NationStates Jolt Archive

The long-range scout ship, SRS Grega, slid easily through the infinate blackness of space. All around her silver-painted hull, the stars glittered, many of them now former husks of themselves, the light of their final embers yet to reach this distant sector of the galaxy. And yet it was here, in this distant sector, some ten lightyears beyond the last Snake system, that the ship swept across the void.

Within the bowels of this ship, Captain Marcus Arelius sat in his control chair, looking at a small screen set into the arm-rest, reading the latest reports from the engine room and the astrometrics lab. Nothing too out of the ordinary... a class-B pulsar, several lone asteroids, floating alone and friendless, and what appeared to be a clone of the Mutura Nebula. He smiled, and stretched his long legs out as he stood,"You have the bridge, Lieutenant. I'll be in my ready room."

He walked briskly into his personal retreat, where he could look out the reinforced plexiglass windows at the void. Even when he'd been a small child, Marcus had loved to simply gaze at the stars. When he'd joined the Navy during his National Service, he'd requested to serve in the Long-Range Recon Fleet. During wartime, he would've been on the front-line, analysing information for the commanders... luckily, no such war had afflicted him during his time there. Instead, he had gotten to do what he had always loved; explore the stars. There was, to his mind, still so much out there. No Snake ship had ever passed the galactic boundry, but he had heard of people from other nations who had... maybe, one day, he would get that chance. Still, today did not look like that day.

He sat down behind the desk, and pressed a button on the touchscreen,"Captain's Log, Stardate 78366.14. We've just finished a scan of the nearby pulsar, which appears to be undergoing some minor fluctuations, which we are currently keeping an eye on. Long-range sensors show that the next major event will be the star system some two lightyears distant. Hopefully, it will be more eventful than the rest of this trip."

He had no idea of how far-reaching the reprecussions of this log would echo...

*Five Days Later*
"We're entering the system, Captain."

"Very good. Ops, scan the entire system, tell me the essentials."

There was a brief pause as the viewscreen turned itself on, and the Ops manager started to recite what he was seeing,"It's a tri-star system, sir. Scans show a single Class-M world... no lifeforms detected. No ships either."

"What's our position?"

Another pause,"Twelve Lightyears from the Osean system... roughly another five beyond Omega Outpost. We're not too far from a few borders here, either. It's a real neutral zone. Prime pickings, really."

"How close are we to those borders?"

"No more than one and a half lightyears, sir."

"Alright, prepare a data transmission to NCC, catalogue this system, and tell them we'll be taking the long route home. Should be another few months."

"Roger that."

The tightly-encrypted data package beamed through subspace, using the subspace beacons the Grega had left in it's wake to retransmit the signal, boosting it, until it reached the core of Snake Eaters, the Cobrian System, and more importantly, the Naval Central Command on Snake Eater Prime.

SRS Grega has discovered new star system, deemed Prial, at galactic coordinates 067 mark 357. Tri-star. Single M-class planet. Further details enclosed. Will hold position until further notice. Please be advised current COA includes additional two months of travel.

This message was read by the General Staff, who relayed it up the chain of command, to the very head of the Navy. For the Navy was not only responsible for defending Snake Eaters, it was responsible for her expansion as well. High Admiral George Russo studied all the data that was avaliable from the Grega before he made his decision to consult the Lord-President.

*Joint Military Council Meeting, next day*
"High Admiral Russo, you have the floor."

"Mr. Lord-President, I have here a report from the SRS Grega, a Pathfinder-class vessel currently on a survey mission. They have discovered a new system that I believe will be perfect for the new colony that you are to propose to the Commons later today."

"On what do you base this belief?"

"The system has only one habitable planet, and is close to the borders of other nations. It may help as a trading outpost, and may eventually grow into a larger part of our nation. Not only that, but should relations turn sour, it will serve as a military staging area. However, it is our deepest wish that this need never be the case."

Barbarossa read through the report handed to him, and nodded,"I will propose this site for the new colony in the Commons when I address them this afternoon. This meeting is closed for today."

*That afternoon*
"Ladies and Gentlemen of the Commons, I, Lord-President Barbarossa, am proposing that we take a new step in the alliance with the Immortal Realm of Kaymiril. They have been close friends to us for many years, and yet we have never truly integrated. I propose that a new colony be set up in the Prial system, the information of which you may now access on your terminals. This colony would be jointly administered by both our governments, and would represent a significant step forward in showing the galaxy that cooperation is a much better prospect than open war. I have already drafted a letter to the Valsharess, which I intend to send should this vote be successful...."

From: Lord-President Barbarossa
To: Valsharess Kaymiril VII

Your Highness,

In a recent vote, it was voted that a colony was to be established in the newly-discovered Prial system, of which details are enclosed. I am proposing to you that this colony be established by both our nations, jointly administered. Such a colony would only serve to strengthen the bond our nations currently share.

I hope to hear from you soon on this matter.

Heavily Encrypted: Anna, this is something that is very dear to my heart. I am not going to live forever, unlike my influence... to see our two countries joined in a venture like this would bring warmth to this aging old man. Even now, I am sixty-five, but I have no intention of stepping down just yet.

Valsharess Kaymiril VII, Annastrianna d' Maril, was looking through her correspondence. She had quite a lot...from noble houses within and without her own country.

Dora' had just had her fourth child -- a daughter -- and a number of other, more mundane things had occurred.

It was well into the afternoon before Barbarossa's message came through to the front.

The first step was to have a meeting with the noble houses. Some were for it, some against. All were allowed to speak, and the majority of the nobility were persuaded that at the very least, it wasn't a bad idea.

The only potential problem anyone saw was Streea d' Drasdera, noting the proximity to the Miehmish border.

"Jalil Drasdera," interrupted Teril d' Kestal, head of the second most powerful House in Kaymiril, and uncle and advisor to the Valsharess. "Jalil Drasdera, Kaymiril has a long-standing non-aggression pact with Mini Miehm. Surely they would not think so lowly of us that we'd break it?"

"Whether or not they trust us, will they trust Snake Eaters? It is an unnecessary risk."

Here, the Valsharess stood. "Peace. It is far enough from the Miehmish border that they should feel secure. If there are no further arguments against this matter, I will speak wit hthe Head Mages about it, and get their opinions. Now, on to the next issue..."
____________________________________________________________

The planet would need work...some terraforming, it was decided...but some mages would go along to make that a reality.
_____________________________________________________________

To: Lord-President Jacius Barbarossa of Snake Eaters

Office of the Valsharess

Lord-President,

Kaymiril is quite pleased to announce its intentions to join your people in this new endeavor. I will announce the decision to the public in the morning, it is getting late over here at present.

***Encrypted***

You say you grow old...and it is a mere twenty years since we first became aware of each other...almost twenty since we met. Give us many more decades before you leave us, Jacius...we've only just met you.

With the legislation well underway, colonists were being selected or volunteering to jointly establish the new colony in the Prial system. In orbit around Snake Eater Prime, three Orca-class transports would carry the intial equipment and first batch of one thousand men and women, children as well. More would follow as time wore on, but for now, this number was enough to establish a prescense but small enough to be evacuated rapidly at very short notice.

Not only would these civilians be going, but a detachment of Colonial Marines was also being sent as security, along with two Defiant-class ships to serve the role of system defenders, in conjunction with any Kaymirilian vessels that may be deployed to the region.

Behind the scenes, frantic political negotiation was going on. It was vital that the system be secured soon. Marker-buoys could only be relied on for so long to make people turn away, but these buoys were doubtlessly going to attract attention. And if someone wanted that system badly enough, they'd do everything in their power to get it before those who had deployed the buoys. The proximity of the Miemish and WinTree borders was of sufficient concern to those in military circles that they had called for the garrison to be enlarged, but these requests had been turned down.

Snake Eater-Kaymiril border
The personal vessel of Lord-President Barbarossa approached the isolated asteriod that spun endlessly about itself. He was basically alone in the craft, being the only one that truly knew the coordinates of this secret-meeting place. He had given them to the pilots as they left, and they would have the memory erased when they returned, and the ships computer core would be purged of all records. Also, they had taken a series of seemingly random course corrections in order to throw off pursurers... this meeting place was that important.

The Valsharess had taken a different course.

The meeting location was important, yes...but she had a different option available to her.

T'Puuli, one of the nation's top mages, had gone ahead, not only to prepare the asteroid, but to set a marker for the Valsharess. It marked the exact location that the Valsharess would teleport to.

A few minutes before Barbarossa's shuttle was scheduled to arrive, the Valsharess was there, inside the meeting place.

On the table were two cups of tea...if the meeting lasted long, there was a replicator there -- Snake Eaters technology -- the two could eat while discussing the colony.

But for now, all there was to do was wait...and think.

Within minutes, Lord-President Barbarossa entered the room. Unannounced, and without any grand flourish. It was the normal way he entered, and he never liked to draw attention when he could help it. His crew would wait out in the ship whilst this meeting took place, however long it took.

As he saw the Valsharess sitting at the small table, he smiled a warm, geniune smile. These two rulers had known each other for the better part of two decades now, and over that time their nations had grown leaps and bounds.

"Ol zhah lilbh'iahin ulu kyorl dos 'sohna wun bwael afya."

She smiled, standing up and moving to embrace the aging man whose face she knew so well.

"Jacius...it is a pleasure to see you again. You've been well?"

He returned the embrace. For all his age in human terms, his face was like that of a fifty year old. Advances in medical technology would allow him to live to at least one hundred and twenty years of age, and he showed no signs of flagging just yet. His hair, however, was still going grey, and it was now more than eighty percent of that pale colour. To him, Anna seemed to never age, though he knew she would live a far shorter life than the average Drow, due to her heritage as a Maril.

"It is good to see you too, Anna. As for my health, it is can be expected for a man in his sixth decade of living."

"Still young, even for a human."

She stepped back, letting him take his seat, then took hers.

"Right...so, this new colony...how are we going to set it up? I'm most concerned with the law system. My people will not react well to a system so democratic as yours, but yours will resent the stratification present in the Kaymirilian order and heirarchy."

"You flatter me. I am not so young as you make out."

He sat down, pulled his tea towards him, and listened attentively before he spoke,"I agree... it is a difficult problem to overcome. Could we not come to a compromise? For example, crimes such as petty theft could be dealt with by a single body, but in more extreme cases, the defendant would be tried by members of his own race."

She nodded.

"That would probably be for the best. A human murderer judged on Kaymiril's laws may feel he was dealt with harshly...but the Drow, if sentenced by a human, would eventually get out and seek revenge."

"However, we can hope that such a body is never required. However, things like that will happen. Other aspects also include the defence of the colony, and the make-up of the inhabitants. The first batch, including defenders, numbers some sixteen hundred people, of which one thousand are civilans."

"We are still calculating what percentage of each type we will need to send, but we will try to keep it to around that number."

"So, in all, it should be a 50-50 even mix of Drow and humans... of course, by humans I refer not only to my species, but to the Snakesse as well, for some of them are joining the colony. The land does require terraforming to some degree... I hope I am not too optimistic that the Brown-class will be dealing with that matter?"

Here, the Valsharess laughed.

"Olath'yukin is looking forward to the project with greater enthusiasm than I've seen in her since I was a very small child. She and some of her best students will be going, with some remaining behind after the process is well on its way. The planet will not be without mages."

"I am glad... terraforming with technology is an expensive buisness, no matter how you approach it. We are already assembling the first colonists to leave, as well as a number of military defence ships, but I am unsure as to the time scale of events."

"We should be ready to send in our mages within a week, some military joining them, and then the rest to follow when they send us word that all is well."

"I will wait until you send word that the planet is ready, and then we'll proceed. I believe the colonists will be settling in a single area, yes? What of accomadation... I doubt that Drow are willing to live like humans, and vice-versa."

"We could get a team of architects together to decide on that. Kaymirilian architecture can be altered a bit to seem more inviting to humans without being appalling to Drow, and I am sure that some human amenities will not be protested amongst my people, nor some Drow among yours."

"I suppose you are correct. If it's alright with you, I'll send a list to you through Rhenmet Cougar, who is, by the way, very pleasant to work with. It was a good move to appoint her the ambassador for Kaymiril to Snake Eaters."

He sipped at his tea, and then looked out the observation window a moment,"Isn't it amazing, so many stars, and we have yet to see tham all."

"The Snake Eaters have seen more of them than we have."

She smiled, before getting back to business.

"Rhenmet Cougar was the best person I could have sent for the job. Maybe not classically trained, but definitely the most familiar with your culture. I'll send you information through her, as well, as that would be easiest for both parties, I think."

"I agree. So, that is; composition, building, law... what else is there to discuss?"

"Defense. This system is very near two nations. We've seen a little out of Mini Miehm...a very hostile nation, but there should be relatively few problems, as we've got an alliance with them...and then another nation that I've not heard of at all."

"Mini Miehm will require watching on my part... but I feel it unlikely they will attack due to your prescense, and the strong alliance between us. As for the other nation, they are WinTrees. I am not surprised you've never heard of them, neither had we until some six months ago."

At this point, he found a pad, and passed it over to her,"This contains everything we've been able to dig up on them over those past six months. As you'll see, they are xenocidal in the extreme... they will require serious watching. However, given the fact that two nations of our size and strength will be able to focus out energies on such a small area, my military analysts deem it unlikely that they will risk an unprovoked attack."

He gave her a moment to peruse the data, then continued,"Two combat vessels have been assigned to the system for now, with the capacity to add more as the situation requires. Given our more extensive knowledge of space combat, but your mages mastery of space itself, I think it would be better for all units to work together, with the overall commmanders being one human and one Drow. The vessels being deployed are very effective at their job... and also, there is a new vessel, just due to come into servie, on a shake-down cruise roughly five lightyears from the system. I cannot reveal anything else, other than that it is a new long-range tactical cruiser which would give us significant firepower should fighting begin."

She nodded, looking over the data.

"I agree. We'll be sure to provide people that can switch to your ships, as well as some that can teach your people how to adjust to ours."

"Very good. I was thinking of redeployed the SRS Hydra to the region as well... I believe one of your commanders served onboard for a time as tactical officer... Haldros, I believe his name was. His knowledge of Snake tactics would make him an effective link."

She nodded.

"I can send his ship to the system. I believe his oldest son is spending a brief time learning on Oured, so he'll be able to see him more often."

"That makes it even better."

He looked down, and then up again,"I believe that is pretty much it. With buisness over, two friends can catch up again."

She smiled, a genuine smile, not a diplomatic one.

"Tell me how you've been."

The two could not have been more wrong. They were in grave danger, but not yet, oh certainly not yet. No, they were still too powerful for even the mighty navy and marine corps of Mini Miehm to ensure victory. No, they would watch, and wait, and in time the fools that had so recklessly placed themselves upon the doorstep of Roger MachClintock would realise just how greatly they had erred intheir actions.

It was obvious that they wre planning something, placing themselves so near to his territory, and with the Kaymirilians no less, once thought to be allies. Things would change.

Destruction.

Vengeance.

FIRE AND BLOOD.

He shrugged in a nonchalant manner,"Same as I've always been, Anna. Getting older, ruling my nation like I always have done. It seems I am forever on the campaign to be relected for another term... although that is untrue. Snake Eaters goes up and down with me... what about you?"

"Ruling Kaymiril is the same as ever...although we have expanded out and made new friends. Talraena, my cousin, is now Ambassador to Gronde, and Lord-and-Master Kalgar seems to be one of the better examples of humanity. And as for my children...I could sit here all day and not exhaust the stories."

"Having met Kalgar, I am careful to make the distinction between Space Marine and Human these days. In any case, he seems to be a good man at heart... even if his policies clash quite heavily with my own on many levels. As for your children, I assume they are well?"

"Very much so...I worry for Aris at times...she was never close to her father, but it disturbed her to watch him die when she was so young...but Iral is as happy and energetic as he always was, and Alaunbryn is coming along quite well. I'll watch her for a bit longer, but she might be the next Valsharess, rather than Aris, even though Aris would be almost perfect for it. Aris...reminds me of her grandmother a bit much at times."

"Does that disturb you at all? I know that your husband was plotting against you from the very beginning... but why make Alaunbryn Valsharess rather than Aris. You said yourself that Aris is almost perfectly suited to the role."

"Aris is conservative. Alaunbryn seems to have a more expansive and accepting mind. Besides, we go by ability and propriety in the selection of who will next rule Kaymiril. If it were by the eldest daughter, Dora'nes would be Valsharess, I would have married someone else, and Kaymiril would be waging war against mankind right now, rather than the happy arrangements of things as they are."

"In that case, I am glad that your sister did not become Valsharess. A war with a nation such as yours is not one that I would envy... but then again, you say mankind... a war of such scale might not last long. Still, there is little point in entertaining things which can never be."

She nodded. But still...if Dora' had made her mark, she wouldn't have done it so brashly...one nation at a time would crumble before her...some of the younger d' Drasderas would have helped her perfectly in that way.

"How is the Cougar family, by the way? I hear business out of Rhenmet twice a week, but never anything personal."

"Then you will be pleased to hear that they are expecting their third child. I believe she is some six months pregnant as we speak."

"They must be very happy."

"They deserve it. There cannot be many couples who have gone through as much as they have to maintain a family like that. It has been a long time, twenty years, since they met... it is indeed deserved."

She nodded. "It was fortunate that we could arrange for the family to stay together at all. But they seem to make the best of the opportunities provided for them."

~snip~
OOC: You know, I'd love to know how you slipped past the scout ship, completly ignored the marker beacons, evaded the scan of the planet, and so on and so forth.

~snip~
"That they do. It's been nice to see you again in person Anna, but unfortunatley duty calls, as always. As soon as we're ready, we'll contact you."

OOC: Ooo Sorry, I've remove that. Thought you were still in the planning phase and didn't have anything in the sector yet.

"That they do. It's been nice to see you again in person Anna, but unfortunatley duty calls, as always. As soon as we're ready, we'll contact you."
She nodded. "I should have my terraforming team together in less than seven days, and will send them to the planet as soon as possible. Until then, Jacius, bwael al."

OOC: WinTrees, don't worry. Trust me, you'll know when to start moving in.

"To you as well, Anna."

He stood, embraced her once more, before leaving and returning to his home planet. As soon as he landed, government officals escorted the two pilots away for a 'debriefing'. As he sat in the back of his car, being driven back to the Adminstrium, he looked out the window, and wiped his brow. It was the middle of summer on Snake Eater Prime, and the temperature had soured in recent days, to the highest yet. He also had a sense of foreboding about this new venture... he didn't know quite what was bringing it on. However, he pushed through it... this was a step that would cement his and the Valsharess' reputations as good rulers, commited to peace and stability within their nations. He hoped...

*Five Days Later*
A package arrived in the Kaymirilan embassay, addressed to the Ambassador herself. Once it had undergone all the regular security checks, it was delievered to her desk. Inside, it contained a list of the ships, numbers of people, total cost, and also a list of architects who would help design the colonies structures.

High above the planet, the ships waited impatiently for their cargo of humans and other things. Soon, they would be off, off to colonise another distant star. Only this time, they would not be going alone

Ambassador Cougar looked over everything, before compiling a report and sending it on to the Valsharess.

The Kaymirilian process of selecting colonists was going well...it had been determined how many people of each profession would be required. Mages and soldiers would matc the six hundred non-civilian colonists from Snake Eaters, and then there would be a few members of each Noble House, as well as teachers, architects, farmers, and other craftsmen, and their families.

Captain Haldros had already taken the terraforming team to the planet, and they were working hard on the necessary processes. Hydromancers and Aeromancers, under Uuthli and Aeros, were altering the weather patterns on the planet so that they would be favorable to the colonists. Here, Snake technology proved useful. Instead of taking their time to thoroughly investigate the planet's cycles, they could use Snake weather data and adjust it accordingly.

Meanwhile, Olath'yukin and her team were shaping the land and laying down the proper nutrients for crops to grow.
Even Mith had taken an interest, and was searching for potentially harmful microbes and toxins, that he could create antidotes before the colonists discovered this for themselves.

The Valsharess sent a message on to Ambassador Cougar, and a message was delivered to Lord-President Barbarossa the next morning.

The planet will be ready for colonisation in two periods of seven days.

The SRS Grega had since departed the system, but the SRS Hydra had taken it's place. The Galaxy-class starship was more powerful than the Pathfinder-vessel, and just as capable of providing the Drow on the planet with any and all information they required with regard to weather, after effects of their magick, and so forth. It also gave the senior staff who knew Haldros a chance to see him for the first time in a very long time... since before the civil war, ten years previously. The ship had seen other combat since then, but the spaceframe served it well, as it had for the Federation.

Barbarossa looked over the message, and nodded approvingly. Having sent word to all the major governmental departments, he replied in the affirmative, before having to focus on the upcoming budget report from the Finance Minister. Still, he couldn't wait until the colony could finally be set up.

*Seven Days Later*
The first ship left orbit with it's passengers and cargo, it's massive sublight engines helping it escape the gravity well of the central hub world of the nation. It was closely followed by the first of it's escort vessel, the Defiant-class SRS Fortuna, and then the rest of them followed, with the second military ship bringing up the rear. These two vessels were fast, sharp and deadly... but for now, they stayed in line, making sure they could protect this convoy as it passed through Snake space, just in case. It would take them a week to reach the system, and it seemed as if they were to join up with their Kaymirilan counterparts on the way.

Four Kaymirilian vessels left the planet at almost the same time as the Snake Eaters craft.

Two BattleCraft, two PeaceKeepers, all headed toward the rendevous-point, then on to Prial. All told, there were about a thousand. The rest would come later, after the colony had been started.

When the two fleets converged, the Snake Eaters, although they'd seen the Kaymirilian craft before, were still quite surprised. Still, they remained mostly unphased. Snake Eaters excelled at packing the best things into smaller packages than one might expect. For example. each one of the 500-metre long Orca transports could carry five hundred people, plus all of their equipment, and still accomodate them in moderate comfort. Two of these ships carried such things, whilst the last one was carrying all the building equipment. The Colonial Marines would arrive seperatley, having just finished a training exercise on Yuktobania. The military Orca's could carry two full companies of men, along with their equipment and vehicles, for comfort was not the main issue in the military. Two full companies would be arriving, some six hundred men, and then their ship would remain.

The Fortuna contacted the leading ship of the Kaymirilian fleet,"Kaymirilian ships, this is the Fortuna. Pleased to have you joining us. Line up along side the transports, and we'll rearrange as required."

The now multi-national fleet reassembled into a new formation. Taking the front and rear positions, the two Defiant-class vessels. On the flanks, the Kaymirilian BattleCraft. In the centre, the two PeaceKeepers, for they were unarmed. And, surrounding them in a triangle formation, the three Orca's... it was not the smallest of fleets, but by no means the largest. Also, different command structures meant it was harder to move as well. Still, eventually, they got underway.

The Kaymirilian commanders were cooperative, though, and the convoy was underway quickly, considering.

When the convoy arrived at the planet, the last few touches were being made, but it was ready for the colonists.

The Orca's would have to touch down to unload their cargo, not possessing transporters like the military vessels. The three ships departed from formation, sliding into the atmosphere easily enough. The friction seemed to light fires on their hulls, but the people inside didn't notice, such was the capacity of the ships for heat.

They moved through the purple-hued sky with little noise, the only real thing to tell they were there was the shadows they projected onto the planet. This planet was lucky in that it was far enough away that only two of the suns ever rose at once, and even then, one was much dimmer than the others, so it may as well have been one sun.

The ships touched down with gentle softness on the grassy plains, near the site designated for the first colony. There was hissing as coolant was vented, but it would do no damage to the newly created ecosphere created by the mages. There was also the gentle hum of repulsor-lifts, keeping as much weight as possible off the ground as the first humans disembarked on their new home.

Kaymirilian shuttles started taking down the passengers and cargo down. It was finally beginning...the first Kaymirilian/Snake Eaters joint project...and it was on the grandest scale imaginable...humans and Drow, living together, as neighbors...as brothers, perhaps, as some of the Kaymirilian children sought out new playmates among the Snake Eater children upon touching down.

It wasn't hard, as the Snake children were searching out playmates of their own...

Two Months Later
With most of the structures now up and inhabited by the civilians, and the military barracks now populated by Colonial Marines, who for now patrolled the streets in pairs, armed with only pistols, much like police officers, for which they stood in until actual police could be fully trained.

Evening News
"And the Prial colony seems to be continuing to prosper. Latest reports from this far-flung system indicate that the two cultures have integrated with much greater ease than was previously expected... it may just prove that this experiment could prove to become the norm, one can hope.

Lord President Barbarossa has expressed his great happiness to see that the colony continues to do well, as he had placed great emphasis on such a project for the past two years."

5th Fleet – Somewhere along the Wintrees boarder.
Admiral Hanners Commanding

The Fleet, made up of 10 Vanguards, 23 Ascots and 2 King George’s hung lazily in space, sensors pointing outwards into deep space. The galactic west boarder of Wintrees was a quiet posting to say the least…

2 Raptors, small recce craft/transports, were slowly breaking out of the fleet perimeter, heading for open space.

“HMS Duke of York, This is Raptor 232, I’m starting my FTL run up. Request flight plan clearance. Over,” the pilot, a grizzled veteran of thousands of patrols, calmly checked through the checklist for the FTL engine.

“Raptor 232, this is Duke of York, you are clear for an FTL jump, Out,” came a reply over the radio.

The pilot, yawning, switched the radio over to the squadron channel, “Raptor 444 this is 232… Thumper, its Brick. We’re clear for the FTL jump, how are you getting on with the run up checks? Over.”

The cockpit of Raptor 444 was an entirely different matter. Thumper, the pilot, was frantically checking through the checklist and was momentary startled by the radio coming to life. He took a second to compose himself, “Thumper here… errr… just finishing up now. Over.”

“Quick as you like Thumper, out.”

Brick went back to casually going through the checklist, until he saw the red light against the decelerator manifolds. He tapped the console with his finger, and satisfied with his attempted repair flicked his radio back onto the fleet channel. “Duke of York, this is Raptor 232, I’m aborting my FTL run up, technical problems yardy yar yar… request permission to land, over.”

Thumper twitched his eyebrow trying to get a bit of sweat to drop from above his eye. He failed to notice the other raptor break off and head back towards the fleet until the radio crackled again.

“Thumper, I’m having problems with my FTL drive… listen I don’t want to get the stand by crew out, do you think you and Rabbs can handle this?”

Thumper turned around in his seat and starred in the direction of his Electronic officer, sat in the back of the cabin. Rabbs, was shaking his head back and front with quite a startled look on his face.

“Err,” said Thumper, “Brick this is Thumper, yeah we’ll be fine. Out,” replied Thumper.

“You’ll be fine Thumper, this is your 3rd patrol right?”

“Yeah Brick. Over.”

“Slow and easy, it’s a milk run... I’ll see you when you get back. Out.”

Thumper keyed the controls and shuddered slightly as the FTL drive made an audible wine as it powered up, he hated this part.

Prial System - 5 Hours later.

Raptor 444 flashed back into existence quite a distance away from the planet, it was getting well into the 5th hour on the patrol and they were only 2 more jumps away from a shower and a goods nights rest.

“Scan away Rabbs,” said Thumper, closing his eyes briefly and letting his head droop down to his chest.

“Scanning…” Rabbs tapped on the screen of the massive interface mounted in the back of the raptor. “Thumper… Thumper wake up!”

“What?”

“We’ve got something…” called Rabbs, reaching for his datapad and pen, “My god, this can’t be right, are you sure we’re in TX-3002?”

Thumper checked the read out on his flight display, “Yeah, why?”

“Theres some serious contacts out there… The registry says the planet’s uninhabited.”

“Pirates,” asked Thumper, sitting nearly bolt upright in his chair, “Could be pirates.”

“No… theres some serious readings coming off the planet its self… This isn’t looking good Thumper,” Rabbs punched up a sensor contact to the flight display, “Whats that look like Thumper?”

“My god,” said Thumper, grabbing hold of the flight stick with a bit too much force, causing the raptor to jink a little, “That’s a warship… its gotta be, how many are there.”

“More then enough…”

“Christ, ok we’re getting out of here, get us as much as you can!” yelped Thumper, madly punching commands into the FTL computer.

Before Rabbs could reply, the Raptor’s FTL drive wined into action, jumping the ship far away…

In actual fact, although the SRS Tomasin was a warship, of the Intrepid-class, she was only there for system security, nothing more. In fact, she was the only large Snake vessel in the area, currently conducting surveys of one of the gas planets, further out from the centre of the system. When the WinTrees raptor jumped in system, they didn't react. Such an incident was for the patrol fighters to check. Three SC-65 Cobra's flew out from the hanger bay, where they had been stationed for now, and flew towards the area the raptor had been detected.

They were grey in colour, with their weapons on safe, and flying in a V-formation to meet these newcomers. Although it might have seemed a hostile gesture, they were broadcasting on the international wavebands their message of welcome and peace. Either the newcomers weren't receiving, or they were overreacting. It was true, the Kaymirilian ships were larger than the Snake ships, but they were also quite few.

Still, they approached at half-speed, the pilots enjoying the chance just to fly. Guarding a colony is much more boring than it seems, despite what the reports might say.

"Yellow One, this is Tomasin. What do you see?"

"Wish I could tell you, Captain. Never seen anything like it before."

There was a brief hiss of static on the subspace radio, before Yellow Two cut in,"I've seen that type of ship before. It's a Colonial Raptor, I think. I learned to fly one."

"How? We've never used Colonial ships."

"A Pegasus-type Battlestar was found years back. We salvaged it... it's used for ship-board combat and fighter training mostly. The DRADIS system is from there."

"Hmm... I don't recognise the markings. Should we hail them?"

"See what they do first... this is marked as Snake and Kaymirilian territory, so says the marker buoys..."

They flew onwards, growing slightly apprehensive at the continued silence from the unknown ship. When it turned and jumped away, there was a slight sigh of relief, but also the worrying sense that it had might have been more than it seemed. It had certainly been in the system long enough to pick up large amounts of data, and from the energy it was kicking out, there was no doubt it had some serious sensors in it.

"Yellow One to Tomasin, confirm the unknown craft has left the system."

"Roger that. RTB."

"Yellow One, wilco. Out."

As the three fighter craft returned to their home-ship, Captain Harrell stepped into his ready room, settling at the desk with a cup of freshly replicated coffee before he activated the private comm-channel to his Kaymirilian counterpart. Once the screen opened, he made his greetings,"I assume we saw what we saw? We've backtracked the vessels path, judging from the power of the FTL drive and also how much it was putting out... it would appear that it came from WinTrees, a nation with borders close to this system. Currently, our theories range from a simple survey mission, planned well in advance and not informed of the occupation of the system by us, or it could be an advance guard for a military attack. Your thoughts?"

“Are you sure that’s what you saw Thumper?” Asked Captain Chandler, the Army Intelligence attaché, who was sat behind his desk in the ops room. Why there was an Army officer serving as the chief Intelligence officer for a Naval fleet was anyone’s guess.

“Yes sir,” replied Thumper after briefly reviewing the 2 photos which lay side by side on the desk. The first was a registry image of a Kaymiril battleship, the second was the Raptor’s long range image.

“Right, that’s all. Dismissed,” sighed the Captain, rubbing his eyes.

Operations room – 5th Fleet. Some hours later.

“No sir, we’ve had no contact from the planet since the incident yesterday,” replied Captain Chandler, picking up the remote and moving the powerpresentation slide on.

“We’ve identified several of the ships as Kaymiril, we’ve already got quite a bit of data on this race, its all in your briefing packs,” he said pointing to the pile of folders in the center of the briefing room table. The collected high ranking officers reached out and grabbed a copy each.

“What concerns us however is the second group of ships,” he moved the slide forward again to show a blurred image of a snake eater ship, “The characteristics of the ships are pretty common occurrences in our database and as such we’ve only been able to narrow it down to one of 13 different groups.”

“Can it be refined any further?” asked a General sat drinking a cup of tea, somewhat shaken still from his rude awakening dead in the night.

“Not with the current images, no. However, given time and an EW raptor being deployed to the sector we might be able…”

“We haven’t got time,” interrupted Admiral Hanners, “If this is an hostile force in a staging area they might have already begun to move… we have no idea whether the Raptor was spotted or not.”

“In that case sir, I can offer a 60% possibility that these ships belong to the Kronz, of the Nival Cluster. They use collective beam weapons, which would be a major threat to our fleet.”

Rear Admiral Cen-lo, the second in command, leaned over in his seat towards Hanners. “We can’t afford to engage beam weapons with the fleet so early in the operation… Perhaps a fighter strike?”

Chandler brought up another slide, “Kronz beam generator ships operate in clusters of unmanned smallish sized ships,” he pointed to a image on the slide, showing Snake Eater cargo ships. “We theorize that these are the beam generator ships for the entire fleet, they also seem to be strung out into deep space, perhaps guarding supply routes. An effective strike on these ships should disable the beam capabilities for the entire enemy fleet, without loss of life… Perhaps opening the door for a negotiated withdrawal?”

“Excellent, contact the Fleet planning cell and have them put together an operation, this is the priority for the fleet as of now,” said Admiral Hanners, standing up and heading for the exit.

~snip~
The Kaymirilian Captain, Rindashi harl-Drasdera, nodded at the words of his Snake Eaters counterpart.

Of the three BattleCraft in the area, his was the largest, at one Kilometer long. The other two were a still-formidible 750-meter length.

"We saw them too, Captain, and while we've no true knowledge of their intent, our top Silver Class has described a sense of foreboding. Something will come of this, and it will not be good."

He considered a moment.

"At risk of drawing Miehmish attention, perhaps we should send for more ships. We could not repel a full-blown invasion force, if we were attacked here, and the loss of the colony is unacceptable to the Valsharess."

Captain Harrell nodded briskly,"Agreed. If it was a recon mission for an attack, we can be assured the attack will be as soon as possible, to avoid us mouting a reasonable defence."

He brought up the recent scans of the sector, and smiled,"The Hydra is on exercise nearby with the newest ship in the fleet, the Prometheus. I'll contact Gorbac and get them here as soon as possible. Just between you and me, Captain, the Prometheus is worth at least two ships, maybe even three at a push. With the reinforcements they'd bring, we'll stand at Condition Yellow until further notice."

He then glanced at the manifest for the latest cargo shipments... it looked like a shipment was due any time... some five or six Valkyrie-class, manned by civilan crews but under contract to the government. However, they carried no weapons, and they weren't the fastest in the galaxy,"We've got an incoming shipment... but we can't speed them up any. Hopefully, they'll get here before something happens... if it's going to happen, which I think I speak for both of us in my hope that it doesn't. Harrell out."

He signed off, and immediatley sent the request to Captain Gorbac of the much celebrated SRS Hydra....

*Two hours later, Tomasin briefing room*
"Alright, we'll be standing at Condition Yellow until further notice. All crew-members should report to their stations. The Kaymirilian Silver class have sensed something might be up, and that craft made no attempt to contact us. When the Hydra gets here, they'll launch their fighters as well, bringing it up to some twenty in total. We'll keep an eye out... we're faster than the Kaymirilians, meaning we'll be the first into the battle should one develop. Alright, make sure we're ready, dismissed.

“11th fleet have been dispatched from the northern frontier, 8th Fleet are undergoing an emergency recall, they’ll both be with us within 12 days,” said Admiral Cen-lo, looking at Hanners as they walked briskly down the corridor of the fleets flagship, HMS Duke of York.

“RAF Strike Command have also dispatched several squadrons of cobras to make up the numbers for the operation, as you requested earlier.”

“Good Good,” replied Admiral Hanners.

“Sir,” said Admiral Cen-lo, stopping in his tracks, “Are you sure we want to be doing this? Surely a diplomatic mission would be more prudent…”

“A fleet… a combined fleet of ships are sat just off our boarder. You know as well as I do Neval that if they cross the boarder and scatter they’re penetrate as far as Impal before we can mount an effective defense. Lord Seric crippled the sector fleets when he took off on his grand crusade…”

“Yes sir,” muttered Cen-lo.

“Besides, these generator ships are unmanned and strung out all over the place, its unlikely that they’re be any death in this operation at all… We’ll be gone before they could scramble their fighters. After, we’ll talk about they’re withdrawal from a stronger position.”

Operations Room – Some time later.


“The fleets complement of Cobras will make up the majority of this strike force, fighters from RAF Strike command on Pycon will provide support to the force using their disposable fuel tanks to increase their range.”

“The problem this presents us is a small time frame for the operation. As such, targets will be marked by 10 Raptors from the Duke of York jumping in 2 minutes before the attack and tagging the targets while running silent. The Operations commander, Commander Du’ka will be on one of these ships.”

“If all goes well, the Cobras can jump in at close proximity to the Kronz generator vessels and destroy them with missiles. We’ll target all Kronz vessels more then 150km away from their main fleet. That should give us a window of about 4 minutes of clear skies to destroy the generators and move into the 3rd phase of the plan.”

“Elements of the 5th Fleet will jump in at extreme range of the planet and retrieve the cobras, while deploying our vipers. With the generator ships destroyed, or at least critically weakened, collective beam weapons will no long be a problem for the fleet. This, combined with the position of the fleet will mean we can effectively shut down the enemies supply lines and starve them out if need be.”

“This will open the door for a diplomatic resolution. Questions?” said Commodore Richards, the fighter commander.

“What size is the Cobra force?” asked Admiral Cen-lo.

“The force will consist of 15 squadrons overall, with a further 10 in reserve. The reserve will be jumped in to counter any capitol ship threats… although we expect none.”

“Under what circumstances will the rest of the 5th fleet jump in?” asked Admiral Hanners, flicking through the briefing folder.

“5th’s main body will hold at the boarder zone, if the recovery ships are engaged we will assume that the enemy is committed to a battle and deploy the rest of the fleet.”

“Ok,” muttered Admiral Hanners, “This has got my go ahead, put the wheels in motion… Cen-lo, you’ll take command of the recovery force personally.”

“Yes Sir.”

6 Hours later – HMS Duke Of York

The ships speaker chimed, “Set condition 2 throughout the ship, designated pilots to your ships.”

Conway and Driver jogged down the long corridor towards the flight deck, “This is going to be good,” gleamed Driver, the rookie pilot of the two.

“Don’t get too excited, we’re only popping droids today,” replied Conway.

They got to the flight deck just in time to see the Raptors burning away out of the flight pod through the flex-glass window. “There they go,” called Conway, squinting slightly to try and make out the tail numbers.

“Can you see the Crabfat flyers yet?” asked Driver, pushing Conway out the way to peer through the small window.

“No, I think they’re jumping directly there.”

A large balding man, came barreling down the corridor, “Lets go you two! We’ve got a battle to fight,” he yelled, it was Lieutenant Commander Richards, one of the squadron leaders.

“Sir!” called Conway, following him down the ramp into the flight deck proper.

10 minutes later the navy Cobras were formed up, all the pilots eager to go. The flight computers screamed and clicked as they processed the jump calculations.

“All squadrons report status,” crackled the radio.

“Raptor group, ready,” came the reply from Commander Du’Ka, he was joined by a chorus of replied from the Cobra squadrons.

“Sunray takes command, Duke of York going off net. God Speed pilots,” and the radio went dead.

The clicking of a secure flight net took over, “This is Sunray, Raptors jump on my Mark, Cobras start your count down. In 3, 2, 1… Mark.” Crackled the voice of Du’ka

Space was momentary brightened as the Raptors jumped. The Cobras engines wined and creaked, begging to let go of the energy of a spun up FTL drive. “2 Minutes,” whispered Conway, gripping the cross he had under his flight suit.

On the other side of the jump Raptors bustled with activity as their ECOs tapped away at their sensor suites in complete darkness. Calculations were made and targets painted.

“30 seconds,” came a voice over the Raptor net, “20 seconds.”

“12, 11, 10… Go Active.”

The Raptors all powered up together, aiming 1600 watts of power each towards the presumed Kronz ships. With the amount of power being put out by the Raptors the Cobras would be able to pick up the locations of the Kronz ships long before they even got into the system…. But then again the little bit of space that the Raptors were located in was lit up like a Christmas tree to anyone who was looking.

OOC: That's no attack on a convoy, that's a full blown act of war! You want to sneak in and see what's going, double-check what you know. Not that I'm calling your navy incompetant

IC:
Everything was quiet, but the atmosphere inside the Snake ships was electric. You could have heard a pin drop. The three ships sat at readiness, knowing that they were backed up the three Kaymirilan ships, all of which were larger than they were, but at the expense of speed and acceleration. Shields were ready, phasers were fully charged, and the fighters were deployed... just in case.

They had no idea what was happening out there, beyond what their sensors could discern. The slowly moving cargo convoy was gradually picking it's way across the outskirts of the system, close enough to be found easily. Still, they didn't feel good, not at all.

It was about twenty-three hundred hours that everything went to hell. One moment, space was silent. The next, it was like they were being bombarded with energy. The ships didn't move, for it did not affect them, but they knew something was up. Onboard the Prometheus, the vessel superior in tactical ability and therefore the mini-fleet commander, Captain J'tal looked at his Ops Manager, who looked back at him in equal bewildement,"It's like old-style RADAR... oh holy shit."

"What is it, Lieutenant?"

"The cargo ships, Sir. They're being painted for attack. I don't know where it's coming from, but the energy signatures I am picking up suggest they are the same class as reported by the Tomasin."

"Alright. Contact all ships, and get ready to move."

"Channel open, sir."

"All ships, this is the Prometheus. You're hearing what we're hearing... something looks to be up. All fighters, move to protect the convoy. Weapons safe until further notice."

"Green One here, roger that.... Blue One, roger.... Yellow One, wilco."

In front of them, twenty engines kicked into a high-burn, propelling their ships across the inky void. Soon enough, they were coming up along side the defenceless cargo ships, and deploying in a protective formation. Inside, their pilots sweated... this didn't look, or sound, too good. Their fingers stayed clear of their triggers for now... one wrong move could ignite this situation. The three pulse cannons sat silent, as did the missiles attached... it was nerve-wracking, just waiting for something to happen. They knew it was coming... but when, and where?

Suddenly, one of the pilots saw something, something that didn't fit in with the normal background of space. It was a vessel... just hanging there, but obviously doing something,"Blue Five here, I see something. Looks like the kind of ship that appeared in system earlier."

"Blue Five, this is Hydra, are you sure? We don't see anything."

"Blue One here, that radio noise could be affecting your scans. DRADIS is not doing so good, otherwise we'd have seen them long before now."

"Prometheus here, Blue One, proceed at your own discretion. Green and Yellow flights, hold position."

There was a slight pause as the Flight Leader, with the name 'Archangel' (Snake Eater fighters only called themselves that, never to the command crews),"All Blue, this is Archangel. Queen, take Dingo and Hammer with you, check that ship out. Everyone else, stay put."

"You sure about that, Archangel?"

"As sure as I am that I'm a guy."

"Well..."

"No backchat. Get going."

"And if they open fire?"

"Standard rules of engagement. Shoot back."

The three fighters broke out of formation, and began to move towards the Raptor they saw there. As they approached, Queen opened a communications channel, directed at the unknown ship,"Unknown ship, this is Blue Two of the Snake Eater ship SRS Hydra. This is Snake Eater and Kaymirilian territory, as denoted by the border markers. Please state your intentions."

OOC: Double-check! You've not worked in a G2 cell then? :P Plus, nothing wrong with an incompetent military, it brings some Drama to the proceedings :)

“Snake eater?!” cursed Commander Du’ka, “These aren’t Kronz vessels, what the hells going on.”

“Does it matter?” replied the pilot of the Raptor, “Kronz or Snake eater, they’re a threat.”

“No, no… I don’t like this, these ships should be unmanned,” he starred at the sensor read out, “This is an Intelligence cock up… we’re going to start a dam interstellar war!”

He looked at the ECO, “Cut power to the designators… Transmit the abort codes.”

“But sir!”

“TRANSMIT THE ABORT CODES NOW.” Yelled Du’ka.

The ECO madly tapped away at the controls, just as the Cobras arrived.

“Where’s the designators?” cried Conway into his radio, he was sat in one of the lead Cobras.

“I don’t see them… wait… wait, fighters at point two two!” came a crackle over the radio.

“Break Break, engage targets as they appear!” said another voice on the net, which sounded like the squadron leader.

The screeching of a high powered signal broke onto the Cobra net, “WRAITH WRAITH, abort abort, I say again, WRAITH, WRAITH …. Out.”

“Cancel my last, Pull out, move to baseline alpha,” came a shout from the squadron leader.

“Dam it! This is 4 squadron, I’ve loosed my missiles, I say again, missiles are away… Dam it… err Out,” came a call over the radio.

The cobras broke down into pairs, all unsure what was happening… Then the RAF arrived.

“Choco One, to all callsigns. Designators are down. I’m not getting anything on the command net…” said the lead pilot, a wing commander with a bushy mustache, “Loose your payloads at nearest target and proceed to the recovery point… out.”

About 150 ‘Cap killer’ missiles cut through the vacuum of space towards a number of the cargo ships. Confusion reigned supreme, it turns out the RAF assets were operating on an old frequency. Fighters all broke off and headed towards the recovery point, cries of confusion saturated the net as squadron leaders attempted to give commands, trying to bring some order to the situation.

"Your highness, we have disturbing news. The Snake and Kaymirilian colony, it's under attack."

"Well then. Get me Admiral Greenberg. We need to do some planning..."

*Several Hours Later/SIC*

"What do we do Greenberg? This colony is obviously an aggressive action, and the Kaymirilians have obviously betrayed us. With these other people attacking already, do we attack as well, or is there some reason we shouldn't?"

"We can't beat them yet without overextending oureselves. We need to wait until they're damaged from the fighting, then we attack them. What we should do is get 3rd fleet to go and help them, then we have a large fleet in the system, and we can destroy what they there."

"Good. Use the Monitors. We can't afford to lose. Juggernaut will be there, so don't fail me."

"Are you sure that's wise?"

"Are you questioning me admiral!? Remember that you can be replaced, easily."

"Yes your highness. Juggernaut and the Monitors will be ready."

**At the battle scene**

The Snake Eater vessels may have been closer to the 'front' of the zone, but the Kaymirilian ships were closer to the cargo ships...and while on their own they lacked speed, they did not lack foresight.

By the time the missiles were nearing the cargo ships, the Kaymirilian BattleCraft were covering them.

Most of the missiles were absorbed by the Kaymirilian 'sheilds' -- Silver Class mages creating a nigh-unpenetrable bubble around the ships -- or the hulls, worked to make the ship as difficult as possible to take down. Few external flaws were present to exploit, anyway, as Kaymirilian engineers had taken war into account when designing the vessels. In any event, only minor damage was reported by those that made it through.

Only a few of the weapons could possibly make it through to the convoy, and even as they sped toward their targets, they seemed to disappear...reappearing only moments later beyond the WinTree fleet, not having lost distance or time since their launch...only their location...and now they were headed back at their attackers.

“They’re firing… missiles in the vacuum!” came a cry over the radio.

“Where the hell… Break break, all squadrons break!”

The Cobras engaged their maneuvering thrusters and broke formation momentarily, spitting chaff and flares. There was little point, as soon as the missiles shot past they attempted a lazy turn, before running out of fuel and exploding… Ship killer missiles didn’t have the maneuverability to target fighters.

The Raptor group commander, in light of the enemy ships closing on the position, jumped his Raptors back to the boarder.

The Cobras continued towards the pick up point, timings said the fleet wouldn’t arrive for another 3 minutes. 2 squadrons dropped back on their throttles in a hope to deter any pursuers.

"They look to be retreating."

"Let them go. There's no point continuing the fight right now. In any case, the convoy is safe, thanks to the Kaymirilians. Once more, magick has proven it's worth in space."

"Amen to that."

The fighters stayed put, but their fingers now hovered over the triggers. Not only that, but the SRS Hydra now came up behind them, her phasers fully charged and shields up. They watched, and waited.

OOC: *shudders* bump.

OOC: Sorry about that, I was running a checkpoint/patrol for http://www.events.ex.ac.uk/tentors/ on a big, wet, windy hill for 2 days. Well away from a computer. I’ll post sometime later tonight once I’ve regained the feeling in my feet. :)

Recovery of the fighters was completed at the secondary RV, forcing the cobras to make a mini-jump, well out of range of the planet.

The atmosphere on the Duke of York was radically different from the excitement before the operation. The Intelligence cell had been beasted for the last few hours by an over excited Admiral Cen-lo, while Admiral Hanners was locked away in his office trying to calm down an increasingly distort diplomatic envoy, who had been on the comm-link for the past few hours flapping around, chucking out blame and threats every other minute.

Things were expanding… RPA units where becoming involved in what should have been nothing more of a run of the mill shooing away of a ‘lesser Empire’.

The attack should have been a show of force, cripple the military might of the Kronz ships and then head to the negotiation table. Except the enemy ships weren’t Kronz, and the attack would have sparked off an intergalactic war… and it still could.

The 5th Fleet now sat just inside sensor range of the planet, watching. They awaited the ‘big guns’ which were in transit from Keelth, the RPA ships and their specialist envoys.

With all the enemy out of the system, the convoy was free to deliver it's monthly supplies to the colony. However, things onboard the military ships were entirely different. Although normal status had been resumed, and the fighters were now in their hanger bays, something had changed. The atmosphere was laden with tension, no one quite sure what was about to happen. The three ships were staying close together as their captains spoke about what to do next.

Captain J'tal of the Prometheus looked at his two counterparts, Gorbac of the Hydra and Harrell of the Tomasin,"Alright gentlemen. Now, we don't know if that was a deliberate attempt to destroy the convoy, or a misunderstanding. However, until further notice, we're assuming hostile action. Jack, when are you relieved on station?"

Harrell looked at J'tal,"Six hours. The Freza will be taking our place now."

"Yes, I heard. Carrying some fifty additional fighters... very useful. Akira classes are designed for little but war, much like this ship. Will you be leaving immediatley?"

"As soon as."

"Victal, your ship?"

"Ready, J'tal. We can go into combat as soon as required."

"Good. I'm sending off word to the High Command about this, and also requesting that a Prodigal-class be on the way as soon as possible. That will give us the extra firepower should anything go wrong. Battleships may be slower than our cruisers, but they do pack more firepower. Especially these."

Harrell nodded,"I heard. The Prodigal is developed from Imperium technology, like the Leviathan, right?"

"Pretty much. In any case, we'll talk again before you leave, Jack."

Same Time, WinTree border
"This is dangerous, Captain. Very much so. If we cross the border, it could be classed as an act of war."

"And if we don't cross the border, Commander, we could have a fully-fledged battlefleet descending on the Prial system without any warning. No, the orders from Command were very clear. We go. Helm, bring us about, engage the cloak, and move forward at full impulse until we cross the border, then go to Warp Four."

"Yes sir, coming about."

The Shadow-class infiltrator SRS Foxhound seemed to ripple in space, before vanishing completley. The cloaking device was good, and the ship was fast... these ships had been designed for this sort of duty. Hopefully, nothing would come of this... but it paid to make sure, or so said Command.

"We've crossed the border Captain, going to Warp Four."

The vessel, still cloaked, slipped into the warp and began to probe WinTree's, trying to figure out what the hell was going on. Any faster than Warp Four though, and she would be easily detected from the engine emissions. Better to be slow than to be dead.

OOC: Information on SE FTL technology. Co-axial warp drives to deliver maximum power. However, to maintain certain levels of 'realism', the following rules apply: All Co-Axial warp speeds are double that of standard warp speeds. So, if it takes six hours to reach a destination at Standard Warp 4, it will take three hours to reach the same destination at Co-Axial Warp 4.

Space Station Gramby – Near the Wintrees Boarder.

Commander Winslow rubbed his forehead, trying to make the headache of 100s of requests go away. He was the docking officer for the space station, in charge of… well… docking. This was normally a quiet posting, he was half way through writing his 3rd paper on… well… docking. Commander Winslow knew a lot about docking.

But even this pushed him to his limits.

The 11th Fleet had set a new record, arriving 4 days before they were suppose to, great for the Admirals, bad for him. He had to supply a fleet, who had burnt almost all of their supplies getting here. To top it off 4 FTL drives needed replacing, he needed to book time in the ‘dry’ dock for each of them… If that wasn’t enough he had to move RPA vessels to do so.

And you don’t move RPA vessels if you know whats good for you. Lucky they were heading to the front, and he didn’t even need to talk to them, thank god for small miracles.

The RPA ‘Fleet’ which had pitched up yesterday was no more then 3 ships, big ships granted, but so was most of the Wintrees fleet. 11th Fleet was your standard boarder fleet, just big enough to cause major supply problems. Gramby was not kitted out for this sort of thing… at least not at this short of a notice.

He even heard rumors that the 8th, the mighty 8th , had finally got underway from Planet Tor. He dreaded the day they turned up, that was a core fleet, ‘Seric’s Own’. A Core Fleet would implode the stations resources, the situation was panicked, and even a lowly supply officer knew it.

Gramby itself was a long cylindrical shape measuring some 10km. Impressive size, but misleading, she was an admin and supply centre. Yes she had guns, but she certainly isn’t a Death Star (whatever that is). The mass of ships surrounding her was another matter, they had lots of guns but not much ammunition for them… and Gramby was starting to run low herself.

On the other side of the Control Room, a cluster of officers spoke in hushed tones, starring at a holographic map, displaying the Wintrees western boarder zone.

“I know, I know…” muttered the older looking man, “With 5th Fleet displaced from the boarder… well they can just walk straight in as far as Gramby without even hitting a patrol. We’ve got vipers on short to medium range patrols and a squadron of Cobras beasting their FTLs to try and cover the longer distances… frankly they could hide a fleet in the space we aren’t covering.”

“What about 11th Fleet?”

“They won’t be ready to move into position for another day or two, and we don’t even know where that position is yet. I really am worried about enemy surveillance craft getting a look at everything we’ve got here, hell even a good EW set up could pick up on all this comms-traffic between us and the 11th and blow the whole game.”

Which is exactly what the Foxhound, cloaked and secure, most of her vital systems powered down to minimise her prescense as far as possible. No point letting them know she was here. Right now, her only weapons were a long range EMP mine. It was rarely used, for it knocked out their systems as well. However, they had redundencies, and they had trained with the mine, making sure they could get their systems back first.

At the communications station, the intelligence officer was discretely intercepting any and all radio traffic passing between the ships and the dock, filing it away using the computer. On a number of occasions, he printed certain excerpts out, and handed them to Captain. He read them, and nodded. It was as the High Command had suspected... there was something brewing in WinTrees, and they could only sit back and watch for now. To launch a preemptive strike was not only completley out of line with Snake military tactics, but aside from that, it would not do to misread the situation. Exercises could be one potential reason... although if such a thing were to take place, surely they would have contacted both Kaymiril and Snake Eaters, given the situation in the Prial system.

Still, they sat, and they waited.

The Valshanth was notified of the situation immediately, as was fitting, and in as little time as possible after the attack as possible, a fourth BattleCraft was pulling into the Prial system.

It communicated briefly with the Snake Eater and other Kaymirilian ships in the area, before taking its place.

The RPA vessels appeared at the rear of the 5th Fleet, joining at the end of the formation.

“Ok, broadcast on that frequency,” muttered a system tech on board RPA Sha’la, “Sir.. Sir, we’ve got a link… I think.”

“Very good,” replied the Captain, standing up from his command chair and looking over to the heavy set man stood in the corner of the bridge, “You may retire to my office and take the communication Mr. Welko.

“Thank you Captain,” replied Mr. Welko, the Diplomatic Envoy, who was still red in the face from his conversation with Admiral Hanners.

Several Minutes later:

“To the Snake Eater and Kaymiril Leadership, this is Sebastian Welko of the Diplomatic Service. I wish to open a dialog between us regarding the unprovoked threat to our sovereignty you pose, and the resulting attack… which of course the act of a rogue element was not the result of any order from the Home World. I… hope you understand.”

The RPA vessels appeared at the rear of the 5th Fleet, joining at the end of the formation.

“Ok, broadcast on that frequency,” muttered a system tech on board RPA Sha’la, “Sir.. Sir, we’ve got a link… I think.”

“Very good,” replied the Captain, standing up from his command chair and looking over to the heavy set man stood in the corner of the bridge, “You may retire to my office and take the communication Mr. Welko.

“Thank you Captain,” replied Mr. Welko, the Diplomatic Envoy, who was still red in the face from his conversation with Admiral Hanners.

Several Minutes later:

“To the Snake Eater and Kaymiril Leadership, this is Sebastian Welko of the Diplomatic Service. I wish to open a dialog between us regarding the unprovoked threat to our sovereignty you pose, and the resulting attack… which of course the act of a rogue element was not the result of any order from the Home World. I… hope you understand.”

Barbarossa received the communication in his office, also reading a brief transcript handed to him by the Diplomatic Corps aide who now stood stiffly before the greying leader of the Shadow Republic. He pressed the stop button on the audio player, and laid the transcript down, motioning to the officer to sit down as he pressed another button on his desk,"Ms Neuvelle, send him in."

"Yes, Lord-President."

The Intelligence Service officer who had been sitting outside was shown in the room, and sat down in front of his leader. Barbarossa regarded them both with a cold stare,"Gentlemen, it would appear we have a situation brewing the Prial system. I have received word from Naval High Command with regard to the recent action, and they have assured me that no casualties were sustained, a fact for which I am most grateful. However, since then, we have been watching WinTrees. Agent Jackson, how do you see this?"

David Jackson, the young Intelligence agent, straightened his tie nervously before he spoke,"Well... Mr President, as you have said, we have a problem brewing. As you just heard, WinTrees is claiming that we and Kaymiril are involved in a hostile action by occupying this system. Of course, this cannot be true. There were no warning beacons when we arrived, and the system was unihabited when we arrived. I fail to see how we can take him seriously on that matter..."

Barbarossa nodded, turning now to the Diplomatic Corps,"Well?"

"I agree with Agent Jackson, Mr. President. However, I would suggest that we open a dialogue irregardless, in order to affirm our ownership of the system."

"What of the Kaymirilians?"

"We've yet to hear anything from them, sir."

Barbarossa leaned back in his chair, lacing his fingers together,"Alright gentlemen, you may go."

The two men left before Barbarossa leaned foward to draft the message to send to the Valsharess.

Re: Prial system

Your Highness,

I feel certain you too have heard the broadcast from WinTrees. It is my proposal that we engage in talks with these people, in order to demonstrate that this system is the joint-space of both our nations, and that their claim is lacking in credibility. The last thing we require is a conflict.

On a more bitter note, I do not believe that this attack was conducted by rogue elements, and active intelligence from the frontlines confirms that there is a major military build-up close to the border. For now, I am placing all of the Navy on Condition Yellow, and maintaining my military prescense within the system. Your conduct in this matter is entirely at your discretion.

Lord-President Barbarossa.

The Valsharess's response was immediate and definite.

This attack was no accident, and my advisors fear more of the same later on.

We feel that it will be best to engage in these talks...there is a member of the d' Kestal family on the planet, and he should be more than adequate to deal with the current situation. Meanwhile, my in-system fleet will continue to remain alert. If there is any further need of Kaymirilian support in this sector, most of the fleet is currently home.

Bwael al, Lord-President.

Barbarossa read the message swiftly, and nodded. The d'Kestral's were a good family, and could be trusted. He tapped the board in front of him, bringing up the subspace comm system. Snake Eaters, living in a galaxy full of vessels using different technologies for the same thing, had acquired a rather hybrid technology base. The Imperium of Man, the Tau, the Eldar,the Galactic Empire, Old and New Republic's, the Federation and others from that area, even the Borg in part. It was good to keep an open mind.


He connected with the WinTrees system, on the same frequency that the original transmission had been sent, and cleared his throat before he spoke;

This is Lord-President Barbarossa of the Shadow Republic of Snake Eaters. Having spoken with the Valsharess(SP?) Kaymiril VII, we have decided that we will engage in talks with you. I propose that these take place within the system in question. Our national interests will be represented by a diplomatic attache from Snake Eaters, and a member of the d'Kestral family of Kaymiril. However, I request that the meetings take place onboard one of our vessels, as the recent attack has left us understandably wary of trusting any vessel from your nation.

Sebastian Welko wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead, he has just polished off his 3rd glass of whisky and was impatiently starring at the comm system.

Then the message came through.

“Err, Mr Welko, we’ve got a message through, patching it through to you now,” crackled a voice.

Sebastian sat and listened to the reply, then he listened again, and again. Just how he was taught to. Only when he had analyzed every noun verb and adjective in the message did he start to compose the reply.

Thoroughness was very important to Sebastian.

-- Message --
To Lord-President Barbarossa of the Shadow Republic of Snake Eaters, the Diplomatic Service humbly accepts your request. I shall arrive… with a small security detail at my soonest possible convenience.
-- Message End –

After forwarding it to the ships signals department for transmission he headed off to round up 4 of the most savage blokes he could find, he had a funny feeling that he’d need some help intimidating his opposite number…


Meanwhile…

An office in Singsbury Barracks, on Sando Prime –

“An FTL jump direct into the atmosphere would be the best insertion method, followed by a EHALO jump. To any ground sensors it should look like a recce flight. We could get a team in that way, in relative safety,” Said Major Daws, leaning back and resting his boots on his desk.

“Do we know much about the situation on the planet?” replied the General, who was slightly put off by the lack of respect shown by a mere Major… But this man was so far out of his Chain of Command it was debatable whether they were in the same army.

“Tight security I would imagine, that said we could probably get some of the lads briefed up on native customs and the like… It’ll be a job for the 10th though.”

“10th Special Ops?”

“That’s right, they’ve done this before, a 6 man team can get into the settlements and start marking up targets if things go bad at the negotiation table.”

“If we even get that far.”

“Of course.”

“Realistically how far can we push this?” asked the General.

“With Raptors from the fleet as transports, we’d set off some serious alarm bells with anything over 2 in my opinion... If we’re going for the FTL insertion approach?”

“We are.”

“Then I’d recommend sending for No. 219 squadron out of Singsbury Barracks, they’ve got the Mk. 4s with the stealth coating.”

“Would that work?”

“Intelligence suggests that most of their ships are in high orbit. If we come out of FTL in the upper atmosphere we should be well out of range of any visuals, and we all know how EHALO works. They wouldn’t even know we were there,” the Major sat up and made a ‘arch of power’ with his hands, looking directly at the General.

“So we could put in as many as we want?”

“Within reason, a large occurrence of FTL exits are going to light up a sensor package regardless of the stealth properties of the ships. We can trickle in units over time however. I’d suggest that we go for about 10, 6 man teams. They can mark landing sites, bombing targets and start compromising their communications network.”

“Ok, you have my blessing, when will we have a time table?”

“The assets will be in place within… 3 days.”

“Oh… Very good, carry on,” said the General standing up and making for the exit.

“Oh General,” said Major Daws, “Thank you General, for the opportunity.”

"Humph!" grunted the General, "Just make sure you don't turn this into a another 'Hanners' special..."

The Spooks where going to Prial …

Barbarossa recieved the reply, and waited a moment before nodding. He rubbed his chin slightly, and sighed, before pressing the intercom button,"Ms. Gali, send my visitor in."

"Yes, sir."

Outside, the casually dressed man showed no signs of being concerned. In fact, you could walk past him in the street, and not notice him. The only thing that made him stand out was the metallic eagle that was perched on his shoulder, seemingly preening itself. The secretary looked at him with slight disdain,"The Lord-President will see you now."

The man looked up from whatever it was he'd been doing, and nodded, before he closed the door behind. Susan Gali watched after him, and let out a slight snort of dislike. The man just seemed so wrong to be in this sort of situation. His attitude, his stance, all of it just seemed wrong. These thoughts occupied her thoughts for all of five seconds, and then she went back to her work.

Inside the presidential office, the man sat down before his leader,"Cut to the chase, Jacius, I do have a new-born baby to help look after."

The older man laughed,"Blunt as always."

"She's worrying us. Not made a sound since she was born."

"How long ago?"

"About a week. The doctor's say she's healthy, and I spoke to some people, saying that it's not a surprise, given her genes... but still, it's worrying."

"I understand. Now, let's make this brief. Listen to this:"

-- Message --
To Lord-President Barbarossa of the Shadow Republic of Snake Eaters, the Diplomatic Service humbly accepts your request. I shall arrive… with a small security detail at my soonest possible convenience.
-- Message End –

"What do you think?"

"He doesn't trust us, which to be fair, isn't surprising. What I don't like is the pause. Sounds like he's trying to buy some time."

"You think so?"

"Almost certain. Normally, it's never noticable... either that, or he's nervous. What is the situation in the system?"

"Currently, six military vessels, three from each of us. And three companies of Green Jackets have been assigned."

"Light Infantry... seems fair. Training?"

"That's what they are there for, yes. The terrain is perfect for parachute training, and also long distance marches."

"They love those marches. But they can help defend?"

"That's their second function. They are currently serving as police until we can get a force set up. We're trying not to industrialise too much. After all, the planet is ruled jointly, and the Kaymirilians must have their say."

The other man paused, and scrutinised the details being presented to him. He seemed to be deep in thought for a few moments, and then smiled,"Hmm... seems easy enough to get into."

"Oh, it would be for you.... oh."

"Exactly. Are there any Air Force units on the planet?"

"None. The Freza is in orbit though, carrying seventy five of the Fleet Air Arm."

"Should be enough. For now, I'd recommend increasing fighter patrols in the atmosphere, and I'll send a team down."

"Who you got in mind?"

"Echo Team is top of the Counter-Terror roster right now, I'll send them. Now, if I can go?"

"Go, and give my best wishes to Rhenna."

"Oh, I will."

With that, the blond man stood and left. Had anyone been listening, they'd have notice something. His name had never been mentioned, not once. And he'd addressed the Lord-President by his first name... not many ever did that.

Prial System
To: All SEN ships
From: High Command

All ships ordered to maintain Condition Yellow. Additional patrols to be conducted by CAP in atmosphere. COmmand decisions left to the Prometheus until arrive of Pride's Purge. ETA of ship unknown.

Sebastian Welko’s Raptor flashed into existence about 100km away from the Snake Eaters fleet.

“Hello Snake Eater fleet, This is Envoy One, request landing clearance. Over.”

The back of the raptor housed Sebastian as well as 4 bodyguards, all in dress uniform and hiding SMGs under their amply cut tunics… you know… just in case.

Sebastian was nervously switching his datapad on and off, looking at the huge battleship in front of them.

Meanwhile, some distance away….

“5 minutes!” came a call from the raptor cockpit, “5 minutes!” replied the 6 men sat in the back of the Raptor, cocking their weapons at the same time.

“Last run through,” called the leader, a Sergeant, who was sat near the front of the cabin, “We’re the first team in, our objectives are to mark the drop zones for the rest of the teams and start trying to break into the enemy’s comms.”

“3 minutes!” came another call from the cockpit, “3minutes!” replied the 6 men again.

“Don’t make contact with the natives until we’ve completed this task… but if you have to, draw them away from the DZs!” shouted the Sergeant over the noise of the engines, “Don’t let the buggers take you alive… this is a deniable excursion, so there ain’t no rescue party.”

“2 minutes!” yelled the pilot.

“Remember, the whole operation counts on us! Fix your masks and run the O2 lines.”

“1 minute!” screamed the pilot.

“GOD BE WITH YOU!”

The Raptor flashed away as its FTL engine released its energy, they appeared seconds later in the upper atmosphere of the planet. Its black coating blending in with deep space, no light escaping the cockpit.

“GO!” yelled the Sergeant as he popped the door, sucking the air out of the cabin.

The team was out of the Raptor within about 4 seconds, the last man literally having the floor taken away from him as the Raptor jumped away again.

The 6 men fell to earth, bits off their heat-resistant suits peeling away as the temperature rose. The ground getting closer and closer all the time, just as they past the clouds they popped they’re first parachutes, slowing their decent considerably. This lasted for about 5 seconds before they were cut loose.

The 2nd parachute was popped dangerously close to the ground, they ‘floated’ for about 10 seconds, crashing into the trees.

10 minutes later, they had cut each other loose and where heading for their first objective, dragging the beacons with them.

It had been decided between Snake Eaters and Kaymiril that the talks would be held onboard a Kaymirilian vessel. They were larger, more imposing. It normally helped. Normally

-------------------------------------------------

In the atmosphere, the four fighter jets soared over on a training flight. Three Cobra-class fighters, along with a single X-Wing fighter, painted in grey with the red and blue stripes of the 181st Fleet Air Squadron, known in the Navy as the 'Hellcats'. These four pilots were from that fourty plane strong squadron, assigned to the SRS Freza now sitting in orbit above the planet.

The Cobra-class was the standard fighter jet of both the Air Force and the Fleet Air Arm. However, it was not uncommon to see squadron leaders flying different craft in both services, be they slightly older or from a completley different background. It was just the way they worked.

These four craft moved through the atmosphere with practiced ease, just conducting a routine patrol, and using the time for training missions. In the cockpit of the X-wing, Lieutenant Commander Thomas Fisher looked around, and saw something on his consoles that didn't fit,"Hellcat Two, did you see a blip just now?"

"Hellcat Two, roger that. Could just be a sensor ghost."

"No, I saw it too. Anyone got a visual?"

There was no response to this, but Fisher had a gut feeling something was up. He led his flight over the area the blip had been, and rolled to take a look at it. Nothing. He frowned... something was out of place,"Control, this is Hellcat One."

"Control here."

"Yeah, we've registered a blip. Not sure what it is, but it could be a possible enemy infiltration."

"We've detected no ships in the atmosphere."

"Ionisation effect, maybe?"

"Could be. Conduct your patrol as normal, and then return to base. We'll request the Army check it out."

"Hellcat One, out."

To: Envoy One

This is L' Uuta'li. Your clearance has been granted, you may dock at your leisure.

Kaymirilian Envoy Tarin d' Kestal stood in the meeting room, awaiting both the Snake and WinTree representatives.

He was not d' Kestal by blood...as was easily seen. While he had the black skin and white hair of the Drow, scales ran from his temples to his ankles, and large reptilian wings were propped against the floor, as a tail rested next to the nearer one. His eyes were green.

He had been a son of Tellryon, and had not been Called before the ultimate death of this creature.

He'd been a d' Kestal by adoption since he was five, and remembered no other life, no other training. Even they saw him as one of them, and he would represent them and their Valsharess here.
_____________________________________________________________

The Aeromancers held a meeting...they'd all felt the entry of something unauthorized. They decided that they would converse with Snake Eater patrols to determine the potential cause, and if the mystery wasn't solved, the Geomancers could take care of searching out whatever it was.

The Snake Eater envoy was already on his way, in his shuttle. It wasn't far between ships, and he was soon docking with the Kaymirilians. He had been informed of his opposites unique nature, but still, it was something that caused his eyes to widen up emerging from the belly of the shuttle. However, he fought it back, and bowed slightly,"Gre'as'anto lu' verve dro, Tarin d' Kestal. I look forward to resolving this situation as soon as possible. And, with a minimum of bloodshed."

"If it is at all possible."

Tarin stepped forward, extending his hand to shake that of the Snake Eater diplomat's.

"It is a pleasure to meet you, Greg Chambers."

Chambers returned the handshake, and then nodded,"Definatley. I have just been informed that we may have other, uninvited guests on the planet. Personally, I'm not going to mention this... it may be nothing, and it may also be that they are sending in troops, and think they have us figured."

"I've heard, as well. Our Aeromancers are looking to see if they cannot find what has happened."

"We shall see, won't we? In any case, any idea on how long before our friends arrive?"

"As soon as they follow instructions."

Envoy One made a near perfect final burn as it approached the docking ring. After attainting a soft seal the docking hatch opened.

The first out of the Raptor were two Bodyguards, still in dress uniform. They quickly visually checked the area then stepped aside. Sebastian Welko exited after, followed by the other two bodyguards. They where moved directly to the meeting room.

“Good afternoon fellow Envoys, I am Sebastian Welko of the Diplomatic Service,” he pointed to the bodyguards waiting outside the door, “These men are here for my protection only. Shall we get down to business?”

“First I would like to extent my apologies for the probing attack carried out on your ships. Firstly it was an order that had nothing to do with the Home world, it was a rogue Admiral. Secondly, he was under the impression that the ships he was targeting were unmanned and only serve as a warning to you. Now, shall we talk about your withdrawal from this system?”


--------------

“Sarn’t, Sarn’t, over here Sergeant,” called one of the soldiers, he was concealed in a large bush.

The Sergeant clawed up to him, making him rifle ready when he had moved into position. “What is Wavell?”

“Theres a track down there, I swear I just saw something move along it…”

“Just a hunch?” asked the Sergeant, looking through his telescopic sight in an attempt to see the track more clearly.

“Yeah.”

“Ok, go up to the EW point and grab Jennings, go check the track.”

Apart from a few scares like this, the mission for the 1st team was going well. They had the beacons placed and well camouflaged at the 4 DZ they were to mark and now they were happily held up in the hills near one of the settlements. Their Signaler, James, was busying himself trying to hack into the enemy communications system. The rest of the team kept an eagle eye out for enemy patrols.

"Have a seat, Envoy Welko. I am Envoy d' Kestal, and my Snake Eaters counterpart is Envoy Chambers."

The Kaymirilian Dragon hybrid guestured to a chair for the WinTrees diplomat before unfolding his wings and taking a seat himself. Chairs in general forced him to do this, but with his family, he could pull his wings nearly back in.

Now, however, he chose to prop them to place one behind Chambers' seat, with the arcs of both wings creating a huge halo around him.

Welko had been placed on the other side of the table, in a slightly lower chair than d' Kestal and Chambers were in.

Tarin waited until Welko was seated until he began.

"You must have some sort of misunderstanding, Envoy. Prial is joint Kaymirilian and Snake Eater space now, and we've no intention of just abandoning it because a 'rogue' admiral of yours sent an attack on a convoy, or because you come, representing your nation, asking us to leave. It was entirely unclaimed when we found it, and far enough away from your nation's borders that we serve as a potential threat to you only so long as you are serving as a threat to us. If there is any nation that I believed we would be having this conversation with, it is Mini Miehm, but it seems they have decided to trust us."

“I completely agree d’Kestal, but it doesn’t change the fact that you are currently posing a threat to us, irrespective of our actions, with your sizable Fleet. That is what prompted our attack in the first place. If you really are here with no intention to expand, why do you need so many ships?” he cut off any answers with a somewhat careless wave of the hand.

“Regardless of that fact, it is tradition for neighbors to announce themselves when they move in next door,” he threw a series of recce photos onto the table, “We found YOU! Is that the action of a friendly Neighbor? For all intensive purposes you were secretly building up a military force on the edge of our boarder. What do you expect us to do? Stand and wave while you prepared for war?”

He stood from the table, “If you are indeed not a threat, I purpose that you withdraw the vast majority of your military units in the area, show us you are not our enemy and we will not treat you as such!”

"Keep your seat, Envoy."

D' Kestal's slit-pupil eyes narrowed, and an aide rushed into the room, speaking to him briefly.

He wrote an order, and the aide left.

"Allow me to show you something, Envoy Welko."

D' Kestal stood, allowing his wings to stretch to their utmost span before he folded them back in and turned toward a screen. A map showing boundaries of some four nations appeared.

"For your convenience, your nation is yellow, Snake Eaters green, Kaymiril blue, and Mini Miehm orange. You share a distant border with Snake Eaters. Kaymiril shares a slightly nearer one with Mini Miehm, and Snake Eaters and Kaymiril's boundaries all but over lap. Prial is here."

A little gold blip lit up on the map, nestled inside the No Man's Land just between Kaymiril and Snake Eaters.

"Your nation's furthest boundaries come no more than twenty light years to our colony, well further than your closest Snake border. Likewise, there is a Miehmish colony only about ten or so lightyears away. While Kaymiril has a non-aggression pact with Mini Miehm, Snake Eaters does not, and it is a territorial and aggressive enough nation to warrant some precaution on our parts. Your cause for concern is unfounded, and I would suggest not attempting to treat Envoy Chambers and myself as though we were your inferiors."

The display still hovered, but Tarin re-took his seat.

Sebastian Welko sniffed slightly, still standing and looking directly at d’Kestal, “Inferiors indeed,” he gave a fleeting glance at the envoy’s wings.

“Snake eaters shares a boarder with us, granted. But it is known as the barren boarder by the Assembly, no habitual planets. As such it is no concern, our listening posts monitor that sector sufficiently. What is of concern however is what we are currently debating. Your fleet is within striking distance of our colonies. It is a threat, whether you admit it or not!”

He took a seat, leaning lazily in the chair, “It is a threat… that we are prepared to defend our self against… sooner than later."

"Withdraw the majority of your military assets and let us maintain defensive patrol to ward off the Mini Meihm.”

"Maintain a defensive patrol in this system? Out of the question."

It was the first time Chambers had spoken since the meeting had begun. He'd been content simply to make notes, but now felt it was time that Snake Eaters had its say in the matter,"For your information, our military assets were on the verge of leaving the system, leaving a single Snake Eater ship behind as per our standard procedures. However, it was your folly, not establishing contact and motive, instead deciding that we were automatically a threat to your nation, that caused this build-up."

He frowned, and looked at the statistics he had in front of him. He nodded briefly, and then had them displayed on the star-map, linked by a thin line of green, in order to make it simpler,"In the Prial system, Snake Eaters has three ships. One more is on it's way as I speak, but it can be ordered to return before it arrives. What's more, from the other two remaining ships, one is due to leave for the Far Western region in three days. This would leave a single ship, the SRS Freza, and her fighter complement. Now, I fail to see how a single ship can pose any real threat to you?"

He then tapped another button, and the ground statistics were brought up,"Hmm... the Green Jackets. Two companies are to remain on the planet for a little while longer so they can complete their field exercises, and then they are leaving. The remaining company would finish training the local police, and then remain planetside as a garrison - again, this is standard procedure for new colonies. They must have some form of defence, or else they would be destroyed by," he paused, and cleared his throat before continuing, putting added emphasis in the last two words,"hostile elements."

He leaned back in his chair, and smiled slightly,"As for the Miehmish, as my friend has said, they do not have a non-aggression pact with my nation. However, I find it unlikely that they would strike at the Prial system on a whim, as to do so would violate the pact."

By this point, he had chosen to ignore the comment regarding the d'Kestral's wings... he thought it best not to mention anything. He did look at these photographs and laughed heartily,"You found us? My dear man, our beacons were dropped the moment that we claimed the system. Since then, they have been broadcasting on the standard claim frequency used to define borders that this is our territory now. By all rights, sir, we are not the aggressors here... you are."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*Planetside*
The platoon of Green Jackets, led by newly-minted Second Lieutenant Davenport, had been asked to check the area out by the Freza. Moving in Land Rovers, two to a patrol, making a total of seven (three patrols, and the command section). They moved forward, but they weren't wearing full battledress. They had their weapons, but that was because to not carry a weapon when on field exercises was a cardinal sin in the Army, moreso the Green Jackets, who had their reputation to uphold. They halted in the general area that they had been asked to survey, and Davenport gathered the three Corporals in charge of each section,"Right, Wilson, take your section and patrol from the north to the sout-east. Rogers, patrol south-east to south-west, and Granger, take the south-west back round to North. Be through, and be on your guard... we don't know if anything is out there. If it is, don't fire until fired upon. Understood?"

"Yes,sir."

"Good, now move out."

"Kaymiril has two military vessels here, and only because that is standard procedure. We have more coming due to the threat your nation provides."

He resumed his seat, wings once more arching to cover himself and Chambers.

"Envoy Welko, neither Kaymiril nor Snake Eaters is willing to abandon this system. We will negotiate your nation's official apology and complete withdrawal from this system."

“You have already received our ‘official’ apology… you shall not receive another…” sneered Welko.

“We are giving you the opportunity to prove your non-aggressive intentions, a defensive patrol in the system will increase security for both of our groups. Short of that, we require some sort of presence on the planet, most of all we want reassurance that this isn’t a build up!”

He shifting in his seat, “5th Fleet isn’t going anywhere… and neither is this dialogue, unless you start to make some concessions…”


-------


5th Fleet – HMS Duke of York

The man that exited Admiral Hanners office was about 6 foot 5 and wore a long black robe which covered his whole body. A sword hung by his side. He closed the door behind him and pulled the robe’s hood over his vein covered pail face.

BANG

A shot was heard inside the office, followed by the unmistakable sound of a body slumming to the floor.

Admiral Cen-lo stood shocked outside, “Did he..?” he asked, the colour draining from his face.

“Admiral Hanners did the honourable thing… considering the circumstances,” replied the man, “You have command of the 5th Fleet… you will not fail Lord Seric as Hanners did… Do you understand?”

“Yes, my Lord,” nodded Cen-lo, backing up slightly before turning and walking, almost running, towards the bridge.

The man that had driven Admiral Hanners to suicide was known as ‘The Grey Man’, a disciple of the Grey Chapter. The Chapter was Lord Seric’s bodyguard, Inquisition and in this case ‘Hands’. 10 of them had arrived with the RPA fleet and had instantly rampaged throughout the fleet. Since their arrival 14 people had been blown out of an airlock, 3 had committed suicide and one was still hanging from the command nexus of a CIC.

Were they here to monitor the situation? No. Were they here to assist in any combat actions? Nope.

They were here because one of the pilots reported the missiles which had seemingly disappeared and then reappeared in front of them. The Grey Chapter was here to kill magic users and abominations of nature. In some cases they needed to be restrained by their RPA masters from attempting an attack on the Kaymiril vessels. They were fanatical in their quest…


-------


Wavell levelled his sights on the first Land Rover, his finger hovering over the trigger. Jennings was close by whispering into his radio.

“We’ve got something, couple of Land Rovers moving parallel to our position… Light Infantry by the looks of it, looks like their looking around… Not particularly well I might add… Over.”

Sergeant York took a drag of his cigarette and pressed his throat mike, “Ok, get back here, quickly as you can. Remember, no contact.”

The radio crackled in his ear, “Right boss, on our way. Out.”

The next 3 teams were planned to be dropped in 12 hours. They would come at the same time this time, just before dawn.

"A patrol gives you a foothold in a system that is not yours, as does any military prescense on the planet! It is entirely out of the question. As my friend mentioned, there is twenty lightyears between here and your space. If Snake Eaters were to be planning an attack on you, why here? Why not on the northern border, where a blow could be struck much faster? You are not thinking with your ill-trained head."

Chambers sighed at the sneer... it was obvious the man was a racist fool,"Civilians on the planet, as traders, is totally acceptable to any of us. In fact, it is encouraged. But no military prescense of yours shall be allowed in this system!"
-----------------------------------------
It was not that these men were incompetent, or bored, or bad at their jobs. The Green Jackets were dangerous, very much so. However, they were trying to cover a very wide area with limited manpower... to do such a thing was extremely difficult for anyone.

Two patrols had returned by this time, but the third was still out. In the drivers seat, Trooper Cartwright slide his night-vision goggles onto his head, in place of his normal combat helmet... it didn't work without the full armour anyway. He frowned... something was out of place. A small light, very faint. It might be nothing, but still,"Jack, check that out."

He pointed through the windscreen, and his driving partner looked out into the night,"What do you think it is?"

"Dunno. Could just be a glitch."

"Better check it out. Call it in."

"Hello Zero, this is Alpha Whiskey One, message, over."

"Zero here, send, over."

"Alpha Whiskey One, have spotted something. Moving to investigate, over."

"Zero, roger that, out."

The Land Rovers pulled up short, turning off their headlights. Corporal Granger jumped out with his fireteam, and turned to his 2I/C,"If we're not back in ten minutes, or you hear shooting, bring the vehicles and come after us."

"Yes, Corporal."

"Good man. Alright, Charlie team, keep it quiet, and move out. Safeties off for now, but standard engagement rules."

The four men crept forward, all of them privately wishing they could have worn full armour for this... however, they still had their ceramic plating, which should do some good.

"If you attempt to keep military presence in this system, we will have no choice but to drive you off by force. Your nation can only put forth half the force we can. You will have to accept that this is our space, and we may colonize it if we so choose."
_____________________________________________________________

A pair of figures -- a brown clutching to a white -- was fast approaching the little unit that was out searching.

They'd be able to help them locate the invaders swiftly and efficiently...and help retake them.

It had taken QUITE some time to gather the forces the Emperor had requested. Borth Monitors were finally in system and reprovisioned. The Juggernaut was ready, 30 SDs were prepped for battle, dozens of Battlecruisers, scores of lesser cruisers, and hundreds of Destroyers were all preparing to move out. The Carrier contingent was moving a bit slowly getting all the munitions they had requested, but they could be left behind, and still catch up well short of their destination, especially if the Emperor took it slowly.

Welko’s belt beeped, a red light flashing on his com-link.

He smiled, “Well, traders… I’m sure that will go some way to assuring my masters that your intensions are indeed peaceful.”

He smiled as he stood and nodded towards the Envoys, “Envoy Chambers, a pleasure to meet you. I request we adjourn for now so I can take this… revelation back to my masters. I request to leave as soon as possible.”

----

Wavell took a gasp of air, bringing his rifle back up to the ready position, he pressed his throat mike. “We’ve got trouble! They’re moving in our direction. Over.”

“Are you compromised? Over.”

“Not yet… We’re going to bug out. Out”

Sergeant York checked his watch, “All stations, we’re moving deeper into the hills until the others pitch up. I don’t want us compromised just yet. Best speed. Out.”

"It is not my place to say when you can leave. It is my colleagues," said Chambers, only vaguely returning the nod. The fact that only he had been addressed had further reinforced his view that the man before him was xenophobic to the last. He made a note to request further files on WinTrees as soon as he possible could.

--------------------------------

On the surface, the patrol was still moving. They did have one problem though; they were wearing NVG's. They had two choices: take them off, and wait twenty minutes for their eyes to adjust, or keep them on and suffer the reduction in visibility they brought.

Granger chose to keep his men wearing them... it was better to be able to see, than to be blind and be ambushed. Pulse rifles in their shoulders, they continued moving in an arrowhead formation towards the area the light had been seen.

"You'll be able to leave only if the rest of your fleet goes with you. If it stays, so do you, Envoy. Your request for an adjournment is granted."
_________________________________________________________________

The Aeromancer touched down with the Geomancer, near the Snake Eater group.

The Geomancer sought out the enemy location, and through his knowledge of Prial's soil and water systems, created a mud ring around them, seven feet deep by eleven feet wide, thin enough to consume them but thick enough to not easily let them pass.

Chambers nodded his agreement, and returned to his padd, trying to find information on WinTrees he could use.
------------------
Granger looked at the Aeromancer, and whispered,"Nice of you to arrive. I take it you know where they are... our vision is somewhat limited with these things on."

Jennings peered through the sights on his rifle, flicking a catch which powered up the Image Intensification setting.

“Hold up,” he whispered into the comm.

“What is it?” asked Wavell, kneeling next to Jennings and taking a fleeting glance back towards the enemy.

“Xenos,” whispered Jennings, who observed the human looking blob descending from the heavens.

”Fecking Mag Werido,” said Wavell, looking around and noting the fact that the ground just radically changed.

“What happened?” asked Jennings.

“I think they’ve done something to the ground… We’re rumbled…”

“Christ! Flash them and break?”

“Yep, lots of aggression… if we’re going to break the ROE, lets break it in style,” smiled Wavell.

5 seconds later, 2 flash bangs were tossed towards the enemy, lighting up the night sky briefly and hopefully destroying the night vision (and eye-sight of the poor chaps in NVGs) of any bugger who didn’t cover up.

The 2 soldiers emptied a magazine each at the enemy and followed up with 2 HE grenades from their UGLs. Jennings popped a smoke grenade and they both started to withdrawal back.

Right up until the point Wavell got to the mud traps and went arse-over-tit into the mud. His right leg twisting and placing him flat on his back. His right leg trapped deep in the mud from the impact.

Jennings emptied this magazine and turned to see Wavell down.

“Man down!” he screamed.

“No, mud… they changed the mud!” yelled Wavell.

Jennings slapped another magazine into his rifle and put some more rounds down range. Without missing a beat he threw himself onto Wavell, half submersing him in the process, and used him as a platform to leap to the much firmer looking ground. He landed just short, but was able to pull himself out.

“Leave me!” yelled Wavell, spraying bullets with his rifle one handed.

“Hold on!” screamed Jennings over the din, unhooking his rifle sling and throwing it out to Wavell, “Grab that you dozy git!”

OOC: I play drow, dear. Tarin's half dragon, which is why he's got wings and scales.

Pointy ears -- check. Wings -- No.

IC:
The Aeromancer looked to Granger.

"I think you know where they are now."

The flashbangs had done their work, for certain, destroying the night vision of those in the patrol. Well, not all of them. For although Granger and his fireteam were effectively disabled, they were not deaf. Any solider worth his salt will be able to figure out the fire from sound alone. However, by this time, they were flat on their faces, covering their heads. Bullets stiched the ground close by, but with little to no accuracy. As the HE grenades threw clods of dirt into the air, the four men got up. Granger pointed his weapon skywards, and fired off a red flare from his own grenade launcher, lighting up the area brilliantly,"We can see again! Fire at will!"

Instantly, pulse fire began to hammer at the area from where the bullets had moved. Not only that, but the noise and the light had now drawn the two Land Rovers in, both of which were carrying B4 Burst Cannons, manned by a single solider each. These were much more deadly, more rounds per minute than the standard pulse rifle. They fired over the heads of the enemy, or at least where they thought the enemy was, making them go to ground. As they fired, Granger and his fireteam moved forward, as Granger located their position on his GPS handheld,"Zero, this is Alpha Whiskey One, over."

"Zero, send, over."

"Alpha Whiskey One has been engaged by hostile forces. I say again, we are being fired upon, over."

"Zero, is anyone W.I.A, over?"

"Alpha One, not yet, over."

"Zero, roger that. What is your current position, over"

"Alpha One, Grid Reference is 598654, over."

"Zero. Roger, we're on our way, ETA seven minutes, out."

As the commnet was cleared, Granger shouted to one of the drivers,"Take your vehicles, and circle round, cut off their escape route as best you can! Try and take them alive, Command will want some answers."

OOC: Changed, I thought Tarin was a Aeromancer for some reason!

The Aeromancer shook her head.

"I'll handle this."

She let the Geomancer's mud circle guide her hand, and then let out a fierce thunderstorm just above the enemy forces...wind, water, hail, and lightening raged down upon the WinTrees forces.

OOC: Changed, I thought Tarin was a Aeromancer for some reason!
OOC: Tarin is a DIPLOMAT

OOC: Yes, but with the wings and all that jive, a man can get confused :)

“Got it!” blurted out the Signaller, as his EW set crackled with the successful sound of a enemy transmission.

“Sweep it,” whispered Sergeant York, his attention firmly on the firing in the distance, “Is it secure?”

“Wait one,” whispered the Signaller.

Sergeant York flicked his Radio on, “Sit rep, over.”

---

Jennings, lying on his back slapped his throat mike, “Contact, we’re bugging out. Out.”

“Pull you bugger!” yelled Wavell

“Help me to help you!” screamed Jennings pulling hard, spluttering slightly as the rain fell into his open mouth.

SCHLOP

The suction gave way and Wavell came flying out of the mud, he pulled himself carefully to the firm ground while Jennings popped another HE grenade into the darkness. Checking his sight quickly and putting down a few aimed shots.

Then as quickly as they stopped, they were back into their well practised contact drill. Pepper potting back into the darkness. They were both caked in mud, as the rain churned up the ground under them, causing them to slip and side each time they stopped to return fire.

Their return fire got less and less until they started to disappear into the darkness, visibility cut drastically due to the sudden bad weather.

“Rally Rally Rally,” whispered Wavell, concealing himself behind a tree.

Jennings half crawled, half ran to Wavell, “What now,” he whispered, keeping the rifle pointed at the direction of the enemy.

“Lets go off on a bearing of 244,” whispered Wavell quickly checking his compass.

“Ok, lets go,” said Jennings shielding his eyes him the relentless hail.

Doing what they did best, they disappeared back into the darkness of which they came. Somewhat more wet… granted.

The storm pursued them as they moved...the geomancer knew where they were, so long as their feet were on the ground or on a plant, and he could help his partner keep her storm straight.

“What the hells going on,” panted Jennings

“Xenos, bloody Xenos,” panted Wavell, “Split up, meet at ERV 3 at dawn.”

“Right,” panted Jennings, quickly getting his bearings before disappearing off into the night. Leaving Wavell on his own.

“Right, gotta move,” he whispered, hearing the approaching land rovers. He reached into his webbing and pulled out a small tube. Snapping it he waited until it started producing heat… a lot of heat. He tossed it into the night and ran the other way, staying low in the brush. “That should sort out their scopes.”

ERV 3 was the other side of the settlement, Wavell was the first one to switch on to this and started shedding his camouflaged smock and jungle hat as he moved. He draped the smock back over his shoulders so he kept his Infra-Red Resistance (IRR) properties until he gets to the settlement, then he hoped that his black walkers trousers and blue t-shirt could pass him off as a local… at least at night.

Jennings decided to just try and run around the top of the settlement and hope for the best, betting on getting out of range of the ‘Dam Xeno spell.”

He would have problems. All Snake Eater citizens had nanomachines in their blood, for identification purposes. And given that a firefight had broken out, security checkpoints were already going up. To try and box the settlement would take too long, but to go through it would take a very long time, and it would be very dangerous. Although the Prial colony was designed for civilians, it was currently home to three companies of Green Jackets, who were there mainly on training.

The unit that had been firing had since rejoined with the rest of it's platoon, and Granger briefed Davenport on the situation,"We have at least two enemy on the ground, possibly more. They disengaged, but the Geomancer is tracking them."

"Any identification?"

"They opened fire, sir, so we have no choice to assume hostile intent. This could be WinTrees making a preemptive strike..."

"... and significantly alter the international situation as a result. All right, I've called through to command, they've ordered all Snake ground units to go to Condition Orange."

"What about the starships?"

"No, it would seem too suspicious. If they do react to the ground forces going on increased alert, then we know they are performing clandestine operations, which is grounds for a conflict in itself. We're to return to base... the Drow can come with us if they want, and prep for sweeps. The checkpoints are already active... Drow are no problem, but humans are to be checked at all points."

Several Drow units -- both magickal and military -- were already stirring, moving to go through the checkpoints and toward the area the enemy had been spotted at.

Fastest moving were two specialist units -- one each from Sarnor Zotreth and M'elzar Zotreth. Sarnor Zotreth were highly trained warriors, and M'elzar Zotreth was comprised of Warmancers.

The Warmancers had grabbed rides with the Warriors, and the Thalacks -- the standard Kaymirilian military vehicle -- were racing over Prial's virgin terrain.

Wavell looked in to the distance to see his Phosphorus grenade go off on a timer, incinerating the majority of his kit. He patted the pistol secured in his waist band and walked meekly into what must have been some sort of storage area on the edge of the settlement. He kept walking until people started appearing, getting funny looks every now again, due to him still being caked in mud. He started to think this was probably a bad idea… but at least there was lots of foot steps around him, hopefully masking him.

Jennings on the other hand was in a mix of pain and euphoria, his feet blistered, muscles straining under the stress and sweat cascading down his face, he kept moving, smashing through the undergrowth.

-----

5th Fleet – HMS Duke of York

Major Daws stood in the operations room on ‘The York’ watching the map board as 2 blips appeared on it. A transcript of the communications was rolling down the side of the board.

The phase 2 drop went off without a hitch, the worryingly short report from Sergeant York had worried Daws. As a response he had loaded some series equipment on the 2 Raptors. Some very serious equipment indeed.

“Raptors report no sightings ‘as far as they know’,” said an ops room officer, checking through a paper based transcript, “Both teams dropped at the revised DZs and contact has been established.”

Very good captain.

----

Wavell saw the first checkpoint, it startled him, getting a little too close before he figured out what was going on. He quickly moved into a dark space and tried to figure out what they were checking.

The grenade drew some attention, and the patrol that found it called it in... it looked like the hostiles were trying to escape. No one detonated their kit unless they wanted to travel fast and light... and over the rolling plains of Prial, that wasn't too difficult.

The checkpoint he had encountered was manned by two Green Jackets, dressed in full body armour, but without the helmets, instead sporting their berets. One of them, wearing the rank of Lance Corporal, seemed to be scanning those passing into the settlement, whilst the other, a Trooper, was scanning those passing out. Of course, it looked fairly fast. But that wasn't the point.

Unknown to the solider, all Snake Eater citizens were injected with nanomachines at birth. Throughout their lives, these microscopic machines monitored their condition, helping to keep them as healthy as possible. However, they also served as identification. A simple scan would reveal the nanomachines and display that person's record. And the Drow passing through the checkpoint weren't a problem, as they were obviously not going to be imposters. Besides, the scan was done on them anyway, and their physiology was different to that of humans. To imitate them would be foolish.

“No,” said Welko into the microphone, “They’re not budging; I fear the diplomatic option is out of the question as of this transmission… Unless you have any new information?”

“Not that we know of,” replied Admiral Cen-lo, shifting uneasily in his CIC, “Our teams on the surface have been compromised…”

Welko was sat in the back of the Raptor, tie hanging loose around his neck and rubbing his eyes.

“Then the talks were over before they even started I fear,” muttered Welko, “How do I proceed?”

“The Assembly has given me permission to carry out a war time operations in the event that talks break down… Can you assure me that there is nothing else you can do Mr. Welko?”

Welko took a deep breath and flicked the transmission switch, “There is nothing else I can do Admiral. I’m sorry.”

“Very well,” said Cen-lo, nodding towards the shadowy RPA Admiral stood in the corner of the CIC, “We will commence war time operations in 1 hour… Welko, inform your hosts that a state of war exists between us and then get out of there.”

Admiral Cen-lo flicked the switch over to the intercom, “Officers and crew of the 5th Fleet, today is a historical day… war has been declared against the Snake Eaters and Kaymiril nations,” he let it sink in for a few seconds, “You are all veterans of the AI war, the skirmishes on our boarders with the Fanz Empire and the expedition into the Zen cluster. You know your duty, as do I. Victory will be ours, I assure you. Captains, sound to Action Stations.”

He placed the handset back onto the command table and turned to a midshipman stood next to him, “Find Major Daws, inform him that the teams on the planet are weapons free. Have them move into position and stand by for their strike orders.”

The midshipman nodded and scurried away.

----------

Wavell took a deep breath and cocked his pistol, cursing as he saw a round extracted. There was no way he was getting past this without a fight…

He started to walk to the checkpoint, staring at the nearest guard, waiting for the challenge… He kept the pistol hidden behind his back, and was carrying his POW card in the other hand, hopefully it would buy him a few seconds as an ID.

Jennings on the other side had stopped, he got down on his belt buckle and crawled into cover, breathing heavily… its stamina finally sapped.

---------

Welko entered the conference room again and sat down, signaling for the other Envoys to be summoned.


OOC: Sorry for the delay, RL.

Envoy d' Kestal had remained there, and he looked at Welko flatly with his emerald green eyes.

"Does your government still refuse to acknowledge our claim to the Prial system, Envoy?"

He knew the answer...there was a change about the man...it was obvious. This would end only in blood.

The checkpoint guard was merely making sure people passed through in an orderly fashion. No one had any ID cards, which made him slightly more conspicious. However, inside the checkpoint, another man was reading from a screen.

The phone, mounted on the wall, rang shrilly. He sighed, and reached over to pick it up,"Checkpoint Delta Seven, go ahead."

The voice was male, slightly gruff,"Take your time with the next man... hold the line up."

"Who is this?"

"You don't need to know."

"Sir, if you don't tell me who you are, I'll have to report this to Command, and they will back-trace the signal. It is an offence to use military communications networks for prank calls."

"This is no prank call."

"I am hanging up the phone."

"Go ahead... but you will do as I say."

The private hung up the phone, and signalled to the second man outside,"Just got a call... guy refused to identify himself. Said to hold the line up."

"Didn't give his name?"

"Name, unit, anything."

"Hmmm... well, we're checking everyone pretty throughly. I guess we could start double-checking everyone."

"But..."

"No, the alert level warrants it."

The corporal, his hand resting on the pistol grip of his weapon, called out over the crowd,"Sorry about the delay, everyone, but the current situation calls for more stringent checks."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Some distance off, no more than one hundred metres or so, a woman stared down the telescopic sight of her PSG-1 rifle. She frowned, and then spoke,"Frank, I can't find him."

"He's human, it's not like he's going to stand out."

Her spotter, Lieutenant Frank Warmington, looked through his monocular as he spoke, also trying to find him. They were one of a few sniper teams deployed to look over the checkpoints... but these two were unique. Members of Snake Eater Special Forces, Echo Team, they were the sniper and medic respectively. Captain Lindsey Mason was the sniper, a crack shot from the Logistics Corps who had impressed on her selection, to join the six strong team. The rest were elsewhere... but close.

"If we see him, we shoot?"

"That's what the boss said when Tommy spoke to him last."

Welko coughed, “As you know we have been unable to reach a compromise. As such, as of,” he checked his watch, “21:44, a state of war exists between us. I will return to my transport and leave. You’ll understand that I don’t offer my luck to you in the coming hostilities.”

He started to collect his papers and place them back into his briefcase.

-----

Wavell approached the guard, every second he stood still in a queue increased the chances of someone seeing the pistol.

Before the guard could even react to the person approaching him, Wavell leveled the pistol and emptied 3 rounds at the guard. He then quickly side stepped and emptied the rest of the clip at the other guards before running towards the other side of the checkpoint, reloading as he went.

-----

Under the hue of the red tactical lights the viper pilots poured down the corridors to their fighters, the scramble alarms sounding. The 5th fleet was ready for war.

At Gramby, ships were almost completely re-supplied. Most of the ships had already started to move out to the broader to form a picket force. The RPA ships that hadn’t already moved to 5th Fleet, just jumped away in their direction.

-----

Major Daws unlatched the catches on his briefcase and removed the control codes for the 2 Mk 14 ‘Fizzle’ nuclear warheads that had been dropped with the 2nd set of special forces teams. He past them to his aide who carried them over to the communications station, they started to transmit them to the team on the ground.

“God forgive us for what we are about to do.”

-----

At the same time, a shuttle departed Keelth, not filled with Envoys this time… but military officers. They carried ‘Mutual Offensive pacts’ with Snake Eater and Kaymiril stamped all over them. Wintrees wanted a Friend.

"Leave, then, and you have an hour toleave the system. Any longer, and we will consider this a hostile action and you will be fired upon."

Teril's voice was soft, but it held an edge. WinTrees had no idea what it was getting into.
____________________________________________________________________

The head of the M'elzar Zotreth team had pointed Commander Faris of Sarnor Zotreth to the location of the most recently dropped invasion force...the drop pods had caused a disturbance in the local fashka, which made them easy for any Kaymirilian mage to find.

As Daws uttered his prayer, the two teams broke into view...both ready for combat, in their own ways.

Chambers sighed,"You have not attempted to further this discussion. Your course of action is disappointing... however, given the circumstances, not unprepared for. I feel that I should inform you on behalf of the Shadow Republic of Snake Eaters, that the advanced strike force you inserted onto the planet has been comprimised. Given the current situation, these men, if captured, will be treated as prisoners of war, as defined by the Geneva Convention."

He paused, and then shook his head,"This course of action is foolish. You are attempting to fight two nations vastly more powerful than yourselves. I trust that you will see the folly of your actions before too many men and women loose their lives over such a pointless course of action... however, your conduct to me and my colleague makes me think you will not do that. Good day to you."

He stood up, and walked out first. Signalling to the Lieutenant of the Colonial Marines,"Contact the fleet, put them on maximum alert. And get me a line to Central... the combat fleets must be brought in."

"Sir, if they attack now, in force, I don't know how long we can hold the system."

"We will not retreat. But I am no solider. Get it done, do your duty. And good luck."
-----------------------------------------------------
The first three rounds struck their target. He reeled, but the armour held. He would have bruises... but nothing that would stop him doing his job. His companion was not so lucky. One of the bullets skipped off the concrete, and pierced his forehead. He collapsed to the floor, the back of his skull gone. The first casualty of the war.

The shots had sparked panic, and the crowd stampeded. However, Wavell was still in the open. Captain Mason stared down her scope, as Lieutenant Warmington spoke gently,"Fire, Fire, Fire."

She breathed out, still following him before he vanished. Her finger tightened on the trigger... squeezing gently...

The report echoed in the confined space... she was glad she'd worn earplugs designed for something like this. Warmington stared down his scope as she fired a second round at her target... one of them was sure to hit him. That, and the sounds in her codec was such that if she didn't hit him, her team would.

OOC: The 2nd wave of SF parachuted in like the 1st wave by that way, if that makes any difference. Didn’t make that clear.

Wavell saw the movement on the roof, just too late for it to make any difference. The first round penetrated his unprotected skull.

The brain being destroyed, the body slumped mid run, crumpling into a pile on the floor.

--------

“All stations report ready,” muttered a operator in the Duke of York’s CIC.

“Jump on my orders… maximum dispersal,” said Admiral Cen-lo, “Fighters are to engage cargo ships and escorts, leave the war ships to us… Ascot class ships are to close and draw fire for the vanguards. Have it done.”

Several officers moved to communication stations and started relaying the orders, everything was working like a well oiled machine.

“Air Group reports ready, tubes are loaded…”

“Fleet has received orders… all report ready.”

“Jump!” said Admiral Cen-lo, “Happy that everything was in place.”

The darkness of space lit up briefly, the 23 Ascots jumped first, flashing away to establish a perimeter. The 10 Vanguards followed, 5 seconds later, followed directly by the 2 King George’s. The 5 RPA ships remained their powerful batteries and shielding systems being used as the reserve.

-----

Captain Charles stood in the clearing as he watched his men set up the 2 tiny catapults. When they were completed the UAVs (small unnamed aircraft) were placed on the catapults and the 2 nuclear weapons were attached.

“We’re ready Captain,” said on of the soldiers as he approached him, “Shall we input the codes?”

“Go ahead,” the Captain turned his back on him and switch on his com-link, “Cutter to Broadsword, message, over.”

Major Daws stood in the operations room on Duke of York, this time he wasn’t in his service uniform, but combat dress, a sidearm hanging low on his hip.

“Go ahead Cutter.”
The radio crackled, “We’re ready to fire, are we clear?”

“Your clear, you may ARM now, proceed when ready,” muttered Daws, who then turned off the com-link.

Back on the planet, the 2 UAVs launched off their catapults, the rockets scorching the ground as they left. Both of the small vehicles, hopefully too small to be reliably targeted by air defensives, rocketed off at high speeds to their target, the settlement.

At about 2km they cut their engines and started to glide into their target….

"Hit."

Warmington sighed,"So stupid... what a waste. And now, they've gone and declared war."

His companion smiled gently as she sat up and rested against the back wall of the room,"War is our job."

"And don't we know it."

The two operators sat there a moment, before being spurned into action and heading to join their unit... battle was upon them. And battle was ugly.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Onboard all the Snake Eater vessels, Condition Red had been sounded. The Prometheus, still in operational command, had split into the three segments via multi-vector assualt mode, with the most powerful acting as the command unit,"All ships, this is Prometheus One. Freza, launch all fighters and use them as a defence screen where possible."

"This is Hydra, how long until Prides Purge arrives?"

"ETA on Purge is three minutes."

"Roger that."

Onboard Prometheus One, Captain J'tal looked at his tactical officer,"Are the defences in place?"

"They are."

"Activate them. Send the warning to the Kaymirilian vessels... and let's see what these bastards do now."

There was only a second's hesitation on the command the officer had just been given. His finger hovered over the button... to press this, would prevent any turning back. But it had to be done. He lowered his finger, and shut his eyes as he pressed it,May Leviathan forgive me...

In the inky blackness of space, around the area the WinTrees fleet had jumped into, two things happened. The first was the activation of quantum mines. Designed for defence, these mines worked on the same basic principles as the torpedos of the same technology. Dangerous on their own, certainly, but there was something else. Something not seen by many natures... a secret of the highest national order. Aceton Assimiliators.

An incident with a Promellian battle-cruiser, concerning the Federation's then-flagship the Enterprise-D, had brought the technology to the attention of the Snake Eater military. It had been recovered, and further developed. The premise behind the system was simple enough. As the targetted vessel or vessels produced more power, it became more powerful, feeding off the energy to create high levels of dangerous radiation. The more the ships tried to escape, the higher the levels of radiation became. It was a brutal weapon, and it had been hoped that it would never have to be used in battle. However, it could be shut down by a Snake Eater vessel at very short notice, if the request for help was made. Basically, the WinTrees fleet had their lives in their own hands... to ask for help and a ceasefire, or to continue to try and fight, and die a slow and painful death doing so?

J'tal, Gorbac and Victal all looked on, shuddering slightly. They didn't like this... but war, however short, called for a level of inhumanity.

“Missiles in the vacuum!” called a crewman in the Duke of York’s CIC.

“Are they in our firing solution?” asked Admiral Cen-lo, spinning on his heel.

“No sir.”

“Right…” mumbled Cen-lo, “Activate point defensives, Signal viper flight groups to screen the Vanguards…. Ascot classes are to perform evasive maneuvers… Execute.”

There was a tense few moments as the commands were transmitted, “Fleet copies.”

The fleet burst like a school of fish, the Ascot classes engaging their burners and shunting a few hundred meters, spitting chaff and various counter measures. Point defense cannons lit up the sky, trailing their fire onto the incoming missiles. The squadron channels lit up as the vipers disgorged from their carriers and started to engage the missiles.

The Duke of York rocked slightly as the missiles slammed into its underside, the armor evaporating away somewhat, nullifying the effects of the first missiles.

“Sir,” called Captain Chace from the command table, “radiological alarms are orange across the board, the radiological sinks in the stern are coping at the moment.”

Admiral Cen-lo moved over the Chace, “What about the rest of the fleet?”

“The levels haven’t approached the minimum safety levels as yet, but its rising. The Ascots will be the first effected. The readings shot up when they performed their maneuvers.”

“Put a limiter order on the engines, nothing over 70%,” he nodded at Chace then turned back to the room as a whole, “Ascots engage to weapon range, Vanguards hold at intermediate range and engage with our missiles… bomber wings engage the ships on their flanks, lets box them in. Execute.”

ONboard the Snake ships, they had looks on their faces that were of astonishment,"Why are they doing that... to mines?"

"I have no idea. Obviously, this fleet is as incompetent as their rulers."

Snake Eaters believed in respecting your enemy. Right now, WinTrees had no respect. None at all. The tactics they were displaying were too... well, old.

It would seem that they were still thinking in flat, two dimensional terms. And yet space was a three dimensional object. And that gave Snake Eaters the advantage. On the far side of Prial, in the shadow of the planet and thus hidden from the the enemey fleet, the Prodigal-class ship Pride's Purge emerged from the warp. It's engines, derived from Imperial Star Destroyers, flared once, and then it went as silent as possible. It's weapons were all armed, and it's hanger bays open. Onboard, Vice Admiral Prosser looked at the DRADIS display,"Status of the enemy fleet?"

"They are dispersing to try and avoid the mines and assimilators."

"Release all fighter units, and hold off here. Instruct the flight leaders to skim the atmosphere, make it seem as if they came from the planet. When the enemy fleet gets closer, we'll peal round and open fire. Best choice."

"What of the other ships?"

"They'll know we're here when the fighters arrive. Now, get going!"

The massive bays were open, and fighters began to leave, their engines burning a bright blue on the void. Soon, they were speading out in attack formations, speeding around the planet, and skipping off the atmosphere. Three full squadrons of Cobra-class fighters, and a single squadron of Havoc-class ship bombers, a fairly formidable force. Mixed in here and there were a few X-Wings, and a single B-Wing led the formation. They positioned themselves so as to form a skirmish screen in front of the main fleet, waiting for the enemy to make their slow progress through the minefield and the assimilators. Even though they had reduced their power levels, the system would still be sapping them of energy every moment, the levels of radiation getting ever higher, ever more dangerous to those who were exposed to it.

Onboard the Prometheus, J'tal looked at the fleet in front of them,"It's massive... they weren't ever planning on not declaring war. Signal the Kaymirilians... get them into action soon... we're going to need all the help we can get."

"Sir, fighters emerging from the atmosphere. The lead one is sending us his ID code... Sir, he's the leader of the 181st Fighter Squadron."

"Fleet Air Arm?"

"Yessir."

"Looks like the cavalry has arrived. Thank him for his support."

Terin had sent the order for Kaymirilian action as soon as the WinTree fleet had begun its hostile actions.

The five Kaymirilian ships were already moving into formation, led by Captain Haldros.

The Silver Class mages on board were preparing their attacks.

The first step was a two-dimensional barrier between them and the WinTrees fleet. It would allow ships on the Kaymiril/Snake Eaters side to fire on the WinTrees unimpeded, but would send most WinTree shots ricocheting off.

The barriers started out as five separate devices, stretching up and out to separate the two sides. It shimmered at the ends, but faded swiftly into invisibility.

The Miehmish Home Fleet was a sight to behold, shattering reality in a blaze of gravitic glory and radiation. More and more vessels ripped free, first matching, and then surpassing, then more than doubling the total number of vessels in the system. Directly aft of the WinTrees Vessels, and slightly above the ecliptic, they had a perfect line of fire. SuperDreadnoughts, twenty of them, began playing out strings of missile pods, preparing their awesome broadsides to shatter the opposing fleet. The two gigantic monitors began getting locks on the enemy fleets. More like small mobile fortresses than any true vessel of war, they had the ability to both shatter and defend worlds. The height of the threat had yet to make itself known however.

Emerging last, glorious and massive, the emperor's Juggernaut outstripped any other vessel in sheer size. Armed with over 100 missile tubes, bearing a full complement of LACs, and carrying enough missile pods internally for a prolonged enagement, this was the true flagship of the Alliance. Vast and powerful were her fleets, but THIS was the figure head, the representation of that power given physical form.

Finally the last vessels were through, over one hundred of the titans had entered, the smallest was a full seven hundred meters, the largest stretched to eight kilometers in length. Superdreadnoughts and the other capitol ships began to form a wall of battle, stacking vertically to present their broadsides to the enemy. Battlecruiser squadrons assembled their escorts and prepared to move, screening ships readied themselves for the shattering fury of the opening salvo, and carriers disgorged their cargoes of LACs.

The Miehmish Fleet had arrived, it was time to do battle...

OOC: Arse! I guess I missed something there :P

HMS Duke of York CIC –

“Radiological sinks are holding,” said Captain Chace, “some of the mines seem to emitting a higher then normal power signature. Even before our fighters approach them.”

“Cut to the chase, Chace,” muttered the Admiral, keeping half an eye on the sensor read out.

“They might be causing the higher then normal radiological readings, I…”

“Agreed, target them first,” cut in the Admiral, before moving back into the center of the CIC.

Progress through the minefield was slow, the initial contacts catalogued by the Ascots were thought to be missiles. Although this was corrected shortly after, the Admiral orders were enacted before it could be transmitted. Regardless, the only ones to come out worst for the situation were the Ascots themselves, several of them ramming into mines during their maneuvering. Their powerful shielding systems remained constant for the most part however, still providing a effective screening force for the vanguards.

HMS Vanguard’s Viper Air Group –

“Blue one, correct course to 223, engage target designate Tango 5.”

Blue one, checking over his shoulder for his wing man keyed his comm, “Blue one copies.”

The pilot snapped his control stick around and preceded straight for the target; lining the mine up in his sights he went to press the trigger… Then stopped, he pulled his flight glove off, ripping the burnt skin off in the process. The scream was almost audible in the vacuum of space, the effects of radiation poisoning piled on as he approached the mine, his heart failed just before he careered into the mine itself.

HMS Duke of York –

The lieutenant stood in shock as he handed the transmission to Commander Akula, the fleets CAG. The Commander took a few seconds to read the short message, then quickly looked up at the Lieutenant, “Recall all fighters, anything that isn’t within the 3 minute recall window is to proceed at full burn out of the area…”

The fighters had been affected much earlier then anyone suspected, those who hadn’t already started back towards the safety of the mother ships turned tale and made best speed back.

CIC –

Admiral Cen-lo, evaluated the situation, Mini Miehm ships behind him and a magical barrier in front.

“New orders,” he called, attracting the attention of the CIC, “Signal the Mini Miehm, low priority friend or foe challenge… Have point defensives concentrate on our bottom quarters, we’re going to punch out of the bottom of the mine field and readjust our firing solutions from there. Execute.”

J'tal, seeing what had happened on the long range sensors, shuddered... a terrible way to die, no matter what the circumstances. He had never advocated the use of aceton assimilators... but war caused the lines between right and wrong to shift. Besides, these ones had been deployed to hold up enemy ships, not for out and out battle.

He kept everything where it was, and sat there, waiting,"Let them run."

"What of the Miehmish?"

"If they want to fight WinTrees, they will."

"And if they want to fight us?"

"I don't think they'll risk violating the non-agression pact with Kaymiril just to strike at us. Besides, they'll have to pass the assimilators as well... and the effects will be worse."

"Yeah. The more energy you put out,the more they sap it and turn it into radiation."

J'tal nodded,"Yes... terrible weapons. I doubt Captain Gorbac is pleased with them either."

He wasn't. Haldros' former commanding officer was far from pleased with the use of aceton assimilators, and he was even now taking the time within the calm before the storm to file an official grievance with the High COmmand. It would be taken seriously as well - Gorbac was a celebrated captain, his Galaxy-class ship having seen action in every major conflict in the last ten years.

And so the Snake Forces waited, letting the enemy come to them. It was another battle-proven tactic - let the enemy come to you, and you will win the sympathy of many. Make the first move, and you loose the support of these same peoples.

Terin's wings flicked slightly, and he looked at Chambers.

"I've just had word from my uncle's office. The fleet is on its way."
_________________________________________________________________

Meanwhile, Haldros looked at the Miehmish vessels and swore.

Why would they be here if not for aggressive action? Granted, it MIGHT be that they simply desired to get the WinTrees away from an area so close...but he doubted it.

He nodded to the Head Mage of his ship as the WinTrees fleet began to move...time to extend the barrier lower.

Chambers looked around,"Understood. Your ships will not have detected it, but I am assured that the vessel Prides Purge is currently on the far side of the planet from the battlezone... it will serve as reserves of some sort. Notification to the rest of the second combat fleet has been sent... they will be some time."

"Kaymirilian space is smaller than yours, Envoy. We need only an hour or so."

OOC: Arse! I guess I missed something there :P

HMS Duke of York CIC –

“Radiological sinks are holding,” said Captain Chace, “some of the mines seem to emitting a higher then normal power signature. Even before our fighters approach them.”

“Cut to the chase, Chace,” muttered the Admiral, keeping half an eye on the sensor read out.

“They might be causing the higher then normal radiological readings, I…”

“Agreed, target them first,” cut in the Admiral, before moving back into the center of the CIC.

Progress through the minefield was slow, the initial contacts catalogued by the Ascots were thought to be missiles. Although this was corrected shortly after, the Admiral orders were enacted before it could be transmitted. Regardless, the only ones to come out worst for the situation were the Ascots themselves, several of them ramming into mines during their maneuvering. Their powerful shielding systems remained constant for the most part however, still providing a effective screening force for the vanguards.

HMS Vanguard’s Viper Air Group –

“Blue one, correct course to 223, engage target designate Tango 5.”

Blue one, checking over his shoulder for his wing man keyed his comm, “Blue one copies.”

The pilot snapped his control stick around and preceded straight for the target; lining the mine up in his sights he went to press the trigger… Then stopped, he pulled his flight glove off, ripping the burnt skin off in the process. The scream was almost audible in the vacuum of space, the effects of radiation poisoning piled on as he approached the mine, his heart failed just before he careered into the mine itself.

HMS Duke of York –

The lieutenant stood in shock as he handed the transmission to Commander Akula, the fleets CAG. The Commander took a few seconds to read the short message, then quickly looked up at the Lieutenant, “Recall all fighters, anything that isn’t within the 3 minute recall window is to proceed at full burn out of the area…”

The fighters had been affected much earlier then anyone suspected, those who hadn’t already started back towards the safety of the mother ships turned tale and made best speed back.

CIC –

Admiral Cen-lo, evaluated the situation, Mini Miehm ships behind him and a magical barrier in front.

“New orders,” he called, attracting the attention of the CIC, “Signal the Mini Miehm, low priority friend or foe challenge… Have point defensives concentrate on our bottom quarters, we’re going to punch out of the bottom of the mine field and readjust our firing solutions from there. Execute.”

"Admiral Helmut." The tall blond man sat in the chair, the very soul of imperial majesty. The shorter dark haired man at the command console paused for a moment. "Yes your majesty?"

"They want to know which side we're on. Disambiguation protocols please."

"Aye majesty." He turned to the comm officer, "All ships, open fire, full broadsides. Leave none alive."

"Fleet acknowledges lord admiral, fire for effect, shot out."

Ripples of fire slashed away from the fleet, massive broadsides filling thge intervening spoace with missiles and other, less pleasant weapons. Grasers and Xasers targetted against the enemy sterns, at those pleasantly large radiation spikes that simply HAD to be some sort of reactor, energy torpedoes shattered the void, ripping through vaccuum and mine alike, immolating whatever target obstructed their path. Massive sheets of fire blossomed away from the fleet, ripping away at the very fabric of reality in some cases. Eventually the first broadside was away, thousands of missiles streaking through vaccuum, carrying payloads large enough to make even the most hardened spacer flinch. Gigaton ranges. HIGH gigatons. Enough to set off several nuclear winters with just a few hits. And there werre over 3 thousand targetted against just 40 enemies...

“Missiles in the vacuum!” yelled a crewman.

“Yes… I know,” replied Admiral Cen-lo, starring at the sensor display for the front quarters.

“No, sir… from the Mini Miehm…”

Admiral Cen-lo didn’t move, he’d planned for this already… but he didn’t expect a flanking attack to come from the Mini Miehm.

“Emergency FTL jump. Pattern Bravo… Execute.”

Luckily most of the fighters had already been recovered and the coordinates were already in the navigation computer… just in case. They were set to go.

Pattern Bravo meant that the rear ships in the formation were to put up a token resistance as the rest of the fleet jumped. They did this, taking the brunt of the enemy fire, the majority of the missiles were intercepted in the flak barrier, the other weapons however cut through straight into the ships doing serious damage.

The Ascots jumped first, followed by the Vanguards. Duke of York being the rear ship in the formation jumped last, leaving her sister ship HMS Queen Elizabeth to disintegrate under the heavy incoming fire… unable to jump.

2 Vanguards and an Ascot failed to flash back into existence on the safe side of the jump, it was later theorized that they collided with a mine at a critical junction of the jump process, destroying them while they hung momentary in limbo.

OOC: The above which nicely ties into RL. I’ve just been recalled, AFK 1 Month, as far as I know at the moment.

Sorry!

OOC: Alright. 'Enjoy' your month.

IC:
Sitting in his command chair, towards the rear of the SRS Hydra's bridge, Captain Gorbac was astonished at what he was seeing. He had never advocated the use of quantum mines and aceton assimiliators in the first place, but had accepted them as a measure to defend the system. But the appearance of the Miehmish had him, a veteran captain, slightly rattled.

He watched in abject horror as the entire Miehmish fleet unleashed it's devastating broadside... it's unprovoked broadside. The WinTrees fleet had, to the knowledge of the Snake fleet, only attempted to hail them... it would appear that the answer had been clear enough for all to see. As he made a silent prayer for the dead, his tactical officer, standing at the rail behind him, said,"Sir, we're detecting debris fields... three in total. Estimations project that the Wintrees fleet suffered these losses as they attempted to jump out of the system."

"Do we have any indication of where they've gone?"

"Some residual ion trails sir..."

"Alright, hail the Prometheus."

"Channel open."

J'tal's face appeared, some of the colour having left it,"Gorbac, you saw that, right?"

"Yes, I did. You're in command here, so I want to launch a probe to ascertain the whereabouts of the enemy fleet."

"Go ahead. We're reattaching the Prometheus now, and the Freza is recalling her fighters."

"What of the others?"

"Staying put for now, in accordance with their orders."

"Roger that. What about the Miehmish?"

"Well... we'll leave it to them as to what to do. I'm not deactivating the minefield or the assimilators until I'm certain they don't pose a threat to us."

"Agreed. Alright, Gorbac out."

As the viewscreen shut off, he nodded to his tactical officer, who fired a long-range probe to track these ion trails, trying to find the enemy fleet...
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chambers was horrified at this display of power, and turned to his Kaymirilian counterpart,"You're on better terms with the Miehmish than we are... I think it best if you talk to them."

D' Kestal nodded, contacting the Kaymirilian ships with orders to leave the barrier up.

He then sat once more in his chair, letting his wings arch over him once more.

"Contact the Miehmish, Captain," was the order sent through.
____________________________________________________________

OOC: And just to deal with those pesky missiles...

IC: The aeromaner noted the missiles travelling, as well as their trajectory and starting point.

She created a storm, one that spat them out, into the upper athmosphere, where a silver class, seeing them, teleported them away from the fleett and planet to detonate.

D' Kestal nodded, contacting the Kaymirilian ships with orders to leave the barrier up.

He then sat once more in his chair, letting his wings arch over him once more.

"Contact the Miehmish, Captain," was the order sent through.
____________________________________________________________

OOC: And just to deal with those pesky missiles...

IC: The aeromaner noted the missiles travelling, as well as their trajectory and starting point.

She created a storm, one that spat them out, into the upper athmosphere, where a silver class, seeing them, teleported them away from the fleett and planet to detonate.

OOC: If anyone is offended by fictional racism, please do not read this post. It will not be pretty, at all.

"Highness, we're getting a comm from the Faeries. Shall I take it, or patch it directly to you?"

The blond man paused fora moment, considering..."Why would I want to talk to a darky? Accept the comm yourself."

"Yes Highness. I'll deal with the wench." The officer activates his microphone, transmitting to his Drow opposite number. "What do you want Faery? We just saved your hides, you should be thanking us, not wasting our time like this. What have you got to say for yourself, boy?"

The fleet continued to advance through the minefield, occasionally having a minor accident with the impeller wedge of a vessel brushing too close to one of the mines and ripping it apart in an unintentional display of power.

The Snake fleet held it's ground behind the magickal barrier, shields and weapons fully prepared to fight if they had to. However, far beyond the Prial system, the cogs were in motion. Things were rapidly shifting, moving into place for what seemed like a meat-grinder the like of which had not been seen within Snake Eater space since the Civil War almost ten years previously.

Orbiting the binary stars of the Cobrian system, the central hub and nexus of Snake Eaters, aptly named Snake Eater Prime, was a bustling hive of activity no matter what hour of the day or night. As thousands, millions even, slept in their beds, even now unaware of what was transpiring on their furthest and boldest colony, the Adminstrium's lights blared. Deep within the heart of this building, buried beneath the ground, a group of men and women gathered around the circular conferance table. Military High Command and the Assembly were all present, waiting for Barbarossa.

He did not make too much entrance into the Situation Room, for flashy entrances were for those who held little respect and even less power over their peers. He looked tired, the grey in his hair seemingly becoming more dominant by the day. He nodded curtly to those who were already seated, and coughed slightly to call the meeting to order,"Morning."

There was a low mumble around the table - none of these men and women were exactly at their best and brightest at two in the morning - as everyone returned the greeting. The Lord-President sipped at his cup of coffee, grimaced slightly at the taste, and then set to,"As you all no doubt aware, earlier today, we recieved a formal declaration of war from The Commonwealth of WinTrees, over the Prial dispute. As of yet, we have not responded in kind... but it is with the greatest regret that I inform you that WinTrees launched a surprise attack at the same time on the Prial system. The minefield and aceton assimilators were utilised, and it is known that at least three ships were lost. I at least, for there are other developments. However, High-Admiral Rommel is better placed than I to say this. Admiral."

"Thank you, Lord-President. Ladies and gentlemen, this is the Prial system."

The holo-projector on the central dias flickered into life, showing a highly accurate three-dimensional portrayal of the system. Also displayed were a number of shapes representing ships,"The blue ships represent all Kaymirilian assets in the system. The green represent all Snake assets, and the red is the Miehmish fleet."

Before he could continue, someone blurted out,"Miehmish? I thought we were at war with WinTrees?"

"We are. Allow me to explain."

He tapped another button, and the display changed. Certain icons vanished, and new ones appeared,"At the precise moment war was declared, a large WinTrees strike force entered the system, obviously with hostile intent. Bearing in mind, we already had hostile elements in the system on the planets surface, but more on that soon. The hostile fleet proceeded into the minefield, where they encounted significant problems with the assimilators. At least one fighter pilot was killed by radiation exposure."

There were mutterings... aceton assimilators were a necessery evil... but they still worried people. Unperturbed, Rommel pressed on,"However, before they could reach our lines, a larger Miehmish fleet emerged behind them..."

Yellow icons appeared.

"... and opened fire. The WinTrees fleet jumped out the system, and we suspect some struck mines on their way, resulting in their destruction. After that, the Miehmish..."

The icons now turned red.

"... began advancing. So far, they have not responded to our hails, but have opened comms with the Kaymirilians. Of course, we are listening in too, thanks to Diplomatic attache."

"Thank you, Admiral. You mentioned problems on the surface?"

"Yes, Lord-President. I'll allow General Ireton to address this issue."

The General, a stout man with a head of thinning hair, stood up, although he was of such a height that one could never tell the real difference. However, his voice was gruff, and he spoke with some difficulty thanks to a wound to the vocal chords he had recieved as a Captain in the Signals Corps,"Roughly thirty minutes prior to the declaration of war, we detected odd readings and sent a patrol to investigate. This patrol came under enemy fire, but was successful in defeating the ambush thanks in part to Kaymirilan mages. Checkpoints were established, but I am afraid to say that one of the enemy soliders, now identified as WinTrees Special Forces, shot and killed a Green Jacket some five minutes after the start of the war. The family is to be informed as soon as possible."

"What of this operative?"

"He was shot and killed by a Green Jacket sniper as he tried to escape."

Barbarossa nodded, and then looked around the table,"OUr course of action is thus: We are to hold the Prial system at all costs. Admiral?"

"The Second Fleet is already en route. Not only that, but I have drawn up the authorisation to reactivated the Fifth."

"Granted immediatley. What of the border?"

"Well, border defences with the Miehmish are on standby, and a combined First and Fourth task force is en route to prevent a WinTrees incursion on our borders there."

"Very good. Alright, get your departments up, and start working. It seems that once again, we are at war."

The assembled people all rose, and left to start preparing for the real war...
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Even deeped within the structure, a Corporal Fisher with the Int. Corps was sleeping on his berth, taking a break from work. Recently, much of his attention had been focused on the situation in the Prial system... he had been on duty when the war broke out. It had been he who had to inform the Lord-President... that had been nerve-wracking. Barbarossa was an imposing figure. Although he was nearing sixty, he had been a Colonial Marine, and the ethos they had placed in him had left it's mark on more than one occasion.

As he slept fitfully, the Sergeant came in and kicked the berth, enough to wake him,"Come on Phil, get up."

"Ehh... is it AM or PM?"

"AM. Very, very AM."

He groaned, and swung his legs over the side,"What's going on?"

"Who knows? But we're getting major comms traffic... we need to be working on it."
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WinTrees border
Border Outpost W45 was not heavily armed. Equipped with long range sensors, it was merely in place to watch for possible threats to Snake Eaters coming from that direction. Of course, now it had a far greater significance. With the declaration of war, it's role was now much more than just keeping an eye on things, it was as a spy for the Navy.

The outpost itself was situated on a small planet on the outskirts of the system, and generally had a crew of ten to twelve people. They had three shuttlecraft, all of which carried a small armament onboard in case of hostile attack, and also an auto-destruct, to prevent it's capture by enemy. Even now, they watched and waited, waiting for the attack that could possibly come.

Heading towards this region of space at top speed was a task force of some one hundred and fifty ships. Fifty from the First Fleet, whose primary responsibility was defending the major worlds of Snake Eaters, and another one hundred from the Third, whose remit was border patrol, much like the Fourth Fleet. It was commanded by a single BelDragos-class Command Ship, named The Flame of Leviathan, the Command-Ship for the Third Fleet, carrying Admiral Hunt. This task-force was there only to fight a rear-guard action if it needed to. Otherwise, they would patrol, they would scout, and they would prepare for the oncoming storm.

OOC: For the record, the SE Navy is organised thus:
x4 Normal Combat Fleets - 1st through 4th - 200 ships each.
x1 Long Range Recon Fleet - 150 ships, organised in detachments
x1 Support Fleet - 300+ ships, organised in detachments.

OOC: If anyone is offended by fictional racism, please do not read this post. It will not be pretty, at all.

"Highness, we're getting a comm from the Faeries. Shall I take it, or patch it directly to you?"

The blond man paused fora moment, considering..."Why would I want to talk to a darky? Accept the comm yourself."

"Yes Highness. I'll deal with the wench." The officer activates his microphone, transmitting to his Drow opposite number. "What do you want Faery? We just saved your hides, you should be thanking us, not wasting our time like this. What have you got to say for yourself, boy?"

The fleet continued to advance through the minefield, occasionally having a minor accident with the impeller wedge of a vessel brushing too close to one of the mines and ripping it apart in an unintentional display of power.
Terin's wingtips twitched in a sign of annoyance. Who the hell did these Miehmish think they were.

"Your entrance into our system is unprecedented. State your business in this system, and stand down. Your ships will not be permitted through the minefield until we have assurance that the Miehmish are not in violation of the Kaymirilian-Mini Miehm non-aggression pact."

His tone was level -- cold, even. Draconic. And like a dragon, he was not requesting the Miehmish state their business at his lair...he was demanding that information. As politely as a Kestal could.

Terin's wingtips twitched in a sign of annoyance. Who the hell did these Miehmish think they were.

"Your entrance into our system is unprecedented. State your business in this system, and stand down. Your ships will not be permitted through the minefield until we have assurance that the Miehmish are not in violation of the Kaymirilian-Mini Miehm non-aggression pact."

His tone was level -- cold, even. Draconic. And like a dragon, he was not requesting the Miehmish state their business at his lair...he was demanding that information. As politely as a Kestal could.

"Arrogant bastard he is. We just saved his ass and he makes demands..."

"Shall I reply highness?"

"Indeed."

"We came to investigtate the presence here. We discovered you undetr attack, and took action. You are not being nearly so polite as most would be in similar citrumstances."

Of all the days to have to deal with this set of pigs...and all of them racist! Great Draconic Ancestor, whomever you be, give me strength to not kill these beings on sight!

"Were your intentions to aid us, you would have broadcast your friendly intentions to us, and have stood down as soon as the WinTree threat was gone. As it is, you are in violation of the non-aggression pact signed by the Valsharess of my nation and the Darchon of yours -- an act which predates and binds your current Emperor."

Tarin shifted back in his seat a little bit so that he could have a better perspective...and when he spoke, light glinted off the draconic fangs that replaced the 'canine' teeth -- four of them, razor sharp.

"And as for 'polite,' lackey. Kind tongue breeds kind tongue. Be polite to us, and we will be polite to you. I will do you one favor, and one alone. I will warn you. The Kaymirilian Third and Fourth fleets are on their way here now to deal with the WinTree threat. But they will not hesitate to deal with the Miehmish threat, should one remain in..." here, he checked the time...and added some time on to the estimate. "Half an hour. Can your ships stand up to what our weapons can do? Or our mages, for that matter? Think wisely before you continue...and this is said to your commander, whom I know is listening in on this. You do not want to be in that seat and still a threat when our fleets come in."

Chambers swallowed... this entire situation had him nervous. Like others, he had served in the military, but that didn't mean he was fond of combat, nor of open war. Now, he left that to those who had chosen the military as their career... and he knew Vice-Admiral Prosser would not fight a battle he could not win. But he would die to defend Snake territory.

OOC: Back! That was a giant waste of time.

Grey clouds hung low over Keelth, rain pattered on the windows of the unassuming office building, rising high into the clouds.

Inside sat a greying man at a large oak desk. A large grandfather clock chimed in the corridor outside of his wood panelled office signalling midnight.

The man was Lord Karrion, he was the commanding officer of MI22, one of the departments of the military that dealt with the supernatural. He was reading through one of the many requests filed for the portable inhibitors; Wintrees chief defence against magic users… also somewhat untested.

“No, not while they’re still in the development phase, we can’t risk it,” he mumbled to his number 2, who was sat across from him.

“I fear we have little choice my Lord, the military needs these devices… They will save lives in the long run, and I fear that resent events are much more then a frontier skirmish,” said the much younger man, sipping on a cup of tea.

“How many do we have?” said Lord Karrion after a brief pause.

“Enough for the fleet, the army however… We’ll be able to equipment hardware, but not men, at least not at first.”

Lord Karrion sat silently for a moment.

“Your decision sir?” asked the number 2, pen at the ready.

“Against my better judgement, MI22 relents to these requests… deploy the inhibitors.”

-------------

At Gramby, the control room had become a mad house, about 6 fleets had liaison staff milling around, trying to get information. The situation was now under direction control of the Frontier Command, with 4 fleets deployed to or moving towards the frontier itself and 2 sat in reserve, waiting for an attack.

4 core fleets sat further back, at a secondary station called ‘Corporate’, they were the offensive element, and they were planning and re-supplying for an offensive… deep into enemy territory.

At Corporate there was a noticeable calm to the proceedings, the location which they choice to attack required several jumps and a massive refuel half way through, but it was deemed workable.

They just needed time.

OOC: Sorry guys, but I am going away for a week on an Air Cadet Leadership Course. I won't be back online until next Sunday at the very latest. Sorry once more, but I've got to go. See ya all soon.

Of all the days to have to deal with this set of pigs...and all of them racist! Great Draconic Ancestor, whomever you be, give me strength to not kill these beings on sight!

"Were your intentions to aid us, you would have broadcast your friendly intentions to us, and have stood down as soon as the WinTree threat was gone. As it is, you are in violation of the non-aggression pact signed by the Valsharess of my nation and the Darchon of yours -- an act which predates and binds your current Emperor."

Tarin shifted back in his seat a little bit so that he could have a better perspective...and when he spoke, light glinted off the draconic fangs that replaced the 'canine' teeth -- four of them, razor sharp.

"And as for 'polite,' lackey. Kind tongue breeds kind tongue. Be polite to us, and we will be polite to you. I will do you one favor, and one alone. I will warn you. The Kaymirilian Third and Fourth fleets are on their way here now to deal with the WinTree threat. But they will not hesitate to deal with the Miehmish threat, should one remain in..." here, he checked the time...and added some time on to the estimate. "Half an hour. Can your ships stand up to what our weapons can do? Or our mages, for that matter? Think wisely before you continue...and this is said to your commander, whom I know is listening in on this. You do not want to be in that seat and still a threat when our fleets come in."

"Forget this. Helmut!"

The dark haired admiral turned towards the Emperor, "Aye Highness?"

"Destroy them."

An evil look flashed across his face. "Alright then. Comms, contact the fleet. Priority of fire is as follows. Large battlecraft are targetted by Monitors, Juggernaut, and SD(p)s. Mediums are to be brought under fire by Redoubtables, Saganamis, and Crusaders. The small one is to be targetted by Light Cruisers. Destroyers and LAC complements are designated to clear the minefield. CLACs target Snake ships. Radiation levels are climbing slowly. See if we can't determine the source, and eliminate it."

A massive broadside rippled out of the fleet. Thousands of missiles in total, no more than a few hundred targetting any one ship, but still plenty of strikes. PD clusters, countermissiles, nukes, and energy weapons all ripped through the mine field surrounding the ships. An array of weapons so numerous and massive that it could simply wipe away entire portions of a planet with ease.

As the Miehmish fleet opened fire, Captain J'tal felt his blood freeze in his veins... another war! But why now? Why here?

His mind raced for only a second before his training took hold, and he became calm and collected,"All ships, Red Alert! Break formation, do whatever it takes to avoid those missiles! We must hold this system."

"What about the magickal shield?"

"Ignore it, we don't know if the Miehmish can penetrate it or not."

The three ships broke their disciplined ranks, all using their own defensive tactics. The Prometheus disengaged all three sections, in an effort to divide the missiles even further, whilst the Freza took advantage of it's slim forward profile, and the Hydra retreated, the forward torpedo launchers already loading high-yield, high-radius explosive devices, preparing to destroy anything that came close enough to any sort of damage. Shields were raised, and weapons were powered. However, in their hearts, all three captains wondered if they would ever see their homes again. But, in the style of true leadership, they showed no fear.

As the Prometheus seperated, J'tal opened a secure comm-link to the awaiting Prodigal-class,"Vice-Admiral."

"Captain."

"Sir, they've opened fire."

"We saw it as well. Stay focused... if push comes to shove, we will reveal ourselves, not before."

"What is the ETA on the second?"

"Another hour maximum. We could be slugging it out alone for a while."

"Roger that."

He signed off, gripped the arms of his command chair, and waited... time was crucial. If they could hold the Miehmish fleet up for long enough, then the Nova Cannon of the Second Fleet's Command ship could deal lethal damage to such a densely packed enemy. Little did J'tal know that Snake Eaters was not just fighting on one front, but two. Two fronts, two enemies, two different styles of warfare. Already, the fires of war were beginning to burn in the belly of Snake Eaters... that was what made them dangerous. Although they normally appeared outwardly a calm, friendly people, the military was nothing less than superb in the eyes of many, with strict training, discipline and some of the best hardware they could lay their hands on....

*Cargo Bay, SEN Prides Purge*
"Marines! The Miehmish have engaged us, and we are to prepare for open conflict. You've all worked your bollocks off to get here, and we are the best. The Colonial Marines will lead the way in this war, like we always have. Treat these Miehmish fucks like the Helghast bastards who have tried so many times to defeat us - They. Are. Vermin!"

The words of the Major standing at the front reverberated around the area, the fully-kitted Colonial Marines expressionless helmets staring back at him. There was barely half a second before there was a resounding cry of approval from everyone there, yet they stood to attention, their discipline winning out over their wish to pump their armoured fists in the air, and their rifles too. Some were carrying carbines, others repeating shotguns such as the SPAS-12, still as lethal in space as on the ground. Behind them, their assualt craft, in the form of LightningSword dropships, stood waiting for them.

"Get ready, men."

OOC: linky (http://starwars.wikia.com/images/d/d8/Clonecallouts.jpg) - what the armour of all SE Infantry units (including the Colonial Marines) looks like. The rifle is found here: Link (http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a6/SnakeEaters/Colonial%20Marines/Pulserifle.jpg)
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*WinTrees border*
Task Force Bravo (for that is what the combined fleet had now been christened) was sitting, patiently ready. Although they were the naval aspect, the Colonial Marines were on high alert, as were the Foot Guards regiement, on the nearest planet to the conflict. They, and the Crusaders, one of the best Heavy Cavalry regiements, equipped with the top-of-the-line SE-12 'Viper' MBT, which carried a 120mm railgun atop it's turret. The Air Force also had detachments stationed in the area... they would fight if they had to, but not before.

There may have only been five Kaymirilian BattleCraft, but the fashka in the area was largely untapped, and the mages assigned to the fleet were talented.

Half were assigned to defense, half to offense, and only a quarter were taking care of the shield.

As the missiles streaked in toward the ships, dozens of gravitic anomalies appeared in front of the shield and pulled many of the missiles into them, letting the others detonate against the shield...a few got through, only to be targetted by Kaymirilian weapons and shot down.

Now it was time for Kaymiril to attack.

Around the smallest ships in the Miehmish fleet, space began to fold and collapse.

This was a warning...a sample of Kaymirilian might before the fleet arrived and things really began to get ugly.

"Sir, we're detecting serious spatial distortions within the Miehmish fleet!"

"A new breed of weapon?"

"No, sir. The signal is consistent with that of the Kaymirilian Silver Class."

J'tal, still technically in command until Prosser chose to reveal himself to the Miehmish, smiled,"Ah, the Kaymirilians... magick does have it's uses, which are many and varied. Status of the incoming?"

There was a pause, before the tactical officer responded,"All gone, sir."

He looked around,"Everything?"

"Yes sir. We never fired a shot."

There was the slightest sense of unease about the bridge crew... they were not used to having someone else do all their fighting for them. The silence hung for another moment or so before the tactical officer said,"Sir, should we reconnect the three sections?"

J'tal didn't reply immediatley. He was in command of the most powerful long range tactical cruiser in the fleet, currently one-of-a-kind. And they had done nothing. He shook his head,"No... the Miemish could attack again. We'll hold until they do, or at least until they stand down."

No one argued, but secretly, most of them wanted to take the fight to the Miehmish right now. They were fast, armed, and angry. They had a powerful ship, and they wanted to show what they could do with it. But for now, they held. The Kaymirilians had their immense gratitude, as without their help, it was almost certain they would have been destroyed in the barrage, but now they wanted to show their own strength.
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ONboard Pride's Purge, Vice-Admiral Prosser looked at the Marine Commandant, a Major Stone,"Are you ready for assualt?"

"As soon as you give the order, sir."

"These dropships should get you into the Miehmish fleet?"

"All LightningSwords are stealth coated, sir. We can navigate the minefield, and launch an attack from the inside."

The admiral looked out of the windows at the small moon that could be seen hanging over the planet beneath them. He clasped his hands behind his back a moment, leaving the major standing at ease in front of his desk, and stood a moment before he looked around,"We'll wait. The distance is too great to cover alone, without any chance of support ships. We can't enter the minefield either, but we can provide fire support. We will wait until the Second Fleet arrives, and then reevaluate."

"Sir, do we know what Admiral Enefer intends to do?"

"It is my understanding he intends to lock the enemy in place, afford them no retreat, and then cut them to pieces bit by bit. Not too subtle, but about what I would expect from a former Defiant-class captain."

The slightest hint of a grin came over the Major's face,"That sounds about right to me, sir."

"Very good. Have your men stand down for the moment, but be prepared to move at a moment's notice."

"Sir."

There was an exchange of salutes, before Prosser returned to the CIC, and started, with his XO Captain Oliver, refined his own strategy.
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WinTrees - Snake Eaters border
Admiral Hunt, Commanding Officer of the Third Fleet, Snake Eater Navy, sat in his quaters. Although the war had not been going long, he was already on station, along with a task force of another 149 ships, at the border between two nations who were now at war. He also knew he was alone in this endevour, at least for the moment.

He looked down the fleet roster he had in front of him... two Leviathan-class ships, for which he was grateful, and seven Prodigal-class. The rest of the fleet consisted of normal line ships. He had already split them into Combat Groups. Twenty line ships each, with a Prodigal-class in command. The two Leviathan's would serve as more mobile command centres, and his ship, the BelDragos-class Flame of Leviathan would come into play in more major engagements. At the moment, he was in the vicinity of the 1st (TFB) Combat Group, a group which he was about to give orders to.

He tapped out the commands he wanted, and sent them to the respective captains, along with the Vice-Admiral in charge of the group. Three ships split from the group, and approached the border. Two Defiant and a Sovereign. The first cross-border patrol into WinTrees territory, testing the water. Hopefully, their prescense would not develop into a full scale rolling battle.

As they departed at low warp, probing the enemy defences, he turned his attention to other matters; requesting Kaymirilian reinforcements. He knew that, however powerful his fleet may be, there would be times it could not fight alone. And the Kaymirilians brought something to the battlefield that WinTrees and Snake Eaters could not, magick. And that was a powerful ally.

From: Admiral Hunt, Commander of Task Force Bravo.
To: The Valshanth.

I request an immediate communication with the Valsharess regarding the current situation on the Snake Eaters-WinTrees border. It is of the most urgent concern.

“No, pull back the patrol group and let them through,” said Admiral Herick into the ship-to-ship communicator, “If they advance past the 15th marker line cut them off their escape route and close in for the kill, you’ll have the carrier group in the sector providing support.”

Captain Green, who was commanding the defense of border sector 32, acknowledged the command and set his ships into action, moving them away from the probing Snake Eater ships. They weren’t go to show their hand just yet, that was for sure… and if the Snake Eater ships pushed the issue… well, they wouldn’t know what hit them.

OOC: More later.

"Sir, they are backing off."

"Range?"

"Currently half a lightyear from our current position, and increasing."

The captain of the SEN Volga laughed softly,"Trying to draw us in, thinking that they aren't powerful enough to fight three ships. Contact the others, and inform that we proceed with extreme caution. How far over the border are we?"

"Almost a lightyear."

"We go no further than two under any circumstances... this is a recon patrol, not a fighting column."

"Aye, sir."

The ships continued their advance, but their speed had lessened... like the captain had said, this was no fighting patrol. They would if they had to, but not yet... not yet.

WinTrees - Snake Eaters border
Admiral Hunt, Commanding Officer of the Third Fleet, Snake Eater Navy, sat in his quaters. Although the war had not been going long, he was already on station, along with a task force of another 149 ships, at the border between two nations who were now at war. He also knew he was alone in this endevour, at least for the moment.

He looked down the fleet roster he had in front of him... two Leviathan-class ships, for which he was grateful, and seven Prodigal-class. The rest of the fleet consisted of normal line ships. He had already split them into Combat Groups. Twenty line ships each, with a Prodigal-class in command. The two Leviathan's would serve as more mobile command centres, and his ship, the BelDragos-class Flame of Leviathan would come into play in more major engagements. At the moment, he was in the vicinity of the 1st (TFB) Combat Group, a group which he was about to give orders to.

He tapped out the commands he wanted, and sent them to the respective captains, along with the Vice-Admiral in charge of the group. Three ships split from the group, and approached the border. Two Defiant and a Sovereign. The first cross-border patrol into WinTrees territory, testing the water. Hopefully, their prescense would not develop into a full scale rolling battle.

As they departed at low warp, probing the enemy defences, he turned his attention to other matters; requesting Kaymirilian reinforcements. He knew that, however powerful his fleet may be, there would be times it could not fight alone. And the Kaymirilians brought something to the battlefield that WinTrees and Snake Eaters could not, magick. And that was a powerful ally.

From: Admiral Hunt, Commander of Task Force Bravo.
To: The Valshanth.

I request an immediate communication with the Valsharess regarding the current situation on the Snake Eaters-WinTrees border. It is of the most urgent concern.
Not ten hours later, a message came through for Admiral Hunt, the Valsharess on the other end of the line.

Hunt was sleeping when the message came through, and was disturbed by his combadge bleeping at him. He rolled over, and tapped it,"Hunt here."

"Sorry to disturb you, sir, but there's a priority signal coming through. Kaymirilian in origin."

Hunt recognised the voice as that of Jenkins, the night duty operations officer in the CIC,"Patch it through to my quaters, Jenkins."

"Yessir."

The comm ended, and the Admiral got up, stretched, before wrapping a robe around his six foot five frame, and going over to his desk. He sat down, yawned slightly, and then tapped the panel on the desk, bringing up a holographic screen. The soft voice of the computer came at him,Identify

"Hunt, Omega Alpha Five One."

Confirmed

The message opened, and he bowed his head slightly,"Your Highness. Thank you for speaking to me personally."

The Kaymirilian ruler's features were cooly professional, different from when she was among friends, but normal for dealing with almost anyone else.

"I apologise if I have woken you, Admiral, but I only just got your request to speak with me."

"It's no trouble. I expected at least twenty four hours... it would have taken longer had I gone through the proper channels, but it is my belief we do not have that time avaliable to us, given the current situation."

"What is the situation exactly, Admiral?"

"I am currently in command of a task force of one hundred and fifty ships on the WinTrees border. It is a quite extensive area for ships to cover, and as an entire fleet is en route to the Prial system, the chances of reinforcements are minimal for some time. I therefore request some Kaymirilian ships to bolster our strength. It wouldn't have to be many, but I would feel more secure in this endevour if it could be arranged."

The Valsharess looked at a document before answering, thinking.

"I have twenty ships I can send under Captain Zantai d' Drasdera. He will be there in three days at a minimum. I will contact Barbarossa and let him know to expect them, and for what purpose."

"I feel certain that I will hear from him on the matter, but it is of little consequence... I feel sure he'll agree on my course of action. I thank you for commiting forces to this front, your Highness."

"No war is fought on one front, Admiral, and if Snake Eaters is jeaopardized, so is Kaymiril. Now, I will allow you to return to sleep you will doubtless need."

"My most sincere thanks from myself and those under my command."

"Xal jal alu al xuil dos."

With that, the Valsharess closed the connection, and contacted Barbarossa to inform him of the forces she was sending.

Hunt leaned back in his chair, and looked at the clock. It read 0328, Ship Time. He yawned again, and went back to bed, now sleeping much better with the knowledge that Kaymirilians, with their powerful magickal attacks and BattleCraft, were on their way. It may turn out they wouldn't be needed... but safer to have the assets, and not use them in battle, then to not have them, and require them urgently. Not only that, but it would help foster further relations between the two powers... they already went on military exercises together, but they had not fought alongside another in a war on such scale until now.

There may have only been five Kaymirilian BattleCraft, but the fashka in the area was largely untapped, and the mages assigned to the fleet were talented.

Half were assigned to defense, half to offense, and only a quarter were taking care of the shield.

As the missiles streaked in toward the ships, dozens of gravitic anomalies appeared in front of the shield and pulled many of the missiles into them, letting the others detonate against the shield...a few got through, only to be targetted by Kaymirilian weapons and shot down.

Now it was time for Kaymiril to attack.

Around the smallest ships in the Miehmish fleet, space began to fold and collapse.

This was a warning...a sample of Kaymirilian might before the fleet arrived and things really began to get ugly.

"Sir, they're attacking our screen. Impeller nodes are overloading rapidly due to some form of gravitic assault. It seems to outstrip them by orders of magnitude."

The aged Admiral didn't even blink. "It doesn't matter, so long as we have our throw-weight, we can win this. They're going to want to destroy our ships before we can get into energy range, so we're going to pull a fast one. Prepare the fleet for a microjump, as close to the Kaymirilians as you can get us."

The entire flag bridge blanched, it'd be down to the massive beam weapons of the ships then, and that would not be pleasant, for either side. But, they were well trained, and they followed their orders. They hadn't even had time to put out another salvo of missiles before the first was swatted down. Solution? Roll alot more pods, clamp them to their hulls, and simply jump a little closer. Large portions of the Destroyer screen were twisted hulks by this point. At least, those portions of it that hadn't simply been wiped away by the attack. The remainbder of the fleet was shaken by the sheer destruction wreaked by a single strike, but they were loyal, and they were hardened.

The fleet disappeared. Less than a second later it reappeared, approximately thirty thousand kilometers closer to the Kaymirilian ships, and moving much more slowly. The price any commander paid for Tactical FTL capability.

Now the ships were in much better range. Close enough that flight time on their missiles had dropped below 2 seconds, and they were finally within effective beam range. That meant things would become...unpleasant. Massicve gun batteries unleashed their fury, grasers with the ability to obliterate cities, xasers with the accuracy to swat fighters from the void, energy torpedoes, nothing more than barely contained balls of plasma, and another volley of missiles. The hail was thinner this time. There were no LACs to back it up, and there were fewer ships in ther screen, but the results still hammered out with a deadly rythym, one shot every 17 seconds at max rate, and even faster on the energy weapons. Hopefully such concentrated firepower would have some affect. They needed to end this, and end it swiftly...before they realized trhat ships of the wall were just as vulnerable as the screen. And much more dangerous.