NationStates Jolt Archive

OOC: Telros, if you'd care to have a representative at this meeting, you're more than welcome to. The Keluaun make a keen argument for this agreement to go ahead, just by their history with the Realm.

IC: They were waiting. The meeting had been arranged only a little while ago, but, it had been simple enough to arrange nonetheless. A meeting with the Greal Empire. In the same vein as those arranged with Kostemetsia, and the agreements with the Keluaun, the Realm sought to further its influence in the galaxy. Of course, such furthering did not come without benefits for those nations who aided it.

The battleplate Fourteenth Terminal hung in the unoccupied system, orbiting the gas giant in-system. Perhaps it could've been mistaken for a tiny moon, or a large asteroid, had it not shone so brightly. The energy it produced flooded out into the stars, and, while little of it was visible light, it was unmistakeable once one began using even the weakest of passive sensors.

Admiral-Commander Juinith waited, her foot tapping the floor impatient.

"Why a battleplate?"

The ship's AI responded. "At present, the Greali are engaged in a serious war with the Imitators. While we have watched, we have not deigned to interfere. If we do not openly display our military strength, they may merely see us as another minor race among the stars. This agreement is as reliant on the strength of our arms as it is on the strength of our diplomacy."

"Ugh. I loathe how literal you can be, Terminal. I know. It just irritates me that we're using our ships to impress. We could be off conquering someone, somewhere, had we but an enemy."

She sighed, and, as she did, the sensors blinked.

"Ah. They're here. Good. Let them dock, and lead them into the... fourth negotiation room. No need to be stingy."

(You can RP your entry into the system, Greal, and onto the battleplate, and through to into the negotiation room, if you'd like. The ten or so customary posts that are generally required just to get someone to to the point of shaking hands tire me, to be honest.)

Tag for a post when I have the time to write one up, so yes I will be coming here.

There was a blue flash, then a large Striker Class battleship, the Meklon, appeared, then it approached the battleplate slowly. It was dispatched from the Home Fleet to carry the diplomat, Herum Tullin, to the battleplate. Herum, unlike most of the crewmembers of the battleship, was a human, his guards were mostly Techars, and the Admiral accompanying him was a Techar, or to other people, a massive insect.

Herum waited patiently for the battleship to dock with the battleplate, the battleship or course looked like a bug compared to the battleplate looming around the system. The battleship asked for permission to dock with the battleplate, then after that was accepted, the battleship moved closer, then halted and a “tube” connected with the battleplate. Herum and his 2 guards, plus the admiral entered the massive ship. He looked at his instructions, and he looked for the “fourth negotiation room”.

"Fascinating. Insectoid. We knew that, of course. Nevertheless, I find it somewhat curious."

"I imagine you do, Admiral. Now. If you'd excuse me, I have some negotiations to run."

The "fourth negotiation room" was a grand place, the vaulted ceiling standing almost twelve metres high. The entire room was sheathed in glittering crystal, and the table in the middle of the room was a massive slab of diamond, with niches carved out underneath for human legs. Each room for negotiation had a purpose, and the purpose of the fourth was to impress. Frescoes were carved in multicoloured jewels along the near-translucent walls,

As Herum entered the room, a chair, seemingly on its own, left the table, as if inviting him to sit.

You can sit, if you'd like.

After a moment, a person flickered into view. Merely a hard light hologram of the ship's AI, it nodded politely to him, pulled out a chair of its own, and sat.

"Fascinating. Insectoid. We knew that, of course. Nevertheless, I find it somewhat curious."

"I imagine you do, Admiral. Now. If you'd excuse me, I have some negotiations to run."

The "fourth negotiation room" was a grand place, the vaulted ceiling standing almost twelve metres high. The entire room was sheathed in glittering crystal, and the table in the middle of the room was a massive slab of diamond, with niches carved out underneath for human legs. Each room for negotiation had a purpose, and the purpose of the fourth was to impress. Frescoes were carved in multicoloured jewels along the near-translucent walls,

As Herum entered the room, a chair, seemingly on its own, left the table, as if inviting him to sit.

You can sit, if you'd like.

After a moment, a person flickered into view. Merely a hard light hologram of the ship's AI, it nodded politely to him, pulled out a chair of its own, and sat.

Herum and the Admiral took their seats. Their guards waited outside the "conference room". Herum enjoyed the seat, while the Admiral's seat gave him a little trouble. Normally a Techar would stand.

"Shall we begin? I'm Herum Tullin, and this is Rear Admiral Mable Yurt."

"Oh, awfully sorry. That was inconsiderate of me."

Terminal inclined his head towards the admiral in a conciliatory manner, and then it happened.

The admiral's seat twisted, moving to accomodate his form. For a moment, one could almost see the superconducting coil that converted the heat from this operation, and left the seat an enjoyable temperature. After a few moments, it fit comfortably to his frame. It still looked as if the diamond had been cut from the rock it had never occupied.

"I am the resident AI of the Fourteenth Terminal. Call me Terminal, if you'd be so good. I have been assigned to negotiate with you today. I assumed that you'd be easier conversing with someone who had a good grasp of both Techar and human nuances."

He smiled.

"Now. I am here to negotiate your inclusion into what we depreciatingly call the Realm sphere of influence. This, generally speaking, involves a synchronization of foreign policy when it comes to war and peace, a military pact to complement that, access and usage of the Realm's unified battlenet, and technological and industrial aid - from us, of course. That is, though, only the most basic of pictures. If you have any concerns, or perhaps counter-offers, I'd be most willing to hear them."

"Oh, awfully sorry. That was inconsiderate of me."

Terminal inclined his head towards the admiral in a conciliatory manner, and then it happened.

The admiral's seat twisted, moving to accomodate his form. For a moment, one could almost see the superconducting coil that converted the heat from this operation, and left the seat an enjoyable temperature. After a few moments, it fit comfortably to his frame. It still looked as if the diamond had been cut from the rock it had never occupied.

"I am the resident AI of the Fourteenth Terminal. Call me Terminal, if you'd be so good. I have been assigned to negotiate with you today. I assumed that you'd be easier conversing with someone who had a good grasp of both Techar and human nuances."

He smiled.

"Now. I am here to negotiate your inclusion into what we depreciatingly call the Realm sphere of influence. This, generally speaking, involves a synchronization of foreign policy when it comes to war and peace, a military pact to complement that, access and usage of the Realm's unified battlenet, and technological and industrial aid - from us, of course. That is, though, only the most basic of pictures. If you have any concerns, or perhaps counter-offers, I'd be most willing to hear them."

Mable and Herum listened to Terminal's statement, Herum looked at Mable, and Mable nodded.

"Well, that sounds very reasonable to us. Now, as you already know, we are at war with a species called the Imitators. They have invaded our planets, and we drove them away and took the war to their planets, but they still managed to avoid us and attack our colonies. We are wondering if one of your "ships" would like to join us in an offensive to end the war." said Herum very nervously.

As the meeting between Greal and the Realm began, a flicker in space gave warning to Terminal about a new arrival, but the signature coming from the flicker would show that it was an ally, a Kelauan Jump Point. It quickly resolved itself and the appearance of a Shield-class Light Cruiser (http://www.classic-space.com/plugins/autogallery/Gallery/BigShips/concept_Vfrigate.jpg), the KDS Triumphant signaled their arrival. Warcaptain K'shar stood on the bridge of the Triumphant as he gazed out at the battleplate and the docked Greal battlecruiser. The pad next to him shimmered red as his A.I. appeared. Remus was his personal artificial intelligence, and it had chosen to take the form of a Warbringer, covered in blood and wielding a wicked looking sword. Remus liked war, had been one of the many A.I. who developed a taste for it, and had been assigned to a ship that has seen a lot of action. Now, he was to attend a diplomatic meeting; he'd normally be unhappy about such frivolous things, but it was a meeting to add to the strength of the Travellian Empire, and that was a cause he could get on board on.

"Warcaptain, we have arrived at our destination. Shall I open a channel to the battleplate?"

<"Please do, Remus. I'd like to get this started. I have a feeling we will benefit from this more than we can imagine."> A message was prepared and a channel was opened to the battleplate.

"Greetings to the Realm. This is Remus, A.I. of the Light Cruiser Triumphant. I ask for permission to dock and sending a party aboard to represent the Kelauan Dominion in these talks."

Terminal smiled. "While I myself am unavailable, with the end of the Fleetmind War, I believe the Victorian Architecture would be more than willing to aid you in her war. As the Keluaun could attest, she is quite adept at destroying any enemy put in her way. The Victoria is a superfortress, another class of supercapital ship. She's about a quarter my size - that is to say, around five hundred times larger than your average capital ship."

- - - - -

The Keluaun were brought onboard more quickly than they perhaps had thought possible. Instead of walking to their destination, they were shuttled inside the ship, within mere seconds. They were met with a perfunctorary nod, and, as they were swept over to the negotiation room, the gravitics of the ship reached out, tugging at their clothing, ensuring that anything mussed during the seconds of transit was not at all perturbed.

The door slid open, revealing Terminal and the Greali diplomats talking. Terminal nodded gravely towards them, and two Keluaun-sized seats slid out on the opposite side of the table.

"Please, Keluaun allies. Sit."

Terminal grinned, and opened up the room's holographic systems to Remus.

Hello, old chap. If you'd care to build yourself a scary-looking hard-light 'gram, feel free. It's always nice to have friends in your meetings.

K'shar and Remus boarded in short order, and Remus was delighted to find he could take some kind of physical form within the systems of the battleplate, he turned and bowed slightly to Terminal in the system. "Thank you, I thought you might need a little muscle to show off the benefits of this alliance to our new friends. And indeed it is nice to have friends in meetings. Now, let's see...ah here we go..." The hologram shifted and the massive form of Remus, the same size as a Warbringer, seven or eight feet tall, wearing large, blood-covered armor, and holding a blade that was covered in blood, dripping. He glanced down and waved a hand, the blood vanishing. "My apologies, its an effect that I like, so I had it on."

As this was going on, K'shar came forward, bowing to Terminal and nodding at the Greal diplomat, before sitting down. While not a Warbringer, he was still somewhat large and armored due to his time in the Legions of the Kelauan Marines. <"I hope I did not interrupt anything; I was merely invited to represent the Dominion in these negotiations."> He turned to Terminal. <"Oh, by the way, the Praetor has agreed to the worldmind enhancement you mentioned in one of your earlier messages. He told me to pass that along to you as well.">

Terminal smiled. "While I myself am unavailable, with the end of the Fleetmind War, I believe the Victorian Architecture would be more than willing to aid you in her war. As the Keluaun could attest, she is quite adept at destroying any enemy put in her way. The Victoria is a superfortress, another class of supercapital ship. She's about a quarter my size - that is to say, around five hundred times larger than your average capital ship."



Herum, was trying to wonder how big was 500 times te Greal average capital ship, around 1.5 million meters long he estimated.

"We thank you for that, surely the Imitators can not stand up to that. Now, we have another thing to mention, we are currently designing a massive ship, that is classified as a "small superfortress", we are wondering if your Relam would like to send some scientists to help Greal construct the small superfortress. We can offer anything in exchange."

OOC: Just a note, and a lot of people miss this, but 500 times is in mass, not in length. For instance, a 2 km ship isn't twice as big as a 1 km, it's 8 times as big. The ship you detailed wouldn't be 500 times bigger than a 1 km ship, it'd be 3,375,000 times bigger.

IC: "If you so desire, we might aid you in the construction of such a capital ship. While it would be an expensive undertaking, the grand Foundry of the Realm in Hypatia could be, for a short time, fitted for your use, so that we might construct the frame for you, and let you fit the systems yourself."

A brief pause, and Terminal gestured. "These, by the way, are the Keluaun, the first among our allies and friends. They were the first to receive our aid - if you have any questions about us, yet feel, perhaps, we would not answer fairly, ask them."

OOC: Just a note, and a lot of people miss this, but 500 times is in mass, not in length. For instance, a 2 km ship isn't twice as big as a 1 km, it's 8 times as big. The ship you detailed wouldn't be 500 times bigger than a 1 km ship, it'd be 3,375,000 times bigger.

IC: "If you so desire, we might aid you in the construction of such a capital ship. While it would be an expensive undertaking, the grand Foundry of the Realm in Hypatia could be, for a short time, fitted for your use, so that we might construct the frame for you, and let you fit the systems yourself."

A brief pause, and Terminal gestured. "These, by the way, are the Keluaun, the first among our allies and friends. They were the first to receive our aid - if you have any questions about us, yet feel, perhaps, we would not answer fairly, ask them."

OOC: Oh, I see, well, how long would one of your superfortresses be? This is a picture of what my small super fortress (http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/ff41/838millionman/Dreadnought.jpg?t=1207292914) would look like.


"Thank, we have already completed the design I think, but none of our factories or shipbuilding yards are big enough to build what we are suggesting. So, now we have to wait for the new shipbuilding factory to be completed. May your Relam build the frame first like you suggested, and let us add the systems (And weapons)." said Herum

Herum and the Admiral nodded at the Keluauns.

OOC: Superfortresses, or at least the Domestikos-class, measure about eight kilometres in length (admittedly, about the same in height and breadth) and about the same all around. Like most Realm ships, they're big, bulky, and not at all aesthetically pleasant.

IC: "Of course. The Foundry has been idle for almost a day now - our engineers will enjoy a smaller project. It should be complete within a matter of.. well, it depends on the size of the ship, and the strength of the hull, really. Battleplate-level materials aren't easy to come by, even in times of peace."

A sigh. "Now, is this agreement palatable to your people? For, if it is, we may dispatch the Victorian Architecture immediately."

"We will send whatever materials we can find. We do use a type of crystal that powers our ships. Of course, it would take lots of crystals to power the ship we are looking to build." said the Admiral, before he listened to Terminal's other sentence.

"Yes, it is agreeable, I represent the President/Emperor of the Greal Empire, and he wishes this to be signed. We hope it will benefit the Relam and Greal." said Herum.

"Crystals? Odd."

The distaste was almost evident on Terminal's face. The ineffiencies would be enormous. Ah, well.

"I would not worry about materials. Though your hull shape is somewhat odd, we will do our best to construct it using the best super-tensile solids we can create. Now. At present, the Victorian Architecture has been contacted. She'll refill her annihilation plants, and then she'll be on her way to the Imitator conflict. Depending on how busy the refueling yards are, it could be anywhere from a few hours to a few days before she arrives."

"Crystals? Odd."

The distaste was almost evident on Terminal's face. The ineffiencies would be enormous. Ah, well.

"I would not worry about materials. Though your hull shape is somewhat odd, we will do our best to construct it using the best super-tensile solids we can create. Now. At present, the Victorian Architecture has been contacted. She'll refill her annihilation plants, and then she'll be on her way to the Imitator conflict. Depending on how busy the refueling yards are, it could be anywhere from a few hours to a few days before she arrives."

"That is alright."

"As for the crystals, we mine them on one of our planets, and make them more powerful, so a couple of crystals could easily power a capital ship, but only for a few days, before replacing them."

OOC: What type of fuel do you use to power ships?

OOC: Antimatter-matter annihilation plants. Nothin' but pure sweet energah.

IC: "Well, then. It is settled. Do you require a signed document, or will the recording of this conference suffice?"

OOC: Antimatter-matter annihilation plants. Nothin' but pure sweet energah.

IC: "Well, then. It is settled. Do you require a signed document, or will the recording of this conference suffice?"

"Probably a signed document would do, it would satisfy our President." said Herum. The Admiral disliked the President and it could be seen on his face.

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

Meanwhile, the battleship prepared for leaving, it replaced the old crystals, Shields were ready. Lasers and their weapons though were off. The Admiral had no intention of preparing his weapons until it left the system, then it would ready its weapons and head back to the Imitator war.

Paper was produced, as was a pen. As Terminal signed, a silvery thread emerged from the pen, a complex series of symbols and codes that made up his name.

"That is a living link to the worldmind. At any time, you may find our commitment to the treaty reaffirmed, merely by touching it. You will be able to communicate in a rudimentary manner with the worldmind, and will be able to feel its opinion and continued affirmation of the treaty. Now, you may take this with you, and procure whatever signatures that are necessary."

Terminal handed the document to Herum. As he did, the hard-light hologram dissipated, leaving a room with only the Keluaun and the Greali in it.

I apologize, Remus. I honestly thought it was going to take a little more than that. If you'd care to jump with us back to the edge of the Realm, I wouldn't mind playing a simulation of the Fleetmind War with you. Interested?

Paper was produced, as was a pen. As Terminal signed, a silvery thread emerged from the pen, a complex series of symbols and codes that made up his name.

"That is a living link to the worldmind. At any time, you may find our commitment to the treaty reaffirmed, merely by touching it. You will be able to communicate in a rudimentary manner with the worldmind, and will be able to feel its opinion and continued affirmation of the treaty. Now, you may take this with you, and procure whatever signatures that are necessary."

Terminal handed the document to Herum. As he did, the hard-light hologram dissipated, leaving a room with only the Keluaun and the Greali in it.

I apologize, Remus. I honestly thought it was going to take a little more than that. If you'd care to jump with us back to the edge of the Realm, I wouldn't mind playing a simulation of the Fleetmind War with you. Interested?

Herum took the document, he estimated it would take a couple of days to get this document to the president, and get it back, but it was worth it.

"We will be back in 100 hours." said Herum to himself, then he and the Techar admiral left the room and went back to the ship.

OOC: Do I bring back the signed document back to the Relam?

OOC: No, keep it.

The Kelauans, both A.I. and Warcaptain, nodded at the Admiral and Herum, before returning to their impassive state of before. The Praetor had given express instructions for them to be quiet and simply be eye candy. Vicious candy that showed the might of the Travellian Empire. Remus shifted slightly, so slight only Terminal would notice when the Greal representatives mentioned that they powered ships by crystals. He, too, felt that it was quite an inefficient and strange method to power ships by crystals, but he said nothing. He watched as they signed the document, and both Kelauan's smiled at this. Another brick in the wall, another sword for the Realm to wield. Another ally in all their wars. The Empire was getting stronger and stronger, soon enough it would be able to enter the galactic stage and make its name known....if the Realm felt the urge to do so. If it didn't, the Dominon would not care. They would follow them wherever they went.


"I apologize, Remus. I honestly thought it was going to take a little more than that. If you'd care to jump with us back to the edge of the Realm, I wouldn't mind playing a simulation of the Fleetmind War with you. Interested?"

Remus smiled. "Of course, Terminal. Hold on." He activated the link with K'shar, who moved slightly as he sensed it.

<"What is it, Remus?">

"Terminal has asked that if we don't mind to jump to the edge of Realm space, we could play a simulation of the Fleetmind Wars."

K'shar smiled."Tell him yes. I would like to revisit that conflict myself, the first major conflict that the Dominon survived after the Great War."

"Of course, Warcaptain."

Remus turned back and nodded to Terminal."It would be an honor, my friend."


OOC: Sorry, I was gone for two days.

Holographic displays opened up to the views of everyone onboard the battleplate. While not an actual combat per se, it was still exciting. Terminal waited for a moment, and then picked the Fleetmind. An advanced simulator, on one hand, you played a military leader trying desperately to gain political favour from other allied nations, so that you could expand your fleet. The alliance side was tougher, some said, because, even though you had far more resources to use, you couldn't use them all before all hell broke loose.

On the other hand, the Fleetmind had to do as much damage as possible while staying hidden and building up. Kara's forces had lots of strengths, but her overall resources were nothing compared to that of the alliance. Her strengths lay in a different area, and, while her ships had many advantages, numerical superiority was not one of them.

It was strange, how one could be so blasé about a conflict that had claimed so very many lives, yet, Terminal reflected, it was probably the only way to really defeat the enemies. The ones that could live in your head, not just the ones that could shoot you.

Of course, the battleplate was always needed somewhere. While they were magnificent combat vessels, they were also often contracted for massive cargo-hauling jobs, or, alternatively, colonization jobs. In peacetime, they needed to somehow pay for themselves, and colonies who could afford the millicredit-per-minute fees could suddenly find themselves equipped with a decade's worth of supplies.

It was a surprise, though, when Vicky's avatar popped up to talk to him.

<<Sorry, sweetie. You got a cargo run.>>

<A cargo run? I didn't know anybody could afford to hire us anymore!>

<<Oh, they can't. However, you've heard about the gate project in Hypatia? Linking us to the Keluaun and whatnot?>>

<Yeeesss...?>

<<Yeah, well, as you know, it's cheaper to build stuff in-system. However, since it is an investment of over three trillion pounds, which is, incidentally, almost a full tenth of your cost, they want something that will make sure it makes it to its destination. Any old saboteur could ruin a trading link that almost fifty companies have been founded on. If even one of these gates fails, it could trigger one hell of a recession.>>

<Fine. I was going to play Fleetmind War. With Remus.>

<<Oh, don't get snippy. You know as well as I do you can just hijack a few petabits of quantum link to play in your off-hours.>>

<But->

<<Now, Terminal. I'm in the middle of conducting an offensive action against an Imitator colony here! How do you think I feel? I wanted Watcher or someone else to speak to you, but no, no, I get through to you best. Be a good boy and I'll program in a Maker-Mind routine for Fleetmind War when you get back.>>

<Promise?>

<Promise.>

Terminal sighed. All through the ship, air was drawn in and out rapidly, showing his distaste for the new assignment to the entire crew. He had been built to less exacting specifications, gaining more emotional range than other supercapital ships in return for an odd temperament. He had been built during the Fleetmind War, and so had been specifically designed to be unsubornable above all else.

Sorry, Remus. Cargo run. I'm taking out the worldgate to your people. Apparently this trillion-pound tradelink is worth more than a game of Fleetmind War. If I see you again, I'll play you.

With that, the battleplate evaporated, jumping into Hypatia's orbit, ready to take the worldgate away at a moment's notice.