NationStates Jolt Archive

In countless newspapers throughout the Milky Way, the following message was posted.

CALLING ALL SOLDIERS OF FORTUNE

The government of the planet Jannath in Bryn Shander has placed an open call for private contractors with armed starfaring vessels for lucrative missions with moderate risk.

Interested parties are asked to reply to this message via email at [pmc@brynshander.gov]

Within fifteen minutes of the specific holo-papers going out, they received a response to their call.

Greetings.

I am Governor-Chairman Marcus Hathaway, owner of GearCorp Industries. It has come to our attention that you are seeking private contractors with which to perform missions. We at GearCorp Industries pride ourselves on our Mercenary Army, and would be willing to sell our services to your nation on a contract basis. Terms of the contract may be discussed over a private, encoded transmission that belongs solely to our corporation. The first call is a no-charge courtesy call.

Marcus Hathaway: 1-220-848-2357 ext. 4559

Within fifteen minutes of the specific holo-papers going out, they received a response to their call.

*ring*

*click* "Marcus Hathaway."

"Hello, this is Blair Campbell, aide to the Jannarii minister of war. I'm calling because you replied to our recent advertisement."

"Ah, yes. What can I do you for, Mr. Campbell? I take it these missions are on a strictly need-to-know basis?"

"My government is looking for private contractors to undertake missions against the merchant shipping of a group of pirates. As the goods they are trading are almost assuredly stolen property, we feel that it is only fitting that they are denied them."

"I see. I take it these 'pirates' are fairly organized, then?"

"To a point. We are willing to issue letters of marque and reprisal to your company and its ships, and will pay bounties on each vessel sunk or captured. Naturally warships will receive the highest bounty."

"As I thought." *cough* "Very well, then. Expect eight of our Anubis-class battle carriers within the week." *pause* "If you don't mind my asking, may I be privvy to the name of these 'pirates?'"

"I'm sorry, sir, but that is information that can only be disclosed upon the signing of the contract and issuance of the letters of marque and reprisal."

"Understandable. I take it there is a specific meeting place for this contract?"

"Yes, sir. We will be inspecting the ships of interested parties and signing contracts on the planet Arcturus IV."

"Very well, then. As I said before, you may expect our ships within the week with full compliments. Have a good day, and thank you for choosing GearCorp Industries for your contracting needs." *click*

One Week Later, Phased Space, Arcturus IV

Phased space, for GearCorp Industries at least, is quite a realm of space to travel through. It is rather torrential in its flows, much like the Warp, but it lacks the nasty beasties and other bad aspects that generally end up with ships going missing. Today was, thankfully, one of the times that the torrential flow of Phase Space was calm, and this allowed for the octet of Anubis-class (http://skaugra.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=gear2&action=display&thread=81) battle carriers to travel through it, unimpeded, via the 'hyper space within phase space.'

Dropping out of hyper space, the eight ships casually continued on for another few moments before they slowly began to ripple, disappearing from phase space and appearing in the space over Arcturus IV. There they waited as the leading ship opened up a communications channel to the general area around Arcturus IV.

This is Captain Johnathan Shepard of the GCIS Jackal's Den. We are here to report for duty involving the acquisition and-or destruction of 'pirate' vessels, as requested of the Jannarii government.

"Captain Shepherd, this is Captain Stanton of the Jannarii cruiser Visalia. Contract negotiations will take place in the city of Princeton on the planet's surface. Please send your commanding officers to the city so that the contracts and letters of marque and reprisal can be signed and issued."

As requested, the eight Anubis class battle carriers each deployed a "shuttle" to the surface of the planet. Upon arrival at Princeton's spaceport, the captains were met by a number of uniformed Jannarii naval officers and an equal number of dark blue sedans. After taking their seats and buckling their seatbelts, the convoy of cars made its way down Princeton's streets to the local Jannarii embassy. There they were met by Mr. Campbell in a plain dark blue suit and tie.

"Good afternoon, gentlemen." he said. "If you'll follow me I have some paperwork that I'll need you to fill out."

"What kind of paperwork?" The captain of the GCIS Lion's Pride looked at Campbell curiously. "We're here to do our jobs, not play bureaucracy like the big wigs at headquarters."

"Can it, O'Donnell." Shepard looked at the man walking next to him. "You're right. We're here to do our job, but we're not here to complain about what needs to be done to do it. Man up and just do as the client says."

Captain O'Donnell frowned before nodding. "Yes, sir."

Shepard then returned his gaze to Campbell. "Though, I am curious as to why paperwork needs to be filled out by us, of all people. Shouldn't that be done with a corporate official?"

"Just standard procedure for letters of marque, I assure you. I'll just need to record a bit of information about you and your ships for record keeping purposes." replied Campbell "This way, please."

Campbell lead the men through the embassy and to a small conference room. On the table were eight small stacks of papers, each with a pen. Upon inspection, the captains would find that they were your normal every day forms with bits about name, title, identification number, address, primary means of contact, next of kin, and all the normal stuff. A second page had similar fields regarding their ships. The next few pages, stapled together, was a rather wordy contract stating the mission, the stipulations for valid prizes, the general bounties that would be paid, and all that fun stuff. The last bit was a rather official looking paper that a quick glance identified as the letter of marque and reprisal.

"As you can see," began Campbell, "the paperwork is nothing major. You'll find the letter of marque at the bottom of the stack. Once you fill everything out and sign on the dotted lines, I'll sign the letters and stamp them with the royal seal. Once that is done you should be good to go."

The eight captains sat down around the table, quickly filling out the forms for both themselves and the ships. It was a rather quick process, and as Shepard began reading the contract itself, he paused as his eyes came across the target name...

Federal Union...

"Whoa, whoa," Shepard said, calling the attention of his peers before looking up at Campbell. "We were told pirates. What's this about a 'Federal Union?'"

The other captains murmured as they went through the contract, their murmurs growing louder as they saw the same thing Shepard had seen.

"The United Terran Fedration has been linked with a number of pirate operations within neutral space recently, and one of our cruisers sank a Fedral vessel that came back to finish the job on a large wreck that the cruiser had come across. The UTF has a long history of despotism and attempted assassinations against foreign sovereigns. It is for that reason that you are being hired to deal with their merchant vessels." explained Campbell.

"If you continue reading you will see that the bounties will more than cover any risk that you may be taking."

"I knew this smelled suspicious," O'Donnell chimed in. "Ever since we left headquarters, this whole situation has stunk."

"O'Donnell, for the last time, can it." Shepard was glaring at the other captain, and this caused everyone at the table to quiet down. Taking a moment to look over the contract, he nodded. "The contract looks kosher. No mention of killing unarmed civilian transports, which would be a violation of the Mercenary Concordance of 3097."

Going over it once more, Shepard took his pen and signed his contract, personally handing it to Mr. Campbell. "We're all set, sir."

One by one, the other captains followed suit. Begrudgingly, O'Donnell did as well, standing up and personally giving Campbell his own contract. Before letting it go, he looked at Shepard, and then back at Campbell. "I have one condition. We get to perform the missions to our own specifications."

"O'Donnell," Shepard stepped towards the man.

"I mean it this time, Shepard," O'Donnell snapped. "I'm not going to let this turn into another Vega Ceti. You were there. You know what happened."

Shepard considered retorting, but he chose not to, seeing the man's point. "No, you're right. Not another Vega Ceti."

"You have full authority to conduct operations as you see fit. We will not be giving you any orders other than try not to get caught or killed." assured Campbell as he signed the contracts and letters before imprinting the royal seal with a signet ring.

"You should be good to go." said Campbell as he handed back the letters and copies of the contracts. "Godspeed."

With their letters signed and retrieved, the eight captains stood to attention, saluted Mr. Campbell, and then quickly filed out of the room.

Once back on their ships, the eight captains gave out their commands and, in a few minutes time, the eight ships returned to phase space and disappeared off the sensors for the system.

Time to get to work...

Greetings,



We of the Vektor-Wanderjar Security Corporation have heard your call for a private military force, and would be glad to answer. Wanderjarians pride themselves on being the universe's greatest warriors, having fought innumerable conflicts across the span of the galactic rim. We trust that you are a highly discriminating potential customer, and thus we promise you quality for your money. We look forward to discussing terms with you in the future.


~Mr. Trenton Manross, CEO Vektor Wanderjar Security Incorporated

Greetings,

We of the Vektor-Wanderjar Security Corporation have heard your call for a private military force, and would be glad to answer. Wanderjarians pride themselves on being the universe's greatest warriors, having fought innumerable conflicts across the span of the galactic rim. We trust that you are a highly discriminating potential customer, and thus we promise you quality for your money. We look forward to discussing terms with you in the future.


~Mr. Trenton Manross, CEO Vektor Wanderjar Security Incorporated

"Dear Mr. Manross,"

"We have heard much of your company's work and are quite impressed. If you would like to discuss contract terms, I would ask that you meet me at the Jannarii embassy on Arcturus IV. I am unfortunately unable to discuss the exact terms at this time due to security concerns."

Blair Campbell, Jannarii ministry of war

From: RTMR Merchant station Haven

we would be willing to take on some of the contracts you are offering. Contact our representatives at Haven station, co-ordinates enclosed.

To: RTMR Merchant station Haven

"Thank you for your interest in our posting. If you would like to discuss the mission in question or contract terms, please visit the Jannarii embassy on Arcturus IV."

a single ship dropped out of fold-space outside of the system. on a course to intercept into a high orbit of Arcturus IV. The ship was what appeared to be a light freighter. it bore tribal markings on the side of its midships. The ship was already accelerated, and would enter its orbit in an hour or so. It signaled ahead to the planet. "This is the Sargassa, freeship of the Red Talons, requesting data on this call to mercenaries, namely who i talk to about such. Captain Brachis, out."

Once again, the Jannarii cruiser Visalia was there to recieve the message and sent a reply.

"Captain Brachis, this is Captain Stanton of the Jannarii cruiser Visalia. Please visit the Jannarii embassy in the city of Princeton on the planet below. We are sending you the coordinates. You will be met at the spaceport."

The reply came quickly enough. "Rodger that, we're on our way, you probably already know that though." He said with a chuckle before the message ended.

The small freighter took the better part of two hours to land at the space-port. It was decidedly old on the outside, but when its bay door opened, the inside was obviously well maintained. From the bay walked a single reptilian. where hair would normally be he had black spines and he carried a small brief-case. He was dressed in baggy fatigues that were black and gray dazzle painted. a single tribal mark (http://fc01.deviantart.com/images/large/indyart/tattoo/Symbol_of_the_Infernal_Legion.jpg) adorning his breast in crimson. He looked around for the greeting party.

"What the fuck is that thing?" asked one of the Jannarii marines assigned to the embassy on Arcturus IV as the lizard stepped off the transport.

"A hired gun. Shut the fuck up." replied his commander.

Fortunately, both were well out of earshot of the lizard, and a member of the embassy staff walked across the tarmac to greet the him.

"Good afternoon." said the staff member as he extended his hand in greeting. "Mr. Campbell is expecting you at the embassy. If you would follow me, we have cars waiting."

A short car ride through Princeton later and the party was at the embassy. As the cars were parked in front of the building next to a fountain, Mr. Campbell walked out of the building.

"Good afternoon. I'm glad you arrived safely. If you would follow me inside we can discuss the job and fill out some paperwork."

The lizard sat quietly in the car, regarding the manner of its occupants with little more than a glance. when he arrived at the embassy, he followed the man into his office. once they were decently private he spoke. "first of all, i represent more than the ship i came with, and second, i would like to discuss the terms of payment. What are the rules of the hunt?" He said with a half smile that was a little disconcerting, coming to the point with little tact, as would be expected form a seasoned military officer, not a simple mercenary.

"I understand." said Campbell as he placed a small stack of papers on the small table in the conference room. "Payment will be in the form of bounties based on tonnage, with bonuses for the capture or destruction of enemy warships. Naturally, capturing enemy assets will be worth more than simply destroying them. Should your firm prove to be especially proficient at the task, we will provide you with a number of new warships that one of our design firms has put together for the export market so as to collect real world combat data for us."

Campbell pointed out the places on the forms where the lizard needed to sign.

"As for the rules, you have full authority to engage all ships, assets, and settlements of the United Terran Federation at your discretion. You also have the authority to engage any of their allies that choose to interfere with your operations. How you do this is completely up to you. The only thing I will suggest is that you avoid getting killed or captured."

The reptilian idly signed the forms with an X. when he was done he nodded. "I was doing this before your grandparents were concieved... surrender is never an option, and death is just a set-back..."

"Well then, everything seems to be in order here." said Campbell as he added his signature and the royal seal of Bryn Shander onto the papers and handed the letters of marque and reprisal to the lizard.

"All of the letters except for yours are missing the name and signature of the recipients. You'll need to fill those in for the other captains and have them sign on the X. When you leave the room just talk to the guard at the door and he'll take you to the car so you can return to the spaceport."

********
Nexus Zero - MACE Command
********

Discussions among the upper officials within MACE were heated over the issue of Nexus 3746. Revenues from that universe's Branch Office were less than expected, considering the initial reports of how fractious and prone to war the various local nations seemed. After much debate, it was decided that the MACE operatives within Nexus 3746 would be required to attempt to foment disturbances among the factions, with the goal of increasing arms sales to any and all parties.


********
Nexus 3746 - Rhydin Colony
********

The orders were confirmed, twice. Local MACE assets were to be directed at military and civillian targets. Use of third-party vessels and technology was a requirement. The local MACE commander smiled as he remembered a recent holo-net advertisement. Sure, the Bryn Shander people seemed to be raging specists, but if they were willing to pay for something MACE had just been ordered to do anyway. Might as well make a few more credits for the company, and his own account, in the process.

The commander decided that an initial force using Abh designed craft might work best for this opening ploy. Two Cruisers (http://i66.photobucket.com/albums/h255/Abh_Empire/Goth01m.jpg), eight Frigates (http://i66.photobucket.com/albums/h255/Abh_Empire/port.jpg), and six Breacher Ships (http://fc01.deviantart.com/fs44/f/2009/074/d/0/Somtaaw_Heavy_Tug_by_Norsehound.png). Engineering teams would go over the Breachers, to re-design the outer hulls to appear more in line with Abh design styles.


********
Arcturus IV - High Orbit
********

Sixteen ships approached under peacetime conditions, broadcasting their intent to apply for mercenary service with the Shanderian government. The ships had been given full overhauls, replacing as much TRIAD equipment as possible with machinery that would read on scanners to be of Abh origin. Even the gravitics inside the ship had been replaced with Abh equipment. The ships were crewed by Marduk and Tejhiik soldiers, every one of them knew that capture was not an option, and the shipminds were under orders to self-destruct any ship in danger of capture.

The lead Cruiser fired thrusters and pulled to a stop, and began broadcasting a radio transmission to the orbital defenses.

"This is the Abh fleet commanded by Abriel Zaush, we are requesting instructions to apply for service."

Yet again, the Jannarii cruiser Visalia was there to receive the message and sent a reply.

"Abriel Zaush, this is Captain Stanton of the Jannarii cruiser Visalia. Please visit the Jannarii embassy in the city of Princeton on the planet below. We are sending you the coordinates. You will be met at the spaceport."

********
Arcturus IV - High Orbit
********

"Acknowledged Visalia, dispatching a landing craft with our envoy. Requesting permission to enter low orbit of Arcturus IV."

The part of Abriel Zaush was being portrayed by a Marduk skilled in covert assignments. Today it wore a bio-synthetic body designed to look exactly like a royal-class Abh, and scans would show the body to be alive, with cybernetic augmentation.

Within an hour of the cruiser entering orbit, Zaush was on an atmospheric shuttle to the surface. The sleek craft settled into it's assigned place in the starport, and Zaush stepped down the boarding ramp, blinking in the light as he looked around for his welcoming party.

Across the tarmac near a gate, Zaush could see a small handful of dark blue sedans and a contingent of men in both dark blue business suits and dark blue military dress uniforms. Another man, also in a business suit, was walking towards the 'Abh.'

"Good afternoon!" called out the man as he walked up to Zaush, extending his hand in greeting. "Mr. Campbell is expecting you at the embassy. If you would follow me, our cars are waiting at the gate."

A short drive later and they were at the Jannarii embassy. After parking the car, the driver got out and let them out. Waiting for them was Mr. Campbell, the aide to the Jannarii minister of war.

"Welcome to Princeton." said Mr. Campbell. "We can discuss the matter at hand in my office."

Mr. Campbell lead the 'Abh' inside and to his office. On the desk there was a small stack of paperwork.

"Please, have a seat."

********
Arcturus IV - Embassy - Mr. Campbell's Office
********

"Zaush" looked around the office with evident curiousity, taking in all the details with augmented eyes and storing the information for later reference. Finally the blue eyes settled on Campbell himself, noting the man's posture and facial features, every tiny piece of body language cataloged and analyzed by the Marduk brain inside the meat-shell of the Abh body.

Zaush brushed back an errant lock of his blue hair and adjusted the uniform he wore, then settled into the offered seat. "I suppose I will get right to the point. The Empire is no longer willing to tolerate the rampant traverse of space by common grounders. However, as much as we hate to admit to failings or weakness, we cannot simply subjugate so many at once. My mission is to determine if small scale attacks will be enough to show the Empire's resolve, we control space, not grounders. That said, if your situation benefits the Empire with additional revenues, then we can reach an agreement with your people."

((OOC Note: The next portion of this post was played out live on IRC. Posted with permission.))

Campbell: "To be perfectly frank, your empire is not our concern. The issue at hand is that the United Terran Fedration is little more than a bureaucracy laden pirate state, and it is because of that that my King has declared open season on their shipping. As it can be safely assumed that most of their trade goods are stolen property, it has been decided that all of their trade goods are to be destroyed or captured."

The Abh canted his head and frowned faintly, "I see, so this is to be a mission of vendetta on your behalf?"

Campbell: "This is a mission in defense of liberty. All that we need you do do is fill out some paperwork regarding the ships involved and their commanding officers for record keeping purposes, read and sign the contract that lays the ground rules for bounties that will be paid, and and I will issue the letters of marque and reprisal that authorize your forces to operate on our behalf."

Zaush thought the matter over for a few moments, then finally nodded. "Very well. The Federal Union will serve an excellent example for the others, and your bounties will help fund further efforts for the Empire." The Abh held out his hand for the paperwork. After reading, slow enough to be convincing, Zaush filled in the required information for the sixteen ships, then signed the final himself. Handing the papers back to the Shanderian. "I trust that is all?"

Mr. Campbell looked over the paperwork to ensure that everything was filled out correctly. As it was, he placed the paperwork into his desk's file cabinet and removed sixteen pieces of parchment from the same drawer. Each one was a letter of marque and reprisal hand written by the minister of war.

"Not quite." said Mr. Campbell. "I just need you to sign the first letter here, and then I'll sign each one and certify them with the royal seal. You can have the other commanders sign theirs when they get them."

The 'Abh' did as he was asked and Campbell added his signature to each of the documents. As the ink dried, he lit a red candle and began to pour wax onto each one. Quickly cooling and solidifying, each small puddle of wax was then imprinted with the royal seal of Bryn Shander from Mr. Campbell's signet ring.

"Everything is in order. The only rules of engagement I am going to impose on you are don't get caught and don't get killed. If you speak to the guard at the door he will take you back to the cars so you can return to the spaceport."