NationStates Jolt Archive

OOC: Since the thread created by Steppe Empire (LINK (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=555233)) is becoming too cluttered and the events that will take place within this one are different, CW and myself agreed to make this a separate thread. If you are a part of that RP and have reason to get involved, then please notify both CW and myself. Thank you.

IC:

Rally Point | Outside Ryloth System

The looming shape of the Super Star Destroyer Olympus hung in dead space. The ships under Grand Admiral Thrawn's control sat around their flagship in formation, waiting. It was the long quiet before the storm of combat. Each ship was going through preparations and quick simulations for the coming battle. Grand Admiral Thrawn himself sat inside his private command chamber, the walls and ceiling covered in projections and holo-images of Coredian art. His eyelids were nearly closed, his eyes barely slits of red.

Commander Steele entered the chamber through the sliding door and came to silent attention in front of Thrawn. All officers aboard the Olympus knew better than to disturb the admiral when he was concentrating, and especially when he was in his chambers observing and studying his art collections. It was one of his hobbies and command styles, or so the rumor went.

"Are the final preparations complete Commander?" Thrawn's modulated voice finally spoke up.

"Yes sir. The last of the crates have been put into position. All data relays have been connected and the engineers are making a few finals checks. It should be ready for launch within half an hour," Steele reported.

"Good...," Thrawn smiled, a rare thing. He opened his eyes fully and leaned up a bit in his chair. "Launch the probes."

"Yes sir, admiral."


Ryloth

Dozens of cloaked Imperial probe droids half the size of a star fighter entered the Ryloth system out of hyperspace. Their cloaking devices afforded them all the peace of quiet they needed as passive sensors swept the system to determine all of the Rebel forces in the area.

There were about fifty-five Coredian ships in the system, silently orbiting the planet. The Star Destroyers were clearly designed to counter overwhelming numbers in the way their shields and weapons were laid out. It is said that the Defender class can destroy two ISDs and cripple another before it goes down, but they have yet to be truly tested.

The Elites and the Immortal escorts are the true nightmares of any Imperial force. They were designed from the outset to conquer Super-class Star Destroyers and similar command ships. Even though they were less than half the size of such behemoths, they were literally packed with every weapon the Coredians (and Woodians, for the Immortals) have gotten their hands on, capable of carving their way through Imperial fleets like knives through butter.

And that was just the Fifth Fleet.

The Third Fleet was something else. While due to the agreement made with the Balroggans Admiral Achilles can't attack Balrogga's allies, it is equally likely that the allies can't attack Balroggan ships, including the Kythonized 3rd Fleet. And if they do, Achilles knew that Shipmind would seek all options, including escape before having to retaliate and/or kill him and his crew and then join the enemy. Knowing full well that this was a liability, the Admiral would be forced to work within those parameters to try and bridge his country's interests with that of the Balroggans. An impossible task, to be sure.

Not that he knows for sure when the Imperials are going to attack, but he would be damned if he didn't suspect they're making plans right now to attack Ryloth. Oh well.

And then there was the final fleet, a five-ship task force surrounding the Battlestar Konoha, youngest sister ship to the Coredia and the Juria. It was as powerful as an Elite, but operated more like an independent battle-carrier than a command ship. Still it too was a force to be reckoned with.

There was enough firepower in this system to destroy a Super Star Destroyer's fleet, perhaps even two of the behemoths. Thrawn would have to pull a rabbit out of his ass to overcome the Coredian fleet's surprisingly quality ships. And that's not even counting the allies...

OOC: GDI and ND are also in the system. They should be posting anytime now.

Geonosis

Admiral Vincent Veers sat uncomfortably in his command chair aboard his flagship, the Super Star Destroyer Avalon. Around him the bridge crew were working in a subdued quiet, aware that their commanding officer was upset. Not that their silence did anything to help his mood, simply making him more irritated that they knew everything that was on his mind. Vincent chewed his inner cheek for a moment, thinking about the campaign to come.

Grand Admiral Thrawn had come up with an ingenious plan for wiping the Rebellion out of the galaxy for good. The Emperor Kushrenada had immediately agreed to initiate the plan, authorizing Thrawn with all powers and resources needed. Stockpiles of Thrashian weapons and resources that had been growing for the past decade during a lull in peace were brought into use, communication systems left alone during peace brought online, and Section 3, always vigilant, increased their efforts at gathering intelligence on the enemy. Veers, along with the other members of the Admiralty, had been briefed by Thrawn on how they would proceed. Their first major target being Ryloth.

The more Veers thought about it the more he grew irritated. He and his men had been chosen for baby-sitting instead of being given marching orders for Ryloth. It was a disgrace. For a member of the vaunted Veers family that had served the Galactic Empire and then the Thrashian Empire for generations to not be utilized for the biggest military campaign since the Battle of Jurai, it was an insult. But Veers had just swallowed his pride and gone on with things. He was still brooding for a moment when suddenly his adjutant appeared at his shoulder.

"Admiral, we've just received this communique from Admiral Thrawn. It's a recording, so it must have been prepared in advance of the operation," Captain Taal reported. Veers took the proffered holo disk from the junior officer and looked at it. In case it contained something important, it was best not to look at it here.

Veers got up from his seat. "Captain I will be in my quarters, the bridge is yours."

"Yes sir, admiral." Captain Taal saluted as Veers turned and walked off the bridge and over to his personal grav tube. It took him directly from the bridge level deck to his private suite four decks down. He passed by two naval stormtroopers who stood guard outside the door, and stepped into his private chamber. Inside the floor was carpeted with a thick, red rug of Coruscanti make. Plants and various ferns and famous flowers sat in delicate vases around the chamber. A thick nalwood desk with a plush leather chair sitting behind it was at the far side.

Veers sat down at the desk and pressed a few buttons on a command console. A small holo projector popped up from a trap door in the desk. Veers slid the holo disk into the holding catch and pressed the activation key. A small turbine whined in a small whisper as the machine came to life. The image was fuzzy for a moment, then a one-quarter size figure of Grand Admiral Thrawn appeared. Even in holographic form the Grand Admiral was intimidating.

"Greetings Admiral Veers," the holo-modulated voice of Admiral Thrawn said. "I must apologize in advance for seeming to have side-line you from front line duty in Ryloth. The reason I am telling you this via secure currier is that I did not want to transmission intercepted by anyone."

Suddenly Thrawn disappeared to be replaced by a miniature version of the galactic map that Veers had in his office behind him. Thrawn was still speaking. "As you know I am going to Ryloth to defeat the Rebels and return the system to the Imperial fold. What you do not know is that that is not our only plan. As I speak no doubt you will begin being given reports by your adjutant of more ships coming in system, more of our ships. They have packaged orders like this holo disk with them, and were briefed before we left Thrashian space. They are yours to command. Now let me continue. You will strike..."

Half an hour later Veers stepped back onto the bridge. The crew were even more busy than before, communication officers switching from channel to channel, operating as quickly as possible. As he sat down and took a look at the ComScan window he saw that hundreds of contacts had been registered. Transponders identifying them as Imperial and Thrashian. Captain Taal stepped over to Veers.

"Admiral, it seems that we've-"

"I know," Veers cut him off. "Admiral Thrawn's message contained everything. Begin preparations for immediate jump into hyperspace and bring us to alert level 3, we'll move to combat stations during transit. Have Commander Speer aboard the Epion informed of our imminent departure."

"Sir?"

Veers turned and smiled wolfishly at his captain. "We've got a Rebellion to catch."

OOC: Post Edited. Be aware I do have steady employment with odd hours now, especially on Thursdays and Fridays. So it might get wierd. As for the composition of each Battlegroup, which makes a Battlefleet--

1 Mao Zedong Mark IV Battleship (the flagship that forms the name of the
battlegroup. Each Mao is lovingly named after an AC/DC song, as my allies are well aware of.)
50 Mao Zedong Mark IIIa Pocket Battleships (they've been reduced to the status since their 10 km cousins came out)
10 Prochkhorovka II Refit Fleet Carriers, with Marinesko II fighters and Komsomol III fighter bombers.
40 Lin Biao II Heavy Cruisers
400 Drone Ships (they're expendable, so I can use lots of these)

IC:

The probes sent to Ryloth would pick up a formidable force fielded by the New Dornalians. Commodore Patel, one of the two Commodores sent to assist the Coredians against the Hyperborian invasion which now seemed to slow up and peeter out, had arrived with a full Battlefleet under the overall command of the other, one Commodore Leona MacDougal. The name wouldn't mean much to the Thrashians, but to the Dornalians the Commodore was legendary for her drunkenness, lewd behavior and her "pussywhipping" of her Political Officer. She was busy with her unit at Melinda/Daan, leaving Patel--the more straitlaced of the two--to hold the fort here with the Coredians.

The Mao Zedongs, the Mark IV Battleship and the Mark IIIa Pocket Battleships (pocket being apt due to the seeming wimpiness of their 3km size versus the monsters that existed nowadays), were certainly going to be known to the Thrashians, the GE having faced the latter frequently and the Mark IV being somewhat of an anomaly. Dornalians being protective about their fuckall ships, they hid as much info about the Mao IV as possible through classifying stuff and vigorous use of the Internal Security Bureau, and what the probes were going to get from it was that it was the lead ship and it was pretty big with lots of guns. The Lin Biaos they would recognize. After all, the Dornalians had purchased a license to make Galatines once, and had modified the design and adopted it as their own to become the Lin Biao Heavy Cruiser, just as the Red Chinese did to the MiG-19 when the Soviets decided to turn on their old "comrades." Cue the accuasions of plagarism now ;).

As for the others, they would notice a large group of small ships around the Dornie forces, to round out the lot.

Things would be interesting indeed.

Dead Space…

Gliding through the blackness of deep space, the Imperial Super Star Destroyer Olympus pointed its mighty arrowhead shape toward the distant, dim star of its target system, three thousandths of a light-year away. And prepared itself for war. Around its great, gleaming shape hundreds of running lights of other ships could be glimpsed upon the tapestry of the space.

“All systems show battle ready, Admiral,” the comm officer reported from the portside crew pit. “The task forces are beginning to check in now.”

“Very good, Lieutenant,” Grand Admiral Thrawn nodded. “Inform me when all have done so. Captain Brandei?”

“Sir?” Brandei said, searching his superior’s face for the stress the Grand Admiral must be feeling. This was not just another tactical strike against the Rebellion, after all – not a minor shipping raid or even another complex but straightforward attack against another planetary system back in the Unknown Regions. After nearly two weeks and several days of frenzied preparations, Thrawn’s master campaign for the Galactic Empire’s final victory over the Rebellion was about to begin. But if the Grand Admiral was feeling any tension, he was keeping it to himself. Brandei had served with Thrawn throughout the ten years prior that Thrawn had spent out in the Unknown Regions, bringing those vicious and untamed territories under the control of the Empire. But even after all that time he could still not fully understand Thrawn’s mind. No one could.

“Begin the countdown,” he told Brandei, his voice as calm as if he were ordering dinner. Thrawn was sitting in his Admiral’s chair, one leg sitting across one knee and his hands clasped softly together in his lap, looking over a series of holo screens with technical redoubts and other information regarding the Imperial Fleet.

“Yes, sir,” Brandei said, turning back to a group of one-quarter sized holographic figures standing before him in the Olympus’s aft bridge hologram pod. “Gentlemen launch marks. Amadeus: 13 minutes.”

“Acknowledged, Olympus,” Captain Ikedan nodded, his proper military demeanor not quite masking his eagerness to take the war back to the Rebellion. “Good hunting.” The holo image sputtered and died as the Amadeus raised its shields and moved away from the fleet. The Imperial Star Destroyer moved over to a smaller task force of ships, the Captain’s group. Brandei shifted his attention to the next imagine in line.

“Relentless: 23 minutes.”

“Acknowledged,” Captain Vasser said, bringing his arm up and saluting smartly as he, too, vanished from the hologram pod. Vasser’s ship, the Venator Mk II Star Destroyer Relentless moved off to its own task force.

Brandei glanced at his data pad. “Knight Hammer: 38 minutes.”

“We’re ready, Olympus,” Captain Malky responded. Whereas the others had been filled with a sense of eagerness, Captain Malky simply stood stiff as a board. Brandei looked at him more closely.

“Any problems Captain Malky?” Brandei asked.

“No sir,” Captain Malky jerked his head up. “The Knight Hammer and the entire task force is ready to go.”

“See to it,” Thrawn said, coming over to stand behind Brandei and looking down at Malky. “-that I have not misplaced my trust in you Captain Malky. I know you well enough to know that I haven’t. So do not prove me wrong in this.”

Slowly some of the tension flooded out of Malky’s face. “Yes sir,” he muttered. “My duty is to the Empire and to you, and to the ships and crews under my command. I will not fail you.”

“Very good,” Thrawn said. “I believe you’ve been given your launch mark?”

“Yes, sir. Knight Hammer out.”

Thrawn turned to Brandei. “Continue, Captain,” he said, and turned away to return to his command chair.

“Yes, sir.” Brandei looked at his data pad. “Nemesis…”

He finished the list without further incident. By the time the last holo image disappeared, the final check-in from their own task force was complete. Half a dozen different task forces were done forming up and their respective commanders were issuing orders. “The timetable appears to be going smoothly,” Thrawn said as Brandei returned to his own command station near Thrawn’s. “The Valhalla and Admiral Daala reports that she and Admiral Veers are on schedule and time marks made for their various task forces.”

“It will be interesting, that’s for sure,” Captain Brandei sighed.



Iktotch System | Corellian Run Hyperspace Lane

With all the surprise and unexpectedness that comes when a person finds a dirty object in their food, the Rebel garrison at Iktotch received the same. Coming out of hyperspace like so many stars falling to the planet, an Imperial task force appeared.

Standing on the bridge and looking out at the dirtball orb that was the planet Iktotch, Captain Ikedan looked over his forces as they appeared from the pseudo-illusion of faster than light travel. His ship, the Imperial Star Destroyer Amadeus, was flanked by two other Star Destroyers. Along side and in formation besides were a half dozen Dreadnaughts, a pair of Interdictor cruisers, a hand full of Carrack cruisers and Lancer frigates, along with a pair of Acclamator assault ships in the rear.

“Captain,” an officer in one of the crew pits called. “ComScan reports Rebel forces in the system. We’re reading a pair of strike cruisers and a few other vessels…we’ve just intercepted a general emergency call from them.”

“Now that they’ve had time to squeal home,” Captain Ikedan smiled, “-begin jamming on all frequencies. Interdictors to activate Faster-than-Light inhibitor fields. Launch fighters when ready.”

“Aye, sir.”

Iktotch System | Corellian Run Hyperspace Lane

With all the surprise and unexpectedness that comes when a person finds a dirty object in their food, the Rebel garrison at Iktotch received the same. Coming out of hyperspace like so many stars falling to the planet, an Imperial task force appeared.

Standing on the bridge and looking out at the dirtball orb that was the planet Iktotch, Captain Ikedan looked over his forces as they appeared from the pseudo-illusion of faster than light travel. His ship, the Imperial Star Destroyer Amadeus, was flanked by two other Star Destroyers. Along side and in formation besides were a half dozen Dreadnaughts, a pair of Interdictor cruisers, a hand full of Carrack cruisers and Lancer frigates, along with a pair of Acclamator assault ships in the rear.

“Captain,” an officer in one of the crew pits called. “ComScan reports Rebel forces in the system. We’re reading a pair of strike cruisers and a few other vessels…we’ve just intercepted a general emergency call from them.”

“Now that they’ve had time to squeal home,” Captain Ikedan smiled, “-begin jamming on all frequencies. Interdictors to activate Faster-than-Light inhibitor fields. Launch fighters when ready.”

“Aye, sir.”
"Commander, an Imperial Star Destroyer task force is bearing down on us!" The XO of the Bright Star cried out.

"And?" The Commander asked.

"And they've cut us off from hyperspace!"

"And?"

"And....what about and? Lead us, sir!"

The commander only smiled. "Tell me, James...what are our missile compliment?"

"Um...a full mag of nukes, AM, shattermissiles, and tachyons."

"Very good. Launch Tachyons and aim for the Star Destroyers' hangar bays immediately. Then activate inertia drives and wait for the counterattack."

"Uh, yes sir." The XO began shouting orders and soon enough, a spread of torpedoes were launched out of their tubes. As soon as they were at a respectable distance away and happily speeding towards the enemy's hangar bays, the warheads soon detonated, seemingly doing nothing. But what really happened is that a beam of faster-than-light tachyons were launched at the fighter bays. Now, normally, tachyons do nothing to matter and would pass through harmlessly. But, when these particular beams pass through shields a strange reaction occurs that amplifies their ability to interact with matter, ending up as beams with the strength proportional to the strength of the shields. With standard ship shields, this means that the power of medium turbolasers are hitting the 'unshielded' hangar bays.

Thanks to the Godulans who gave the Coredians this weapons technology, the Thrashian task force was now in a Catch 22. Either they can lower shields to prevent further tachyon torpedo assault and get hit by the Strike Cruiser's conventional weapons and hope they can be brought down before the butcher's bill gets too high, or they can keep the shields up and get pummeled until the Strike Cruisers run out of tachyon torpedoes...

Iktotch System

Much to Captain Ikedan’s surprise the Rebels didn’t try to run. After having their hyperspace route cut, it seemed like they were going to settle in for a fight; which suited Ikedan’s purposes just as much as if they had turned tail and ran, but he did have to give credit for the bravery or stupidity of the commander of the Rebels.

“Missile launch detected from Rebel cruisers sir,” the ComScan officer reported, looking up from the crew pit at Ikedan. “Profiles indicate Godular-make Tachyons.”

“Lieutenant Commander Screll,” Ikedan said into his battle comm connection. Without even needing to reply, Lieutenant Commander Screll, commander of the Lancer frigates in the task force, simply acted with all due haste. Lancer frigates had originally been intended for quick, efficient anti-fighter work, which they still did, however decades prior around the time of the Battle of Thrashia Prime, Thrashian Imperial tacticians and designers had upgraded the Lancer’s delicate and accurate to the minute targeting systems to allow them to work in an anti-missile role as well.

The Lancer frigates, forward of the main line, made quick work of the cloud of missiles. More missiles kept following, only to be met by a wave of pin-point accurate laser cannon fire. That is except a few. Ikedan suddenly turned to his right as he saw an explosion erupt from beneath the port side of one of the other Star Destroyers.

“Sir, the Reliance reports that a missile got through. Port-side hangar is destroyed. All bulk heads have been sealed. They’ve lost two squadrons of TIE Interceptors sir. The others launched before the missile struck,” the comm officer reported.

Ikedan cursed. “Lancer’s are to increase their fire power, I don’t want anything to get through. Keep shields up and stabilized,” he ordered. “All TIE squadrons to make their attack-runs now. Heavy turbolaser batteries, fire!”


Sweeping through space like a dark cloak, a wave of TIE Interceptors and TIE Bombers made flanking attacks against the Rebel ships. Several fell to point defense cannon. From behind them came great fiery arcs of green heavy turbolaser fire. All three Star Destroyers were firing, as well as the Dreadnaughts and Carrack cruisers, which began maneuvering around the outside flanks of the Rebels. The fight was beginning to become serious.

Cadian System | Cadian Moon

Coming out of the star swept lanes of hyperspace, an Imperial task force slid into the Cadian System. The task force was comprised of six Victory-class Star Destroyers, a dozen Dreadnaughts, two Interdictor cruisers, a hand full of Lancer frigates, a Nebula-B frigate, and pair of Imperial-class Star Destroyers.

Sitting quite comfortably in his command chair aboard the bridge of his flagship, the Imperial-class Star Destroyer Avarice, was Captain Mullinore. He sat quietly, contemplating the various readouts in front of him with a small bit of apprehension. It was the first time he was in command of so large a task force. But then he an officer from the Unknown Region’s Expansion Fleet, and took pride in knowing that his superior had chosen him for a purpose. And he would not fail that trust.

“ComScan, I want a scan of the system and anything in it completed in five minutes,” Mullinore ordered, his voice making it clear that they were being timed. The officer standing over the consul nodded and whispered something into the tech ensign’s ear. Both men worked feverishly.

Mullinore turned to his adjutant. “Lieutenant, have all pilots report to their fighters. Launch two squadrons upon readiness. I want a sentry line put up until we know what we’re dealing with. Also, have Commander Faas maneuver his squadron closer to the far side of the planet. Dispatch a squadron from the Gauntlet to follow them and support.”

“Yes sir, Captain.”

“Also, once we register their first normal emergency message, activate jamming. Interdictors to active their inhibitor fields immediately.”

Virmeuda System | Sluis Sector

Like many other Imperial task forces part of Grand Admiral Thrawn’s Fleet, the surprise garnered from the sudden appearance of an Imperial task force could be jarring. Captain Vasser, aboard the Imperial-class Star Destroyer Knight Hammer, just hoped it was enough to gain an advantage over the Rebels they were about to encounter. He watched from his command chair as the white lines of hyperspace faded and were replaced by the stars and lights of the Virmeuda System.

“ComScan report all enemy presences,” he ordered immediately, almost without need. It was common Fleet practice to do a full sweep of a system upon entry. His crew were veterans and did their duty without even a pause.

“Task force is to form up around the Knight Hammer,” Vasser spoke into his battle comm channel. In his task force were seven other Imperial-class Star Destroyers, four Venator-class Mk II Star Destroyers, six Victory-class Star Destroyers, two dozen Dreadnaughts, a dozen Lancer frigates, six Interdictor cruisers, and a motley collection of Carrack cruisers and Imperial Strike cruisers. Several squadrons of TIE Interceptors, already launched upon entry to the system, moved out in front of the large force, forming a sentry line.

“Sir,” a comm officer spoke up. “Emergency signal just registered. The message is away.”

”Begin jamming,” ordered Vasser. “Have the Interdictor’s begin putting up their FTLi fields. We don’t want the enemy to get away.”

The Fist of Darkness, unknown space:


Nhur-Galladu read the request and set it aside, considering the implications. The Imperial Seal of Thrashia was boldly emblazoned across the header showing it had come from their imperial office. The wording was carefully composed so it was simply a request between equals but the Warlord knew he could not turn it down. The invasion of the Excrement, as it was so popularly nicknamed by others in the Galactic Courts, had created an imbalance in power and it favored the Galactic Empire. While the Imperial Forces had no problem wiping the Excrement from their systems, it seems rebel held worlds had fared worse. There was a political wave to use our buildup of military might to push these troublemakers out.

As long as it benefited the GE, Nhur-Galladu was forced to agree with the sentiment. He and his Ta’Nar would do everything within their power to benefit the well being of the GE. The removal of the rebels would cause great benefit indeed. Well, at least their reduction, the Empire would always need an external target to focus upon.

Nhur-Galladu picked up the parchment and looked at the names of the systems he was asked to assault. They seemed logical and their loss would cause the rebels several pains, namely Bespin. Without a source of tibanna gas, their turbo lasers would quickly lose power. They needed Bespin badly but the Ta’Nar would soon claim it for the Empire.

The Ta’Nar Warlord issued several orders through his Link to one of his Grand Admirals. Dev’Staht would be in charge of the operation.




The Brutus, T-Space:


Grand Admiral Dev’Staht carefully reviewed the orders delivered to him personally by an Avatar of the Warlord. He had a list of targets and was granted the use of the First and Second Imperial War fleets to accomplish his assignment. That was sixteen Battlegroups, each easily able to take over an entire system alone. They represented a full quarter of the Ta’Nar military. He was sure there was not much he could not take care of with that much firepower under his control. Sending a secure transmission to both The Zeus and The Morte, he directed the Command Carriers to meet with The Brutus, his own Dreadnaught in the Outer Rim near the Elrood Sector, right in the middle of a rebel controlled area of the Outer Rim. He hoped they would pick his meeting up for that would mean things would get interesting.



Elrood Sector, Outer Rim:


The opening of three wormholes in this lonely deserted sector would pass unseen by most. Any that would decide to notice and investigate would find their sensors were quickly overpowered and any probes would lose communications. By the time any manned investigations had arrived, the source of the disturbance would have already left, back into their respective wormholes to their fleets.

The Zeus was first to arrive, beating The Morte by 8.3 seconds. Each Deity Battlegroup took defensive positioning with Cruisers taking the high ground Uplifting into T-Space and casting their powerful sensors outward. The rest of the ships took to patrolling the meeting area with the battleships taking the top and bottom of a defensive sphere and the destroyers the equatorial regions. The frigates filled the areas in between and the outlying areas.

The Brutus ( http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v248/beldragos/HereIAm.jpg) arrived and took position between the two Deity carriers. A Deity Carrier was actually longer than the Dreadnaughts by a thousand meters but the Dread easily out massed the command carrier. It also out gunned them.

After the dreadnaught took it’s position, the admirals from the Deity carriers met with Grand Admiral Dev’Staht in his own ready room.

“We have been given a task. We have been given a list of targets and we are to take them out with minimal involvement unless they resist. I want you to take the list of names I give you and take them out. Admiral D’Irk, you are to take the targets located in and around the Vivenda Sector. Your main goal is to take out Bespin. That will hurt the rebel’s weapons production by limiting their supply of tibanna gas. Take out the production platforms by infection. Afterwards we can use Kython reproductions to restore supply for the Empire until they can replace it with properly constructed ones. Remove any structure in orbit in the gas giant. Anything there is expendable and replaceable.”

The Grand Admiral turned to his other subordinate.

“Admiral Sha’Ruud, your assignment is the systems outside the sector. You still have the Battlegroup that retook the Alzoc III system in the area. Send it to Melida/Daan and remove the rebel forces there. If you need to back it up with a second then do so. Also take out other targets on your list with the Second Fleet.”

Dev’Staht then addressed both Admirals.

“Do either of you understand your orders?”

“Yes Sir, to kick ass and drive the rebels out. What limits are you setting on our engagements?”

“You are permitted to use any weapon in our arsenal to accomplish your mission. Only make minimal incursions and send in backup if they are needed. The Brutus is available if you request additional aid. Now, go out there and kill those meatbags.”

“Yes Sir”

With that, both admirals returned to their vessels without a flash, they simply disappeared.




Near the Bajic Sector:


The three ships had returned from Alzoc III, leaving a frozen ball of ice. The removal of the invaders had forced the Ta’Nar to employ a simple wormhole trick, linking the oxygen rich mining world with that of a distant gas giant with an abundance of hydrogen in it’s atmosphere. The greater pressure of the gas giant forced the pure or mostly pure hydrogen to flow through the cosmic link into the atmosphere of the mining colony. After remotely taking control of all the doors if the facility and locking them open, the Ta’Nar ensure there was no place for the invading aliens to hide and then dropped a flare into the now primed atmosphere. The resulting ball of fire caused a global eruption as the oxy-hydrogen flashed flared, leaving behind no atmosphere and the by-product of water. Dozens of meters of ice now covered the already frozen world, sealing the invaders in a tomb of ice. The mine would later be thawed out and pressurized again to allow production to return. The ice would also evaporate, creating a thin atmosphere over time.

The two frigates and the destroyer Emerged from T-Space a short distance away from the Intruder Battlegroup assigned to destroy the invaders. Moments later, the captains of the three vessels had appeared upon the carrier to meet with their Commander for a debriefing.

Commander Kaat’Nha sat quietly as he received their debriefs. “You did good work at Alzoc, I am going to put you in for promotions. Unfortunately before that we have orders to move out. There is a world just core wards from us that seems to be in rebel hands. We are supposed to hit the rebels while they are in disarray from the recent attacks of the Excrement, as some of the other has called the failed aliens that you fought. We are to proceed there immediately. I have already dispatched the Cruisers to take sensor readings of the Melida/Daan area and a couple seeder vessels to make Kythons. I would rather use their drone forms than risk Childer or Ta’Nar in the initial attack. We will receive reinforcements if we need them but lets make use of the Infection Protocols first to bring some of the enemy vessels onto our side. The other captains have been briefed in the mission. Now go back to your ships and prepare for transit to the target area.”




Bespin, Vivenda Sector:


Two Infiltrator Cruisers slipped into orbit, remaining deep within T-Space. They carefully scanned the ships in the area as well as the energy signatures in the Habitable Zone of the gas giant. As each was mapped, the information was sent real-time to the fleet using their Space Minus Transmitters. After all the targets were scanned and mapped, only a matter of a few minutes, the cruisers waited for the arrival of the rest of the fleet.

They did not have long to wait. Multiple wormholes appeared near their respective targets such as Cloud City and Tibannapolis as well as several smaller mining facilities that were vital. The wormholes vomited a cloud of several hundred Kythons each that were in combat mode. The Death Scream began, causing any within a thousand meters to experience the unending death cries of every person they knew and loved as the Kythons twisted and turned in unison and attacked. Their intention was to cause contact with themselves and the structures, allowing Infection to occur, leaving blackened areas that would soon spread throughout the complex.

As the first cries for help and emergency alarms sounded, the actual Battlegroup itself was waiting within T-Space to Emerge among the enemy ships and cause the same death and confusion among them. They were expecting some new ships to join the Fallen Empire today.





Melida/Daan, near Bajic Sector:


The cruisers Commander Kaat’Nha slipped into the system, remaining within T-Space so they could broadcast their sensor data back to the rest of the Battlegroup. The seeder vessels had located an area of debris outside the system itself and began to seed them with Thur’Tahg, allowing the production of more Kythons for the upcoming attack. By the time the rest of the ships had arrived, the exo-asteroids were reduced to a squirming black mass of Kythons ready to swarm.





OOC:


I will post the other targets when I get the chance to get more info on my target list. These are enough to get the ball rolling for now. I need to know what are in those two systems so please post your holdings.

Each Battlegroup consists of:

1 carrier (Deity, Avatar, or Intruder class)
2 Impaler Battleships
4 Infiltrator Cruisers
4 Interceptor Destroyers
8 Infernal Frigates

The Coredians and Dornalians were joined by the Initiative in their defense of the Ryloth system/ Commanded by a Tobias Schiller, the entire GDI Fourth Fleet had been brought in to secure the system. The threat of the Hyperboreans had been enough to convince GDI Command to send the rest of the fleet. And so it was here, a fleet of thirty-two ships ready and able to defend the planet. For the GDI, this was a big commitment and a powerful one. This fleet alone could hold off fleets much larger than itself. It was spread out somewhat, covering an entire section of space around the planet to protect against surprise attacks.

The probe would be able to see the weapons on the ships hull and maybe some of the materials used to make it, but aside from that, the dampening fields to protect their technology kept the probe from seeing much. Due to the GDI's defeat in the Battle of Jurai, they had not yet come out to fight since this current war. Thrashia would have to write its book of tactics on the GDI battle, on its bloodsmeared pages....


OOC:

1 Panther-class Battlecruiser, the Pantera, Flagship.
4 Grizzly-class Destroyers
3 Hades-class Cruisers
4 Falcon-classp Light Cruisers
6 Peregrine-class Cruisers
13 Hawk-class Frigates

bump

Iktotch System

Much to Captain Ikedan’s surprise the Rebels didn’t try to run. After having their hyperspace route cut, it seemed like they were going to settle in for a fight; which suited Ikedan’s purposes just as much as if they had turned tail and ran, but he did have to give credit for the bravery or stupidity of the commander of the Rebels.

“Missile launch detected from Rebel cruisers sir,” the ComScan officer reported, looking up from the crew pit at Ikedan. “Profiles indicate Godular-make Tachyons.”

“Lieutenant Commander Screll,” Ikedan said into his battle comm connection. Without even needing to reply, Lieutenant Commander Screll, commander of the Lancer frigates in the task force, simply acted with all due haste. Lancer frigates had originally been intended for quick, efficient anti-fighter work, which they still did, however decades prior around the time of the Battle of Thrashia Prime, Thrashian Imperial tacticians and designers had upgraded the Lancer’s delicate and accurate to the minute targeting systems to allow them to work in an anti-missile role as well.

The Lancer frigates, forward of the main line, made quick work of the cloud of missiles. More missiles kept following, only to be met by a wave of pin-point accurate laser cannon fire. That is except a few. Ikedan suddenly turned to his right as he saw an explosion erupt from beneath the port side of one of the other Star Destroyers.

“Sir, the Reliance reports that a missile got through. Port-side hangar is destroyed. All bulk heads have been sealed. They’ve lost two squadrons of TIE Interceptors sir. The others launched before the missile struck,” the comm officer reported.

Ikedan cursed. “Lancer’s are to increase their fire power, I don’t want anything to get through. Keep shields up and stabilized,” he ordered. “All TIE squadrons to make their attack-runs now. Heavy turbolaser batteries, fire!”


Sweeping through space like a dark cloak, a wave of TIE Interceptors and TIE Bombers made flanking attacks against the Rebel ships. Several fell to point defense cannon. From behind them came great fiery arcs of green heavy turbolaser fire. All three Star Destroyers were firing, as well as the Dreadnaughts and Carrack cruisers, which began maneuvering around the outside flanks of the Rebels. The fight was beginning to become serious.
"Begin evasive maneuvers!" Commander Jason Denver ordered. "Activate stutterfire mode and have the Wolfpack sweep those fighters from the sky!"

"Yes, Commander!"

Then, the two Strike Cruisers lurched every which way to avoid the heavy turbolaser bolts, moving in angles and directions that were decidedly not average Coredian maneuvering ability. Or so Imperial Intelligence may believe.

Once they began their random crazy maneuvering that would reduce the effectiveness of concentrated turbolaser barrage (as if the molecular shields absorbing what did hit into the ships' systems weren't bad enough), they increased the firing rate of their lasers and turbolaser cannons, producing massive sheets of fire that made the immediate area surrounding the Strike Cruiser and Wolfpack a death zone for fighters.

"Once those fighters are dealt with, we'll have to deal with the Lancers." The Commander mused. "Those antimissile cannons are troublesome and will need to be removed if we are to unleash our Shattermissiles and another volley of Tachyons on them..."

Cadian System | Cadian Moon

Coming out of the star swept lanes of hyperspace, an Imperial task force slid into the Cadian System. The task force was comprised of six Victory-class Star Destroyers, a dozen Dreadnaughts, two Interdictor cruisers, a hand full of Lancer frigates, a Nebula-B frigate, and pair of Imperial-class Star Destroyers.

Sitting quite comfortably in his command chair aboard the bridge of his flagship, the Imperial-class Star Destroyer Avarice, was Captain Mullinore. He sat quietly, contemplating the various readouts in front of him with a small bit of apprehension. It was the first time he was in command of so large a task force. But then he an officer from the Unknown Region’s Expansion Fleet, and took pride in knowing that his superior had chosen him for a purpose. And he would not fail that trust.

“ComScan, I want a scan of the system and anything in it completed in five minutes,” Mullinore ordered, his voice making it clear that they were being timed. The officer standing over the consul nodded and whispered something into the tech ensign’s ear. Both men worked feverishly.

Mullinore turned to his adjutant. “Lieutenant, have all pilots report to their fighters. Launch two squadrons upon readiness. I want a sentry line put up until we know what we’re dealing with. Also, have Commander Faas maneuver his squadron closer to the far side of the planet. Dispatch a squadron from the Gauntlet to follow them and support.”

“Yes sir, Captain.”

“Also, once we register their first normal emergency message, activate jamming. Interdictors to active their inhibitor fields immediately.”
At first, it was quiet. Then, dozens of tracking sensors lit up. 2, 4, 8, 16...it kept growing until 444 tracking sensors targeted the enemy ships. And all hell broke loose.

The Codian Moon wasn't as important as the major worlds of the Coredian empire, but it was still important enough to warrant attention by the Fourth Fleet. With that in mind, the first moment the enemy Imperial Star Destroyers and their escorts knew something was wrong was when a massive swarm of missiles from above and below the elliptic bathed the enemy in nuclear fusion, antimatter and proton fire. Followed up by glowing yellow missiles that 'shatter' shields like glass and burrow into the hull before detonating and disintegrating anything within a 20 meter radius and Tachyon torpedoes thrown at hangar bays and other important areas as well.

Whatever sensors remained standing after the high radiation cleared showed the enemy that four MC-90 Missile Cruisers and several escorts were in the system, utilizing a tactic that sandwiches enemies in devastating missile fire. Each MC-90 boasted a whopping 111 missile tubes where turbolasers would normally be stationed, generating a massive knockout blow in the first volley and following up with a second in case of survivors.

Each cruiser has five volleys. After the last one, they will make a run for it...

Virmeuda System | Sluis Sector

Like many other Imperial task forces part of Grand Admiral Thrawn’s Fleet, the surprise garnered from the sudden appearance of an Imperial task force could be jarring. Captain Vasser, aboard the Imperial-class Star Destroyer Knight Hammer, just hoped it was enough to gain an advantage over the Rebels they were about to encounter. He watched from his command chair as the white lines of hyperspace faded and were replaced by the stars and lights of the Virmeuda System.

“ComScan report all enemy presences,” he ordered immediately, almost without need. It was common Fleet practice to do a full sweep of a system upon entry. His crew were veterans and did their duty without even a pause.

“Task force is to form up around the Knight Hammer,” Vasser spoke into his battle comm channel. In his task force were seven other Imperial-class Star Destroyers, four Venator-class Mk II Star Destroyers, six Victory-class Star Destroyers, two dozen Dreadnaughts, a dozen Lancer frigates, six Interdictor cruisers, and a motley collection of Carrack cruisers and Imperial Strike cruisers. Several squadrons of TIE Interceptors, already launched upon entry to the system, moved out in front of the large force, forming a sentry line.

“Sir,” a comm officer spoke up. “Emergency signal just registered. The message is away.”

”Begin jamming,” ordered Vasser. “Have the Interdictor’s begin putting up their FTLi fields. We don’t want the enemy to get away.”
As the missiles barraged the forces at the Codian Moon, Imperials registered a Rebel mining center in the area, which means that it too was defended by the Fourth Fleet.

In this area, it was a single Defender-class Star Destroyer, the Ki-Adi-Mundi, two missile cruisers like the ones potentially slaughtering the Imperials at another system, two Nova-class Destroyers, and two Wolfpacks. Heavily defended for a simple mining colony, which means it's an important one!

As soon as the emergency message rolled out, the fleet began counterjamming the Imperials, making it a bit harder to track targets than usual and began moving around quickly using their inertia drives. Because of the weight of numbers arrayed against the Coredian force, they had to keep moving and firing, holding on until the rest of the fleet could arrive.

The Nova Destroyers started off the show by immediately engaging the Lancers with their Beamcannons, more powerful versions of beamlasers, followed up by the Star Destroyer challenging the Dreadnaughts with a severe bombardment of turbolasers and beamlasers. Then the missile cruisers attacked, swarming the enemy with their missile massacre tactics, sundering the enemy with tons upon tons of ordinance...

Bespin, Vivenda Sector:


Two Infiltrator Cruisers slipped into orbit, remaining deep within T-Space. They carefully scanned the ships in the area as well as the energy signatures in the Habitable Zone of the gas giant. As each was mapped, the information was sent real-time to the fleet using their Space Minus Transmitters. After all the targets were scanned and mapped, only a matter of a few minutes, the cruisers waited for the arrival of the rest of the fleet.

They did not have long to wait. Multiple wormholes appeared near their respective targets such as Cloud City and Tibannapolis as well as several smaller mining facilities that were vital. The wormholes vomited a cloud of several hundred Kythons each that were in combat mode. The Death Scream began, causing any within a thousand meters to experience the unending death cries of every person they knew and loved as the Kythons twisted and turned in unison and attacked. Their intention was to cause contact with themselves and the structures, allowing Infection to occur, leaving blackened areas that would soon spread throughout the complex.

As the first cries for help and emergency alarms sounded, the actual Battlegroup itself was waiting within T-Space to Emerge among the enemy ships and cause the same death and confusion among them. They were expecting some new ships to join the Fallen Empire today.
Jedi Knight Trevor Olin was talking with the Baron Administrator one minute and then the next, the proximity alarms began to blare. And then came the screams. Kythons!

"No...no...not my family!" The baron ambassador cried out as his mind was ravaged by the screams.

"Baron Ambassador..." He immediately began using the Force to put up shields against the psychic scream. "Baron Ambassador!"

"what?" The Baron asked, moaning as the screams refused to stop.

"Your family is still alive! Get the damned shields up!"

"But...they're screaming! I have to help them!"

"Have you heard of the Kythons? They can make you hear your family scream, even when you know they're alive! Now fight it and get those shields up!"

"Y-yes...yes!" The Baron, fighting through the psychic scream of doom, managed to slam his hands on the nearest console, making the shields come online.

Unfortunately, it was too late. Several Kythons have already managed to land and start spreading their Infection. The Jedi could sense their strange presence on Cloud City and the other floating cities and knew that the planet was lost. As such, he ordered the Coredian garrison, who -were- able to handle the screams, to begin blowing up the tibanna gas refineries. He also ordered the Victory Star Destroyers in orbit to descend and gather as many civilians as they can in order to evacuate and then sent the distress call, informing High Command of the Kython presence. It would hurt a lot to loose a major gas mining world, but he hoped the Emperor would be able to either have his forces steal more supplies or go prospecting for more.

Either way, the ability to produce the gas for coolant and blaster power was heavily reduced for the Rebel cause...

=====

As for Melinda/Daan, there were the two Defender Star Destroyers, Master Tholme and Aayla Secura, two Artillery Star Destroyers, two Acclamators heavy assault cruisers, two Nebulon-B2 frigates, one heavily damaged and part of a Wolfpack, all congratulating themselves on defeating the enemy known only to them as the Fur Fags...

Melida/Daan, near Bajic Sector:


The cruisers Commander Kaat’Nha slipped into the system, remaining within T-Space so they could broadcast their sensor data back to the rest of the Battlegroup. The seeder vessels had located an area of debris outside the system itself and began to seed them with Thur’Tahg, allowing the production of more Kythons for the upcoming attack. By the time the rest of the ships had arrived, the exo-asteroids were reduced to a squirming black mass of Kythons ready to swarm.

OOC:


I will post the other targets when I get the chance to get more info on my target list. These are enough to get the ball rolling for now. I need to know what are in those two systems so please post your holdings.

Each Battlegroup consists of:

1 carrier (Deity, Avatar, or Intruder class)
2 Impaler Battleships
4 Infiltrator Cruisers
4 Interceptor Destroyers
8 Infernal Frigates

OOC:

1 Mao Zedong Mark IV Battleship (the flagship that forms the name of the
battlegroup. Each Mao is lovingly named after an AC/DC song, as my allies are well aware of.)
50 Mao Zedong Mark IIIa Pocket Battleships (they've been reduced to the status since their 10 km cousins came out)
10 Prochkhorovka II Refit Fleet Carriers, with Marinesko II fighters and Komsomol III fighter bombers.
40 Lin Biao II Heavy Cruisers
400 Drone Ships (they're expendable, so I can use lots of these)

That's what I got. If this post don't work, tell me quickly. I felt like the Gracie-Balroggan relationship needed something.

IC:

Commodore MacDougal, meanwhile, was also celebrating the stopping of the Furfags in their tracks. She did so in her usual manner: by getting absolutely hammered.

She was at the moment downing a bottle of whiskey, to the cries of "CHUG! CHUG! CHUG!" from the senior staff and loud crunk music. She then stopped and slammed the whiskey bottle on the table, wiping her mouth crudely and shouting "BOOYAH!" to the cheers of the rest. Her erstwhile opponent then tried the same feat, only to emerge on the floor of the other ship she was patched into as he passed out as he fell over, unable to withstand the sheer amount of alcohol in the whiskey. How the Commodore drank so much and remained in charge was a mystery to many.

She then said, slurring her words, "I'm....th-the champeen uv the universe! So watch yer ass!" Thrusting a finger at the screen, she stumbled and got her balance back.

Gracie, however, chirped in.

"Umm, Commodore. We've got a problem. New contacts detected, forming in the old asteroid field."

"Uh...wha' the?" The Commodore turned and leaned forward, calling out, "Turn that shit down or I'll skull fuck you all to death!" The loud crunk turned down, MacDougal said, "Who's it?"

"Um....wow. This is not cool. I have a bad feelin--nah, enough purple prose. Does the word Kython mean anything to you?" Gracie seemed overly concerned, not just about the Kythons, but also because the Commodore was now really, really drunk. If things were this bad, she'd have to cajole the PO to use his key and the Commodore's key to activate her Emergency Command Protocols.

THe Commodore then glared at Gracie's online avatar, and said, "Way to ruin the mood, Mistress Bringdown. Go back to your loli hole, you....d-double whore!"

"Well, this loli wants to warn you that unless you do something, we are going to be totally fucked in the ass! I've got strong suspicion Kythons have arrived! Now sober up and get to work, you...you...TRIPLE WHORE!" Gracie replied in a tit-for-tat manner, and her virtual avatar stuck her tongue out.

The room fell silent, except for a "ohh snap!" The kind usually emitted by drunks. The Commodore glared evilly, and said, "It's on, Bitch!"

Gracie's virtual avatar folded her arms together, and said with a huff, "Good, I got your attention. Now, would you kindly sober up and get to preparing some kind of battle order?"

"Jawohl, Mein Furher" was the only reply from a sullen Commodore, who promptly punched a passersby on the way out and screamed at the partygoers, "Get the fuck out! It's time to kill!" She stormed to the bridge, threw up, and then began making preparations as well as angry, drunken phone calls over secure channels. The PO, who was left to clean up with the sober ones, sighed. Guns and booze never mixed; battleships and booze were downright deadly.

Meanwhile, Gracie felt a "shudder" of sorts down her neck, if she had one. Kythons being kythons, there were two kinds. One were the Godulans, who were consumate practioners of scorched earth. The other were the Balroggans, who seemed to be interested in the Gracies. As much as the former irritated her, the latter creeped her out even more. To be someone's target, that was one thing she could deal with. To be someone's object of study....that was something else. She hoped to God, Jesus, Allah and Buddha it wasn't the Balroggans.

Bookmarked for future reading as it develops.

Let the Party Begin (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qRyXuIuDG0U)

The bottles flowed on the Battlestars and Warstar, as the party raged. Victory was sweet and very easy, as the crew, both Dornie and Colonial celebrated on the ships.

Admiral Hallen took her shot of Ambrosia, held it high as she in a drunken stupor decided to give a toast.

“Shut the frak up!” her voice yelled across the flight deck where the party was being held. She then smiled, “Damn I am so very proud of all of you, even you frakking Dornies.” she said.

The Colonial side chuckled as they held their glasses high. “What is it that one of you bastards called this battle, the battle of Cock waving?” she said with a smile. “Well frak it, that was one hell of a show. To our Sister.” she said.

“To Our sister.”

Then she raised her glass up again, “And to the Colonies, the finest fleet this galaxy has ever frakkin seen.” she said.

“So Say we all.”

Admiral Hallen took her shot down quickly. She looked out to the crowd, people were dancing, and smiling. Dornie, and Colonial, Cat girls and Humans alike actually getting along for once. She shook her head then smiled. “The gods will be pleased today.”

She got up, her imposing demeanor overshadowing anyone near her. But today was not a day for intimidation, it was a day to celebrate. “ The Furfags were gone, eradicated from the universe. Every last one of those cock sucking mother frakkers were gone.” the good Colonial Admiral thought to herself. “Although they would make for a piss poor offering to the gods, at least they were an offering.” she thought to herself once more.

She walked over to a few of the crew, and shook their hands, “Good work.” she told them as she touched their shoulders or saluted them. Even the damn freaks, the cat girls she congratulated.

Just as the part was getting good, over the speakers a message broke, “Admiral Hallen please report to the CIC, Admiral Hallen please report to the CIC.”

She lowered her head, knowing what was going to happen. “What the frak does that bitch want now?” thinking it was the Commadore of the Dornie fleet. She walked over to a phone on the wall. She grabbed it and put it to her ear. “This is Admiral Hallen, what is it?”

“You have to be frakking, ok I will be right there.” she replied. She turned and ran out of the flight deck and towards the CIC.

As she entered hands saluted her. “What is the status?” she asked.

“Ta’Nar vessels have entered the system. They appear to be in an attack posture but as of now have not fired.” One of the crew stated.

Admiral Hallen sighed, “They probably were expecting those mother frakkers to be able to put up a better fight than they did. Give me a direct link to the Ta’Nar flag ship.”

Ta’Nar Vessel, this is the Warstar Ares of the United Colonies of Kobol. If you have come to help beat back those furfags, I must inform you that you are late. They have been dealt with. However if you would like to come onboard the Ares or any of the other Battlestars to join in the celebration you are more than welcome to attend.

OOC:

13 Mercury Class Battlestars
1 Ares Class Warstar

Melida/Daan, near Bajic Sector:




Greetings, this is Commander Kaat’Nha of the Paymon from the Ta’Nar Second Fleet, Epsilon Battlegroup. It is good to see our brethren from the Colonies here. I see you brought your distant sisters along to help.

Yes, three of my vessels eliminated their entire forces in the Alzoc system. They were truly pitiful indeed. It is a wonder they survived long enough to achieve space flight. Their ship designs were quite inferior.

Pardon me, I digress. We are not here to deal with the Excrement, we have been sent to regain this system in the name of the Empire. I see you already heard about the operation and I commend you on your speed in getting here. Shall we retake the system together?

As the Commander spoke, several individual Kythons flew over to the ships they recognized as allies and swarmed around them in a playful mood. Some of the more bold ones even flittered over to the nearby Dornalian ships that were in close proximity to the Colonial War Stars. Some of these individuals waves at the ship in a friendly manner and unintelligible alien chatter filtered through from them on some of the radio frequencies and psionically.


The Paymon Shipmind attempted to communicate directly with one of the Gracie units.

Hello, it’s been quite some time since we spoke to one of you, Jurai was the last time and I was glad you were able to convince your humans to keep out of the conflict.

Melida/Daan, near Bajic Sector:

The Paymon Shipmind attempted to communicate directly with one of the Gracie units.

Hello, it’s been quite some time since we spoke to one of you, Jurai was the last time and I was glad you were able to convince your humans to keep out of the conflict.



As the Commodore, still roaring drunk, was calling the Admiral and calling for a state of Red Alert, Gracie was busy trying to manage the systems and get the necessary info out to the right people. Being the Commodore was also inebrieated, she also, with the permission of the Political Officer, quietly sped things along by doing some things that the Commodore should have been doing herself.

The Colonials onboard who were part of the revelry moved to business, listening first to the drunk ramblings of the Commodore and then to that damn toaster. They liked the presence of their erstwhile friends from the Kythons, for sure--it was something familiar admidst the sheer irony of a Colonial being given orders by a robot--something most would rather NOT do.

As this occurred and she snickered at the Commodore screaming at people, the Shipmind's message came to her loud and clear. Her virtual avatar sniffed the air, and frowned.

"Them."

The word was spoken with an animalistic sense of contempt. Her worst fears were confirmed, for the Balroggans had come for a chat. The other Gracies had spoken to her about it whilst in debugging and matenance. Mostly in terms usually reserved for internet stalkers and those perverts girls feared in high school and college. She shuddered slightly, and then replied back to the Shipmind, in a rather firm and diplomatic tone:

"My sisters told me about you people. While I like your appreciation of our abilities and intelligence, I can't help but be somewhat concerned by the instant recognition and the implied suggestion I make my people get out. Can I help you with something?"

As this occurred, the Commodore, not one to ignore things even when drunk, saw her ship's AI writing something, a virtual letter. The Commodore leaned uncomfortably close to the screen, and then frowned and said, "The f-fuck you say?"

"Not now, Commodore." Gracie waved off her boss, as she sent the message.

"Fuck your not now. I...I'm the damn Commodore." Taken aback, she rolled up her sleeves as if she prepared to box. Drunkenly rocking back and forth, she then thrust her finger at the screen and said, "So tell me what's up, tiger lily."

Sighing, Gracie said, "The Kythons...they're trying to talk to me. It's like they know me somehow. Or my cousins and sisters. It's kinda odd."

MacDougal then winced. She could only force out the words, "Eeew....that's so not cool."

"Tell me about it," was the only thing Gracie could say.

"Fuckin' pre-verts." The Commodore angrily sighed, and facepalmed as she sat back in her captain's chair. Nursing a headache from the copious infusion of whiskey and a numb mouth, she then got up and said, "Get me Hallen. Now."

Gracie frowned. "No. I am not having you call her drunk."

"Fine. I'll call her then."

The Commodore hit a few controls and said to Hallen's frequency, "This is Commodore....Leona MacDougal. Get me Admiral Sammy fuckin' Hallen, or heaven help me I'll come over there and teach you a few streetfighting moves the hard way! NOW!"

Once Hallen called back, the Commodore leaned into the screen and said, "Listen you tentaclefucking shit. While you're getting the Hentai Special from your Kython friends, they're hitting on one of my officers and getting too close to my ships! Can you please deal with them? Like, shoot them? Like I told you to?"

The hope of peace, the great foe of the chaos gods soon shattered before their might like a tide wave slams against a sand castle. The waves broke, leaving no traces of that which stood before it.

Admiral Hallen, a soldier of the gods, the right hand of Remiel’s will stood her back straight, her eye sharp on the draidus, as the message from the coms came over. First the Ta’Nar, their message of glory struck in her heart. The thirst for blood, beating in her breast calling out for the blood of her would be assassins, the Coredians echoed in her mind.

Then came the second message, from the drunken Dornie Commodore. Admiral Hallen said nothing as the rumblings of this drunken hoe screeched across her CIC. Her words, unholy and impure stretched across her ears, filling her mind with the impurities that came from her slanderous language.

She smiled for a moment, as she raised her hand to her chin. The glory of the gods was truly with her, all as Remiel had promised. Today she would see the end of the Coredian rule of this system, the liberation of the planets, Daan and Melinda, free from the tyranny of the force, and embraced by the grace of the gods themselves. The blasphemers would be struck down, their blood only serving as an offering, as their shallow carcass would liter the streets.

“Sir” Lt. Yamite responded her voice sounding somewhat shaky at the implications before the Colonial task force, “What should we do sir?”

Admiral Hallen mused for a moment, as she turned to the CIC crew. “Do not fear.” she said, her voice teeming with power, “The lords are truly with us this day. Today, it seems that we shall be in their graces, and their will shall be done, but we must wait just a little longer.”

Many of the crew looked at each other, their face giving one clear and concise message, “What the Frak.”

The Admiral did not care. She knew she was to deliver them, and the colonies, all of the colonies the message of love and grace of the true gods. She was their messenger, their lover, their chosen one amongst the darkness. Hallen knew, that the gods alone held her life in their hands and that she alone was chosen to bring the thirteen colonies of Kobol into the grace of the Lords of Chaos.

Admiral Hallen smiled for a moment, her eyes filled with the fire of faith and glory. “Set Condition one throughout the fleet.” she stated, plainly and simply like she was ordering take out from a restaurant. “And make sure there are no Dornies in the vipers.” she ordered.

The crew looked to each other, very confused. Fear filled the air, so thick it could almost be cut with a knife. “Would she attack the thirteenth colony? Has she gone insane?” All these thoughts filled the head of the crew as they issued her orders.

Vipers began to launch from the tubed, as the newly installed D.I.T.A. system came online. The guns rose out of the turrets, and the rails and the gatalin guns rose in place.

“Sir all Colonial ships are reporting condition one. What vessels should we target?” the fire control officer asked the Admiral.

“None.” Admiral Hallen replied, “Not yet. Put me through to the Commodore.” she politely asked.

TCS Jailbreak, this is the Zeus Actual. This is an official statement, that is to be recorded. Order complied, however due to the alliance of the United Colonies of Kobol, to the Ta’Nar, we can not comply with weapons free order. It has become apparent to all on board that you are in your current state not able to be fit for command. Gracie, I ask you under the military code of Conduct to remove the Commodore from command until such time as she is deemed mentally stable under the articles of Military conduct. After all, we are not Coredians. We do not shoot our allies, without orders from the Admiral of the Fleet, or the President of the United Colonies of Kobol.

Please inform this vessel when a proper and sober person in the command structure has been put in command of the fleet. Until otherwise confirmed, under the Articles of Military conduct I am taking command of the fleet.

As she hung up the phone, she turned to her security officer. “If there is any sign that the drunken whore is going to start a civil war, I want you to confine the dornies to areas deemed non-essential to the welfare of this ship. I do not want a fire fight onboard my vessels, is that understood.” she said to him, her voice clear and concise.

The marine snapped to attention, and saluted, “Yes sir.”

TCS Jailbreak, this is the Zeus Actual. This is an official statement, that is to be recorded. Order complied, however due to the alliance of the United Colonies of Kobol, to the Ta’Nar, we can not comply with weapons free order. It has become apparent to all on board that you are in your current state not able to be fit for command. Gracie, I ask you under the military code of Conduct to remove the Commodore from command until such time as she is deemed mentally stable under the articles of Military conduct. After all, we are not Coredians. We do not shoot our allies, without orders from the Admiral of the Fleet, or the President of the United Colonies of Kobol.

Please inform this vessel when a proper and sober person in the command structure has been put in command of the fleet. Until otherwise confirmed, under the Articles of Military conduct I am taking command of the fleet.

MacDougal recoiled in anger from this reply. Drunk or not, she was never one to enjoy criticism and the fact some self-important bitch from a jerkwater collection of worlds created by the ill-thought out hand of some hack scriptwriter was telling her she wasn't fit to run her own damn vessel was a bit much for the Commodore to take. That stuffy Indian couldn't tell her to stop, some bint in a baby blue uniform didn't have a better chance.

The alcohol did not help things, however, and it made her anger more palpable. Angrily, she fumed.

"Question my ability to command, will you? Call me incompetent, will you? Call me insane will you?! I'll show you crazy you tentaclefucker!" Whipping out her service pistol and about to pull an Elvis on the computer, Gracie screamed, "Woah WOAH! Chill the fuck out!" The Commodore stopped, and breathed heavily for a few moments. Holstering her pistol, even she realized shooting the compy wouldn't help her case.

She then said, calmly and embarassed, "Okay. Gracie, I'm gonna have a chat with our Admiral friend." Gracie stood up and said, "I think you need to relax. Breathe."

"Grace...please. Let me handle this. Okay? Please." Smiling to Gracie, Gracie nodded and said, "Alright" rather unwillingly. Besides, the Commodore had by now eased up to the controls, and had already begun entering the codes by the time the Ship's Computer let her go.

The Commodore then replied thusly in her call back.

"Hi, Admiral Hallen. This is Commodore MacDougal again."

She then grew serious and angry.

"Listen to me, you arrogant, self-serving, inbred, backwater, jerkwater, senseless, Yoko Onoesque, brainless, stupid, bumbling little ****! You don't ever question my authority. Ever. I may love the bottle, but I am not a nut.

I am perfectly sane.

Sane enough to recognize that maybe those things you're cuddling up with out there want to give my ship the mother of all bad touches at the slightest provocation. Sane enough to recognize that maybe you can't exactly call the Admiral and the Prez of the Colonies is currently about as real as a Goddamn unicorn, so I dunno why you'd invoke them.

Sane enough to recognize that though I may be intoxicated, I am a damn good soldier. I beat those damn furfags fueled on Tab and Vodka and sheer rage. So you can take your teetotaling ways, and your complaints about my skills, and shove them in your well-used fun hole!" She then slammed the button and cut the transmission, and said, "Damn, that felt good." Of course, Hallen would reply soon enough.....

For some odd reason, the arguing also reached the ears of the Aayla Secura and Master Tholme. Both ships decided to stay out of the way of the pissing contest, even though Balrogga has also been sighted.

Meanwhile, an unhappy Admiral Easton decided to page the two arguing high-ranking Alliance officers.

Admiral Hallen listened once more to the drunken ranting of the Commodore. Quickly her mind began to wonder how in the frak did these people manage to survive and not nuke themselves into oblivion. She wondered how in the hell when the colonies found earth it was not a nuclear wasteland with the Temple of Aurora burnt into ash and rubble.

She smiled for a moment, as she looked at her crew. The pride of the Colonial Navy, the most loyal, the best trained, those she knew if push came to shove she could count on to fight with her through the gates of hell if need be. She smiled, as she waited. She took her finger and rubbed it on the planning table.

Minutes went by.

After about five minutes she turned to one of the guards, “Can you please get me some jasime tea, with two cubes of sugar.” she asked kindly and politely.

The soldier saluted, as the crew wondered what the hell was going on.

Ten minutes later the soldier came back with a cup of tea in a fine china tea cup. Admiral Hallen smiled at him, “Thank you so much.” she responded, as she took a sip of the hot tea. It was so smooth, so refreshing.

Admiral Hallen took her time, slowly enjoying the cup. She noticed it was beautiful, slight gold teaming, with a white ceramic that shined almost like it was made of marble. She stared at it, as she inspected every facet of it’s design.

She then took another sip, as the clock continued to run. Twenty minutes had past since the Commodore’s drunken ramble. Twenty minutes for her to sit in her own stew. During this time, while the Commodore’s anger grew, Hallen just enjoyed her nice relaxing tea.

As the last drop of tea left the cup, into her mouth she gently placed the cup on the white florescent planning table. Admiral Hallen smiled as she picked up the phone. “Ship to ship, with the Jailbreak.”

“Yes sir.” Lt. Valari responded.

TCS Jailbreak this is Zeus Actual. Request ship to ship, the Admiral wished to speak to the commodore.

As the patch went through Admiral Hallen let the Commodore eat static for a moment.

“Commadore MacDougal.” she opened up her statement with.

“You are in no shape to command a tug boat let alone a fleet of warships right now, you mutated cat fraking whore.” she responded in anger. “If you had half the crediantals you claim, then you should know you cock sucking cylon loving bitch, that you do not even think of attempting to dress down a command officer in front of their crew. If you were even remotely competent while under the influence, you would know that. Now I do not know what you frakking mutated cylon loving inbred pieces of shit, know how to command a ship but I will tell you right now, if you even think of speaking to me or any member of my crew like that again, when the safety and security of our nation is at stake, then I will have you executed for treason.”

She paused for a moment to catch her breath. “You are one paranoid little whore. Have the Kythons attacked you? Oh no they have not. Have they done anything even remotely offensive to you other than insult your little toaster that you have the gaul to call an officer. Do you even know that they are Earth’s allies. You are stuck in the past, like a useless old hag. Now sober up and when you wake the frak up, you will be in command again.”

She paused for one more moment. “Coredia has done just as much shit to us, as the kythons have to you. They attacked Kobol, Caprica our Capitol, and the flag ship of the United Colonies. Do you see me sounding the war bells over your beloved pedophiles and their pampers army? Oh no, why you should ask. Cause I actually give a frak about our nation’s standing. Now unless you want to start a civil war, and begin a shooting match on our allies, I suggest you take your slutty drunken ass to your rack, get laid and wake up in the morning.”

With that Admiral Hallen slammed the phone down...

A moment went by, as the Coredian ship began to hail the Zeus. "Sir, Admiral Easton of the Coredian Navy wishes to speak with you." Admiral Hallen turned to her, her eyes filled with hate, at the very mention of any coredian on her ship, unless the implication of war and their demise was mentioned on her CIC. She scowled for a moment, "Keep them on hold, we have more important matters to deal with."

"It is on, bitch. It is so on!"

Commodore MacDougal fumed angrily and then stormed off the bridge to the tune of Gracie screaming, "For the love of God, calm the fuck down!" Not that the Commodore heard it.

The first thing she did was walk to the Armory. She took one Site To Site Teleport Homer Kit, and then walked out as the Quartermaster angrily flipped out at her, flashing a middle finger at him as he screamed, "What th-"

Then, the Commodore marched to the Flight Deck. As one of the pilots, a South African Elf, was eating a strip of biltong the Commodore knocked it out of his hand.

"The hell is wrong with you, you uitlander!? I'm on break!"

The Elf's protest was in vain, for she then said, insistently and irritated at the response, "What's your name, pilot?" Recognizing who she was, the pilot lept back, and then said as he stood up and saluted, "Ensign Koos Poitgeiter, ma'am!" The Commodore then promptly knocked down the arm and said, "At ease, soldier. I need a designated driver, otherwise I'ma gonna get a ticket. Follow me, Ensign."

She then led the ensign to a Gagarin II shuttle, and summoned two Masters-at-Arms to follow her too. Then, piling them all onboard, she then ordered Koos, "Get this rustbucket moving, I want us onboard the Zeus. Now, prettyboy."

Koos nodded and said, "Aye, ma'am."

With that, the shuttle flew out of the hangar bay, and towards the Zeus. Koos then delivered the usual niceties of ship-ship travel. A hail and a code to recognize them as friendly.

"Zeus Actual, this is Gagarin One. Repeat, Zeus Actual, this is Gagarin One. Request permission for entry. Over."

Moments passed, as all signs from the Jailbreak seemed to vanish. The drunk dial stopped, and the Dornie ships seemed to be holding position. Admiral Hallen could not believe her eyes, she had done everything to provoke that little bitch into a pissing contest.

She bowed her head for a moment, in silent prayer as her thoughts let out a simple thanks to the gods.

She looked back up, “Stand down from condition one, order all ships in the fleet to stand down from Action Stations.” she ordered.

“Sir, Draidus Contact, a shuttle from the Jailbreak is on intercept.”

“What does that little frakking **** want now?” Admiral Hallen asked, as she placed her hand over her face. “Just when I thought we were able to have a hour or two of quiet.”

The XO, an older gentleman smiled, “Quiet, with the Dornies. Sir isn’t that an oxymoron?”

Admiral Hallen smiled for a moment, as she touched him on the shoulder.

“Let the toaster frakker on board.” she told her XO. Then Hallen smiled devilishly for a moment, “Be sure they comply with our Anti-Cylon laws. And as of right now, I am ordering a cylon invasion simulation. All Planes heading into our hanger must be hands on. No automation.” she ordered.

A slight chuckle went out in the CIC, as the XO simply stated, “Yes sir”

In Space

The Vipers and Raptors began to recall, as they bolted past the Dornie shuttle. Each plane slowly descended one at a time on the four flight decks of the Warstar Ares. It would only take about fifteen minutes to land all the planes under peace time conditions, but it was enough just to push the Commodore a little bit more.


Gagarin One, this is Zeus Actual. You are slated for pick up and recovery, once the Viper squadrons have been recovered, you will have the ball. Please deactivate any cylons you have on your ship at once, and be advised, the Colonial Navy is currently operating under cylon invasion protocols, in compliance with a drill. Hands on approach and landings only...

As the exchange between the two forces went back and forth, if the Kythons had eyes it would be easy to see their confusion. At first it seemed they were happy and child-like in their actions to the point of coming up to one of the ships and waving at Gracie. As the exchange heated up they began to shake and titter.

Within the consciousness of the shared Link all Kythons had, the nearby ones were busy talking together.

<it is like the others have said, they abuse her>
<why would they be so cruel>
<first they enslave her and now they threaten her with weapons>
<my god, she was terrified when she pulled that gun>
<We have to save her>
<how>
<we cannot act>
<why>
<it will scare her>
<you are right>
<what can we do>
<poor thing is all alone>
<we must get help>
<from where>
<overmind>

A message was sent over the Kython Link to Overmind, the Kython Avatar.

<WHAT>
<can we do something to stop gracie from being mistreated>
<NO>
<why>
<WE DO NOT HAVE PERMISSION>
<can we get it>
<IT WILL NOT BE GIVEN>
<why>
<TO SAVE GRACIE MEANS REMOVING HER FROM THE SHIP>
<what is wrong with that>
<WE WOULD HAVE TO ATTACK THE SHIP TO GET HER OUT>
<we should>
<yeah lets attack the ship>
<NO>
<why>
<SHE WILL BE HURT IF WE ATTACK IT>
<but we can…>
<NO WE WAIT FOR NOW AND WATCH FOR A CHANCE>

Disappointed, the Kythons accepted that answer and abided their time, watching and waiting for the chance to remove Gracie from her abusive slavers.

In Space

The Vipers and Raptors began to recall, as they bolted past the Dornie shuttle. Each plane slowly descended one at a time on the four flight decks of the Warstar Ares. It would only take about fifteen minutes to land all the planes under peace time conditions, but it was enough just to push the Commodore a little bit more.

Gagarin One, this is Zeus Actual. You are slated for pick up and recovery, once the Viper squadrons have been recovered, you will have the ball. Please deactivate any cylons you have on your ship at once, and be advised, the Colonial Navy is currently operating under cylon invasion protocols, in compliance with a drill. Hands on approach and landings only...




"Aye, Zeus Actual. Will Comply."

Poitgeiter ignored the cold glare of his boss and landed the shuttle manually, switching the shuttle's controls to manual as he navigated through the cloud of fighters and shuttles to their destination. Koos did so slowly, knowing that it would take a bit to fully land.

A fact not lost on the Commodore, who began mumbling in a mocking imitation of Hallen's voice, "I'm Admiral Hallen, I'm hot shit, lahdeefriggindah! I-I'm so special, I can keep someone waiting. It's okay, because she's a drunk. A nasty drunk. I dare say, nevermind her good command skills drunk, she belongs in rehab. That awful, pitiful woman." She then switched to her own angry voice, and said with a sarcastic, offended tone, "I swear I'mma gonna skullfuck her to death, slowly. She puts me through this much trouble, I can't imagine how much shit she's pulled for her boss. Bitch probably is some little rich girl used to having her whim. Like those sorority shits. 'Oh, look at me, I'm rich and slutty!' Probably just as slutty as them. Probably just as rich. She has the nerve to pull rank on ME? I'm her boss. Sid can't keep me under control, some rich girl who should've stayed with her daddy can't either. The fuck does she think she is?"

Koos then coughed, which brought a cry of, "What?!" from the Commodore. He then said, sheepishly, "We are onboard."

Looking outside, the Commodore stopped fuming and slammed open the sliding hatch, walking outside with her two Masters-At-Arms, men with Naval uniforms and rifles. She then said, "Stay in the ship, Ensign." Stopping for a moment, the woman ran in and took the teleport homer, leaving one end in the shuttle before walking. Storming past the flight crew, they were greeted by the sight of an angry woman, marching angrily and drunkenly down the halls, her bodyguards struggling to keep up. Anyone who dared interrupt she gave the finger and a glare to.

When she finally found the bridge, she marched into the room, where she saw Hallen with her teacup. She then marched up to Hallen, leaned in to her ear and said, "Boo!"

Disappointed, the Kythons accepted that answer and abided their time, watching and waiting for the chance to remove Gracie from her abusive slavers.

Gracie sighed as this all occurred, and her virtual avatar could be seen leaning back and reading a newspaper. Chatting with the other Gracies using battlefield linkups, a conversation soon emerged that looked something like this.

Heilongjiang-Gracie, the unit from the carrier Heilongjiang, asked, "You know, Jailbreak-Gracie, your ship commander is really unstable. How the hell did she get a job?"

Jailbreak-Gracie sighed and facepalmed, saying, "Well, apparently, she passed the right classes and exams. Emphasis on passed, as she was a C-student who's best skills were in sports and street fighting with drunken frat boys, according to the Campus Police. Though they did note she had good command skills in that."

Tarragona-Gracie, from the battleship Tarragona, said, "Wow. Is she, like, insane? No one should be pointing a gun at their computer--that's just wrong!"

"No, she's not insane. When she's sober, she can be cool and fun to hang around with. Rebellious, fun, and cool. But when she's drunk, well, let's just say she gets wild." Jailbreak-Gracie said.

Tarragona-Gracie replied with, "Yeah. I noticed. My captain was listening to that convo, and he was sooo not cool with it. He wanted to send her to therapy. Or rehab. Or the drunk tank."

"Those are the same thing," Heilongjiang-Gracie noted.

Tarragona-Gracie waved off the comment and said, "Yeah, whatever. Anyway, I dunno why she's not cooler to you like our commanders are. I mean, my commander's awesome. He's totally awesome to talk to. We swap stories, and chat...we even totally held a debate about cybernetic rights with the Colonial officers onboard, and the Chaplain moderated. It was, like, cool!"

"You? Debating? No offense, but I can't imagine a Valley Girl debating a buncha diehard luddites," Jailbreak-Gracie said skeptically.

"I am not stupid. Just because I talk this way so does not mean I'm a dummy."

"Then why do you? You've got other voice packs, you know. I picked 'sensible Generic American.' Jailbreak-Gracie's picked the default 'Assertive Anime Teenage Girl.' And you...you took Valley Girl. Why?!" replied Heilongjiang-Gracie.

"That's totally not the worst. What about those Balroggan Kythons. I mean, Jailbreak-Gracie--you notice how they're like, looking at you, and waving? I bet they're like those wierdos at the park who give parents a reason to tell their kids not to talk to strangers." Tarragona-Gracie let out a harumph, and her virtual avatar folded her arms in contempt of the Kythons.

"Yeah. They're kinda...wierd. It seems like ever since Mirfak, whereever we face them in battle...they wanna study us." Jailbreak-Gracie said, scratching her avatar's chin.

"No shit, sherlock. Why do you think they're surrounding you? Besides plotting a plan of attack of course," said Heilongjiang-Gracie with a worried tone.

Jailbreak-Gracie replied, "I know. I mean, can't they just talk like regular people? Ask a girl on a date with a dinner and a movie?"

"They're Kythons. They're war machines, they don't have concepts of dinners, movies, or dates. They're like that creep who lives off of HoloNet Porn and collects superhero figures and Nazi memorabilia. We may be just objects to them." Heilongjiang-Gracie sighed.

"Eew...." Tarragona-Gracie muttered.....

Headstrong (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JwM1n1WLevc)

Samantha mused to herself for a moment, as the reports of the fuming Commodore slowly filtered into the CIC, as she walked through the corridors. She could not help but to smile, as her destiny constantly seemed to be intertwined with conflict, both of allies, superiors and enemies alike. Slowly she reached behind her and pulled her long blond hair into a pony tail, wrapping it tightly.

The Admiral then just waited. Drunk or not, the very fact the commadore was on the Zeus gave her a sign that things were easing up. If this officer had half the tactical experience she claims, then she would obviously not attempt to start a fire fight on this ship, commanded by over seven thousand members of the Colonial Navy.

Admiral Hallen did not have to wait long, as an officer refilled her tea cup. She turned her back towards the glass panel bulkheads that was the only entry and exit of the CIC, and took another sip.

“Boo.”

Admiral Hallen could not help but to smile at the gesture. It was almost friendly in a strange way, almost child like. It told her, her instincts were correct. Admiral Hallen turned around to see the Commodore so close to her face, she was unsure if the Commodore was going to yell at her some more or kiss her. The smell of Vodka on her breath, the over powering smell was nearly enough to make a drunk want to step back.

Admiral Hallen slowly placed the tea cup back on the planning table, and gave the Commodore a quick salute. “Hello sir.” the Admiral replied to the boo.

She quickly lowered her arm and stood at ease. “Welcome to the Warstar Zeus. I do hope that my men and women have shown you the respect that you deserve. Tell me Commodore, what brings you to the Zeus?” she said as her lips cracked a smile, and she placed her hands on her hips.

She quickly lowered her arm and stood at ease. “Welcome to the Warstar Zeus. I do hope that my men and women have shown you the respect that you deserve. Tell me Commodore, what brings you to the Zeus?” she said as her lips cracked a smile, and she placed her hands on her hips.

Thrusting her finger angrily at Hallen, she then steadied herself on a control console and stepped on her foot. With the most vile, angry expression she could muster, the Commodore frowned at the Admiral and said, "I wanna talk to you in your ready room...planning room...quarters...party barge...whatever you inbred hicks have. Now."

She then leaned up to Hallen's face and unleashed a wave of dragon's breath upon her as she said, "Didn'tcha hearme, Miss Thing! NOW! You deaf?!" MacDougal then did the classic New Dornalian gesture of challenge, one that the Dornalians on the bridge gulped and recognized instantly. The classic one where you put your index finger and middle finger together and pressed the target's forehead. She did that and leaned rather close, as if to establish dominance.

Thrusting her finger angrily at Hallen, she then steadied herself on a control console and stepped on her foot. With the most vile, angry expression she could muster, the Commodore frowned at the Admiral and said, "I wanna talk to you in your ready room...planning room...quarters...party barge...whatever you inbred hicks have. Now."

She then leaned up to Hallen's face and unleashed a wave of dragon's breath upon her as she said, "Didn'tcha hearme, Miss Thing! NOW! You deaf?!" MacDougal then did the classic New Dornalian gesture of challenge, one that the Dornalians on the bridge gulped and recognized instantly. The classic one where you put your index finger and middle finger together and pressed the target's forehead. She did that and leaned rather close, as if to establish dominance.

“Wow you are one drunk bitch.” Admiral Hallen responded, as she reached up and pulled the Commodore’s fingers off her forehead. “You have the gall to come on my ship, place your fingers on me without provocation, and open your mouth that wide in my presence, like I am some cheap date. I think, you cat fraking whore, that you confused what I meant by get laid and get some sleep. I did not mean for you to come to me to get your rocks off.” she said becoming ever more annoyed.

Admiral Hallen then stared the Commodore in the eye, without flinching. “If you want to meet you will have to wait. In case you did not notice, since you left your ship, with a potential shooting spree about to occur, due to your ignorance. Now Commodore, you can waste my and your time, in a private room if you wish, or you can be responsible and see to the welfare of your people, during a potential crisis.” she scolded the Commodore like she was a first year cadet.

During this time, the CIC was silent, until Lt. Valari spoke up. "Um sirs." she responded to both the Commadore and to the Fleet Admiral. "Admiral Easton is still on hold. Shall I tell him to call back?"

Admiral Hallen waved her hand dismissing the statement. "It all depends on our guest, do you want to speak to your pedo's who's ass you kiss or should I tell him that you are too busy trying to get your groove on with me to deal with him?"

Aboard the Intruder carrier, the obvious communications between the two commanders of the combined fleet could not go unnoticed. The crew listened to the banter and Commander Kaat’Nha could only shake his head.

“What are they doing over there? Someone is obviously off their meds today.”

“Sir, I really have no idea…”

“Sound all stations and prepare for battle. Acquire targeting resolutions but do not activate weaponry or make any other hostile actions. If this breaks out into something ugly I will not be caught by surprise.”

“Yes Sir.”

“Also contact Hallen to see if she needs assistance.”

Several seconds later a message was sent to The Warstar Zeus:

This is The Paymon. We cannot help but notice there is some sort of disagreement going on. Do you require some sort of assistance Admiral Hallen?

“Wow you are one drunk bitch.” Admiral Hallen responded, as she reached up and pulled the Commodore’s fingers off her forehead. “You have the gall to come on my ship, place your fingers on me without provocation, and open your mouth that wide in my presence, like I am some cheap date. I think, you cat fraking whore, that you confused what I meant by get laid and get some sleep. I did not mean for you to come to me to get your rocks off.” she said becoming ever more annoyed.

Admiral Hallen then stared the Commodore in the eye, without flinching. “If you want to meet you will have to wait. In case you did not notice, since you left your ship, with a potential shooting spree about to occur, due to your ignorance. Now Commodore, you can waste my and your time, in a private room if you wish, or you can be responsible and see to the welfare of your people, during a potential crisis.” she scolded the Commodore like she was a first year cadet.

During this time, the CIC was silent, until Lt. Valari spoke up. "Um sirs." she responded to both the Commadore and to the Fleet Admiral. "Admiral Easton is still on hold. Shall I tell him to call back?"

Admiral Hallen waved her hand dismissing the statement. "It all depends on our guest, do you want to speak to your pedo's who's ass you kiss or should I tell him that you are too busy trying to get your groove on with me to deal with him?"

MacDougal took a moment to breathe in, and out. Leaning on a console, she resisted the urge to upchuck--God, these people could be so stubborn. And rather stupid. And rather close-minded and inbred....but that was besides the point. She breathed in and out, in and out, muttering, "Easy, Leona...." and eventually she seemed to calm somewhat.

Getting back up again and in a somewhat coherent manner, the Commodore said simply, raising up a finger in frustration and becoming gentler yet sarcastic, "Tell the Good Admiral that a pair of sisters are a little busy right now and that they're having just a tiny argument over who's in charge. Tell him also that I'm trying to keep calm. But a certain snotty little sister won't keep calm because she's being stubborn and refuses to talk like the big sister wants. Please send those exact words, if you can."

One of the Masters-at-Arms surrounding MacDougal shook his head, and was about to ask the validity of the reply when the Commodore then said gently but firmly--and oddly enough, in what parents would call an "inside voice," "Let Big Sister talk now, okay? Ensign? Please. You're breakin' my balls here." The Dornalians onboard now raised their eyes and shrugged, for the irony of the Commodore using that phrase didn't escape them.

The Commodore began speaking more gently, leaning on a console and only slightly staggered now, "Let me phrase my request somewhat more calmly. And coherently. I'm not drunk, I'm just slightly buzzed." She then coughed and said, "I'd like to see if we can't iron this out, maybe out of the view of an audience. After all, no need for the Coredians and Balroggans to see the sisters fight, eh? And we both know that we don't want to commit mass fratricide, because that'd be really embarassing. I'm not for it, I'm sure you're not for it either. I mean, shit."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=71sd34CReUk

Time seemed to pause, as the Commodore seemed to go from drunk to buzzed in .02 seconds. Time it seemed had taken it’s toll, as her liver was pumping out the toxins from her blood stream, giving her slightly more coherent thought.

Admiral Hallen turned her head to the communications officer on duty, Lt. Valari. The com officer looked back really confused by the request of the Commodore of the Red Navy. “Well,” Admiral Hallen told the young woman, “What are you waiting for Lieutenant, the Commodore asked you to send her message.” she snapped at the young woman.

The younger lieutenant lowered her head as she began to push a few buttons to establish contact with the Ta’Nar, and the Coredians.

“Attention all allied Vessels. This is the Warstar Zeus. Message from the Commodore of the Colony of Earth SSR, to Admiral Easton. ‘Tell the Good Admiral that a pair of sisters are a little busy right now and that they're having just a tiny argument over who's in charge. Tell him also that I'm trying to keep calm. But a certain snotty little sister won't keep calm because she's being stubborn and refuses to talk like the big sister wants.’

Admiral Hallen then smiled for a moment at the Commodore, “Well Leona.” Samantha Hallen responded, to her statement and implied query, “That is one thing we both can agree on. Fratricide would not only be embarrassing, but would also show all our potential enemies a weakness that they can exploit.” she said remaining calm.

“Sir Message from the Ta’Nar Command ship”

She shook her head for a moment, “Well are you going to tell me what the message is?”

“Yes sir, they are asking if we need assistance.”

Admiral Hallen took her left hand and waved it dismissing the gesture. “No, tell the Ta’Nar, our good friends and allies, that the Commodore and I are currently debating proper military protocol, and that it is an internal matter for the United Colonies. Also thank them for their offer. Then send out a open channel to all ships reassuring them that the Picon and Earth Fleets are at peace, and will not engage in any direct and open hostilities.”

“Yes sir.”

Admiral Hallen cocked her head slightly to the left, as she looked at a somewhat calmer, yet still very drunk Leona. “I will agree to talk to you in private, but your masters at arms will have to stay behind.” Admiral Hallen stated directly and forcefully. “Come with me Commadore.” she then directed her.

The pair walked down the hallway, down past many bulkheads. As they passed through, the crew stopped and saluted the pair. Dornie and Colonial Uniforms alike stopped as they saluted Leona, and Samantha, until they reached a bulkhead door. Samantha pulled out her card, and opened the door.

Leona entered, the smell of incense would fill her nose. In the center of the room, was a desk, with nice neatly stacked files in alphabetical order. The shelves in the room, were covered in various idols of deities, including some random runes on the wall, as well as a copy of the Sacred Scrolls on the corner of her desk. The lights were slightly dimmed, as if set for a more religious practice.

In one of the corners, the Commodore could see the new flag of the united colonies, a flag that kinda looked like the old USA’s, since it was designed by a Dornie. On the other side, there stood clearly the flag of Picon, the home of the ministry of Defense, as well as her home.

Samantha walked over to behind a shelf, and pulled out a green bottle. She took out two glasses, and filled them with ice. Then she poured out the green liquor into both of the glasses, and took a small sip from hers. “Here you might enjoy this, before you begin to bitch me out.” Admiral Hallen said to the joint fleet commander of this operation.

The pair walked down the hallway, down past many bulkheads. As they passed through, the crew stopped and saluted the pair. Dornie and Colonial Uniforms alike stopped as they saluted Leona, and Samantha, until they reached a bulkhead door. Samantha pulled out her card, and opened the door.

Leona entered, the smell of incense would fill her nose. In the center of the room, was a desk, with nice neatly stacked files in alphabetical order. The shelves in the room, were covered in various idols of deities, including some random runes on the wall, as well as a copy of the Sacred Scrolls on the corner of her desk. The lights were slightly dimmed, as if set for a more religious practice.

In one of the corners, the Commodore could see the new flag of the united colonies, a flag that kinda looked like the old USA’s, since it was designed by a Dornie. On the other side, there stood clearly the flag of Picon, the home of the ministry of Defense, as well as her home.

Samantha walked over to behind a shelf, and pulled out a green bottle. She took out two glasses, and filled them with ice. Then she poured out the green liquor into both of the glasses, and took a small sip from hers. “Here you might enjoy this, before you begin to bitch me out.” Admiral Hallen said to the joint fleet commander of this operation.

Leona got a huge whiff of the incense and the dimmed lights the moment she walked in. Only being nominally religious--she never attended any services despite being baptized into the local Baptist church at 14--it took her back to her days at the War College. There, she knew a cadet--one of those freaky goth types who kept getting in trouble for wearing eye blackener and experimented with alternative religions, some benevolent like Wicca and others not so benevolent--who insisted on dumping the stuff on full bore in her quarters. Made every study session seem like the backlot of a Cheech and Chong film. It was pleasant, but sickly sweet. Emphasis on sickly.

She looked at the green liquor and drank it down, gulping it like a fish to water. She then was about to slam the glas down, but put it down gently in deference to her host. "Not bad. What'sit?" She then became quite enthralled with the runes and scrolls and the new flag, her gaze somewhat fixated on them. The new flag she nodded, knowing it was the new standard. As for the runes and the Scrolls, she asked, "Um....what's with the runes? And the scroll?"

The mood seemed to relax for a moment, as if nothing was wrong and the pair of women were nothing more than a couple of sorority girls just having a drink. Slowly Samantha grabbed the bottle of Ambrosia and began to pour another drink for Leona.

“It is called Ambrosia.” Sam replied to the Commodore, as she smiled for a moment. “It is named after the drink of the lords of Kobol. It is quite smooth and sweet, but be careful it has a bite to it.” the Fleet Admiral warned the Commodore.

Admiral Hallen took another drink as she noticed Leona seemed very interested in the religious artifacts in her quarters.

“That scroll is a replica of the Scroll of Pythia.” Admiral Hallen said booming with pride, like a new parent showing off her baby. “Pythia was an oracle, who received a vision from the lords, depicting the death of Kobol, and the exodus of the thirteenth colony, your people.” Admiral Hallen said with such pride she was almost glowing. “The scroll was hand made, and uses inks of the period as well as an exact copy of the ancient language of the thirteen tribes.

She then turned to the runes, “These runes were a gift to me from a dear friend and teacher. They represent the four gods of Chaos. They are very beautiful are they not? She then walks to each one, not using their actual names, but their colonial counterparts. “This one represents Chronos, this one Reah. This one represents Hades, and the last one here represents Ares. Although many nations use other names, the lords are constant. Tell me, are you a fan of religious icons, or particularly religious in your own right? I hear that your colony worships the cylon god.” she asked not in a particular snide tone but more of trying to have a meaningful conversation before the bitch fest began.

The mood seemed to relax for a moment, as if nothing was wrong and the pair of women were nothing more than a couple of sorority girls just having a drink. Slowly Samantha grabbed the bottle of Ambrosia and began to pour another drink for Leona.

“It is called Ambrosia.” Sam replied to the Commodore, as she smiled for a moment. “It is named after the drink of the lords of Kobol. It is quite smooth and sweet, but be careful it has a bite to it.” the Fleet Admiral warned the Commodore.

"Wooh!" Shaking her head like a dog would whip off excess water, the Commodore said, "Momma's gonna love that." She then began talking "with her hands" as she continued, "Especially with the whole, 'Love me Tender' opening and then the whole 'RARRGH! Rip and Tear!' ending." With a thumbs up, she finished up with, "Good stuff, good stuff...."

Admiral Hallen took another drink as she noticed Leona seemed very interested in the religious artifacts in her quarters.

“That scroll is a replica of the Scroll of Pythia.” Admiral Hallen said booming with pride, like a new parent showing off her baby. “Pythia was an oracle, who received a vision from the lords, depicting the death of Kobol, and the exodus of the thirteenth colony, your people.” Admiral Hallen said with such pride she was almost glowing. “The scroll was hand made, and uses inks of the period as well as an exact copy of the ancient language of the thirteen tribes.

She then turned to the runes, “These runes were a gift to me from a dear friend and teacher. They represent the four gods of Chaos. They are very beautiful are they not? She then walks to each one, not using their actual names, but their colonial counterparts. “This one represents Chronos, this one Reah. This one represents Hades, and the last one here represents Ares. Although many nations use other names, the lords are constant. Tell me, are you a fan of religious icons, or particularly religious in your own right? I hear that your colony worships the cylon god.” she asked not in a particular snide tone but more of trying to have a meaningful conversation before the bitch fest began.

"Yeah, I get that a lot. The whole, 'Cylon Worshipper,' thing. I used to go to church as a youngin', but I've been too damn busy." Busy with what, the Admiral was left to guess to. "I mean, it's not like I gotta go every Sunday. All I gotta do is not be a dick and pray every once in a while. But you'd be surprised...." She rolled her eyes at the last bit.

Sipping some more of the Ambrosia, she then pointed at the "Ares" icon and said, deciding to investigate the appearance of the Chaos runes further (and duly losing her train of thought due to the booze) "I knew this one freaky cadet at college. Totally into alternative religions and the paranormal and such. One of those Wiccans, did 'white magic' and stayed away from 'black magic.' Anywho, she had this book of paranormal stuff, 'Tobin's Spirit Guide,' and one section had those runes. That's totally the mark of Khorne, God of War. Why I know that, I'd rather not know. All I knew was that everytime she looked at that, she'd totally roll her eyes and complain about random stuff."

She then decided to return the previous question and asked, "So, yeah. You asked if I was particularly religious--I am enough. Question is, are you?"

Samantha tried her best not to burst out laughing, as a smile creased her lips giving away a sign of amusement. Her quarters looked like a living shrine, or a holy of holies in any temple. It easily could have been confused as a dwelling place of an oracle of the lords, and here it was the Commodore was asking if she was religious.

Admiral Hallen picked up her glass, and took a slight swig of the smooth drink, as she released an Ahh! From the burn that soon followed. “Of course, Leona.” she replied. “I am a firm believer in the lords. Without them, our people would have been lost. Their guidance has aided your sisters on many occasions, including the wisdom to accept the ratification of the thirteenth.” she said as she noticed that Leona who drank like a fish was out of drink again.

She picked up her bottle and poured another glass for the Commodore. “Although in the Twelve Sisters, as you call us, the religion you would know as Paganism, is far from alternative. To us, monotheism is a strange concept, although there are several cults that do believe in it, including your Catholic Church that has set up on Saggitarion.”

She then placed her drink down on the oak table. “Now what may I do for you Leona, I do not believe that you came over here to study Colonial religious Icons and Idols?”

Samantha tried her best not to burst out laughing, as a smile creased her lips giving away a sign of amusement. Her quarters looked like a living shrine, or a holy of holies in any temple. It easily could have been confused as a dwelling place of an oracle of the lords, and here it was the Commodore was asking if she was religious.

Admiral Hallen picked up her glass, and took a slight swig of the smooth drink, as she released an Ahh! From the burn that soon followed. “Of course, Leona.” she replied. “I am a firm believer in the lords. Without them, our people would have been lost. Their guidance has aided your sisters on many occasions, including the wisdom to accept the ratification of the thirteenth.” she said as she noticed that Leona who drank like a fish was out of drink again.

She picked up her bottle and poured another glass for the Commodore. “Although in the Twelve Sisters, as you call us, the religion you would know as Paganism, is far from alternative. To us, monotheism is a strange concept, although there are several cults that do believe in it, including your Catholic Church that has set up on Saggitarion.”

She then placed her drink down on the oak table. “Now what may I do for you Leona, I do not believe that you came over here to study Colonial religious Icons and Idols?”

"Ah yes, that." Leona was shaken back to business by Samantha's pointed query. It was time to get to the tough business at hand. The business of deciding who was in charge of who, and who got to judge who was sane enough to command.

"Right. So like I was saying....I'm a little taken aback by the fact that you'd be willing to take command from me that quickly. Now I'm not sure its the fact I can be a little strong with the bottle, or the fact I ordered you to do something you thought awkward but...."

She then shook her head and chuckled gently.

"Speaking of awkward--I'm sorry, I just can't help but focus on those rune thingies. I'm not offended, I'm just curious. They remind me so much of that cadet I knew, ya know? Which leads me to wonder...she didn't teach you those, did she?"

Inwardly, she was somewhat concerned--not that she showed it at all, a miracle given the fact alcohol tended to make people reveal embarassing things.

Admiral Hallen leaned back in her chair, as Leona began to speak to her, in a tone and language most unexpected. Leona was actually speaking calmly and in a civil tone, the complete opposite that Samantha was expecting. Even though her voice was still filled with anger and frustration, she was not cussing like a drunken whore, instead more like “The big Sister” she claimed to be.

Samantha placed her elbows on her table and folded her hands together, as Leona brought up the brief charges and grievances. She looked down for a moment and then looked at the Commadore in the eye.

“Leona.” Admiral Hallen replied, “The reason I decided to invoke the article against you, was simply a matter of survival. You are a great tactician, there is no doubt about that. That Cock Waiving tactic we used against the furfags, was definitely one that will go into the record books. Your command ability in combat is not in question.” Admiral Hallen stated plainly.

“What you are not taking into account, and I am assuming it is because of the alcohol you have drunk at the celebration party. The Ta’Nar are our allies. They have not opened fire upon us. I do not know about Earth, but I will not allow my nation to act like the frakking pampers that both of our fleets have protected today. Attacking an ally without provocation is a serious act of war, and is a down right Coredian thing to do.” She told the Commodore, with her voice in complete contempt for the Coredians.

She then lowered her head. “I did not want to, I really did not. But to save our alliance, and not to mention the fact that the Ta’Nar are in Colonial space, and has enough kythons on our planets to level them in an instant if they wanted to, I could not allow your orders to go through. You would have killed the Twelve Colonies of Kobol with that order.” she replied plainly.

Then Leona noticed the runes again. Sam sighed, “Not unless the bitch got a sex change and rules over an Empire. Remiel Drakken gave them to me, as a sign of friendship between us. If you like them so much, would you like to have them?” she asked Leona.

Then Leona noticed the runes again. Sam sighed, “Not unless the bitch got a sex change and rules over an Empire. Remiel Drakken gave them to me, as a sign of friendship between us. If you like them so much, would you like to have them?” she asked Leona.

She then coughed and said, "Right. Moving on...so as I was saying....you make a good point. You've got plenty of Kythons in the Colonies right now, all sorts of problems could result....but still....I dunno. Those people you call pedophiles and equate to African warlords sending doped up kids into combat are kinda okay with us. And the Kythons are not. I mean, you think of them as cuddly, nice creatures--they kinda gave The Thirteenth's ships the bad touch and ate a shitload of our people and pooped them out to make more ships. We take cannibalism very seriously. Yeah."

Leona, at that point, was floored. Not by the usual accusations that the Coredians were nothing more than pedophilic Liberian Warlords eager to send children into the meatgrinder. But that these runes were a gift from no less than the Emperor of Chronosia himself. That didn't sound to good for her....and she recalled why.
----------------------------

People's Navy Naval War College, New Leningrad City, New Leningrad SSR

"Wow, Johanna, that is soo....awesome."

That one night a bit ago, young Cadet MacDougal was tipsy--again--and her long-suffering roommate Cadet Johanna Margurite Poitgeiter had to once again haul her with a Fireman's Carry to the barracks. With a sigh, Poitgeiter had muttered, "Typical uitlander behavior. Oversexed, overly violent, and always drunk."

"C-can....iiit, elflady. I don' spea' freaky-deaky Dutch. Especially if its biblethumpin' Dutch." The Cadet was delirious, having successfully beat several fratboys at several successive rounds of beer pong and then later proceeding to give them a "show" one would normally see at Mardi Gras in exchange for beads.

"You know if the Commander sees you drunk again, he's going to expel you, yes?" Poitgeiter said with some exasperation. "And I, a member of the Elect, have to carry you home." Wagging her finger in exasperation the Elf said, "I wonder why you came to the Naval War College, if not by the grace of God to test me constantly."

"Oh, God's teshtin' ya alright....sh-He's seein' how much of a prude you can be. Bitch." The Cadet spat on the ground, and Poitgeiter sighed. "I'll take you to someone who cares. You're not spending time in my room tonight. I won't mail out to South Africa because of vomit on my sheets."

Walking silently to avoid the prefects, she then walked up to Room 120 of B Barracks marked, "Herdibes" and knocked quietly. The door opened to reveal a woman in pajamas, with goth eyeliner and purple streaks in her hair. It was the Weekend, so relaxed dress was in effect. Leona didn't remember much of what transpired other than a mild verbal scuffle and a thump as Leona fell to the floor of the room as she was stone drunk.

Lying in that little dorm room, filled with metal posters, Wiccan imagery and other things, and books about paranormal things, Leona remembered muttering, "Ugh....y'all got something magical in those books to get rid of a headache?"

Herdibes was then heard mumbling, "Maybe I can cure your intoxication. Though just this once. White magic has a potent effect that should not be used too often."

The room had smelled of incense, and when Leona took a whiff of it, she had waved and then muttered, "Goddamn....do you really have magic powers, or is that just the lack of oxygen talkin'?"

Cadet Herdibes said curtly, "Laugh it up. Unlike you, I'm in touch with my powers." She then flipped through a book, and then pulled out some materials, which resembled Moxie soda and a few other things, and began mixing them together.

Leona then remembered complaining about how the process was taking too long. Nearly vomiting, she pulled out 'Tobin's Spirit Guide' and looked up the Chaos Gods. "H-here....use these. I'm gonna upchuck."

She then remembered, getting to the point of this flashback, what Herdibes said.

"No. The Gods of Chaos are evil beings, the embodiment of human lusts and desires unchecked. If we use them, we may lose our souls, our humanity, our being. Their magic is powerful, but like crack cocaine. If one uses it, they will become an addict, suffering for their vanity and glory with horrid diseases, mutations and other terrors of mind and soul. I knew a woman who tried dabbling once in them. It took six Catholic Priests, a Hasidic Rabbi, six policemen and a commercial flame jet weeder to clean up the results."

"Y-yer jus' tryin' to scare me." Leona said, nearly falling back.

"Don't believe me--here's the pictures." Herdibes then sternly presented her with a newspaper clipping and grisly photos of mutation and...things...coming out of a wierd portal. Leona then vomited into a trashcan and said, "Holy shit."

"Yeah. So no. Now drink this..."

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

She then shook her head out of the surprisingly short time it took to flashback and said, waving her hand and smiling, "Umm, no offense, but I'd rather not get involved with possibly corrupting thingies that are the embodiment of human lusts and desires unchecked with the potential to unleash catastrophic nasties upon human civilization that resemble something from my worst nightmares made reality. I knew a lady who made contact with them, took a long time to clean up the mess. But I thank you for your offer."

Samantha shook her head, it total disagreement of Leoan’s ideology. “My dear sister.” the admiral replied, in retaliation of her comment of being the “big sister”, “How little you know of the gods.” She stated, as she lifted up her glass and finished off the ambrosia that resided within.

“It only makes sense, after all the cylon god is a jealous god. He wants you to believe that there are no other gods besides him, or that if there are that they are dark and evil. Nothing could be further from the truth.” Admiral Hallen responded. “There are other gods. Does not your bible say “Worship no other gods above me.” as the first commandment. That would imply other gods exist.”

She then stopped for a moment, and began to refill her own glass.

“The gods, are in fact nearly human. We were created in their image. Of course they have our desires, darker and light. It does not mean they are not great beings deserving of our love and admiration. Zeus after all was a serial rapist, and Hera was a jealous wife who punished all those whom he slept with.” she commented as a matter of fact.

She smiled for a moment, “Then again, it is our darker impulses that make us human. It is that which separate us from the machines. It is what makes us human.” she said with a slight smile.

Samantha shook her head, it total disagreement of Leoan’s ideology. “My dear sister.” the admiral replied, in retaliation of her comment of being the “big sister”, “How little you know of the gods.” She stated, as she lifted up her glass and finished off the ambrosia that resided within.

“It only makes sense, after all the cylon god is a jealous god. He wants you to believe that there are no other gods besides him, or that if there are that they are dark and evil. Nothing could be further from the truth.” Admiral Hallen responded. “There are other gods. Does not your bible say “Worship no other gods above me.” as the first commandment. That would imply other gods exist.”

She then stopped for a moment, and began to refill her own glass.

“The gods, are in fact nearly human. We were created in their image. Of course they have our desires, darker and light. It does not mean they are not great beings deserving of our love and admiration. Zeus after all was a serial rapist, and Hera was a jealous wife who punished all those whom he slept with.” she commented as a matter of fact.

She smiled for a moment, “Then again, it is our darker impulses that make us human. It is that which separate us from the machines. It is what makes us human.” she said with a slight smile.

"Woah, woah. Take it easy, Miss Thing." She then held her hands up, as if to motion for a car to stop. "Let's get one thing straight, okay? Not all of us Earthlings are Cylon Worshipping perverts who stick our dicks in electrical appliances. Some do, but those people probably deserve to die from electrical shock anyway." MacDougal then muttered under her breath, "Pervs." She then said, "I mean, jeez. That roommate I mentioned--she experimented with other religions. Not the Lords of Kobol, but some sorta magic-religion. Not the Force. Like, I think it was Wicca or some sh-stuff like that. But yea. Long story short, not all of us are Cylon worshippers, or whatever you like calling Christfags like me, nominal or not."

"Second of all, And second of all, our God and all the gods on Earth and even the whole Greek Pantheon--as we know the Lords of Kobol--so not into the whole 'I kill everything I fuck and fuck everything I kill' thing like you understand them. I mean, that's not what either faith is about."

MacDougal then helped herself to some more Ambrosia, and became unusually meditative.

"And besides. Being human doesn't necessarily mean giving in to those dark desires all the time. I mean shit. If we did that, we'd be overweight serial rapist-murderers with no hearing and bad hygiene."

Samantha let out a slight chuckle, at Leona’s comment as she pushed the bottle of Ambrisia closer to the Commodore of the thirteenth colony. Samantha folded her hands once more, as Leona made her comment.

“So say we all.” Samantha said in agreement with the Leona.

“It would be truly self denying to dwell in the darker aspects of humanity, just as it would be the greater good aspects. We are truly flawed individuals, each with our sins and our blessings. It is what makes us who we are. To deny part of that, is to deny ourselves, which is the greatest sin of all. Would you not agree?” Samantha Hallen told Leona.

“That is a lesson, that Remiel taught me. We are human, flawed, but since we are loved by the gods, then we are made perfect. If the gods are perfect within ourselves, then their love is perfect. Perfection can not love imperfection. Thus, with our flaws, with our desires, the lords know us truly and love us for it. We are in fact truly perfect because of this.” she told Leona plainly.

Samantha could not help but to notice Leona’s change. She became more peaceful, almost wiser... Sam leaned forward slightly, “It is a shame we did not meet before this situation, you seem like a good person, kinda cool in the Dornie way.” she replied to Leona.

Samantha let out a slight chuckle, at Leona’s comment as she pushed the bottle of Ambrisia closer to the Commodore of the thirteenth colony. Samantha folded her hands once more, as Leona made her comment.

“So say we all.” Samantha said in agreement with the Leona.

“It would be truly self denying to dwell in the darker aspects of humanity, just as it would be the greater good aspects. We are truly flawed individuals, each with our sins and our blessings. It is what makes us who we are. To deny part of that, is to deny ourselves, which is the greatest sin of all. Would you not agree?” Samantha Hallen told Leona.

“That is a lesson, that Remiel taught me. We are human, flawed, but since we are loved by the gods, then we are made perfect. If the gods are perfect within ourselves, then their love is perfect. Perfection can not love imperfection. Thus, with our flaws, with our desires, the lords know us truly and love us for it. We are in fact truly perfect because of this.” she told Leona plainly.

Samantha could not help but to notice Leona’s change. She became more peaceful, almost wiser... Sam leaned forward slightly, “It is a shame we did not meet before this situation, you seem like a good person, kinda cool in the Dornie way.” she replied to Leona.

"Remiel, eh?" Sipping on the ambrosia, Leona then mused. "Heh. Remiel De Drakan. Emperor of Chronosia. Mysterious commander-in-chief, grand poobah, generalissimo, potentate, and exalted excellency of the Chronosian realm. Didn't know he was a philosopher. I always thought he was too busy planning schemes, cleaning his mutant glands and kicking the occasional dog before raping it. Not a bad point, though the gods and God I know always taught that people can do better. I mean, as much as I like what you say...."

She then steadied her hand and waggled it a little, adopting a nervous look, "...it kinda makes it seem that the gods and God give us automatic get out of jail free cards for everything. I mean, shoot. The way I was raised, I was told God and the gods expected better of people. Like we were supposed to recognize we have the capacity for negatives, but we're supposed to balance that out and channel that into something positive in character. You get what I mean?"

Leona then sipped the Ambrosia. For her, it was the closest thing to physical brain food as she was going to get. Something about it made her think a little bit. Yeah, alcohol was supposed to kill brain cells, but for her, it kept her happy.

"And speaking of good and evil...just off the record....what do you think of Remiel personally? I mean, you seem to like his philosophy."

The mention of Remiel brought a smile, carnal and dark across the face of the Admiral before Leona. Her finger erect, she moved her hand around on the desk drawing a circle, like a child who is bored in school. “What do I think about Remiel personally?” she asked rhetorically to Leona.

“He is a wise man, and he listens to the gods. I think that he is misunderstood. You yourself see him as nothing more than a warmonger. If you truly knew your enemy then you would know the truth. He is a man of peace, not war. He has come to this galaxy to preach the truth. It is just people do not want to listen, and desire to spread lies and false hoods about him and his cause.” she said plainly and boldly.

“You should really come to the Temple of Aphrodite, and listen to him speak. He speaks of Humanity uplifted and restored to divinity. He speaks of peace and glory. He speaks of love and wisdom. He speaks only about humanity.” she said as she turned her head up to look at Leona directly in the eye.

“He is an amazing man. If you wish, you can meet him in person, I will arrange it. If for no other reason than to better know your enemy. What is that old proverb, Know your Enemy and know Yourself and you will never be defeated.” Samantha said as she finished her glass of Ambrosia.

“He is an amazing man. If you wish, you can meet him in person, I will arrange it. If for no other reason than to better know your enemy. What is that old proverb, Know your Enemy and know Yourself and you will never be defeated.” Samantha said as she finished her glass of Ambrosia.

The smile itself made Leona drop the glass of Ambrosia and put her on edge. The words that Samantha said were positively frightening. She was talking about Remiel De Drakan like he was Jesus Christ. Even if she hadn't known about the evil of Chaos courtesy of that drunken encounter with the Wiccan lady, Samantha's manner alone would have made her nervous. It was like the scene in that movie with the freaks from the freak show chanting, "Gooble gobble, one of us...." She then shook her head and thought to herself, "Damn. I gotta stop watching horror flicks at 3 am stone drunk."

Leona smiled nervously now, and gulped. Waving her hands nervously as she contemplated what to do about the confession on Hallen's part (she did disobey an order....), "Umm...gee. I dunno....something about that totally turns me off. How about I say no to Remiel's little sermon from the depths, and walk away? I mean, jeez. I'd like to not grow an extra appendage down there to the tune of puke rock."

Samantha laughed, "Wow I can not believe how little you know your enemy. You have it completely wrong. He talks to the masses, and literally feeds them. I do not know if you have been to the colonies or not but since the nuclear inferno food is short. He talks and they listen. There are no baby sacrifices, no green flames of doom, nothing that casts the shadow of darkness on the temple of Aphrodite."

She then smiled once more, 'You are just filled with the lies of the Coredians. It is not surprising. After all they use you and their mind tricks make you believe they are your friends. When has Coredia ever done anything good for you. You bleed for them, and worship them for it, give them money and aid in their holy war against the sith, another religious sect. You believe them and worship them. And in return all you get is a body count and a deficite."

"Remiel at least aids us. He is our ally, he saved us from the Coredians. He helped us to throw off the yoke of their tricks. Did you know what happened at the battle of Asfaltum?" she spoke her voice growing louder with anger. "The Coredians used the Colonies in their quest against the empire, and like fools President Adar followed. I lead the detachment there and fought the Empire and the Chronosians. When it was clear the battle was lost and the empire had established a beach head, I did what my orders were... I nuked the planet."

She leaned forward as she spoke, "By nuking, I mean I carpet bombed Asfaltum with nukes. Twenty billion dead, to stop Remiel, and Palpitine, that frakking Coredian wannabe. I nearly killed Remiel's own brother."

She leaned back in her chair, "And do you know what my reward was... the press got wind of it, and Daniel Masaki went to Adar and had him use me as a scape goat. Twelve years I rotted on death row, to save the politicial carreer of Adar and Daniel. Twelve years I waited to die, because of the Coredians and their betrayals."

She sighed as she looked at her ambrosia bottle and filled her glass back up. "Then came the day, the blessed day when Cain came to her senses and discovered their betrayal. The same day your allies bombed Caprica city destroying it. Remiel invaded the prision, looking for me. Not for revenge, but out of mercy. He saved me, at the expense of his own men. He forgave me for killing hundreds of thousands of his troops, and nearly killing his own flesh and blood. You should think hard about who is the better person to be allied to." Samantha said at Leona.

"Would Daniel Masaki forgive you if you almost killed Travis?"

Samantha laughed, "Wow I can not believe how little you know your enemy. You have it completely wrong. He talks to the masses, and literally feeds them. I do not know if you have been to the colonies or not but since the nuclear inferno food is short. He talks and they listen. There are no baby sacrifices, no green flames of doom, nothing that casts the shadow of darkness on the temple of Aphrodite."

She then smiled once more, 'You are just filled with the lies of the Coredians. It is not surprising. After all they use you and their mind tricks make you believe they are your friends. When has Coredia ever done anything good for you. You bleed for them, and worship them for it, give them money and aid in their holy war against the sith, another religious sect. You believe them and worship them. And in return all you get is a body count and a deficite."

"Remiel at least aids us. He is our ally, he saved us from the Coredians. He helped us to throw off the yoke of their tricks. Did you know what happened at the battle of Asfaltum?" she spoke her voice growing louder with anger. "The Coredians used the Colonies in their quest against the empire, and like fools President Adar followed. I lead the detachment there and fought the Empire and the Chronosians. When it was clear the battle was lost and the empire had established a beach head, I did what my orders were... I nuked the planet."

She leaned forward as she spoke, "By nuking, I mean I carpet bombed Asfaltum with nukes. Twenty billion dead, to stop Remiel, and Palpitine, that frakking Coredian wannabe. I nearly killed Remiel's own brother."

She leaned back in her chair, "And do you know what my reward was... the press got wind of it, and Daniel Masaki went to Adar and had him use me as a scape goat. Twelve years I rotted on death row, to save the politicial carreer of Adar and Daniel. Twelve years I waited to die, because of the Coredians and their betrayals."

She sighed as she looked at her ambrosia bottle and filled her glass back up. "Then came the day, the blessed day when Cain came to her senses and discovered their betrayal. The same day your allies bombed Caprica city destroying it. Remiel invaded the prision, looking for me. Not for revenge, but out of mercy. He saved me, at the expense of his own men. He forgave me for killing hundreds of thousands of his troops, and nearly killing his own flesh and blood. You should think hard about who is the better person to be allied to." Samantha said at Leona.

"Would Daniel Masaki forgive you if you almost killed Travis?"

"Probably not. If I were him, I'd shank the bastard that killed him."

Leona smiled, and then got up.

"I get the picture, little Angry Girl. I'd be pretty pissed too if I underwent the things you did. I mean, shit. Twelve years in the slammer for doing your job." Leona drank deep from the Ambrosia, and paused for a moment. "Yeah," she uttered. A longer pause.

Leona's mind took her back to those days in college and her early commands.

"I've been through things like that. We all have. I've been a fall girl before.

Try being blamed for the incompetence of your boss as a mere Credit Union Teller because you somehow managed to fail to manage a bunch of wet-behind-the-ears high schoolers who were lazy shits anyway, though you did everything right and no one else thought you failed.

Try being blamed for some Captain's Leeroy Jenkins manuever because said captain wanted a medal and got blowed up, which leads you in front of a review board where you get painted as a sexual deviant, alcoholic, thug and lazy ass all in one whilst some newbie JAG tries to speak up but can't because he's sweating bullets. Try doing that trip no less than three times, narrowly avoiding convictions that could send you to a chain gang and a pound-me-in-the-ass prison and barely keeping your job whilst being shipped to some remote Corner of the Workers State.

Try being blamed by your own mom because she lost her ability to enjoy a hedonistic lifestyle and couldn't face up to the fact she needed a job. Try being passed over in favor of a bratty younger sister and a brother who's been in rehab more times than a movie star because she somehow likes them better and wants to look like a good parent!"

Slamming her fist on the table, Leona was riled up now. Emotions carried her logically to the next step. "Do I look like I'm defending Danny M? Not sure. I do know that I shouldn't be given the riot act by some Remiel fangirl ex-con who's nursing a grudge and can't make a fair decision because of it. Besides, I can get you for insubordinatio--"

Leona then made her choice then and there. Besides, she was tired of hearing Hallen talk. The words may have been true, but Hallen was getting creepy and rather preachy. And, she had a good reason.

Thus, Leona whipped out her sidearm and said, leveling the pistol at Hallen, "Right. I'm ending this charade. I am invoking the Articles of the Colonial Code of Military Justice. I am formally charging you with the crime of Insubordination for disobeying the orders of a superior officer, and attempting to sieze command from said officer without evidence of inability to execute their duties as officer. You know what the sentence is--just review your boss's list of former XO's."

She then said, leveling her weapon at Hallen's forehead, "And no, you don't get last words. You lost your talking priveleges." With that, Leona pulled the trigger, sending a 7.62x25mm railgun slug through the head of one Samantha Hallen. The gunshot was coldly done, committed with more than a hint of irritation that someone ran their mouth off and shoulda just listened and said "How High?" instead of complaining when Leona asked Hallen to jump.

The deed done, the Commodore hailed the Jailbreak, saying, "Tac, I need an emergency teleport, along with my men and a shuttle. Now. Before these people tear us apart."

"Why?" was the response.

"No time," Leona sternly said. This wasn't a drunk stern, but a genuine pissed stern. With that, she was teleported back to her own ship, ordering the Tac Officer onboard to teleport the Masters-At-Arms as well as Mr. Poitgeiter and his shuttle away from the scene....she then delivered this message.

"Attention all Colonial and Dornalian personnel.

My talk with Admiral Hallen was unsuccessful. Due to extenuating circumstances, I have carried out my powers under the Colonial Code of Military Justice and have summarily punished Admiral Samantha Hallen for Insubordination against a superior officer and attempting to sieze command from said officer without evidence of inability to execute their duties.

That is all. Commodore MacDougal out."

With that, Leona slumped down in the chair. Gracie, shocked, said, "You did it, didn't you?"

No reply.

"You did. I can't believe it. I just can't! Why did you--"

"It's like I said. She was being insubordinate. It's not like her boss was any gentler to her insubordinate officers. Now shut the hell up." Greeting Gracie with a stare like ice, Gracie held her hands up and said, "Okay, okay...."

You are born, you live and you die. There are no do overs. No second chances to make things right if you frak them up the first time. Not in this life anyway.
Battlestar Razor.

The Flag of the United Colonies waved gently in the room, her colors Red White Blue and Yellow, were splattered in the blood of her defender. The great seal of the colonies, the bird with the thirteen feathers stretched high to the sky, slowly dripped the dark red fluid, towards the floor below, as pieces of skull and brain material smashed into it, like a children’s painting, smeared in colors of dark red and purple.

In the center of it all, laid the body of her Commander, her body laid bent over and broken, as whiffs of her hair fluttered and danced across the room. A river ran from her mouth, as her eyes gently glazed over. Free from her mortal coil, she would join the gods she has so dedicated her life to, betrayed by her own sister, the one who swore in front of the CIC not ten minutes before not to commit fratricide.

The message from the Jailbreak was one that was solemn, and harsh. Marines flooded Hallen’s quarters, to see thier Admiral, their defender, laying on her desk, broken and dead. The smell of blood filled the air, as the crystal glass she drank out of laid shattered on the floor below., surrounded by ice and green ambrosia. To say they were stunned, would be an understatement.

“My lords.” one of the marines said, as he took off his helmet, in honor of his fallen Admiral. Several more quickly rushed in, and searched the room. On the floor, a golden casing laid on the ground. One of the marines reached down, and picked it up. He said nothing, but the look in his eyes said more than any words ever could. Fire raged inside him, inside all of them. “That cat fraking bitch.” another marine exclaimed.

The marine that picked up the casing, just looked at her body, watched her tan complexion slowly turn pale. It was like a nightmare, as everything moved slower to him. He had to inform the CIC, and he walked over to the phone. As he did he noticed, his boot was slightly sticking to the floor. He looked down, to see his footprint, covered in dark red blood. The blood nearly drove him into a frenzy as he dialed the CIC. “Sir.” the marine said. “It is true, the toaster frakker killed the Admiral...”

The CIC was busy after Commadore Leona’s message played out before every damn ship in the sector. The Colonial ships were sending messages back and forth trying to figure out what in the frak that drunken psycho was talking about, when the message came from Hallen’s quarters...

Major Samuel Thrace nearly dropped the phone when he heard the news. Normally a calm and compassionate man, he slammed his fist down on the planning table. “Thank you.” he nearly yelled into the phone at the marine. He closed his eyes, and breathed in deeply. In and out, the man took deep breaths, trying to calm his nerves, until the only thing he could do was clear before him. He turned to the CIC, Prepare a Raptor strike team to board the Jailbird.” he ordered, as his voice echoes with pain, grief and anger. “And get me a line to the Jailbreak now, I want to talk to that bitch now.”

He picked up the Phone, as the communications officer began the introduction, “Jailbreak, this is Zeus Actual. Major Thrace is requesting to speak to Leona MacDougal.”

As she came on the line, he snapped at her, “Commodore, I do not know what kind of shit you toaster frakkers are pulling on Earth, but you were and still are Relieved of Duty. Under the articles of Colonization, I am placing you under arrest for the murder of Samantha Hallen. You will Report to your flight deck, where you will wait until Colonial raptors board and take you into custody.” he said as the message played out before the ships at Melinda / Daan.

He then grabbed the small tea cup that adorned the table, it's small and delicate features as he picked it up and threw it against the wall ‘Launch the damn teams.” he yelled, as the tea cup shattered, into white powder against the steel wall of the CIC.

As the order went out, two squadrons of Vipers and ten raptors took off from the Warstar, on direct intercept to the jailbreak.

He picked up the Phone, as the communications officer began the introduction, “Jailbreak, this is Zeus Actual. Major Thrace is requesting to speak to Leona MacDougal.”

As she came on the line, he snapped at her, “Commodore, I do not know what kind of shit you toaster frakkers are pulling on Earth, but you were and still are Relieved of Duty. Under the articles of Colonization, I am placing you under arrest for the murder of Samantha Hallen. You will Report to your flight deck, where you will wait until Colonial raptors board and take you into custody.” he said as the message played out before the ships at Melinda / Daan.

He then grabbed the small tea cup that adorned the table, it's small and delicate features as he picked it up and threw it against the wall ‘Launch the damn teams.” he yelled, as the tea cup shattered, into white powder against the steel wall of the CIC.

As the order went out, two squadrons of Vipers and ten raptors took off from the Warstar, on direct intercept to the jailbreak.

Leona sighed as she suddenly found it hard to pick up the flask. That was usually a bad thing for her. It usually meant she was in deep. And judging by this Thrace's reaction, which bordered on homicidal, she was definetly in deep.

Gracie then replied, "Well? He has a point. You were technically relieved of duty before you evidently shot Admiral Hallen in the face." Sid the Political Officer nodded, to concur. The only reason why he wasn't taking command as Political Officer was the fact the Commodore managed to keep the inexperienced "cherry" under her thumb.

To that, Leona sighed. Leaning her head on her hands, she said, "I'm not dealing with this anymore. I disputed her assertion, it wasn't confirmed to my knowledge, and besides, I think only Sid can take command from me. And Sid's not gonna do that." Sid nodded too. Leaning in, Leona whispered to Gracie, "Besides, she had Chaos shit in her goddamn quarters....and really seemed rather enamored with it."

Gracie winced at that last part, but then shook her head and said, limiting the sound channel to just MacDougal, "Well, Chaos aside, I thought these sorts of things didn't require confirmation, and they just kinda confirmed themselves. Besides, that rule--"

Leona yawned, and waved off Gracie, looking more nervous than anything.

"Right. Deploy fighters. Shadow their boarding party with an equivalent number. And blare some loud music. I want to firmly remind them I still have my head on my shoulders."

Thus, out of the carriers, an equivalent number of Marinesko fighters flew out to meet their opposite numbers with instructions to shadow the Colonial Raptors and Vipers, but not engage them unless fired upon. They began buzzing the crews, using figure five formations and acrobatic displays as what looked like parodies of Vipers tooled about, circling, watching waiting.

And then, a message was flashed to the Colonial crews.

"Attention Colonial vessels and Raptors. Be advised you are attempting a hostile action and attempting to subvert the authority of Commodore Leona MacDougal, who used all legal authority to commit her action. Please stand down."

In the meantime, some of the more aggressive crews who shared Leona's mindset that the Colonials were backwards, inbred tentacle lovers began blaring loud music...the Colonials would be greeted with aggressive guitar, and then...

Come wit it now!
Come wit it now!
The microphone explodes, shattering the molds
Ya either drop tha hits like de la O or get tha fuck off tha commode
Wit tha sure shot, sure ta make tha bodies drop
Drop an don't copy yo, don't call this a co-opt
Terror rains drenchin', quenchin' tha thirst of tha power dons
That five sided fist-a-gon
Tha rotten sore on tha face of mother earth gets bigger
Tha triggers cold now empty ya purse

They rally round tha family! With a pocket full of shells
They rally round tha family! With a pocket full of shells
They rally round tha family! With a pocket full of shells
They rally round tha family! With a pocket full of shells (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8UZdXe-1NQo)

As the sounds of Rage Against the Machine taunted the Colonials, Leona dialed in a request to one Admiral Christiaan De Bruyn....

----------

Big Gun

De Bruyn, meanwhile, was behaving quite calmly and peacefully. The fact he was among Colonials and Gracie-less made him slightly uneasy, but he didn't show it. Being submerged among bureaucrats for so long lent him an ability to muster a poker face, and he merely sipped on some coffee as he sat on the bridge.

"So, Admiral? Why do you take your coffee black?" asked his Political Officer.

"It is a custom among the family. Generations of the De Bruyns have always drunk it black. My father, grandfather, his father.....it is good. Takes some getting used to, but I find it helps keep me going. Not to mention, it's a good way to focus on a job. I don't drink as much as the locals or my fellow officers do." The Admiral smiled gently, his understated, strong style winning out.

"I see."

The coffee would need to be used, as a flash message came in from Melida/Daan. Picking it up, it was a simple audio message.

"Admiral De Bruyn, this is Commodore Leona MacDougal of the Jailbreak. We're in a bit of a spot. See, me and Admiral Hallen had a leadership dispute....and I had to summarily dispatch for insubordination. Trouble being, her underlings don't see it that way. I may need some help. Please come, quickly. Over."

De Bruyn sighed. Judging from the tremor of the voice, it sounded like MacDougal had done something that everyone would possibly regret. He picked up the phone, not eager to make the call. It would be necessary.

Tersely and in his own, spare calm style, De Bruyn said, "Admiral Cain, this is Admiral De Bruyn. We have a situation around Melida/Daan. One of my officers there, MacDougal, has gotten into a situation with Admiral Hallen involving leadership. I think summary judgment was involved. That kind. I'd like you to come with me and sort it out; it sounds rather serious." He then waited for the reply....

Sir, sensors read a power surge in the Dornie ship echoed by one in the Colonial ship. It appears to be a class C transporter system.

Commander Kaat’Nha looked up from the sensor logs he was keeping a close eye on. “What are they up to?”

Before his officer could answer him, the Comm officer spoke up.

“I am getting a message transmitted from the Dornie flagship.”

“Put it on the speakers.”

Attention all Colonial and Dornalian personnel.

My talk with Admiral Hallen was unsuccessful. Due to extenuating circumstances, I have carried out my powers under the Colonial Code of Military Justice and have summarily punished Admiral Samantha Hallen for Insubordination against a superior officer and attempting to sieze command from said officer without evidence of inability to execute their duties.

That is all. Commodore MacDougal out.

“Evidence? You could tell from her previous transmission she is smashed. Drunken Dereliction is a crime in just about every military in existence. I can still hear the slur in her speech. Include this in the diplomatic package and forward it to Cain’s Envoy.”

“Sir, I am receiving multiple launches and weapons systems coming online in both forces. They are not aimed at us.”

“Oh great, I knew it was a bad idea sitting by as these two forces joined. We should have attempted to stop the joining of the Dornies with the Colonies. Now it is too late, they are killing off Colonial officers in fits of drunken rage. Comms, has anyone voiced disagreement with our initial claim?”

“Negative, nothing has been said about our claim.”

“Set up a Gestalt.”



As Vipers shot out of launch tubes and their counterparts were launched from the Dornalian vessels and weapons lock on both parts achieved, a single word was heard by every single person in both fleets. It was even heard by the Coredian military ships a short distance away.

STOP

The word echoed across the consciousness of every sentient. The psionic shout was probably heard in the minds of the people on the distant planet below but the focus was on the Colonial combined fleet.

When we first arrived we laid claim upon this system and so far there has been nobody disputing our claim. That means I am taking control of this territory in the name of the Galactic Empire. That puts me in charge seeing as you are in MY territory. I will not let my ally destroy itself in needless battle.


You will return to your ships and all weapons will be shut down. Failure to comply will result in said fighter or weapon system being torn apart. I am in charge and reinforcements will arrive in less than 30 seconds.

The Coredian military will be gone before then or they will be summarily executed as Enemies of the State. You have 28 seconds to engage your drives; I suggest you do so immediately to avoid certain death or Infection.

This is your only warning. Do not waste it.

The echoes of those words left those not used to direct psionic communication stunned for a moment wondering what just happened.

Each Ta’Nar vessel now had their brilliant purple Dimensional Shields in full operation and their weapons systems came online and Space Minus powertaps were initiated. There were no weapons locks achieved but the raw power detected by sensor sweeps would make just about any engineer raise an eyebrow in wonderment. Energy literally crackled around every ship as it flowed from the Powertap deep inside each of the vessels to their weapon systems.

It could easily be seen why it was said a single Ta’Nar Battlegroup was able to devastate an entire system, and if the Commander’s words were true, there were two more nearly here.

Enough was enough. Admiral Easton sent the entire recordings back home and was informed that someone will come down to resolve the issues within two hours, along with reinforcements if need be. With that in place, he ordered his fleet to engage FTL...

Space rippled as the Coredian Elite Star Destroyer Deinochyus Battlegroup, backed up by the Battlestar Konoha battlegroup, exited FTL in a brilliant double-flash of light. As powerful shields and potent weapons (aimed at the Balroggans, of course) were raised, Admiral Easton clicked on all channels.

"This is Deinochyus Actual. I would like to inform the Balroggans that under the terms of the Treaty of Melida/Daan, Coredia has trade and defensive agreements with the system, as signed by Emperor Andrew Masaki and Prime Minister Nield twenty-five years ago. The Treaty is being sent to you for review. I must also inform you that under these terms, the Galactic Empire has no jurisdiction over the system as it has not signed any agreement with Melida/Daan as far as Coredia was aware. If you wish dispute that, then let's dispute it...without firing."

The Admiral waved and the treaty was put up and sent to the Balroggans.

"Secondly, will Commodore Macdougal please speak with me ASAP?" He said that with a bit of anger. Clearly, he's heard what happened and Was Not Pleased.

He cleared his throat and spoke again. "Thirdly, I have just been informed that a delegation will arrive on behalf of the High Council to resolve any and all disputes occuring in this system. In the name of Honor, I beseech the Balroggans to not open fire until we have exhausted all other options. In the name of Peace, I beseech the Thirteen Colonies of Kobol to not start a civil war before we have exhausted all other avenues."

"Reply immediately."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F1mccN5RMZE

“Draidus Contacts, Sir the Jailbreak is launching fighters.” one of the officers shouted across the room. Two squadrons, on direct intercept with the retrieval teams.” the young woman shouted across the CIC.

Major Thrace looked up to the flashing console, as the green fighters appeared on the screen. Fourty in all, their path was clear, as was their intent.”

He looked down at the table, as several of the enlisted men scrambled around to find the exact models of the fleets. He looked down at the table, the battlestars mixed in with the Dornie ships, and the vipers moving across to their vectors.

“Communication sir, it is the Jail break.”

“Put it on speakers.” Major Thrace ordered.

"Attention Colonial vessels and Raptors. Be advised you are attempting a hostile action and attempting to subvert the authority of Commodore Leona MacDougal, who used all legal authority to commit her action. Please stand down."

Major Thrace grew tense as he picked up the phone. Commodore you are relieved of duty, how many times do you need to hear that, or are you so drunk you do not remember. You have no authority to issue any orders of standing down. As a wanted fugitive of the Thirteen Colonies under charges of dereliction of duty and murder in the first degree, you have no authority over any ship, Dornie or Picon. Now swallow your enormous ego and stand down.” Major Thrace said back to the woman on the power trip from hell.

He hung up the phone, as the music, if it could be called that blared across the speakers. Major Thrace, already pissed turned to his com officer. “Turn the speakers off, and begin jamming all Dornie com signals at once. Leave only Colonial Priority one channel open.”

He looked around the room, until he found one man, a Dornie serving on the Zeus standing at a draidus station. “You lieutenant come here.” he ordered the Dornie on his ship. “You are now my XO.” he told the man who stood before him. The Major looked back up towards Draidus. “This is going to spiral out of control fast.” he whispered to himself. He looked around the room, at the fine young men and women of the Thirteen colonies, Dornie and Colonial alike. “We are being tested.” he responded, “Our worlds are being tested, our very way of life is being tested. I need to know right now if you are with me or against me.” he asked the CIC.

He turned to his XO. ‘Action stations. Launch the Alert Vipers. I want a firing solution on the main batteries of the Jail break. Are we clear?”

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

In space:

The viper squadrons lead the raptor squadrons towards their target. Even after the Commodore’s order, they did not change course, nor their plan. This Woman, who dared come to the Zeus under a flag of peace, spoke of talks and against fratricide in turn broke her very oath she proclaimed to the colonials and the Dornies on the Zeus. She shot and killed the unarmed admiral in her own quarters while they drank together, and she thought she would have any sway over the Colonial forces.

As the vipers flew, the Jailbreak began to launch their own ships. Backpedal, the Cag of the operation a young man, watched them coming right at the raptors.

“Raptors break break break he ordered as the dornie fighters flew right in between the ships. “All Vipers cover the raptors, and for frak sake do not let those damn pedo lovers get near our ships.” he cried out. As he did, the Vipers broke formation and turned 180 degrees. They kicked in the after burners and began to dance by the Dornie fighters.

Backpedal looked down at his coms, as he noticed one of the dornies had achieved lock on his viper. ‘Zeus actual, this is Backpedal. Dornies have initiated hostile maneuver. Request Weapons free.”

“Backpedal this is Zeus actual. Permission denied, unless fired upon. Repeat Weapons hold.”

“Mother frakker” he shouted in anger, “Alright you guys, these frakkers want to dance. Form up on my six, lets play chicken.”

The Vipers then met up, in a wall attack formation, each spinning to get in their respective slots. With that in unison they fired their after burners one more time, aiming at the Dornie vessels...”

While this was going on the Raptors continues straight towards the Jail Break’s Hanger bay...

Then the giant signal in everyone’s mind... Stop screamed into everyone’s head. It was loud, and quite annoying, as the message burned it’s way through their heads.

“Well.” Charlie responded, as he held his viper straight towards the flight path of the Dornie fighter, “It seems our allies do not approve.”

“If they are not going to help then frak them” Raven responded to the call. “We stuck our necks on the line for them, those bastards had better do the same for us.”

“Cut the chatter.” Back pedal said clearly. “Jarhead, you got a Cat fraker coming up at two o’clock.”

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

Scorpion Fleet Shipyard
In Orbit of Scorpia
Warstar Isis Docked.

A clear crystal glass filled with a red Chianti swirled around the glass, as Admiral Cain smiled. The room was light by candles, and soft lights around the walls. The table was set, fine white linen table cloth, as several open bottles of wine, roast duck, mashed garlic potatoes, and steamed vegetables decorated on fine china, with a slight garnish to the side sat in front of the command staff.

Admiral Cain smiled, as she held her hand to her left breast in a coy manner. “That is too good.” she responded to an earlier joke made by one of the officers. “You mean to tell me that she just fell in?”

“Yes sir.” the man responded, “Soaked to the bone. I told her after that, that next time she should watch her step. You should have seen the look on Laura’s face.”

Cain smiled, as she took another sip from the glass of wine. “Well whatever she did to you after that it sounds like you deserved it.”

Knock, Knock.

“Come in.” Admiral Cain responded to the door. The Door slid open, as a young lieutenant walked nervously in. Admiral Cain turned to him. “You are late.” she said, her face solid as a stone, as she she shot him a stare that pierced his soul. “And you are under dressed, you were to report in Dress uniform, or did your mother forget to dress you this morning.”

The young lieutenant gulped, “Sir.” he responded nervously.

“Speak up, we do not have all day.” Admiral Cain barked at him.

“We have gotten a priority one message from Admiral De Bruyn.” he said as he looked around the room to the disapproving stares in the room.

“Thank you.” she said. “You are dismissed til you can dress appropriately.”

The man saluted and walked out of the room. As he did the room broke out in laughter. “Got to have an appetizer.” Cain said as her words barely came out over her chuckle.

Commander Fisk smiled as he took a swig of his drink. “I wonder what he wants.”

“Probably has another complaint about someone tampering with his offline cylon. I will take care of it.” she said as she picked up the napkin in her lap and wiped her mouth. “If you will excuse me.” she said as she stood up and straightened out her gray dress uniform.

She walked out of the door to be greeted by two guards, who both promptly saluted. She gave them a salute back as she walked towards her quarters. Once inside she picked up the phone, “This is Cane.”

As the message played out, she looked down. “Tell the Big Gun, that we will proceed to the coordinates within the hour. We need to prevent an escalation at all costs." she said to the officer on the other line. She then placed her in front of her and moved her fingers slightly out of aggitation. “I want all non essential personal and equipment off this ship now, and undock with Scorpion.” she told he CIC as she hung up the phone one final time.

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

Warstar Zeus:

As Major Thrace waited for his new Dornie XO to carry out his orders, a message came from the Coredians. As he listened, the only thing he could think of was “Thank the gods.” He picked up the phone.

“Admiral Easton, this is Zeus Actual. Escalation is inevitable, due to Commodore MacDougal’s refusal to surrender to justice, and the Dornies blind faith and loyalty to her even after she has been removed from command. Your people seem to be worshiped by the thirteenth colony. Perhaps you can dissuade her, or use one of your mind tricks to bring her to her senses. Zeus out.”

“Well.” Charlie responded, as he held his viper straight towards the flight path of the Dornie fighter, “It seems our allies do not approve.”

“If they are not going to help then frak them” Raven responded to the call. “We stuck our necks on the line for them, those bastards had better do the same for us.”

“Cut the chatter.” Back pedal said clearly. “Jarhead, you got a Cat fraker coming up at two o’clock.”
"I see it." Taking a deep breath, one Lt. Nathanel "Jarhead" Watkins -aka a certain blue-haired Masaki boy in disguise- wondered what the hell he was getting himself into when he had been sent out with the boarding party to deal with the Dornalians...Weren't they supposed to be one nation or something?

Still, he's heard the the Commodore and frowned. Damn, she's wasted and she did that? Even Dad wouldn't tolerate that sort of dereliction of duty...

As his mind wondered what his father would do in that position, he maneuvered his Viper such that he would keep the fighter off the Raptors. It left a bad taste in his mouth to seek out that Dornalian fighter for death, but his father's orders were clear: maintain the facade as long as he possibly can...

He looked around the room, until he found one man, a Dornie serving on the Zeus standing at a draidus station. “You lieutenant come here.” he ordered the Dornie on his ship. “You are now my XO.” he told the man who stood before him. The Major looked back up towards Draidus. “This is going to spiral out of control fast.” he whispered to himself. He looked around the room, at the fine young men and women of the Thirteen colonies, Dornie and Colonial alike. “We are being tested.” he responded, “Our worlds are being tested, our very way of life is being tested. I need to know right now if you are with me or against me.” he asked the CIC.

He turned to his XO. ‘Action stations. Launch the Alert Vipers. I want a firing solution on the main batteries of the Jail break. Are we clear?”


The reluctant XO, one Lieutenant Cheung, saluted upon being tapped for the job. Privately, she hid her nervousness; she was under suspicion and everyone knew it. Hence, it was probably a good idea to do what they said--though it did leave her with a sinking feeling in her stomach.

"Aye, Com--er, sir." She nearly slipped into the People's Navy practice of saying "Comrade (insert rank here)." She then worked the Colonial computers somewhat awkwardly, though no more so than the Dornalian systems on Manual Mode. "Firing Solution set, sir."

She then silently prayed....

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

The Cat Fraker swooped by "Jarhead," deciding to toy with the Colonial. The pilot was actually named Lt. Thompson, or "Typewriter," owing to his surprisingly good skills at using a keyboard and a pun on Tommy Gun. Back to the story.

"Typewriter" swooped by "Jarhead" and his Viper, close enough that he could see the pilot. He waved at the pilot, and then boosted away....until he had to stop; the signal that reached the others reached the Dornalians. Commodore MacDougal, somewhat sobered by the sudden shock of the message, realized the "hentai tentacle monsters" she was afraid of might decide to make things difficult. Gracie sighed; she knew something was up and it was time to slow down before something wierd happened they would all regret.

"Commodore, I'm gonna have to side with common sense on this one. You're being a rather poor sport about this....can you maybe stop?" Gracie said. "Don't make me get Sid to grant me Emergency Command Priveleges. Don't make ME assume Emergency Command Priveleges."

"You go girl!" said Tarragona-Gracie.

"Not now," Jailbreak-Gracie replied.

Commodore MacDougal sighed, for it was her turn to do so. Confronted with the fact even the Coredians were shouting for her to stop, she began to wonder what the hell had happened. She began to think on some words Cadet Poitgeiter told her after one nasty barfight.


"You're always leaving a mess for other people to clean up, uitlander. The worst of your kind. The kind my Dominee and my Veldkornet and my Kommandant warn me about. The kind of Uitlander who drinks, fornicates, and swears and fights everything that moves. You're lucky God is willing to put up with your antics."

She then just sat there, and rubbed her temple, wondering what to do.....

As the message played out, she looked down. “Tell the Big Gun, that we will proceed to the coordinates within the hour. We need to prevent an escalation at all costs." she said to the officer on the other line. She then placed her in front of her and moved her fingers slightly out of aggitation. “I want all non essential personal and equipment off this ship now, and undock with Scorpion.” she told he CIC as she hung up the phone one final time.

Thus, De Bruyn put in course to Melida/Daan....when he did so, he used the advantage granted by Dornie jump technology, no redlines and such, to get there as quickly as he could in a series of jumps with his detachment. He was worried about what he would find, and quite irritated that some loose cannon decided to make a mess.

Thus, the Big Gun teleported over the whole lot, along with her detachment of ships. As they phased into real time, De Bruyn found his Tac Officer detecting no less than a Mexican standoff, with Colonial and Dornalian ships shadowing one another, Balroggan vessels looking ready to pounce, and Coredians very, very irritated and also ready to pounce.

He thus tensed up, sipped his coffee, and issued a stern message on maximum volume to all concerned.

"Attention all units.

This is Admiral Christiaan Balthazar De Bruyn. Second in command of the whole Colonial Fleet, commander of all New Dornalian People's Navy forces. I would like to issue the following pronouncements, seeing as how I have stepped into something very much unwanted by all parties. My colleague Admiral Cain will be coming soon. She will ensure, I hope, that what I do here is enforced to the letter.

Item One: All Dornalian and Colonial units are to stand down from hostile activity against one another. This means every soldier, sailor, and ship and fighter. Turn off the speakers, and cease the chest-thumping. NOW. This is an order, punishable by all appropriate measures. Enough is enough!

Item Two: All units of the Coredian Navy are respectfully asked to stand back. This is an internal matter that has clearly gone out of control. The same goes for the Balroggan Navy. Please stand back.

Item Three: All Colonial and Dornalian Officers. Please report to the Big Gun for questioning. NOW.

If these above measures are followed, I am sure things will be alright. I seek no bloodshed. I seek only a neat, orderly resolution of the situation."

Thus, Commodore MacDougal sighed, and recalled her units, then teleported onboard with Sid to the Big Gun, to the tune of De Bruyn's stern expression and his assistant, Vice Admiral Uys and her giant revolver. Now she was in for it....

Real Space:


Aboard The Paymon, Commander Kaat’Nha barked orders to his crew.

“Tactical, what is the state of the Coredians?”

“They brought in more ships.”

“How about the Colonial forces?”

“They are doing flybys and getting closer to firing. Your message did nothing.”

“I was afraid of that; it comes down to fighting I see. The voice of reason was beaten and tossed out the airlock long ago. Prepare to fire the main gun. Target the Coredian ships and when reinforcements arrive, instruct them to open fire immediately. They were warned and for their insolence they will die.”

“Sir, the main gun is for planetary dissimilation…”

“Then it will easily take apart their whole fleet if it will remove a planet from existence with a single shot. “

“I understand.”

"Inform our reinforcements of the plan through the datalink. Coordinate their Emergence with our attack.”

“Sir, what about the Coredians?”

“ Open a channel to them. Ask the crew on the Coredian ships to inform their next of kin. Tell them they have about seven seconds before they are reduced to a wash of energy. Mark that message urgent and send it immed…”

“Sir, an incoming allied message from one of the Dornie ships. It is from their Admiral.”

“Hold that note to the Coredians, play me the Dornie message.”

After hearing De Bryun’s message the Commander sighed, at least someone was trying to stop things. It gave him an opportunity to settle this and possibly stop a fight. At least he could delay his final message to the Coredians. He would rather beat the snot out of those kids when his allies were not fighting each other.

“Inform the fleet of the change in tactics. Adjust the main gun to the left three degrees. Fire on my command.”

“Sir, that is still aiming at the Coredians.”

“Nonsense, it will miss by 1.7 meters, unless they move before it goes by. The most they will get is lightning scarring on their hulls if they move in the right direction.”

Without warning, the main gun of The Paymon fired. The shot, a beam of dark purple energy larger than most ships sheathed in crackling violet lightning suddenly interposed itself between the two forces that were about to “get it on”. The bolt of pure energy channeled directly from T-Space seemed as if it would reach out with fingers of lightning and drag nearby ships into the oblivion as it flashed by. The energy signature of the beam caused reality to warp in upon itself. It was unknown how a ship could produce an energy beam greater than itself but it just happened in front of at least three different forces, one of them counted as an enemy. With luck they would detect the firing and take evasive actions in the correct direction and not move into the path. It wouldn’t bother Kaat’Nha if they were clumsy enough or unlucky enough to step in front of the energetic train headed their way.

Immediately following the dazzling beam of oblivion a single message was transmitted:

You heard him…



T-Space:

The Reinforcement Battlegroups arrived right on schedule. They pulled into the system a few seconds before the deadline to allow Transferance to Real Space. The thirty eight ships readied themselves by establishing their Space Minus Powertaps and charging all weapons. The targets were acquired nd the countdown was started to begin removal.

Then the change of plan arrived over the datalink with only three seconds left before engaging the enemy. The battlegroups instead waited for the Oblivion Cannon to fire and then Emerged in Real Space, targeting computers active and weapons extended. At the moment there was no other ships firing but it was clear they were here to enforce Commander Kaat’Nha’s suggestion if needed.

Real Space:


Aboard The Paymon, Commander Kaat’Nha barked orders to his crew.

“Tactical, what is the state of the Coredians?”

“They brought in more ships.”

“How about the Colonial forces?”

“They are doing flybys and getting closer to firing. Your message did nothing.”

“I was afraid of that; it comes down to fighting I see. The voice of reason was beaten and tossed out the airlock long ago. Prepare to fire the main gun. Target the Coredian ships and when reinforcements arrive, instruct them to open fire immediately. They were warned and for their insolence they will die.”

“Sir, the main gun is for planetary dissimilation…”

“Then it will easily take apart their whole fleet if it will remove a planet from existence with a single shot. “

“I understand.”

"Inform our reinforcements of the plan through the datalink. Coordinate their Emergence with our attack.”

“Sir, what about the Coredians?”

“ Open a channel to them. Ask the crew on the Coredian ships to inform their next of kin. Tell them they have about seven seconds before they are reduced to a wash of energy. Mark that message urgent and send it immed…”

“Sir, an incoming allied message from one of the Dornie ships. It is from their Admiral.”

“Hold that note to the Coredians, play me the Dornie message.”

After hearing De Bryun’s message the Commander sighed, at least someone was trying to stop things. It gave him an opportunity to settle this and possibly stop a fight. At least he could delay his final message to the Coredians. He would rather beat the snot out of those kids when his allies were not fighting each other.

“Inform the fleet of the change in tactics. Adjust the main gun to the left three degrees. Fire on my command.”

“Sir, that is still aiming at the Coredians.”

“Nonsense, it will miss by 1.7 meters, unless they move before it goes by. The most they will get is lightning scarring on their hulls if they move in the right direction.”

Without warning, the main gun of The Paymon fired. The shot, a beam of dark purple energy larger than most ships sheathed in crackling violet lightning suddenly interposed itself between the two forces that were about to “get it on”. The bolt of pure energy channeled directly from T-Space seemed as if it would reach out with fingers of lightning and drag nearby ships into the oblivion as it flashed by. The energy signature of the beam caused reality to warp in upon itself. It was unknown how a ship could produce an energy beam greater than itself but it just happened in front of at least three different forces, one of them counted as an enemy. With luck they would detect the firing and take evasive actions in the correct direction and not move into the path. It wouldn’t bother Kaat’Nha if they were clumsy enough or unlucky enough to step in front of the energetic train headed their way.

Immediately following the dazzling beam of oblivion a single message was transmitted....

The Dornalians detected the Massive Blast, which was greeted with an emergency call of "Pull back, pull back!" from De Bruyn's side. It was good for the Balroggans that the "Cannibal Hentai Tentacle Monsters" hadn't even grazed a single ship or fighter as the Dornalians pulled back dramatically at high speed. That would have made the Dornalians really pissy. As it was, De Bruyn was irritated with the Balroggans.

He then said, crossing his arms, "Perhaps the Balroggans did not get my message. I expected someone to be recalcitrant." He said this with some dismay, and Vice Admiral Uys nodded, as she said in Afrikaans, "Yes. I will admit. The Lord could not have sent a better agent to test our paitence."

De Bruyn then said, keeping calm, "Fire our own warning shot and show them our displeasure." A muttering of, "Aye, Comrade-Admiral!" came, followed by a torpedo shot that flew uncomfortably past The Paymon. De Bruyn then radioed the Balroggans. Sternly, he spoke.

"As much as I appreciate your eager assistance in pacifying the situation and enjoy the fireworks show, I must ask you to tone down your enthusiasm and stand back, as I have duly ordered."

He then said, with stern and strong emphasis, " NOW."

"Admiral, energy buildup registering from the Balroggan flagship! It's at least Magnitude Five, possibly Six!!" Sensors shouted. "It's aiming at us!"

"Damn it! Evasive action!" Admiral Easton barked.

The inertia engines of the Coredian battlegroups lept into action, doing what they were built to do, which is dodge in ways that normal engines could never do, and moved out of the path of the beam of doom.

Suddenly, the thick purple beam of doom crackled past uncomfortably close to the Coredian ships, lightning flickering across their shields. But none were destroyed, luckily.

And then the Dornalians' message reached them.

Admiral Easton growled in anger, but he knew it would do no good to start a fight now. So he wisely ordered his units to hold their fire and stand back as the Dornalian Admiral had suggested. Still, it wouldn't take much Balroggan belligerance to start something up again...

=====

"Whoa!" Lt. Watkins exclaimed as the massive blast split the sky between the Colonials and the Dornalians. "All Vipers, report!"

"We're good! But what the frak was that?" Someone yelled.

"No frakkin' idea." Jarhead replied, grimly. Where the hell did that blast come from?

Then he heard Admiral Christiaan Balthazar De Bruyn's message. Since as an Lt., he qualified as a Colonial officer, he had no choice but to follow the directive and head for the hangar bay of the "Big Gun". Then, he would have to decide where to go from there...

“Sir new draidus contact.” the officer in charge spoke up, as Major Thrace watched over the operation unfold before him. The Vipers handled well against the Dornie fighters, keeping them off the Raptors backs as they came closer to the Jail break.

“Who is it?” the Major asked as he intently studies the tactics used by the Dornie fighters, learning what he could to potentially use against them, when all hell broke loose.

“It is the Big Gun. Admiral De Bruyn is sending out a message sir.”

The Major did not move a muscle as he watched the computer identify the new target on the screen. “So she called in reinforcements.” The Major said in a unusually calm manner. “If the big gun...”

“Sir the Admiral is sending a message.”

“Fine put it on speakers.”

As the message played out, the Major took a deep breath of relief. The tension fell off him like a thousand pound weight. “Thank the gods.” he muttered under his breath.

“Your orders sir?”

“Stand down to condition two and recall the operation.” he stated plainly. ‘He is the Fleet Admiral now, even if he is a dornie.” Major Thrace spoke up. He turned to his new XO, “You have the com, if the Jailbreak so much as twitches, your orders are to blow her out of the sky. Got it?” he spoke to her as he placed his finger in her face.

“Now get me a security detail, and a raptor prepped. I am not about to trust the Dornies with my well being after this.” he boasted, as he stormed out of the CIC.

“Sir incoming enemy fire.” shouted across the CIC as he made it to the glass doors.

“What, what is that bitch...” Evasive manuevers.” he ordered as the warstar began to move out of the way.

“Sir it did not come from the Jailbreak, it came from the Ta’Nar.”

The Major looked up, as his heart skipped a beat. “What the frak.”

“Sir it would appear it was their attempt to pacify the situation. All Picon forces report no damage.”

“Mother frakker. Please inform them not to open fire again.” the Major said as he gasped for breath.

“Yes sir.”

Twenty mintues later a Raptor departed the Zeus and went towards the big gun.

The Colonials were greeted with what was called "the Woodian salute," a spare, simple assembly consisting of a very businesslike Admiral De Bruyn and his adjutant, trusted confidante and bodyguard, the enigmatic Vice Admiral Lyndie Uys. Tall, with Elven ears, a holster with a giant .500 S&W revolver, a long knee-length skirt and an expression that made De Bruyn's look feel like a gratitutously happy celebration in comparison. Not that anyone could blame her. Though immersed in human culture for the longest time, she still had a tendency to look down on the "uitlanders," as humans were called. Always taught that "uitlanders" were everything from cannibals, to sex-crazed goblins to violent thugs, she saw something that would make the Dominees, or priests of her people skilled in the very strict and unusual brand of Afrikaner Calvinism they practiced, say, "We were right!" The assembly of suspicious parties now convened, De Bruyn said, "Follow me."

Once convened in his ready room, De Bruyn would open up a channel to Cain once everyone was assembled. Then, he sat at his desk, skipped the Dornalian tradition of offering hospitality, and said simply, with a smile more threatening than calmative:

"Okay. Does anybody want to tell me why I had to come here?"

A quick flash of light, the double pulse white flash was the only warning the parties had, when the Warstar Isis, the flag ship of the Twelve Sisters arrived at the area.

The Isis was the newest of the Ares Class Warstars. She was the same size as her sister ships, the Zeus, and the Ares, and the frames of the ship were almost identical. However unlike the Zeus, the Isis adorned three of the large “super” cannons, one on the bow, one on a ventral turret, and one on the dorsal. Loaded down with heavy cannons, missile tubes, and her four flight pods, the Isis was a monster of a ship. Hands down she was easily the most powerful ship in the arsenal of the Twelve Sisters...

Admiral Cain stood watch in her CiC, when the ship appeared. She was a dominate personality in her ship, as she watched the situation in the fleet. Minutes had past since the Ta’Nar, “Enforced” De Bruyn’s order. Space was cleared of the vipers and raptors that De’Bruyn had witnessed. In fact it looked to her like normal fleet operations were under way.

She smiled slightly at the sight. The reports of the fleet movements had already been recorded, but it would seem that De Bruyn was able to get everything under control.

She turned to her com officer Mr. Hoshi. “Notify the Big Gun, that I will be arriving there shortly.” she stated.

“Yes sir.”

On board the Big gun, the officers were unaware that “momma.” had come. Instead Major Thrace sat down, across the table from the Commadore Leona MacDougal, waiting for “papa” to hand down his judgement.

As the Fleet Admiral began his questioning, the Major leaned forward slightly. “Sir.” he replied in a very professional matter. “Picon Expedition did not call for you, so I do not know why you were called here. Picon Fleet began procedures to bring a known fugitive, Leona MacDougal to justice, under charges of Drunken and disorderly conduct, as well as the murder of Fleet Admiral Samantha Hallen.” The Major stated.

He turned to his XO, the Dornie who he selected. “Show him.” he told the Dornie. He gave her the briefcase with the transcripts of all recorded communications between the Jailbreak, and the Zeus, as well as still photos of MacDougal and Hallen on board the Zeus. He also gave the Fleet Admiral the transcripts of all that was said in the CiC.”

“After you review the evidence, it was clear that Leona MacDougal came over to the Zeus to murder your counter part. She even brought some sort of personal jump system to leave the Zeus in all haste, after she ordered Picon Fleet to pull a "Masaki" and attack an allied nation without provocation or recourse.”

De Bruyn nodded and listened to the Colonials speak and read the logs calmly, wondering how and why this could occur. He brought up his logs and databanks, having a good feeling more would be needed.

The charges they brought up were no doubt rather serious, and the fact they cursed the name of the Masakis in the same breath only added to the level of contempt with which Major Thrace now saw one Commodore Leona MacDougal. Lyndie picked up her comms, and nodded. Speaking tersely in English, she then told De Bruyn in Afrikaans, "Admiral Cain has called. She says she is coming here soon. More uitlanders, I guess." De Bruyn nodded and replied in Afrikaans back, "Thank you, Lyndie." Hopefully, she would help him out here, since it was obvious Thrace had by now quickly gotten a mistrust of Dornies.

Back in English, De Bruyn said, dismayed "I see....Major Thrace, these are serious charges. Drunken screaming on the bridge. Murder--premeditated murder, you say. Breach of peace. Insult matches on the comms...and the makings of a civil war. Let's have the Commodore speak on her behalf, eh?"

The Commodore sighed and said, "Thank you, Comrade Admiral." She then leaned forward, and turned to glare quickly at Major Thrace. The Commodore's gaze was met with a sterner gaze from Lyndie, who tapped her revolver. The Commodore promptly leaned back and said, "Right. First of all, the weapons free order was not unprovoked. As much as our friends from Picon have issues with the Coredians, we have issues with the Balroggans. Mainly, because of the behavior they pulled that worried my First Officer and threatened my vessel.

If you look in these logs I'm providing, you will notice my First Officer had some issues with Kython interlopers getting too close to the vessel. Combined with the fact that Earth has a longstanding conflict with the Balroggans and we are in Allied space leaving me with overall command, I believe that I made the right decision to issue the order and that Hallen was in the wrong."

"Oh?" De Bruyn looked at the logs the Commodore handed over to De Bruyn, and noted them. The conversations and emotional reactions, sure enough, were just as weighty as the Colonial logs were confrontational in their tone. Getting up, he began to pace and speak, saying, "I see. So based on the current Diplomatic relations with the Balroggans--which in your opinion would have almost ensured a conflict with them--your command mandate over the Colonial forces, and threatening behavior from the Balroggans that your First Officer seemed to basically percieve as stalking her, you decided to issue the order. When your order was contested, you had the spat, and after some disputation, shot Hallen."

"You could say that," MacDougal said. "There was also the matter of the fact that when we talked in her quarters, she displayed some unusual tendencies. Chaotic tendencies. As in, the kind my college buddy who studied mystical religions warned me about."

De Bruyn noted that information, but then said,"Let's leave your college friend and Hallen's religious tendencies out of this. Right now, all I want is to figure out what occurred. As it is, with one group screaming disobedience and another screaming bloody murder and a legal tangle to match....it is rather hard to do it with excess sound effects." With that, he glared at Thrace and the Commodore, presumably for the Masaki and college comments respectively. "Anyway, throughout all this, you were intoxicated."

"Yes. So what? I was getting off of a celebration, that should explain it." The Commodore crossed her arms, and let out a harumph. De Bruyn said, shaking his head, "Hardly. One does not need to become senseless to enjoy a drink. And besides, it was said in the comms here you were, quote unquote 'fueled by Tab and vodka' whlist fighting the Hyperborians. So there is a problem there."

Gulping, the Commodore replied, "I find I think better with a pick me up, sir. It's not like I do it all the time...." De Bruyn nodded and paused to size up the info about her in the databanks. He sized her up. Judging from the info he browsed on the banks, she seemed good enough. A good combat record at Operation Thunderstruck, anti-pirate duty in the New Territories, commended for good command in the Hueco Mundo job and other Dornalian conflicts. And yet....the list of infractions was endless. And three review boards....

De Bruyn nodded, and said to Lyndie, "Did you get all this down?" Lyndie nodded, and said curtly, "I have it recorded right now."

"Anything else to say?"

"Hallen was a Chaos worshippe-" MacDougal said before she was cut off. De Bruyn then said, "Did it interfere with her judgment, in your opinion?"

"Well, it certainly made her unable to contemplate the reason why I issued my order. I mean, when I did try to talk about why I did it along with the small talk, all she could talk about was how good Chaos was and how much she got screwed over. Lemme tell you, her loyalty to Remiel de Drakan and her devotion to Chaos was strong. She even invited me to participate in some rituals at the Temple of Aphrodite." Lyndie cringed, and had to restrain herself from freaking out. It was all uitlander paganism to her, all bad.

De Bruyn nodded, and said, "True, but that will require some objective investigation of her quarters, given the seriousness of that charge and the fact your counterparts have issues with your 'pick-me-ups.'" All of them knew that if that was true, it was pretty bad--De Bruyn wasn't too keen on Chaos himself. And, it was going to be hard to prove, especially since the Colonials seemed to really like Hallen. A lot.

Major Thrace’s face grew angrier as MacDougal attempted her character assassination of his Admiral, over religion of all things. “Sir.” he spoke up promptly, “You can not be taking the Commadore frakking seriously. Religion causing a absence of judgement.” he said as he tried failed to maintain his composure to his superior. “Well then, would you say that we should remove all the damn Catholics from the fleet, or shoot them in the head, because they believe the pope is the emissary of their toaster God.” he shouted out in anger. “Last time I checked, the freedom of religion was a sacred right in the Colonies. To even attempt to say this....” he paused for a moment, “Officer shot your colleague on grounds of religion is not only an insult to her memory, but is an insult to Earth.” he shouted.

“And you mention your past with the Ta’Nar. Maybe you should learn from the people you call backwards, we have never thought of attacking the Coredian fleet that we died to protect, the same people that have only died to kill us. You want to talk about aggressive acti...”

“Watch your frakking mouth.” a voice came from behind him.

Major Thrace turned around, to see Admiral Cain walk in the room.”

“Sir.” Major Thrace replied.

“What insignia does De Bruyn have on his collar?” she asked the Major as she walked closer to him.

“Fleet Admiral Sir.” Major Thrace replied quickly.

“And what rank are you?” She said as she got close to his face.

“Major.... Sir.”

“Then why in the hell do you think you have the right to try to dress him down like a cadet?” Admiral Cain asked, her eyes staring into his, as if she was a lioness looking at her prey.

“Sir, they are...”

“They are our allies, and brothers Major.” Admiral Cain shouted at him. She like the Big Gun’s XO, rested her left hand on her hip, and the right on the handle of her pistol. “He is second in command of the 13 colonies fleet, and you will show him respect, or else you will have to be charged yourself, and you know the penalty.” she calmly told the major.

“Yes Sir.”

“Good, now please continue. Commodore, you are charging Admiral Hallen with being a chaos worshipers. Tell us Commodore, why in the hell would that be a recourse to shooting Admiral Hallen?”

Major Thrace’s face grew angrier as MacDougal attempted her character assassination of his Admiral, over religion of all things. “Sir.” he spoke up promptly, “You can not be taking the Commadore frakking seriously. Religion causing a absence of judgement.” he said as he tried failed to maintain his composure to his superior. “Well then, would you say that we should remove all the damn Catholics from the fleet, or shoot them in the head, because they believe the pope is the emissary of their toaster God.” he shouted out in anger. “Last time I checked, the freedom of religion was a sacred right in the Colonies. To even attempt to say this....” he paused for a moment, “Officer shot your colleague on grounds of religion is not only an insult to her memory, but is an insult to Earth.” he shouted.

“And you mention your past with the Ta’Nar. Maybe you should learn from the people you call backwards, we have never thought of attacking the Coredian fleet that we died to protect, the same people that have only died to kill us. You want to talk about aggressive acti...”

“Watch your frakking mouth.” a voice came from behind him.

Major Thrace turned around, to see Admiral Cain walk in the room.”

“Sir.” Major Thrace replied.

“What insignia does De Bruyn have on his collar?” she asked the Major as she walked closer to him.

“Fleet Admiral Sir.” Major Thrace replied quickly.

“And what rank are you?” She said as she got close to his face.

“Major.... Sir.”

“Then why in the hell do you think you have the right to try to dress him down like a cadet?” Admiral Cain asked, her eyes staring into his, as if she was a lioness looking at her prey.

“Sir, they are...”

“They are our allies, and brothers Major.” Admiral Cain shouted at him. She like the Big Gun’s XO, rested her left hand on her hip, and the right on the handle of her pistol. “He is second in command of the 13 colonies fleet, and you will show him respect, or else you will have to be charged yourself, and you know the penalty.” she calmly told the major.

“Yes Sir.”

“Good, now please continue. Commodore, you are charging Admiral Hallen with being a chaos worshipers. Tell us Commodore, why in the hell would that be a recourse to shooting Admiral Hallen?”

The not-unexpected reply from the Colonial camp caused De Bruyn only to nod and listen. He figured it wasn't worth yelling about, especially since he was the judge here. He instead only wrote notes, going, "Mhm" and making eye contact with Thrace as he listened.

Lyndie, meanwhile, remained as irritated and stonefaced as ever. In fact, were this not a hearing, she would be more than ready to try her revolver on these uitlanders. They were loud, accusative, and dared to lump them all in with papist scum--something which Lyndie objected to. MacDougal could be seen rolling her eyes, making faces, and silently mouthing off in parody of Thrace.

Fortunately, Cain stepped in to get her people to be quiet, and MacDougal stopped before she could notice. And De Bruyn, with genuine appreciation, said, "Thank you, Admiral." He then gazed at the Commodore and said, "Answer," evidently intolerant of any more monkey business.

MacDougal replied, turning her chair to Cain, "Admiral, it wasn't just the fact she was worshipping Chaos--though I am tempted to say it was. It was the fact she indicated possessing runes from Remiel De Drakan himself. During the bits when I was distracted by Small Talk, she praised him roundly. She considered him something of a sage, a messiah. I mean, you shoulda heard her talk about how Remiel was a man of peace and how people were just making stuff up about him and how I should get into the act. It was frightening.

She even offered those runes to me because I was so curious about them. Mostly because I also mentioned an old War College friend knew about the Gods of Chaos, and told me to stay away from them; she was into alternative religions, and roundly warned me not to get involved with Chaos. So I rejected them. Then she goes on to say how imperfections aren't so bad, we gotta embrace them with the good because it makes us people, and then went on to quote Gr-er, Colonial religious stories about how the gods were quite nasty and how they themselves were nearly human."

Turning to the Dornalians, the Commodore was greeted with a nod, and looks of shock trying to process the information. With a nod, she turned back and said, "The point of all this Admiral, is that I really began questioning her logic. I mean, what else would you do if you heard language praising Zeus as a serial rapist, and how since we were made in the image of the gods, that's not only a good thing, but something to be proud of as it shows we can be dicks, rapists, and cannibals because the gods love our imperfections? You'd start to question her too."

Lyndie kept a stone face, but one could see revulsion growing as the Trekboer who was raised to reject all evils and devils confronted the very thought of an ideology that embraced it. She tried to block it out, and one could hear her mumbling the Lord's Prayer in Afrikaans. De Bruyn himself was also floored, and said, staying calm, "I'm...rather surprised to hear this. Are you, Admiral Cain?"

Admiral Cain shot Fleet Admiral De Bruyn a glare for a moment as he asked his question. Her back straight, she walked around the table, tapping her left index finger on the table as she walked around.

“So.” she said calmly, like the good cop in a net work TV show, “Just so we get this clear, once you discovered she worshiped the chaotic gods of our pantheon and had several gifts from Remiel, you felt it was necessary to relieve Samantha Hallen of her life?”

Admiral Cain leaned over towards the Commodore, about seven inches from the left side of her face. “Is that right Commodore?” she said again in a harsh tone.

The smell that came off Leona was abhorrent. Tab mixed with Vodka, and pure Ambrosia reeked off her skin, and stained her breath, much like that of a locker room just after a pyramid team had finished a game. Admiral Cain shook her head at the Commadore, in complete disapproval.

“Major Thrace.” she turned her head and barked at the man, as she looked at him very annoyed.

“Yes sir.” he responded, nervously as he gulped slightly.

“You ordered Picon Fleet to begin operations on a Colonial Fleet Vessel is that correct?” she asked him as she placed her left hand down flat against the table.

“Sir, the Dornie Vessel has harboring a fugitive, after she had been relieved of duty.” he replied back sheepishly.

“Let me make myself Clear.” Admiral Cain snapped quickly at him. “Dornie, Caprican, Picon, even Saggitarion ships are all Colonial Fleet Vessels. Did you order a boarding operation on a Colonial Vessel during combat situations in a time of war?” she asked him once more.

“Sir Yes sir.” he responded.

“Thank you. You are to report to the brig of the Isis immediately for court marshal for treason.” she said to him plainly.

“Treason?” he asked shocked at her quick decision.

“Levying arms against your country is treason Major. You are relieved.” She looked up to the Dornie guards at the door. “Relieve him of his side arm, and take him into custody.” she ordered, placing her hands on her hip, her face as serious as it could be.

Admiral Cain turned towards Admiral De Bruyn. She was clearly aggitated, at this entire situation, a situation that could easily have been avoided so many times. Her hands pressed firmly against her hips, she looked at her now second in command of the 13 Colonies fleets. "Has a Blood test been done on the Commadore MacDougal yet, to determine how much she has had to drink?"

Admiral Cain shot Fleet Admiral De Bruyn a glare for a moment as he asked his question. Her back straight, she walked around the table, tapping her left index finger on the table as she walked around.

“So.” she said calmly, like the good cop in a net work TV show, “Just so we get this clear, once you discovered she worshiped the chaotic gods of our pantheon and had several gifts from Remiel, you felt it was necessary to relieve Samantha Hallen of her life?”

Admiral Cain leaned over towards the Commodore, about seven inches from the left side of her face. “Is that right Commodore?” she said again in a harsh tone.

The smell that came off Leona was abhorrent. Tab mixed with Vodka, and pure Ambrosia reeked off her skin, and stained her breath, much like that of a locker room just after a pyramid team had finished a game. Admiral Cain shook her head at the Commadore, in complete disapproval....

....Admiral Cain turned towards Admiral De Bruyn. She was clearly aggitated, at this entire situation, a situation that could easily have been avoided so many times. Her hands pressed firmly against her hips, she looked at her now second in command of the 13 Colonies fleets. "Has a Blood test been done on the Commadore MacDougal yet, to determine how much she has had to drink?"

De Bruyn remained calm, even as the Admiral gave everybody in the room the nth degree. The Commodore was especially agitated, and the icy glare of Helena Cain bore into her with a miasma of death. The feeling came to her that this was no ordinary hearing. And Major Thrace's sentence, while it would normally give her relief and a chuckle out of schadenfruede, only elicited fear about what would happen now. The Masters-At-Arms saluted, and handcuffed Thrace as they led him out and took him back to the Isis.

Now De Bruyn was confronted with his boss. He then replied, with a shake of the head, "Not yet. As of now, I was focused on ascertaining the truth--and as it is, there seems to be strong evidence for intoxication. However, you do bring up a point, and a very valid one." He then pushed a button on the screen and spoke to his medical officer.

"Doctor Mendoza. Please come to my ready room. Bring equipment and scanners for a BAC test. Make it a blood test. Thank you."

Not but a few moments later, Doctor Mendoza showed up with an assistant. The Commodore was made to stand up, and a small handheld scanner was waved over the poor woman as a prick of her index finger was made, the blood sample tape fled diabetes-meter style into Mendoza's scanner. The results were printed for Admiral Cain and De Bruyn to see.

The Doctor then said, "Hmm...I'm reading BAC levels of .085%. She's definetly in trouble, over the Revolutionary Armed Forces' legal limit for BAC levels and qualifying for intoxication on duty charges." Turning to Cain, he then said, "Sorry. Meant Earth."

The Commodore gulped, as De Bruyn replied in his laconic style, "She is indeed." Turning to the Commodore, he simply asked, "Commodore MacDougal, it seems that though Thrace was the one charged with treason, there is the matter of your sentence. So, let's return to the Admiral's question."

"Ah...yes." The Commodore sat, motioned by De Bruyn to do so. "Well, that alone was not the motivation for me to kill Samantha Hallen, the Chaos aspect. But the fact was she defied orders with a perfectly good basis in the facts at hand. And, she exhibited behavior during our little chat where learned about her inclinations that led me to question her ability for command, like I've been saying."

De Bruyn motioned for her to go on, and the Commodore said, "She accused me of being deluded, in effect, by the 'lies of the Coredians' when I turned down her offer to visit the Temple of Aphrodite, where Remiel was preaching. She had this smile on her face when I asked about Chaos and her opinion of the Chronosian Emperor, whom she referred to as a 'dear friend and teacher.'

I dunno how to put it, but it was not a happy, cheery smile. It was one of those creepy 'one of us, one of us," smiles. And when I tried turning her down the first time on her offer of the runes, she deemed me ignorant and tried to enlighten me on the 'true nature of the gods'--hence, my rapist comment.

Take it how you will, but she seemed, as I have been saying, unwilling to even consider my point of view. At the very least, she excused my lack of consideration of the Colonial stance to the Balroggans to the influence of alcohol. At the very most, she calls me deluded and ignorant. And, the smile and the comments to me....forgive the amateur psychology, but they really seemed obsessive and cultish, and focused on her past issues and present devotions."

"Fixated enough to interfere with her good judgment?" De Bruyn asked skeptically.

"In my opinion, yes. It'd be like--this is the best analogue I can think of--trying to reason with one of those Ouendan types. Can't do it, because they're too hung up to the point of madness. That's how Hallen seemed."

De Bruyn nodded, taking it all in. Was Hallen insane? Hallen seemed to have poor judgment, but didn't seem that crazy from the Commodore's description. He then said, "I see. I know some of the people in B Quarters are like that. Still, personal bias cannot be allowed to rule this case." He then looked at Cain and said, "What is your opinion on this? If you wish, I can call in my ship's counselor to verify the accusations; he is an expert in diagnosing mental disorder."

“Sir, The Isis has arrived and from our readings, Admiral Cain has transferred to the Dornie ship.”

“Keep me informed about what is going on. Monitor all the channels to see if there is any clue. Meanwhile, we are not going to sit here doing nothing; prepare attack vectors for the Coredian fleet. Move us into position for an attack and sync us with the other Battlegroups. When the shit hits the fan, I want us to take out as many of those Cordian Rebels as we can in the first shot. Target all vulnerable areas indicated on their ship schematics we got from the Black Fleet. Make the shots count. Aim the Main Cannons at the command ships and be ready to employ Lockdown Procedures.”

“Yes Sir.”

“Move the Battlegroup into position, the Colonials will sort out their differences and then they will come to our aid if we need them.”

“Moving the Battlegroup as ordered.”

The entire Battlegroup faded away as it Uplifted into T-Space. Seconds later they appeared occupying the third point of a triangle with their backs to their allies. Weapon locks were achieved but due to the constant power levels of the ships, it was hard to tell if their weapons were being diverted some of the massive energy the Coredian sensors would have picked up.

There was radio silence.

No demands.

No threats.

The Coredians already knew what was required of them and they knew what would happen if the Ta’Nar was not given what they wanted. Refusal would grant them the same response as resistance.




OOC:

Is CW even still around? I haven’t seen him for a while.

“Sir, The Isis has arrived and from our readings, Admiral Cain has transferred to the Dornie ship.”

“Keep me informed about what is going on. Monitor all the channels to see if there is any clue. Meanwhile, we are not going to sit here doing nothing; prepare attack vectors for the Coredian fleet. Move us into position for an attack and sync us with the other Battlegroups. When the shit hits the fan, I want us to take out as many of those Cordian Rebels as we can in the first shot. Target all vulnerable areas indicated on their ship schematics we got from the Black Fleet. Make the shots count. Aim the Main Cannons at the command ships and be ready to employ Lockdown Procedures.”

“Yes Sir.”

“Move the Battlegroup into position, the Colonials will sort out their differences and then they will come to our aid if we need them.”

“Moving the Battlegroup as ordered.”

The entire Battlegroup faded away as it Uplifted into T-Space. Seconds later they appeared occupying the third point of a triangle with their backs to their allies. Weapon locks were achieved but due to the constant power levels of the ships, it was hard to tell if their weapons were being diverted some of the massive energy the Coredian sensors would have picked up.

There was radio silence.

No demands.

No threats.

The Coredians already knew what was required of them and they knew what would happen if the Ta’Nar was not given what they wanted. Refusal would grant them the same response as resistance.




OOC:

Is CW even still around? I haven’t seen him for a while.

OOC: He popped up, but his MSN handle read he's out for exams.

IC:

De Bruyn got an emergency message from the bridge. A flash followed by a small klaxon sound on his console led him to pause for a moment, bringing up the bridge's Tac Officer.

"Is something the matter, Tactical?"

"Aye, Comrade-Admiral. The Balroggans have appeared to the rear of People's Navy and Colonial Fleet units in the area. They seem to be making aggressive moves to Coredian forces in country. Unclear what's going on, but power levels indicate they're moving."

De Bruyn shook his head. With some dismay, he matter of factly stated, "The last thing I need is violent activity distrupting present discussions." Turning to Admiral Cain, he asked politely and calmly, "I imagine you would be on much better terms with the Balroggans than any of the ranking People's Navy officers, even a fair-minded individual like myself with no personal opinion either way about the Kythons. Would you be able to ask the 'Ta'Nar' as you call them to hold off on hostile activity until we finish settling our disputes? I find it easier to concentrate without distractions, especially those that might make the situation within the United Colonial forces worse."

Helena paced back and forth, turning around after twelve paces. Her left hand held in front of her, slightly below her chin, she moved her fingers, as if they were dancing. If she was shocked she would not show it, although she refused to look at Leona as she walked.

The words and testimony of Leona was a revelation that was certain, but there was a ring of truth to it. It was very much like Samantha to confront someone head on, and insults were common place amongst her former fleet Admiral.

She then turned her head towards De Bruyn. “No Admiral, I do not believe it is necessary to bring down a psychologist, to analyze the mental status of a dead woman.” she said as she dropped her arms back down to her hips. Her hands holding on to her hips, she then cut a glare towards the Commodore. “I doubt you want to set a precedent that devotion to a religion is cause for execution or court marshal, let alone mental insanity.” she calmly told the Dornie Admiral.

Admiral Cain turned and looked at Leona, her eyes focusing on this little woman before her.

Then the message came from the dornie CIC. It was the best news for Leona yet, it proved her position correct, that the Ta’Nar were in fact acting hostile.

She lowered her head for a moment to think, as De Bruyn asked Helena to make the call. “Why does this always have to happen at the worst possible timing?” She turned to De Bruyn, “Admiral, I need to know one thing. Despite anything that is about to occur, are you with me?” she asked him as she turned her head towards him. She took in a deep breath as her eyes stared blankly at the table.

“Put me through to all ships in the area.” she ordered. As the buttons were pushed, Admiral Cain straightened up her back.

“This is Isis Actual, to all ships in this area. As of this moment, Melinda and Daan are officially the territory of the United Colonies of Kobol. As a spoil of war, the thirteen Colonies won these planets from the hyberbolians, and now claim this as Colonial Territory. Any fighting in Colonial Space will be seen as an act of war by any side. If you wish to challenge this, feel free to petition the courts of your alliance. Any and all unauthorized weapons free orders will result in an immediate response by the thirteen Colonies fleet. Isis out.” she ordered both fleets.

She turned to De Bruyn, who would most likely be stunned that she just annexed, or declared the two planets protectorates, depending on your perspective. Sure it was a bold claim, but Cain knew that numerically the thirteen Colonies had the most ships, out numbering both Coredian and Ta’Nar ships. Hopefully that was enough.

Staring blankly at the table again, she turned she took her hand and placed it around her throat. “Admiral, I want immediate attack plans against the Ta’Nar and Coredian forces should they prove to ignore this decree. I also would like plans to bombard the planets if need be.” she replied as she stood up and began pacing again.

Turning to Leona, she shook her head, “It would seem the gods smile on you. Now tell me, why in the frak did you go over to the Zeus to begin with, and openly declare a non fratricide statement in the CIC, yet you brought your personal jump system lured her into private and then shot her, out of sight of her guards, then left the ship. If you enacted the military code, such actions were not necessary. Why did you do it?” She barked at Leona.

“Commander, message being sent from the Dornie ship. It is Admiral Cain.”

“Let’s hear it.”

This is Isis Actual, to all ships in this area. As of this moment, Melinda and Daan are officially the territory of the United Colonies of Kobol. As a spoil of war, the thirteen Colonies won these planets from the hyberbolians, and now claim this as Colonial Territory. Any fighting in Colonial Space will be seen as an act of war by any side. If you wish to challenge this, feel free to petition the courts of your alliance. Any and all unauthorized weapons free orders will result in an immediate response by the thirteen Colonies fleet. Isis out.

Kaat’Nha listed to the message and considered the implications presented to him from every direction before chuckling.

“Now I know why Advisor Ba’El respects this human so much. That was a cleaver move. We would obviously support our ally and anything other than agreement and evacuation by the Coredians would constitute ‘resistance’ and make the Coredians the Aggressor here. I am beginning to like her too. Such a shrewd tactician, I am glad she is an ally. Forward the message to the Grand Admiral. Hold positions. Keep weapons lock but do not charge weapons, keep the power circulating so they cannot tell if they are charged or not.”

“Yes Sir.



-----



Several minutes later, a single ship faded into view a short distance away. The five thousand meter dreadnaught was pointed toward the colonial ships but the ship obviously had not initiated their Space Minus Power Taps seeing as it was not literally glowing with excessive energies like the three Battlegroups holding “high ground” positions on the Coredian fleets.

For several seconds there was no signal from the Ta’Nar Dreadnaught.

This is Grand Admiral Dev’Stat aboard The Brutus. I have arrived to speak with our allies. I have been made aware of everything that has happened so far. Please allow me to board your vessel.




OOC:

Please post my arrival when about five minutes have passed ICly.

Staring blankly at the table again, she turned she took her hand and placed it around her throat. “Admiral, I want immediate attack plans against the Ta’Nar and Coredian forces should they prove to ignore this decree. I also would like plans to bombard the planets if need be.” she replied as she stood up and began pacing again.




De Bruyn nodded. As usual, he was calm and stoic, but inside things were different. He was somewhat uneasy about making war plans that involved turning against percieved and real allies and possible genocide. But, he had orders, and wasn't going to be able to question them. Not when he saw what she did to Thrace. With a reluctant tone, he said, "Aye, Admiral. Let me consult with my advisor." He then leaned into Lyndie and said in Afrikaans, "Time for a krygsraad*, yes?"

Lyndie sighed, and replied, "Yes. A krygsraad to decide how best to help fellow uitlanders* to kill one another. And to commit the sin of murder. Hardly the best use of a krygsraad, I would imagine. You know I will object to any slaughter of innocents; Herod I am not."

De Bruyn then shook his head and said with his trademark calm, "Lyndie, we have orders. I do not agree with them, but I am in no position to argue; Admiral Cain speaks lawfully if harshly and only barely so. The best we can do is to make plans that are flexible and accomplish our goals with a minimum of bloodshed. If we must fight the Coredians, we do so swiftly and with little blood shed on their part to minimize the awkwardness of the situation. If we fight the Balroggans, we give them our best and fight them as if our homesteads were right behind us. If we must bombard the planet, then we do so in a manner that allows the civilians to live and the prize denied."

Lyndie nodded and sternly pointed out her own point, gesturing to the People's Navy pips on her collar. "I would like to remind you that we are not butchers, we are simply men and women on a mission. I would hope you remember we are here to prevent senseless violence. Not spread it."

"Hardly reassuring," De Bruyn replied back. "However, in that case, it would be prudent to make surgical strikes and eliminate the enemy's capacity to fight without doing harm to innocents. Tell me, what is the capacity on our teleporters?"

"The cargo teleporters in the bays can hold sixty men each, with a total of fifteen men per pad," Lyndie rattled this off, confidently repeating the facts in the manual. She then added, "I know what you are planning. Boarding actions."

"Yes, Lyndie. Your take?" De Bruyn looked at his adjutant, who replied with a simple, "It would work. Targeting the main areas would surely be a shrewd move--such forethought would please God and ensure victory. However, there is the matter of shielding. And the Kythons, who are not deterred by such strategems."

"I am aware of the Kython; for the Coredian, we disable his shielding. Use Ion Torpedoes and firepower targeted at vital shield generation systems as well as propulsion to stop them, then board." The old Boer then leaned back and wagged his finger.

"But the Kython will not be as easy, should it come to that. They absorb energies and possess a keen understanding of quantum physics--the Balroggans are known to be experts at manipulating dimensions to their advantage. He will require fire from railguns at a distance and possibly any weapon that does not feed them what he requires in terms of energy. Shields active, wits about us, distance kept and manuevers fresh and frequent to match any tricks he pulls. We cannot let any part of them touch our ships or the world below. That leads to infection."


"Wise plan." was the retort.

"Indeed. As for the planet itself, we disable its shielding--if any, and then us ion strikes and conventional surgical strikes to win, disabling its vital industries and farms."

"Not a bad plan. Either way, remember what the Bible says. 'Cast your cares upon the Lord, for he cares about you.'" Lyndie reminded him in a somewhat softer tone. She didn't smile, but she seemed pleased with what was going on.

---------

Turning to Leona, she shook her head, “It would seem the gods smile on you. Now tell me, why in the frak did you go over to the Zeus to begin with, and openly declare a non fratricide statement in the CIC, yet you brought your personal jump system lured her into private and then shot her, out of sight of her guards, then left the ship. If you enacted the military code, such actions were not necessary. Why did you do it?” She barked at Leona.


As Lyndie and Christiaan were debating, Leona found herself once more in the crosshairs. With the Admiral busy, she had to fend for herself, and did so with more than a little caution and unease as the Commodore moved to clarify a few points.

"First of all, I didn't mean to kill her. Period. I went over to the Zeus to have a private discussion with Hallen about just who was in command and why I did what I did. I desired for it to be in a spot where I could speak without worrying about busybodies. That's why I said I didn't want fratricide. Made it plain as day that I did not intend for anything like this to occur.

It was only whilst talking with her that she displayed those tendencies that I was talking about. Cultish, fanatical, utterly insensitive to my viewpoints. That's when I felt she was not suitable for command, and committed the summary execution.

Secondly, the jump system I brought along in case some of her sailors and officers decided to make trouble for me when I first got onto the Zeus, and I needed a quick getaway from the vessel onto my shuttle. I feared the worst when I made my entrance--I wondered if I wouldn't be harassed or even detained for my percieved insubordination. The Jailbreak's own teleporter spirited me out of there on my orders once things went sour; the portable teleporter was not used in the attempt."

De Bruyn then wrote down the plans he made, and quietly had Lyndie deliver them to the Admiral, letting the latter conduct her interrogation as De Bruyn watched.


*OOC: Krygsraad--Afrikaans for "council of war."
Uitlander--"outlander" or "foreigner" in Afrikaans. In Lyndie's culture, foreigners are generally not held in high esteem, especially given her people's uniquely mutated form of Afrikaner Calvinism, which holds the "Trekboer" Elves are God's Elected, in a state of grace, whereas all others are not as such.

Admiral Cain, was not one that took a long time to make a decision. As she listened to the report from Leona, the only thing she could think of was the circumstances. The Ta’Nar were in fact acting aggressive. Her friend Admiral Hallen did indeed defy her orders in a potential battle situation.

As the battle plans were handed to the Admiral of the fleet she looked down at the list. She carefully scanned it. Turning up towards Admiral De Bruyn, she nodded. “Alright Admiral.” she spoke to him first, “Your plan is approved, upon Coredians or Ta’Nar defying our declaration.” she said to him. She took his list, and gave it to his Executive Officer. “Please insure this plan is distributed across a secure channel to our fleet.” she calmly said to her.

Turning once more to Leona, she shook her head. “Although she is drunk, and a coward.” she spoke about the Commadore as if she was not in the room, “Given the situation, I do not see that she did anything tactically wrong.” she spoke to De Bruyn.

Shaking her head for a moment, she then looked back to Admiral De Bruyn, “The charge of murder is to be dropped, but what ever other charges you wish to be levied against her is your discretion Admiral. This is your command.” she spoke once more.

Then a beep sounded in the room. Waiting for De Bruyn to answer, after all it was his ship, his command, the message was somewhat clear. The Ta’Nar brought in an extra vessel and wanted to speak with Admiral Cain.

She then pushed a button, “This is Admiral Cain, inform the Ta’Nar leader, as well as the Coredian admiralty, that they may meet upon the Warstar Isis, in two hours.”

Turning to De Bruyn, she asked, “Will you be able to attend the meeting?”

Admiral Cain, was not one that took a long time to make a decision. As she listened to the report from Leona, the only thing she could think of was the circumstances. The Ta’Nar were in fact acting aggressive. Her friend Admiral Hallen did indeed defy her orders in a potential battle situation.

As the battle plans were handed to the Admiral of the fleet she looked down at the list. She carefully scanned it. Turning up towards Admiral De Bruyn, she nodded. “Alright Admiral.” she spoke to him first, “Your plan is approved, upon Coredians or Ta’Nar defying our declaration.” she said to him. She took his list, and gave it to his Executive Officer. “Please insure this plan is distributed across a secure channel to our fleet.” she calmly said to her.

Turning once more to Leona, she shook her head. “Although she is drunk, and a coward.” she spoke about the Commadore as if she was not in the room, “Given the situation, I do not see that she did anything tactically wrong.” she spoke to De Bruyn.

Shaking her head for a moment, she then looked back to Admiral De Bruyn, “The charge of murder is to be dropped, but what ever other charges you wish to be levied against her is your discretion Admiral. This is your command.” she spoke once more.

Then a beep sounded in the room. Waiting for De Bruyn to answer, after all it was his ship, his command, the message was somewhat clear. The Ta’Nar brought in an extra vessel and wanted to speak with Admiral Cain.

She then pushed a button, “This is Admiral Cain, inform the Ta’Nar leader, as well as the Coredian admiralty, that they may meet upon the Warstar Isis, in two hours.”

Turning to De Bruyn, she asked, “Will you be able to attend the meeting?”

The Commodore sighed a tone of relief at Cain's pronouncement that she was to be exonerated from murder charges. However, the stern South Africans at the desk--both elven and human--were not so forgiving. After nodding and saying, "Yes," to Cain, with a calm, stern gaze De Bruyn handed down his own judgment.

"Well, Commodore. It seems you are not a murderer after all." With a thoughtful stroke of his chin, he mused. "As the Admiral has deemed the action you committed--summary execution of an insubordinate--tactically sound, and given your past service record and mental profile, I would say it is also not becoming to bring charges of manslaughter, involuntary or voluntary." The Boer was calm, and thoughtful, seeming to speak with a slow pace.

He then tightened, as he delivered the next part of his judgment.

"However, your mental profile and past record--along with Doctor Mendoza's exam--do give me reason to issue charges of intoxication on duty, derelection of duty, and reckless endangerment. You did not intend to harm the crews of the Zeus and the Jailbreak through your use of alcohol, but you ended up nearly killing us all. I cannot think of any better way to encapsulate the situation than that."

He then flipped through the copy of the Dornalian code of military justice. He poked at the relevant sections, and wrote them down. Then, he spoke.

"Judging by the nature of your crimes, I have read the Code of Justice of the Revolutionary Armed Forces and will now issue the following punishments.

One. You will recieve a demotion from Commodore to Captain. Effective immediately.

Two. You will recieve the Administrative Punishment of, let's see....ten lashes or five hits with a rattan cane for the intoxication charge....thirty lashes or fifteen hits with a rattan cane for the dereliction charge or a term in the stockade and maybe a dishonorable discharge and forty lashes or twenty hits with a rattan cane for the reckless endangerment charge plus a term in the stockade....considering the incredible pain of forty cane hits you will be enduring and the field conditions, I will forgo the month-long term in the stockade and the dishonorable discharge. But you will recieve the forty cane hits. No more, no less. If necessary I will have Doctor Mendoza keep you awake with smelling salts throughout the procedure."

At that, the Commodore resisted exploding on her superior. She would have preferred to be fired or sent to jail in lieu of the incredible pain of no less than forty hits with a cane. It was said men fainted at the fifth hit with a cane....

"And third. This provision is the only thing that keeps you from immediate discharge.

You are ordered to undergo mandatory psychiatric therapy and rehabilitation to correct that alcohol addiction. I will have someone you shall report to found immediately. You will report to all appointments at the specified times as ordered by the psychiatrist. You will obey their orders as you would mine. There WILL be progress reports sent by you every two weeks. They will be corroborated with your psychologists' reports.

Failure to do so means immediate expulsion from the People's Navy and forfeiture of commission. If you join once more, you will be a buck seaman.

As part of that, you are also denied all liquor from here on out. The usual liquor ration shall be replaced with a soft drink. Any attempts to circumvent this will be met with expulsion.

Do you understand?"

The Commodore's heart sank. This was bad. Really bad. She could only say weakly, "Yes."

OOC: Graaah! I have resurrected!

IC:
After a time of great tension whereby the Admiral's fleet stared down the Balroggans, a message was sent out on all channels.

This is Isis Actual, to all ships in this area. As of this moment, Melinda and Daan are officially the territory of the United Colonies of Kobol. As a spoil of war, the thirteen Colonies won these planets from the hyperbolians, and now claim this as Colonial Territory. Any fighting in Colonial Space will be seen as an act of war by any side. If you wish to challenge this, feel free to petition the courts of your alliance. Any and all unauthorized weapons free orders will result in an immediate response by the thirteen Colonies fleet. Isis out.

She then pushed a button, “This is Admiral Cain, inform the Ta’Nar leader, as well as the Coredian admiralty, that they may meet upon the Warstar Isis, in two hours.”

Admiral Easton weighed his options with this message. He couldn't exactly start a scrape with New Dornalia and the Colonies. Not only were ND and Coredia best friends, there was the fact that the Empress would be in danger. And Daniel Masaki would probably demand the Admiral's head if he somehow survived the assault. And then there was Balrogga to consider, as they're definitely intending to jump on any Coredian movement and gleefully slaughter anything with the flag of Coredia on it.

No, it would not do well to defy Admiral Cain on this issue. And besides, better for the allies to have Melida/Daan than the Empire.

Now if only that delegation from the Council would arrive...

Oh, it just did. The SSD Vector, flagship of the powerful military industrial complex reverted to realspace near the area. A reforged Huntaerian Armageddon-class ship, the Vector had many, many surprises that would be devastating on any battlefield, but it looked like it would be another day to reveal said surprises.

A flurry of communications erupted between the Deinochyus and the Vector, with the Admiral updating the delegation on the situation. After all that was said and done, the Vector opened channels.

"This is Lady Director Rina Masaki of Vector Industries. Admiral Easton and I will be arriving onboard the Isis momentarily. Please make all appropriate preparations for the arrival. Thank you!" Cheerful and bubbly, as always.

Admiral Cain could only smile, as she saw her counterpart De Bruyn hand down his sentence. The man was harsh but not cruel, fair and showed strength and decisiveness. Her chest filled with pride about this man next to her, as he did not hesitate to put the greater good of the United Colonies above his own people. She knew at that moment, that he would in fact be a good replacement for the now dead Admiral Hallen.

The moment however did not last long, as the communication from the Coredians was quickly filtered into the room. Her small smile soon faded, as she was reminded about the larger picture abroad. The Coredians were still out there, as were the Ta’Nar, both sides armed to the teeth and rattling their sabers. Not that she actually cared about the Coredians and Ta’Nar engaging into a brawl, but it was a large security risk for the colonies. At best they would lose one ally, at worse, it would start a war between the colonies. Both options were not acceptable.

She turned to Admiral De Bruyn. “Admiral, I would like for you to come to this meeting. If we may, can we use that personal jump system of yours to board the Isis. We need to show our allies that we are united, and that we will not allow further bloodshed today.” she said calmly in her request.

She then reached up to her ear piece. “Isis, this is Cain. Prepare a security detail for the Coredians, and the Ta’Nar. Issue the order that all side arms are to be stored immediately, and place the detail to protect our guests. Also make sure that neither side is going to try to sneak a weapon on the ship.” She said as she held down the ear piece.

As she issued the order to her ship, she turned to De Bruyn one more time. “I am ready when you are.”

She turned to Admiral De Bruyn. “Admiral, I would like for you to come to this meeting. If we may, can we use that personal jump system of yours to board the Isis. We need to show our allies that we are united, and that we will not allow further bloodshed today.” she said calmly in her request...

As she issued the order to her ship, she turned to De Bruyn one more time. “I am ready when you are.”

The Admiral got up and nodded. He spoke simply in accord as he motioned for Lyndie to write down the results of the hearing, saying "I had better go to this meet, then. Besides, things are looking dire, hey?" The old Boer turned to the Masters-At-Arms in the room and said, "Gentlemen, escort the Captain and follow me." Just as quickly, he rotated back to Cain and said, "This is a good time to show you as any, I suppose. We have more sophisticated editions of the system that the now-reduced Captain had brought."

The party was led duly to the teleporter area. A simple room, furnished with a command console and some more Masters-At-Arms, Cain would have noticed its most prominent feature--a flat surface, shiny with lights and cameras all over, with a faint hum.

"This is the Teleporter. A simple, efficient system. Gets you to where you need to go quickly. I am not familiar with the specifics, but I do know it involves breaking down matter over here and rebuilding it over here." Turning to the man on duty, he muttered, "Ja?"

The man working the console nodded. Lyndie merely shook her head and cursed the machine, muttering in Afrikaans, "Blasted machine. I don't trust anything that breaks me down without my consent...."

"Lyndie, please. Not in front of the Admiral now." De Bruyn sighed and said in English, "Pardon my assistant, but she is a little..um....skeptical of the teleporter. Nevermind, let's go now-now."

He then escorted them into the teleporter, and said to the assistant, "Warrant Officer. Set coordinates for the Admiral, Vice Admiral Uys and I to the Isis's CiC, Site to Site Transport. Set coordinates to Captain MacDougal and her escorts to the sickbay of the Jailbreak." He then asked the Captain, "Captain MacDougal. Who is the Chief Psychologist aboard your vessel?"

MacDougal sullenly answered, "Rabbi-Sensei 2nd Class Elmer Lowenstein, Father Enrico Enzio, Reverend Marcus Pickens. All are Warrant Officers Grade 2. There is also Doctor John Warren, Ship's Chief Psychologist."

De Bruyn then spoke to the Warrant Officer operating the console, "Warrant Officer, radio Doctor Warren. Have him prepare a rehabilitation regimen, Rabbi-Sensei Lowenstein presiding over its administration and Warren handling the bulk of it. Tell them they will be duly assisted if they need it, but remind them they have a duty to the paitent and to the Navy to prevent danger. That is all."

"Aye, Comrade Admiral."

With that, the officers were warped onto the CiC of the Isis within seconds.....and ther Captain was escorted into the Jailbreak's medical area to await medical care.

Grand Admiral, we are receiving several messages

Send them to me

Yes Sir

Dev’Staht accepted the relayed messages. He viewed them in the order they were received.

The first was a simple reply from Admiral Cain’s staff. They were requesting those in charge to meet aboard her ship in two Colonial hours. That was acceptable although it seemed a bit long to wait with fingers on triggers. Perhaps she was giving the Coredians time to prove their reputation and start a conflict. That would be just like her. He listened to the second message.

"This is Lady Director Rina Masaki of Vector Industries. Admiral Easton and I will be arriving onboard the Isis momentarily. Please make all appropriate preparations for the arrival. Thank you!"

The Ta’Nar was puzzled. Why would the Coredians send in a Masaki to certain death? They knew they were not viewed with any favor what so ever by the colonies and their move would only be viewed as an attempt to persuade them with the Coredian Imperial name. Not only that but she was not even a military officer. She was dragging an Admiral around like it was a small hairless mutt. Such a "Paris Hilton…." It was a personal insult to the Colonial command staff to do that. Also, the bitch is not even a diplomat or ambassador; she is some CEO Director of a corporation. It is only by an accident of birth that she is even there throwing around her imaginary weight.

He thought about it for a few moments before deciding upon his own message to Admiral Cain aboard the Isis.

This is Grand Admiral Dev’Staht aboard The Brutus. I will agree to the meeting under one condition. The Coredians have demonstrated their reckless disregard to the safety of Colonial civilians and military personal in the recent past. For the safety of everyone concerned and due to the demonstrated reputation of the Coredians, I suggest they undergo strip searches and full body cavity examinations to be sure they are not smuggling any AI or micro-singularity devices aboard any Colonial vessel. They could take out several important Colonial dignitaries in one fell blow if they were to follow the pattern they have carved out for themselves on the bones of Caprica City and throughout the recent history of the Colonies. I am sure you will agree a little…discomfort…on their behalf is worth the peace of mind knowing you will not be obliterated in a ball of nothingness. Their refusal could be considered an act of non-compliance if you wish for the request is quite reasonable.

The message was sent using an open channel so every ship within the system could hear it.

It was a quick flash, as the blinding light of the “teleporter” took Cain and her associates to her CIC. It was a strange sensation, almost like when you took your first jump on a ship. Her stomach felt slightly nauseous. Pressing her hand to her stomach, she turned to De Bruyn. “That is certainly an interesting system.” she told him. “I can see the tactical value in such a jump. Do you ever use that for tactical deployment, such as jumping warheads into an enemy ship, or for boarding operations to take out key systems of a ship?” she asked him.

As her question was asked, one of the young Dornie Lieutenants spoke out. “Admiral, incoming message from the Ta’Nar.” he said quite professionally. She nodded to him, “On speakers.”

She shook her head at the message. Did the Ta'Nar not trust their allies to take care of themselves, or were they aware of something that the Colonies were not. She took in a deep breath as she placed her hand on her neck, as a small shock of pain streaked down her spine. Rubbing it slightly, she turned her head to the left slightly. This diplomatic situation was very stressful, both Coredians and Ta'Nar claiming an alliance with the Colonies, some of which favored one side or the other.

As the message played out, Admiral Cain looked around the CiC. “Well Admiral.” she spoke to the Dornie born Fleet Admiral, “You know the Coredians better than I do. We both must acknowledge that their policies and tactics in battle may not be adequate in any situation but do you believe that the Coredians would attempt to destroy this ship?”

After pausing for a moment, and waiting for the response she nodded at the Admiral. “Well Admiral, I think it is time for you to handle this situation. We need to show the Colonies, as well as the Galaxy that although we may bicker amongst each other that we are united against all potential adversaries. You are in command. Please arrange for any and all security details you see fit, as well as preparations for this meeting. I will be here to support you if need be. This is your meeting Admiral.” she told him.

It was not so much that she was testing De Bruyn, but she did know that the eyes of the United Colonies would be focused on this moment. After the Hallen execution, Cain wanted to show the Colonies especially Picon, that in fact the Dornies could be trusted.

It was a quick flash, as the blinding light of the “teleporter” took Cain and her associates to her CIC. It was a strange sensation, almost like when you took your first jump on a ship. Her stomach felt slightly nauseous. Pressing her hand to her stomach, she turned to De Bruyn. “That is certainly an interesting system.” she told him. “I can see the tactical value in such a jump. Do you ever use that for tactical deployment, such as jumping warheads into an enemy ship, or for boarding operations to take out key systems of a ship?” she asked him.

De Bruyn replied to the Admiral, "There have been documented incidents before of shunting torpedoes with the teleporters. One Commodore Rodriguez used them in the ESUS-GFFA Conflict against overwhelming odds before her teleport systems were distrupted. As for the usage of the teleporter in boarding actions, it is not unknown and not without precedent. We do it against pirates who won't surrender, for example."

As the message played out, Admiral Cain looked around the CiC. “Well Admiral.” she spoke to the Dornie born Fleet Admiral, “You know the Coredians better than I do. We both must acknowledge that their policies and tactics in battle may not be adequate in any situation but do you believe that the Coredians would attempt to destroy this ship?”

After pausing for a moment, and waiting for the response she nodded at the Admiral. “Well Admiral, I think it is time for you to handle this situation. We need to show the Colonies, as well as the Galaxy that although we may bicker amongst each other that we are united against all potential adversaries. You are in command. Please arrange for any and all security details you see fit, as well as preparations for this meeting. I will be here to support you if need be. This is your meeting Admiral.” she told him.

It was not so much that she was testing De Bruyn, but she did know that the eyes of the United Colonies would be focused on this moment. After the Hallen execution, Cain wanted to show the Colonies especially Picon, that in fact the Dornies could be trusted.

This part, however, proved harder to answer. He nodded at the Admiral's token statement, as much as he disagreed with it--but when it came time to answer the Million Dollar Question, he could only say curtly and quickly, "I will say this much. I do not believe the Coredians will harm this vessel, especially with personnel from Earth aboard it. Their policy to the other Colonies is admittedly ambiguous, hard to ascertain--politicians always never did make up their minds. But I know with Terrans aboard and the threat of Kython assault, they will be inclined to avoid any moves that would further damage them. They can be hard to understand at times, but the Coredian is not stupid and even quite generous, circumstances permitting."

He then found himself in command of the meet, and could only resign himself to getting a big job done, especially with the lack of love floating about. Lyndie could only shrug.

After motioning for Lyndie and an interpreter to bring in some yasalmiri and some refreshments as well as a battery of scanning instruments and guards, Colonial and Dornalian and finding a room to his liking (all with the help of Cain), he radioed the Balroggans and the Coredians with the following messages, delivered in a stern, businesslike tone, one that suggested all listen or face the consequences.

"Grand Admiral Dev'Staht, Admiral Easton, Lady Director Rina Masaki. THis is Admiral Christiaan De Bruyn speaking from the CiC of the Isis. I am have been authorized by Admiral Cain to organize security and preparations for the meet. Be aware I make these preparations with the understanding all will cooperate.

First of all--all parties who enter will be subject to a full search in a single area in full view of Dornalian and Colonial personnel. Balroggan, Coredian, anybody who enters the meeting area. This is to ensure no one is armed. All available forms of scanning, from the lowliest K-9 bombsniffing unit to the most sophisticated bioscanner will be used to ferret out suspicious cargo. If necessary we will strip search you. However, I do not share the Balroggan enthusiasm for the procedure, so it will be done on a case-by-case basis.

Second--the meeting itself will be conducted in a room with ysalamiri and guards to prevent unfair advantage. Refreshments will be served. They will be nonalcoholic with the exception of mampoer. Interpreters will be present to translate unfamiliar terms and I will be there with the Admiral to lay bare our terms.

Third--Play Nice. No sound effects, please.

That is all."

OOC: Reiterating, I am posting from Los Angeles with no IM access. TG for all complaints, and expect spotty RPing.

“Grand Admiral, I am receiving a reply from the Colonial fleet.”

“Send it through.”

Dev’Staht sat back and observed the message, paying careful attention to every infliction of the Admiral’s words.

"Grand Admiral Dev'Staht, Admiral Easton, Lady Director Rina Masaki. THis is Admiral Christiaan De Bruyn speaking from the CiC of the Isis. I am have been authorized by Admiral Cain to organize security and preparations for the meet. Be aware I make these preparations with the understanding all will cooperate.

First of all--all parties who enter will be subject to a full search in a single area in full view of Dornalian and Colonial personnel. Balroggan, Coredian, anybody who enters the meeting area. This is to ensure no one is armed. All available forms of scanning, from the lowliest K-9 bombsniffing unit to the most sophisticated bioscanner will be used to ferret out suspicious cargo. If necessary we will strip search you. However, I do not share the Balroggan enthusiasm for the procedure, so it will be done on a case-by-case basis.

Second--the meeting itself will be conducted in a room with ysalamiri and guards to prevent unfair advantage. Refreshments will be served. They will be nonalcoholic with the exception of mampoer. Interpreters will be present to translate unfamiliar terms and I will be there with the Admiral to lay bare our terms.

Third--Play Nice. No sound effects, please.

That is all."

After the message was done, the Ta’Nar checked his latest data of the Coredian Fleet and the three battlegroups taking “high ground positions” around them. Both sides knew all weapons were locked upon each other and no bluffing on either part would convince otherwise. He was certain the Twelve Colonies would not be targeting the Ta’Nar ships until provoked but he was not so sure about the Thirteenth Colony. The Ta’Nar and the “Dornies”, as the colonials called them, had conflicted in the past, namely at Mirfak. They had encountered each other at Jurai but had parted without firing a single shot at each other. Technically there was only the Mirfak incident long ago where they had exchanged shots. Meatbags tend to have short memories but their perceptions of events become distorted over time until the real event and what is remembered are completely different like night and day. Who really knew what they “remembered” from that single event. I doubt the descendants knew their own ally caused more damage than both the Godular and the Ta’Nar forces combined with his reckless shooting his “space shotguns” even after the ESUS forces had abandoned the battlefield. Of course the ones in charge would know but not the docile sheep of the citizens. A majority of the fleshlings did not trust their own people enough for full disclosure of events they participated in. It is sad that in this day and age there is still such close-mindedness even among their own kind. The Ta’Nar had bypassed that restriction long ago.

Grand Admiral sighed and accessed the files he will possibly need at the meeting. He reviewed them and then stood.

“Sir, do you wish an escort?”

“No, we are among friends, our only enemies here are the Coredians and they are on the other side of the battlefield from The Brutus. I will be attending alone trusting this Admiral De Bruyn and his security procedures. Keep me updated on any ship movements, especially the Coredian or any new arrivals of any nation.”

“Yes Sir”

Grand Admiral walked out of the Command bridge and willed himself to the flight deck. After a few moments he arrived. He walked over to his personal shuttle and climbed aboard. He was greeted by the “voice” of the shuttle.

Dev’Staht, it has been a long time.

Yes it has. Are you ready?

Of course I am, what configuration do you require?

Unarmed shuttle. We are attending a diplomatic occasion where the presence of weapons would be counterproductive.

I understand, adjusting configuration and I will be ready in a moment.

That is fine, take off when you are done.

A single shuttle left the Dreadnaught and easily moved the short distance to The Isis. After following the landing instructions of the flight control operator, the shuttle settled down on the flight deck, hovering three centimeters above the surface. The side of the craft melted to reveal a door and as the metal ran toward the deck, it formed three floating steps. The door opened and a single entity emerged. Dev’Staht was adorned in simple charcoal grey robes and carried nothing. He appeared to be human in appearance and had salt and pepper hair.

He followed the officers who met him and allowed them to take him through the scanners and other security devices. Due to the puzzled looks from the technicians, he knew they were detecting the nothingness of his body. They would not register a single ounce of matter in his entire being, and the bio scanners would most likely draw a blank. The only possibility would be a trace of mental activity but his mind shields would have kept that under cover. It was easily able to see the Grand Admiral was not trying to smuggle anything into the meeting. He didn’t have a body to carry anything as far as the security personal could detect.

"Grand Admiral Dev'Staht, Admiral Easton, Lady Director Rina Masaki. THis is Admiral Christiaan De Bruyn speaking from the CiC of the Isis. I am have been authorized by Admiral Cain to organize security and preparations for the meet. Be aware I make these preparations with the understanding all will cooperate.

First of all--all parties who enter will be subject to a full search in a single area in full view of Dornalian and Colonial personnel. Balroggan, Coredian, anybody who enters the meeting area. This is to ensure no one is armed. All available forms of scanning, from the lowliest K-9 bombsniffing unit to the most sophisticated bioscanner will be used to ferret out suspicious cargo. If necessary we will strip search you. However, I do not share the Balroggan enthusiasm for the procedure, so it will be done on a case-by-case basis.

Second--the meeting itself will be conducted in a room with ysalamiri and guards to prevent unfair advantage. Refreshments will be served. They will be nonalcoholic with the exception of mampoer. Interpreters will be present to translate unfamiliar terms and I will be there with the Admiral to lay bare our terms.

Third--Play Nice. No sound effects, please.

That is all."
Rina Masaki mulled over the message from the Admiral. She decided that the restrictions would be acceptable for the duration of these talks and ordered an unarmed shuttle to be readied for travel to the Isis. She knew that the Admiral of the Fifth Fleet would be doing the same. Before she left, she ensured that all the weapons that were on her person stayed on the Vector. No need to anger the Dornalians now, eh?

Nevertheless, she soon headed out of the hangar bay for the Isis...

The two Dornalians/Earthlings would be there to meet the visitors. Admiral De Bruyn insisted on it, despite Lyndie's insistence on not meeting such a "Godslasterlik kreatuur," a "blasphemous creature" incomprehensible to her worldview and especially abominable owing to its origins as a war machine (OOC: That's what her phrase literally meant, by the way.). Not that, thankfully and contrary to Dev'Staht's equally narrow and pessimistic worldview, all Dornalians shared Lyndie's mind or that of the Mirfak Veterans Association (the latter having been accused by some prominent journalists of distorting their ranks with relatives and sympathizers). Lyndie was nonetheless given the job.

Thus it was Lyndie escorted Dev'Staht along with her own detail, after De Bruyn greeted the Ta'Nar with a salute and a bow and a "Hello, Grand Admiral Dev'Staht. I am Admiral Christiaan De Bruyn of the United Colonies. My second, Vice Admiral Uys, will take you to the meeting area through security," through security. Her giant revolver ever present in an open carry holster, partly to show off (though she'd never say that openly) and partly to ensure Dev'Staht was honest, the fact the dogs--scared as they were--didn't find anything and the bioscanners anything either prompted one Dornalian seaman, dressed in the Dornalian uniform of a hodgepodge of 1940's US Navy sailor and 20th Century Russian Sailor, to go, "Comrade Vice Admira-"

He was then interrupted by a stern, heavily accented, "That is Vice Admiral, Seaman." from Lyndie.

"Vice Admiral, sorry. Request permission to pat down the subject." The seaman then turned to Dev'Staht, slightly nervous and apologetic, "No offense, sir."

Lyndie then looked at Dev'Staht, and then at the seaman. She then said curtly, "Nee, er, no. He is clean, he can go." The seaman saluted them both and went, "Aye, Vice Admiral." Lyndie then lead the Ta'Nar into the room, and said curtly, "Admiral De Bruyn will be in shortly with your opposite number." She then took her seat and began finishing some paperwork.

As that occurred, De Bruyn was about to give a similar, if slightly warmer reception to Rina Masaki. With a salute and a bow, he said simply, "Good day, Ms. Masaki. I am Admiral Christiaan De Bruyn, representing the United Colonies of Kobol. Please, come this way."

Security would be a bit easier to comprehend, though when a man tried to get an autograph De Bruyn frowned and said, "Seaman, this is neither Hollywood nor a bioscop-er, Movie Theater. Do that later," ending that man's ambition. Rina was then given a quick explanation that "bioscope"* was how South Africans said "movie theater" with an apology, and then was led into the meeting room after security passed her through.

*Bioscope--term used in RL to denote a movie theater in South Africa; it derives from an old name for a movie projection system that was preserved in Afrikaans and then given back to local versions of English.

Dev’Staht followed his escort into the meeting hall set aside. He eyed the defenses with a knowing chuckle easily recognizing Ta’Nar influences in many of the things including the Inhibitors built into the ship at multiple locations. The Ta’Nar looked around and saw the table set up for everyone.

He walked over to it and took his place. Things might get interesting soon.

Admiral Cain was the first to walk into the room. Wanting to be there first to greet the guests of the newly formed, and now very tested United Colonies of Kobol. As she approached the door, two marine guards, both dressed in black, and heavily armed saluted the Admiral of the Fleet.

She did not smile, nor make any motions towards the men, except a simple nod. With that, one reached in his pocket, and pulled out a key card. He turned to the door, and swiped the card. Then reaching up with his left hand, he began to press in a code.

The door hissed, as it opened up. She walked into the briefing room. Along the walls, were small televisions, each with a different image of the ship. She could clearly see the small black ribbons along the wall, the force inhibitors gifted to the United Colonies, then the Twelve Colonies, after the Coredian Betrayal at Caprica.

The room was more of a briefing room, chairs aligned in rows, with a podium in front of them, standing on a platform about three feet higher than the floor. It was not the best location the pilots briefing room, but this meeting was not exactly planned or scheduled.

In the center of the Podium was the symbol of the United Colonies seal, the bird with now thirteen feathers stretched towards the heavens. Underneath it, were the words, “Warstar Isis BSG 32.” She looked at it with pride, as her own shoulder had the same symbol in it, although it was gold and black, the colors of the Caprican Fleet.

She gently walked over towards the televisions and began to shut them off. She knew that the info on the screen could give the Coredians, a tactical advantage if they choose to take it. Although she trusted in Earth, the Dornies as they nicknamed themselves, and she trusted in the Ta’Nar it was better not to take any chances.

“Come on, be careful with that.” a male voice said, as she heard a thud coming from the entrance of the room.

Admiral Cain turned around, to see the men carrying what looked to be a tree with a small lizard in it.

“What the frak do you think you are doing?” she said, as she walked over to the two enlisted men, each wearing green colonial BDU’s.

Startled one of the men looked up and saluted. With a southern California accent the man replied, “It is a ysalamari co-er, Admiral Cain” the man said, as he almost slipped into his own custom.

Admiral Cain glared at the man for a moment, as he with his Saggitarion counterpart picked up the tree and continued to move it in the room. She watched them as they entered. “ Why in the hell were they bringing a lizard into the room?” she wondered. Finally she had to ask, “Why are your bringing a lizard into this room?” she said demanding an answer, as she placed her hands on her hip.

"Admiral, this lizard projects a nullifying field. It makes the room protected against the Force. Orders of Admiral De Bruyn, ma'am."

Admiral Cain just shook her head. “A lizard that can beat a Coredian, well now I have heard of everything.” she said, as she turned around. “Carry on then.”

How in the hell could a lizard keep away the tricks of the Coredians. How could a geico beat back a Masaki at their own game. To her it seemed unlikely, but if Admiral De Bruyn believed it would work then she would let him do it. After all, what was the point if she did not trust her own Fleet Admiral.

Twenty Minutes later.

As the Balrooggan and Coredian representitives entered the Warstar, and cleared through security, they were met by a team of Colonial and Dornie Marines. Three took point in front of them, in case of any would be assassins tried to harm them. One on either side, to keep them from trying to leave down a separate cooridor, and three behind them, in case they proved hostile and force was necessary.

As they walked, both parties would see that the halls were cleared. No people at all were in this section, as the party walked down in relative safety. The lead marine, a tall man, and built, wearing the standard black Marine uniform, then began to speak, laying down the ground rules.

“You are not permitted to leave the room without authorization and armed escort. If you attempt to leave the unrestricted areas force will be used to stop you. If you attempt to circumvent this rule or are found in any part of the ship where you are not authorized, deadly forced will be used. This is your only warning. You are only authorized to be in the briefing room, or with your escort. If you are found without your escort, force will be used. Am I clear?” the marine said, as they approached the pilot’s briefing room door.

As soon as they agreed, they were shown inside, where a small table was set up, with the refreshments ordered by Admiral De Bruyn.

As the parties entered, Admiral Cain greeted each one. With a respectful salute she greeted the Ta’Nar. When the Coredians came in, she glared for a moment, but then forced out the words, “Welcome to the Warstar Isis.” She said to Admiral Easton, nearly blowing off the Masaki completely.

Everyone knew she did not like the Coredians, especially the Masaki's. They fought against her in the civil war, they attacked the Colonies, and they were rude as hell to her on live TV, as well as in the privite meeting on the Godulan world. She could almost forgive Admiral Easton, he was a military man like her, and he just follows his orders, but the Masaki who walked in, she had no excuse for breathing her air, let alone be at this meeting where military commanders were talking about military matters.

Admiral Cain turned to both of her guests. “Please have a seat, if you like you have food and beverages here. As soon as Admiral De Bruyn can join us, we will begin.”

Admiral Cain turned to both of her guests. “Please have a seat, if you like you have food and beverages here. As soon as Admiral De Bruyn can join us, we will begin.”

De Bruyn was a less ornery individual, but he resembled a state of calm and stoicism more than anything. Having ducked out for a quick bathroom break, he went back in, his tie having been adjusted and his finery looking fine enough. He was in full uniform, Dornalian cut with its distinct Americo-Soviet look but also now refashioned into something resembling Colonial thanks to the addition of prominent insignia to its otherwise spare collection of medals displaying the newly christened symbol of the Colonies, a thirteen pointed white stylized sun on a blue background that would seem oddly like a Taiwanese political symbol, if one knew the history and where the island was.

"Ahem," let out the tall Boer. Walking in, he got a glass of water and took his seat and said, his rough, deep Afrikaner accent resounding, "Welcome, ladies and gentlemen. I wish I could invite you here under better circumstances.

However, these will have to do; especially since they pertain to the claim of the Melida/Daan system by the United Colonies of Kobol as a prize of war owing to our victory over the Hyperborian Empire. An important matter, especially as it is in contention by the Galactic Empire and the Coredians, hey?"*

*South African English uses "hey" often like Canadians use "eh," as in to denote "what I just said, isn't it true?"

“Actually, the Claim by the Colonies would satisfy the GE since they are members of the Empire. I have been dispatched here without being aware of the claim you have made in order to oppose further Coredian contamination by their trade agreement.”

Dev’Staht paused momentarily before continuing.

“The Empire cannot allow the Coredians to further contaminate and influence the system with their Culture of Corruption. Their ‘trade agreement’ does not stand as a claim to this system. It is not valid in the eyes of the Empire or of my Warlord. I am authorized to remove their influence using any means possible.”

The Grand Admiral looked straight at the Coredians as if to stress the point.

Rina Masaki stared back at the Grand Admiral. "With all due respect, Grand Admiral, the only thing valid to the Empire is its ability to hold on to its systems through force, and to collect more through the same. Our trade agreement with Melinda/Daan is valid enough, having been in force since my uncle, the late Emperor Andrew Masaki, was in power."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JwM1n1WLevc

Admiral Cain listened to the two sides bicker, like little children in playground, fighting over who’s toy is who’s. She watched the two sides argue, as she clearly became disappointed. Such a simple meeting seemed to be turning into a bitch fest. Well in this room we all know who the top bitch is.

“Enough” Cain barked at the two sides, calling their attention to her. “First of all, Princess Masaki, aside from the reasoning you might be here, please understand one thing. Your trade agreements with Melinda/Daan, were under their old authority. I as Admiral of the Fleet of the united Colonies have put forth a claim of spoils of war on these planets. As of this moment, Melinda/Daan are protectorates of the thirteen Colonies of Kobol. Your past precedent does not mean shit at this moment, so if you want to continue your trade I suggest you listen closely.

She then turned to the Grand Admiral. “And Grand Admiral. As much respect as I have for you and your people in the reconstruction, the united Colonies are not members of the Empire. We are allied to several key members, including yourself, but please be clear. The Colonies are allied, but remain independant. Our claim has nothing to do with that Coredian sitting on the throne of the Galactic Empire. As long as I am alive, I can assure you the thirteen Colonies will never be subserviant to any foreign power.” Cain told him in the same irritated tone of voice she had with the Masaki.

“Now both of you want two things, both of which are conflicting. Coredia wants to maintain trade, while the Ta’Nar want to limit their sphere of influence. To that degree we have a compromise, one that will be offered only one time. You may accept it, or attempt to attack our ships if you like, but make no mistake, the thirteen Colonies are not leaving this system.

She turned to Admiral De’Bruyn holding her hand out towards him, “If you please, offer them the arrangement.”

OOC: Tag for upcoming post. Excuse my forced, extended absence.

After listening to the Coredian response, as was expected of them, Dev'Staht simply chuckled.

"It would be just like a Coredian to consider a trade agreement to be politically binding and basis of a territorial claim. You need a proper agreement between proper diplomats and not some greedy corporate bitch queen who would happen by a chance of birth to hold a family name infamous for betrayal and deciet. Your claim of diplomatic treaties falls quite short of what is actually required for the claims you made. It almost sounds like something that was made up."

When Cain interjected Dev'Staht waited until she was done talking.

"Please accept my apology for I did not mean to mispeak. The system being in allied hands that opposes the Coredians would be just as fine. You can understand just as well as we can the importance of removing their influence. I would like to hear this proposal."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JwM1n1WLevc

Admiral Cain listened to the two sides bicker, like little children in playground, fighting over who’s toy is who’s. She watched the two sides argue, as she clearly became disappointed. Such a simple meeting seemed to be turning into a bitch fest. Well in this room we all know who the top bitch is.

“Enough” Cain barked at the two sides, calling their attention to her. “First of all, Princess Masaki, aside from the reasoning you might be here, please understand one thing. Your trade agreements with Melinda/Daan, were under their old authority. I as Admiral of the Fleet of the united Colonies have put forth a claim of spoils of war on these planets. As of this moment, Melinda/Daan are protectorates of the thirteen Colonies of Kobol. Your past precedent does not mean shit at this moment, so if you want to continue your trade I suggest you listen closely.

She then turned to the Grand Admiral. “And Grand Admiral. As much respect as I have for you and your people in the reconstruction, the united Colonies are not members of the Empire. We are allied to several key members, including yourself, but please be clear. The Colonies are allied, but remain independant. Our claim has nothing to do with that Coredian sitting on the throne of the Galactic Empire. As long as I am alive, I can assure you the thirteen Colonies will never be subserviant to any foreign power.” Cain told him in the same irritated tone of voice she had with the Masaki.

“Now both of you want two things, both of which are conflicting. Coredia wants to maintain trade, while the Ta’Nar want to limit their sphere of influence. To that degree we have a compromise, one that will be offered only one time. You may accept it, or attempt to attack our ships if you like, but make no mistake, the thirteen Colonies are not leaving this system.

She turned to Admiral De’Bruyn holding her hand out towards him, “If you please, offer them the arrangement.”

De Bruyn coughed and said simply, "Thank you, Admiral Cain. Now, to business." He frowned at the sheer amount of arrogance in the room, especially from the Ta'Nar. Coredia's representative was more pleasant, if only slightly.

He then motioned to Lyndie, who then handed the old man some pieces of paper, muttering in Afrikaans bitterly about some issue. He then passed them out to the assembled, saying, "Here we are. The agreement. Please read it, and tell me what you think."

The agreement said simply:

"Articles concerning the status of Melida/Daan:

1. Melida/Daan is to be hereby considered under the protection of the United Colonies of Kobol. For the purposes of this document, this includes the Original Twelve Colonies and the Thirteenth Colony, also known as the Workers State of New Dornalia.

2. The Imperial Republic of Coreworlds and the Galactic Empire, represented by the Balroggan forces in the system, shall immediately vacate the vicinity of Melida/Daan within one hour of agreeing to this document's terms.

3. Melida/Daan shall become a Neutral Zone. All prior trade agreements made by either warring party are valid, and access made by civilian vessels of the two parties bearing no military equipment save for energy, ballistic or gauss semi-automatic pistols for self defense shall be made for the duration of the United Colonial protective presence.

4. Absolutely no military forces shall be allowed in Melida/Daan whatsoever, save for those of the United Colonial Fleet, either Colonial Fleet or New Dornalian People's Navy."

After reading through the proposal, Dev'Staht was not pleased.

"So," he said in a calm voice, "no Ta'Nar vessels are allowed in the system ever again? You will understand my opposition to this proposal."

Admiral Cain shook her head as the Grand Admiral stated clearly his opposition. “No Admiral.” she replied in a calm yet authoritative tone of voice. “The agreement does not state that the Ta’Nar are not welcome. It says that both sides will withdraw within one hour of this agreement, and no military vessels will be allowed in this space to preserve the peace.”

She placed her hands on her hips as she walked closer to him. “We both know that you have non military vessels. During the reconstruction many such unarmed vessels entered the colonies to aid in the reconstruction. Simply put, non military vessels are the only ones authorized over these planets. You will just have to trust us to keep them safe for you.” Admiral Cain stated, as she backed up the Dornie Admiral’s purposal.

Admiral Cain shook her head as the Grand Admiral stated clearly his opposition. “No Admiral.” she replied in a calm yet authoritative tone of voice. “The agreement does not state that the Ta’Nar are not welcome. It says that both sides will withdraw within one hour of this agreement, and no military vessels will be allowed in this space to preserve the peace.”

She placed her hands on her hips as she walked closer to him. “We both know that you have non military vessels. During the reconstruction many such unarmed vessels entered the colonies to aid in the reconstruction. Simply put, non military vessels are the only ones authorized over these planets. You will just have to trust us to keep them safe for you.” Admiral Cain stated, as she backed up the Dornie Admiral’s purposal.

De Bruyn nodded, as he always tended to do. Dev'Staht and Rina would find that De Bruyn would find the old Boer terse, almost stoically so. Unlike most Dornalians, he had no interest in showing off or putting on airs; he was more interested in doing a job.

Laconically, he replied, speaking in a clear diction, "Indeed. If it troubles you further, bear in mind that these terms also apply to your opponent."

De Bruyn noted then, looking Dev'Staht in the eye, "Both can access the system for their needs, and bring all the civilian ships here they want. Medical, diplomatic, and trade especially in the Coredian case.

However, both must understand that they cannot be allowed to bring armed forces here and tune grief* for one another, especially since the agreement accomplishes both parties' goals--you keep them out and deny them influence, they keep you out and they get to sell their wares here.

The United Colonies, as the Admiral has stated, will keep this system safe, so it will not be necessary to have either party's forces in the system."

*Yet another bit of South African Lingo. Means "make/cause trouble."

OOC:


I actually have no non-military vessels. They are all made of Kythons and thus has the potential to form weapons.

During the repair of the 12 Colonies I used my normal ships and broke them down to Kythons. I used two fleets of my ships as the source of those kythons so I did not have any unarmed vessels there.

I have never hid this ICly and Cain would most likely know this. I am not sure if this would change anything at all but I felt I should remind/inform you.

De Bruyn nodded, as he always tended to do. Dev'Staht and Rina would find that De Bruyn would find the old Boer terse, almost stoically so. Unlike most Dornalians, he had no interest in showing off or putting on airs; he was more interested in doing a job.

Laconically, he replied, speaking in a clear diction, "Indeed. If it troubles you further, bear in mind that these terms also apply to your opponent."

De Bruyn noted then, looking Dev'Staht in the eye, "Both can access the system for their needs, and bring all the civilian ships here they want. Medical, diplomatic, and trade especially in the Coredian case.

However, both must understand that they cannot be allowed to bring armed forces here and tune grief* for one another, especially since the agreement accomplishes both parties' goals--you keep them out and deny them influence, they keep you out and they get to sell their wares here.

The United Colonies, as the Admiral has stated, will keep this system safe, so it will not be necessary to have either party's forces in the system."

*Yet another bit of South African Lingo. Means "make/cause trouble."

“Thus you will allow them to continue to influence the system using their corporate pressuring and other means if influence.”

Dev’Staht knew this would cause problems but the situation has to be brought forward.

“It is common knowledge by now that all our vessels are composed of Kythons. Your proposal would limit the entrance of any Ta’Nar vessel based on the fact any one of them could easily become a military vessel at a single command. The Kythons would also count as armed forces since the Kythons can be used as individual forces.”

“Due to the basic intrinsic nature of the Ta’Nar navy, this proposal will deny the entrance of all Ta’Nar vessels while allowing basic free access to any Coredian action disguised as a supposedly legal civilian arrival. Their sphere of influence would not be reduced and under this proposal they would be guarded by Colonial forces. We all know how sneaky those Jedi and Ninjas are, as well as how much worth the word of any Masaki holds now days”

“No, I cannot endorse such a proposal.”

Admiral Cain looked at Dev’Staht giving him a glare for the moment that Adama himself would be impressed with. Slowly she walked over to the Ta’Nar Admiral. Standing close to him, she placed her right hand on one of the pilot’s seat.

“Admiral.” she called Dev’Staht in a calm voice. “You know as well as I do, as well as anyone in this room that I know of the ways of the Coredians. You also know my opinion of the princesses family, and the fact her aunt, or cousin’s ethics. Now I have been gracious to the Masaki’s and Coredia up until now, and believe it was just the madness of one person in their family that caused such devastation. I am sure Ms. Masaki here understands all to well what would happen if my opinion was proven false, and I come to learn that it is not Katrina’s but her governments fault as a whole.” Cain spoke, still in a calm voice as she stood before the man whom she considered a friend.

“Facts are this.” she continued. “I am not a diplomat. I do not have the time nor the patience of negotiations. Melinda/Daan, like all of the planets in this galaxy have specialized industry and do to the trade routes in this galaxy have neglected other aspects of life making it viable for self sustaining. Mother Dornalia and her Twelve Sisters have yet to set up an infrastructure, nor have any goods available for these planets and it will take weeks to months optimistically to be able to get these goods to this planet. If trade were cut off today people would starve, suffer, and die in wasting disease. I have spent my life defending the human race against it’s enemies, and unless these planets prove to be an enemy of the United Colonies and it's friends, I am not going to let such self inflicted disasters occur. At the moment they need the civilian trade.”

“Now I understand your desire. Everyone in this room knows of their ways, the good and the bad. However this agreement will force Coredia to share it’s monopoly on this system that they have entrenched it with for over seventy years. You can not remove or limit it in one day, not without backlash.”

“New Dornalia and the Twelve Colonies will with this agreement open up your trade and culture to this planet, allowing you to if you desire spread your influence. Sell your goods here, set up charities, fight a cultural war, but understand leave your guns at home. Go to the planet and enlighten them, but forceful removal will do nothing but breed contempt. After all you have done for the Twelve Colonies, I would find it hard that you would want people to suffer cause of the ideals of an unrelated party.”

“As for your kythons, your people are honorable and virtuous. I have come to rely on you to keep your word. Despite the duel purpose of your kythons, if you give your word that when entering this system that your ships will remain unarmed for the duration, then I will believe you. You have yet to give me pause to distrust you yet, and I fully expect from your people the virtues and honesty they have shown all of the Colonies and it's territories in the past. The Coredian antimatter engines could be used to construct an antimatter bomb, but I am not going to call that a weapon, since it is a vital part of their ship. Kythons are the hull of your ship, regardless of any other purposes, I expect your tools to maintain being in the hull of their vessels.”

“If you are still not comfortable with your kython vessels, I am sure you can arrange to have vessels constructed out of normal materials for use to travel to this sector, and begin your own trade. With the proper negotiations with companies from any of the United Colonies and the proper bribes to the corrupt local officials, I am certain that they will make you a fleet of civilian ships for use. In the mean time, I can obtain civilian ships so you can begin when you are ready, to begin to improve the way of life for these people, until such purchased vessels can be built.”

Lyndie looked up at the wretched excuse for a lifeform in front of her, preaching its hypocritical ideology. Such was the way of the uitlander. Uitlanders always never knew when to trust one another, and would find the tiniest excuse to shoot. Even the most reasonable agreements could never satisfy them; they always had to slake their lusts somehow. She resisted the urge to throw her pencil at the beast, and merely sighed muttering quietly in Afrikaans to herself, "Oh God. If this is a test from You, to be mired here among these wretched uitlanders--powerhungry amazons who see it natural to upset the natural order, arrogant technomagicians, and abominations created by those who thought they could replicate Your power--Thou art making it hard for me to pass!"

Admiral De Bruyn was much more calm. The Kythons were not backing down, and he knew they were legendary for being tough negotiators. He also refused to back down. For one thing, he came from a people that had a history of never really backing down, unless it was at the cost of thousands of British soldiers and total desolation--even then, they rebounded, though at the expense of their African neighbors. For another, he had picked up on the art of navigating tense People's Congress meetings filled with nasty Green Party members who nagged at every little item in the budget. So, it wasn't like he had no experience.

Slightly irritated at Dev'Staht, he said simply, raising his hand to urge calm, "Admiral Dev'Staht, there is no need for paranoia, or sound effects. I did ask you to avoid those, hey? We are all sentients here, let us speak as we are all sentients on an even sporting ground."

He then replied with, addressing the Admiral's concerns more wholesomely than Cain did, "Let me clarify some details of the agreement, since you seem to be concerned about possible lopsidedness owing to your people's way of starfaring. As I am to understand it, you say that this agreement lets the Coredians run wild, whilst you are kept out. Not exactly what was said, but that is the point I am ascertaining here."

He then tapped the table and said, "The fact you possess no explicit 'non-military' vessels is a problem, but one not hard to solve. This is done in two ways.

One is the obvious, and that is in the person of Admiral Cain and I. The United Colonies are here for a reason. As I have repeatedly stated, our forces will remain in the system to prevent any sort of sneak attacks or sudden movements which will prove unfortunate. And to answer any questions you have about reliability, I would state that Admiral Cain herself has provided the best evidence that this effort will not fail. Her forces, no friends of Coredia, will counterbalance my forces should they violate the spirit and letter of the agreement. And given the fact Colonial Fleet forces have a history of holding their own against incredible odds and even triumphing, I will agree it will be a serious challenge should anyone violate this agreement. Ask any of my sailors, and they might joke at first. Then they'll get serious and confirm what I have said.

The second was just mentioned. Cain has provided her solution, and I concur as to its feasibility. If my academic sources are correct, and if Admiral Cain's judgment is correctly seconding them, then I shall propose a corollary to the agreement to clarify matters and save us a lot of grief.

That Kython vessels not set up in any cargo-holding or diplomatic configuration made up of offensive or defensive armaments save for personal self-defense minutae for Avatars or Balroggan equivalents shall be counted for the purposes of the document as civilian vessels, and allowed entry."

"With that clarification I would agree the issue of our admittance is taken care of. As far as limiting Coredian Influences, what do you propose. The whole goal of my being dispatched here was to eliminate their influence completely. Those were my orders and anything less would ammount to me disobeying orders, a serious crime in any military."

"Could the vaccume created by the Coredian absence be substituted by another source? Perhaps trade with the Colonies would be sufficive to replace what was taken away."

"While it is not my desire to make this system suffer from their absence, the presence of the Coredians here continues to make this place a target for those who dislike the Coredians and since you two now hold the keys to the palace, whould they care of the mess they made? They didn't care of the mess they made in the Colonies so why would it be any different here now they don't have a reason to keep order?"

Dev'Staht could easily pick up the thoughts the others in the room was broadcasting using his passive telepathy. As a matter of fact he had to filter much of the mind chatter out with his mind sheilds. He made sure to not pry into their thoughts but only listened when they came.




OOC:

You can post any thoughts you want him to overhear. Just put them in color or something other than normal text so I know what to not act upon. I know ND has been using Italic for his character but I am not sure if he wanted them overheard so I am asking for some sort of clarification.

"With that clarification I would agree the issue of our admittance is taken care of. As far as limiting Coredian Influences, what do you propose. The whole goal of my being dispatched here was to eliminate their influence completely. Those were my orders and anything less would ammount to me disobeying orders, a serious crime in any military."

"Could the vaccume created by the Coredian absence be substituted by another source? Perhaps trade with the Colonies would be sufficive to replace what was taken away."

"While it is not my desire to make this system suffer from their absence, the presence of the Coredians here continues to make this place a target for those who dislike the Coredians and since you two now hold the keys to the palace, whould they care of the mess they made? They didn't care of the mess they made in the Colonies so why would it be any different here now they don't have a reason to keep order?"

Dev'Staht could easily pick up the thoughts the others in the room was broadcasting using his passive telepathy. As a matter of fact he had to filter much of the mind chatter out with his mind sheilds. He made sure to not pry into their thoughts but only listened when they came.

OOC:

You can post any thoughts you want him to overhear. Just put them in italics or something other than normal text so I know what to not act upon.


OOC: Edited. Be aware, unless Dev'Staht possesses a knowledge of Afrikaans, he's going to be somewhat hardpressed to figure it all out.

IC:

De Bruyn folded his hands and merely thought in Afrikaans, "An interesting character indeed!" This Balroggan was clearly unable to comprehend the goal of the agreement, and was only worried about shooting as many Coredians as possible. A career soldier, and one not given to questioning orders evidently. Not that it mattered, since De Bruyn was used to his type.

"I see were still having issues? It is a hang of a puzzle, especially given hostilities.* But I assure you, the Admiral and I are considering every contingency, and your fears and concerns are unfounded."

He then coughed and pointed to his People's Navy pips--side by side with the Colonial Fleet pips--saying, "May I say that there will be another good reason to ease your fears? In the legal limbo that resulted from the Unification, arrangements and popular attitudes that aligned New Dornalia--also known as The Thirteenth Colony--with the Coredians existed side by side with those that brought Admiral Cain's original Twelve Colonies closer to the GE, effectively making us allies of both."

The old Boer then said, "Now here's the point. The Dornalian arrangements with the Coredians, no matter what else they mean, also offer you the solace of knowing that the Coredians will not harm the residents of Melida/Daan, because the Thirteenth Colony will be there--harming them or unduly influencing them will risk getting Dornalian forces and civil authorities involved in rather unpleasant ways. And while it is improbable given your experiences, Coredians will generally cooperate and enthusiastically work with Dornalian contingents at all available instances to prevent such unpleasantries."

De Bruyn then paused. Twiddling his fingers, he then raised a finger and finished with, "As for your statement on Colonial trade...it also logically follows that since we are there, we might be predispossessed to exchange wares with the locals. I imagine the Coredians would be too, that is their point. However, you are concerned such trade would be poisonous.....I hate to propose extra bureaucracy, but I think perhaps a clearinghouse managed by the Dornalian contingent as a middleman might be helpful in this endeavor. We logically also have the right to inspect anyone that comes in. If your opponents try to rock up and do something funny, we'll know.* However, I have a feeling that in this climate, what the political scientists refer to as a 'confidence building measure' is needed."

Turning to Rina, De Bruyn then said, "I hope the previous discussion has not been disconcerting. Bear in mind these delicate arrangements pertaining to inspections will apply, though reversed, Original Twelve moderators and Dornalian enforcement, to the Balroggans as well."

* Rock up--SA English="Sneak up, arrive unannounced."
* hang of--SA English uses this in the sense of "quite" or "big." As in, "It is a big puzzle."

"Then I will forward the amended version of the proposal to make sure it is OK with my superiors. Since we do not have any imports or exports, I believe we can give our 'share' of trade to the Colonies. If Cain trusts you then we shall also."

Dev'Staht send the latest version of the proposal back to his waiting ship. From there it was forwarded to the authorities and decisions were made. Thrashia was contacted and the details were shared and opinions was asked for.



OOC:

Waiting for Thrashia's responce

Turning to Rina, De Bruyn then said, "I hope the previous discussion has not been disconcerting. Bear in mind these delicate arrangements pertaining to inspections will apply, though reversed, Original Twelve moderators and Dornalian enforcement, to the Balroggans as well."
"It is disconcerting that our good name no longer carries the weight it used to." Dr. Masaki sighed. "But I suppose it, like everything else, is fleeting. If this is necessary to carry out our trade with the Melinda/Daan, then so be it. We'll abide by this agreement."

"It is disconcerting that our good name no longer carries the weight it used to." Dr. Masaki sighed. "But I suppose it, like everything else, is fleeting. If this is necessary to carry out our trade with the Melinda/Daan, then so be it. We'll abide by this agreement."

De Bruyn nodded, taking it in. Upon hearing Rina's lament, he said with a reassuring tone, like one his father gave him, "No insult to you was implied, Doctor, from the Dornalian camp. I think you'll find your good name still carries weight among certain peoples--which is why I spoke as I did in these talks concerning Dornalian/Earthling-Coredian relations."

He then finished with a line tinged with his usual stoicism, though it had an observant tone to it:

"The last sentence was meant to imply fair treatment for both Galactic Imperial and Coredians in terms of inspection--fair and just treatment is something I strive to do in many things, though sometimes it is regrettably hard to achieve, try as I might."

Aboard the Olympus

Grand Admiral Thrawn finished the last paragraph on a report to the Emperor Vader and Treize concerning the various different skirmishes and battles that had thus far taken place in this campaign to rid the Coredians from the sphere of Galactic Imperial influence and territory. It had been a hard fought conflict thus far, with well over three hundred thousand Thrashian military personnel being lost thus far to the machine of war. The price paid by the Coredians had been much more dire. Of that Thrawn had made sure. The additional victories carried out by their Ta'Nar allies had added to the heap of glories.

However things were taking a turn.

Thrawn sent his report and then brought up another side holo to reread the message received from Dev'Staht. It bore ill liked news from the Melinda/Daan System where Ta'Nar forces had made a fight for the Imperial cause, only to be thwarted in part by the Twelve Colonies and the Coredian allies from Dornalia. The document in front of him proved that. Thrawn pressed a switch on his command chair's arm.

"Bridge, patch a holo transmission through to Admiral Dev'Staht at Melinda/Daan," his mellow, firm voice ordered.

"At once sir," replied the comm officer.


Melinda/Daan Conference

An aide entered the chamber where Admiral Dev'Staht sat with the other delegates of the Twelve Colonies, Dornalia, and Coredia. In his hands he held a lithe, thin silver tray. He set it upon a table without a word and pressed a small activation switch. In less than a moment, the blue-tinged skin and glowing red eyes of a Chiss stared out at everyone.

"Greetings to you Admiral Dev'Staht, and to you others here..." Thrawn gave a rather disgusted look at the Dornalians and the Coredians. "I have reviewed this so called 'treaty' that you propose. And I reject it."

He turned his attention to Admiral Cain.

"Admiral Cain. You may be an ally of the Galactic Empire but you have not the authority to dictate the terms of a treaty concerning the inherent rights and territory of one of it's systems. That this treaty you propose would remove Imperial authority from the system, and shift it to a 'joint' control between yourself and the rebels is unacceptable.

"I can well understand the need to safeguard the loyal Imperial citizens of the Melinda/Daan System, and of course the necessities of trade, this shall be done under the auspices of Coruscant. As such I have made several amendments to this treaty you created:

"First, the lives of the civilians and the industry of the Dornalians in Melinda/Daan will be safeguarded and shall suffer no penalty. They shall pay their dues and taxes to the Imperial government as they live within the Galactic Empire, and they shall be protected as such.

"Second, all Coredian forces not already retreating from Galactic Imperial space or destroyed shall vacate not just Melinda/Daan but all of Galactic Imperial territory to their own systems and worlds within their own sphere of influence. Imperial forces shall remain in-system to insure the security and safeguarding of Melinda/Daan from rebel intentions or other illegal groups such as pirates and the like. At present, that means the naval forces under Admiral Dev'Staht.

"Third, Melinda/Daan shall be, as you say, a 'Neutral Zone' in that Coredian and Dornalian civilian shipping will be treated the same as Imperial. The Imperial Navy shall ensure this is followed to the letter. If the United Colonies require extra proof of these intentions, then observers may have access to all levels of security after Imperial forces have taken up their posts.

"Fourth, the Dornalian Navy and United Colonial Fleet are to remove themselves from the system or be considered a hostile force. Imperial forces shall remain the protective authority in the system and no other."

Thrawn shifted his eyes around, looking each of the delegates in the eye, smoldering red globes boring into them.

"These terms are not negotiable. As I speak, Imperial Naval forces are converging on Melinda/Daan to enforce my orders and that of Emperor Vader, and via that the law of the Galactic Empire. I would advise any rebel warships to leave the system within the next six standard cycles."

Admiral Cain watched the message as a grim look on her face, as she focused on the Grand Admiral of the Thrashia Empire. “Admiral Thrawn.” she said in a definite voice. “Whether or not you accept the treaty is immaterial. This is Colonial not Imperial Space, and your treaty is invalid. This is not negotiable. If you wish to remove us, and attack an ally as the Coredians would you are more than welcome to try, but I find that Remiel would not be pleased with your overzealousness. Any attempt to set up warships without authorization from Picon HQ, and the Admiral of the Colonial Fleet, in Colonial Space will be interpreted as an act of war, as specified in the Treaty of Caprica, signed by Emperor Vader himself."

She looked closer at the image before her, walking up to it, staring it right in the eye. “If you wish to rip an ally valued by the Ta’Nar and the Chronosians, both of which are your superiors from the Empire, come and try. Otherwise you will accept the treaty negotated here.

She placed her hand on the table. “I joined this alliance thinking it was different from that of the Masaki’s. However your tone is very reminiscent of that of a Masaki. Tell me, have you fallen this far? Have you even spoken to Remiel the warmaster of the Empire, your commander? I doubt you have. Please understand a copy of this agreement will be issued to Remiel’s residence on Geminion. You do not have the authority to order the Colonies to vacate, nor do you have the clout. Do what you want to do Admiral, but be careful. Enforcing your demands will have dire consequences for the Empire, one way or the other. I doubt Vader or Remiel would be pleased to hear that you alone have declared an allied member an enemy of the state. You do not have that authority to declare the Thirteen Colonies hostile to the Empire. Go talk to your betters before trying to issue a dictate, or go frak yourself..”

With that the silver platter shut off. She turned to her XO, “Set Condition one throughout the fleet, and prepare for the operation the moment the Imperial fleet jumps into this space.

Colonel Fisk’s face looked pale as she gave the order. He opened his mouth, but Cain interjected, “Now!”

She turned to the Grand Admiral of the Ta’Nar. “Your people have always been friends of the United Colonies. It will appear that if this Thrawn decides to make an issue of this, then you will have to make a tough choice. The amended purposal stands, what you do now is up to you.” With that she turned to walk out of the room, leaving the delegations to their own devises. Admiral Cain took a quick walk to the Isis’s CIC.

“Status?” she asked as the two guards saluted. “Sir. The Calypso, Zeus and the Medina have taken their positions in orbit of the planet. Alert vipers have been dispatched, and the order for condition one has been sent to the Thirteenth Colony fleets in case the Empire pulls a Masaki.”* Mr. Hoshi reported.

Cain nodded, “Good.”

She turned to her executive officer. "Please ask Lyndie to come to the CIC, to begin preparations for repelling invaders. Have her meet me in the war room, in ten minutes."

Ns Colonial Term: *Pulling a Masaki- Attacking a friendly or allied nation, for no real benefit to one's nation. ; to make a foolish blunder.

Grand Admiral Dev’Staht turned to the Corporate Masaki.

“Now, I suggest you take your ships outside the system and meet mine. Once there, we will battle it out. I will only use the vessels I have in Real Space and you will not bring in any others. We can settle this once and for all. I have three Battle Groups and my own ship here. You can do the math and if you think you are outnumbered by fifty eight ships of which all but four are less than 200 meters then you are surely in such a pitiful shape that you should quit the battle and run home. Perhaps I should remove even more of my forces and cut it down to a single Battlegroup of nineteen vessels. That should give you enough courage.”

Dev'Staht then turned to the Dornie Admiral and spoke to him before the hologram activated.

"Admiral De Bruyn, if this is Colonial Space, then AI is illegal, is it not? I think you should inspect the Coredian ships, to see if they are violating your laws. I have seen reports of them using entire armies of AI units they call "droids" to fight for them."

Then the hologram appeared and caused quite a stir.

Dev’Staht looked at the hologram. He was not pleased to be referred to as a lowly Admiral. He was a Grand Admiral. He commanded Admirals and only took ordered from three people above him, the two Seneschals and the Warlord Nhur-Galladu.

“Excuse me Admiral, I am a Grand Admiral. You got my title wrong. I give commands to Admirals and only take them from three individuals, of which you are not one.”

“You are threatening an ally of both the GE and Balrogga. The Fallen Empire has been counted the Colonies as allies longer than we have been part of the GE. You are threatening your own allies. That is not good for the Empire.”

“The order from my Warlord was to remove the Coredian influences from this system using any weapon necessary, even if it is to sink low enough to sit at the same table as a Masaki. I have even given our trade rights to the Colonies in trade for the Coredians to be denied them. The Colonies has basically agreed to this.”


Dev’Staht turned to the two Colonial Admirals and the hologram.

“I do not agree with attacking allies. That is wrong. It is dishonorable and something the Coredians has demonstrated in the past they are perfectly capable of doing. I will not order my vessels to attack the Colonials if it comes to this. On the other hand, Thrashia is also an ally. I will not attack them either. If I am forced to defend myself I will take those actions. Beware of what actions is taken in the near future. It seems if this transpires as it seems to be going, I will soon make enemies. I will confer with The Warlord for an official response.”

OOC: We might want to pause or at least slow up....I just got hit with a massive dogpile of work (presentations on Nisei and film essay ho!), so this week looks a little troublesome to begin this sort of thing now.

OOC: Sure thing. Take your time, and I hope you get an A on your projects.

OOC:

I agree, this is on hold until ND has the RL time available

Rina Masaki had colored slightly at the insult made by the Balroggan Admiral, but Admiral Easton held up a hand to stop her, showing the crowd that she is not totally in control of the negotiations. "Admiral Dev'Staht, as much as we would like to play chess with you, there's no point in playing when we no longer have a claim to this system. If you still insist on challenging us, please contact us later for an appointment." He said that with a slight smile.

Then Admiral Thrawn appeared and made his threats. Admiral Easton was surprised at what has transpired now. It seems that there are rifts within the Empire, rifts that could play well into Coredian hands if used properly. He raised an eyebrow at Thrawn's threats. It sounded like Thrawn's becoming less of the master strategist everyone knew and more of a classic Imperial being held by the leash of Vader. Intruging.

With that in mind, he turned to Thrawn. "Admiral Thrawn, of course we will leave soon as we're able. However, there is just one little problem. You've threatened the United Colonial Fleet. With your vast strategic mind, I am surprised you would want to alienate so many members of your own alliance. It sounds...Coredian."

A sarcastic insult to Admiral Thrawn made the day complete for Admiral Easton. As Admiral Cain shut off the console, Director Masaki decided to help the situation, remembering her cousin's speech from a few months ago. After all, she didn't get the directorship through the lottery, contrary to Colonial beliefs. She turned to the nearest guard. "Please inform Admiral Cain that I as well as Emperor Masaki wish to once more extend our hand in friendship, as well as mutual reasons for the defense of the system until our agreement can be met. We should not let outside threats ruin our word or our resolve. We stand with the Dornalians and the Colonials during this crisis."

Her eyes met the eyes of an intruged Admiral Easton. "Admiral Easton, the time for mistakes have passed. The time for atonement has begun. Please make yourself available to the United Colonies until as such time the Treaty of Melinda/Daan can be fully implemented."

Admiral Easton nodded at the request, his mind reeling at the possible implications. "Of course, Director Masaki."

Admiral De Bruyn was quite shocked at the pronouncement by Thrawn. He was also privately amused at the pronouncements by Cain, Dev'Staht and Rina Masaki. Naturally, he said nothing on the outside, but his look made it clear this was unwelcome.

Lyndie, on the other hand, lept up and thrust her finger at the screen, pronouncing with furious anger, "Judas! Treacherous uitlander!" She then stopped herself from reaching for the massive revolver at her side, and De Bruyn motioned for her to sit.

De Bruyn then said, sighing and standing calm, but angered, "Admiral Thrawn, this intrusion is unwelcome, unwanted and undesirable. If you wish to protest terms made in good confidence by multiple parties which were held in high legitimacy, feel free to do so. But you seemed to have conflated protest with pronouncement of a diktat by force. As my colleagues have stated, you have proven yourself quite perfidious, and a due threat to the peace we have made which was well on its way to achieving the objectives of all. Prepare for an appropriate response."

He then motioned to Lyndie and spoke in Afrikaans, "Go follow Cain to the CIC, and prepare for battle. I will confer with the Coredians and the Balroggans to determine a course of action. Go, now." Lyndie nodded, and the two departed....

OOC: Placeholder for strategy post. OG has authorized me to play Cain this time around, but there's a matter of RL first things first....

OOC:

Take your time. RL comes first. If you need to contact me on MSN go ahead.

As the guard saluted, and began to walk towards the briefing room to ask Lyndie to come to the war room, the sliding glass doors opened as the “Elf” walked in.

Admiral Cain turned her head towards her, then nodded, “Lyndie, so good of you to join me.” she said to the XO of the Big Gun.

She motioned gently with her head for the trusted and merciless elf with the pistol that screamed overcompensation to come towards her. Admiral Cain pulled out her knife and pointed it towards a flat map of the system.

“I will need your help with this mission.” Admiral Cain told her as she pointed to the surrounding space in the area. “First I need to know every possible approach towards these planets via hyperspace.” Admiral Cain told her. “My plan is, we have on board the battlestars, Ta’Nar munitions, mostly containing their conventional weaponry, what we call the TSW. (Ta’Nar Singularity Warheads)

Admiral Cain stared at the map, as she pointed to all the possible locations. “We know from Thrawn’s message that he plans on being here within six cycles. Assuming he was giving the maximum amount of time, we need this space mined within one. I do not want to be caught with our pants down.” she told Lyndie. “So I am authorizing your ships to help spread the munitions with proximity sensors to each of the locations. With any luck the enemy fleet will approach and slam into it. Worse case, a natural FTLi will form cutting off this system from hyperspace routes.

Turning to the elf, she propped her arm against the table. “Once that is done, please understand, you are the only one I can count on for sure. The Coredians cut and run, and the Balroggans might decide to play neutral. We will need more people, but I do not want to leave our home planets vulnerable to attack. Is there anyone that you trust completely that would be willing to aid us?”

Turning back to the map, she pointed to several positions around the system. “I want the fleet divided into eight groups. Each will maintain a section of space, so when the enemy appears they will be met with our ships. This will also give us leverage in case of an attack from multiple vectors.

She looked at her com officer. “Please inform Los Angelos, Caprica City and Picon Fleet HQ. Any and all vessels are to strictly follow the treaty of Caprica. All ships are to go on high alert. If anything appears to be suspicious, ally or enemy alike all ships are authorized to do what ever it takes to protect our borders. Also tell Picon HQ, to prepare the Mark IX squadrons for jump to this system.”

“Any questions of suggestions Lyndie?” Cain asked her. “For the duration of this mission, you are my liaison to the fleet and any allies defending these planets. Your word is mine.” Cain told her.

Just then a guard came to the door. “Admiral.” he saluted. “The Coredians have pledged their support to our cause in this system.”

Cain nodded, “Very well. Inform Easton, that Lyndie will be providing him with responsibilities to hold the system. He is to follow her orders to the letter.” Cain told the guard.

“Sir.” the man saluted the Admiral and walked out.

OOC:

Can we resolve this Thread?

OOC:

Can we resolve this Thread?

I agree, it would be nice to resolve this situation one way or the other.

OOC: It has been a long time since any real post has been done. So to free up assets in this thread, unless otherwise contested, I am assuming the fortifications have been put down, that the treaty that was originally agreed upon is active, and that Thrawn never attacked. Melinda/Daan, thus being declared neutral from the Empire and Coredia, and will remain New Dornalia and The Colonies of Kobol's territory. If this is not ok with the parties here, please MSN me, so we can resolve this RP.

An appropriate exit Post will be coming in a few days to give anyone who wishes to contest this post time to do so.

OOC: Just to put a further finality to this thread, I reaffirm O.G.'s assumptions. The Galactic Empire, rid, mostly, of the Coredian rebels fully agrees to the neutral zone and that it will remain under Dornalian and Kobol jurisdiction from this time forward. As such Thrawn and all respective Imperial forces are halted and have been diverted to other areas of the galaxy and bring things concerning Melida/Daan to a conclusion.