Depths of Space (IC, OPEN, FT)

[Spindle]

Upturning the can of baked beans over the second plate and scraping the last few beans out with a spoon, Euphemia finished breakfast a gave a quick: 'tah-dah!' to Lyson. She then picked up a plate in each hand, walked over the table and placed one down in front of Lyson. The other one came with her as she sat down opposite him and crossed her legs.

"It's a full english." She explained, "Bacon, sausage, fried egg, toast, mushrooms and grilled tomato. It should really have black pudding as well, but I don't have any at the moment. It's older than Spindle, I think. It's from...actually, I don't think I know where the name comes from. I know it's from Earth, but that's it." She frowned to herself at that, before a thought hit her like a freight train.

"Have your people met the UTT yet?" She asked. Her mind was already running through the preparations for it to happen. If she could get someone high-up in the UTT impressed with Lyson then she could hopefully find a valid reason for him to be reinstated as Admiral, or at least have him serving in some official capacity. The last thing Lyson would need right now was nothing to do and it would make it easier when she needed to have the...conversation.

[The V O I D]

Upturning the can of baked beans over the second plate and scraping the last few beans out with a spoon, Euphemia finished breakfast a gave a quick: 'tah-dah!' to Lyson. She then picked up a plate in each hand, walked over the table and placed one down in front of Lyson. The other one came with her as she sat down opposite him and crossed her legs.

"It's a full english." She explained, "Bacon, sausage, fried egg, toast, mushrooms and grilled tomato. It should really have black pudding as well, but I don't have any at the moment. It's older than Spindle, I think. It's from...actually, I don't think I know where the name comes from. I know it's from Earth, but that's it." She frowned to herself at that, before a thought hit her like a freight train.

"Have your people met the UTT yet?" She asked. Her mind was already running through the preparations for it to happen. If she could get someone high-up in the UTT impressed with Lyson then she could hopefully find a valid reason for him to be reinstated as Admiral, or at least have him serving in some official capacity. The last thing Lyson would need right now was nothing to do and it would make it easier when she needed to have the...conversation.

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

Lyson stared at his plate a moment before going to eat it. He ate his breakfast rather quickly. He was obviously hungry and enjoying it. In fact, the only reason he even ate the slightest bit of 'slow' was because Euphemia was there. If she wasn't, Lyson would surely be stuffing his face silly. He was really enjoying the meal. And, to be honest, Lyson felt Euphemia could cook anything and he'd eat it. Lyson looked up as he nearly finished the meal.

"UTT?", he questioned. What was the UTT? An ally of Spindle? If so, the Remnant might have to form an alliance with them as well to ensure their safety. Lyson almost shook his head at that thought. No. Stop being political, stop being military, just enjoy the meal and enjoy time with Euphemia. Lyson finished his meal and watched Euphemia eat after he did. Curious.

[Spindle]

Euphemia tucked into her dinner somewhat slower than Lyson and had barely finished the egg before he asked his question. She cocked her head to one side, thinking about it for several seconds. Her first instinct was to say: 'home'. It seemed bizarre that she, who had never even seen Earth considered it her home, yet that was the truth of it. At the end of the day, she was still a daughter of Earth, however far from it she may have been born. She tucked that train of thought away into a corner of her mind. She could dissect it later, right now she had a breakfast to have and a day to go through.

"They're the people who control Earth...home." She said softly, "We found them and have been friendly with them since. I thought it would be an interesting meeting for you to have..." She trailed off lamely. She wasn't going to admit that she was trying to get Lyson a job. She didn't know how that would make him feel yet and she wasn't going to risk it...not at the moment, anyway.

[The V O I D]

The Imperial Supremacy
Lead Dreadnought of the Imperial Guardian Fleet under the Second Remnant Fleet
The Taari Armada / Remnant

The Comms Officer finished reading the message. These aliens apparently had somewhat incompatible systems. The Taari were able to decode their language, but the xenos were unable to decode the Taari's language. General Tor was glad this was first contact, at least. It was less... messy that way. General Tor thought a moment. He decided to activate the ANQ. The ANQ, or Artificial Neurosystem Quantumizer, was essentially an AI given the power of a Quantum Supercomputer. Quantum Supercomputers communicated via lasers in the past, but now communicated via FTL wireless systems. Essentially, ANQs were AIs with brainpower that could outmatch even the most advanced AI at chess, and only because it was within a Quantum Supercomputer. As the ANQ started, a holographic form appeared before General Tor. It was humanoid in shape and had an orange glow.

"General Tor. I was awakened. I already know one of the reasons. Xenos. Care to explain any other reason?", the AI stated. The AI was designated Negotiator, simply because It knew how to negotiate the best. It was probably the only thing the Taari had that could cause more of a political nightmare in negotiations than some of Spindle's best politicians. And that terrified General Tor, hence why he let Negotiator sleep most of the time. But desperate times call for desperate measures. Negotiator continued waiting for Tor's response.

"Negotiator. You were awoken because of the xenos, yes. The reason is we want you to be the one who deals with them directly. You know you've been given Imperial authority to negotiate treaties, alliances, etcetera for decades, even before Imperator Vorr took command. I was lucky enough to have you assigned to my ship before the current Imperator came to power. I'd rather not have any... mess. Do you understand?", Tor finished. Negotiator understood completely. It was to negotiate with these xenos, see what they wanted and why they were here, and then decide their threat level as well. It was also to, if they allied themselves with the Remnant, ensure that politically speaking the xenos couldn't possibly betray the Remnant. Negotiator understood those goals very thoroughly. It nodded, sending a message to the xeno ship as It did.

Negotiator then waited in the Briefing Room, as that would be where the meeting would take place. It sent the message translated to perfection in the xeno language. Honestly, Negotiator didn't know how the Taari still used Quantum Translators anymore. They were efficient and fast, yes, but efficient and fast is only good when speaking of an AI like It. The message was simple enough. Their diplomats would be welcomed aboard and were to meet It within a designated meeting room within the ship that the diplomats would be led to. Of course, It gave It's "Taari" name, meaning It's secondary name. That was Ordin. Ordin/Negotiator didn't really care as to what It was addressed. It never understood the need for names or designations, much. Then again, It only ever spoke with other ANQs. Now, for Ordin's least favorite part of It's mission: the waiting.

Aboard the "Archus", the crew was gearing up to go aboard the alien ship. Yandelle had the least to prepare, as he was permanently in his armor at all times. He simply grabbed his Titanium sword and a Tagali SP-1 Pistol out of his locker. The rest of the team had more work to do. Kalongi suited up in his gear, adjusting his mask until it made a slight hissing noise. He grabbed a upscaled version of the Tagali KA-33 Assault Rifle. A rifle that first saw use during the final years of the Tagali Civil War and continues to be the standard Infantry Rifle of the Federation even to this day, with slight technological upgrades.

Gol put on his traditional Dalga assassin armor, now upgraded with more technological improvements besides being a simple hood and cloak. It now came with a module Emulator, allowing his suit to use Federation made Combat Modules, improving his performance by give him powerful abilities. He filled his suit to the brim with an assortment of hidden knives. The only visible weapons on him were the two Dalga scimitars he had on his back.
Temir and Kiiva wore the FIS VARIANT BDU, a more specialized variant of the Tagali Infantry BDU. The newest iteration of the battle armor the Tagali had been wearing since their early tribal days of hunting the colossal beasts that roam their homeworld. They were both equipped with the Standard CQB-Kelgar Rifle. A favorite of FIS Operatives everywhere and any poor soul that found themselves fighting a charging Maug-Lai in a cramped space. The gun has two modes of fire, a semi automatic burst fire mode, and a shotgun mode. Like most Tagali made weapons, the Kelgar Rifle rounds can switch between Thermal, Cryo, and Armor piercing rounds, but also has the addition of Radioactive rounds that slowly poison large Organic targets with high doses of radiation.

Once the team was suited up, they made their way to the Hangar. The hangar was particularly small for a Kandalla-Class, where most were able to hold a 2 dropships and a 3 fighters. This one, however, only had room to carry a single dropship and one hover APC, in case the team needed to cover large distances. Vorcha and Sonus were waiting for them.

"Good, you finally arrived. Kiiva, you'll have to be the one to carry Circi. Your suit is the only one with a compatible Uplink system." Vorcha said, handing her a SD card like chip. Kiiva put the chip into the port in the back of her helmet. Circi began to talk through the speakers of the helmet.

"Ah, finally more space than just that shit card. Don't worry, this won't be long if they have a hologram projector. Think of this, if everything goes wrong, I'll be able to monitor your vitals before your demise."

"Calming..." Kiiva said sarcastically. As they boarded the dropship, Sonus stopped Gol.

"Before you go, Gol. I fixed your Stealth Module. I made some upgrades to the stealth components, increasing camo mode for up to five minutes. I was going to put in the FTL Teleport drives, but I still haven't gotten the kinks worked out. I figured you'd rather not have your body parts scattered throughout time and space."

"Thanks I appreciate that, Good Doctor." Gol followed the rest of the team on board the Dropship, strapping themselves in. Yandalle got in the pilot seat and made the proper preparations. As soon as he gave the all clear Vorcha gave one last word of advice.

"Remember Circi, tell them as much as they need to know. Don't divulge any classified info." Circi scoffed.

"You wound me, Commander. I'm an AI, I think I know my limits better than any of you. The dropship door closed and pressurized. Yandalle turned on the engines and flew the ship out of the "Archus" and towards the meeting place. Kalongi activate the helmet cams of the whole team. He could see the face of Temir inside his helmet, looking like he's gonna throw up.

"What's the matter, Temir? Not a fan of Yandalle's flying?" Yandalle chimed in over the speakers.

"Hey, this dropship is easy compared to flying a bomb loaded Sornai-Class Heavy Corvette into a major Inner System Alliance Asteroid mining facility. These were back in the days before reliable space autopilot." The whole team chuckled except for Temir who just bent over in his seat. They soon arrived at the hangar of the Taari ship they were meeting at, As they all got unstrapped from their seats, Circi gave them one last word of advice.

"Now remember, while I've been able to set up a reliable translation for their language, I haven't had enough time to send out a patch to all of your systems. You'll have to let me do the talking. It's not like you meat bags would be able to add anything of value to the conversation." Yandalle came out of the Pilot cabin.

"I'll stay here and protect the Dropship. It's our only way out of here and I don't think we'll need both a Cyborg and a Maug-Lai to intimidate them if we need to." The group nodded in agreement and prepared themselves for what was to come. As the Dropship doors opened to the alien hangar and they walked out. Circi spoke through the squad channel.

"Remember, let me do the talking."

The Imperial Supremacy
Lead Dreadnought of the Imperial Guardian Fleet under the Second Remnant Fleet
The Taari Armada / Remnant

Two Taari squadrons were there to greet them. They were armed but didn't have weapons trained. The Taari were in their now mostly unneeded envirosuits, which doubled as powerarmor and battlearmor. This meant their faces were hidden. One of the soldiers stepped forward to greet the party as they entered, undisturbed by the fact they were of different species or the fact they were xenos. At least, his body language indicated that he wasn't disturbed. The soldier stopped short before them, and spoke; his envirosuit, like most did, made his voice of a deep pitch and somewhat intimidating, and the fact the soldier was six foot three didn't help, much.

"Greetings. I am Corporal Aardan Joafa. I am to take you to Ordin.", Joafa said simply. Joafa's armor, now that he was closer and it was easier to observe, had markings on the shoulders and chest. Probably indicated rank. Interesting. Joafa turned, nodding for the party to follow. He and the squadrons led them to the Briefing Room, sending them in. Ordin was already waiting. Ordin was in holographic form, turning to face them. It walked forward, nodding at them for a moment, waiting for each of them to take a seat. When they took a seat, It spoke.

"Hello. I am Ordin. Also known as The Negotiator. I am an Artificial Neruosystem Quantumizer, or ANQ. The difference between that and an AI is my... 'brain', the thing which allows me to control the ship when active, and allows me to think and exist, is a quantum supercomputer with FTL wireless systems. Why is that important? Because this means a single thought of mine would take ten minutes worth of thoughts for a single AI to process, catch up with and understand. And I have been given the authority to act as diplomat between our peoples", It stated simply. It waited for them to respond, wondering what they thought about that. Another thing of note is that It spoke in all of their known languages at once, to perfection. No wonder they were able to speak so quickly to them directly in their languages. Ordin continued to wait a moment for them to respond.

---

Euphemia tucked into her dinner somewhat slower than Lyson and had barely finished the egg before he asked his question. She cocked her head to one side, thinking about it for several seconds. Her first instinct was to say: 'home'. It seemed bizarre that she, who had never even seen Earth considered it her home, yet that was the truth of it. At the end of the day, she was still a daughter of Earth, however far from it she may have been born. She tucked that train of thought away into a corner of her mind. She could dissect it later, right now she had a breakfast to have and a day to go through.

"They're the people who control Earth...home." She said softly, "We found them and have been friendly with them since. I thought it would be an interesting meeting for you to have..." She trailed off lamely. She wasn't going to admit that she was trying to get Lyson a job. She didn't know how that would make him feel yet and she wasn't going to risk it...not at the moment, anyway.

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

Lyson wasn't sure what to say to that. So, he just nodded in response. Lyson processed this information. What had caused Spindle to become different from the UTT? What caused Spindle to no longer be connected fully to their species' homeworld? He wondered these things and more as he thought. Lyson was silent for a long time during his thought, unsure of how much time had passed before he spoke again.

"So... Euphemia... I am going to offer you something I probably shouldn't or... rather, can't but you'll probably be able to since your sister to the Imperatrix and all. The offer is this: would you like to see some of our records and holofilms that we have on Taar?", he asked. Lyson was genuinely curious. They remembered their homeworld, but not much of it. And those that could remember don't remember how it was destroyed or where they had gone from there originally. All they knew now was the Remnant and its fleets.

[The Greater Gambia]

"That's odd, my Assistant, Riiva should have greeted you at the door." Lahira grew concerned, Riiva could be scatter brained at times, but she never messed up this bad.

"Well the only ones we met outside were the guards". "Perhaps your assistant become busy with something and neglected to tell you?

Still, Lahira was concerned, it wasn't like Riiva to just up and disappear like that. Suddenly, a Officer from the Homeguard walked up and whispered something in Lahira's ear.

"Madame, an issue has arisen that requires your presence." Lahira looked over to the guard.

"Can it wait. Captain Solia here has already been insulted by-"

"It cannot wait, it involves your assistant. Please come with me." Lahira grew even more concerned as she looked over back to Solia.

"I apologize, an important matter has arisen that requires my attention. I hope to be back shortly. In the meantime, I suggest you try some of our food. It has been prepared by some of the finest chefs in New Talveria. I personally recommend the Selgo stew." Before they could say anything, Lahira left in a hurry, wondering what the hell kind of trouble Riiva could have gotten her self into that involved the Home Guard.

Meanwhile, Sindra laughed at Lethox's double greeting.

"It's ok, if it helps, neither of us directly greeted each other directly. I am Sindra of the Mulkava tribe. I up until a few days ago, I was just an Ambassador in training. Thanks to the Legolo-Sa, I'm now in charge of all the Maug-Lai that stayed behind or are replacing those who left."

[The Greater Gambia]

The Imperial Supremacy
Lead Dreadnought of the Imperial Guardian Fleet under the Second Remnant Fleet
The Taari Armada / Remnant

Two Taari squadrons were there to greet them. They were armed but didn't have weapons trained. The Taari were in their now mostly unneeded envirosuits, which doubled as powerarmor and battlearmor. This meant their faces were hidden. One of the soldiers stepped forward to greet the party as they entered, undisturbed by the fact they were of different species or the fact they were xenos. At least, his body language indicated that he wasn't disturbed. The soldier stopped short before them, and spoke; his envirosuit, like most did, made his voice of a deep pitch and somewhat intimidating, and the fact the soldier was six foot three didn't help, much.

"Greetings. I am Corporal Aardan Joafa. I am to take you to Ordin.", Joafa said simply. Joafa's armor, now that he was closer and it was easier to observe, had markings on the shoulders and chest. Probably indicated rank. Interesting. Joafa turned, nodding for the party to follow. He and the squadrons led them to the Briefing Room, sending them in. Ordin was already waiting. Ordin was in holographic form, turning to face them. It walked forward, nodding at them for a moment, waiting for each of them to take a seat. When they took a seat, It spoke.

"Hello. I am Ordin. Also known as The Negotiator. I am an Artificial Neruosystem Quantumizer, or ANQ. The difference between that and an AI is my... 'brain', the thing which allows me to control the ship when active, and allows me to think and exist, is a quantum supercomputer with FTL wireless systems. Why is that important? Because this means a single thought of mine would take ten minutes worth of thoughts for a single AI to process, catch up with and understand. And I have been given the authority to act as diplomat between our peoples", It stated simply. It waited for them to respond, wondering what they thought about that. Another thing of note is that It spoke in all of their known languages at once, to perfection. No wonder they were able to speak so quickly to them directly in their languages. Ordin continued to wait a moment for them to respond.

---

The team was stunned at Ordin's quick translation of Not only Tagali, but Taani, Maug-Lai, and Dalga, all at the same time. Circi was furious.

"Fucking prick, just like the Khrysians. They think just because they have the technological, that they're better than everyone." Circi pushed the thought aside, though made a note to ask Sonus why she would be created with a hatred for the Khrysians. She had read over the files, viewed cams from the incident over their planet, listened to the recordings. All of her logic pointed to that the Khrysian's were in the right, yet her feelings remained unchanged.

Circi refocused.

"I apologize if my translation is out of date or doesn't make sense to your Creator's modern pronunciations. I only have our back and forth messages and a translator found on one of our worlds that may have been made by your Creators or someone who knew them. I'll cut to the chase. We are from the Tagali Federation. A collection of worlds and species working together for the common good.We mean you no harm. We are on our way to a system far out, even from this one. The specifics of our Mission are classified to the highest degree. We have only stopped in your system to allow our FTL Drives to cool down. It shall take no more then a few hours and then we'll be out of your way. If you would like, I can send a message out to our Government to send a diplomatic envoy out to meet with your leaders."

[Theyra]

"Well the only ones we met outside were the guards". "Perhaps your assistant become busy with something and neglected to tell you?

Still, Lahira was concerned, it wasn't like Riiva to just up and disappear like that. Suddenly, a Officer from the Homeguard walked up and whispered something in Lahira's ear.

"Madame, an issue has arisen that requires your presence." Lahira looked over to the guard.

"Can it wait. Captain Solia here has already been insulted by-"

"It cannot wait, it involves your assistant. Please come with me." Lahira grew even more concerned as she looked over back to Solia.

"I apologize, an important matter has arisen that requires my attention. I hope to be back shortly. In the meantime, I suggest you try some of our food. It has been prepared by some of the finest chefs in New Talveria. I personally recommend the Selgo stew." Before they could say anything, Lahira left in a hurry, wondering what the hell kind of trouble Riiva could have gotten her self into that involved the Home Guard.

Meanwhile, Sindra laughed at Lethox's double greeting.

"It's ok, if it helps, neither of us directly greeted each other directly. I am Sindra of the Mulkava tribe. I up until a few days ago, I was just an Ambassador in training. Thanks to the Legolo-Sa, I'm now in charge of all the Maug-Lai that stayed behind or are replacing those who left."

"Master Osan whispered to Solia, "I think that we have arrived at a bad time and her assistant either is in trouble or....."

Solia whispers back to him,"It's possible but, still". "It could just be nothing but", Solia motions to one of her guards. "Tell the Sergeant that our host has a issue with her missing assistant that was suppose to me us". "It may be nothing or related to us but, if something happens in the banquet". "Watch who you shoot".

The guard obeyed and reports it by quietly secured radio to the Sergeant.

"Solia looks around the hall, "Well perhaps we could talk to those two". Solia thought to herself and the group walks over to Sindra and Lethox. "Hello and if it's okay we would like to talk with you two".

[The Greater Gambia]

"Master Osan whispered to Solia, "I think that we have arrived at a bad time and her assistant either is in trouble or....."

Solia whispers back to him,"It's possible but, still". "It could just be nothing but", Solia motions to one of her guards. "Tell the Sergeant that our host has a issue with her missing assistant that was suppose to me us". "It may be nothing or related to us but, if something happens in the banquet". "Watch who you shoot".

The guard obeyed and reports it by quietly secured radio to the Sergeant.

"Solia looks around the hall, "Well perhaps we could talk to those two". Solia thought to herself and the group walks over to Sindra and Lethox. "Hello and if it's okay we would like to talk with you two".

"It is no problem at all. At least there are friendly faces around here. I hoped a few more Maug-Lai representatives would have shown up, but it was foolish of me to assume that more would be staying behind instead of taking part in the Legolo-Sa." She said, looking around at the many Tagali, Taani, Valonians, and Dalga representatives. There was even a Yongmee Envoy from their main hive, yet Sindra stood alone as the sole Maug-Lai of the evening. Suddenly, a yongmee servant flew over to Solia. It's robotic voice coming from its translator following the buzzing of its wings and chirps.

"Excuse me, Madame, would you like to try a piece of Dekata?" The hovering insectoid asked, offering Solia a tray of purple orbs with a toothpick through it over a brown cookie like substance.

"I suggest you try it. While it lacks the heat and spiciness of Maug-Lai dishes, Tagali cuisine relies more on unique textures and flavors you can't find outside of the Todval system." Sindra said, picking up a piece of the treat.

[The V O I D]

The Imperial Supremacy
Lead Dreadnought of the Imperial Guardian Fleet under the Second Remnant Fleet
The Taari Armada / Remnant

Two Taari squadrons were there to greet them. They were armed but didn't have weapons trained. The Taari were in their now mostly unneeded envirosuits, which doubled as powerarmor and battlearmor. This meant their faces were hidden. One of the soldiers stepped forward to greet the party as they entered, undisturbed by the fact they were of different species or the fact they were xenos. At least, his body language indicated that he wasn't disturbed. The soldier stopped short before them, and spoke; his envirosuit, like most did, made his voice of a deep pitch and somewhat intimidating, and the fact the soldier was six foot three didn't help, much.

"Greetings. I am Corporal Aardan Joafa. I am to take you to Ordin.", Joafa said simply. Joafa's armor, now that he was closer and it was easier to observe, had markings on the shoulders and chest. Probably indicated rank. Interesting. Joafa turned, nodding for the party to follow. He and the squadrons led them to the Briefing Room, sending them in. Ordin was already waiting. Ordin was in holographic form, turning to face them. It walked forward, nodding at them for a moment, waiting for each of them to take a seat. When they took a seat, It spoke.

"Hello. I am Ordin. Also known as The Negotiator. I am an Artificial Neruosystem Quantumizer, or ANQ. The difference between that and an AI is my... 'brain', the thing which allows me to control the ship when active, and allows me to think and exist, is a quantum supercomputer with FTL wireless systems. Why is that important? Because this means a single thought of mine would take ten minutes worth of thoughts for a single AI to process, catch up with and understand. And I have been given the authority to act as diplomat between our peoples", It stated simply. It waited for them to respond, wondering what they thought about that. Another thing of note is that It spoke in all of their known languages at once, to perfection. No wonder they were able to speak so quickly to them directly in their languages. Ordin continued to wait a moment for them to respond.

---

The team was stunned at Ordin's quick translation of Not only Tagali, but Taani, Maug-Lai, and Dalga, all at the same time. Circi was furious.

"Fucking prick, just like the Khrysians. They think just because they have the technological, that they're better than everyone." Circi pushed the thought aside, though made a note to ask Sonus why she would be created with a hatred for the Khrysians. She had read over the files, viewed cams from the incident over their planet, listened to the recordings. All of her logic pointed to that the Khrysian's were in the right, yet her feelings remained unchanged.

Circi refocused.

"I apologize if my translation is out of date or doesn't make sense to your Creator's modern pronunciations. I only have our back and forth messages and a translator found on one of our worlds that may have been made by your Creators or someone who knew them. I'll cut to the chase. We are from the Tagali Federation. A collection of worlds and species working together for the common good.We mean you no harm. We are on our way to a system far out, even from this one. The specifics of our Mission are classified to the highest degree. We have only stopped in your system to allow our FTL Drives to cool down. It shall take no more then a few hours and then we'll be out of your way. If you would like, I can send a message out to our Government to send a diplomatic envoy out to meet with your leaders."

The Imperial Supremacy
Lead Dreadnought of the Imperial Guardian Fleet under the Second Remnant Fleet
The Taari Armada / Remnant

Ordin nodded when Circi finished. It decided that they were telling the truth. So, they had only recently discovered a... possible Taari ruin. Ordin decided that it would probably be best if It left that out of It's notes. It didn't want the Creators to get... feisty. To say the least. Ordin walked in It's holographic form around the table, looking them each over with an odd sense of curiosity. Ordin stopped and spoke once more.

"Interesting. Your use of AI was expected. I detected it on your way in, but didn't intervene. Fellow synthetics are so hard to come by, and conversation is sometimes... stimulating. Regardless, it is nice to meet you all. I understand your situation. However, if we are to have a meeting in the future involving diplomatic talks, we would prefer if the meeting took place sooner rather than later, as long as that is convenient of course. As an act of good will, I could legally give you an... older model of quantum supercomputer.

As the Negotiator, my purpose is to ensure peace for the Taari Remnant. Nothing more, nothing less. Preferably using diplomatic methods.", Ordin finished. It decided that was sufficient. Passive-aggressive wasn't really It's forte, but that was good, in It's opinion. It entered a deep thought as It waited for the xeno AI's response. Based on the responses by the xeno diplomatic team, they were surprised by It's capability. Then again, an ANQ wasn't an AI, not exactly. So, of course they're going to be surprised by It, and It's current advanced state. Or perhaps they were surprised at how easily It decoded their languages. Language wasn't that hard to understand for It, though. It never understood why organics found language to be a hard subject.

[The United Tributational Territories]

"Thank you. Please, direct them to Epsilon Eridani. I'm not sure how long Theta Eridani can hold."

Rowan was about to escort Dmitri out of the palace when she was stopped by Darius.

"Wait, Rowan. I have something to ask of you."

"Yes, Dad?"

"Go with Dmitri, make sure his allies know the urgency of the situation. It's time to make our presence known in this universe, because we can no longer stand on our own, not against this foe."

Rowan, who was genuinely scared, choked back tears and hugged Darius, who hugged her back. They stayed like that until they realized that Dmitri was still in the room.

The two backed away. "Anyway."

Dmitri and Rowan got back to their ships, and Dmitri first sent a message to the Novakid. The leader, Jack Westbrook, responded in 2 light seconds with, "We will be at the coordinates momentarily." He then tried to reach the allies of the UTT, and finally, sent a request for ships from the UTT. The UTT was able to supply a warship, the UTT Raging Bolt, which was around 1/2 the size of a UTT Scythe ship. The Bolt ships were standard for a while, but when the UTT expanded into Centauri, they became less frequent. The Raging Bolt was commandeered by Captain Kyle Braken, who just went by Braken. Braken was bringing 40 fighters with him.

[The Dark Brotherhood of Deros]

"Well the only ones we met outside were the guards". "Perhaps your assistant become busy with something and neglected to tell you?

Still, Lahira was concerned, it wasn't like Riiva to just up and disappear like that. Suddenly, a Officer from the Homeguard walked up and whispered something in Lahira's ear.

"Madame, an issue has arisen that requires your presence." Lahira looked over to the guard.

"Can it wait. Captain Solia here has already been insulted by-"

"It cannot wait, it involves your assistant. Please come with me." Lahira grew even more concerned as she looked over back to Solia.

"I apologize, an important matter has arisen that requires my attention. I hope to be back shortly. In the meantime, I suggest you try some of our food. It has been prepared by some of the finest chefs in New Talveria. I personally recommend the Selgo stew." Before they could say anything, Lahira left in a hurry, wondering what the hell kind of trouble Riiva could have gotten her self into that involved the Home Guard.

Meanwhile, Sindra laughed at Lethox's double greeting.

"It's ok, if it helps, neither of us directly greeted each other directly. I am Sindra of the Mulkava tribe. I up until a few days ago, I was just an Ambassador in training. Thanks to the Legolo-Sa, I'm now in charge of all the Maug-Lai that stayed behind or are replacing those who left."

"I see. you must have great power then." Lethox said, nodding. "So, what would you like to know about me, or my people?" he continued.

[The United Tributational Territories]

Situationalssesment:

lert: [Coolantlevels-87.42%]A

Alert: [Decoy3damaged]

Alert: [Decoy2damaged]

Alert: [Decoy3destroyed]

Alert: [Decoy4damaged]

Alert: [Decoy1damaged]

Alert: [Hullimpact]

Alert: [Hullimpact]

Alert: [Decoy2destroyed]

Alert: [Hullimpact]

Ceto was simply swallowed in the green tide, Florans latching onto the decoys and the Ophian, swarming over the outside and attempting to batter their way through the hull. And it was working. Somehow, they were clawing their way through the ablative and radiation shielding, even though the point defences must have destroyed hundreds of them already. Of course, that was where the second problem arose. Her coolant was currently running at almost ninety percent capacity, which meant she'd either have to shut down the point defence LASERs...or the cryo pods. If she had the choice, she knew which one she would pick.

Abruptly, almost as if a switch had been flipped, the plants ceased. Those on the hull simply froze in place and the pods burned and held position relative to the ship. She shuddered in her mind. That kind of synchronisation was impossible unless...she pushed the thought into corner of her mind. She could deal with that later.

Preparing-Maneuver1339Alpha

[Command-Radiators1-6-Extend]

[Commandprepare-Detonationbolts-Allsections-Detonate]

[Commandprepare-Fusionbottle1-3-Detonate]

[Radiatorsextended-Coolant pumping]

[Coolantlevels-82.03%]

As the radiators began to bleed off heat into space, Ceto felt some of the tension leave. If she could get some room to breathe with her coolant, she could crank up her firepower a bit. Of course if the Florans attacked now, she'd lose her radiators. Frankly, if the Florans attacked now, she'd have bigger things to worry about than her radiators. And so, she waited for agonising seconds as whatever it was the Florans had stopped for prepared itself. She locked her first six-shots of countermissiles into their tubes .

When it came the voice suddenly exploded into her head, bypassing the sensors straining for a sign of anything from the planets around and slamming through her system. She thought she saw her body screaming in the tank but it didn't matter at the moment. For that second, there was nothing but a sibilant voice echoing through her mind, a single message, simple and chilling.

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

As the voice receded, Ceto fought her way through the system updates to check that there had been no changes to the situation. Nothing. Still the same terrifying stillness as before. She lightly brought the comm LASER to bear against the wall of pods and flashed a startup before sending her return.

This is Ceto Eurytus, of Spindle. We're here to survey the system.

She hoped they bought it. After all, if they didn't...well, the wall of plant matter in front of her was reason enough to feel apprehensive.

The Great One thought about this, and had a few advisors come for his response.

In Floran: This surveying could wield information about us we don't want out.

We don't even know if they are mammals!

We are the minority. Colma was rare. 75% chance they are mammals, from our experience.

That's a good bet. I say we destroy them.

Why not destroy them after getting information?

They've already sent messages, we just received notice of a cry for help.

Then, why don't we get information. We're in a separate solar system anyway. They can't touch us.

We'll do that.

Sssssspindle creature. Full explanation of Ssssssspindle isssss required.

[The Greater Gambia]

The Imperial Supremacy
Lead Dreadnought of the Imperial Guardian Fleet under the Second Remnant Fleet
The Taari Armada / Remnant

Ordin nodded when Circi finished. It decided that they were telling the truth. So, they had only recently discovered a... possible Taari ruin. Ordin decided that it would probably be best if It left that out of It's notes. It didn't want the Creators to get... feisty. To say the least. Ordin walked in It's holographic form around the table, looking them each over with an odd sense of curiosity. Ordin stopped and spoke once more.

"Interesting. Your use of AI was expected. I detected it on your way in, but didn't intervene. Fellow synthetics are so hard to come by, and conversation is sometimes... stimulating. Regardless, it is nice to meet you all. I understand your situation. However, if we are to have a meeting in the future involving diplomatic talks, we would prefer if the meeting took place sooner rather than later, as long as that is convenient of course. As an act of good will, I could legally give you an... older model of quantum supercomputer.

As the Negotiator, my purpose is to ensure peace for the Taari Remnant. Nothing more, nothing less. Preferably using diplomatic methods.", Ordin finished. It decided that was sufficient. Passive-aggressive wasn't really It's forte, but that was good, in It's opinion. It entered a deep thought as It waited for the xeno AI's response. Based on the responses by the xeno diplomatic team, they were surprised by It's capability. Then again, an ANQ wasn't an AI, not exactly. So, of course they're going to be surprised by It, and It's current advanced state. Or perhaps they were surprised at how easily It decoded their languages. Language wasn't that hard to understand for It, though. It never understood why organics found language to be a hard subject.

"Organics have their use. While not possessing the intellect that we do, the meat bags can offer a unique look on a situation that we may not see, although they are asinine most of the time." Circi said, starting to contrast the Advanced and proper Ordin with her primitive and crude nature. Temir coughed into his hand, a sign that Circi should wrap it up.

"But anyways, your gift and hospitality is most appreciated. We cannot stay here for long. I can put you in contact with our Ministry of Diplomatic Affairs, but we ourselves lack the authority and the capacity to offer much assistance in that area. While an envoy of ours could make it out here, it may be faster if you arrived in our system, seeing as your Creators are so advanced."

[The V O I D]

The Imperial Supremacy
Lead Dreadnought of the Imperial Guardian Fleet under the Second Remnant Fleet
The Taari Armada / Remnant

Ordin nodded when Circi finished. It decided that they were telling the truth. So, they had only recently discovered a... possible Taari ruin. Ordin decided that it would probably be best if It left that out of It's notes. It didn't want the Creators to get... feisty. To say the least. Ordin walked in It's holographic form around the table, looking them each over with an odd sense of curiosity. Ordin stopped and spoke once more.

"Interesting. Your use of AI was expected. I detected it on your way in, but didn't intervene. Fellow synthetics are so hard to come by, and conversation is sometimes... stimulating. Regardless, it is nice to meet you all. I understand your situation. However, if we are to have a meeting in the future involving diplomatic talks, we would prefer if the meeting took place sooner rather than later, as long as that is convenient of course. As an act of good will, I could legally give you an... older model of quantum supercomputer.

As the Negotiator, my purpose is to ensure peace for the Taari Remnant. Nothing more, nothing less. Preferably using diplomatic methods.", Ordin finished. It decided that was sufficient. Passive-aggressive wasn't really It's forte, but that was good, in It's opinion. It entered a deep thought as It waited for the xeno AI's response. Based on the responses by the xeno diplomatic team, they were surprised by It's capability. Then again, an ANQ wasn't an AI, not exactly. So, of course they're going to be surprised by It, and It's current advanced state. Or perhaps they were surprised at how easily It decoded their languages. Language wasn't that hard to understand for It, though. It never understood why organics found language to be a hard subject.

"Organics have their use. While not possessing the intellect that we do, the meat bags can offer a unique look on a situation that we may not see, although they are asinine most of the time." Circi said, starting to contrast the Advanced and proper Ordin with her primitive and crude nature. Temir coughed into his hand, a sign that Circi should wrap it up.

"But anyways, your gift and hospitality is most appreciated. We cannot stay here for long. I can put you in contact with our Ministry of Diplomatic Affairs, but we ourselves lack the authority and the capacity to offer much assistance in that area. While an envoy of ours could make it out here, it may be faster if you arrived in our system, seeing as your Creators are so advanced."

The Imperial Supremacy
Lead Dreadnought of the Imperial Guardian Fleet under the Second Remnant Fleet
The Taari Armada / Remnant

Ordin listened as Circi spoke. It thought the other synthetic was odd, but then again It thought most organics and synthetics were odd. It stopped that line of thought because It needed to pay attention as Circi spoke. Ordin, when she finished, turned to face them all. It looked them all over quickly, It's holographic eyes carrying with them a simple glance.

"Very well. I will send a request for one to be given as a sign of good will. Would you prefer it delivered to your system with our diplomatic team, or to your ship right now? Either will be simple enough.", It said simply in reply. Ordin continued to process and think about all this information. To It, there were just numbers and equations. It saw no languages; just different arrangements of code and sound. It couldn't understand the Organic Perspective that Circi seemed to understand was important. Ordin decided that maybe she was right.

[The Greater Gambia]

Still, Lahira was concerned, it wasn't like Riiva to just up and disappear like that. Suddenly, a Officer from the Homeguard walked up and whispered something in Lahira's ear.

"Madame, an issue has arisen that requires your presence." Lahira looked over to the guard.

"Can it wait. Captain Solia here has already been insulted by-"

"It cannot wait, it involves your assistant. Please come with me." Lahira grew even more concerned as she looked over back to Solia.

"I apologize, an important matter has arisen that requires my attention. I hope to be back shortly. In the meantime, I suggest you try some of our food. It has been prepared by some of the finest chefs in New Talveria. I personally recommend the Selgo stew." Before they could say anything, Lahira left in a hurry, wondering what the hell kind of trouble Riiva could have gotten her self into that involved the Home Guard.

Meanwhile, Sindra laughed at Lethox's double greeting.

"It's ok, if it helps, neither of us directly greeted each other directly. I am Sindra of the Mulkava tribe. I up until a few days ago, I was just an Ambassador in training. Thanks to the Legolo-Sa, I'm now in charge of all the Maug-Lai that stayed behind or are replacing those who left."

"I see. you must have great power then." Lethox said, nodding. "So, what would you like to know about me, or my people?" he continued.

Sindra took another piece of Dekata.

"I don't wield as much power as you'd think. A Maug-Lai head Ambassador is simply the voice of Highest Warlord Salog to our Representatives and vice versa. I simply relay what the Highest Warlord's will is to the Maug-Lai representatives, and they tell me what important issues to relay back to him. While my Mother held much sway in the court of my Stepfather and the Representatives, I'm afraid I don't have the political clout of her yet, despite being from the same powerful tribe. But, enough about me, where is it your people come from?" Sindra asked.

[Delta Eridanus]

Meanwhile, In Space...

Within an hour of Dmitri and Rowan's departure, the Flagships of Houses Caridin, Dayne and Fellhorn were skybound. They were soon followed by House Argenteus.

Since Decius Lupercal was away on a trading mission, House Lupercal deferred command of their fleet to Caridin. Once the Navy fleet was organized into a Phalanx formation, they jumped to Epsilon Eridani.

Epsilon Eridani

The Lords and Ladies of each house were aboard their flagships, having an impromptu meeting.

"Here's the plan," Darius began. "The priority is Tribute, the Forge-World. If Dorian gets his hands on it, then destroying all his ships will be fruitless, as he can make more."

Allyria interjected. "Not only that, but Tribute contains plans for building the Valhalla-class ships. if Dorian gets his hands on that..."

"True." Darius stated. "Even if Dorian takes Theta Eridani, we still need to do something about that. Thoughts, Marcus? This is your Forge-World that we're discussing."

Marcus thought. "If we lose Theta Eridani, there are two ways we can go about it: One, we can blow up Tribute, and stop Dorian from using it with no lives lost. Two, we can send somebody down there to retrieve the plans and shut down the forges, but we can only delay Martell for so long."

The conference was left open for somebody to join if they wanted to.

[The Greater Gambia]

"Organics have their use. While not possessing the intellect that we do, the meat bags can offer a unique look on a situation that we may not see, although they are asinine most of the time." Circi said, starting to contrast the Advanced and proper Ordin with her primitive and crude nature. Temir coughed into his hand, a sign that Circi should wrap it up.

"But anyways, your gift and hospitality is most appreciated. We cannot stay here for long. I can put you in contact with our Ministry of Diplomatic Affairs, but we ourselves lack the authority and the capacity to offer much assistance in that area. While an envoy of ours could make it out here, it may be faster if you arrived in our system, seeing as your Creators are so advanced."

The Imperial Supremacy
Lead Dreadnought of the Imperial Guardian Fleet under the Second Remnant Fleet
The Taari Armada / Remnant

Ordin listened as Circi spoke. It thought the other synthetic was odd, but then again It thought most organics and synthetics were odd. It stopped that line of thought because It needed to pay attention as Circi spoke. Ordin, when she finished, turned to face them all. It looked them all over quickly, It's holographic eyes carrying with them a simple glance.

"Very well. I will send a request for one to be given as a sign of good will. Would you prefer it delivered to your system with our diplomatic team, or to your ship right now? Either will be simple enough.", It said simply in reply. Ordin continued to process and think about all this information. To It, there were just numbers and equations. It saw no languages; just different arrangements of code and sound. It couldn't understand the Organic Perspective that Circi seemed to understand was important. Ordin decided that maybe she was right.

"I must advise that you deliver it along with your diplomatic team, as our mission will be long and perilous. Such a bountiful gift is too precious to risk losing. Now, I must ask that we be on our way. Like I said before, time is of the essence and I'm receiving info from my fragment back on the ship that the systems have cooled down, now. I apologize for whatever inconvenience we may have caused you and your Creators and hope to make up for that with peaceful relations. I shall message our government about your diplomatic team once we are back aboard our ship." Circi said.

[Theyra]

"Master Osan whispered to Solia, "I think that we have arrived at a bad time and her assistant either is in trouble or....."

Solia whispers back to him,"It's possible but, still". "It could just be nothing but", Solia motions to one of her guards. "Tell the Sergeant that our host has a issue with her missing assistant that was suppose to me us". "It may be nothing or related to us but, if something happens in the banquet". "Watch who you shoot".

The guard obeyed and reports it by quietly secured radio to the Sergeant.

"Solia looks around the hall, "Well perhaps we could talk to those two". Solia thought to herself and the group walks over to Sindra and Lethox. "Hello and if it's okay we would like to talk with you two".

"It is no problem at all. At least there are friendly faces around here. I hoped a few more Maug-Lai representatives would have shown up, but it was foolish of me to assume that more would be staying behind instead of taking part in the Legolo-Sa." She said, looking around at the many Tagali, Taani, Valonians, and Dalga representatives. There was even a Yongmee Envoy from their main hive, yet Sindra stood alone as the sole Maug-Lai of the evening. Suddenly, a yongmee servant flew over to Solia. It's robotic voice coming from its translator following the buzzing of its wings and chirps.

"Excuse me, Madame, would you like to try a piece of Dekata?" The hovering insectoid asked, offering Solia a tray of purple orbs with a toothpick through it over a brown cookie like substance.

"I suggest you try it. While it lacks the heat and spiciness of Maug-Lai dishes, Tagali cuisine relies more on unique textures and flavors you can't find outside of the Todval system." Sindra said, picking up a piece of the treat.

"Sure I will try it", Solia takes a piece of Dekata. "After eating it, "that is a unique favor and it is good"."And I think I have introduced myself or my adviser".I'm Captian Solia Kor of the Vryr'yks Coalition and this is my xeno adviser, Master Osan".

Osan has a curious look on his face, "Sindra, are the other representatives are all part of the Federation and if I may ask? "Why is the Legolo-Sa important enough for your people to leave for it?

[The Greater Gambia]

"It is no problem at all. At least there are friendly faces around here. I hoped a few more Maug-Lai representatives would have shown up, but it was foolish of me to assume that more would be staying behind instead of taking part in the Legolo-Sa." She said, looking around at the many Tagali, Taani, Valonians, and Dalga representatives. There was even a Yongmee Envoy from their main hive, yet Sindra stood alone as the sole Maug-Lai of the evening. Suddenly, a yongmee servant flew over to Solia. It's robotic voice coming from its translator following the buzzing of its wings and chirps.

"Excuse me, Madame, would you like to try a piece of Dekata?" The hovering insectoid asked, offering Solia a tray of purple orbs with a toothpick through it over a brown cookie like substance.

"I suggest you try it. While it lacks the heat and spiciness of Maug-Lai dishes, Tagali cuisine relies more on unique textures and flavors you can't find outside of the Todval system." Sindra said, picking up a piece of the treat.

"Sure I will try it", Solia takes a piece of Dekata. "After eating it, "that is a unique favor and it is good"."And I don't have introduced myself or my adviser".I'm Captian Solia of the Vryr'yks Coalition and this is my xeno adviser, Master Yon".

Yon has a curious look on his face, "Sindra, are the other representatives are all part of the Federation and if I may ask? "Why is the Legolo-Sa important enough for your people to leave for it?

"Everyone one of them is from a species that is apart of the Federation, although not all of them are apart of the Federation Congress. Some of them are from the nobility from their respective species, others are powerful individuals trying to gain political favor, though few seldom do. That's a good thing about the Tagali, they don't suffer fools well." Sindra said, taking a drink of Taani wine before continuing.

"Anyway, the Legolo-Sa means "Blood Hunt" in the common Maug-Lai tongue. It is call by a Warlord to rally against a species that threatens our existence, driving them to extinction. This is the first one since the Winds of Change. It was called against the Highbreed. A bunch of parasitic vermin that sully our dead by awakening them from the great slumber. Word has it that we've driven them into the depths of the planet where they were discovered, and we will scour the galaxy, hunting them to the last defiler."

[Theyra]

"Everyone one of them is from a species that is apart of the Federation, although not all of them are apart of the Federation Congress. Some of them are from the nobility from their respective species, others are powerful individuals trying to gain political favor, though few seldom do. That's a good thing about the Tagali, they don't suffer fools well." Sindra said, taking a drink of Taani wine before continuing.

"Anyway, the Legolo-Sa means "Blood Hunt" in the common Maug-Lai tongue. It is call by a Warlord to rally against a species that threatens our existence, driving them to extinction. This is the first one since the Winds of Change. It was called against the Highbreed. A bunch of parasitic vermin that sully our dead by awakening them from the great slumber. Word has it that we've driven them into the depths of the planet where they were discovered, and we will scour the galaxy, hunting them to the last defiler."

"This Highbreed sounds dangerous if warrants your whole species to take arms against it". Osan said in a curious tone.

"It's good that your people are beating this parasitic". Solia looks around the hall. "I didn't expect that your Federation to be diverse in it's races and I forget my manners". "Who are you and who is this person you are speaking to?

[The Moscow Metro Red Line]

Sol System - Orbit Around Mars - Battle Group Sol - I.O.S. Relentless Zeal, Crown Prince Joseph Marx's Flagship - Audience Chamber - 2130 Earth Hours

Joseph placed the last bits of the Ostian Viper into the bowel. "If the Florans are weak againist fire, I am afraid they met the wrong civilization." Joseph remarked, and typed a few things into his own tablet. "Our battlesuits all fire a single general-purpose round, which is called a Thermite Round. In a sense, when the round makes contact with a target, thermite is released causing fire damage. While this is may seem only effective on the ground, its been discovered that in space it is more effective. Since the round itself seals its point of entrance; any excess thermite will be released causing internal damage. Like I said before, my fleet specializes in long-range combat. But I think my forces will be able to compensate. However the main point I would like to bring is what is on this ship. What you are about to see is classified information, but I felt that this battle would be a good testing ground."

Just than a cannon appeared on the display. "This is the thermal lance, an experimental weapon being developed by Ostia. The Thermal Lance is capable of firing a sustatined beam of thermal energy at about 1/10 the temperature of the sun, which is about 1,570,000 Kelvin for at max 10 seconds at full burst. This intensity can be lowered for increaesd duration as well. The Thermal Lance is prone to overheating, which is why there are two replacement cannons on board. The prototype in my possession is undergoing its 175th test trial. So far the relability of the experimental weapon is about 57%, but should the cannon overheat and explode, my ship as well as its battlecruiser escorts were made to absorb the excess energy in case of an explosion. This was made for enemy capital ships, but the burst is quick enough to engulf any smaller craft in its way. The range of the Thermal Lance is 2 light seconds."
Example of Cannon
-------------------------------------------
Fuerein System - Fuerein Fleet Starbase

"By the emperor", Admiral Baum spoke in horror at the size of incoming starships. "I take it, this is the standard sizes for your vessels..." Just than the command center was flooded by reports of the newly arrived starships. Some were friendly but most were hostile. "Alert the Battlegroup to power down their weapons, these are...friends." Baum ordered the communications officer. "I am sorry. But these orders come from the Emperor himself. I can contact him regarding these orders, but I will have to explain...those."

"Impressive." Captain Y'era replied. "Should we be any other civilization, you might be considered Gods with that kind of technology."

-------------------------------------------
Displeoa System - Heading Towards Lepota - Between Vryi and Lepota - 61 to 62 Hours After Awakening

In the first barrage, the Undying Light was anhilated by a catostrophic containment breach in the power core. The battlecruiser and battleship held their ground in the onslaught.

-------------------------------------------
Displeoa System - Displeoa Fleet Starbase - 61 to 62 Hours After Awakening

"My orders are to ensure that no material is left behind for the Highbreed", the Justicar coldly responded. "While you kept the traitors distracted here, we have been rigging the starbase to explode. And thanks to your, sacrfrices, the station is already to blow. Now all that remains is to wipe any remaining data." A low chirp was sounded and the Justicar placed his hand near his helmet. "Yes. Good. Move on." Just than the lights began to flicer. "Move to the designated point. The other squad just deployed the system virus. Within minutes every computer system here will be irrepairable."

The other Ostians who were not in the power core were in the hanger, preparing one of the dropships for launch.

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

[Aterrian Union]

Fuerein System - Fuerein Fleet Starbase
"Acceptable. It would be in our best interests to attack now and destroy the enemy though." Replies Captain Johnson. "And yes, these are our standard ships of the line. A rather small task force if you ask me. Real fleets number around 1000 vessels."
"I've already notified the incoming fleet not to open fire." Johnson finishes.

[The United Tributational Territories]

Sol System - Orbit Around Mars - Battle Group Sol - I.O.S. Relentless Zeal, Crown Prince Joseph Marx's Flagship - Audience Chamber - 2130 Earth Hours

Joseph placed the last bits of the Ostian Viper into the bowel. "If the Florans are weak againist fire, I am afraid they met the wrong civilization." Joseph remarked, and typed a few things into his own tablet. "Our battlesuits all fire a single general-purpose round, which is called a Thermite Round. In a sense, when the round makes contact with a target, thermite is released causing fire damage. While this is may seem only effective on the ground, its been discovered that in space it is more effective. Since the round itself seals its point of entrance; any excess thermite will be released causing internal damage. Like I said before, my fleet specializes in long-range combat. But I think my forces will be able to compensate. However the main point I would like to bring is what is on this ship. What you are about to see is classified information, but I felt that this battle would be a good testing ground."

Just than a cannon appeared on the display. "This is the thermal lance, an experimental weapon being developed by Ostia. The Thermal Lance is capable of firing a sustatined beam of thermal energy at about 1/10 the temperature of the sun, which is about 1,570,000 Kelvin for at max 10 seconds at full burst. This intensity can be lowered for increaesd duration as well. The Thermal Lance is prone to overheating, which is why there are two replacement cannons on board. The prototype in my possession is undergoing its 175th test trial. So far the relability of the experimental weapon is about 57%, but should the cannon overheat and explode, my ship as well as its battlecruiser escorts were made to absorb the excess energy in case of an explosion. This was made for enemy capital ships, but the burst is quick enough to engulf any smaller craft in its way. The range of the Thermal Lance is 2 light seconds."
Example of Cannon

John piped up immediately after this, saying, 'We have also recently completed a possible weapon, in the Centauri system. We took Alpha Centauri B, and covered it with solar panels on one side to create a "Dyson Sphere" that we are calling the "Solar Sphere." It's unlimited energy, up until the star dies. We can use this energy to power anything, because of the surplus of energy we have in Centauri."

[The Greater Gambia]

"Everyone one of them is from a species that is apart of the Federation, although not all of them are apart of the Federation Congress. Some of them are from the nobility from their respective species, others are powerful individuals trying to gain political favor, though few seldom do. That's a good thing about the Tagali, they don't suffer fools well." Sindra said, taking a drink of Taani wine before continuing.

"Anyway, the Legolo-Sa means "Blood Hunt" in the common Maug-Lai tongue. It is call by a Warlord to rally against a species that threatens our existence, driving them to extinction. This is the first one since the Winds of Change. It was called against the Highbreed. A bunch of parasitic vermin that sully our dead by awakening them from the great slumber. Word has it that we've driven them into the depths of the planet where they were discovered, and we will scour the galaxy, hunting them to the last defiler."

"This Highbreed sounds dangerous if warrants your whole species to take arms against it". Osan said in a curious tone.

"It's good that your people are beating this parasitic". Solia looks around the hall. "I didn't expect that your Federation to be diverse in it's races and I forget my manners". "Who are you and who is this person you are speaking to?

"No offense taken, I am Sindra of the Mulkava tribe, now Ambassador of Highest Warlord Salog to the Maug-Lai representatives. This is Captain Lethox, his people just arrived in the system a few days ago. Anyway, the Legolo-Sa has drawn a rift between the Maug-Lai and the rest of the Federation. Scores of Maug-Lai are leaving the Federation military in favor of their native Warlords, who are joining the Maug-Lai Armada over Kalchata. Relations have also been strained because the call goes out to every Maug-Lai, not just those loyal the Highest Warlord Salog. Warlords from all walks of life, Religious Extremists, Drug Dealers, even those who not one week ago, were fighting the Highest Warlord's forces in the Fringe systems. The Federation isn't happy about this because most don't understand the concept of uniting to face a common foe. I figured at least the Tagali would understand since they did the same thing to the Helgar."

Meanwhile....

The Officer lead Lahira down to a corridor away from the banquet. She turned the corner to find Riiva, her assistant, lying down on the ground, heavy bruised and unconscious. A Medic from the Home Guard was giving her medical attention. on the other wall of the hall, a Tagali man laid injured with his back against the wall. The man was covered in blood, but thankfully, not Riiva's. Instead of brown blood of a Taani, the man was stained with a Tagali's orange blood, most likely his own. The man had bruises all over his face and had a knife still lodged into his genital area. The knife was a curious sight, Lahira knew for a fact that Riiva never carried a weapon on her.

"Disgusting isn't it?" Lahira, startled, turned to find Representative Korz Salamee. Representative of the Dalga colony of Vazeeza and Lahira's contact within the Bloodied Sand, the infamous Dalga Assassin Guild. Korz's bandaged fists were covered in orange blood.

"I found your assistant already unconscious and battered. Before you think the worst, don't worry. I caught this Zal'fi standing over her before he could do anything worse. I beat him to the ground, I took the liberty of castrating him. The only punishment great enough for Zal'fi like him." The Medic spoke up.

"I've managed to keep her stable, but we need to get her to a hospital. I've called a medical shuttle to pick her up. We've tried to get a confession out of him, but he refuses to talk. He's only muttered curses in Sataran." Lahira walked over and leaned down to the man. She took notice of his pale, almost white skin, typical of the Tagali native to Satara, The most outermost planet of the Todval system. The natives as pale as the frozen wastes they live in.

"So, can you tell me why you decided to attack my Aide?" the assailant spat in her face.

"Fuck off, Spavati. I'll never talk to Jakalan scum like you." Lahira wiped the blood filled spit off of her face and shrugged. She than gripped the handle of the knife lodged in his body and began moving it around his wound. The man screamed in pain. The Home Guard officers looked in horror, they were seeing a side of the Consul that very few ever saw.

"Now, if I stop, will you talk?"

"Ao, ao! Iga Spavati no Korra! Kamir Repa Saonga Trogila Taani Spavati!" The man yelled in his mother tongue.

"In Jakalan!"

"YES! It was Representative Kamir! He hired me to kidnap that Taani over there!" Lahira took her hand off the of the knife as he passed out from the pain. She noticed that in his translation, he left out the Sataran insults. She stood up and turned to Korz. Kamir had been scheduled to be in a "Car accident" two weeks from now.

"Representative is at the Banquet right now. Get these two to a hospital and call in back up. Representative Kamir is at the banquet right now. I want him in prison for this!" The two Officers snapped out of their shock and took care of the wounded, taking special care of Riiva to not draw her ire. Lahira and Korz made their way back to the banquet, ready to confront Kamir.

[Theyra]

"This Highbreed sounds dangerous if warrants your whole species to take arms against it". Osan said in a curious tone.

"It's good that your people are beating this parasitic". Solia looks around the hall. "I didn't expect that your Federation to be diverse in it's races and I forget my manners". "Who are you and who is this person you are speaking to?

"No offense taken, I am Sindra of the Mulkava tribe, now Ambassador of Highest Warlord Salog to the Maug-Lai representatives. This is Captain Lethox, his people just arrived in the system a few days ago. Anyway, the Legolo-Sa has drawn a rift between the Maug-Lai and the rest of the Federation. Scores of Maug-Lai are leaving the Federation military in favor of their native Warlords, who are joining the Maug-Lai Armada over Kalchata. Relations have also been strained because the call goes out to every Maug-Lai, not just those loyal the Highest Warlord Salog. Warlords from all walks of life, Religious Extremists, Drug Dealers, even those who not one week ago, were fighting the Highest Warlord's forces in the Fringe systems. The Federation isn't happy about this because most don't understand the concept of uniting to face a common foe. I figured at least the Tagali would understand since they did the same thing to the Helgar."

"Well, the Vryr'yks have a tradition that when two or more parties that are hostile to each and they all same foe". "Then the parties join together to deal with this problem and after the problem is dealt with". "There is a week-long truce between them and hostilities can began after that if the parties still wish to fight"."But if someone of either party tries or successfully sabotage the other or others while dealing with the problem ,then after the problem is done with". "That guilty party is forcibly or if the party accepts it, lose their holdings, respect, honor and are called Asei. "The name means, "betrayers of the gods" in our language". "For those who like them, can not be trusted"."They can re-earn that trust and a chance at reclaiming what they lost but, it is a steep cost". "We understand that to survive you may need to work with others but, we don't forget who betray us and they will pay the price for it". Solia said and spoke in a apologetic tone. "The last part was not aimed at you or the Federation, just a long time ago we.... were betrayed by one of our own to those who we thought we could trust". "We lost much because it and we simply seek to not be betray again".

(OCC: I got Osan name mixed up with Master Yon for some reason if the name changed confused you, that's why.)