I am hopeful that @OneirosTheWriter will consider lowering the prices on tech teams now that fixes for the current system are going in. I believe they spiked 20pp around the time we started having issues.
It will be another year of using the 2Mt yards for building comets and other frigates and not the new HC as we currently do not have a 2Mt design we want to build.
> Retrieving message from main communications queue...Complete.
> Applying encryption protocol UFPCommon-Beta-X-010...Decrypting...Complete.
> Display message...Translating...Complete.
From: Akayi Kirih, Squire, House Rithe, Arcadian Empire
To: Reng Yanag, Mission Specialist, USS Lightning
Honored Sir,
I have found the new textbooks you forwarded me to be very informative, and have already finished the one on comparative programming. It has kept me busy these days, as I have been put on light duty after a...sparring incident. Please do not worry. I am unhurt. My opponent, however-- Unfortunately, he is of a slightly higher status than I, and his sniveling complaints has caused me to bear the brunt of consequences on this matter.
I have also taken this time to take some videos of my faithful ride, Bloodshot. I mentioned her to you in one of my earlier messages correct? I touched up the pictures using that imaging technique you preferred. I think it makes her look rather alien, though. What do you think?
They're lying to me. They still see me as just a dumb kid. It was easy to spoof the Steward's account and find out the truth though. They said my parents were killed by Myuuozi pirates, but I have proof they weren't even travelling at the time. And isn't it suspicious their accounts were almost drained not soon afterwards? In fact, I found a lot of suspicious transactions the Steward was handling.
[ Attachments ]
I was angry, and I probably shouldn't have taken it out on my sparring partner. But he was an idiot and a bitter-mouth anyway. This isn't what I... I don't think I want this anymore. Do you... What should... What was it like when you decided to apply to Starfleet, Reng-brother?
-Akayi
~~~~~
Yanag Reng was still quietly second guessing himself even he felt as he walked into the ready room of the new captain of the USS Lightning. He was not unfamiliar with Captain th'Vhen, who had smoothly transitioned into the captain's position after over a decade as the Lightning's first officer, and thus was unsurprised at being immediately thrown several quick questions about the current state of the Isolinear computer systems as soon as he sat down.
When he had finished providing the impromptu status update, Yanag was finally able to get to the original purpose of his appointment.
"Sir. During one of our previous missions to the Arcadian Empire, I made a young acquaintance with whom I have been keeping correspondence. Several of his most recent messages, however, have implied...worrying information."
With that, the Indorian placed the thin custom PADD on the table, and waited in silence as the captain quickly reviewed the decrypted messages and files that he had been sent. Finally, th'Vhen looked up from his reading.
"Were these messages sent securely?" the Andorian captain asked, his voice soft but strong.
"Yes. They were doubly encrypted inside a more innocuous cover message," Yanag answered confidently, "using a private algorithm I had developed."
Captain th'Vhen nodded in acknowledgment. He was already familiar with the Indorian specialist's computing skills. However, sometimes, there were other simpler ways for encrypted communications to be discovered than brute force decryption.
"What of your young friend?" th'Vhen asked further. "Do you feel he may be acting recklessly? Putting himself in danger?"
Yanag repressed the impulse to sigh and rub his temples. That was exactly the concern he had. But there was little he could do from light years away, other than to send vague messages advising caution, which he wasn't sure were having any effect at all.
"That is my concern," the Indorian admitted. "I am not familiar with the internal political climate in the Arcadian Empire, or how sensitive is the information he's sending me. However, the tone of his messages are worrying, and I am uncertain how I can help him."
There was a moment of silence in the room. Yanag waited patiently while the captain reread the messages from Kirih and pondered the matter further. At length, th'Vhen spoke up again.
"It would be best if this information is forwarded to Starfleet Intelligence," the captain suggested solemnly. "They would be able to determine its validity, and make use of it. They would also be in a better position to offer further assistance to Squire Kirih than we here on the Lightning, should it become necessary. Perhaps you should also raise the suggestion with your friend?"
"I don't think he would object to that," Yanag replied, already mentally composing his next message to his friend. "However, from my impression, I think what Akayi is really looking for is a way to get out from his situation. But, well, even as a minor, given his position, he can't just run to the Federation embassy to ask for asylum."
"Intelligence can also provide extraction," th'Vhen assured him. "So can the Diplomatic Service, for that matter, if one knows the right contacts."
Yanag nodded slowly in acknowledgment. He wasn't familiar with how the intelligence or diplomatic services worked himself, but he trusted Captain th'Vhen's assessment. And, in fact, didn't one of his former Academy friends mention that she was aiming for the Intelligence service? He would have to double check.
~~~~~
Shem th'Vhen was the XO of the Lightning with the rank of Lt. Cmdr. in 2310. Before that, he was a survivor of USS Polaris. No other XO for Lightning was mentioned since then, so I figured it works out fine if he's held that position since, with a promotion to Cmdr somewhere in there, and now another promotion to captain.
Akayi Kirih will be enlisting in Starfleet (or at least attempting to) sometime this year as part of a previous omake reward. I just need to get him out of Licori space before that.
actually I think we will be fine on that regard and get all of the Mines in the Adrazzi Gulf and Diplo Pushes we need this year. Thanks to the math I did we are okay on that regards since the Admiral position, the 5 mines, and 3 pushes gives us a little over 130 PP that we need to spend out of the 144 PP we currently have left after our latest expenditures.
Edit: Sorry I goofed it will cost 144 PP to get everything so that's all the PP we just had and spent on snakepit if we go this route
There's been surprisingly little discussion on where to send our assigned EC ship.
I suggested putting it on Unity and everyone jumped on that, but there's probably a good case to be made for opening back-channels to the Breen. I mean, if we don't have our EC ship doing that, who will?
There's been surprisingly little discussion on where to send our assigned EC ship.
I suggested putting it on Unity and everyone jumped on that, but there's probably a good case to be made for opening back-channels to the Breen. I mean, if we don't have our EC ship doing that, who will?
That's fair, but I guess ultimately I'm putting more priority on having Sarek help defuse the incoming war so that we don't have to worry about two wars instead of just one.
FYI, but I updated Task Force Beyond to put Min-Jin Lee in charge. I realized she has enough TIR to simply promote her to Rear Admiral. I also squeezed a Blooded Constitution-B out of Ferasa to go to Beyond, making their third ship a Miranda-A.
Reasons for Min-Jee Lee:
As a Rear Admiral, her bonus of +1P will also apply to every flagship in her fleet (at least two; maybe 3), whereas a reroll would not. Also, her SPICE score has Presence 4, Insight 3, Command 3, making her superior to Tomas Meyer for this job.
The sad part is, since we expect Beyond to lose some ground this year, poor Min-Jin gets the dog of an assignment once again.
True, but this time we're not literally setting her up to fail outright, and we are presumably going to heavily reinforce her command once ships are available to do so (if Unity succeeds and after federalization), or redefine her mission into something she can realistically hope to accomplish.
So this is a huge improvement over her situation with the Dawiar!
Second try... I could move the Centaur-B from the Sydraxian Border Zone to Ferasa or Rethelia, then send the Miranda to the SBZ. Then do the same thing with the Centaur-B in the CBZ?
There's been surprisingly little discussion on where to send our assigned EC ship.
I suggested putting it on Unity and everyone jumped on that, but there's probably a good case to be made for opening back-channels to the Breen. I mean, if we don't have our EC ship doing that, who will?
I mean, in all seriousness, I don't think the mission would be offered if it was impossible.
Remember when we needed to open up channels with the Dawiar during the Caitain war? I would expect something like that. Fly to Bolian space, talk to the Breen embassy there, and make some P checks to get them to agree to accept a Federation delegation.
I mean, in all seriousness, I don't think the mission would be offered if it was impossible.
Remember when we needed to open up channels with the Dawiar during the Caitain war? I would expect something like that. Fly to Bolian space, talk to the Breen embassy there, and make some P checks to get them to agree to accept a Federation delegation.
I agree it isn't impossible. I just think it's a big gamble. The situation is very different than with the Dawiar. The Dawiar conflict was the result of a misunderstanding, and we already had an ambassador with them trying to resolve tensions. Plus, the risk was lower because the Dawiar ships were not a match for an Excelsior.
Space is Wide VIII - Dispatches
A/N: Space is Wide VII - Knight of Coin and Cups is delayed due to rising tensions in the coreward region. So, here. We. Go.
From: Sam Jones, Captain, SS Prince of Thebes
To: Office of the Joint Transtellar Affairs Minister, Lamarckia
Subject: Resource Opportunity
Minister, congratulations on your new position. I'm sorry I couldn't make the party in person, working on trade summits at the far end of Federation adjacent space, but I hope that the keg of Andorian Ale I arranged reached you in a timely manner and was enjoyed.
Speaking of which, I have some resources on my hands, and frankly no warehouse space to deal with them. I am a single trader, and glad to have to opportunity to make connections with the neighbours coreward, but I simply am not set up to deal with the surplus from the trades that I've made and facilitated. There are worse things to be than successful though.
I don't know how much news has reached you, but tensions are much higher here now than they were when I was first retained by Starfleet. It looks a lot like the Outer Space Alliance might end up fighting most of the other smaller powers in the entire region by themselves, plus there are signs about the Breen picking a fight with the Romulans.
The whole thing is a mess, but I didn't write you just to vent. Instead, there is an opportunity: Part of that surplus of resources I can't warehouse are raw materials for key starship systems. I have rights to almost enough to, once processed, build a new Patroller-A and I'm offering those resources to you because I don't need a Patroller, I don't even want one. What I want is a pair of new cargo ships, but there isn't a berth free in Federation space able to take a private job and I have obligations that keep me from flying off to Yrillia and hunting around to find a trustworthy work gang. What I thought to do instead was invest the resources with your people, help you establish yourselves faster, and once your were ready, and I had the free time to actually supervise things, then I could get my ships from you or someone else.
As for the ship that you would go looking for, instead of aiming to get a license and build a Patroller-A, I would instead lean in on my own tendencies and suggest a trade. The Caldonians are on the rimward end of the Federation, closer to the Klingons than you are but still fairly close in the grand scheme of things, and the scuttlebutt is that they are looking to start not just mothballing, but scrapping a number of their older ships are part of a long term modernization.
Since I'm attached to a Starfleet task force right now, I was able to check the expected salvage from scrapping those ships. You should be able to trade for at least one of the Escort Frigates they plan to scrap this year, maybe both if you can come up with duranium equivalent to what they would extract recycling the hulls, and use it a training vessel and to provide you with some local response capability.
I know that you're pushing as hard as you can to grow your own capacity - and I know that I argued that just making the attempt would teach you a lot about what you needed to do last we met face to face - but I'm hearing noises from others attached to the task force over here that are making me nervous about things rimward. Look after yourselves, help your neighbours where you can.
Good Luck,
Sam Jones
PS: Please see if you can send me a few tons benner seeds (the you used as toppings on the rolls at dinner) marked as a down payment. A number of the Felis representatives have developed a taste for them, the protein resequencers just aren't making a passable copy and I'm down to the last of my stash.
-0--0-
From: Sam Jones, Captain, SS Prince of Thebes
To: Seung, Han, Captain, United Earth Merchant Spacer Services
Subject: Mostly just an update
Hi Seung!
Before everything else, thanks for getting that keg of Andorian Ale on a ship heading the right direction. I owe you one for that.
So it looks like I might be in the middle of a war again. Fun times.
Instead of worrying about it I've been working on every project I can get my hands on, but there's only so much I can do without someone to poke around on site.
Do you mind checking around for a Yrillian work gang that's reputable for building cargo ships? It's not owning your own Connie, but it looks like Starfleet is going to let those out of their hands once they fly them apart and not a moment sooner, so I've decided to settle for a shipping line.
Who knew I was actually ambitious? Well, besides my first Captain.
I don't suppose you'd be interested in a management position if I actually pull it off?
Here's hoping the professional diplomats can keep a lid on things,
Sam
-0--0-
From: Sam Jones, Captain, SS Prince of Thebes
To: Kate Meechum, Captain, SS Golfito
Subject: Not dead yet
Oh my Captain,
I want this on the record that I am well aware that this is a bad idea, and that I'm going to die young. I'm still going to stay out here in case I can do something to stop this war that everyone seems to have settled on.
That said, the crewman you dropped on me without even an hour's warning has worked out surprisingly well. For doubling the crew compliment on the Prince, he takes up surprisingly little space. Less than I did when you first took me on and I suspect that I'd be down to living on concentrates and things microwaved from the freezer, Starfleet support or no, by this point without Silar to pull some of the maintenance and watch shifts.
Do not do it again.
I promise, regular pings to let you know that I'm not dead or in a prison or something until the current situation has calmed down. Not that you're much better trying to convince the Bolians to open up with more trade.
Wasn't recklessness supposed to decrease as we got older?
Sam
-0--0-
From: Kate Meechum, Captain, SS Golfito
To: Sam Jones, Captain, SS Prince of Thebes
Subject: RE: Not dead yet
>>Do not do it again.<<
Take care of yourself so I don't have to. That includes not flying alone anymore.
>>I promise, regular pings to let you know that I'm not dead or in a prison or something until the current situation has calmed down.<<
That's the absolute minimum I expect and if I find out you automated it instead of actually writing it yourself, you will learn that no one ever outranks their first Captain.
>>Wasn't recklessness supposed to decrease as we got older?<<
You, at least, are still a complete child.
Would people be interested in a long, perhaps multi-part, post on an episode in Yrillian history that helps make sense of several facets of their society? I'm much of the way through writing something, but it keeps growing and will take a fair bit of editing. This is also an unapologetic lefty writing about space communists, so know what you are potentially getting into.
Would people be interested in a long, perhaps multi-part, post on an episode in Yrillian history that helps make sense of several facets of their society? I'm much of the way through writing something, but it keeps growing and will take a fair bit of editing. This is also an unapologetic lefty writing about space communists, so know what you are potentially getting into.
Would people be interested in a long, perhaps multi-part, post on an episode in Yrillian history that helps make sense of several facets of their society? I'm much of the way through writing something, but it keeps growing and will take a fair bit of editing. This is also an unapologetic lefty writing about space communists, so know what you are potentially getting into.
I think that sounds very intriguing. The Yerillians have always been a bit of an enigma as to how they ended up in their current form. Color me interested
I think that sounds very intriguing. The Yerillians have always been a bit of an enigma as to how they ended up in their current form. Color me interested
