| The Treecuu Way |
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Ladon System
Pax Dracon The Treecuu Star Empire didn't maintain formal diplomatic relations with other states. Normally, silent "diplomacy" was maintained through the extensive network of border buoys around the empire, relaying only select messages, mostly warnings to stay away. The Aryyt't probe had forced the leadership to employ a different strategy, and one of the few trained diplomats was on her way to Pax Dracon. Special Emissary Teemas was pleased. During the trip through Drakari space they had been able to receive and analyse broadcasts featuring the general sentiment towards the Treecuu and the annexation of Yim III, a vital part of her mission to determine the most likely Drakari course of action against the Treecuu. Nevertheless, Teemas looked forward to meeting what could be seen as equals in some way, also being capable of FTL. "Your instructions, Emissary?" the captain of the refitted corvette asked Teemas. "What a friendly welcome... Let the computer respond to it. Approach nonchalantly at high speed, then make a hard stop just at the dock." "With pleasure." "Oh, and this isn't one of the subject worlds. Turn off the thrusters at once when we have come to a full stop, we don't want to ruin that port for them. And leave the target acquisition systems off." "Understood." The white, sleek vessel started its approach towards the Ajakis Memorial Starport.
"Looks like they are trying to gauge our reactions, your Majesty," the Emperor's Aide-De-Camp said, "Your recommendation?"
Emperor Julianus VII and his guards calmly watched the Treecu ship come into the hangar, despite the speeds at which it approached. Despite his young age, he was tall even by the standards of his species, standing at three meters in height and clad in black and silver robes, his horns partially covered in ceremonial jewels. "Continue to maintain all sense of decorum, Cassian. Despite their actions on Yim III, they are still guests of the state." "Understood, my liege." The Emperor put on his best youthful and diplomatic smile, his sharp teeth hidden for the most part. The rest of his entourage had polite, if chilly, expressions as the vessel came to a halt. "Greetings, Emissary. Welcome to the Drakari Celestial Imperium. I trust that the voyage here was uneventful?"
HaShalah Monastic Station
Seraphic Order Space A few days ago The star seemed sick. Anat had thought so many times, but, as she watched it out there now, distant and greenish orange, sending out its cocktail of exotic radiations, she wondered why it would not be so. Each star had a birth and a death assigned to it, like all living things, so why couldn't it suffer illness in between? The Architects had called this star HaMuz'hav, the golden one, and it had, at one time, held some great significance in their ancient empire. Though much was forgotten when the Architects left, the memory of HaMuz'hav was strong amongst the Possessions, such that great effort was expended to extend their territory out towards it. HaShalah, they called it. The stretching out. And when they finally reached HaMuz'hav, and constructed this orbital monastery? What then? Anat did not know, though she had been there most of her life, thirteen decades of it. Still, she and the other ascetics who called HaShalah home had made the most of it. They meditated on the star, prayed to the Architects and sought the wisdom of the universe. HaShalah was equipped with some of the Architect's most advanced monitoring equipment, after all, and even if they only understood less than half of the results it displayed and learned nothing more about the strange, sickly star, still they had learned a great deal about other things. Of course, the universe had only so many secrets and one could get bored of just listening. She watched HaMuz'hav twinkling in the distance and sighed, before turning away and returning to her station. It was her watch on the machine and though it had long since become tedious, still, it was her sacred duty before the Architects and in the name of the Order. She was about to resume her seat when she noticed a light blinking on the machine unlike any she had seen before. Tentatively she reached out and touched it and immediately the machine threw up a holoprojection of an object travelling through space in the vicinity of HaMuz'hav. A second projection threw up lines of data which Anat tried to absorb, though it moved far quicker than she could read it and her ancient Iv'riyt was never all that good. Something about a signal? Another light flashed, then and Anat pressed it reactively, unthinking. A garbled message in some language she did not understand came through the machine's hidden speakers, but, just as quickly, the words became ancient Iv'riyt and Anat began to understand a little. Just a little. When the message was over, Anat knew what she had to do and though she knew that the thought of leaving HaShalah ought to have felt like a betrayal of her vows, still, she could not quite suppress a tiny smile.
Ladon System
Pax Dracon Special Emissary Teemas stepped out of the ship and stood still. Among her own people she was slightly above average in height, but she found herself likely to be the shortest of the people that had gathered in the hangar. Like all mammalian Treecuu, she had a yellow, pebbly skin, but her eyes had a more rare blue colour. She let the black robe she wore on top of a black outfit, made with a complex fabric, drop to the ground. She turned her palms towards the emperor and raised her arms to a position halfway between the legs and her shoulders. She bowed deeply, then she let what must have been a servant pick up the robe and hold it so she could put it back on. This was the traditional Treecuu way of showing you didn't carry weapons and was a formal greeting. As Teemas then came closer to the emperor she put on a friendly smile and finally answered. "As uneventful as one could wish, Emperor. It pleases me that we are already able to understand each other, that bodes well for the future. I am Teemas, Special Emissary, here to serve as the link between our two great empires. The people of Treecuu and their Empire greets you, Emperor."
Mah'se
Seraphic Order Homeworld One week after the probe sighting Anat climbed down from Tik'vah Nish'kach the small, decrepit celestial barque used by the ascetics of HaShalah on the rare occasions when they had cause to leave the station, and stepped down onto the cracked stonework of the Temple Courtyard. There was no one to greet her, indeed no one in sight at all and the only fanfare she received was the soft hiss of her vessel's ion sails as they cooled in the Courtyard's endless, moaning wind. Miles in the distance, she could see the towering edifice of the Temple itself, a monument to the true Temple, HaHeyk'hal, which the Architects brought into being - or tamed, if you listened to the heretical sermons of the Revisionist sect - not that Anat would admit to knowing anything of them. The temple was so sacred that no other construction was was allowed within five miles of it, hence the dessert-like Courtyard, which actually extended fifteen miles radially from the Temple in its center, because why risk it? A similar rule restricted spacecraft and other vehicles, so Anat would have to walk from where she was. The journey from HaShalah had been relatively simple, travelling through the mostly empty systems of the Seraphic Order, stopping only once to refuel at a lonely outpost with no name that Anat could find. She sustained herself with sleep and meditation, only rarely having to check on the controls of the barque as it, like most of the Order's technology, was Architect-made and, other than the fact that it did what she told it, she had little understanding of its workings. The final part of the journey had been into the a atmosphere of Mah'se itself - a journey fraught with peril as the barque wove its way through the cloud of debris encircling the planet, remnants of the stations, ships and machines built by the Architects millennia ago. If the ship developed a failure - as some were known to - the first she would know about it would be her own rapid decompression through a hole in the hull. A practical way to develop faith. Inside the debris cloud, the barque descended through streams of bitter, vaporous wind before levelling out in the gloom of the graveyard world beneath, soaring over populous ruins until reaching the Courtyard. And all the while, Anat had been preparing herself for her audience. Even now, as the dusty miles of the Courtyard stretched out before her, she found herself reciting prayers and scripture to calm herself. There was no way of know how this would go. Afterall, she would be arriving unannounced before HaKohen HaGodol, the High Priest of the Seraphic Order himself. Founder of the Church of the South Pacific [Forum Thread] [Discord], a safe place to discuss spirituality for people of all faiths and none (currently looking for those interested in prayer and/or "home" groups);
And The Silicon Pens [Discord], a writer's group for the South Pacific and beyond! Yahweo usenneo ir varleo, ihraneo jurlaweo hraseu seu, ir jiweveo arladi. Salma 145:8
Somewhere in Sector 13
STRIKE FLEET 501 FLAG SHIP HIMIKO'S REVENGE Fleet Commander Kensei yawned softly as he sat comfortably in the captain's seat of his Flagship, Himiko's Revenge. Looking over at his surveillance officer, Lt. Gimli, Kensei asked, "Anything on our scanners Lieutenant?" "Negative sir, Our sensors aren't picking up anything within a 3 light year radius." replied Gimli. "I see... Keep your eyes peeled though Lieutenant. We don't know if the Treecu might try to do something outside thei-" The Commander didn't have time to finish his sentence when the Lieutenant interrupted him. "Unidentified object detected by our long range scanner. Object is moving faster than light towards our position." "Damn, do we know what kind of FTL method they're using and ETA?" "We have no way of ascertaining their method of travel at this time sir, but we estimate you have half an hour to act before it rips through the fleet." said the ship's AI, Himiko, as she materialized over the small holo display in front of the Captain's seat. "Do we at least know their numbers? And the Origin of the object?" asked the Commander exasperated by the lack of information regarding the Treecu's primary source of FTL travel. "The approach vector suggests that the object is Treecu in origin, and there is only one showing in the scanner" replied the Surveillance officer. "A single vessel? They must be severely underestimating us or they have no idea that we're here... Either way that ship is a danger to our fleet. Get our interdictors to activate gravity wells. Force the object to slow down." "Understood sir the Interdictors will be notified and gravity wells activated within the next 5 minutes. Shall we also broadcast a warning message in open comms?" asked the AI. "If the unknown object turns out to be a ship, then perhaps they can be persuaded to slow down before being ripped out of warp or whatever space they're moving in. But before we can even broadcast a warning have the Xenolinguists deciphered the Treecu language?" he asked eyeing the interdictors on the operational map displayed in front of the Captain's seat. The AI nods and says, "Yes, thanks to our encounters with their unmanned deep space satellites issuing warnings to not breach their so called borders, the Federation has a rudimentary understanding of their language. Communication will be difficult but not impossible." "Excellent, Tell our boys in the communications hub to issue a warning in Treecu and basic Venterran that they are approaching military vessels and will be ripped out of warp/hyperspace/slipspace if they continue their approach at their current speeds."
Command bridge, frigate Taam Yim
Approaching Venterran Strike Fleet 501 "It is rather simple, really. You only need to tell it what you want to do, and the computer figures out how. Even a mammalian child should be able to navigate." Eeract, the captain of the Treecuu frigate smirked. Special Emissary Tiro shook her head. She knew it was classical insectoid humour to make fun of the helpless young mammalian offspring. Where they needed many years, insectoid offspring were basically grown-ups only weeks after hatching. "If it's so easy, what did you do all those years at the Academy?" A notification of an incoming transmission appeared on Eeract's monitor that was mounted to his command seat and interrupted them. Tiro, seated behind Eeract, leaned forward. "They have detected us?" "Apparently." Eeract instructed the computer to display the transmission on the big view screen. The message was clear, even though the grammar was worse than when the avians of Bicaan spoke Treecuu. "Eeract, respond that we will comply and wait for them here. Transmit our diplomatic code." Eeract made the frigate come to a full stop. The colourful warp distortions on the view screen were replaced by millions of tranquil stars.
The Emperor stepped away from his retinue to approach the Emissary, gently extending a taloned hand to her, his red scales shimmering slightly in the bright lighting of the hangar.
"I am glad to hear that, Teemas. On behalf of the whole of the DCI and her people, I, Emperor Julianus, seventh of my name, welcome you in the hopes that peace may flourish between our races. I... apologize for the greeting the orbital defense commanders gave you. They merely desire to protect the cradle of my people with a borderline religious fervor." The young monarch grimaced slightly as he remembered listening to their words. Not exactly a good way to keep the situation calm, he thought. "Regardless, I have no doubt we can learn much from each other. Your method of interstellar travel, in particular, is rather fascinating."
Ladon System
Pax Dracon Just as Teemas was about to grab the emperor's hand there was an unusually powerful electrical spark between them. She ignored it and shook his hand. There was apparently quite a large difference in electrical potential between herself and the emperor. "The single most important technological breakthrough a civilisation can achieve is the ability to travel faster than light. It is intriguing to see how it can be accomplished in ways so fundamentally different. I am looking forward to discussing the differences and similarities between our two civilisations." Teemas reached into one of her pockets. She picked up a sphere with the same diameter as her fist. Its weight and the way it reflected the light suggested it was made of an exotic material. "Emperor, if I may, I would like hand over this small symbol of our new friendship. We call it a Candact Piece. It consists of an almost completely homogeneous atom-level material, but there is a single vacancy defect. It migrates through the material without any outside influence at exactly the same frequency as the pulse radio waves have from our beloved neutron star, Candact - hub of modern Treecuu space flight."
Sector 13, 2 AU from Taam Yim
501 Venterran Strike Fleet, Flag ship, Himiko's Revenge “Commander Kensei, the unknown object has stopped 1 AU* short of our interdictors’ effective range and has transmitted a message stating their compliance and what are believed to be diplomatic codes. They have also requested an audience with the Fleet.” Said Himiko, the Ship’s AI. “I see,” murmured Commander Kensei, “Himiko, get me Lt. Magan on internal comms.” “Understood sir, one moment please.” Responded the AI as she disappeared from the monitor. Shortly afterwards a small display popped up on the Commander’s screen with the Lieutenant in question. “Commander, Communications Officer Lt. Dezrek Magan reporting for duty sir.” said the figure saluting through the display. “At ease Lt.” replied Kensei. “I need you patch a secure line of communications between the Himiko’s Revenge and Forward Unto Dawn. I’d like to speak to Commander Kobayashi in private” “That can be arranged sir, but what about our response to the Treecu message?” asked the Lieutenant. “Don’t worry about it you’ll receive a message from Himiko regarding the response. In the meantime, ensure that no one eavesdrop in the conversation between DSERF 723 Fleet Commander and I.” said Kensei sternly. “Sir” the Lieutenant said as swiftly saluted and disappeared from the display as another one popped up revealing the face of the Commander of the 723rd Deep Space Exploration and Retrieval Fleet. A pale skinned humanoid with black hair and purple eyes. Sneering through the DSERF Commander spoke, “501st Strike Fleet Commander Akira Kensei. What’s an elite commander from the Federation doing so far out in space? Shouldn’t you be pushing pencils back in The Last Hope of Ceres? Or telling off some midlevel captain for recklessly disregarding orders? “I’d appreciate it if you didn’t put me in the same categories as those old fools who abandoned us during the Wako system incident,” replied the Commander in a no-nonsense manner Izana smiled, “Right, I forgot you hated those pencil pushers back in High Command. Nonetheless it’s rare to see you contact me just before the rendezvous. Did something happen?” Kensei grimaced, “Yes, there’s a Treecu vessel that claims to be on a diplomatic vessel, stopped 1 AU from the effective field of my interdictors. They’re requesting an audience, but I have no intention of stopping for negotiations.” “And did you want my fleet to interact with them instead?” asked Izana. “Negative, I’m contacting you because I’m appointing you Rear Admiral of the combined=” said Akira before he was interrupted. “Hold on! We’re equal ranks, I don’t recall subordinating myself to you Kensei. Or did the Higher ups order that.” Said Izana coldly. Kensei sighed as he replied, “Let me finish, Izana. You’re not my subordinate with the appointment, this will only distinguish us from each other. You will also take charge of the rest of the fleet and chart a course to the target planet. While I deal with these diplomats. I’ll be taking my ship, the Assault Carrier, Himiko’s Revenge, her Carrier complement of 10 Estella-C Frigates and an interdictor, the Lockheart.” “Are you sure? As one trained in the diplomatic corp, wouldn’t it be more prudent to have me interact with them instead?” she asked. “No, dispatching you would interfere with my orders to get you to the system. By ensuring that you are protected by the fleet while I ascertain the motives of these Treecu, we can kill two birds with one stone.” Replied Kensei, “Besides, you’re not the only one to receive basic training in diplomacy Izana.” “Fine, I’ll let you deal with the diplomats and accept the appointment to Rear Admiral of the Venterran Combined Exploration Fleet. However, you owe me a drink for relegating me to a subordinate position Akira.” Izana said before she ended the heavily encrypted conversation leaving Kensei’s monitor with a map of the situation. The AI, Himiko, reappeared on the screen and spoke, “Sir, shall we relay a reply to the Treecu?” “No we’ll let them know I will meet them at their current position after we enter slipspace, and Himiko, tell our Xenolinguists to analyze the any response and update your translation software with respect to their language.” Himiko nods, “Understood sir, any other commands you would like to inform the fleet before I transmit your orders?” Akira grins, “Yes, inform all ships under my command that DSERF 723 Fleet Commander Izana Kobayashi has accepted her appointment as rear admiral of this fleet. They are to follow her orders and escort her to the designated planet. The interdictor Lockheart will still remain under my direct command in addition to our complement and will sortie with us to the Treecu vessel.” ______________________________________________________________________________ A short period later in Slipspace** “Himiko, open comms and relay the following message to the Treecu.” Said Akira as he continued, “Attention, Treecu vessel, Taam Yim. The Assault Carrier Himiko’s Revenge and Interdictor Lockheart has been dispatched to your current position. If you have business with the Venterran Federation, the Captain of the Himiko’s Revenge is willing to listen to your message while enroute to your position.” ___________________________________________________________________________ *AU= Astronomical Unit, the distance between Earth and Sun **Slipspace |
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