RP [RP] C2: Against the Coming Storm

Session 2: Against the Coming Storm

"The Sheshir are still a threat."

It was the most poignant lesson learned during the Canon-Rei incident in late June of 2184, and spoke of the fact that the Sheshir, an alien race hostile to humanity that had been fought during the Styx Conflict the year prior, was still stalking humanity from the shadows. Indications had pointed that the terrorist organization Church of Gravitanis Light, who had openly assaulted a subsidiary of the Freeport Alliance, had done so using information that they could not have acquired alone, and were almost certainly receiving assistance from the alien menace. In light of this revelation, Councillor Oliver Vayne of the Freeports put out a call to anyone that would listen, to attend a joint summit conference, hoping to impress the necessity that if the Sheshir were indeed still a threat, that no single faction would be able to meet them alone.

That call was answered.

Among the first responses was an official communique from Councilman Taisei Takeda of the Viridian Institute, offering not only to attend, but to provide a neutral setting for the conference. The Viridian System was just a couple barren planetoids and a nebula-encased asteroid belt orbiting a binary star, a single jump gate connecting it to a minor trade route. Normally avoided by all but a few brave transport companies due to solar radiation hazards, the institute had garnered a reputation as a quiet place of study and knowledge with ample lecture and conference halls, so the massive space station tucked away among the asteroids was more than capable of hosting such an event. As part of their ongoing effort to reconnect with the rest of humanity, the Viridians would provide their suitable venue and facilities for the assembled factions to discuss the approaching crisis. While the location was less accessible than most, a neutral station would be ideal for calming the inherent mistrust between the other attendees.

Feeling there was little time to be lost in endless debates and counter proposals, Vayne graciously accepted the VI's offer, and in short order sent out a second galaxy-wide message, identifying the Viridian Institute as the summit's official sponsor. Any attending would have until early September of 2184, just over two short months since the incident in Canon-Rei, to prepare; the quicker plans could be made, the more ready they would be the next time the Sheshir resorted to open conflict. Along with his message, Vayne also included a set of guidelines given to him by the Institute, so that each attendant could better prepare for their visitation.

• No heavy weapons or heavy machinery are permitted in the Sanctuary. Each attending person is permitted one sidearm, which will be scanned and cataloged by Institute personnel. Those carrying weapons will not be permitted to draw or use them, and will be required to sign agreements to that effect.
  
• The Viridian Institute police forces will provide security to all attendees, and utility drones will be available to assist with transportation of personal belongings.
  
• Delegations are limited to ten persons each, including all attendants and support staff. Additional personnel may be permitted temporarily, but will not be provided accommodations aboard the Sanctuary, and will not be permitted to carry weapons..
  
• Due to the hazardous conditions of the Viridian Nebula, one Ambassador-class shuttle has been reserved for each attending delegation, and transportation between your ships and the Sanctuary will be provided for the duration of the conference.
  
• Artificial Intelligence units are normally disallowed on the station, but an exception has been made for conference delegations, provided that these units confine their activities to public interfaces. Any intrusion attempts will result in the removal of this device from the Sanctuary.

In a disappointing turn of events, the Common Peacekeeping Court, after reviewing the combat footage from Styx, determined that any enemy capable of being defeated by a mismatched collective of uncoordinated fleets was in fact not a serious threat to the galaxy, especially one that had not appeared since, and opted to not send representatives to the conference. With most of the CPC member states following suit and focusing their attention on much more "pressing" issues, the potential attendee list dropped off dramatically, and it appeared that only those who knew the true magnitude of the threat, or those who cared enough to acknowledge it, would come together in a meeting of minds to see what could be done to brace against the coming storm.

 

The hustle and bustle of the conference preparations were coming to fruition, a veritable army of coordinators, interns, and utility drones buzzing all over the John Dalton Convention Center. Simon Jorn strolled calmly through the beautifully-furnished auditorium, his attention focused on the Councilman beside him. Dr. Takeda, rather energetic for a man of seventy-one years, would be the Institute’s official delegate to the conference.

“How many delegations are we expecting?” Jorn asked politely.

“About a dozen, last I heard. I’ve been letting Dr. Reiser handle the specifics. He’s quite particular about the security arrangements.”

More likely, Commander Malaryk had asserted some authority in that department. As the C/O in the Canon Rei incident, he had the most direct knowledge of the attendees. Well, most of them. The Freeport’s rallying cry had reached all the way back to Sol System, and factions from all over the galaxy would be meeting here in Dome 6 of the Fermi District of the Sanctuary.

“I see. Well, I’ve set aside quarters for fifteen groups, but only three are equipped with isolated environmental controls. If we add any more, we’ll have to rewire the entire building to support the increased load.”

“That should be sufficient. Make your final preparations, Mr. Jorn. We expect the first arrivals shortly.”

“We’re as prepared as we’re going to get, Sir.”

Outside the crowded center, beyond the artificial skies of the dome, and past the hurtling rocks of the asteroid field, the lone jump gate of the Viridian System stood silent and ready in the shadow of the rocky nebula. As points of light crept through the constantly-shifting field, the gases filtered the white stars into an eerie, green glow.


<<
The Viridian System is barren and worthless, just a two lifeless rocks orbiting a bright binary star. Between the orbits of the two planets, if they could even be called that, is a dense asteroid belt exhibiting a bad case of the Kessler effect. Countless rocks and debris, both large and small, make a nearly-impassable cloud of deadly projectiles. Speaking of clouds, that same asteroid belt is encased in a gassy nebula, scans of which would show a number of corrosive compounds. The lone jump gate sits a short distance beyond the field, orbiting synchronously with the bulk of the larger rocks.


Ships entering the system each receive a narrow-beam transmission, emitting from dozens of communication relays speckled through the asteroid field. The voice is female and seemingly-human, with a slight indian accent, but the message itself is a recording.


“Welcome to the Viridian System, home of the Viridian Institute. Please be advised that a level two radiation hazard warning is in effect. Maintain a distance of at least two hundred million kilometers from the suns at all times, and monitor sub-channel nine for navigation instructions from Field Control. For your own safety, do not enter the nebula under any circumstances.”


“If you are attending the diplomatic conference, please monitor sub-channel twelve for information and proceed to the designated arrival coordinates, where you will be provided transportation to the Sanctuary. Commercial vessels are asked to enter a standard holding pattern, as access is currently restricted to diplomatic personnel only. Thank you, and we hope you enjoy your visit to the Viridian System. Good day.”


The data channels accompanying the message are a flood of information, ranging from navigation charts and traffic patterns to communications listings and commercial advertisements.


Channel nine shows a real-time view of solar flare activity, with annotations showing the amount of radiation shielding required to traverse certain areas (Some of the numbers even for the medium-level warnings are startlingly high). By no coincidence, the jump gate is in a sheltered area, the asteroid field acting to shield it from the harmful suns, so no special protection is required. The nebula itself is characterized as a hazard area, with mention of corrosive gases and high-velocity asteroids, reiterating the warning in the welcome message.


Channel twelve lists arrival information for the conference, broadcasting a rally point near the edge of the asteroid field, still in the sheltered area. The IFF signal for the now-familiar VI Nikola can be seen in that area. The data stream lists the same notes outlined in the Freeport’s second message, detailing the rules and security procedures for the event.
>>

 

Commander Rolloth of Prencis,

It is with great pleasure that I invite you on behalf of the Order of Children of the Light of Sol to represent the honor of the Knights you command at the newly operational Falglaive Chapter House. Your continued commitment to our cause despite adversity is a shining example for all of humanity, and as a representative at the upcoming diplomatic summit I trust you will provide the leadership and strength required to lead us toward unity.

I look forward to our meeting ahead of the conference. As this is a Diplomatic endeavor, please limit your squad in-system. While the Order and the League of Triton as allies are well equipped to provide precisely what humanity requires in this critical point of history, we must be mindful of the impression our organization's youth has on some of the more established powers. The League will send a complement of Humysis advisors aboard the vessel of your choosing, while I shall arrive aboard the Knowing Gaze.

Regards,

Coordinator Herth of Titan


What a load of slag. All these League of Triton politics are spilling over into The Order, and I'm stuck in the middle of it all. I'm sure there will be plenty of other "shining examples" from the other Chapter Houses too, just itching to get some face time at this thing. Why not let them go? Because I'm the one with the bloody shirt that they'll wave in everyone's faces.


"What was that, Colonel?"
Hirran Yol's voice broke through his fuming. Well at least she's here too. And Branson Hurst. People I can trust when I'm surrounded by the eyes and ears of the Humysis creeps.

"Na, it's nothin' Yol. Just thinking about the glory of the Knights, ya know?"


"Sure... that's what that was. You're about as happy to be making this trip as I am." Branson said.
Yeah, well, maybe. Most people would be thrilled to be going back to their home. Hurst apparently had a falling out with the Viridian military organization or something. Won't talk about it though.
"Well, at least we're getting somewhere in the world. It's about time we get a chance to do something more than fight off another band of petty crooks."


"Hey! I take offense at that, you know!" Leira Joun broke in.
She's got stones for sure, letting that one out. But, with the Knight's Amnesty at least she'll be immune from most prosecution from her days with the raider band.

"Yeah, and you make it sound so ignoble policing the runs." And Orson backing her up.
What a pair. He signed on with the Knights after running some security outfit and gets stuck serving under the "enemy," so to speak. Lieutenant Cassilas, if I didn't know better I'd think you were getting soft on criminals. I guess when you serve for 6 months with Captain Joun even your stiff spine can bend a bit.


"Alright, alright, enough of that now. We're all on the same team here, and hopefully we'll find some friends in this conference. I hear we may even brush elbows with some of the Styx folk too. Won't that be a sight."
Yeah, quite a sight indeed. A real shame about the CPC though... who knew they'd turn such a blind eye to such an obvious threat. Surely they're not compromised...


"Docking complete, folks. The coordinator awaits." Cpt. Joun announced from the helm.

"The ride was great, Leira. Keep a sharp eye out there." Yol said.

"Almost as sharp as yours, Hirran. Almost." Joun replied with a chuckle.
Even before Yol received her implants, she had the eyes of a hawk. Gave her an edge in the ring I think.

"Take care of our lads." Cassilas said.
At least someone else felt the same as me about these Tritonians.


"Aye, will do. Retribution's a fine ship in fine hands. I know you'll always keep the Lance warm."
With that, time to go. It looked like this 'Mip' character and his girlfriend 'Juna' were already cycled onto the Knowing Gaze. They certainly didn't waste much time.

"Let's go, squad!" As if he needed to give the order. Yol and Hurst have followed him into much worse (and for less reason) countless times.

With that, they were on their way aboard.
---

Coordinator Herth smiled as Rolloth and the others took their seats on the Gaze's bridge. They were the best tools he had for this conference deal, apart from Mr. Lowe, and who knew they'd actually come so willingly. Service in action indeed.

Herth turned away from the interior view and stepped out into the observation deck of the Signifer-class vessel. Even though they were using the gate this time, he always enjoyed the thrill of jumping with nothing but a pane of Transparent between him and the void. He watched as the Retribution broke off and Captain Arlington brought his Huntsman back into the hangar. Crawford's Fencer-class and O'er the Ramparts would meet them in-system after the jump.

It was going to be a good day.

Jump
---

Upon arrival, Edgar Rolloth heard the Knowing Gaze's captain run down the usual post-jump procedure. Systems nominal, several transmissions incoming, hazard levels, rally points, etc. The ride was just beginning. His right thigh ached still. The organic prostheses weren't quite perfected yet, especially with the trauma that femur took. At least the other two attached without the pain.

"Channel 9 and 12 transmissions confirmed, Sanctuary. Knights of Sol and League of Triton representative Coordinator Herth of Titan has arrived. Diplomatic vessel Knowing Gaze proceeding to safe zone rally with escort Retribution. Additional support vessels O'er the Ramparts and Unwavering Presence inbound and will rendezvous near the gate structure once the diplomatic delegation is away. Knowing Gaze out."


<<The Knowing Gaze and Retribution head towards the Nikola at the designated rally point to await their shuttle. As specified, the Unwavering Presence and O'er the Ramparts arrive within a minute of the other Knights vessels and proceed to a point broadcast on channels 9 and 12.

The ships broadcast with IFF signatures detailing their position, vector, ship class, name, and faction.>>

 

"Lined up with the Gate and ready to jump!"

Sounded the announcement of the navigator aboard the bridge of the C.S:Celestia, the metal behemoth silently waiting in space in front of the even larger Jumpgate to the Viridian System, ready to make the flight into the unknown.

"Thanks lieutenant. Are all stations set? I don't want a technical slip up at our first conference ever" replied the XO, Marius Müller, from the holotable in the middle of the Bridge. As the response he received the GO from the various technical stations, engineering, navigation, even weapon control, only if to confirm that they are offline as wanted, while they where already provocative by bringing the sole Dreadnought Cerberus has, flying in guns blazing would be another thing entirely....

"Perfect, captain Noack, all stations are set and ready to go!" The final status report was received with an affirming nod by the captain. "Then let's bring this show on, pass the gate as soon as the passageway is clear, Comms, put me on ship wide transmission" , "Aye Sir!" came the reply, seconds later the sound signal announcing a message to the crew was heard, and the Captain spoke...

"Ok ladies and gentleman, we are about to pass the Jumpgate to the Viridian System, I want to use this opportunety to remind you that this is the first time that Cerberus is attempting political interaction on a larger scale, so I want everyone to be on their best behavior, else one will get a ride with the twins!"

Several crew members winced at the mention of the nick name for the two spine mounted mass drivers the ship housed.

"Did I ever tell you that this thread sounds way more inviting than you intend it to be?" Marius whispered to the Capitain, who held a hand over the microphone and mouthed a shut up back to his XO before continuing addressing the crew.

"Also, we are here to make allies with the rest of the galaxy for a possible war that embodies the worst nightmares that led the founders of this Company to do what they have, so it is far more at stake than our stock`s this time.
That being said, I know that everyone on this ship can count on each other! Do your jobs right and we all will go home, eventually with a few friends more than before. Everyone, on their stations, HU-RHA!" The responding Hu-rha from the crew resonated through the ship.

"Gate`s clear" announced the navigation officer via intercom.

Standing at the front of the bridges second level, the captain eyed the Holo map displayed in front of the multiple level bridge, showing a projection of the Gate in front of them, slowly rotating around its axis.

"Bring us through, slowly, we do not know how the traffic on the other side looks like, I want a status report as soon as we are through"

"Aye sir, accelerating towards the gate, Jump in 3.....2.....1...."

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

"Jump succesful! G.D.S is recalibrating to the environmental conditions. We may have lower resolution due to the asteroids." Came the demanded status report from the navigation officer.The other Systems responded in a similar manner, all systems were still up and running.

"Incoming transmissions about navigation parameters and further procedures for the conference, shall I patch them through, captain ?" The Communication officer informed, captain Noack again just nods ad listened to the transmitted message. A few moments later, he addressed the Navigation and Communication officer.

"Al right gents, you heard them. Prepare to fly to the designated coordinates, and contact the shipyard that we are there. See what you can do with the G.D.S, might as well get as much reading on everyone as we can while we are here, and set up the IFF. You also might want to inform the CEO that he should pack his things for the conference...."

<<The Celestia slowly made her way to the coordinates, clearing the Jumpgate.>>

 

Mr. Ford paced slowly through the bridge of the Viceroy. Mr. Ford had learned to project an aura of authority and command, but inside, he was nervous. The vessel was the federations largest and most technologically advanced ships in the federation fleet. But this wasn't Mr. Fords ship. He glanced out the windows of the command tower to see his own starship, UFSS Ark Royal, hanging quietly in the darkness and casting a large shadow on the massive hull of the command ship. Everyone around the bridge was on high alert, managing the thousands of systems and sub-systems that worked tirelessly to keep the ship running. While this wasn't the only place that operations took place, it was the most essential by far. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted the captain. A young, tired looking man named Ordell.

"Mr. Ford, how are you finding the new ship?" the captain remarked as he approached him. Mr. Ford turned to face the captain, and replied

"She's damned big, I will say, and you've got quite the job on your hands. I do think that bringing civilians on this mission was a mistake, though, every time I glance at the security dispatch monitor, another fight's broken out somewhere".

Captain Ordell nodded sadly, and began to speak. But before he could finish his sentence, a female officers voice pierced the monotony.

"Sir, Navy One and her Challenger Class escorts have just come into SRT range. ETA is one minute."

Captain Ordell turned to face the rest of the bridge, and began to speak.

"Signal all ships to take up fleet transit positions and sound off when ready"

Mr. Ford watched as slowly but surely, the Ark Royal began to lift off and divert to it's assigned transit location. Another officer began checking off the ships positions.

"UFSS Victory is maintaining overwatch 500 meters off the stern. UFSS Ark Royal and Enterprise are holding to port and starboard at 600 meters. Challenger and Gemini now holding positions 2 kilometers off stern port and stern starboard. Navy One has touched down in hangar bay four and the Chairman is in transit to the bridge now."

At that news, the officers on the bridge quickly began to straighten their uniforms and rise from their seats, facing the main lift at the rear of the bridge. Two security officers, holding shiny and polished F-71's jogged to either side of the turbolifts, and stood at attention. Captains Ford and Ordell both stood facing towards the lift, straight and stiff. Not but a minute later, the doors slid open quietly, and the Chairman, along with 8 other delegates stepped out. Mr. Orion, Chairman of the federation, began towards the two captains, and stopped to face Mr. Ford.

"Mr. Ford, it is a pleasure to see you again in more... favorable circumstances..."

Mr. Ford smiled weakly and shook the Chairmans hand. The two had met extensively during Mr. Ford's retirement, and the last time they had met was during the Star Bridge attacks, as well as the launching of the Ark Royal. The Chairman then turned, and shook Captain Ordell's hand, remarking on the complexity and ingenuity of the massive ship. Behind him, the delegates began to spread out and examine the bridge, other officers rushing to assist them. Mr. Ford recognized a few of them, and had been briefed previously that only four were official UFPS delegates, the others representing the systems under the UFPS banner. The Chairman soon returned to Mr. Ford, and began to speak to him.

"Mr. Ford, I'm sorry you weren't notified earlier, but the head of federation fleet defenses, has been attacked and is currently in hospital. We feel that you, Mr. Ford, are the only suitable replacement."

Ford stared at the Chairman in a mix of shock and confusion. It was one thing, to be one of the first to step outside of the Solaris system in over a hundred years. It was another to be attending the first foreign diplomatic procedure outside of the Solaris system, in history. Mr. Ford kindly accepted the offer, and walked over to the windows of the command bridge, listening to the Tear Drive activation procedures being run through. He began formulating plans, strategies, what he might do, what the fleet defense commander might do... He had been on hundreds of diplomatic missions, with much more danger than this. But the future of the federation rested on the hands of him and the other delegates. He barely noticed as the ships in the fleet began to accelerate rapidly, before sliding out of existence.

It wasn't long before the massive Viceroy had attained transfer velocity, and slid through the Tear opened by the leading ships. The ship hurtled through the dizzying realm of gas and light. They still had so much to learn from this dimension, but for now it was used as only a tool to transport ships from place to place. Far away, Mr. Ford could spot the diminutive shapes of research ships floating amidst the void. The navigation officer then called out.

"Approaching Tear Point now Captain. We are ready to enter the Veridia System".

If executed correctly, the transfer would put them 2 kilometers from the jump gate in a shielded area, and near enough to the rendezvous point. A small monitoring probe sat silently on the other side, awaiting their arrival. three minutes later, the fleet emerged through the newly formed Tear, and sat still examining the scattered transmissions they were receiving. The communications officers started to work.

"Sir, instructions are to monitor sub-channels nine and twelve. Permission to monitor?"

"Yes, go ahead. Relay all information fleet-wide. Helm, set a course to proceed to the rendezvous point." Ordell responded, visibly nervous.

The large fleet thundered toward the rally point, maintaining a close knit formation. Each officer sat stiffly in their seats, attending their stations, but glancing hurriedly at the command bridge windows, desperate for a look at what might be waiting for them there.

"Sir, we've arrived. Sensors indicate the presence of four other ships at the rally point. Shall I signal the Nikola and Institute regarding our arrival?"

"Yes, go ahead. Signal both sources that any incoming traffic should be directed to hangar bay seven Maintain radio silence with the other ships, and have helm distance us by a few kilometers" Ordell ordered.

"I disagree, Captain, we should start making relations with anyone we can, right now. There's no reason to be paranoid, they have no reasons for attacking us. Comms, open a new channel and begin transmitting information to the other ships. Anything we can to prove we're friendly, but not enough to endanger the mission" Mr. Ford replied, to the annoyance of Captain Ordell.

The crew was confused for a few seconds, but soon responded to the orders. Mr. Ford had not meant to take such executive action, but felt it neccassary to begin any diplomatic relations as soon as possible. The ships stood still, hanging silently in the dark. There was nothing left to do but wait.

(Sorry for the long post here guys, trying to make a good introduction. Basically, Captain Ford is trying to open communications with the other vessels and is transmitting information on their mission, crew, and anything else. Although the Viceroy has diverted foreign small craft to hangar bay seven, any incoming craft should contact Air Traffic Control before approaching and landing.)

 

In the middle of space, a fleet of three ships sat, waiting to jump to the Viridian System. The fleet consisted of one cruiser and two destroyers, the diplomatic fleet of the Nebulanic Union. Aboard the cruiser Maverick Unity, Ambassador Daniel Jany talked to her daughter before the vessel would jump the Viridian System.

"Remember to keep your father in line. You know how he tries to surprise me after trips."

"I will, Mom." As the teen finished, a male voice over the intercom.

"This is Fleet Commander Drace Kight. We're will be jumping in ten minutes." Jany then looked at the screen she was talking on.

"I have to go. Be good, Krista." The girl smiled.

"Godspeed." As the screen read the the transmission had ended, the ambassador stepped out of the room, and was soon joined by Ambassador Max Clarkson. Clarkson never looked like a government official. He was raised in a nebula mining station, where what would be everyday attire anywhere else was considered formal wear.

"How do you think the new guy will be," Jany asked.

"Like sending an Astrocobra to do a Jäger's job. He's never been in space, and a basic computing A.I. is more in touch then he is." The two ambassadors then heard their less experienced counterpart.

"I hate this ship!" He yelled out in a slightly British accent. "It's bad enough that the captain's a cyborg, but...." Clarkson couldn't take it anymore.

"Shut your trap, kid. You've never even gotten to know the cap'n."

The three soon came to the CIC, where the crew were getting ready to jump. Kight turn to the ambassadors, revealing a cybernetic right arm.

"Glad you guys made it. I know the new guy hasn't seen a jump before." The commander then sat in his place.

"Maverick, Helm ready?" A human figure soon appeared on a screen. The figure was a Human A.I. The avatar then turned to the fleet commander.

"Ready Captain!"

"Exo, sensors ready." A man turned to the captain. He was Johnathan Smith, but everyone called the man Exo.

"Ay!"

"Unity, are Aurora Borealis, and Silent Hunter ready to jump?" Another avatar appeared on the screen next to Maverick. This A.I. had a female figure and look like she was a foot shorter then her fellow A.I.

"Captains Deal and Langston say they are ready." Kight leaned back and open a channel to engineering.

"Orion. Ready to go." The answer was given the a thick, Cajun accent.

"Da jump drives a ready, Cap'n." Kight smiled a little bit.

"Maverick. Jump us." Without a word, the A.I. engaged the jump drives. All three ships vanished in a flash of light.

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

In the Viridian System, the three vessels appeared with the same brilliant flash they had shown when they first jumped. Kight soon got to checking his ship.

"Everything good Exo?" The officer could not help but smile.

"Ay." Unity then show up on the screen.

"Captain. I've to transmissions coming in. One has the hazards in the system the other's directing us to VI Nikola. Mav, you should have then."

"Thanks sis'," Maverick responded. Kight then looked at Unity.

"Unity. Tell the guys in charge that we're here for the conference, and tell our escorts to follow us in. Maverick, take us to the location." The sibling quick followed the captains orders, and the fleet began to move VI Nikola.

Order of Events
Union fleet arrives.
Union fleet move towards VI Nikola.

 

Location: Adrose System, 38.4 Light years from Canon Rei. (Point Gamma-23)

In transit to the given coordinates obtained from the message:

-------
C-1 Envoy Taskforce:
Arriving at their destination within the Viridian System, the small group of ships comprised of one cruiser, two small corvette class ships, and a single frigate appeared from the void of hyperspace. Immediately they all picked up on the signals and communication broadcasts being sent their way.

Taking the front in commanding the escort formation, the Cruiser Halicrast deployed its fighters consisting of a single squadron of five SF-9's before opening communications directed specifically towards the Viridians transmitting relays.

Though no audible message was given, a written greeting and clarification of intent was transmitted to them from the Halicrast as it remained on guard.

"Attention Viridian Institute, we are the Envoy for the C-1 Corporation and are here with regards to the summons of the Freeport Alliance. We are making our heading towards transport service rendezvous coordinates. Please confirm."

Meanwhile, as the Envoy vessel group appeared within the systems interior, the other half of the taskforce appeared above the systems horizontal plane. Headed by the Bastone, it was comprised of the single strike-carrier and three frigate-class vessels. From their perch, this group made no efforts to contact anyone. Surely it's emergence from hyperspace would likely have been picked up and its position in open space was unfavorable for concealment, but there was little other choice for positioning if they were to be called to action. And being confined within an unknown system with the potential for conflict to erupt, it was prevalent to ere on the side of caution.
---
::Order of Events::
-C-1 Cruiser Halicrast requests VIP transport confirmation with the Viridian Institute to the station.

 

T-13 HOURS TO ARRIVAL, SOL SYSTEM:
The IAS Deus Nihil Est, the IAS Phoenix, the IAS Tsukiyomi, and the IAS Nebula Ascendant departed Titanian orbit, headed for Sol's Tsukiyama limit. Shortly thereafter, each ship disappeared in a large flash as their jump drives activated, propelling them towards their destinations at many times the speed of light.
13 HOURS LATER, VIRIDIAN NEBULA:
A bright flash of energy appeared about 50k kilometers away from the rendezvous point with the VI Nikola
Admiral Cyrus Sadeghi looked out of the large observation window on the IAS Phoenix, as the shutters lifted following the jump. He turned, walking towards the main hub of the deck. A soft siren triggered, and the lights dimmed, replaced by a soft red glow. The pilot's voice came over the intercom, "Prepare for acceleration, T-3 minutes to burn." Cyrus quickened his pace, his long legs carrying him through the corridors with ease. He arrived at the meeting room, and was soon joined by the other members of the diplomatic attachment that the Academy was sending.

He looked around the room, his gaze resting on each of them for a moment. Lieutenant Anastasia DeVrjin, head of security. Sergeants Lilian Richards, Ashley DeWitt, and Roland Lamontagne, security personnel. Each was wearing a handgun, with DeWitt's being an experimental laser pistol. Cyrus hoped they wouldn't need to use them. Two telepresence drones, one each for Alexandra, who insisted on being able to watch what was going on, and Archon, as the de-facto leader of the Academy. He wasn't sure whether or not they would count towards the Viridians' limit of 10 delegates, as neither exactly needed separate accommodations, nor were either armed. Suzuki Miyazaki, a young graduate student, who someone higher on the food chain had decided to put in the delegation, and neglected to tell either her or Cyrus for what reason. He suspected it had something to do with either her research, or possibly wanting to exchange scientific knowledge with the Viridians. Garret Harding, the Academy's chief diplomat, and ambassador for the Terra consulate. He had been temporarily pulled out of that job specifically for this conference.

"We have approximately 10 minutes until we reach the rendezvous point. We will be boarding a Viridian Institute Ambassador-class shuttle to travel through the corrosive nebula to the Sanctuary. After that, I don't know. We will have to wait and see," Cyrus said to the assembled group, before turning to look out the window at an unfamiliar sky.
----------
Rin Satō stared at the holographic display table in the middle of the CIC, currently showing an overview of the system, all of the various IFFs and broadcasts being transmitted, and the status and relative location of the three ships in her little fleet. In the background, she heard the pilot going down the post-jump checklist, with occasional input from the other vessels' pilots. All systems were normal, only a minor power fluctuation. Aft-starboard engine plating had taken some damage from debris caught in the Jump field. She sent a note to Engineering to repair it at their convenience. She ordered a channel open to the Viridians. "VI Nikola, this is Commander Rin Satō, captaining the IAS Phoenix, carrying the representatives of the Ishtar Academy for the Freeport Navy's conference. We are transmitting vectors and projected courses and requesting further instructions. ETA: 15 minutes. Over." Satō sighed, and slumped down into her chair. It was going to be a long day.

<< The Academy ships are broadcasting IFFs identifying them as with the Academy and as diplomatic vessels. Any guns are currently unpowered and in as non-hostile of a position as can be. All three ships are moving roughly synchronously.>>
________________________________________________
THE SYSTEM ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE VI'S JUMP GATE:
The IAS Nebula Ascendant appeared with a flash of energy, near to the jump gate, prepared to answer any call for aid sent by the Academy's delegation. Meanwhile, a highly encrypted, low-key transmission was sent from somewhere in the ship, unobserved by anyone onboard who should have been watching.
______
ORDER OF EVENTS:
1) The Academy detachment arrives in-system, requests further instructions after arrival at rendezvous.
2) The Nebula Ascendant moves in to position to provide fire support should the need arise.

 

The Viridian System's gate flashed to life, and a moment later a ship emerged. A sleek, smallish vessel, a mere 60 meters long, its IFF broadcast the formal signature of diplomatic vessels belonging to the Ardentralli Confederation. Its hull was marked with the white, black, and green colors of the Confederation's flag, the same colors of the Joint Provincial Fleet during peacetime.

After a moment, two more, much larger vessels burst from the gate, flanking the smaller ship. These possessed Ard-Con IFFs as well, but theirs belonged to the Joint Provincial Fleet, as was evident to anyone near enough to see the red paint adorning their hulls. To those familiar with the JPF, the ships were identifiable as Appalachian destroyers, but of a different model than those seen at Canon-Rei.

Gently, the three ships cruised away from the gate; then, the gate flared into activity again, and a fourth vessel came through. Despite broadcasting the same IFF as the two Appalachians, this ship did not match any known Ard-Con design. Curiously enough, the letters of its name were not painted on the hull in the usual manner, but had been formed in a low relief from the metal in such a manner that they would be visible on high-resolution lidar as well as visual scans.

- - -

Aboard her ship, Captain Yvette Zhou let out a long, deliberately steady breath. Over a year after her last command at Styx, she was once more aboard a vessel and on a mission. And once more, it was in connection with the Sheshir.

She waited for the familiar dread to sink in -- not so much of the Sheshir, but of the near death, the lost comrades, and the shameful survival they represented. She could still feel it, like a cold knife touching the back of her neck, but for some reason it failed to overwhelm her, as it had failed to since she took command of this ship. She was still working through why that was the case, but a strange sort of steadiness has settled over her as soon as she'd seen the ship's name.

"Captain?"

Startled out of her reverie, she turned to look at the gray eyes of her new XO, Commander Sokolova. She had only met the woman a few weeks ago, and they had yet to develop the close rapport she had shared with Bern ... or any kind of rapport, to be honest. Word of her "indisposition" had apparently been making the rounds since she returned to active duty, and Sokolova was giving her a careful, appraising look. Inwardly, she sighed. It was a good thing this wasn't likely to be a combat mission.

"Commander." She returned her attention to the navigation deck. "All stations, report status."

"Sensors show numerous contacts, multiple identity codes. Looks like some of the other delegations have already arrived."

"Comms are active. Transmission from local relays, multiple datastreams, multiple broadcasts from other vessels."

"Save the other transmissions for later," Sokolova interjected over the stream of reports. "Get the text of the relay's transmission."

Zhou glanced over the text as it spilled across one of her screens. Well, at least her XO wasn't hesitant.

"Helm has a clear path to the rally point, Captain."

"Engineering reports all systems nominal." A brief pause. "The, ah, warp drive is functional, Captain."

"All weapons offline and locked down, Captain."

Sokolova glanced across at Zhou. "All stations report ready, Captain." She looked down at her board. "The delegation has commed us; they are proceeding to the rally point."

- - -

<<
As the vessels slip into formation with each other and begin to accelerate away from the gate, an signal is broadcast in the clear.
"VI Nikola, this is the Ardentralli Confederation Diplomatic Vessel Matterhorn, carrying the Confederation's delegation, and escorted by Joint Provincial Fleet Vessels Valiant, Vrijheid, and Ikagi. We receive and acknowledge your notifications. We are beginning our approach to the rally zone, and will await further instructions. Matterhorn, over."
>>

 

The bridge of the Strife-is-Joy was cold, and quiet. Despite this, is was fully staffed. On the first point, Dinah Shrike was of the opinion that a temperature just a little too cold for comfort kept her people alert. On the second, the bridge crew was just killing time, and they knew the shipmaster disapproved of idle conversation. They wasted time with busywork and puzzles - or in the Captain's case, napped. Jim had his eyes closed, his feet kicked up on his console, and wore a serene expression that seemed at odds with the manic intensity with which he usually approached life.

They'd been waiting for hours, holding station by the jump gate; far enough away to keep safe from arriving vessels, but close enough to keep safe from the Viridian system's unpleasant environs. Shrike herself had been making use of this time to make one last review of the collated information she'd gathered on the factions, delegates, and the situation at hand. There wasn't as much as she would have liked - but still, considerably more than anyone would expect her to have. To better pay attention to the data feed, she had closed her eyes - or rather, shut of the cameras in her ocular prosthetics. She flicked them back on, however, as he comm buzzed, making a quiet hm of annoyance as she answered.

"Dunno if you're paying attention, Shrike, but we're seein' a helluva lotta action on sensors. Keep this up much longer, an' we'll be the last set a' idiots to set foot on station. If your mysterious guest holds us up any more, my crew'll be too drunk to steer Choleric around any damn thing."

His consternation put a thin smile on Dinah's face. She knew he was exaggerating regarding the state of his crew, but perhaps not too much. The man had a variety of glaring flaws, but he commanded a fierce brand of loyalty. He was rather unhappy about being dragged to a diplomatic summit - such things were a bit outside his paradigm, to say the least - and his belligerence would be rubbing off on his crew. They wouldn't be waiting much longer, though.

"Have a little patience, Captain Macall. I assure you, it will be worth the wait. I hope you do not think me stupid enough to rely soley on the political pull of a washed-up miner and a scheming tug-owner for such an important event?"

For her carefully-chosen words, she got a disgusted groan in reply. "Dammit, Shrike, what the hell is that supposed to - "

The second half of Mac's sentence was cut off, in a wash of interference. The reason became immediately obvious; it was the burst of light and radiation that signaled the arrival of a ship by the jump-gate. A particularly large one, at that; easily hitting battleship classification, if it was a warship. After a few moments, it lit engines and began unhurried sub-light maneuvering; a massive, slab-like ingot of a fore section preceding a roughly cylindrical, and armed, aft. It was an uncommon ship, even in the backwaters where the OWL tended to operate. However, the massive port and starboard blast doors, which dominated the fore-section's surface area, made a Bellicose easy to identify for anyone who'd ever seen one before.

Dinah waited for a few seconds, while the shock set in...and then, sure enough, Mac's voice once again blared in her ear.

"Damn it all, Shrike, that's Interesting Times! How - why the frak did you drag Tseng into this, you - "

She cut the comm channel, bit down a smirk, and gestured to catch the attention of her comm-tech. "Signal the Nikola. We're ready to proceed."

 

"Our scout group is already on route, if all goes well we should be arriving in couple' hours." A hint of anxiousness could be heard on Wilhelm's voice, a distinct change from the cocky bravado he usually presents himself with. "Remember our deal. We need to know everything that happens, information like this is incredibly valuable and I don't want it squandered thanks to..." Wilhelm brings his cybernetic arm up to his face, obscuring it from the masked woman. His tone gaining a slight coat of annoyance. "I know. You get the info, I get the guns, we both get to go home. Now if you'll excuse me, I have an oh so wonderful conference to deal with. No weapons my fuckin' arse." The masked woman might have smiled, cutting off the connection immediately after Wilhelm's remark.
- - -
A squadron of PasCO fighters warps into the Viridian system, spread out amongst the system. A hail of sensor pings barrage the system as the fighters pinball about the place. The assault stops within a few minutes. "Cr-01 this HF-01MKII-S-34, area is clear and safe for entry."

"Copy that S-34, initiating jump in T-minus 5 minutes." The interior communication system begins an automated countdown. Wilhelm pours himself a glass of cider. "Well here's to the fucking conference." he says. "Fucking cheers." He says. Another figure walks into Wilhelm's room, clad in a gargantuan amalgamation of armour, padding, motors and thrusters, vaping through her armours open visors and helmet. "Nervous?" Wilhelm attempts to say something snarky and clever but instead just sighs defeatedly. "Yeah, let's just say I have a lot riding on this not going tits up." "So you're drinking?" Wilhelm lets out a slight chuckle. "You thought I was gonna do this sober? Also, keep your armour on. I want to make an impression."
- - -
The PasCO cruiser warps into the system, meeting up with it's fighter escort. "VI Nikola this is PasCO vessel Cr-01-Pt-01, we are ready for pickup."

 

<JSS NightHawk enters The Viridian System through the Jumpgate >

(( Communication to Janus))
Janus the area is clear for you to come through the jump gate, Astronomical information on channel 9, Coordinates and Diplomatic Talk on Channel 12, Relay channel 13. Proceding to designated parking orbit. IFF Packet Data Cache. -NighHawk out.

<< JSS Janus in transit from Sol System to The Viridian System>>
"Ok set the channels to what NightHawk informed us to. Forward the Data of IFF's to Connor so that he can build dossiers on everyone." Ordered Captain Reynolds

<<Quarters of CAT-Tiger>>
"Conner Captain sent back the data packets from NightHawk" Sighs Adam.
"Its not like I don't have enough on my plate programming all the slates with security programs for cameras we may have to mount." groaned Connor.
"Kira turn down your music we have a mission to plan and I'm trying to meditate" said Jason.
"Becka lets go hit the sauna you have been telling me aboutw" says Kira while shutting off the stereo.
((Kira and Becka leave))
"Hey Connor does this ship even have a sauna?" ponders Jason.
"I wouldn't put it past those women to create some sort of luxury item on this ship since the situations we get into can be messy but someones going to have to report this waste of water. To get clean you just need to use the sonic showers no need to waste the water we carry around." retorts Connor.
"Lets get to work Jason that's enough meditation for the day you have been at it for the last 10 hours and Connor what information do we have on the factions since I'm already unhappy about the weapon situation on the station and that we cant bring our friend here (points to the robot tiger named paws) with us. Having the processing power and direct link to the shipboard mainframes is nice but we can't insult our hosts. Don't even mention assault mode to the Knights or they will find a way to steal him" finished Alex.
"Well we have nothing on the layout of the station nor has our client specified exactly how they want our behavior on the station so lets assume that we have one person guarding the quarters when they are occupied and video surveillance set up back to either the crew on the Janus or NighHawk. Thankfully the processing power on NightHawk is probably more than we will be able to use on the Janus good thing he doesn't need sleep. Inform Kira and Becka of the
plan when they return and prep your gear for when the VI's shuttle will arrive to take us to the station. Im going to hit the rack." continued Alex.


"Address to complete Ship Please Coms Officer," said Captain Reynolds.
"Connection confirmed Captain,"
"Attention Ship we are about to use the jump gate to the Viridian System, We are not the first group of diplomats, Weapons Crew's Please make sure all weapon systems are dormant we don't want to cause an intergalactic incident. To the esteemed guests in the bow of this ship please prepare yourselves for the transfer to the shuttles and to the station on our arrival to the designated rendezvous point. Prepare for the gate transit." Finished Captain Reynolds.
<< Janus Jumps in system.>>

"Inform The Client's that the communications console in the forward common room is ready for contact with the VI, and that they should be ready to disembark at a moments notice." said Captain Reynolds from his command chair on the bridge.
<<Forward section of Janus
"CAT-Tiger Reporting to take over Security from CAT-Lion, Enjoy your time on the ship don't forget to play nice with the normal crew on this ship ok" said Alex.

Order of Events.
-JSS NightHawk enters VI space.
-Transmission's Sent.
-NighHawk parks in shadow of jump gate.
-Janus Conversations.
-Janus Arrives in system.

 

Earlier that morning.

The door closed with a soft hiss. It wasn't a ship she wanted to be on; she would rather have the comfortable chair of her own. But she had been taken from her comfortable chair, forced to walk these strange halls to this strange office that reminded her far too much of the one on Concordia. She hated that office, and by extension, she decided she hated this one, too. It was far too ornate, lavishly decorated for nothing other than putting on a good show to visitors, and felt saturated with the pompous air of aristocracy.

Karren Line, Fleet Admiral of the Freeport Navy, tossed the data pad down on the desk in frustration with a loud clatter. In response, the man seated on the other side merely raised an eyebrow.

"I swear, if this keeps up we're never going to get there. Now junction twelve has gone down." She fumed.

"Twelve? I thought you said eleven?" The man replied gently, acting on years of diplomatic experience and personal knowledge of Line's temperament. Councillor Oliver Vayne, The Navy's Staff Admiral and councillor elect to Concordia station.

"Eleven is the primary power relay that feeds the comms tower, twelve is the auxiliary. We had to shift the workload onto twelve so we could fix eleven, but the strain was too much, so even though we have the primary fixed, now the backup is down!" Line flopped down on the couch across the room and shook her head. "I swear, the Castle has been nothing but issue after issue ever since we fielded it."

"Yes, but she's also been reliable every time she's had to be." Vayne leaned forward and picked up the pad, reading through the information on its screen. "Tell me, is it a critical system that could impede the mission?"

"No..." Line admitted, "But it is the main backup. If anything happened to the primary relay while the backup was down, we wouldn't have access to over half of our comms systems. And they've both already gone down twice over the last month."

"But we could still technically proceed?"

"Yes, technically, but I'd rather not put on a show of us tearing apart critical systems while we're trying to make a good impression, y'know?"

"We could always leave her behind, Rising Phoenix and Radiant Glow are ready to move out now."

Line sighed. "I'd rather not. King's Castle's our flagship, I feel like she should be there. Plus, I know Ashley has been looking forward to this ever since we told her."

"Alright then." Vayne said, folding his hands on the desktop. "We'll handle most of the communicating through the Gracemaria anyway since we've already got our full delagation on board now. If you can tell me that she's otherwise ready to go, then we'll form up and make the jump."

"You've finalized the short list, then?" Line sat up and raised an eyebrow. "There were far too many requests still under consideration for just a ten person headcount limit last I checked."

"Yes, and trust me, it wasn't easy. Our own group will consist of myself, as well as yourself, obviously, two of my personal assistants, Dr. Yuy will be accompanying, and we have Captain Eden's team of five for security."

Line looked surprised. "I figured Eden would make the cut, but Yuy's coming along too? I'd have figured the last place he'd want to go is back to the VI."

"Yes, well, apparently he has some old haunts he wants to stop and visit, perhaps 'rub a few things in some people's noses', I think he put it."

"We're not actually giving him free reign to talk about what he's done, are we?"

"We can't keep silent about it forever, Karren. It's technology that might be helpful in the right hands, and the entire focus of this conference is sharing ideas to bring us all together. Speaking of, I had intended to arrive early to help finalize anything that Mr. Takeda might need help with, but if we delay much longer, I can only hope we aren't the last to make our appearance."

"I'll need to talk with Harris, make sure nothing else had gone sideways since I left, but you'll have you answer soon. Wouldn't do to show up late to our own party, would it?" She stood, waving what amounted to barely a salute as he nodded in return. He turned his attention back to the conference notes on his computer as she retrieved her pad and exited, breathing a beleaguered sigh as she disappeared through the office door.

---

Present time.

Admiral line stepped into the Gracemaria's observation lounge, nodding in turn to the others as they snapped to attention. Again, the room felt overly posh, but perhaps having spent the better part of the day roaming it's corridors she was becoming numb to it. Besides, it was for all intents a states room where meetings were to be held, and could also access the basic communications of the ship for video channels, so it made sense there would be greater attention paid to detail. Councillor Vayne, the only one who didn't salute, gestured her over.

"Can't hold off on it much longer, what's the word on the Castle?"

"Better than expected," Line shrugged, "Crews got both the primary and backup arrays working, and they've jury-rigged some patches that I was guaranteed would hold for at least a week."

"Impressive." Vayne nodded sincerely.

"Apparently Ashley had quite a bit to do with it, too. She's accustomed herself to the systems of that ship much faster than I would have expected. She really pulled through on this one."

"Oh, it was nothing, really! I'm just glad I could help, and that I can still go to the conference, too!" The young voice, slightly synthetic and feminine, emanated along with a pulsing light from a small device pinned to the collar on Line's officer's coat. Intrigued, Vayne leaned closer to examine the device.

"It's an experimental personal comm relay, something the boys in R&D whipped up." Line explained, giving him a better view. "As long as we're within signal range of the Castle, she'll be able to see and hear everything that the relay does."

"Impressive." He said again, moreso than before. "So everything's in order?" He straightened back up, tugging an errant wrinkle out of his suit.

"I'd say the Castle is ready for deployment."

"Very well, then. Bridge, This is Vayne. Status report on the envoy fleet?"

"All ships report green lights across the board, destination coordinates for synchronized jump are locked in and gate analytics report the area free of obstructions. Ready to move out on your mark, Councillor."

"Understood. Move out."

Simultaneously, the four ships spun up their jump drives and disappeared, leaving the hustle and bustle of Concordia behind them.

---

In the same instant, four incoming jump signatures heralded their arrival in the Viridian System, plotted above the jump gate and well clear of any other ship that had already arrived.

"Well, here we are, Ash." Line said, folding her arms and admiring the view. After a second with no response, she tapped lightly on the relay. "Ash?"

"Something wrong?" Vayne asked.

"I think I lost the link. Jump must have reset the calibration, I'm going to head to the bridge and see if I can reestablish contact from there."

Vayne frowned. "I was hoping you'd be here with the rest of us if anyone wanted to say hello before we met at the Institute."

"You're the politician." Line said dismissively, heading back out the way she came. "I'm sure you'll come up with something."

Again, Vayne sighed as she disappeared. She was a fierce warrior, and a true admiral to her fleet, but damn if she wasn't impossible to deal with sometimes.

"Councillor Vayne? This is the bridge."

"Go ahead."

"We've got multiple IFFs and comms channels active from the other factions, and multiple groups heading for the rally point outside the nebula, should we begin broadcast of our own message?"

"No," he said, leaning on the back of one of the conference room chairs, "Make sure our IFFs are active, but we'll wait for the chatter to die down before we head in. I imagine whoever's on the other end of the line at the Institute could use one less voice in his ear."

"Aye, Sir. Standing by for further orders. Bridge out."

Vayne looked out the window, where the lights of the other ships could still be seen as groups moved off into the distance. From what he had been able to pass on to the Viridians, there would only be fifteen different factions present for the conference. The number should have been much higher, but with the CPC turning a blind eye, it stood to reason that a large portion of the galaxy would simply be unprepared if worse came to worse, and he could only hope that any progress made in the coming days would buy enough time for the shortsighted fools to wake up and react.

---

Order Of Events:
-Freeport Navy arrives.

 

A little ways away from the rendezvous co-ordinates, several red streaks materialised into KAE vessels. The Warstalker, Hero of Styx, hummed proudly as it slowly advanced on the rendezvous positions, it's escort flanking it from all sides in perfect formation. The Three Great Evils positioned their Stingrays in an V in front of the Warstalker. The 10 Frogback 2's, still a newcomer to the galaxy, positioned themselves in V formations above and below the famous Scout Frigate, and the fresh off the assembly line Kestrels took position between the Warstalker and the Stingrays, a vertical V this time, moulding themselves to the shape of the Warstalker's front. The display of precision advanced slowly to the other interested parties, making sure to get tactical information on the poorly hidden extra vessels in the region. On the Bridge, General Roberts watched, dressed in his diplomatic attire, as two figures flanked him , the senior members of Direwolf Squadron, Direwolf Leader, and Direwolf 2, his escorts for the conference. Direwolf Leader was the first to break the silence.

"Seems our friends started without us, how upsetting, I was hoping we could set up a little surprise party, maybe some balloons if we were feeling especially frisky."

"Enough. You're both here as escorts, try not to antagonise the other delegations, you only have one of your weapons this time Direwolf Leader."

"Yeah well, the invites did say only one sidearm, and this little beauty is so compact, she is classed as a sidearm."

"That the only thing that counts as a sidearm sir?"

"Hey, I can have you down to Direwolf 3 by the time the ship warps back, behave yourself."

I said enough, both of you. Communications, send a message to the Diplomatic conference, inform them KAE has arrived and will be taking up position with the others."

"Aye sir."

"Roberts to all escorts, maintain formation for now, should anyone act hostile be ready to engage, crippling shots only, we don't want to start a war at a diplomatic conference."

A chorus of acknowledgment filled Roberts' ears as the delegation advanced closer, well within sensor and visual range of even the most oblivious of the group. Roberts' orders were clear, ensure KAE's favourable position in the talks, and make sure that no-one gets any bright ideas about stepping on KAE's toes. Roberts was patient, he would have no problem playing the long game to keep the other factions placated, and if any of them were too impatient, they had a trick up their sleeve. It was a shame it wasn't ready in time, but with any luck, they wouldn't need it anyway, provided everyone behaves.

Order of Events:
-KAE arrives to the party.
-Roberts is being serious.
-Direwolf 2 is being snarky.
-Direwolf Leader is probably just hungry right now.

 

Two weeks earlier:

"I still can't believe that we are restricted in how many People we can bring to the conference."

"Calm down Tash, it's totaly fine. 10 people is more then enough even though i know that you want the complete Fireborn and Soul Systers to attend as honor guard but we have to obey their rules if we want to establish a friendly and healthy relationship with Humanity."

"I know, i know... But still... And whats that about heavy machinery and heavy weapons? Do I have to go naked to the conference?"

"Look brother.... I would love to alow you to wear your Exo-suit but we have to follow the rules... Also we have all agreed to wear ceremonical Armor during our arrival... We even made one extra for you! So stop nagging and finaly choose the other four people you want to bring along..."

The two brothers Tash Dars and Alexander Darion stood on the Bridge of the Drachenherz. They where arguing over the same things for several hours so far and the other Shipmasters that stood around them just shook their heads. Since the FPN had send them the Date and location as well as the core rules for this meeting, the two brothers were arguing like crazy about what was right and what was wrong and neither of them was ready to make room for the other.

"I get the feeling that you are arguing with me just to argue with me!" Alex said and Tash started grinning. "Took you long enough to figure that out" He answered and Alex growled and jumped onto his brother. Sometimes there was nothing better to let of steam then a friendly brawl between brothers.


Present Day, earlier in the Morning.

Ten Lightyears away from the Viridian System, 9 Anomalys opened up in space and 9 Dragon Ships emerged from those glowing water like looking fountains before hanging idly in the darkness of open Space. No Dragon of the B.R.S. before ventured so deep into Human controlled space and now they would prepare themselfs to enter one of the major Systems of an Human faction. It was a great Day and Alex was excited for it already.

"Status of the Fleet?" He asked his Com-Officer

"All ships green. The Drachenfeuer will now Launch Emerald and Diamond Squad and the Wissensdurst is readying the Shuttles and the Worker Drones for the last touches." The officer replied and Alex nodded.

"Alright. The Wissensdurst shall direct their shuttles between the Ships to pick up the Shipmasters and bring them aboard. And tell Aksor to make sure that the Banners will be attached correctly so we don't loose them when we enter Subspace again. It would be a shame to loose them after what we had to do to aquire them." He said. During the Time the B.R.S. was founded they managed to aquire some very important Relics from the Dragon Museum of History and Origin. One of those Relics was in the posetion of Kahrun Den, Shipmaster of the B.R.S. Seraz and five others were currently unfolded and prepared aboard the Wissensdurst to be attached to the five Ships inside the fleet wich were manned by biological crews.

"I'm in my room. The Shipmasters should gather in the CIC. I will meet them there." Alex said and left the Bridge. They had at least five hours to prepare themselfs and Alex was to make sure they would use those hours as good as they could.



Present Day, shortly after th FPN's arrival.

In the distance from the Jumpgae, still inside the safe Zone and in good view of everyone two very small anomalys were opening roughly 100 meters apart from each other. Soon they became six anomalys, then ten, five each in a V formation, shortly afterwards, three slightly larger anomalys were forming behinde two larger anomalys opened up next to them. The lightshow and percision of the spectactle was already stunning but it wasn't the end as suddendly four very large Anomalys opened up behind the current arrangement of anomalys before every ship of the B.R.S. SIlverdragon Researchfleet emerged from their Subspace Anomalys in unison. Their IFF's fired up, identifying every Ship with it's Name, Class and Alliegence.l All Ships of the B.R.S. Fleet moved with the same Speed, Emerald and Diamond Squad ahead, followed by the Corvettes Ikaruga, Gradius and R-Type, accompanied by the Frigates Cheana and Seraz followed up by the 4 Capital Ships, Drachenfeuer II, Drachental, Wissensdurst and the Designated Flagship the Drachenherz. The Frigates, the Drachenfeuer II, the Drachental and the Drachenherz were carrying large banners behind them, each of them about 100 meters long. Each banner was showing an lline of 9 Solar Systems with the last one on each banner very similiar to the Sol System.

The Formation of the Fleet looked very military but the overall distance between the ships showed that this was more of an parade formation then a tactical one. It shouldn't look threatening but more ceremonical.

The Drachenherz tapped in the designated Comm-Channels from the VI Nikola and sended a general Greeting to the Ship, Informing them that the Attendants of the Conference are aboard the Drachenherz and that they will wait for the other Factions to be transportet into the Nebula before the fleet will make their way to the Rally Point. It was only a Text based message but the Dragons were to excited to respond with an audio or even an video message. But it was now clear to those who already knew the Dragons that they had arrived.

Order of Events:
-Some friendly brawling and Arguing between brothers.
-Preparations for the big day outside of the Viridian System.
-The Dragons have arrived

 

"Jesus Christ, where the hell have I brought us"

Chairman Orion looked worriedly out the conference room window, showing the already massive assortment of factions and vessels, intermingled among the asteroids. The federation delegates sat throughout the room, reading over documents and discussing various policies with each other. A stout african man, sitting across the room, slowly removed the worn glasses, setting them down on the table. He then began to speak.

"In case you haven't noticed, we're not in Solaris anymore. Couple hundred thousand miles from it too. We're going to have to expect the unexpected. I don't give a damn who we meet, aliens, cyborgs, what the hell ever they got going out there, we're going to put our best smiles on, and show them what the Federation represents. I'm tired of us sitting here, jumping every time a new ship pops in. Man up people, we're about to see a hell of a lot more than some odd looking cruisers down there in that conference"

The bold delegate could only be identified as Isaac Jerico, a representative of the Ciroh Independency. Ford had worked with him on occasion, especially in disputes regarding Io Confederacy. Ford knew him to be brave, never outspoken, each word striking a chord with everyone in the room. The other delegates looked at eachother, nodding in agreement, or staring out the curved window casting an eerie orange glow throughout the room. While each delegate sat in their best suits and attire, Ford waited by the door, straightening the collar on his new uniform. He thought back to ten years ago, when they didn't build ships this big. When the standard uniform consisted of a jumpsuit and flight cap. Back to a time when the outside universe was of no concern, the political squabbles occurring in their own sector being there biggest issue. Back when he had no one to return to. He remembered when he heard the news, sitting down alone in his quarters to think of the implications. Even though his wife had left him, they still shared a deep connection, one that couldn't be broken by his duty to the Navy. But when he learned about the children, born only a few hours earlier, he knew he had to quit. He couldn't leave station every year, hoping that he could return to them. Turning in his badge was the second hardest thing he ever had to do. His command, his crew, his power, all left on the admiral's desk, tucked away in the little golden pins and the hand written letter. It was ten years of monthly visits, watching them grow up. Everytime, them running across the grass to greet him. He'd come in, and they'd ask all about the days he was in the Navy. So he'd tell them stories of space pirates, marauders, sleezy junk dealers, and the strangest things he'd seen up there. The hardest thing, was pulling out of the driveway three weeks ago, with anxiety and confusion swirling through him, whether or not he would ever be coming back. Whether the children had seen their father for the last time that day. Whether it was the right thing to do.

All he could do was wait for the transport

Order of events:
-Delegates are freaked out regarding the new arrivals
-Representative speaks some truth into them
-Ford reflects on his past

 

Councilman Hans Reiser paced slowly back and forth across the command dais, a circular platform in the center of Field Control Headquarters. Five steps led down to the floor, where the first ring of analyst stations began. Twenty men and women sat quietly at their desks, watching their screens and waiting.

It was the calm before the storm.

The shift commander, a middle-aged Lieutenant whose name Dr. Reiser couldn’t recall, stood off to the side and waited along with the rest of them. He was probably worried that this old politician was going to interfere with his job assignment. This was not the first time a member of the Council visited FCH in person, but it would be the first time one actually took over.

The system was quiet. Only a few of the twenty analysts were even touching their pads, probably making routine adjustments to the AMGReS network. The system was mostly autonomous, but it did need to be tweaked now and then. One mistake, though, and the station could be annihilated by the very asteroids that protected it. One miscalculation, and--

“Incoming FTL!” called out one of the analysts. The overhead screens lit up with sector maps, as a few dozen tachyon scanners focused on the area in question. The shift commander looked over at Reiser with a questioning glance, and the Councilman quickly gave a nod. A good leader knew when to delegate.

“Identify,” the SC replied calmly, obviously relieved that he wasn’t being ousted.

“IFF shows Knights of Sol. One non-com and three escorts, loud and cold. Message coming.”

“Callback,” the SC ordered. “Here we go…”

“Incoming FTL!” another analyst called out.

“Call outliers, screen the rest!” The room quieted down. He could hear the first two sending replies to the incomings, as more contacts popped up on the screens. Loud and cold. Weapons off and IFF broadcasting. Peaceful. Just how the SC liked it.

“Outlier! Second group from C-1 Corporation, out-range and cold!”

He directed Councilman Reiser’s gaze up to the proper screen. Half of the C-1 fleet was parked above the plane. It looked like just a precautionary move, and from Dr. Reiser’s nod, he seemed to agree. “Allow and monitor!” A few extra sensor arrays retargeted on the secondary fleet, just in case they did anything unpredictable.

More delegations were already in the system. Cerebus Shipyard had brought one vessel, heavily armed but not showing any aggression. The UFPS seemed to be making a statement with some fairly large ships, and the three from the Nebulanic Union’s ships looked sleek and deadly. The Ishtar Academy had two escorts protecting a non-com, and Ard-Con had three on its diplomatic transport.

The screen was filling up with contacts, and more kept arriving. “Prep the shuttles for pickup. Open a double-wide to the egress point.” One of the other screens began displaying the asteroid patterns, as the network of AMGReS turrets in the field began to make small alterations to their trajectories. In a few minutes, there would be a clear tunnel from the docking area of Fermi Sector, and the shuttles would disembark.

“Third OWL contact arriving, large and cold. Message coming.” Finally. A couple OWL ships had been sitting quietly by the jump gate for hours, ostensibly waiting for a companion. Leave it to the OWL to be both early and late at the same time. The SC sighed and nodded to the analyst. “Callback.”

“Outlier! Multiple contacts, multiple sectors. Loud and cold. Identifying as PasCO.”

More paranoia. With all that sensor activity, they were obviously just scouting ahead. Did they expect an ambush from the Institute, of all people? “Monitor and allow.”

Things started to calm down after that initial rush. The PasCO delegation’s main vessel arrived within a few minutes, and a ship from Janus Security Services jumped in soon after. There was already a note on the schedule, listing JSS as the registered escorts for the CSAR. “That makes ten. Who else is on the list?”

“Still waiting on the Dragons, the KAE, and--”

“FTL! Freeport Navy arriving, four ships, loud and cold.” Well, they took their time arriving to their own party.

“Outlier! KAE ships arriving. Counting… Ten… Fifteen… Nineteen ships! Loud and cold!” The SC looked up the screens. It was mostly fighters, but still… That looked more like an assault fleet than a diplomatic mission!

“Get me scans on that fleet, and ready--”

“Stand down, Lieutenant,” Dr. Reiser said calmly. “They’re just showing off.”

“Yes, Sir. Monitor and allow.” Only one more faction was expected. The one they were all waiting to see. The one that had the people lining the streets of Fermi Dome 6, waiting to get a close look…

“Outlier!” The voice was more excited than alarmed, and for good reason. “Dragons arriving! Six… Ten… Thirteen… Nineteen ships! Loud and cold.”

The SC looked over at Dr. Reiser, who gave a little smile. “Focus scanners, and get a nice visual. Give the public a good look.”

“Yes, Sir. You heard the Councilman.”

-----

Outside the chaos of FCH, in the vast void beyond the edges of the nebula, the messages sent to the station and the Nikola each receive a personal reply, transmitted from various relays in the asteroid field, all of which say pretty much the same thing.

“This is Field Control. Welcome to the Viridian System. Please proceed to the designated coordinates and await transport. Shuttles are being dispatched to that location.”

-----

A few minutes after the arrival of the BRS, the final delegation, there is a noticeable shift in the asteroid field. The hurtling rocks near the rally point start to change their paths ever so slightly. Like a rock parting the current of a river, they start to arc around a roughly-circular area. A gently-curving tunnel can be seen, reaching deep into the nebula. From that tunnel, ships begin to emerge.

“Attention all ships,” came a female voice on an open channel, “This is Lieutenant Danielle Varra on the VI Aristotle.” The plucky little dropship shot out of the nebula like a bullet from a gun, immediately followed by the rapid-fire emergence of twelve identical Ambassador-class dropships. “Please maintain a parking orbit and broadcast docking coordinates on sub-channel nineteen for your assigned shuttle. You’ve all been made aware of the security protocols, and we will be scanning all passengers and cargo. Welcome to the conference. Varra out.”

The Aristotle kicked in its sub-light engines and set course for the BRS ships, as the other shuttles broke formation and headed for each of the faction fleets. Varra had made a good impression at Canon Rei, good enough to assign the Aristotle to this mission and to be the first to see the Dragons up close and personal. All those suckers waiting on the streets of Fermi Dome 6 would have to wait their turn. She smiled to herself, and to Ensign Tiller. “You ready?”

“Born ready, LT.”

-----

ORDER OF EVENTS

• Dr. Reisier and the Shift Commander at the Field Control Headquarters prepare for incomings
• A team of analysts monitor the system and each incoming contact, sending canned responses to each of their messages
• Thirteen shuttles emerge from a carefully-controlled gap in the asteroid field, led by Lt. Varra in the Aristotle, who broadcasts to all ships and requests docking coordinates on sub-channel nineteen.
• One shuttle heads for each fleet.

 

Captain Ordell sat quietly, stiffly, gazing out into the darkness on the bridge of the Viceroy.

"Captain, sensors indicate multiple small craft heading on an intercept course for the fleet. Communications reports they are requesting docking coordinates"

The captain quickly looked behind him at the young officer, nervous about the arrival of a ship so foreign to them.

"Have ATC open a channel with the small craft, instruct them to land at hangar bay seven. Provide coordinates, and activate running lights to guide the way. Have a small tug ready too, just in case."

Ordell then turned to face the security officers

"Dispatch security teams to the conference room and the hangar bay, alert the delegates that their time is up. Escort them down, and prepare for the new arrivals".

Here it was, the moment of truth. What would they see? How would it occur? Who were these people? The thoughts flowed through Ordells mind as he paced quickly down to the hangar bay.

Order of events:
-Communications instructs shuttles to divert to hangar bay seven, coordinates and lights provided
-Security teams sent to hangar bay and conference to escort the delegates down
-Captain Ordell moves to meet the shuttle in the hangar bay

<<Drones will meet the shuttle in the hangar bay. Not sure if you want each person to narrate the arrival of the shuttles themselves, as well as the take offs, so I'm leaving it at the delegates are waiting in the hangar bay, alongside the security teams and captain.>>

 

"Alright Storm, off the comms back there! We're looking at chicks popping out of the egg here, so go suit up." Captain Charlotte Montreaux barked. It turns out Knowing Gaze was a fitting name for her ship, as she glared back at the boisterous Lieutenant Goodman. He wasn't exactly discrete about his habits and social life, but it was easy enough to pass off and grant him full status in the Knights. After all, he could show Discernment and discretion when it counted. Mostly.

<<“This is Field Control. Welcome to the Viridian System. Please proceed to the designated coordinates and await transport. Shuttles are being dispatched to that location.”>>

Storm wrapped up whatever message he was concocting and strode off toward the ready room, followed by the silent trio they picked up from the Retribution. Rolloth, Yol, and Hurst showed some interest in the ship when they first boarded, but once Coordinator Herth made his brief appearance they stiffened up. Even Silas and Storm gave up their banter when the boss-man showed up.

Silas Lowe wrapped up whatever he was tapping out on his tablet (who still uses those, anyway?) and packed it away in his chest pack. In a surprise turn of events Mip and Juna were the last to vacate the bridge, and then it was just Char.

"Knowing Gaze to Field Control and VI Ambassadors, thanks for the warm welcome. Traverse complete and standing by. Coordinates sent, Sub-channel 19 Aye. Docking Port side preferred, my hangar's going to be too cramped. Knowing Gaze Out." There. Now the kids just have to hop on the bus and Momma gets to go take a nap.

---

Coordinator Herth had left the bridge after the B.R.S. arrival. He didn't need the time to get ready, as he usually wore his suit under the Coordinator's robes anyway; instead, he sent out a final message to the good Knight Pratt Holland aboard O'er the Ramparts. With all that showmanship going on out there, he needed all of the charm the Knights could muster right now. Sure, that'd put more load on Mip and Juna without the twins to help. They'd just have to make due.

(Open broadcast from Knowing Gaze to O'er the Ramparts)

"Coordinator Herth to Knights Holland and... Deos, was it? Your presence is now requested at this conference. Please make haste aboard your Squire, we don't wish to hold up our VI hosts. Captain Arlington will make room on the Gaze for you. Over."

"Roger that, Coordinator. On our way."

<<30 seconds after the broadcast was over, a Squire with IFF displaying Echo 1 sped from the hangar of the carrier still loitering at the Knights' designated hold point not far from the gate. The fighter closed quickly with the Knowing Gaze and flipped to perform a perfectly normal reverse burn to bring it matched just beside. The hangar on the Gaze opened up to reveal a smaller Huntsman model, which took up an escort position below the starboard side of its parent ship. Echo 1 slides inside the hangar just as the VI shuttle begins docking.>>

---

Rolloth and Hurst hefted their maces over their shoulderpads, waiting for the others to finish donning their gear. Yol wasn't far behind, still fiddling with her helmet adjustments. The optical implants were still new, and it seemed to help her headaches if she could filter out some of the extra wavelengths. The docs back at Ullanic sure did their best, but they couldn't get her totally acclimated in just a few short months.

It was odd to see Rolloth suited up again without his exo's... but since this was a diplomatic mission and all it didn't make sense to have to bring charging provisions with them onto the station. No, he actually looked good without the extra mechanisms... more human. More like the Edgar she remembered from before.

Mip and Juna had finally worked into their suits- clearly not used to the skin-tight pressure fabric. At least Silas Lowe and Lt. Goodman were experienced in that, but their mindless chatter over in the corner slowed them down. Lowe was helping Storm out with the Lieutenant's body armor, surprisingly expert considering his status decidedly outside the Order. His green-and-bronze armor certainly helped make that point.

Coordinator Herth swept in, his turquoise-and-grey robe billowing behind him. She smiled as she noticed that he already had his suit on, sans helmet. He wore both suit and robe like a pro, and he was clean shaven, too, though the white stubble was starting to show again. Mip and Juna were a stark contrast, even in the same getup. Their black hair was unsettled from fitting their helmets, the hem on Juna's robe was coming undone, Mip's hands were constantly trying to get the turquoise pleating straight, all while the Coordinator affected an air of dignity and catlike grace.

"Alright, looking good Knights. Analysts. Mr. Lowe. Shuttle's docking soon, but I've asked Knights Holland, and... his co-pilot, to join us. Initially I had planned to bring along the twins to help Mip and Juna out with all the data, but I'm quite confident in their capability. Rather, I'm concerned about our presence here. You may have noticed the amount of "ceremony" some have brought, so I thought it would be fitting to add to that air. They have made their way, and shall board the VI shuttle with us."

Pratt Holland?! The pilot. The pilot. This was about to get very interesting.


Order of Events
-Storm Goodman replies to JSS
-Open channel communication to bring Knight Holland along
-Echo 1 makes haste to catch the bus
-Foxtrot 1 leaves the hangar of the Knowing Gaze to make room for Echo 1, taking up escort position
-Knight of Sol delegation ready to board the transport.

 

Captain Kight looked at the scanner screens before Unity called out.



"Captain. We have transmissions from VI shuttle, and ships above the plane of Sanctuary." Kight looked calmly.

"Order the shuttle to Cargo Dock 3. Tell them we have a hologram unit to bring and that we have eight people going to the station, one returning. As for those ship, tell the Aurora to keep an eye on them, but no scans." Unity nodded on the screen then followed the captain's orders. Drace then looked at his Master of Gunnery, Jonathan Tayt.

"Tayt, you have the COB. Exo, ambassadors, come with me." Tayt looked at the captain crossly. He never like to have command of anything more then his gunners, but he knew the captain had trust in him.

"Aye, Captain."
--------
On the Aurora Borealis, Captain Carson Deal sat, waiting for her orders. She soon notice a communication coming in.

"This is Deal. What is it Unity?"

"How did you...never mind. Kight wants you to keep track of those ships out of plane. No scans."

"Ok. Goodbye for now Unity." Deal then looked at a screen near her.

"Aurora!" A female avatar appeared on the screen with blue and green, dress like clothing.

"I heard Carson. I will keep an eye on the ships."
-------
In Cargo Dock 3, Kight, Exo, and Ambassadors Clarkson, Jany, and the new ambassador, Luka Zenav, found A.I. Ambassador Talon, Marine Commander Sigfreed "Sig" Dison, Marine Lieutenant Samantha Diez, and A.I. Engineer Bobcat. Clarkson smiled at the old looking Human A.I.

"You missed the jump."

"I've seen enough jumps in my 85 years of activation." Kight looked at the marines.

"So your bringing Stingers." Diez looked at the captain.

"Aye sir." She then handed Jany a 9mm Boxxer pistol, and attempted to give Zenav one.

"I am not using that." Clarkson shook his head, and pulled out a seven shoot 44 mag. revolver.

"Trust an old nebula miner. You want a gun." While Clarkson tried to get through Zanav's thick skull, Exo noticed something around the captain's neck.

"Drace. You may want to take that cross off. With the name of these terrorists the diplomates may not like seeing that." Kight looked at his friend.

"That's I told you this is personal for me. It a least sounds like their taking what I believe and turning into, well." Drace stopped there. Exo smiled at the man.

"I know how you fell. Just make sure the others know too."

Order of Events
Shuttle ordered to Cargo Dock 3.
Aurora Borealis told to keep an eye on ships.
Discussions in the cargo dock.

 

In the vestibule between the port and starboard airlocks the 5 members of CAT-Tiger waited in their black bdu's black boots with their black roller suitcases for the 5 members of the CSAR delegation. A loud clanging is heard through the vestibule as the shuttle docks.

Alex Knocks on the door saying "The shuttle is here."

Meanwhile NighHawk continued to process the data of every faction in the area and create threat assessments. These will be forwarded to the team once they arrive on the station.

Order of Events.
-people get by the door.
-shuttle gets there.
-data stored.

 

<< To avoid repeating everything, the heavy detail is in the first section... It'll be much the same for the rest >>

--------

"Hangar bay seven, aye. Shuttle out." The Ambassador-class dropship swung around to the provided coordinates, the light catching the gold lettering on the side. VI Poitier. The co-pilot plotted an approach course, and the pilot switched the systems to automatic, taking his hands off the controls. "We're on approach, Mr. Folson," he called out through the open doorway.

"Thank you, Ensign. Time to lock up." As the co-pilot sealed up the cockpit, the lone man in the passenger cabin took one last look over his notes. The United Federation of Planetary Systems... Bit of a mouthful, but hopefully they were friendly people. He turned to gaze out the side windows, getting his first good look at the UFPS ships before the retro-thrusters kicked in and the hangar engulfed the small shuttle.

Painted glossy white, with blue accents along the sides, the VI Poitier glided in for a touchdown so perfect that only a computer system could manage it. Its engines powered down, and a small ramp extended downward from the starboard airlock. Mr. Folson left his seat and went to greet the delegation.

The light above the airlock turned green as it verified atmosphere and equalized pressure, then the door slid open. The man stood in the threshold, smiling pleasantly at those assembled. "Greetings. My name is Walter Folson, diplomatic attache to the Viridian Institute Council."

He stepped down the ramp to meet the UFPS delegation. Folson wore a skin-tight, dark-blue uniform that looked more formal than practical. It was clearly capable of an airtight seal, but he wore no helmet. He carried no visible weapons, only a bracelet on his left wrist with a strip that extended over the back of that hand, that looked like some kind of communications device.

"I'll be your liaison for the duration of the conference, and the Poitier and her crew will be kept available for your use. As per the security protocols, you and your cargo will be scanned for weapons or hazardous materials, here and again at the station. If you'll please come with me, we can depart."

<< Folson will, if they're willing, lead them into the shuttle. The interior is nicely upholstered, with twelve comfortable seats in three rows, like a first-class airline, with an aisle down the middle. In the rear, there are shelves and straps to secure luggage, and a sealed door that probably leads to a maintenance compartment. The front wall has a single sealed door leading to the cockpit, and long windows stretch across both sides, from the front wall to the airlocks in the back.

As they enter, the delegates will be offered communicators identical to the one Folson wears. They can be used to communicate with anyone else who wears one, on or near any VI ship or station. He will stress that they are completely optional, merely a convenience.

Scanners mounted in the interior of the doorframe will scan them and their cargo for weapons, heavy machinery, explosives, hazardous chemicals, or biological contamination. These aren't 100% effective, so something well-hidden or divided into components might slip by (But as he said, there will be more scanners at the station). >>

-----

<< "Knowing Gaze to Field Control and VI Ambassadors, thanks for the warm welcome. Traverse complete and standing by. Coordinates sent, Sub-channel 19 Aye. Docking Port side preferred, my hangar's going to be too cramped. Knowing Gaze Out." >>

"Roger that, Knowing Gaze. VI Kissinger on approach."

The shuttle swung around expertly, under computer control, and slid carefully into the docking ring on the Knowing Gaze. Once the lights turned green, verifying atmosphere and equalizing pressure, the door slid open.

"Greetings. My name is Xavier Rantillion, diplomatic attache to the Viridian Institute Council. I will be your liaison for the duration of the conference, and the Kissinger and her crew will be at your disposal." The well-dressed gentleman gave much the same speech as Folson was delivering to the UFPS delegation, obviously well-rehearsed and easily understandable despite his French accent.

"Your armor will not be necessary," he said with a bit of hesitation, "As the shuttle and station are fully pressurized."

-----

"Cargo Dock 3, acknowledged. I'll request approval for a hologram emitter. VI Machiavelli out." The shuttle made its way into the Nebulanic Union's docking bay, waiting for pressurization before opening up.

"Hello," said the Indian woman standing in the threshold, dressed smartly and speaking carefully with a thick accent. "I am Rishika Mehta, diplomatic attache to the Viridian Institute Council. I will be your liaison for the duration of the conference, and the Machiavelli will be made available to you." She checked her notes. "I understand you will be bringing a hologram emitter. This has been approved by security, but it will still need to be scanned. If you'll come this way, please..."

<< Again, the same speech about scanning for weapons, etc., and wrist communicators will be offered. The AIs will find that a public network is accessible within the ship, with similar functionality. >>

-----

The VI Albright locked securely into the port airlock of the JSS Janus, the airlock equalizing and opening. "Hello, I am Anastasia Veselova," said the serious-looking young woman in the same dark-blue uniform as the others, "Diplomatic attache to the Viridian Institute Council. I will be your liaison for the duration of the conference, and the Albright will be available to you for transport. If you'll enter through the scanners, please, we can be on our way."

<< Again, communicators, weapon scans, etc. >>

 

"Are you realy sure about this Alex?" Chereza asked while her Husband was helping her attaching the ornate Armor onto her Pressure Suit.

"Well... We don't have any other use for them then this Conference... You know that " Alex answered to his Wife before hugging her softly. "Also the Humans would look very suprised if we would come to their station naked." He said with a smile before Chereza just sighed. "Same would go for us... Gues we have to bear this then." She answered before looking over to the other attendants wich where doning their Armors as well. Those Armors weren't ment for protection, they were just ment to look impressive and nothing more and Chereza had to admit, they did look impressive. The long helmets to cover up their heads, the large wingcovers to protect their wings. The thick armor plates to cover up their Chests, Legs and Arms. Painted silver and green to represent the colors of their ships. It was a Sight to behold. Especialy Tash, Alex younger brother, wich was the tallest Dragon in the B.R.S. or better in the whole Dragon Race looked very imposing. There wasn't an original Armor for him but the one they made for him was just as stunning as the originals.

"Fleetmaster. A VI Shuttle is Inbound to pick up the delegation." The female Voice of the Ships A.I. came over the Intercome.
"Thanks Nia, send them the docking coordinats with the Drachenherz and send the Fighter Squads to escort them into the formation. They know the Drill." He said to the A.I. before looking over to everyone.
Tash was prepairing his Sidearm, Thela was struggling with her Pirate Coat, Kahrun was putting the scabbard of his ceremonical Sword onto his back, Syla was checking some incoming data from her Ship, The members of the Silent fang, wich were wearing different Armor then the Delegates were checking their equipment by testing their Cloaking Devices one after another and his Wife Chereza was close to him and Smiling. They were ready for the conference and they couldn't await it to get onto the station.


Meanwhile, outside of the Drachenherz.
A message was send to the VI Aristotle with the docking coordinates for the shuttle before a direct Com-Link was established between the Ship and the Shuttle.
"VI Aristotle, this is Drachenherz Flightcontroll. Be advised, Diamond and Emerald Squad are inbound to escort you into the Fleet formation. Thank you for welcoming us. Also, we have a private message for you from Spec Ops soldier Specter saying, Thanks for the ride back then, I owe you a drink. Drachenherz out."

The two Fighter squadrons accelerated towards the Aristotle and took positions next to her left and right side to guide them into the waiting Bronzedragon Fleet. Before they came into the range of the landing Vector, the Squadrons left their formation with the Aristotle to line themselfs up in two lines alongside the lFlightpath of the Aristotle that would lead her into the Hangar Bay of the Drachenherz. While the Squadrons waited for the Aristotle to pass them, the Ships changed their form into their Humanoid Form to give the Shuttle a propper greeting, Giving the Aristotle the honorguest treatment while the Hangarbay of the Drachenherz was opening itself to reveal the rather tight fit for the shuttle. Lucky for them, the Drachenherz's A.I. was providing them with coordinates and manouver instructions to help the Humans to land the Shuttle safe and sound within the dephts of the Drachenherz.

Order of Events:
-Suit up.
-Making some final adjustments.
-Greeting the Aristotle and the promise of a Drink with a Dragon
-Transformers, more then meets the eye!

 

They were bickering. They were still bickering, and had been the whole time, since the parties from both smaller ships had transferred over to Interesting Times. They faced off against one another in the middle of the portside airlock; Macall with his arms crossed and a scowl on his face, Shrike with hands clasped behind her back, and a neutral expression with just hint of smugness that Hawkespur suspected was involuntary. Of the others gathered, none of them looked as nervous about this as she felt. This appeared to be old hat for most of them, but Hawkespur was a relatively recent addition to Choleric's crew, and hadn't actually seen the two Captains in the same room before.

Of those present, the twins looked the most entertained. Roza watched with a half-smile, and the air of an interested spectator; Demyan's body language said he was so bored of standing, he might simply collapse at any moment, but he was paying attention, too. Both were tall, and blonde, and well-made. The family resemblance was obvious, and they wore their somewhat snug flight suits better than Hawkespur would admit. Conversely, Lethe looked simultaneously pissed off, and apprehensive; tense. The former was business as usual, and Hawkespur suspected that Shrike intimidated the pint-sized engineer. She was south of five foot tall with the build of a china doll; a mess of red hair, button nose, and a ton of freckles. She was almost cute, but fought valiantly against the possibility with an omnipresent scowl, and body language which declared her the most threatening thing in the room. Her vacuum gear was a wetsuit-style affair, and she wore cargo shorts and a tool belt over the top.

Disorderly Jim - or Captain James Cash, depending on how formal you were feeling - had arrived with Shrike, but was currently lounging against a wall. With a lazy smile and half-lidded eyes, he had a look of calm contentment; like a tiger, basking in the sun. Like Shrike, he wore a fine suit over skintight vacuum gear. Unlike his employer's pressed fabric and impeccable grooming, however, he looked just a little disheveled; tie loose, shirt untucked, hair not-quite-combed. Mac and Hawkespur were also dressed similarly, but in more typical Outleague fair; grey vac-coveralls, with a few other bits and pieces; in Hawkespur's case, a navy-style officer's cap, though without any distinguishing marks.

Her attention however, was abruptly displaced, as the internal door ground open, without warning, and both Macall and Shrike fell silent mid-argument. The woman who stepped first through the door was in no way physically intimidating, but the respect commanded by her mere presence was unmistakable. Back bowed with age, though not much, she walked with a cane, and could have easily been in her eighth or ninth decade. Aside from mundane vac-coveralls under a heavy greatcoat, she wore the benevolent smile of a doting grandparent; the expression half-closed her eyes, but they had a hint of steel, enough to give a cautious person pause. "Oh dear. Are you two still arguing? I'd have thought you have learned to get along by now!"

Mac opened his mouth to reply, but was interrupted as Lethe, of all people, rushed across the room with a cry of "Auntie!", and practically threw herself on the old woman in a joyful hug. Pretty much everyone reacted with stunned shock - even Mac, who must have surely seen this before - but none moreso than Hawkespur herself. She was, in fact, completely sure that this was the first time she'd ever seen the Chief Engineer smile; it had a disturbing dissonance to it, like a smiley face painted on the business end of a gun. "Oof - go easy on a frail old woman, Cassandra, dear, you'll break something." Tseng tousled Lethe's hair as she spoke, and her 'reprimand' had an affectionate tone. "So nice too see you again, it's been far too long."

She managed to disentangle herself gracefully, and worked her way across the rest of the room, greeting all those present in turn, and by name. "James, I hope you're staying out of trouble.." - "Dinah, so nice of you to invite me.." - Erika, my dear, I've been told so much about you!..". About halfway through, there was a muffled thunk as the arriving dropship locked onto the docking collar outside, and a faint hiss, as the pressures equalized. Spacers all, there was very little reaction from the Leaguers. Finally, Tseng approached Mac, matching his crossed arms and discomforted frown with a cheery smile. "Christopher, dear boy. Always so grumpy."

Mac sighed. "Ain't never lacked a reason. Auntie, what are you even - "

He was unceremoniously interrupted for the third time that day, as Tseng reached up and grabbed his cheek, pulling at it like he was an adorable child, a gleam of mischief in her eyes. "Has no-one ever warned you how cute you are when you're grumpy?" For his part, Mac seemed momentarily paralyzed with something between confusion and indignance; there were a few snickers from the crowd. And - inevitably - it was at that moment that the airlock doors slid open.

Order of Events
- OWL contingent gather aboard Interesting Times for pickup
- Dropship docks; airlock opens at awkward moment

 

Rin stared at the holographic projector in front of her, the massive influx of ships into the Viridian system, the tactical map soon becoming crowded. She stared at the various factions' IFFs, recognizing all but a few signatures. Most had been at Styx. She was snapped back to reality as the VI's space traffic controller responded to her hail:

She quickly ordered the pilot to the coordinates, while maintaining a respectful, and, more importantly, safe, distance from the other fleets, many of which vastly outgunned her two Luna-class destroyers.

"Johannsen, give the VI docking coordinates, Airlock 3. I doubt the Ambassador-class shuttle would fit in our hangar bay," she added, muttering under her breath, "The Horus shuttles barely do..." She keyed the intercom on, "Admiral Sadeghi, the VI's shuttle is en route to Airlock 3."

"Copy that, CIC. We're on our way," came the response.

"VI Field Control, this is the IAS Phoenix, sending docking information, have a nice trip, over," commed Johannsen to the small fleet of VI shuttles.

The pilot finished running down all the systems, finding only a few errors. Satō had him forward them to engineering, see if they caught similar
----------
Cyrus stepped away from the intercom, turning towards the group of delegates, "You heard the good Captain. Everyone suit up and move out." Most were already wearing mechanical counterpressure suits under their clothes, old habits, and all, and the four espatiers and himself had a relatively thin polymer segmented armor underneath their dress uniforms. Nothing that would stop a rifle round, but would probably stop a handgun shot. Cyrus did not have overmuch faith in the VI's security personnel, but, then again, he didn't have overmuch faith in much of anyone's security that he hadn't personally inspected, poked holes in, and redone the way he wanted it. Which was, frankly, just about none. For good measure, he went in to his quarters, coming back out shortly with a sword belted to his hip. Stylized enough to look ceremonial, but still useful in a fight, or at least as useful as a sword could be.

The delegation moved quietly towards the aft and starboard side of the ship, towards the airlock that Satō had directed the VI's shuttle towards. Cyrus pulled out his handgun, an eight-shot revolver-style chemical-ignition pistol ((Looks something like the Alien: Isolation revolver)). It was old-fashioned, but eliminated the need for the somewhat bulky power-packs. The two telepresence drones were hooked up to two contragrav sleds, ((For clarification, the two drones are the ball drones (These things).)) which held the detachment's luggage. As the VI shuttle matched speed with the Phoenix, the docking umbilical extended, forming a seal with the other ship's 'lock. Cyrus stepped slightly towards the airlock door, the espatiers at the ready should it prove to be a trap, prepared to greet whoever was coming from the other side.
______
Order of events:
1) Satō directs the VI on where to dock.
2) Cyrus and the delegates prepare to meet the VI shuttle.

 

<<The Ardentralli formation reaches the rally point, and the military vessels decelerate, reverse thrusters gently bringing them to a relative standstill. The Matterhorn, however, quickly flits from one ship to the next until it has visited all three. No docking maneuver is made; anyone observing closely will note that a figure clad in the standard JPF pressure suit leaves each escort and boards the Matterhorn through the forward airlock. Once the last escort has been visited, the diplomatic vessel assumes a position ahead of the escorts, transmitting a message to the Sanctuary:

"Field Control, this is Matterhorn. We are ready for transport." Simultaneously, it transmits its docking coordinates to the incoming transport.>>

-----

Captain Valeria Yakimura held onto the rail running along the airlock's ceiling, her feet drifting downward as gravity slowly began to reassert itself, then dropped smoothly to the floor as her weight grew more pronounced. She unlocked her suit's helmet seal while the airlock cycled, then clipped the bucket to the back of her belt. The door to her left, leading to the cockpit, remained closed, but the right door opened, and she stepped into the Matterhorn's crew quarters. Nobody was there, so she continued aft to the next door, which lead to the combined kitchen/dining room.

Except it wasn't a dining room, not anymore. The usual fancy dining table had been replaced at some point with a much more utilitarian one. It looked like a holo projector had been mounted to the ceiling above it, and the table itself was covered in a disorganized mass of diplomatic documents, military reports, and thumb drives. There were a few cups scattered among the wreckage, a spoon still sticking out of one. Sitting at the far end of the table from her was an elderly man, dressed in a civilian pressure suit that managed to be both formally appropriate and practical. He had a short, well-trimmed beard gone mostly gray, calm brown eyes, and a cane that he was using to help him rise from his chair.

"Captain Yakimura." He smiled as he walked across to her; not an especially warm expression, but a sincere one. He extended a hand and shook hers, briefly. "Welcome aboard the Matterhorn. You've grown considerably since the last time I saw you."

"Um, thank you, Stadthouder Lauw." She tucked a nonexistent strand of hair behind her ear. "Dad says hi -- uh, I mean, my father sends his regards."

A grin, short but bright, flitted across his face. "Please give Bernard mine in return when you next speak." He gestured aft towards the stairway leading down. "Please, this way. I believe the Viridian dropship will be here shortly."

He led them down the stairs to the ship's foyer, with doors opening off of it to the head, lower suite, and lower airlock. There were eight others already there. Two of them were her friends; Hideyoshi Bern she had known since her days as a cadet. Captain Zhou was a more recent acquaintance, but Bern spoke well of her. The third was Stadthouder Willow Akiyama, the bubbly representative from Minato, who gave her a brilliant smile before returning to her conversation with the fourth and fifth. One was a taller man, his complexion slightly darker than the planetary norm, whose calm demeanor reminded her a bit of Lauw's; likely the Stadthouder from Takhar, Sikandar. The other man looked thoroughly average in every respect apart from the air of tension he was giving off, and had to be Ian Wen, the ambassador who would be coordinating the group as a whole. She couldn't help grinning a little; it was going to be entertaining watching him try to herd their little group. Like Lauw, all three wore pressure suits.

The last three, standing along the wall next to the airlock, were Commandos, and would be providing the security detail for the mission. Heavy equipment having been prohibited, they had replaced their powered armor with an unpowered variant, though it still covered nearly their entire body. They were also the only members of the Confederation's delegation that were armed; the States-General had felt that showing up armed to the teeth would send the wrong signal. Their sidearms were different from the usual heavy revolver, sleeker weapons that looked like they would be better suited to target practice than combat. Yakimura knew better.

She joined Bern and Zhou, while Lauw stepped over to the other small group. "Heya, Hideyoshi!" For Zhou, she gave a more restrained smile. "Good to see you."

"Captain Yakimura," Bern replied, turning it into a sigh of exasperation. Zhou gave a small smile but said nothing. Yakimura knew that something had rattled her a while back, but Bern had kept it confidential, and Yakimura respected him for that.

She crossed her arms. "So, am I the only one surprised at how many ships some of the delegations have brought?"

Zhou nodded. "I expected a lot of the factions to take the chance to demonstrate their strength, but some of them have brought small fleets." She shook her head. "And you know some of them will take the same approach aboard the Sanctuary. I'm really worried fighting will break out."

"You should be." Having overcome his traditional frustration with Yakimura, Bern's expression was largely impassive, but he wore a slight frown now. "Getting everyone working together at Canon-Rei was a nightmare. I know that we'll need a coordinated response to fight the Sheshir, but that means a command structure with a hierarchy." He looked first at Yakimura, then at Zhou. "Even our own provinces don't have a unified Admiralty; I'll be amazed if anything productive comes out of this."

Zhou tapped a finger against her chin, her expression distant. "It would have to be either a joint command made of leaders drawn from multiple groups, or the command would be from a single faction."

"How about the Knights of Sol?" Yakimura suggested. "Fighting xenos is what they were created to do, after all."

Bern shrugged as a low hum began, the docking sleeve unfolding itself from the lower airlock and extending for the incoming shuttle. "All academic until we see what each group is interested in. This is not going to happen without some bargaining."

Order of Events
-Ard-Con delegation is all aboard the Matterhorn.
-Matterhorn is ready to dock with VI dropship.

 

Ambassador Clarkson looked at the woman.

"Happy to be flightin' with ya." Drace smiled as he turned to Bobcat. The Human A.I. preferred his "utility hull" over living in computer. This was a robot with four spider-like legs, a three finger left hand with a normal one on the right, and stood only five feet tall.

"Bobcat. Guess they'll want to scan you and my right arm along with the holo-emitter. Diez, get Talon in a core and prep it for scanning." Exo watched the ambassadors, fleet commander, marines and A.I. get checked. They show their weapons (two Stinger 5.65mm x 4mm firearm cores, three 9mm Boxer pistols, and a 44 mag seven shot revolver), and Kight removes his right arm for scanning. All their bags have the cloths, toiletries, and the like appear on scanners, and Bobcat brings his tools Before Kight boarded the shuttle, Exo yelled "godspeed" to him and the others.

When everyone and everything had boarded, Kight looked at Rishika.

"We're ready."

Order of Events
Everyone gets scanned and are ready to depart.

 

"Welcome to the Janus Anastasia Veselova, I am Alex Yew Leader of Combat Advisement Team Tiger of the JSS these are my colleagues, Jason Larch, Connor Adler, Kira Willow and Becka Holly. We are waiting on the Delegation from the CSAR to be ready to depart this ship. If you would like to scan us while we wait for them Just say so. My team and I graciously accept the communicators." Finished Alex.

The team enters the shuttle hoping nothing they packed will set off the scanners.
((contents of luggage main items: 2 uniforms 2 coveralls, esentials, slate, training clothes. Alex: encrypted com link to janus, sci-fi book. Jason : medical kit. Connor : 5 slates and other computer gear. Kira : hammock. Becka: tool box and a brainteaser puzzle.))

Order of Events.
-VI Albright docks.
-Pleasantry's are exchanged.
-Waiting on the CSAR delegation.
-CAT-Tiger enters the VI Albright.

 

Reserve Detachment:

Diplomatic Mission Group:

:"Please maintain a parking orbit and broadcast docking coordinates on sub-channel nineteen for your assigned shuttle. You’ve all been made aware of the security protocols, and we will be scanning all passengers and cargo. Welcome to the conference. Varra out.":

Following the appearance of the shuttles and the message accompanying them, the Halicrast once more returned a text-only message directed to the Aristotle.

[Understood, connecting communication system to designated transport.]

Upon linking comms to the transport heading their way, the next message sent was via audio and was spoken by what could easily be identified as an automated or computer-based system.

"Attention Viridian transport, rendezvous coordinates established and locked, sending confirmation now." The voice announced before alerting the crew. "Attention, I am to inform you that security protocol requires that you halt one kilometer out before proceeding to land. I repeat, hold your position at designated mark for escort services before docking with designated vessel Rossetta. Failure to comply is not advised."

As the Viridian transport continued to move closer, the Halicrast repositioned is heavy guns; all 20+ of them. All bores were set to facing up and away from the approaching craft, angled in such a manor so as to ensure that they do not feel threatened despite the stark contrast to the previously sent message. At the 100km mark, two SF-9's moved forward slowly to greet the transport where they were to take position at its flanks before following it towards the Rossetta.

Aboard the Rossetta:

With the transport on its way, there were several rows of security personnel wearing pressurized combat gear lined within the mid-sized hangar. To the far wall rested the C-1's own transport shuttle and though it would not see use today, there were some of the delegation who could be seen casting glances at it from time to time as they waited.

"Such a pity we could not use our own transport. I must say that it would have been far more preferable to have done so."

Spoken from a woman in her mid to early 30's, standing just shy of five and a quarter feet and with short-black hair, Diplomat Rose Prim commented on the situation that required them to put their faith in that of another. The way she spoke was unique, a form of accent that was perfectly understandable and properly spoken but had a bit of old-English to the words. Certainly uncommon among the C-1 but considering the development of the colonists there were some who grew up exposed to such mannerisms.

"Wouldn't you agree Ambassador?" She directed to Mond as he stood quietly in the back against the wall.

"Yes Lady Rose," He responded. "But it is certainly understandable of our hosts. Should the roles be reversed, we would certainly approach the situation in the same manor."

Turning from him, Lady Rose simply commented to herself as she stared through the thick glass that separated the room from the exposed hangar. "I suppose you are correct in that Ambassador." She said with a sigh.

Turning a glance over to his left, Mond looked on anxiously as another woman in the same room was currently fidgeting with her uniform.

"Dammit," Kedra said gritting her teeth as she dealt with a bit of tassel along the interior of her dress uniform. "This is complete BS..." She added as she un-snared the thread from the under suite she wore.

"Kedra," Roy called in a low tone from just to her side "They are only permitting one side-arm. You may not be allowed aboard the station with your current equipment."

Giving a cautious glance over to Mond and noticing that he was indeed looking in her direction, Kedra bit back her lip as she turned away from him and directed her attention to Roy.

"If they do, then all the better. I'd prefer not going anyways." She said as she checked her current stash. The five inch blade she had strapped to her waist was likely of little concern; a little less obvious than her "handgun". But then again, the 35 round magazine was more likely to catch someone's attention.

"We have three VIP's, four security personnel and then there's the two of us. Why did we have to get dragged into this mess anyways?" she said as she leaned against the wall.

"The reason for our involvement in this matter is due to our previous interaction with many of those attending from the incident at Canon-Rei. We are in fact the only ones to have actually make physical contact with them and especially so with this potentially alien race." Roy's words were straight forward as usual, simple and matter-of-factly.

Kedra stared at him from the corner of her eye before turning away from him and looking to the hangar.

"We also ended up botching the entire operation and people died because of it..." she said with a long breath afterwards. After a sigh and turning back to him she added,

"I'm not going to promise not to beat the crap out of somebody after this is over, but I've also got some business to take care of here as well."

ORDER OF EVENTS:
-Bastone Logs Viridian Scanner and Detection equipment positions within the solar system.
-Fighter Squadrons are on standby.
-Halicrast permits Viridian Transport to dock with the Rossetta.
-Kedra is less enthusiastic than the others... obviously.

 

<<"Your armor will not be necessary," Rantillion said with a bit of hesitation, "As the shuttle and station are fully pressurized.">>

Lt. Goodman spoke up, his voice clear through the helmet's vocal synthesizer. He gestured toward the robed figures in the back of the room as he said,

"Necessary, probably not, but the boss asked us to look the part so here we are."

The other three clad in the bright white armor of the Knights gave slight nods to the Viridian official and made no move to change. Silas took the opportunity to strap his helmet to his hip, though, as he reached out a hand to introduce himself.

"Silas Lowe, pleasure to meet you Mr. Rantillion." His Australian accent seemed forced. "I'm special adviser to the Coordinator back there. You got the quiet ones in the robes? They're analyst types by the names of Mip and Juna. Mip's the lad. The rest of our delegation's taken up by the good Knights, who're probably going to be in those suits most of the conference. We heard there was quite the circumstance of pomp out there, so we figured we'd bring it inside so everyone can have a look see."

Coordinator Herth stepped forward too, bowing with his hands clasped at his chest. The light of the Gaze's ready room reflected slightly off his bald scalp, and his robes swished lazily as he brought his arms back to his sides.

"Indeed, a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Monsieur Rantillion. I am Coordinator Herth, here to represent The Order of Children of the Light of Sol, and their sponsor, the League of Triton. I do not wish to waste your time, however I have two additional Knights en route. I believe they should arrive shortly after we finish the scans and boarding, so please proceed."

Herth takes a seat in the front row, and Cpt. Yol, Mip and Juna take the seats behind that. While Rolloth and Hurst work to load the small cases each member brought for the conference, Silas Lowe and Lt. Goodman slip silently into the seats behind Mip and Juna. The sound of hurried boots echoes through the ready room door as Rolloth and Hurst take the rear seats.

Lt. Col. Pratt Holland and Lt. Matias Deos make a grand entrance into the ready room and through the scanners. They are clad in the same white armor as the other Knights, but with 2 emerald lines sweeping diagonally across the front of the helmet. An emerald silhouette of a winged horseman with raised lance is emblazoned across the chest plate and repeated on the pronounced shoulder pads.

Once Holland and Deos clear the scanners, Hurst jumps up to help get their cases secured. They apologize to Rantillion for being late while introducing themselves, and then take a pair of open seats. The towering Deos, at 2.2 meters, and the average-height Holland take the open front aisle seats, and Hurst decides to sit next to Yol after his final check of the cargo. The seat next to Rolloth is left for their host Mr. Rantillion.

"It appears we are loaded and ready, Monsieur. Goodman, report to the good captain, will you, that the kids are off." Herth's tone was warm, but flat. His eyes pulled to the long window beside him and the eerie glow reflecting off the hull of the Knowing Gaze. Goodman complied with a short thanks to Captain Montreaux on his suit comms, and with that the Knights were ready to head into the Sanctuary.