their seperate ways. Far above them, the Galaxy continued spinning, the same as it always had.