Scene 1: The Ekkaia: Capital Orbital Station above Hame
Lord Nathaniel Blackroz was scanning through the text of some new document brought from the Ministry Council before the Sages. He peered at the words carefully checking for anything amiss. The grammar was impeccable, “thank ghost for that” he thought, since it indicated that this bill had been written by a competent secretary at least.
Looking up once he made it through the clauses, he saw his fellow sages each seated on their thrones facing each other in a circle beneath the black-silver metal of the chamber dome. Nathaniel said to his reading peers “I think we can approve this without much debate, it does nothing to change the current tax plans our colonists have set up but will streamline our collectors’ ability to get credit back to us.”
“Agreed” three of the other six said, while the others nodded silently. “Then without further ado, let us seal it” Lord Nathaniel said as he placed his signet ring upon the bottom of his document. Once he lifted his finger, his sigil was imprinted upon the paper. The other Sages had done likewise, and they placed their documents to the side.
“Okay” the young Vice Sage Madeline Vulcone piped up from Nathaniel’s left. “We have one more thing to discuss before we break for dinner… I’m sure you all have read the reports of the activity currently occurring in the Gamma and Delta quadrants.”
Each of the sages harrumphed or groaned with disdain for the wars and tribulations facing the denizens of the galactic “North.” “Lord Emmanuel, my grandfather, expressed his wish to begin a new more active period of involvement in interstellar diplomacy. We have a number of Nuncios in several of the larger nations, but we need to do more to support our local initiatives.”
Giliman Tarn, one of the four Outer Sages, spoke up “The Darnellburg waystation is going to be complete in two months, we still haven’t received word of approval for the Twin Eagles Corridor as a waystation, but the public has begun to settle the station and the Karo-Darnell system at large. They can access the corridor from there as is and the average incomes of the settlers speak for themselves. It’s high time we put the port to official use, even with another network.”
“My sentiments exactly Lord Giliman. Especially since our Admiral Kranmar has established the Velorum Annex as a haven for refugees. The network I thought we might proactively establish is an alliance with a Gamma power. The state I have in mind is the Interstellar Empire of Nyte.”
A couple soft hums met the voice of Lord Nathaniel the Chief Sage. “We have a Nuncio stationed in the Empire, he has sent periodic reports to us of a gate system which the Nyteborne are constructing. We think that combined with our own technology, this gate system may well prove an economic boon to us and give us further reach in the galaxy.”
“I would recommend” said Coda Lovol, the Shadow Sage “that we make sure our Nuncio crafts a deal which will be favorable to us in any circumstance. While a gate system would offer us greater access to trade, it might also invite a flood of immigrants to deal with and even worse, exposure to invasion. We’ve been safely nestled in the middle of the Beta Quadrant, but the Twin Eagles and this new gate may offer too many avenues for outside influence.”
“A reasonable point Lady Coda” Lady Madeline “and I agree, the deal should benefit us in all cases. I do have faith our Nuncio will make sure of that.”
Scene 2: Sigma 161 System, Hyperion
The Mind Empire Embassy Suite
The Mind Empire Embassy Suite
The Nuncio Elio Ephron stared at the screen of his personal computer. It had been a long time since he had received any official messages or dictates from the Sage Council. Indeed, the last message he had received was the report that Lord Nathaniel had ascended to Chief Sage after the death of Lord Emmanuel. He guessed that the matters of interior importance on Hame had kept the government busy, but in truth he had done very little in his post so far aside from extend diplomatic formalities to the Nyte government on behalf of the Mind Empire. Now however, he saw an official order given with his name on it from the Vice Sage Madeline Vulcone. He opened it with trepidation.
The text was short but informative, and a link to a video file was included in the message. He opened it to reveal Lady Madeline’s smiling face.
“Good day Elio, I hope this message finds you well. I have been reading over your yearly reports of activity in the Interstellar Empire and I found the reports of their new Gate initiative interesting. As you will be familiar with our own gate technology, I believe you have the skill to represent our interests to the Nyteborne Emperor and his government. You’ll find the pertinent details below, but I have drafted a preliminary agreement to be presented to Emperor Morningstar for the construction of a Super-Gate network between Karo-Darnell on our end and, most likely, Sigma 161 on theirs. My draft of the plan is just that, a draft. I leave it up to your judgement how you wish to craft it, but make sure we get a good deal! Thank you in advance Nuncio, may the Holy Ghost guide you.”
As the video flickered off Elio sat back in his seat with almost a cold sweat. He jumped up when he heard his office door slide open. “Babe what’s up?” It was his mistress Ayanona, whose skin shone golden brown in halls yellow lights. Elio turned to her in his chair and grinned wide “Babe, I have a mission from the Sages.”
“Get out of here.” He said “seriously?”
“Oh I’m serious, or do you want to see the video from Lady Madeline for yourself?”
Ayanona’s eyes went wide at the mention of the Sage by name and she knelt in a holy sign over her chest.
“Relax my love” the ambassador said bidding her to rise “she is not here in person. But she has tasked me with submitting a proposal to the Emperor and his government to build a Star Gate system between the Empires.”
“Really?” Ayanona said curious “What prompted that?”
“I’m not entirely sure, but I think back home people have been moving in a more galactically involved direction, and I think cause I’m out here and we have an established trade agreement with the Nyteborne, it’s up to me to get the Sage’s project started.”
“I see” Ayanona nodded. “I guess that means you’ll be trying to catch an audience with the Emperor or his people then?”
“Exactly, I was just about to begin writing a request to Telemachus for an audience.” As he said it Elio opened a writing program and began typing his header info out. Elio Ephron, Nuncio Extraordinary for the Latin Mind Empire of Hame, etc. to the Interstellar Empire of Nyte… Imperial Reckoning 10th of Fevery, 3943…
As he typed, Elio thought about what type of argument he was going to make to the Interstellar Empire’s government for this gate. Lady Madeline had sent him the allocated funds for the project as well as a blueprint of the gates along with the dates and location of their construction. The Castor shipyards around the gas giant Sputnik. Hopefully the level of sureness about the manner of the construction would assure the Nyteborne government that this project was a reality rather than a nebulous dream of the hierarchs.
He knew he would have to offer them several incentives for the project. He thought he had it and began typing as he heard Ayanona greet a new figure at the doorway. It was Telvar Qornamee, the captain of the ambassador’s guard, the diplomat for the Mallumans, and one of Elios long time friends.
“Oh there you are Telvar!” She said brightly to the Malluman who entered the room. Telvar nodded with an approving hiss as she entered the room stooping through the doorway. “Elio, what are you working on?”
“I received a directive from the Sages, I’m to organize a gate project between us and the Interstellar Empire for the benefit of our nations.”
“By the Holy Ghost” Telvar said with surprise “I did not expect something like that. I was ready to go play racquets, but I can see we have some high-level business to attend to for once.”
“Oh, we will still go play, it’ll just have to wait until I get this message sent.” Elio shrugged.
In about an hour, Jonus Telemachus would receive an invoice from Ambassador Ephron. Upon opening the letter, Telemachus would see the following:
The Matter of the Message
- Code: Select all
From the Office of Elio Ephron,
Nuncio Extraordinary for the Latin Mind Empire of Hame, etc.
Addressed to the office of the Head of Foreign Affairs and Relations for the Interstellar Empire of Nyte, C.O. of Hyperion: Jonus Telemachus, and with respect to the Emperor of the Interstellar Empire of Nyte: Xaiah Morningstar.
This day, the 10th of Fevery, 3943 Imperial Reckoning…
Your excellency,
I have the pleasure of addressing your office with good news from my Heads of State. The Sage Council has authorized the plans for a Super-Gate which, if approved by your government, will bring our star states into a closer communion of commerce and if it is agreeable, true alliance.
While our imperial domain is nestled in the middle of the Beta Quadrant, and yours lies near the meridian of Gamma and Delta, any merchant vessels which choose to utilize the provisions of our trade pact must use a long and winding route around the length of the galaxy to reach you, or else risk their cargo passing through the un-established routes in Delta which has of late been hostile to travelers.
The Sages take inspirations from our local system of gates and beacons which in the last two centuries has been a boon to our domestic revenue and the happiness of our people. We have with our cousins in the Hades Imperium utilized a gate system between their extragalactic holdings and our ports and have so found larger “Super Gates” to be efficient to our cause in establishing commercial links with other powers.
Lady Madeline, the Vice-Chief Sage of the Council and the architect of this project, has sent me the plan details which they wished me to discuss with you and his majesty. We have allocated a portion of the Imperial revenue for this cycle to the completion of the project on our end in a matter of 5 months with help from the manufacturers stationed at the shipyards of Sputnik in the Dominion of Castor, one of our colonial provinces.
The blueprint for the gate itself was sent to me, and you may wish to emulate it in the construction of the gate on your end. If, however, you find yourself un-able to emulate the designs, I have been authorized to approve the council in constructing a paired gate for your use. The only issue will be transporting the gate. One of our commercial Hulk Galleon’s would be hired to transport the gate to you, but it would take 1.43 standard years to transport it to the system of your choice.
If you can construct your own sister gate, we will require its precise orbital coordinates and route around its host star in order to properly align the gates. As to the portal-projection our gate would use, our hyperspace portals are created using processed Red-Matter reactions. We can offer you information on this substance and its operation if the project seems amenable to you.
The Mind Empire’s gate will upon completion be stationed in the Karo-Darnell system. This system is a frontier of ours near to the Castor sextuplet star system. A trade port, the Darnellburg moon, has been completed and was initially built to serve as a waystation for the Twin Eagles trade corridor. The Nyteborne merchants would not only have easy access to the ports of the Mind Empire, but to the beta quadrant due to proximity to the Corridor.
If this project is something the Interstellar Empire desires, and it can be approved, the Sages will be inclined to consider the friendship of the Nyteborne dear and will encourage our Imperial Congress to approve a closer level of interaction. If the commercial interests of the Mind Empire are met, then the populace and the governors will be inclined to support Imperial alliances, be they economic or military.
Please reply as soon as convenient and let me know whether a meeting with you or an audience with his majesty can be arranged to discuss the project further. Do also let me know if any of the terms need clarification.
With respect,
Ambassador Elio Ephron.
