NationStates Jolt Archive

Sol.

For most, going back to the cradle of humanity would be an emotional occurrence. The simple fact that your species began its long and arduous journey from that place, that it had nurtured your forefathers so long ago would force tears into your eyes. Sheer happiness. Yes. That is the feeling most would feel. You would know that you have come back home. Finally.

But no, that was not what they felt. Men and women they were. Genetically altered ones. Sol would have meant nothing to them, if their employers had not had certain... Interests in it. Sol was, as they knew, the "home" of the ICC, the only thing that kept the corporations' from destroying each other. It was also the home of several competing hypercorporations. It was Omni Prime that was more of their home. There they had been initially trained. There they had always returned after countless skirmishes with the other hypercorporations. There they had lived, if one could call what they had "life".

They were Unicorns, the elite of the elite. They fought for Omni-Tek. They lived for Omni-Tek. And, when their time would come, they would die for it as well.

Or that was what they had always thought. Things had changed. Omni-Tek of Rubi-Ka was all that remained and they had been sent to search for something that is no longer there. The so called "home base" of Omni-Tek, situated in Sol, orbiting the gas giant, Jupiter. That was their mission. Two ships had been sent to Sol, one of the Unicorn transports - which was as
much a warship as it was a transport craft - and one of the ICC transports. Military and civilian transports were all the Omni-Tek of Rubi-Ka had. Still, the Unicorns would remain loyal. They were as much the remnants of Omni-Tek as the corporate branch on Rubi-Ka was. And, for them, it was Omni-Tek.

***

So, they had reached Sol after a rather tiresome journey in hyperspace. Two pitch black ships, sliding through the void, closing towards the planet of Jupiter. It was obvious that things were as predicted - no transmissions of any known corporate source. No hails from the supposedly nearing Omni-Tek outpost. Nothing. It was as though they were a factor completely unknown in this particular sector of space.

The Unicorn transport's bridge was... Special. It had no monitors in it. No external interfaces were in sight. All the members of the crew simply sat on their rather special chairs in full, massive power armor. As opposed to regular ships, their armors were in direct contact with the ship's computers. Only rarely did they remove their black armors.

The "captain" of this particular Unicorn ship was browsing through the different video and sensor feeds on his HUD. They had found nothing that would indicate the presence of any hypercorporation. There should've been a lot of both. In visual and in the sensor screens. There's always a lot of traffic in Sol. It's still a rather important system for trade. And ICC practically forces everyone to have at least a base there. All they had seen weren't known to them.

Frustrated, he spoke out on the comms. That was how they spoke to each other.

"Is this it?"

"We're still searching, sir, but it looks like it's as we thought. The only things we can find aren't of corporate origin."

The only thing that indicated who responded to his question was an arrow on the side of his HUD that turned into a dot as he turned his head. Right next to it was the name and the position of the speaker. An unspecialized Unicorn. Currently in charge of the sensors. Odd. Maybe they were running low on members.

"Hmph. Keep on looking. The more thorough we are..."

"Sir... We have been picking up unknown signals all the time..."

"Yes, I know. Ignore them. Unless you get something that's specifically directed at us..."

"Will do."

"Good."

We're getting into range... We'll be close enough. Soon.

The wolfpack patrol swung lazily around Jupiter commencing another orbit. The Gravitas Shortfall swept its sensors around the volume. Hundreds of ships; usual. Within a few seconds the AI identified every ship belonging to a recognised authority. The sister ship did the same.
But then they noticed something else. A pair of ships, of unidentified origin. Expanding the sensor sweep, they quickly accessed the sensor logs of every other Ineffable ship in the system, but no ships elsewhere matching the description were identified.
There was something odd.
A few seconds passed while the AIs discussed the matter, which for them equated to a good few hours of lengthy debate.
A transmission was fired off in the direction of the two ships, while the two DSAs shifted course to a slow intercept.

Unidentified vessels, you are approaching a claimed volume. Please identify yourself and your nation of origin.

The captain tapped impatiently on the left armrest with his index finger. They were far off schedule as it were. The interference caused by the multitude of unknown targets wasn't really helping. Omni-Tek was all about efficiency.

"Strange," said someone behind the captain. The data came onto his HUD again. This one was a specialized Unicorn. Currently in charge of external communications.

"What is?"

"We are being hailed. Scanners say... Two ships. Unknown classification."

"Just put them through."

"... You don't need me to do it, sir, but alright."

Old habits die hard. The captain had been in the Omni-Tek Armed Forces for all of his life, but one is not - usually - born into the Unicorns. He wasn't used to this... Different interface.

He listened to the transmission.

"Hmph. Does that mean what I think it does? 'Nations'..."

He felt like rubbing his temples, but he couldn't.

"Oh yes, and I'm issuing an order to stop the ships. After that, I'll reply to them."

Swiftly the two ships came to a complete stop.

This ship is a customized Omni-Tek Unicorn Transport, #371. The
other ship is a customized ICC transport. I'm squad commander Gebsand, also
the captain of this ship. We are on an expedition for Omni-Tek.

Hmm... Maybe I should add it...

We come in peace.

"There. Now we wait."

"Whatever you say, captain," someone mumbled in the background and he heard it. Luckily enough for whoever said it, the HUD didn't react.

"Admiral to the Command Center."

Maria Sanchez swallowed the mouthful of coffee she'd just taken a little too fast and burned herself. She wasted a moment gasping for breath before she regained enough composure to respond.

"Admiral, Aye."

She dabbed her mouth with her napkin and left her lunch half-eaten on the table. Her valet would clean up after her, but she barely gave that any thought before continuing on. There were some perks to being in command.

She reached the Command Center of the T-7 station and approached the Officer on Duty. "What's up, Sally?"

Commander Sally Akins saluted briefly but didn't stand on formality; standing orders from the Admiral. "Ma'am, we've been relayed a message from one of our Io listening posts. There are two unknown ships on approach to Jupiter, and they've been hailed by a TST vessel. It appears to have been a challenge, but we're still decoding the response. The communications protocols do not conform to any known standards; I'd say they're new to the neighbourhood."

Sanchez frowned and pulled up the data on her pad. "Well hell. I'll be damned if I'm going to let those Metus blockheads represent all of us. Pass the word to the League and issue our own hail. Something polite, but cautionary I think."

"Aye-aye, Ma'am."

Unidentified spacecraft, you are approaching contested territory around Jupiter. Please be advised there are a lot of edgy folk in the area. We recommend you maintain a discrete distance until we can establish friendly protocols. This is not a threat, this is an advisory.

We represent the Empire of Treznor, speaking on behalf of the Non-Democratic Alliance. We're pleased to meet you.

His armor was in standby mode, in a kind of "sleep mode", if you will. For the most part, it is just like being in complete darkness, a quite rare luxury. He felt nothing. Or at least he thought he felt nothing. The armor has the option of having the sense of feeling connected to it, and when you just shut it down... You just are, with your thoughts. It is also one of the very few methods to get any sleep with the power armor on. The only part still active in the armor was the comm system.

"Sir..."

He heard the voice and opened his eyes. The armor began to warm up automatically. It took a few seconds for it to return to full functionality. Soon, he could talk again.

"Did they reply?"

"No, but we're being hailed by another unknown source. It seems to be coming from one of the moons of Jupiter. Io, I think."

"Let me hear it."

"..."

He listened to the transmission and thought about his options.

... I'll let the people in the ICC ship handle this...

"Order the people in the ICC ship to reply to this. The first one was way easier. I'm no diplomat."

"Yes, sir."

--

"The ICC ship", which was a much more simplistic as space ships go than the other one, was right beside the Unicorn transport. It was unarmed, and its bridge was full of all sorts of monitors and keyboards, with everyone having a very defined post unlike in the Unicorn ship. Their armor was powered, but it wasn't quite as... Great as the armor the Unicorns wear is. The color of their armor was white, meaning that they were members of Omni-Pol. None of them were wearing their helmets.

"Sir, it's the Unicorns."

"Yeah? What do they want now?"

"They want us to make a reply for the newest transmission."

"Any reason why?"

"No, sir."

"Great."

The captain rolled his eyes.

"Alright. You do it."

"What? You want me...?"

"Yes. I have great confidence in you, officer."

"..."

Let's see now...

She began typing.

Thank you for the heads' up, although it seems that we might have
already drawn some attention of the unwanted kind. We aren't here to
cause any trouble for the local populace, more to... Adjust our star charts.
And if possible, find new business partners.

We are here on the behalf of our employer, Omni-Tek. We are pleased to
meet you, too.

She then pressed the send button, and off it went.

That'll have to do.

"It should be good enough. Confidence, officer!"

"You were looking...?"

"Of course. Did you actually think I'd let you send it unsupervised?"

"No..."

The captain smirked. There was nothing more they could do now.

"Admiral?"

Sanchez nodded and smiled as she read the response. "Good work, Sally. We'll pass it on to the diplomats. Send this to Markhreif arTaelkh on Io with my regards, with a copy to our people. Also alert Squadrone Novaculae at Io. They'll want to provide escort for these visitors, in part to keep them honest and in part to keep 'em out of Metus' grubby hands."

"Aye-aye, Admiral."

"No. You do it. I sleep."

Manuel Kimura listened, but all that followed was... Snoring. Clearly, Ivanova was tired, the constant high- traffic and the constant first contact situations at Jupiter tiring her.

"Well, ummm... Ok."

Still no answer.

Word had come from Jovian Angst's own reconnaissance as well as from the Empire of Treznor, still, information... Well, it was probably there, but Manuel wasn't much more awake than Ivanova. So he sighed and contacted a group of ships near Themisto while firing off a short message to Thebe, for Konania.

A few minutes and a headache from 'communicating' with slightly extroverted spaceship cores later, Manuel sat in a (tiny) shuttle, shuffling a few papers and scanning through data he had uploaded into his 'brain' over the very same few minutes (This explaining a part of the headache).

Another few minutes and a short discussion about payments during a time of civil warfare and a semi- cutoff from home later, he left the shuttle, carefully gliding along the black/ violet hull of the ship, the Mediocre Precision.

The core was already waiting.

"Ok. So... Two normal sized ships, and according to our data already in contact with, ah... At least two other residents?"

"Yes."

"Ok, explains why you're not overly concerned with security. Well, welcome on board of my little ferry of sorts."

Manuel smirked, trying to get a hold, and eventually succeeding with it, 4.2 seconds before acceleration set it, turning the formerly zero- gravity vessel into something one could actually walk in, which was reasonably pleasant. Especially when one is not used to constant spaceflight, and despite living on Themisto... Well, Manuel most certainly wasn't, having stranded there when the cataclysm hit, cutting off all the connections, and effectively ruining his thought-to-be-pleasant vacations. Admittedly, it hadn't been all that bad, given that the sudden lack of personnel resulted in him finding a job pretty much as soon as the initial threats had been overcome... But still.

Again, Manuel shuffled through his papers, checking the (Disorganised but existing) data in his brain.

Not much. Hrm.

He sighed, and eventually, he send out his own message to the approaching vessels.

From: Jovian Angst, Interplanetary Transport Mediocre Precision
To: Unidentified Vessels
Subject: Well, you, I guess

"We noticed that you're 1. not fitting any description of the ships usually seen inside this system, 2. you're apparently contacted by other entities and 3. given your lack of numbers, we suppose that you're kind of friendly.

As such, we, that is, I, would be quite interested in learning more about you, as well as, eventually, welcoming you as a guest in this sphere of... Busy traffic.

Of course, we are, naturally, interested in what exactly your purpose is, what your interests in the Jovian subsystem are, not to mention minor things... Culture et all.

But I guess such things are easier to discuss when having a more direct contact, as such, we, that is, I, would be honoured to be either your guest, or, alternatively, to be your host for the time you're here."

Sincerely,

~ Manuel Kimura

Manuel sighed. He had never been one of the smart kind when it cames to, well, simple communication (Most Angstians weren't, really.), as such, he wasn't sure if he was actually using the right words... Well, as a matter of fact, he was fairly certain that he wasn't using the right words. Alas, he had to do something, and as such, it didn't take longer than a second for him to eventually send the message.

All that was left was hoping for the best.

"What? ... Again?", the captain said, with a slightly whiny tone.

"Yes, sir. The Unicorns are now saying that we're to take over on all transmissions classified as friendly..."

The captain sighed soundly.

"Just perfect. I thought they were supposed to do that stuff."

"They weren't..."

"Bah, I don't care. It falls on you, anyway."

"Oh no, you can't..."

"Yes I can. I'm your superior. While Omni-Tek is a corporation, we are supposed to act like a proper military. Somewhat. Especially when those Unicorns are around. I am the captain of this vessel, and you are my subordinate! I'm ordering you to REPLY!"

"When I signed on..."

The captain let out a short laugh.

"You know, some of the things are lies. And I can cut your salary if you don't do your job."

"... Figures."

"Now now. Just type a proper response. You did it before. Tell them that we'd want to conduct whatever discussions on this ship. In verbose. And be as polite as you can."

"Here goes," she murmured quietly.

These seem to use a bit different...

She again began to type.

From: Modified ICC HS Transport, property of Omni-Tek
To: Jovian Angst, Interplanetary Transport Mediocre Precision
Subject: RE: Well, you, I guess

We agree, and would wish to discuss things aforementioned and other issues
in length in person, and we would like to invite you to this ship for such
discussions. Let us assure you - we are here to find business associates, not
to wage war.

We are on a mission of peace.

She again pressed the send button. She felt relieved.

"What do you think, captain?"

"It was good enough. We'll just have to wait for now."

"Sir? We've got a message. From the Treznorikh elements here at Io."

"I see. Do be a dear and hand it over, Rykaine."

"Sorry, sir." Errekeradh arTaelkh's young secretary blushed prettily, and passed over the printout.

"Hmm. Foreign ships approaching Jupiter ... I swear, we're worse than Earth as an alien magnet! Why didn't the Star Command boys at Kel Meralkharant pick this up?"

"I couldn't say, sir. Do you want me to get the Senekhal on the line?"

"Do, please. We'd best figure out a response."

Quantum-entanglement hardware deep in the bowels of the Bonecave, the capitol of the NDA's Io Protectorate, interfaced with the computers in arTaelkh's office - and many thousands of kilometers away, a matching machine awoke on Kel Meralkharant's Alpha Rock, at the Jupiter/Io L2 point. Soon enough, the blockish face of Senekhal Radukh tsaRega appeared on the screens in Errekeradh's office.

"Radukh."

"Errekeradh. What brings you to call me this late at night? It is night-cycle up here, you know."

"I'm very sorry. The Treznorikh have spotted a foreign craft entering the Jovian system - shall I pass it over?"

"Yes. Za vokhqi, za karkaradtqi!"

"Oh? Here it is, then." A second entanglement box awoke, and sent the data across the gap without a break in the transmission. "May I ask ... why did your own sensors not pick it up?"

Radukh swore further, virulently. "We had a software glitch here on Alpha Rock, and the ones at L4 and L5 were out of the line of sight. We've only just now got them back up ... ah! Now I see them. Those are Meaty ships, aren't they? I see the Angstians have sent a vessel too."

"Meaties and Angstians - those poor, poor people!" Metus was not an alliance renowned for it's tact, and the distributed citizens of Der Angst were, to a man (or woman, or strange tentacled thing) fractious, uncouth, and ill-mannered (but great fun at parties). "We should send them a message, I suppose. To back up the Treznorikh if nothing else."

"Yes. Io will be going out of direct line of sight soon. We'll need to transmit from Alpha."

"Oh - I didn't know that." There was an orrerry of the Jupiter system on Errekeradh's desk, but the intricacies of space travel had always escaped him. "Very well, then. "To the unknown vessels now entering the Jovian system ...""


Message To: Unidentified Vessels, Jovian System
Message Fr: Kel Meralkharant Alpha Rock, Jupiter/Io L2 Point
Message Re: Hail and Welcome!

Unidentified vessels, be welcomed to the Jovian system, on behalf of the Greater Ascendancy of Tsaraine and the Non-Democratic Alliance. We know you've already been contacted by our allies from the Empire of Treznor; Jovian space has rather a lot of competing nations, and everyone will want to speak their bit.

Don't let this put you off! If you can successfully steer through the tangled skeins of Jovian politics, we're sure you'll find the place most rewarding.

Sincerely,

~ Markhreif Errekeradh arTaelkh
Markhreif Tekhat Io (NDA Protectorate)

~ Senekhal Radukh tsaRega
Senekhal Kel Meralkharant
High Admiral, Outer System Fleet


OOC: For some perculiar reason I can't read stuff in code tags, so I'd be most gratified if you'd put your response in quote tags - otherwise I have to click "edit" to see the raw text, which takes time.

"You know, sir..."

"What?"

"These people here... They don't seem to have a standard set for transmissions. They all seem different in some ways."

"And why did you tell me this?"

"Well... It was ICC who kept all those standards, and that means they might not have something like it here."

"Interesting..." he said, sarcastically. "You still have that new transmission to reply to."

"I know..."

"Get to it. I'll dictate. You add some of your own to it, too, if you think you need."

The woman grumbled, nodded and started to wait.

"Alright, let's start."

Message To: Kel Meralkharant Alpha Rock, Jupiter/Io L2 Point
Message Fr: Modified ICC HS Transport, property of Omni-Tek
Message Re: RE: Hail and Welcome!

We thank you for your warm welcome. It is good to see that Sol, the home of all humanity, is still a civilized place. Even if it is somewhat different from what we, shall we say, remembered. But that is a long story. Long and rather boring.

The amount of contacts we have gotten here in such a short time has been, to say the least, overwhelming. But as you said, we also are quite certain our stay here - and in Sol in general - should prove quite rewarding.

-Captain Grosvale of the modified ICC Transport, Omni-Tek liaison for interstellar commerce

And the transmission was sent.

The captain idly scratched his head, and the two were just silent.

(OOC: Please correct me if I understood the word "liaison" incorrectly somehow. If I did, this is what I meant: He's Omni-Tek Rubi-Ka's "man" in this expedition, who can negotiate whatever (trade-related, mostly) treaties - with the consent of Omni-Tek Rubi-Ka's board of directors. Sort of like an ambassador, but since he's not a citizen of any country, but an employee of Omni-Tek... It's late and my brains don't function at normal capacity, so I'm not trusting those treacherous quarter-balls of cells.)

Message To: Modified ICC HS Transport, property of Omni-Tek
Message Fr: The Bonecave, Necron II, NDA Protectorate of Burninatonian Io, Io, Jovian Orbit, via Kel Meralkharant Alpha Rock, Jupiter/Io L2 Point
Message Re: Re: Hail and Welcome!

Kuirau* Captain Grosvale, your story is of course yours to tell or not as you see fit. But from what you said I was struck by an uncanny resemblance to a rather promininent bit of system history ...

Some time ago (precisely how long ago is difficult to ascertain; time is a strange and fluid thing, and does not flow at a steady rate), a nation known as the Federated Segments of Scolopendra sent a colonial mission to Titan, the largest of the moons of Saturn.

Along the way, something happened (nobody is quite sure what), but reality was sundered, and the Scolopendran colonists found themselves in the universe we inhabit, with the Federated Segments on Earth vanished without trace; they went on to colonise Titan as intended, and now refer to this event as "the Break".

I wonder if a similar event may not have occurred here; you may wish to talk to Scolopendran scientists about this, if you get the opportunity.

Sincerely,

~ Markhreif Errekeradh arTaelkh
Markhreif Tekhat Io, NDA Burninatonian Protectorate


OOC: "Liason" seems fine, and accurate for the usage to which you have put it; I generally call mine "Diplomat-Commandants", so it doesn't really matter.

Message To: The Bonecave, Necron II, NDA Protectorate of Burninatonian Io, Io, Jovian Orbit, via Kel Meralkharant Alpha Rock, Jupiter/Io L2 Point
Message Fr: Modified ICC HS Transport, property of Omni-Tek
Message Re: RE: Re: Hail and Welcome!

What you just described does have a certain resemblance with what happened to us. I think I could give a short summary of it, as I understood it. The phenomenon persisted for decades and had the entire planet under its influence, forcing everyone to stay on the planet to stay. We know the almost exact times of its beginning and ending.

It is theorized that the planet changed places with another planet in the process, since it is at the exact same location in space as our planet was in "our" universe. That we ended up in Sol shows that it might be true. At least the part that we did find ourselves just where we had been before in the other universe is true.

But you are right. Talking to these Scolopendrans could prove useful, and give light to things our scientists have not found the answers for. It is somehow less disconcerting to know that we might not be the only ones.

-Captain Grosvale of the modified ICC Transport, Omni-Tek liaison for interstellar commerce

And so, yet another transmission was sent, with the captain dictating it on the most part.

Message To: Modified ICC HS Transport, property of Omni-Tek
Message Fr: The Bonecave, Necron II, NDA Protectorate of Burninatonian Io, Io, Jovian Orbit, via Kel Meralkharant Alpha Rock, Jupiter/Io L2 Point
Message Re: Re: Hail and Welcome!

What you describe is not something I have heard of before, but neither is it outside the realms of the possible - after all, there are many things about the workings of the universe that we do not understand.

For your convenience, I have appended contact information for the Federated Segments to this message; Scolopendra (http://www.nationstates.net/cgi-bin/index.cgi/52528/page=display_nation/nation=scolopendra) is located on Titan (http://www.nationstates.net/cgi-bin/index.cgi/52528/page=display_region/region=titan), and is a founding member of the Triumvirate of Yut (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=278371). I wish you the best of luck in discovering the cause of your problem, and possibly reversing it.

If at some time during your stay in the Jovian system you require a place to discuss matters with the nations here, I am happy to offer the city of Necron II on Io for that purpose.

Sincerely,

~ Markhreif Errekeradh arTaelkh
Markhreif Tekhat Io, NDA Burninatonian Protectorate


OOC: This bit added so it posts ...

"Hummm. Well, sounds nice enough."

"Yes?"

"Not you. I'm talking to myself."

The core looked at Manuel, for a second, and then left for Mediocre Precision's actual core, muttering something about tiny bipedals not understanding the beauty and greatness of a spaceship while casually ignoring his own, rather obvious, bipedal characteristics.

A typical pilot, trapped inside his vessel for way to long, so to speak.

Manuel decided not to care, instead, he pondered the message a little further. It was doubtlessly interesting, the possibility of visiting the new arrivals... Not that he was envious of Akira (Who was still visiting Kaireigh, without much information being relayed back), and hadn't it been for his severe dislike of space travel, he would have been thrilled by this chance.

Alas, he did dislike it, and as such, this whole thing was little more than an annoying and potentially dangerous business trip.

Yet, he didn't really have another option, and with another sigh, the image of a furious Ivanova beating him to a pulp in his mind, he composed the answer.

From: Jovian Angst, Interplanetary Transport Mediocre Precision
To: Modified ICC HS Transport, property of Omni-Tek
Subject: Re: Well, you, I guess

"I am, of course, quite intrigued by your invitation, and should manage to arrive within the hour. I'm certain the the exchange will be quite fascinating for both of us, and given that I don't see any further problems, I shall now organise myself for the visit.

Of course, should there be any special precautions, gestures etc. be necessary, I would appreciate your cooperation with regards to, well, informing me of them, although I believe that your stated intend, such precautions should be superfluous."

Sincerely,

~ Manuel Kimura

The captain smiled widely. A busy, busy day this had proven itself to be. Or night. Or whatever. It didn't really matter. And "busy" is relative, too. But still, busier than your day back on Rubi-Ka usually was. At least for him and the comms' officer. The others seemed rather bored.

And then he heard the reassuring "Ding!" of a transmission coming in. He had put that sound there himself.

But unlike before, this time it came twice.

"Ha! I knew it!"

"You knew what, sir?"

He raised his right hand from the armrest rather slowly. He then raised two fingers.

"Two," he said and put his hand back to where it had been, "two transmissions at the price of one."

"Alright... I'm ready."

"You're catching up!"

Message To: The Bonecave, Necron II, NDA Protectorate of Burninatonian Io, Io, Jovian Orbit, via Kel Meralkharant Alpha Rock, Jupiter/Io L2 Point
Message Fr: Modified ICC HS Transport, property of Omni-Tek
Message Re: RE: Re: Hail and Welcome!

Thank you for kindness. I'm quite sure there will be a time when we will need a place for discussions, so we will keep your offer in mind.

-Captain Grosvale of the modified ICC Transport, Omni-Tek liaison for interstellar commerce

She pressed the send button.

"Next," said the captain with a degree of excitement in his voice.

From: Modified ICC HS Transport, property of Omni-Tek
To: Jovian Angst, Interplanetary Transport Mediocre Precision
Subject: RE: Re: Well, you, I guess

"Very well. We shall begin to prepare for your arrival and inform the other ship that you have permission. There will be at least two people waiting for you at the docking bay that will escort you to the conference room.

Actually, there is one thing you need to know about, something that is more an ancient security precaution than anything else. Transmit the code that is as an attachment in this transmission into this transport when you get close enough (also defined in said attachment), and you will be given access to our docking bay. There should be just enough space for a shuttle or two there. Depends on the size."

~Captain Grosvale of the modified ICC Transport, Omni-Tek liaison for interstellar commerce

"That's it. Well done, officer."

She sighed out of relief as she pressed the send button.

"Is that all, sir?"

"Just as I said. That's it. That was all."

She nodded.

Once more, all they could do was wait.

Petros-I

"Another one?"

"Yes, according to the Angstian stations. Contact is inbound and marked, and of unknown orgin." The officer paused. "Well, we know it is friendly, and the datastream from Themisto is coming in now. There should be more info in a few hours."

Hargraves frowned. His entire crew was already jumpy, concerned about the actions of Metus, and this was the last thing he needed right now. He already had one diplomat dispatched to City Kairegh, and she had not returned yet.

"Thank you. You are dismissed." The Thebe officer saluted sharply and his hologram disappeared.

The message was sent twice: Once in Latin (just to be safe), and again in Common. Having information from Themisto proved helpful, as Hargraves did not have to send a broadband message that could be tracked by all, and now had an ID for the contact.

beamto: Modified ICC HS Transport, property of Omni-Tek

This is the Konanian station Petros-I of the Jovian Orbital Station Network. State Executive Cordell, Jovian Konania and the Konanian Federal Republic send greetings. We have been informed that your intentions are friendly, so we welcome you to Jovian space.

Please be advised that there may be a number of Konanian military vessels in your vicinity. Our fleets are merely scanning your ship and altering their respective courses to allow your passage. You have probably been told that Jovian space is highly contested, so we urge caution during your stay, permenant or otherwise.

When the time comes, we shall wish to discuss trade and diplomatic options with you.

M. Hargraves
Commander, JOSN, Federal Starfleet

Manuel Kimura checked the message, then replied with something one could probably define as a polite and extended, articulate versio of a nod, and went to get his 'equipment', which is to say, not much, apart from means of saving and keeping, as well as using data of various kinds, most of them being a part of of his body, anyway.

A (longer) while later, the Mediocre Precision glided alongside the two new arrivals, and Manuel could leave in his (very) small shuttle, heading for his destination while following the procedure.

Hummm. Was it this code or that one... Wait.. No, that one is the access code to thingy... Yeah. Ok, this one.

Transmission was a matter of moments, and soon enough, his shuttle entered the target vessel, surprisingly small (two, perhaps three of this kind would have fitted in),

Leaving the shuttle proved to be slightly more complex, as Manuel had fallen asleep, for a few moments, but he woke up soon enough (Thanks to the rather rough landing). Wondering, and eventually remembering where he was and what he wanted, he opened and stepped out, almost dropping a few sheets of paper.

Damn... I'm really not in the mood, right now. In front of him, he could see the two people waiting for him.

"Oh, errr... Well, hello, I... Guess. Manuel Kimura, from Jovian Angst. You're...?"

"Sir..."

"Yes, I heard it. Let me see."

The officer turned the monitor for the captain to see. It was several meters away, seeing the small print would have been practically impossible for him without his eye implants.

"Won't you look at that."

She turned the monitor back for herself to see, and read through the transmission again.

"What, sir?"

"They knew who we are. Looks like they are allied to someone, or at least have contacts. Even if they don't openly advertise it."

"Oh, you're right. The beam was directed to us, to this ship in particular. Even if the other one looks more... Commanding."

"Yup. They even sent it in two languages. One looked kind of like Latin. Too bad I don't understand it..."

"That is what the translation program is for."

"Yeah, yeah. The other one was English. ICC standard language."

"Some things don't change?"

"Right. So, let's get to it."

beamto: Petros-I

This is an Omni-Tek ship, a modified ICC transport, #741. We represent the Rubi-Kan branch of the Omni-Tek corporation and we greet you as well. It is always good to know that one is welcome. We thank you for the gesture.

It is a good thing you told us of the intentions of your ships - it was somewhat alarming that unknown ships were scanning us and some of us are somewhat suspicious of such activities. You are quite right, we have been told that Jovian space is contested, as you said. Considering the quite large amount of transmissions we have received up to now, it is easy to concur.

We are ready for discussions when ever you wish. It is part of our mission, after all.

-Captain Grosvale of the modified ICC Transport, Omni-Tek liaison for interstellar commerce

And yet another message was sent out to yet another different faction. Maybe the lack of hypercorporations isn't such a bad thing after all.

The two were in full Omni-Pol armor (http://www.kolumbus.fi/kimmo.erjansola/omnipol.jpg), so not even their faces were really visible. Once the shuttle had docked, the two had begun walking closer to it. They stopped as they were just a few meters away from the shuttle, kind of close to the area they thought it would open to and to where the one inside would most likely come to.

They had been right. A man came out of it, pretty much where they had anticipated. They could see the man wasn't exactly in prime condition, but they didn't really care. As one of them spoke in response, his voice was degraded practically to radio quality, but also somewhat amplified.

"We are employees of the Omni-Tek corporation. Pleased to meet you. Our names are irrelevant. We're here to just show you the way. So, if you would follow us..."

The man pointed towards a door that would lead out of the docking bay with an open hand, almost as though expecting the guest to start walking to it.

(OOC: The suit is black and white. The picture seems to lie a bit.)

[OOC: Fluid time, for obvious reasons- Specifically the sender...]

>>>Transmission to: [Omni-Tek representational vessel] VIA {Trium DataNetwork[s]} <<<
||From: Administration One, Diplomatic Juncture C/o WorldDisc Transmission Redundencies||
||Re: Intent ||



The Serene^Union hereby takes this oppertunity to make it known the Jovian moon of Europa, as it is so colonised by the forces of both the Sketchen Empire and that of the Serene^Union of Kaenei, is not open nor welcoming of unauthorised traffic or exploration attempts outwith clearly applied for and granted procedure. Let it further be known we make no complaint regarding any non-specific activities undertaken by you with the assurance you shall not stray to Europa.

Consequently, we cordially request your compliance in matters of the ice moon, to ensure no missunderstandings and to ensure the continued preservation of our extra-Terra borders.



http://hometown.aol.co.uk/Terrorfex%20Uk/Kristilanna2.jpg

Kristilanna Lgealis
Aengelistorium Dominica, Protectoresse of Kaeneian assets on Europa.
The Most Serene^Union of Kaenei. (http://www.nationstates.net/cgi-bin/index.cgi/page=display_nation/nation=kaenei)

Manuel looked at the two, sweeping over them with the means he had.

Odd. Very odd. Well, at least their style is... Ewww. No sense for fashion. But then, i guess that's what you get for being cut off from sol for so long.

"Irrelevant, huh? Well, I guess that's what you get, lacking a decent job..." O, certainly, Manuel could be polite, but right now, he didn't see the need for it.

Not until he met someone higher up the chain, anyway.

As such, he did merely nod and begun moving towards the door. There was simply nothing else to do, and as such, hesitation, or small talk were pointless.

>>>Transmission to: [Administration One, Diplomatic Juncture C/o WorldDisc Transmission Redundencies] <<<
||From: Customized Omni-Tek Unicorn Transport, #371 ||
||Re: RE: Intent ||



We have no reason to explore or cause traffic to Europa. Rest assured - we have no intentions to even come close to it.



[NO PICTURE]

Peter Gebsand
Captain of the transport, Commander, Unicorn Company.
The Colony of Omni-Tek Rubi-Ka. (http://www.nationstates.net/cgi-bin/index.cgi/page=display_nation/nation=Omni-Tek_Rubi-Ka)

**

Onboard the ICC transport

The two said nothing to the man's utterance. It didn't matter to them if the man they were to escort wasn't exactly friendly, they were still getting paid.

As they walked out of the docking bay - the ship has artificial gravity -, they found themselves in a rather lengthy, straight corridor. Considering the fact that the ship was getting pretty old, it was quite well kept. But also very ordinary. The only really noticeable feature in the whole ship was that it was very clean inside.

They came to a door, one exactly the same looking as the one they had walked through before (if one doesn't count the white light above this one), and the two guards walked in with Manuel.

It was a simple enough, well lit room with no excess decorations. Just a square-shaped table and twelve chairs around it. There was some device on the table. A man in a black business suit was standing on the farther side of the table, smiling politely. Without saying anything, the two guards left the room.

The man pointed at the chairs in front of Manuel and said, "Please, have a seat. We have a lot to discuss."

(OOC: Yes, the ship is boring. It's an old civilian transport with little luxury.)

Well. Not too impressive.

Indeed, for overall standards, the Omni-Tek vessel was rather boring, simple... Yet, amusingly enough, for Angstian standards, it was quite comparable. As such, Manuel didn't exactly note it as a problem, merely as odd, what with being used to Angstian ships having the least comfort, the least shinyness available. A position that was now contested.

He 'tested' around, a little, feeling here and there, calculating various minor things, following the course of circuits in his minds' eye, learning a little more about the ship.

Quite noticeable, of course, given that the right equipment wouldn't have a problem noticing the (infinitesimal small, but still there) currents and magnetic fields extending, oddly extending, but still.

Yet, it wasn't much more than looking with ones eyes, merely a little more in- depth, and more to fight Manuel's tiredness than to actually find something.

And then he arrived. The lights disturbed Manuel a little (Coming from a nation 1/4 underground, and the other 3/4 entirely urbanised, with constant rain and smog, it wasn't exactly surprising for him to be used to less light), but it worked ot, his eyes quickly managing to cope with the brightness.

Nodding, he sat down. "Well, I'm honoured to be here, so, lets begin. A quick overview, perhaps?"

The man sat down as Manuel did, and listened to his few words. Then he spoke.

"Very well. In short, Omni-Tek Rubi-Ka is a corporation in control of a planet. We are seeking new markets to sell our products and various resources we have gotten hold of in. We currently specialize in weaponry and some related products, armors, nanotech, implants and so forth. We also manufacture a great number of other products, such as hovering/flying personal transports, VR, satellites, space ships etcetera."

He took a brief breath.

"There is one thing that always put is above our competition, though. A certain ore that naturally exists only on Rubi-Ka, our planet. As far as we can tell, anyway. It's something we call 'notum'. It's the very reason why we ever got the boon of very varied nano technology. The best part is that practically anyone can use it, from a Solitus to an Atrox."

"Anything else you wish to know about us?"

"Well..." Manuel hesitated, pondering. "This is certainly interesting... For normal economic relations during more normal times than the current ones. Of course, these aren't such times, for us.

"Nonetheless, I guess... Well, given our situation, there is certainly a need for basic... Supplies. Various kinds, civilian, mostly... Ahem."

He wasn't a salesman, that much was certain. Oh, certainly, to gain power in DA, economic relevance was a necessity... But one didn't necessarily need to be able to make money in order to have money.

As was the case with Manuel.

"And, well... I dunno... Our physicians might be interested in this ore... Or perhaps... Well, one would have to see regarding its advantages for your, ah... products, in order to gain a part of the market, but, well... I can't say overly much, regarding this issue.

"Oh, and... Actually, yes. Namely, specific data regarding your, uh... Origin. I'm sure you told us the basics, during the initial communications, but we're kinda interested in a more detailed overview... Physical characteristics if different from baseline humans, social structure-" Well, it is kinda easy to guess *that*, given what I already know. "Government and so on. We like to know as much as possible about our... Partners."

He hesitated. "Nonetheless, as for your specific purpose, here, I would think that you shouldn't have a problem docking, or landing, on one of the larger objects.. Themisto, Thebe, Ganymede and so on, to, well, do your business. Free reign, I guess, apart from the usual security checks everyone goes through."

He listened to Manuel. His sentences were fragmentary, but still on the better side of understandable. Nothing he couldn't handle. Then he stopped talking. The man nodded.

"Good, it is always good to know that people are reasonable. We are prepared for a longer stay in this system, so we might just visit some of those... Larger objects you mentioned. As for the information you ask..."

He bowed his head down and seemed to hold his right ear with his hand.

"Let's see now... Please wait for a second," he said, holding his left index finger up for a moment.

He then mumbled something incoherent for a while. Obviously enough, he was talking to someone. Then he raised his head back up and lowered his hands and put them on the table.

"Alright, where should I begin... We are human and we as such, are originally from this solar system, but I'd be lying if I claimed that we even consider this place the system we come from. Since things seem to have changed, you could say we are from the planet of Rubi-Ka, even if most of us still consider Omni Prime and other corporate controlled systems our homes."

He slid something that looked like a piece of paper from his side to Manuel. On closer inspection, it was really a very thin datapad, quite flexible, too.

"That contains a more detailed history of the human species in our time line. And information on our products as well."

They had made sure it didn't contain anything... Incriminating. They didn't have to know every little detail of the history of the corporations, now did they?

"We are a corporation, as has been mentioned several times. We all are employees of Omni-Tek. Our closest thing to a government is the board of directors, I would think. As for baseline humans... What would you call a 'baseline human'? There are several different human species in existence. Is that somehow different here?"

(OOC: Just ask me on IRC if you want to know what's on the "paper". Not too inclined to type it all out here.)

"I see..." Manuel took the datapad, skimming over it, scanning what he saw, working through the details. "Interesting."

Damn, a bed. What would I give for a bed...

A suppressed yawn later, he continued. "Well... Yes, very nice."

Of course he didn't expect the document to include any darker sides, but upon careful examination, one should be able to get some hints. As such, it was good enough. Besides, there were quite a few other options to gain relevant information. Later.

"Oh, quite the opposite, actually. There is a reasonably large amount of different human species, here. By Baseline Humans, I mean the basic, uh... 'Design' all the others are based on. Of course, given your reaction, I'm under the assumption that you have a rather... Wide variety of... Versions."

He could see that Manuel was quite tired. You don't have to be a psychic to see it, it was all over his being.

"Hmmh. There are four what we would call main species. For us, a 'baseline human' would be Solitus, which is technically a genetically enhanced Homo Sapiens. Just that we aren't exactly compatible with Homo Sapiens, on a genetic level. The other species have been engineered from there, and they look less, shall we say, human than we do. At least if Homo Sapiens is what you consider human."

" First, there are the Opifex. They are more frail than a Homo Sapiens would be, but they excel in covert ops and such things. If it wasn't for their skin color, they'd look practically the same as we do. They're sickly grey. Almost looks like they're dead."

"Second, the 'nanomages'... The only name we have for them. They are the weirdest of the four, if you could say that. And they're bound to Rubi-Ka, since they need the ore I mentioned before in their living environment in huge quantities to even live. But they're really something when it comes to using nanotechnology."

"Third, the Atrox. They're the only species that actually don't have distinctive sexes, and as such, are considered 'unisex'... But then again, they were engineered for physical labor. They are usually gigantic compared to us. They're the kind that you wouldn't want to fight bare handed."

"Does that answer your question?"

"I see... yes, close enough, although 'Baseline Human' would usually be interpreted as Homo Sapiens. But yes, this is kinda what I-" A yawn. "Meant. Of course, it is significantly different from our own society, but then, what isn't?"

He hesitated. "But ok... i think this is good enough. So... Yes, this answers my question. hat remains is, uh... Well, I guess... Happy business at Jupiter? I'm sure you're overall... Wecome. Or did you have any remaining questions?"

"Well, I think we would like to know more about your society and how things have gone here. Knowledge of local power blocks and whatnot. But I can see you are tired..."

He pondered for a while, looking at the ceiling.

"What if your people sent us that information? I think it would be easier for both parties."

"Well... Yes, I see your point... There are various smaller things... Specifically regarding, well, us, in so far as we have had a civil war ravaging our local holdings not so long ago, and as such, things aren't running as smoothly as they could. Oh, and I don't know how pleased you would be dealing with, well, telepaths, as we are... Telepaths.

"As for the details, be it ours or the overall political situation, I should have them somewhere..." Manuel hesitated, for a moment, a short moment. "Ah, there. If you have something compatible to my implants, I could send."

The man smiled slightly.

"Telepaths? Haven't had any problems with them to date, even though there are some here and there. So, you being telepaths doesn't matter to us."

He listened to Manuel again, and replied.

"I wouldn't know. That depends on your implants, which most likely differ from ours anyway... But you could just put it into this..."

He slid another sheet to Manuel. An empty one, this time.

"... If you can. It's compatible with our systems that would be comparable to yours. If it doesn't work, this is going to get a bit harder."

"Well, one can always try." Manuel said, suppressing another yawn. To bad that one could hardly use the drugs over an entire week. At some point, even they failed, and he had reached said point.

Yet, he managed it for a little more. A brief burst of data, then another one. A few random samples.

"Ah, that way... Yes, it should work."

And another brief moment later...

"Done. And, well... Otherwise, I don't see any problems. All that remains is to hope for profitable business, I guess."

I wonder how Marie is... Oh, how I would love cuddling up in her plushyness...

He just quickly glanced at the sheet as Manuel gave it back to him, and placed it on the table in front of him. He was reading it while replying to what he had just said.

"Hmm... Yes. Quite true. Unprofitable business isn't quite what we are looking for..."

What he read was quite odd, to say it mildly. Numerous nonhuman species... Things like that. So many things that had never really happened in where they were from.

But it also meant far larger markets in one place. Trillions of people accounted for.

He raised his eyes from the sheet. He did still remember that the man was tired.

"Oh, yes. I think this concludes our current meeting. I guess you would wish to return to your shuttle and go get some sleep? When you have left, we'll examine our possibilities. I am sure you should hear from us again."

He stood up and reached over the table in an attempt to shake hands with Manuel.

"I guessed so." Manuel answered, slightly amused (And with his eyes half closed). Bowing slightly, then looking a bit irritated before taking the man's hand, shaking it liberally. "Oh, I'm-" A yawn. "Quite well, we could continue. But yes, I guess we conc-" Another yawn. "I see your point. Well, I'm sure we will... Hear from each other, again."

With that, he turned, eventually leaving the room to be accompanied by the two guards from before, again.

The ship was as boring as it had been before. Which was a good thing, given the desires Manuel felt at this moment.

"Sir, the shuttle has left the ship. Other than that, nothing new to report," said someone else on the bridge. It was another one of these... "Officers". This one was all over the sensors, internal as well as external.

"Good," the captain replied, smiling slightly, "tell me if and when the situation outside starts changes somehow. It can't be all stagnant, now can it."

"Will do."

He turned to the comms' "officer".

"No new transmissions?"

"None."

"Alright. Just checking."

Damn it! I hope this isn't a bad sign. We haven't even been able to get conclusive evidence that the base really is completely non-existent, either... It still could be it has been destroyed. We're stuck here at the very least until we find that out beyond a shadow of a doubt.

The two Dominion Lokis waited quietly in the void, their deep crimson and glossy black hulls proudly proclaiming their heritage, despite the solid Scolopendran design. Both the Asmodean and Ishamael of Sqadrone Novaculae that was on rotation near Io, were equipped with their usual compliment of Peregrines and Vipers, respectively. Niether really expected much trouble, but then again, trouble had a way of finding folks in this system for some reason. Calm, yes - but ready.

<<Transmission to ICC HS Transport, property of Omni-Tek>>
Lieutenant Commander Omero Nesti of the Asmodean, to the Omni-Tek craft. The Razors stand ready to escort you, at your liesure. We have been notified that you may be anticipating a meet on Io, or prefer to move forward through Sol. In either case, on behalf of our squadron and the NDA, we are pleased to offer our protection while you remain within the Jovian system.
<< end transmission >>

"Sir."

"Yes?"

"We have another transmission coming in."

"Hmmh. Wait a second."

He was somewhat preoccupied. He was reading the most current update on the search for the Omni-Tek base or its debris. They had checked for anything that could indicate that the base was, or had been there. It had more than enough substances in it that shouldn't be in general use anywhere. If it was there, finding it shouldn't be a problem.

Nothing showed on the scans. Nothing that would indicate that the Omni-Tek base had ever even existed. Either that, or it had been most cleverly removed from Jovian orbit. Or its orbit had decayed, and it had fallen down to the gas giant.

So many questions, so few answers. It seemed that they were coming to the conclusion that they had no idea what had happened to the base.

"Now, show it to me."

He read the transmission. Yet another a bit different format, but nothing that couldn't be handled easily enough.

"OK, let's get to it."

The woman prepared to type once more.

<<Transmission to Asmodean>>
This is the ICC transport of Omni-Tek, and we are pleased to accept your protection. It seems that a part of our assignment here has already been finished and we are ready to move on. We think that we would now, before venturing forth deeper into Sol, want to have this meet on Io.
<< end transmission >>

"A short and polite reply to a short and polite transmission. Can't go wrong with that. Now, send it."

"Already did, sir."

"Oh... Well, now we wait again. I doubt they'd want us to just go to Io. Security risks and such things are to be considered. Following their rules and protocol is prudent."

No one spoke a word after that. No one needed to. He was right, and things had been going well enough to this point. They were way off the optimum, but still much better than they could have been. At least they weren't being fired upon, or worse.

"We're taking them in," Nesti confirmed. "Relay info to the Ishamael, and contact the Bone Cave to let them know their guests are on the way, then shoot off a status update to the Marcus Aurelius. Maintain active scans - just because it's been quiet is no excuse to get sloppy."

"Acting, sir."

Nesti waited for the confirmation, watching the other ships thoughtfully. There had been many 'visitors' to the area during his many rotations in Jovian space, but this group was different. Two transports seeming completely out of place, and from a group he'd never heard of operating out here.

Damn broken reality. How the higher ups keep it straight is beyond me. I still don't understand it.

"Sir? We are cleared to proceed - MA and Necron II, acknowledged and confirmed."

"Right then. Prep coordinates for transfer to the Omni-Tek craft, and get me a channel. Let's see these folks to port."


<<Transmission to ICC HS Transport, property of Omni-Tek>>
Acknowledged, ICC transport. Please adjust your course to the following coordinates. The Markhreif has been notified of your arrival, and no delays are anticipated. Landing protocols to be transmitted via Control once we hit Io airspace. Glad we can be of service.
<< end transmission >>

The two transport ships changed their bearing as instructed and began to move. Of the two, the Unicorn ship was the more refined one, practically radiating the power and authority of the elite company in its stoic glory. The old ICC ship looked almost as though it was an old freighter retooled to be a transport for personnel, which was quite possible. Rubi-Ka was, after all, just a planet on the very borders of space controlled by men.

<<Transmission to Asmodean>>
The coordinates have been received and confirmed. The course has been set and we have resumed movement. Thank you for your help, it is much appreciated.
<< end transmission >>

And thus, the ships slowly and unhurriedly advanced towards the Jovian moon, Io.

OOC: Sorry about the lateness of this post, and the fact that it's made out of 95% recycled text. Hey, recycling is good, right? Right? For more background information about the previous landlords of Burninatonia, go here (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/archive/index.php/t-282022.html).

The city is visible from a distance, a pimple on the side of Io many kilometers across. There are entire volcanoes under the dome, as well as the city itself. Compared to the expanse of the dome, the gate in it's side seems diminutive; it's not, of course. Necron's Gate is quite possibly the biggest airlock on the moon, unless one counts the ship-docks on the far side of the city.

Passing within the Gate, one sees the Great City itself, sprawling across the landscape contained within. Perfectly polygonal buildings - hexagons, octagons, cubes - march in orderly lines along the grid of the city streets, and stretch hundreds of meters into the air in the low gravity of the moon.

Once, the streets were filled with Hordesmen, great scaly brutes engineered by Lord Lucius Lancaster, former overlord of the Burninatonian Hordes. Lancaster was cast down by his lieutenant, Darius Creed, and the Hordes crumbled; the NDA stepped in to fill the gap. Now Tsarainese workers go to and fro, walking or carried in boxy utilitarian buses.

Here and there, the straight grid of the city twists to accomodate the upthrust bulk of a volcano, capped by a boxy structure atop it's peak; these serve to stop the City becoming blackened by sulphurous eruptions, and generate power from the hot core of Io.

At the very center of the City, the Bonecave itself reaches four kilometers into the sky, a great green obelisk, glossy and unmarked. There is only one break in the smooth façade, the gates into the tower. Like everything else about it, they are built on a massive scale, and graven with the flag of the old Imperial Hordes. To either side, the flags of the NDA, the Greater Ascendancy, and the Protectorate hang limp from their poles.

Within, most of the previous owner's decidedly odd decorations have disappeared, and there is now a simple reception area where the great lava-fountain once stood. Built on a human scale, it is a child's block in the entrance-hall of a giant.

"Esari?" the speaker is a young woman wearing a black jumpsuit with the sigil of the Arkhreifiate of the Exterior on her chest, and the complex rank buttons of a junior diplomat. "I am Rykaine tsaReynikh, Operations Commandant to Markhreif arTaelkh. If you'll follow me, please?"

In the time they have administered the Protectorate, the Tsarainese have done themselves the favour of installing lifts in the Bonecave; it's a short trip up in one to the conference room where Errekeradh arTaelkh waits.

The Markhreif is tall, and lean, and although his hair is white, his face could be of any age. He looks painfully out of place among the grandeur of Lancaster's palace.

Rykaine disappears into the background behind him, silent and attentive.

"Welcome to the Bonecave," Errekeradh says, standing and bowing politely as the Omni-Tek representatives enter. "It is always good to speak to new faces from new places, no matter how odd their manner of arrival in Sol.

"Please do have a seat, friends. Now, what can I do for you?"

"Thank you," the man said, as the Markhreif welcomed them, smiling and nodding politely. There were two of them, a man and a woman.

The two were clad in black suits, almost identical, but there still were some minor differences: The male wore a suit that was practically completely black, whilst the female wore one that was quite like it, except her gloves and her boots had silvery markings on them. There was a white Omni-Tek logo on the left side of the chest of both. If one was in the know, he or she would have seen instantly that the man was of the Omni-Admin, whilst the woman was of the InternOps. They weren't extraordinarily tall, nor were they short. The man's hair was brown, the woman's black.

The woman had several sheets of something that looked much like paper in her hands, and she was looking at them rather intently, almost as though her life depended on them. As she sat down, she seemed to start to write on one of them, and didn't seem to be paying much of attention to anything. The man on the other hand was looking at Markhreif. He sat down, and he began to speak.

"I think it is more of a question what we can do to each other. We would want to know what is going on in here. We already know some things, but what we know now can't be everything there is to know of the current situation here. We can't just stumble around in the dark. We don't have that luxury. Our current space capability is quite... Limited... So, we can't risk a war because of territorial or somesuch misunderstandings, especially now. There is no profit in war."

Unless someone else is fighting it, he thought, but his facial expression did not change at all. He was quite serious-looking, if it wasn't for that slight smile on his face, which had been there all the time.

It was obvious for a corporation of the size of Omni-Tek that war is in fact quite the money maker, but only if you're not the one forced into one. Yes. In war, the only true winner is that who supplies the weapons. Unless you have to supply them to yourself...

"Also, one of our objectives is to create a base for our operations here in Sol. If we could build it somewhere around Jupiter, it'd be a good thing, considering that we... Uh, never mind. Sorry, I'm still not quite used to the fact that we aren't where we... Started from. But anyway, if we can't build it around here, I think we'll have to go deeper into the system to look for a spot. As for what it would be mostly used for, I'd say storage."

He took a deep breath, pausing his speech for a second or so.

"We are staunch believers in trade, so we wouldn't ask you to give us anything for no compensation, unless you want to. We are also looking to, well, trade on a more general level. While with the disappearance of most of Omni-Tek we are far less capable at producing the quantities we once did, we still have a planet... And we are quite ready to create whatever is asked of us. We are a corporation, after all, and that is one of our primary functions. If you would care to look at this..."

He glanced at the woman, who quickly removed one of the sheets from her stack and placed in on the table, after which she moved it far enough for the Markhreif to reach it. Then, she returned to her writing.

It was a sheet all right, but not one of the most conventional kind. It was, in fact, a datapad. One that contained short descriptions on all kinds of things: From weapons to vehicles to entertainment systems to nanotechnology to builders.

"That should cover some of the items we can offer. If you are interested, of course. All in all... Whatever you wish to tell us would be greatly appreciated."

(OOC: I'm a little tired, so if some of it seems a bit on the undiplomatic side, please tell me. Being rude isn't my intention.)

"I'll try to summarise the political situation here in Sol as best I can for you, then."

Errekeradh's fingers tapped at the table, and the tabletop lit up to display a stylised map of the Solar System, colourful dots symbolising planets swinging around a bright yellow sun. The Markhreif leaned over to point at it.

"Here we have the Sun, of course," he said. "There's some recent research suggesting that there are plasma entities living in the photosphere, and there's a power-generating community, known as Absolute Light, in low Solar orbit, but politically the Sun contributes little to the system.

"One step out we have Mercury, currently divided between the Order of the Seraphim and The Caloris Basin, the latter being a colony of our allies in The Most Glorious Hack. There's some kind of civil war going on in the Seraphim side, but our intelligence is sketchy (OOC: Meaning I haven't read the thread in question). Mercury is less quiet politically than the Sun, but not much more so.

"Venus is also reasonably quiet - politically it's mostly owned by the Noldorin Empire of Menelmacar, who is in large part responsible for terraforming it, although the Pan-Norm insectoids have a colony on the surface, and a large mothership in orbit.

"And here we have Earth. Earth is ... difficult to speak of with any certainty, as reality is a subjective thing and prone to change. I don't understand the physics behind it, and won't attempt to try. Practically everyone has at least some land on Earth, though, whether it's the entirety of their nation or just an embassy. Likewise, the Moon and Earth orbit are crowded with many different political groupings.

"And Mars. Mars has been, historically, prone to some rather impressive wars and brushfire conflicts, although that's decreasing now as the inhabitants take steps to avoid future conflict. There are several nations based primarily on Mars, although the majority of the states here are semi-independent colonies. While it's undoubtedly a good market, I imagine it would be less good as a base of operations.

"The asteroid belt serves mainly as a resource center for various nations - many people have mines, but I'm not aware of any major political entities based here.

"Jupiter, where we are now. As a whole, the system is somewhat similar to Mars - claimed primarily by foreign powers, and somewhat prone to conflict averted only by the mutual fear of it.

"The Imperium of Melkor Unchained and the Noldorin Empire of Menelmacar have shipyards in orbit, and Tsaraine has a distributed fleet base of six asteroids at the Jupiter/Io Lagrange points.

"Io is a special case - it was originally colonised by the Burninatonian Hordes, who sold various sections of their nation to foreign powers - the posthumans of Burning Mountain, the Imperium of Melkor Unchained, the Noldorin Empire of Menelmacar. Then the Hordes dissolved in civil war, and the nation became a protectorate of the NDA under Tsarainese administration. We hold the balance between the various factions as best we can.

"Personally, I'd advise you to steer clear of Jupiter - some of the powers here can be quite ornery, and are best left unprovoked.

"Saturn is the territory of the Triumvirate of Yut, a large alliance of Solar powers, and is thus some of the best-defended space in the system. You'd have to talk to them about setting up shop there, but my understanding is that they're leery of allowing foreign armed ships into their space.

"At the Sol/Saturn L4 point is Machiavelli Station, recently constructed as a trade hub by the Dominion of Dread Lady Nathicana. Your best bet may be to approach the Dominion about setting up shop there.

"Uranus and Neptune are not big players on the political scene, but it's likely that any place you look at will have somebody's colony on it. Due to their low prominence, I'm afraid I can't really tell you much more than that.

"Pluto and Charon are divided between the Meritocracy of the Snel, the Federal Republic of New York and Jersey, and the dwarves of Northwestern Liang. Aside from the dwarves, both the Federal Republic and the Snel are isolationist cultures, and the New Yorkers in particular are quite willing to back up that isolation with force.

"Outside Pluto is mostly empty space - the Kuiper belt has a few minor stations in it, and there are ships out in the Oort cloud, but as a political center it is, like the Sun, practically voiceless."

Errekeradh paused for breath before continuing.

"As for establishing a base of operations in Sol, I would say that your safest options are probably Machiavelli Station, the Asteroid Belt, or Earth. Of those three Earth is the one with the largest number of potential customers. Setting up operations here on Io would have to be discussed with the NDA Council, and possibly the other inhabitants of Io as well, some of whom are quite outspoken against attempted colonisation here."

He reached to take the datapad, and gave it a quick look over.

"I hope you don't mind if I keep this? I'll need time to judge if any of it could be useful here on Io - due to the economic structure of the Ascendancy, anything for the nation as a whole would have to be approved by the authorities on Earth, and come out of a different budget."

He listened intently to what Errekeradh said, making mental notes as he spoke. He knew that the InternOp would write it all down anyway, so he wouldn't have to remember it all himself, just those parts he considered important. The InternOps were like that. Way too observant, at least to his liking. Luckily, he had been able to make it clear to her to not even think about interrupting him. Even if the InternOps were higher in the foodchain than the Admins, their... Skills weren't especially diplomatic.

So, three feasible locations. Earth... A station close to Saturn... The asteroid belt...

And then the man asked about the datapad.

"No, no, we don't mind, do we?", he said, glancing at the woman, who simply shook her head slightly while not taking her eyes off her "papers" and was still writing something on them.

"We have more than enough of those, anyway. Once we finally got to a paperless society, they made the datapads look like paper. Go figure," he said, smiling for a moment.

An ancient joke. Not even a funny one. Why did I say it, again?

His expression didn't change, though.

Then, he changed his thoughts to more serious ones.

Earth... Would require much money, time and effort and the base would have to be permanent... Same with the asteroid belt... With the asteroid belt there's the question of piracy, as with the station... But if our endeavors in here wouldn't work out for some reason, the station would be cheapest and easiest to abandon... Hmm. It might not be the optimal location, but...

"I think it'd require too much of us for the moment to consider setting up anything here, then. Every moment, every hour, every day we would have to stay here without the ability to actually sell anything would cost us too much for it to be profitable, and the risks seem too high. We'll have to reconsider this later on, when we have at least some kind of stable income in this system."

The woman suddenly raised her eyes from her papers, whispered something to him, and he nodded ever so slightly, quickly glancing at her. The woman returned to her writing as the man continued to speak.

"And if at all possible, we would like a more verbose version of things all about Sol to send back home. We're not asking for a full encyclopedia of Sol or anything, just more details. I hope you understand that most of these names you mentioned are completely alien to us. Actually, if there are some open interplanetary networks we could tap into, that'd be even better, not to mention that it would save a lot of everybody's time."

"I'll see what I can do," Errekeradh said. "As far as "open interplanetary networks" go, I'm afraid ours are not - open, that is. A sometimes regrettable matter of state security, you understand.

"What I can give you, though, is a copy of our information databases, or those parts of it which will be useful to you."

>> Rykaine tsaReynikh: Can you get on that, please? Nothing sensitive or overly political, I think - the facts, as spun down as we can get them.

<< Of course, Markhreif.

The aide slipped off into the shadows to set about doing so.

"Our files do present a Tsarainese perspective on things," the Markhreif continued without missing a beat, "And that means that some areas that would be of use to you - system trade being the primary example - may be less detailed than cultural, historical, or military information. We Tsarainese are mostly self-sufficient.

"For what you want, I can suggest some of our more liberal allies - the Technocratic Ogliarchy of the Most Glorious Hack is probably ideal, followed by the Dominion of Dread Lady Nathicana, the Teutonic Empire of Lavenrunz, and the Kingdom of Britmattia, in no particular order.

"Outside of the Non-Democratic Alliance, you might wish to approach Scolopendra or other nations of the Triumvirate of Yut, most of whom have remarkably uncontrolled presses.

"Those are all I can name off the top of my head, I'm afraid, but I'll have a more comprehensive list assembled for you."

OOC: Sorry about the lateness of this.

Hypercorporations like Omni-Tek are highly undemocratic. That is simply how corporations are built. They have the employers and the employees. There is a very strict and logical hierarchy in a hypercorporation. In a hypercorporation one's future is pretty much safe, since the only way you can get booted out of one is due to your own gross negligence. They are so massive that they can support billions of employees, even during the down times.

Stability is what the corporations represent.

The man thought that it was quite a lucky coincidence that they had found a group of nations that called themselves non-democratic. "Democracy" was somewhat a cuss word on Rubi-Ka nowadays. The yearning for it had been one of the reasons behind the rebellion, behind the fallen Clans. Funny, how the small things in life sometimes turn so massive. How sometimes the need for "freedom" in a galaxy where you cannot be truly free becomes so overwhelming, that you must dissent.

But that was all in the past now. The Clans had fallen. Omni-Tek ruled all once more.

"Sounds good to me. As I said, it's not like we'd expect you to tell everything, anyway. We're not hypocrites. But, with what information you can supply us, I think we will be able to understand the current situation in this system a bit better."

It was obvious enough from what the Markhreif had said that there are free networks in-system, even if not Tsarainese in origin. All they would have to do is tap into them. Even if most of the data in them would be garbage, there are always some important bits and pieces of information in them. Of course, someone else would get to look through them.

"Ah. We would very much like to make contact with these allies of yours. The more contacts we can make the better, really. Even if I wouldn't want to admit it, you could say we're a bit desperate right now when it comes to selling... We have lots of capacity to manufacture, but our own can only buy that much of what we do create."

(OOC: Sorry... My turn to be really slow, I guess.)

OOC: You'd probably have to ask them OOCly to do that, but I can put in a good word for you. I'm not really sure how to reply to this ICly; I think my brain has shut down. Ack.