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Post by The Governor on Jan 15, 2016 16:09:01 GMT
Confederate Space, Triangulum, Karsopolis, Headquarters Of Imperial Intelligence
In a building very close to Governor's Tower, the headquarters of Imperial Intelligence was alive with activity. In a single room stood Director Isabel Silva, speaking with the newly promoted Lieutenant Jason Jennings. She said in an even tone, "I'll say it again, I need you to tell me everything you remember about the battle on Tau Volantis. What happened down there?"
The commando officer answered, "I told you Director, Wendigo Company jumped down, engaged the Invaders. For the first bit of combat, we were winning. Then the Invaders turned things around. We retreated into the wreckage of the Terra Nova, found the Hegemon. Lieutenant Embry was with us the whole time, leading the whole thing. We met up with some Eldari troops on the Terra Nova as well. After that, the Allied troops tried to escort the Hegemon to what he said was the greatest hope for the Allies against the Invaders. This was Project Heaven's Fall. There were two inscriptions over the base, one that was in Universal Basic, and the other in whatever the Colonial tongue is. Some Earth language we forgot, cant say which though. Anyway, we enter the base. But we're pursued by this important Invader who's butchering our men left and right, which is bad because we'd lost most of them already. The Hegemon was badly wounded, and the Invader may have killed him. But she never got the chance. The Lieutenant challenged her, and bought the rest of us a few minutes to enter the base. He died of course, but it wasn't the duel alone that killed Embry. I dont know if you ever noted this in your files Director, but the man was borderline mad, and addicted badly to combat stimulants. I saw him press the button for them half a dozen times on his final mission. I suspect that once he was battered by the Invader, his body couldn't filter out all the chemicals in his system. Back to what happened though. We got inside and were safe for a bit. Then the Invaders managed to get inside. We fought them of course, but the Allied soldiers were slowly being torn apart. Then somehow, Heaven's Fall became active. I'm not sure how. I was busy with the Invaders, one of which looked and fought a lot like the Lieutenant. I suspect he's with the Invaders now. We fought like demons, struggling to protect the Hegemon against overwhelming enemies. I dont remember exactly how we escaped, I just followed the Colonials who had the Hegemon. Then, we exited the Tau System with the remaining Allied Forces, and I was sent back to the Ghostbreaker."
"Is there really nothing you remember about the escape?" asked Jack Markinson in an annoyed tone. He wore his usual Intelligence combat gear, and scowled at Jennings from behind dark glasses. "We can get all of this from any common soldier who survived the battle. Please, tell us something new. Otherwise you're just wasting our time."
A small wave of anger rose in Jennings, and he was about to snap at the Phantom Agent when Silva quickly said, "Enough, Jack. That will suffice, Lieutenant. You're free to go. Thank you for your perspective on the battle."
"It's no problem, Director. I'm glad I could help." With that, Jennings slowly strode out.
Once he was gone, Silva looked at Markinson and said, "Now that that's addressed, what else is happening?"
"Nothing good. People are very afraid of these Invaders."
"Very well. Continue monitoring things in the Confederacy like we always have. Crush treason where it appears, and save everyone that you can." Once the orders had been given, Markinson walked out of the room to execute them.
Governor's Tower, Karsopolis
Sharp was also worried about the happenings of the recent campaigns, and this could be seen by the look of worry on his face as he read the Tau System Engagement reports. Most of the Confederate Navy had been annihilated, and the Ghostbreaker had sustained major damage. Ruptured combat engines from trying to survive the gravity pull of a black hole, most batteries out of commission, onboard Naval Commandos had taken a huge hit with the almost total loss of Wendigo Company, and a great portion of fighter craft lost as well. The only positive thing was that the Allies had discovered something that MIGHT hurt the Invaders, the Ghostbreaker had survived, and High Admiral Henderson was alive, though greatly shaken. The war could be going better, but that could wait. For now, he needed to contact not just the Colonies, but all sentient nations, and see if they needed assistance.
The message was simple, and broadcast over all known channels and frequencies. It stated, "Good evening to whoever may be receiving this. I'm Governor Sharp of the Confederacy, and I'm contacting to offer assistance to anyone who may need it. The Tau System engagement took a great deal from the Confederacy, but we are still prepared to assist the Armada in any way that we can."
With that, Sharp ended the message, and continued to read the reports.
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Post by Relikai on Jan 16, 2016 9:13:52 GMT
A figure stepped out of a compound, full of dead Invader corpses. Her own weapon, a curved sword, was covered in blue blood, the pale figure continued walking as she reached her spacecraft, a Jupiterran Breeze Fighter. An old design, truly unspectacular from the outside. Inside, however, was a myriad of advanced controls. From Vacuum Stealth, which makes a craft blend into the vacuum of Space by surrounding it with a cloud of controlled Anti-Matter particles, to a Reverse Particle Lasers, lasers which upon hitting shields, causes the generators to go into an overload by traversing the energy traces to it's core, to four detachable winglets, each armed with two 40mm Particle Cannons. They could be fired from the Breeze's mounts, or controlled independently, acting like a fighter of its own.
"Bo-o-o-oring!~" The girl muttered. Sheathing her weapon, she donned her flight suit as the Breeze took flight, heading for the next installation which seemed to have traces of the Invaders.
"Good evening to whoever may be receiving this. I'm Governor Sharp of the Confederacy, and I'm contacting to offer assistance to anyone who may need it. The Tau System engagement took a great deal from the Confederacy, but we are still prepared to assist the Armada in any way that we can."
"Hmm. Weird. Sound's interesting tho!"
"Governer Sharp of the Confederacy, good morning, that is, my time. I am a sentient being with no intent of malice. Before I identify meself, might I ask, what hails you to make such an announcement?
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Post by The Governor on Jan 16, 2016 9:30:49 GMT
After hearing the response, Sharp quickly opened a live holo frequency and replied, "I'm glad to hear someone answered. As for the purpose of the message, I'm trying to ensure that all civilisations know that they have our support against the Invaders. That is, the support of the Dothvalian Confederacy. We are located in Triangulum, and whatever nation you hail from, you may have heard about us in reports of the Abyssal War as Confederate forces. I chose to make the announcement now because there has been a bit of calm lately on our end. Since an engagement in the Tau System and the near annihilation of the Confederate Navy, we've had to withdraw to home space. Licking the wounds of the last battle, you see. This silence from us aside, I want the universe to know we haven't forgotten our commitment to the Intergalactic Armada. I was also hoping to reach civilisations we may not have before, and I'm glad to hear from someone new. First, I'll formally introduce myself. I am Governor Karson Sharp Of Karsopolis, the capital planet of the Dothvalian Confederacy. I am the absolute ruler of the Confederacy, and I'd like to reach out to you in combating the Invaders. Now who are you, and how can we be of assistance?"
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Post by Relikai on Jan 16, 2016 10:02:45 GMT
"Ah." The girl replied. Making sure that she looked neat as she adjusted the holographic camera. "Well, I have just finished clearing a nest of these strange creatures which bled blue. Invaders, yes we call them that too. I hail from the Andromeda Galaxy, under the flag of the Relikan Star Fleet, from the Jupiternii System. I'm okay for now, but... do you wish for me to come over personally? I mean, you're just across the galaxy and I'll reach in several minutes..."
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Post by The Governor on Jan 17, 2016 6:03:07 GMT
"Relikan Star Fleet," Sharp began. "Interesting name. I dont believe you're a civilisation I'm familiar with. A meeting between us would indeed be in order. And I'd be delighted to meet with you in person. I'll transmit coordinates and landing codes for Karsopolis now. I'd advise you to wear warm clothing to the meeting. Karsopolis is a stormy planet year round, and cold almost as often."
Seeing the sympathetic look on the girl's face, the Confederate ruler quickly added, "It's not all bad however. We make some of the best raincoats in the universe. Are there any other questions you'd like answered over the holo? If not, I'll see you at the meeting."
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Post by Relikai on Jan 17, 2016 7:13:00 GMT
"Alright, I'll make the jump."
Clicking a few buttons, the Star Reaver placed the coordinates of Karsopolis, also opening an IFF so she would not be intercepted by friendlies or neutrals.
Her single-seat fighter lifted from the installation, entering a warp which shot her ship thousands of light years per second, reaching the planet within three minutes. A rare but awesome technology, it was currently installed in fighters and destroyers.
Landing at the star docks, the Star Reaver leapt from her fighter, as she saluted the Confederate Guards. Handing her sword and rifle over, the girl continued her way to the office of Governor Sharp. Dressed in her armour, forged from a special metal melted by the heat of a star, it provides her solid protection from almost any types of damage, and a powerful shield generator was attached to the back of the suit.
"Governor Sharp, this is the Star Reaver. My name is Sarah Voran. It's a pleasure to meet you."
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Post by The Governor on Jan 17, 2016 7:30:35 GMT
Sharp replied with a smile and an even tone as he met the visitor, "The pleasure's all mine, Miss Voran. A fine ship you have. We also picked up hyperspace distortion. Nice to finally meet another nation that uses hyperspace technology. Like I said in the holo, I'd like to offer any support I can give in the war on the Invaders. We can provide highly advanced cryonic technology as well as advanced infantry equipment. You said you're based in Andromeda? That's interesting. I thought the Invaders were mostly in the Milky Way at the moment. Makes me wonder how much longer Triangulum will be safe. But anyway, how can we assist your efforts against them?"
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Post by Relikai on Jan 17, 2016 8:59:53 GMT
"We... yes, we are based in Andromeda, but unfortunately, the Invaders have been hunting us down whenever we reveal ourselves beyond our Home System. Regarding infantry weapons and armours, we have no problem with them. If anything, our only issue is the lack of a resource more precious than the metals used to kill the invaders. We can clear thousands... hundreds of thousands of them easily, wreck their ships and destroy their starbases, yet we lack something."
Sarah went forward and took a seat for herself as she looked at Sharp in the eye.
"Manpower. Every time the Relikan Star Fleet launches an expedition, of more than a hundred ships, the Invaders fall upon us. We can destroy ten of their fleets for every one of ours, but since when did they ever send less than twenty? Therefore we are forced into hiding, slowly building our strength, hunting them down individually within their infiltration nests. I was in Triangulum, clearing around two companies of Invaders, setting up an outpost at the outer ring of this Galaxy, therefore I could pick up your signal."
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Post by The Governor on Jan 17, 2016 10:55:46 GMT
"I see. Interesting arrangement you propose, and sorry for your troubles with the Invaders. You say you can clear thousands of the creatures though? That's certainly something. I can provide troops for your use." Sharp then recalled the Confederate Clone Army whose Dothvalian portion was now complete and ready for combat. The Confederate ruler was about to offer them as well, but then decided against it. Isabel would certainly murder him if he revealed a top secret Confederate military project to an emissary he'd just met. "Confederate troops are primarily Dothvalian. They are chosen for military service because they grow up exponentially faster, are physically stronger, and much larger than typical humans. This being said, they have a major weakness. They cant be used in warm combat theatres. Dothvalians live at ultra-cold temperatures, and anything above sixty-eight degrees Fahrenheit will kill them after a short time. Most of them wear refrigeration armour in atmospheres above fifteen degrees. Most of our officers are human. Human officers take much longer to produce, and are rarely as naturally capable frontline troops. Therefore, if you see a human Confederate ground troop, a Naval Commando, they're some of the best soldiers in the Confederate Armed Forces. Our Naval Commandos specialise in boarding tactics, infiltration, special ops missions, and arctic warfare. Our Navy prefers to meet enemies with only a small force. Then, the bulk of friendly forces ambush the enemy fleet when the time is right. Once the trap is sprung, crewmen focus on doing as much damage to the enemy fleet as possible. Lastly, our troops fight with ferocity. I'll provide your forces. In fact, I know just who to provide. He'll be commanding the Confederate forces aiding you for now."
With that, Sharp activated a holocomm and said in an even tone, "Good evening, Director. Would you summon the Lieutenant again, and send him to my office at once? Dont tell him this, but he's about to become a liaison to new allies in the ongoing war."
"Certainly. The Lieutenant will be there soon," Silva said over the channel. She said nothing more. The Intelligence Director had been informed of the plans for Jennings well in advance, and she had no objection to using Confederate forces to help newly met civilisations.
"Thank you," Sharp said as he closed the channel. He then said to Sarah, "Now Miss Voran, while we wait, is there anything else we can provide? Our remaining ships are high quality, although very few. I'm afraid that your starships will have to suffice, at least until our shipyards can replace the bulk of our Navy. But we have ground troops to spare. Now before I commit to this, you said that your fleet CAN kill numerous Invaders? I just want to be certain I'm making the best decision."
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Post by Relikai on Jan 17, 2016 11:28:01 GMT
Sarah Voran nodded as she took note of Sharp's description of the Confederate forces, knowing that they had fought hard against the Invaders, and that they are an entire nation of systems and more. Her pride took a hit when Sharp questioned her claims about the Relikan Star Fleet, her eyes narrowing for a moment, before they returned to their normal expression. Reaching into her pocket, Sarah took out a small disc, which was actually a holo-projector. Sharp could see that it was a battle unfolding in an unknown part of space.
"Two hundred years ago, the Relikan Star Fleet engaged the Invaders... in a war across five Systems. Our ancestors fought them for a hundred and fifty years in constant open warfare, but what can a single system do? We destroyed Fleet, after Fleet, after Fleet of Invaders, yet they still come, yet they still produce faster than anyone could. Some said that the Invaders in the Milky Way appeared after they destroyed our last mobile fleet, which lasted twenty battles against them. Not all were victories of course, but the kill count..."
Swiping the hologram around, a list of battles fought between the Star Reavers and the Invaders could be seen. Over a thousand battles and skirmishes, with the Star Fleet destroying the Invaders at a ratio of 1:12.
"Well, this is our proof."
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Post by The Governor on Jan 18, 2016 5:40:20 GMT
"Most impressive," Sharp said as he examined the list. "I'll ensure that the Confederate military supports your activities. I'm not exactly sure how the ratio you've shown me is possible, but I believe you, and I'd like to help it increase."
Suddenly, the office doors opened, and inside walked a man in a suit of dark grey boarding armour. He stood at six foot one, and held his helmet tucked under his arm. He had fair skin, light blue eyes, and light brown hair. He appeared to be slightly confused, but said little. He simply said, "You summoned me, Governor?"
"Yes," Sharp said in an excited tone. He then turned to Sarah, and said, "Miss Voran, allow me to present Lieutenant Jason Jennings, a former officer of Wendigo Company and survivor of two major close combat engagements with the Invaders. The first was the Wendigo Company boarding of the HCS Pluto when the Invaders first attacked, and then the massacre that occurred on the surface of Tau Volantis. He's one of the most capable ground soldiers left in the Confederate military, and I'm proud to offer him as the Confederacy's liaison to the Relikan Star Fleet."
Jennings gave Sharp a brief and evil glare before saying in a diplomatic tone, "It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Voran. But Governor, are you sure I'm the best choice for this operation? I've only done joint ops on one occasion, and I've never commanded them. Are you certain I'm the best choice? I'd strongly recommend someone with more joint combat experience."
"What joint combat experience?" Sharp replied. "The Confederacy only revealed itself to the universe about twenty years ago. The closest we came to joint combat was joint ops with the Keltaken Inquisition during the Terror Wars, and that was Intelligence, not the military. No Lieutenant. With the death of Lieutenant Embry on Tau Volantis, you're the most capable soldier we have left. According to your own report, you led your men out of the medical bay of the HCS Pluto, despite fighting an enemy you'd never encountered, and being heavily outnumbered. You couldn't have done that without gifts of leadership and martial prowess. There may be soldiers who have seen more combat than you, but none with more combat with the Invaders. You're the best choice. Congratulations on your new posting as attache to the Relikan Star Fleet. You're to keep me informed of the needs of the Fleet, and I'll see that they are met. I suspect you'll also fight the Invaders."
Seeing there was no way out of this posting, Jennings resigned himself to the job. He extended his hand and said in a warm voice, "A pleasure, Miss Voran. As the Governor said, I'm Lieutenant Jason Jennings, recently promoted after the death of my superior officer while he fought with the Invaders. I look forward to working with you. Tell me, are you familiar with the combat techniques of boarding starships? It's what my unit specialised in."
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Post by Relikai on Jan 18, 2016 6:14:27 GMT
Sarah took Jenning's hand as she gave a salute of her own. Nearly a head shorter than the Confederate and half his size, Sarah still carries an air of authority, one of the traits of a member of the Relikan Star Fleet.
"Greetings, Lieutenant Jennings, I'm Sarah Voran, Paladin of the Relikan Star Fleet. We do not usually engage in ship-boarding operations. If there is a need to, we'll rush in with our fighters and create an opening before ejecting ourselves through the hole. Our fighters have sentient AI capability to support our attack. Our suits has oxygen fluids injected into our bodies which relieves us of the need to breathe for about an hour maximum. To maneuver in space, our rifles and sub-machineguns can be equipped with Pulse-Hooks, which allows them to stick onto almost any solid they come into contact with within a range of two hundred meters. Once inside, our guns and swords could do the work for us. We might be smaller, but size is our advantage, combined with agility and reflexes. We have been in combat with Abyssals themselves, but they are a notch above the Invaders which we have been fighting previously."
Sarah then took her sword from the side, unsheathing part of it, a hum could be heard as the edge was lined with a bluish silver glow.
"Forged from the nuclear fires of a Star. The blade is made of particles constantly moving at the speed of light. The metal slices through Invaders like a hot knife through butter." Putting the blade back into it's sheath with a loud snap, Sarah also presented her sidearm, a triple-barreled pistol. "Plasma in one, Hook in the other, and Anti-Matter Granule Bullets in the third. Of course, Anti-Matter is expensive to manufacture, so we try not to spend too much of them. They are still bullets, tho. We know that High Invaders cannot be harmed by them, therefore we use our swords."
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Post by The Governor on Jan 18, 2016 7:08:20 GMT
Jennings returned the salute, and listened with interest as the Paladin explained the techniques of the Relikan Star Fleet. When she had finished, Jennings replied, "Fascinating, Paladin Voran. The blade especially. I'm afraid we cant provide you with anything in the way of weaponry, as you seem to have surpassed us technologically. Our techniques for boarding a ship are quite different though. Allow me to show you my own arsenal, and explain in better detail how we fight." With that, Jennings donned his helmet, and said in an even tone of Middle Confederate, "Our greatest weapon is our armour. It's designed to take extreme beating from physical and energy attacks. It is sealed, and every suit has an onboard system for life-support. For humans, its thermal seals ensure we are warm in the coldest Confederate frosts or the deepest blacks of space. For Dothvalians, a self-recycling supply of liquid ammonia is constantly circulated through their armour, ensuring that they are comfortable and healthy."
Jennings then moved his wrists forward, flourishing a gauntlet that had a metal tube attached to the end. "These are flamethrowers, which can be activated assuming the commando is using a rocket pack. It uses the same fuel as the rocket pack, the streams are simply reversed. Instead of propelling up, the burning fuel is channelled out onto enemy forces. We designed this specifically for common Invaders that swarm like flies. The helmets house communication links, highly advanced heads up displays, and markers for the rest of the squad." The Lieutenant drew his trisilviate blade from its sheath on his back, and said, "This is a blade of trisilviate, a metal that will kill the Invaders, even High ones if you're a good enough swordsman. An energy cell in the hilt creates potent vibrations, and makes it deadlier than a normal sword."
Jennings then flourished what appeared to be a large assault rifle. He said, "This is a K-10 automatic laser rifle. It's ammunition is special cartridges of harnessed lasers. We call these cartridges photon charges. The standard Confederate laser is white in colour." Drawing a large sidearm, he continued, "CI-56, commando issue. Originally a laser pistol, upgrades since the Intergalactic Wars allowed for the loading of cryonic munitions. In the case of the Confederacy, these are individual rounds of compressed liquid ammonia that burst upon impact, freezing the immediate area of impact. Recent models allow for trisilviate bullets, but we generally prefer hand-to-hand combat."
Then pointing to several small ball-like objects attached to a utility belt, the Lieutenant finished, "Finally, grenades. Can be cryonic, sonic, incendiary, or other. Fairly standard equipment, even between nations. As for how we board, a commando unit will board a transport, launch, and the fleet will make a breach in the enemy shields, even if only for an instant. Once we land, our mission is to kill everything aboard, do as much damage as we can to its crew and systems before leaving. Assuming we haven't lowered shields from the inside, we contact the fleet to resume fire, and the pilots take off again."
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Post by Relikai on Jan 18, 2016 8:25:16 GMT
"Aye, that is interesting indeed." Paladin Sarah Voran nodded as she listened to the Confederate way of combat. She smiled at the praise of the blade, as it truly is a weapon which is difficult to manufacture. Common blades issued to every Relikan were made of the same metal, but the particles along the edge move at the speed of sound. Still effective against most metals, but not as effective against true invaders. Well, the fact that the Jupiterrans have always lived with small quantities of high tech stuff carried over the the Relikans, even if they were splintered centuries ago.
"I have heard of the Trislviate metal, unfortunately we do not have access to it. Instead, we use the blades that I showed, but a lesser quality is used for mass production." Nodding as she took in the loadout of the lieutenant. Grenades, flamethrowers... these were frowned on slightly due to the Relikans often engaging Invaders on Relikan ships. Invader ships were targets for the Star Fleet's particle beams. The need for two different set of equipping for two species might be a strain in the logistics chain but... again, the Confederacy might be a million times more productive than the entire Jupiternii System, with their population billion times more.
Such is the fate of a Fleet which engaged the Invaders for two centuries.
"It is good that we shared, this is usually the first step to something greater. Unfortunately, I need to go back to my work. I have detected another two Invader Outposts during my jump to Karsopolis. They are at the fringes of the Galaxy, best to be dealt with using a single fighter, not worth alerting an entire fleet or populace to their presence. Unfortunately, the Breeze... my fighter that is, can only hold one person, and begging your pardon, but I'm not sure how stealthy your fighters are. It took us fifty years to perfect a stealth system just to counter the Invaders, fifty years of failure and tens of thousands of lives in the process."
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Post by The Governor on Jan 18, 2016 8:58:24 GMT
"No pardon necessary," Jennings said quickly. "I'm sure our own ships don't have the stealth systems necessary to approach the Invaders. We've only fought sporadically them for a single year, and according to these reports, you've been fighting them night and day for centuries. Good luck on the mission." He then added, "And if you're wondering how we can produce two very different sets of armour without straining the logistics, it's that the human model is extraordinarily rare. Hardly any humans are good enough commandos to keep up with the bigger, stronger Dothvalians during a battle. There aren't many of us. Anyway, good luck on the mission, and feel free to call the Confederacy for aid if you require it."
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