Depths of Space (IC, OPEN, FT)

[Delta Eridanus]

As the ships descended under the surface, they began to see ship terminals running out from the side of the lake, roughly 100 feet above the bottom. At its deepest depth, Lake Hvergelmir was about 400 feet deep.

The Argent Spire docked alongside the Arngrim, and Rowan was waiting for Dmitri when he disembarked. They were soon joined by Ionia. Both were just over 6 feet tall, as was made apparent when Dmitri met them in flesh and blood.

-

"On Cadia, we have classes, but only as a formality. The noble houses freely mingle with the citizens of Cadia, and food and housing is provided by the state." Decius said.

[The United Tributational Territories]

As the ships descended under the surface, they began to see lights running out from the side of the lake, roughly 100 feet above the bottom. At its deepest depth, Lake Hvergelmir was about 400 feet deep.

The Argent Spire docked alongside the Arngrim, and Rowan was waiting for Dmitri when he disembarked. They were soon joined by Ionia. Both were just over 6 feet tall, as was made apparent when Dmitri met them in flesh and blood.

Dmitri was 5 foot 11, so seeing these women taller than him was weird. Dmitri chuckled as he said, "Women in the UTT are usually around 5 ft 6." Quickly realizing they might not use the US Customary system, Dmitri translated, "That's around half a unit taller than most people. Our units are measured by feet. Anyway, it's amazing that your city is built partially underwater. Was that the first thing you did, or did you gradually spread into the lake?"

[Aterrian Union]

"That's good to know." Replies Petrov. "Now please follow me, we are going down to the planetary surface."
Everyone teleports back to a shuttle bay, and Petrov leads them onto a shuttle, which quickly departs. As the shuttle enters the atmosphere, it is only then one can see the full scale of the city. Simply to say, many buildings are larger than the capital ships of other space faring civs. The shuttle lands at the Ministry of Public Relations. The grey building looks absolutely daunting in size from the ground up, as it could be comparable with Mt. Everest in height. A decently tall, well built man then approaches. As Petrov leads the cadians out of the shuttle, the man, president Markus Tyranus, salutes.
"Greetings Lord Decius of Cadia, I am Markus Tyranus, acting president of this world, and I am glad you have recieved our call for trade and assistance."

[Delta Eridanus]

As the ships descended under the surface, they began to see lights running out from the side of the lake, roughly 100 feet above the bottom. At its deepest depth, Lake Hvergelmir was about 400 feet deep.

The Argent Spire docked alongside the Arngrim, and Rowan was waiting for Dmitri when he disembarked. They were soon joined by Ionia. Both were just over 6 feet tall, as was made apparent when Dmitri met them in flesh and blood.

Dmitri was 5 foot 11, so seeing these women taller than him was weird. Dmitri chuckled as he said, "Women in the UTT are usually around 5 ft 6." Quickly realizing they might not use the US Customary system, Dmitri translated, "That's around half a unit taller than most people. Our units are measured by feet. Anyway, it's amazing that your city is built partially underwater. Was that the first thing you did, or did you gradually spread into the lake?"

"We began building aboveground then continued into the lake." Rowan stated. "We normally use the Metric system here, but we have heard of your system as well."

[The United Tributational Territories]

Dmitri was 5 foot 11, so seeing these women taller than him was weird. Dmitri chuckled as he said, "Women in the UTT are usually around 5 ft 6." Quickly realizing they might not use the US Customary system, Dmitri translated, "That's around half a unit taller than most people. Our units are measured by feet. Anyway, it's amazing that your city is built partially underwater. Was that the first thing you did, or did you gradually spread into the lake?"

"We began building aboveground then continued into the lake." Rowan stated. "We normally use the Metric system here, but we have heard of your system as well."

"It's very odd that we all speak the same language and use the same units. The UTT was one of the few nations that adopted the customary system early on. We also took over America before Europe, so that helps. I wonder if every English speaking race had an ancestor that moved from world to world, populating it. Anyway, we have a similar system in Hexham City, our capital. We moved Underground though, and Hexham is in the mountains of the original island."

[Delta Eridanus]

"We may have the same units, but we don't speak the same language."

Rowan poked the translator.

[The United Tributational Territories]

"We may have the same units, but we don't speak the same language."

Rowan poked the translator.

"Yes, but we have found other races besides yours that speak English. Which is odd, because French is the major language of the rest of the world. It's just odd to me."

[Delta Eridanus]

"Such is the mysteries of the universe, but we have bigger problems. Namely, the impending invasion of Theta Eridani by a certain House Martell." Ionia interjected.

[Delta Eridanus]

"That's good to know." Replies Petrov. "Now please follow me, we are going down to the planetary surface."
Everyone teleports back to a shuttle bay, and Petrov leads them onto a shuttle, which quickly departs. As the shuttle enters the atmosphere, it is only then one can see the full scale of the city. Simply to say, many buildings are larger than the capital ships of other space faring civs. The shuttle lands at the Ministry of Public Relations. The grey building looks absolutely daunting in size from the ground up, as it could be comparable with Mt. Everest in height. A decently tall, well built man then approaches. As Petrov leads the cadians out of the shuttle, the man, president Markus Tyranus, salutes.
"Greetings Lord Decius of Cadia, I am Markus Tyranus, acting president of this world, and I am glad you have recieved our call for trade and assistance."

"Thank you, But my formal title is Lord of New Corinth; Darius Caridin V is Lord of Cadia." Decius gently corrected. "I am here to help in anyway I can."

[The United Tributational Territories]

"Such is the mysteries of the universe, but we have bigger problems. Namely, the impending invasion of Theta Eridani by a certain House Martell." Ionia interjected.

"Yes, yes, of course. Let's meet with this High Lord. Then, we will contact help." Dmitri waited to be lead.

[Delta Eridanus]

Rowan took the lead, heading away from the ships and up towards fresh air.

When they reached the surface, Dmitri's ears were assaulted with many new sounds. most of those sounds were sorted out rather quickly by the translator, turning it into normal city chatter.

They had surfaced in Lupercal Square, named after Horus Lupercal, the original Lord of House Lupercal. Cadians were all around them, some browsing wares, a few watching a bard play a ballad.

Sons of the river
We will not fall
Under these blows
]For our hearts they are hardy
And our spirits are strong!

[The V O I D]

Euphemia lay with Lyson, clutching him tightly to her as if he would vanish into thin air if she ever let go. He felt warm. Firm. It was a good feeling, knowing that she was holding onto the man she loved. She began to relax slightly with his warmth spreading through her and her hands started to roam, although always holding him tight and never letting him stray too far from her. She smiled at his question. He was hers and she was his. Always. She would show him that.

"Lyson, the gates of Heaven and Hell could open and you would still be mine." She smiled. "And I would still be yours."

Her lips began to twitch as she imagined how ridiculous their marriage would look to those on the outside. A politically useless princess and a disgraced ex-Admiral marrying? She knew her rank was hollow, his was gone. Well, that would change. When she had a child, and a lineage, her rank would have to be officially recognised...and that would mean she could bring back Lyson's rank. It might take some time but she could do it...whether or not Eris agreed with her.

---

Ophius rubbed her temples as she ran over the collected data she'd downloaded from the infodumps and the basic analyses. She shuddered slightly underneath her dress. It chilled her every time she saw those hives. They were far too large for her to feel comfortable even considering fighting them. A thought sent the reconstruction of the battle flickering up onto the holo, annotations crawling alongside the figures to detail their observed capabilities.

"This is what I'm worried about." She sighed, her brow creasing slightly, "While your battlesuits could probably destroy any group of fighters they come across...well, they have the fighters to simply go around them. Perhaps an extended escort net could stop that, but they'd be spread too thin to hold out against a concerted punch from those capital ships." The holo brought the systemnal map again, various orbital patterns showing up as potential escort nets. "That's where we have our advantage, I think. While the Colma and Florans have their capital ships and their smaller craft, they don't seem to have a huge amount of escorts or cruisers and that's going to limit their force projection ability to their fighters."

She picked up a forkful of Schlange root and grimaced as she started to chew on it, partially because of the taste and partially because the Silver Scythe was being enveloped by the Florans on the holo.

"We're going to need a tight point defence mesh." She said solemnly, "As tight as we can get it."

The Imperator's Might
Capital Dreadnought of All Remnant Fleets
The Taari Armada / Remnant

Lyson held her just as close as she held him, smiling at her as she spoke. Lyson now felt he saw what the Imperator saw, but with Euphemia. Lyson kissed her again, just wanting to stay like this for a while longer. He was happy like this. Lyson slowly, as he held her, fell asleep, comfortably. Lyson would see her when he woke, he knew. But he was tired, and he couldn't help his entrance unto sleep. That was OK, Lyson felt Euphemia also falling asleep as well, so he probably would've had to sleep anyways. Lyson was fast asleep but a few moments later.

"Goodnight, my love.", he muttered as he fell asleep. Lyson relaxed with her in sleep. It was a good day.

---

Displeoa System - Heading Towards Lepota - Between Vryi and Lepota - 61 Hours After Awakening

"This is Admiral Specht of the Displeoa fleet to all nearby vessels. Today, is the day we die for the Imperium. Each of you, has gained much honor for your families and households. The Matyrs of Displeoa will not be forgotten." A few minutes after this speech was made, the Morbid Angel suffered a self-inflicted power core breach which destroyed it entirely. The Undying Light continued firing at the unique bioship, as the other bioships began concentrating fire on it. The Relentless Avenger and the Sacred Light continued holding their positions. Prince Xavier stood silently in his command throne, debating how to aid he all-father.

-------------------------------------------------
Displeoa System - Displeoa Fleet Starbase - 61 Hours After Awakening

"The message has been sent, we are to destroy the starbase immediately and any other sensitive information. All loyalist forces, prepare to hold borders." The intercom spoke.

At this point in the skirmish, about five Ostians were left in the barricade. All around them were the bodies of traitors. But the howling still continued, as there were more traitors left. One of the defenders grunted, "Dammit, it seems like all the people we've fought so far were the non-experienced soldiers. I didn't recognize one as part of the standard crew."

"Forward, this life may be painful. But the all-father promises salvation!" One of the morass of voices said.

Three of the Ostians looked around them, looking for a firearm which was working or still had ammunition in it. "I think there were 750 personal left in the station, and we know for sure there are 75 soldiers were are still sane."

The fourth wave of traitors surged forward, but as they did, bright green bolts came out of nowhere. The traitors who were hit fell to the floor immediately and one even turned into a pile of green slug all of a sudden. From the upper level of the power core room, came eleven black armored figures grappling down and firing their rifles.

"By the Emperor, its the Black Guard." One of the Ostians muttered.

These black armored figures came down onto the floor and began firing rapidly bolts into the traitors. At the sight of the armored figures, a few of the traitors ran away. Some even fell on their knees and begged for mercy, only to be killed by a bolt to the head. One of the armored figures, had a red color right pauldron, and he walked over to the battered defenders. "Justicar Sigmund Voss of the Lucifer Conclave, 3rd infantry section." The Justicar spoke coldly.

As the Squad Sigma arrived at the Starbase, a large black object decloaked next to the starbase. The sleek black Eligos Class Battlecruiser began a barrage at the seedships, the closet seedships disappeared in the bursts of green plasma.

"This is Provost Alec Frystein of Ostian Inquisition, Lucifer Conclave. We are here to ensure that the starbase destruction is confirmed. After destruction any allied ship is to rally to Fuerein System."

The battlecruiser began deploying its battlesuit teams, 10 battlesuits surged forward intercepting any seedship which survived the barrage.

Disploea System
Xarintine / Lepota / Orbit
61 to 62 Hours After Awakening

Orava was displeased. They had destroyed most of the seedships and weren't allowing the cultists to move. Well, of course they would. What displeased him was how fast they were able to do it. No matter. He decided it was time to show them just how bad it was going to be for them. It was time to press forward and force their retreat. Orava's ship landed within a new Bioship Dreadnought. He smiled as he reformed within it. Orava ordered the new fleet to launch. And so, with that, the new fleet launched from both Xarintine and Lepota.

The fleet wasn't massive, but with the amount of Ostian ships left and with the fact it was running out of superior numbers, it was comparably large. Fifteen Bioships, this time. Including the dreadnought, as well. This new fleet began pressing its attack forward, firing extremely large waves of acid and boarding Infestors. They also unleashed a huge new wave of Biofighters that also pressed forward. It was obvious what the objective was, and it was even more obvious what the Highbreed were doing: pressing forward. Advancing. Trying to force the Ostian Forces to retreat. Orava would save the Cultists, but not infect them. No, he needed them uninfected and alive for what he had planned. And he was going to ensure victory for the Highbreed now. Nothing would stop him, if he had a say in it.

[Spindle]

Euphemia panicked for a moment when she woke up with someone in her bed. Her mind frantically played over the past day's goings on before she remembered and relaxed again. She checked the time and winced slightly. Three in the morning. Not the time to wake Lyson, then. She softly slipped out of the bed, grabbed her portable holo and padded out to another room to go through the tasks she still had left. There were less then she had been expecting, but more than she had been hoping. Still, she needed to get the authorisation signed off for the crate of whisky Eris wanted fast. Her sister had just gone six months without anything to drink, and she needed something strong now. It wasn't what she'd expect from a new mother, but that was her sister.

She signed off the fiche and moved onto the next problem. Check, fill and sign. Check fill and sign. She didn't know how long she spent finishing off the logistics of keeping a staff here, but it felt like at least an hour and a half. She yawned and put the holo down, heading off to the shower to have a quick clean, preferably short enough that it wouldn't wake Lyson. Although the showers here were luxuriously decadent. Actually, she might have another one after Lyson woke up. A much longer one.

---

Ophius looked around the table, at each face.

"I think we can all agree we need to keep the range open." She said, "Although I'd much rather we kept the Golden Scythe behind an escort screen for the first phase of the battle. It'll limit its field of fire, but we can't lose it if we want to get the momentum on our side once we've attrited their wall down."

The holo reset to a diagram of two walls facing each other, with annotation springing up across it. Several lopsided ovals and cones sprang up to demonstrate relative ranges.

"We really need to keep the range at three to four light second for as long as possible, but that's not going to be possible forever. Frankly, I'd be happiest if we took down the Silver Scythe first, so once the range closes down to two light seconds we can shatter their wall with the Golden Scythe, with close support from the Ostians. We and the V.R.A threaten to englobe them and, as long as the Golden Scythe isn't so deep in that it could be caught in the crossfire, we can force them back. Then, we simply regroup at the four light-second mark and start again."

She looked around the table again, looking for any sign of assent, and suddenly realised she was the only woman at the table. She hid a grin at that.

[The United Tributational Territories]

Rowan took the lead, heading away from the ships and up towards fresh air.

When they reached the surface, Dmitri's ears were assaulted with many new sounds. most of those sounds were sorted out rather quickly by the translator, turning it into normal city chatter.

They had surfaced in Lupercal Square, named after Horus Lupercal, the original Lord of House Lupercal. Cadians were all around them, some browsing wares, a few watching a bard play a ballad.

Sons of the river
We will not fall
Under these blows
For our hearts they are hardy
And our spirits are strong!

Dmitri followed Rowan, looking all around him. It had a different atmosphere than any UTT city. It had a different atmosphere than Primsalis. Hell, it had a different atmosphere than anything he had seen, flying cargo ships through space. It was odd, as if he had traveled back in time, but at the same time there were huge skyscrapers in front of him.

"This certainly is different than any Territory I've visited. I've been all over our lands, and I carried cargo to and from Rolm." Dmitri said, looks of wonder in his eyes. Under his breath he muttered, "Yet, this is the weirdest thing I've seen."

[The United Tributational Territories]

Euphemia panicked for a moment when she woke up with someone in her bed. Her mind frantically played over the past day's goings on before she remembered and relaxed again. She checked the time and winced slightly. Three in the morning. Not the time to wake Lyson, then. She softly slipped out of the bed, grabbed her portable holo and padded out to another room to go through the tasks she still had left. There were less then she had been expecting, but more than she had been hoping. Still, she needed to get the authorisation signed off for the crate of whisky Eris wanted fast. Her sister had just gone six months without anything to drink, and she needed something strong now. It wasn't what she'd expect from a new mother, but that was her sister.

She signed off the fiche and moved onto the next problem. Check, fill and sign. Check fill and sign. She didn't know how long she spent finishing off the logistics of keeping a staff here, but it felt like at least an hour and a half. She yawned and put the holo down, heading off to the shower to have a quick clean, preferably short enough that it wouldn't wake Lyson. Although the showers here were luxuriously decadent. Actually, she might have another one after Lyson woke up. A much longer one.

---

Ophius looked around the table, at each face.

"I think we can all agree we need to keep the range open." She said, "Although I'd much rather we kept the Golden Scythe behind an escort screen for the first phase of the battle. It'll limit its field of fire, but we can't lose it if we want to get the momentum on our side once we've attrited their wall down."

The holo reset to a diagram of two walls facing each other, with annotation springing up across it. Several lopsided ovals and cones sprang up to demonstrate relative ranges.

"We really need to keep the range at three to four light second for as long as possible, but that's not going to be possible forever. Frankly, I'd be happiest if we took down the Silver Scythe first, so once the range closes down to two light seconds we can shatter their wall with the Golden Scythe, with close support from the Ostians. We and the V.R.A threaten to englobe them and, as long as the Golden Scythe isn't so deep in that it could be caught in the crossfire, we can force them back. Then, we simply regroup at the four light-second mark and start again."

She looked around the table again, looking for any sign of assent, and suddenly realised she was the only woman at the table. She hid a grin at that.

Shellist nodded and said, "That would seem like a good plan, but watching the invasion back," Shellist took over the holo and played the Silver Scythe cutting through all the ships, "I just don't know if any other weapon can protect that well against the flood."

John said, "We've been working on a fighter ship, and a prototype is out." He put the blueprint for the ship on the holo. "This ship will be the fastest we've ever made, and will not be flown by live pilots. It's a drone, you see, and it comes equipped with every fire weapon we've ever made. It should be able to move around the flood of ships, and even if the Florans manage to take it, there's no one inside. We control it from the bridge, so we can just self-destruct it. We want the Golden Scythe to survive this battle, so I suggest we use your plan, but before going for it produce a shit-load of drone ships that we can use."

[The Dark Brotherhood of Deros]

Euphemia panicked for a moment when she woke up with someone in her bed. Her mind frantically played over the past day's goings on before she remembered and relaxed again. She checked the time and winced slightly. Three in the morning. Not the time to wake Lyson, then. She softly slipped out of the bed, grabbed her portable holo and padded out to another room to go through the tasks she still had left. There were less then she had been expecting, but more than she had been hoping. Still, she needed to get the authorisation signed off for the crate of whisky Eris wanted fast. Her sister had just gone six months without anything to drink, and she needed something strong now. It wasn't what she'd expect from a new mother, but that was her sister.

She signed off the fiche and moved onto the next problem. Check, fill and sign. Check fill and sign. She didn't know how long she spent finishing off the logistics of keeping a staff here, but it felt like at least an hour and a half. She yawned and put the holo down, heading off to the shower to have a quick clean, preferably short enough that it wouldn't wake Lyson. Although the showers here were luxuriously decadent. Actually, she might have another one after Lyson woke up. A much longer one.

---

Ophius looked around the table, at each face.

"I think we can all agree we need to keep the range open." She said, "Although I'd much rather we kept the Golden Scythe behind an escort screen for the first phase of the battle. It'll limit its field of fire, but we can't lose it if we want to get the momentum on our side once we've attrited their wall down."

The holo reset to a diagram of two walls facing each other, with annotation springing up across it. Several lopsided ovals and cones sprang up to demonstrate relative ranges.

"We really need to keep the range at three to four light second for as long as possible, but that's not going to be possible forever. Frankly, I'd be happiest if we took down the Silver Scythe first, so once the range closes down to two light seconds we can shatter their wall with the Golden Scythe, with close support from the Ostians. We and the V.R.A threaten to englobe them and, as long as the Golden Scythe isn't so deep in that it could be caught in the crossfire, we can force them back. Then, we simply regroup at the four light-second mark and start again."

She looked around the table again, looking for any sign of assent, and suddenly realised she was the only woman at the table. She hid a grin at that.

Shellist nodded and said, "That would seem like a good plan, but watching the invasion back," Shellist took over the holo and played the Silver Scythe cutting through all the ships, "I just don't know if any other weapon can protect that well against the flood."

John said, "We've been working on a fighter ship, and a prototype is out." He put the blueprint for the ship on the holo. "This ship will be the fastest we've ever made, and will not be flown by live pilots. It's a drone, you see, and it comes equipped with every fire weapon we've ever made. It should be able to move around the flood of ships, and even if the Florans manage to take it, there's no one inside. We control it from the bridge, so we can just self-destruct it. We want the Golden Scythe to survive this battle, so I suggest we use your plan, but before going for it produce a shit-load of drone ships that we can use."

Hawksin was listening intently. "Just how many drones can you make?" He asked.

[The United Tributational Territories]

Post-impact: 0.2421s

Analysis [Floranmissilewave-00001alpha]

Impacts [hullsector11-13-19-hullsector11-13-22]

Effects minimal [ref:systeminformationtimeframe10seconds]

Tactical impact: High

[Pointdefences=optimal ref:observedmaneuverecmattained]

Recommendation synthesising...

Post-impact: 0.4807s

Recommendation: Azarealspreadsalvoplan19beta [ref:Analysis-missilesvstethers] [ref:Analysis-azarealdetonationradiationtypes]

Secondary recommendation: [Command-boltdetonation-hullsector11-13-19-hullsector11-13-22]

Awaiting confirmation...

Post-impact: 0.9284s

Confirmation recieved.

[Command-Missiles-Azarealspreadsalvoplan19beta1]

[Command-boltdetonation-hullsector11-13-19-hullsector11-13-22]

Ceto felt dull as she sent the command. She didn't want to do this. The margin for error was too tight, there were too many things that could go wrong. But she had no choice. She'd felt those two impacts on her hull-the ship's hull, rather-and knew what they meant. She was already dead. It was just a matter of time now. On her external cameras she could see the tethers dug into her ship's armour like meat hooks. She wanted so badly to rip them apart with her hands for what they were doing to her ship, but she couldn't. So she sat here and waited as the eternally long second ticked by.

Post-impact: 1.0987s

Analysis: [Salvocommencing-salvoplan19beta1]

Missile tubes 1-8, 13-16 discharging.

Post-impact: 1.1449s

Missile tubes 1-8, 13-16 discharging.

Post-impact: 1.1923s

Missile tubes 1-8, 13-16 discharging.

Error [coolant60%capacity]

Salvo status: aborted.

[Analyis-salvoplan19beta1]:

Azareal [26-type32-softwarechange173]

ETI: 2.489s

Ceto felt savage delight spread through her as the twenty-six Azereals speared towards the tethers like diving falcons before each one detonated, the plasma savagely tearing into the tethers like a machete, the burst of gamma- and x- ray radiation heavily ionising the plant matter that remained. Suddenly, Ceto was able to move again.

Unfortunately, the Azereals had detonated too close. A wave of gamma radiation and x-rays tore through the Ophian and two things happened within milliseconds of each other: too fast even for Ceto's mind to fully comprehend.

First, the wave of ionising radiation caused a massive build-up of potential difference in almost all of the circuits on the ship. Most of them were fine, designed as they were to take enemy EMPs and their own share of firepower, but the grav calibrators on the inertial dampeners weren't. Normally that wouldn't be a problem, but a questing tether had torn a hole in its radiation shielding, and the effects of the ionisation were devastating. The entire circuit fused into a single lump of inert metal and the inertial dampeners shut down.

Secondly, the two most starward maneuver engines detonated from the same wave ionisation, their radiation shielding also scragged by the tether, the end of which was still embedded in the ship. The ship results of this would normally have been unnoticeable, save for the need to maneuver with less engines, except the inertial dampeners were currently so much scrap. Ceto heard her body scream as thirty-one gees of acceleration twisted her, shattering bones all the while. The amniotic and the tank were only rated to fifteen gees, which in practice meant nineteen gees. That meant that in reality 'only' twelve gees were slamming into her, a fact which almost certainly saved her life. As the damage reports and lost interlink connections flooded through her mind, Ceto checked on her body with an interior camera, before grimacing. Her left arm was floating away in the amniotic and the rest of her crumpled mess of a body was barely recognisable as Human anymore. A chill brushed along her spine, before she turned back to the battle being fought.

The tethers that were shot by the missiles quickly wilted from the radiation. The tethers that were still left unradiated quickly went back down the planet below. It wasn't over though. The planets began to shoot pod after pod, mirroring the UTT invasion. It was a flood, quickly approaching the ship, and it didn't even seem to dent the amount of greenery on the planets. As the pods got closer and closer, quick ejections occurred, and Ceto could see little green men flying towards the ship, claws raised.

Shellist nodded and said, "That would seem like a good plan, but watching the invasion back," Shellist took over the holo and played the Silver Scythe cutting through all the ships, "I just don't know if any other weapon can protect that well against the flood."

John said, "We've been working on a fighter ship, and a prototype is out." He put the blueprint for the ship on the holo. "This ship will be the fastest we've ever made, and will not be flown by live pilots. It's a drone, you see, and it comes equipped with every fire weapon we've ever made. It should be able to move around the flood of ships, and even if the Florans manage to take it, there's no one inside. We control it from the bridge, so we can just self-destruct it. We want the Golden Scythe to survive this battle, so I suggest we use your plan, but before going for it produce a shit-load of drone ships that we can use."

Hawksin was listening intently. "Just how many drones can you make?" He asked.

Shellist quickly replied, "This is easier than making another Scythe, so we can probably produce 100 every 10 minutes. This isn't just by ourselves though, we took everyone else's' production rates into account. We figure we take an Earth hour to an Earth hour and a half to finish production, and we might just have enough units to combat the flood."

[Spindle]

Post-impact: 6.8291s

Analysis: [Floranmissilewave-00002alpha]

Comprising units: [11928...12053...13932...error, resetting...129...293...424...]

[Pointdefences=suboptimal ref:observedmaneuverecmattained]

Damageassesment:

Starward podlayer inoperable [Excessivedamage-deploymentrails].

Missile tubes 1-8 inoperable [Excessivedamage-supplynetwork].

Countermissile tubes 1-16 inoperable [Excessivedamage-supplynetwork].

Maneuver engines 2-6 inoperable [Excessivedamage-electronics].

EM field generators inoperable [Excessivedamage-electronics].

Inertial compensators inoperable [Excessivedamage-electronics]

Lilithacquiring...Lilithfiring...targetdestroyed...Lilithacquiring...Lilithfiring...targetdestroyed...Lilithacquiring...Lilithfiring...targetdestroyed...

Ceto was beginning to get frightened. Most enemies would try and slow down their attacks after the little stunt she'd just pulled. The Florans were simply coming on, unheeding. It was like trying to fight an ocean.

Actually, you can fight an ocean. An errant part of her mind mumbled, You just need enough heat and they vaporise quite nicely.

Of course, that wasn't especially useful right now.

Her countermissiles were effectively taken out of action, her regular missiles were literally taken out of action, her ship was lame and crippled and her body likewise. Throughout her mind, reports were flooding in of the superstructure giving way and she was counting at least ten crew members dead, their minds gone from her mental radar. Three more would die in the next minute if she couldn't get some way out of this trap. Half of her rear-side maneuver engines were scrap, her fusion bottle and b-space drive were exposed and she didn't have the time to charge for a b-space jump.

Her comm LASER flickered weakly as it sent the data that had been gathered back to Scorpius. It would take twenty minutes to reach him: far too long for any support to receive it before she died, let alone receive it and get units in a position to help her. She was dead whatever happened. Even if, by some miracle, she didn't die here the havoc wrought upon her organs would kill her before she could reach any well-equipped medbay. But she had one last card to play that might just let the crew survive.

The Ophian's six decoys detached and were pushed away by jets of compressed gas, floating through the cold void for several seconds before lighting up. At the same time the full ECM suite of the Ophian activated, dimming her emissions and releasing the cloud of chaff into the nearby void. Ceto spent a brief second in thanks for whoever had decided to go ahead with the sixth-gen ECM suites, before returning to directing the point defences of the decoys and the Ophian as they poured LASER fire and the occasional countermissile into the oncoming wave.

---

Ophius nodded at the plan.

"I think that works. In that case, all that's to hammer out left is the intricacies. Barring any final objections or modifications."

She looked around the table for anyone who did. While the strategy wasn't perfect it was good, and it was a lot better than anything Ophius had been hoping for. If she was being totally honest with herself, the capabilities of the other members had somewhat surprised her. Still, nice surprises were a lot better than nasty surprises, especially when the entirety of Third Fleet was on the line.

[Delta Eridanus]

Rowan took the lead, heading away from the ships and up towards fresh air.

When they reached the surface, Dmitri's ears were assaulted with many new sounds. most of those sounds were sorted out rather quickly by the translator, turning it into normal city chatter.

They had surfaced in Lupercal Square, named after Horus Lupercal, the original Lord of House Lupercal. Cadians were all around them, some browsing wares, a few watching a bard play a ballad.

Sons of the river
We will not fall
Under these blows
For our hearts they are hardy
And our spirits are strong!

Dmitri followed Rowan, looking all around him. It had a different atmosphere than any UTT city. It had a different atmosphere than Primsalis. Hell, it had a different atmosphere than anything he had seen, flying cargo ships through space. It was odd, as if he had traveled back in time, but at the same time there were huge skyscrapers in front of him.

"This certainly is different than any Territory I've visited. I've been all over our lands, and I carried cargo to and from Rolm." Dmitri said, looks of wonder in his eyes. Under his breath he muttered, "Yet, this is the weirdest thing I've seen."

"Unlike most of the civilizations we've seen in the Eridanus Constellation, the Imperium began as a group of city-states banding together for an common peace." Rowan stated. "In fact, the Houses of the Imperium can trace their origins back to one of those city-states."

"For example, House Dayne was originally from Ebonheart, while House Martell was from Daggerfall. The two cities were the most powerful at the time, and also had a fierce rivalry." Ionia added.

"Houses Caridin and Lupercal are a different case, however. They can trace their origins to the city-states of Hyperion and Corinth respectively, but those cities were destroyed in the Great Arcadian War. So, they built new cities upon the ruins: New Hyperion and New Corinth."

[The United Tributational Territories]

Dmitri followed Rowan, looking all around him. It had a different atmosphere than any UTT city. It had a different atmosphere than Primsalis. Hell, it had a different atmosphere than anything he had seen, flying cargo ships through space. It was odd, as if he had traveled back in time, but at the same time there were huge skyscrapers in front of him.

"This certainly is different than any Territory I've visited. I've been all over our lands, and I carried cargo to and from Rolm." Dmitri said, looks of wonder in his eyes. Under his breath he muttered, "Yet, this is the weirdest thing I've seen."

"Unlike most of the civilizations we've seen in the Eridanus Constellation, the Imperium began as a group of city-states banding together for an common peace." Rowan stated. "In fact, the Houses of the Imperium can trace their origins back to one of those city-states."

"For example, House Dayne was originally from Ebonheart, while House Martell was from Daggerfall. The two cities were the most powerful at the time, and also had a fierce rivalry." Ionia added.

"Houses Caridin and Lupercal are a different case, however. They can trace their origins to the city-states of Hyperion and Corinth respectively, but those cities were destroyed in the Great Arcadian War. So, they built new cities upon the ruins: New Hyperion and New Corinth."

Dmitri listened and remarked, "That sounds like Greece, which was an old civilization on Earth. The UTT broke away from the British Empire, which was one of the largest empires in our history, to become its own nation. We then slowly took everything over, and I believe the last remaining nations on Earth are voting to join us as we speak. We spread from there to control the Milky Way, and at the edge of the Star System we met multiple races. We just expanded into the Centauri system, and we are working on more expansions later. Our races seem to work like your houses, at least a bit. Humanity is the ruling race right now, but the Shossok were dominant until recently. I think we've worked out statistics, and it looks like Hylotl will be the ruling race of our future. Which is good, because they love peace. Our government is like a council, and the Emperor is merely the head. He/she gets a vote, and has no more power than that. Each race has their own head, except if that race has an Emperor, and each head gets to voice its concerns for the race. The Emperor is a council member until death, but the others can easily be voted out."

[The United Tributational Territories]

Post-impact: 6.8291s

Analysis: [Floranmissilewave-00002alpha]

Comprising units: [11928...12053...13932...error, resetting...129...293...424...]

[Pointdefences=suboptimal ref:observedmaneuverecmattained]

Damageassesment:

Starward podlayer inoperable [Excessivedamage-deploymentrails].

Missile tubes 1-8 inoperable [Excessivedamage-supplynetwork].

Countermissile tubes 1-16 inoperable [Excessivedamage-supplynetwork].

Maneuver engines 2-6 inoperable [Excessivedamage-electronics].

EM field generators inoperable [Excessivedamage-electronics].

Inertial compensators inoperable [Excessivedamage-electronics]

Lilithacquiring...Lilithfiring...targetdestroyed...Lilithacquiring...Lilithfiring...targetdestroyed...Lilithacquiring...Lilithfiring...targetdestroyed...

Ceto was beginning to get frightened. Most enemies would try and slow down their attacks after the little stunt she'd just pulled. The Florans were simply coming on, unheeding. It was like trying to fight an ocean.

Actually, you can fight an ocean. An errant part of her mind mumbled, You just need enough heat and they vaporise quite nicely.

Of course, that wasn't especially useful right now.

Her countermissiles were effectively taken out of action, her regular missiles were literally taken out of action, her ship was lame and crippled and her body likewise. Throughout her mind, reports were flooding in of the superstructure giving way and she was counting at least ten crew members dead, their minds gone from her mental radar. Three more would die in the next minute if she couldn't get some way out of this trap. Half of her rear-side maneuver engines were scrap, her fusion bottle and b-space drive were exposed and she didn't have the time to charge for a b-space jump.

Her comm LASER flickered weakly as it sent the data that had been gathered back to Scorpius. It would take twenty minutes to reach him: far too long for any support to receive it before she died, let alone receive it and get units in a position to help her. She was dead whatever happened. Even if, by some miracle, she didn't die here the havoc wrought upon her organs would kill her before she could reach any well-equipped medbay. But she had one last card to play that might just let the crew survive.

The Ophian's six decoys detached and were pushed away by jets of compressed gas, floating through the cold void for several seconds before lighting up. At the same time the full ECM suite of the Ophian activated, dimming her emissions and releasing the cloud of chaff into the nearby void. Ceto spent a brief second in thanks for whoever had decided to go ahead with the sixth-gen ECM suites, before returning to directing the point defences of the decoys and the Ophian as they poured LASER fire and the occasional countermissile into the oncoming wave.

As the decoys drifted out, pod waves changed directions for a second to try and get to them. They found quickly they were decoys, and the message was relayed faster than light speed. The Great One was awaking from a quick light nap, and he saw on his monitors that a ship had been trapped. He watched with a sneer as the pods swallowed the ship, but his smile faded once he saw the counter blasts. The ship is putting up a fight... he thought to himself, as he watched the onslaught. He ordered immediate discontinuation of the pods, but had tractor beams keep the ship in place. Reaching out in English, he sent a message.

Who are you, and why are you here? Immediate anssssswersss are required if you wish to live.

Ophius nodded at the plan.

"I think that works. In that case, all that's to hammer out left is the intricacies. Barring any final objections or modifications."

She looked around the table for anyone who did. While the strategy wasn't perfect it was good, and it was a lot better than anything Ophius had been hoping for. If she was being totally honest with herself, the capabilities of the other members had somewhat surprised her. Still, nice surprises were a lot better than nasty surprises, especially when the entirety of Third Fleet was on the line.

Shellist sat back in his chair, taking a sip of the Imperial Wine. John did the same, but he was on his 2nd mug of War Wine. John was known for being quite resilient to alcohol, especially for such a small man. Little hair growths were visible on his face as he took another swig, but the hairs quickly retracted once he was done with the drink.

[Delta Eridanus]

"If that is true, then our governments have much to learn from each other."

Rowan and her company stopped before the bronze gates of the ancient Ironforged Fortress, carved into the mountains of the Magna Hyperia Range. Carved into the gates were ancient Cadian symbols of protection.

"Here we are, the Ironforged Fortress. The home of House Caridin, and the only artifact of old Hyperion still standing."

[The United Tributational Territories]

"If that is true, then our governments have much to learn from each other."

Rowan and her company stopped before the bronze gates of the ancient Ironforged Fortress, carved into the mountains of the Magna Hyperia Range. Carved into the gates were ancient Cadian symbols of protection.

"Here we are, the Ironforged Fortress. The home of House Caridin, and the only artifact of old Hyperion still standing."

OOC: Before you ask, yes the UK is still a canon thing, yes I've been to London, yes I know Buckingham's are gold and these are bronze.

Dmitri looked at the gates, and they reminded him of Buckingham Palace's gates. "So, these are the last surviving relics of your history?"

[Delta Eridanus]

Cadian Gates

(Those are what the gates look like, but they're less extravagant, the entire Fortress is carved into the stone.)

"Pretty much," Rowan stated. "We have digs going on in the outskirts, but these are the only standing relics of New Hyperion before the Great Arcadian War. The gates are, in a strange way, a comment on the Imperium. We never forget the past, but we focus on the future. Hence, our motto: For the glory of a far dawn."

[Korhal IVV]

Fringes of the Orion Arm

Moving through the void of space,red and black, is a Tal'darim fleet, bringing with them legions of hybrids. They warp in the nearest system and assault it without warning, raining hellfire and destruction upon the planets they suprise-attacked, leaving little to no survivors to tell the tale. The hybrids have also enslaved many rogue fleets, pirates, heretics, and many others, using them to strike at a massive scale throughout the edges Orion Arm. Hundreds of thousands were slaughtered in a few days.

The Tal'darim have begun their conquest. Many will die... and many will fall.

Shakuras
"What?!"

"Indeed Executor, the Tal'darim are assaulting the Orion Arm. Their hybrid breeding program has finished and now they are have been ordered by their Master to unleash the hybrids. We can't stand here and let them destroy as much as they want!"

"Ready the Golden Armada. We will not let these heretics do garbage on the galaxy!"