[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/CVeHk1g.jpg[/img][/center] [b]--=AIS Plainsight, Equatorial Free Region, Bastion, Bastion.[/b] AIS Plainsight was named entirely in the dumbest way possible but no doubt the most accurate, it was simply an AIS Installation in plain sight, after all. Even though Bastion was the nexus of the military, it still held areas of beauty, and whilst general tourist traffic was not exactly as high as say, Tyralene or New Vegas, it was still a planet with a diversified economy - Bastion still had bills to pay, after all. That said, the overwhelming number of visitors to the equatorial tropical regions tended to be military on leave, but posing as a tourist was one of the the easiest ways to begin going incognito on Bastion, so Plainsight had been built. Most of it operated as a tourist resort, but it had so much behind and below it that even people in the know weren't quite sure how big it was. It was also currently rotating as the planetary side HQ for this half of the year, considering some genius had come up with the idea of rotating senior authority of the AIS through different installations planet side for a few years - it half smelled of a trap to draw the curious out, but one could never really know. That was the game after all. C3 didn't think about it all too much, to most with the clearance, they were still just a number, and to everyone else they were long dead and buried. Here, at least, they could fake some relaxation, though truth be told, they might start enjoying it, probably around the time they had to decamp again. Ha.. truth be told. They shook their head, and turned their attention back to winding up today's work. They'd signed off on all the collated reports from around the known galaxy for this quarter, as well as prepared a dozen of their own with appropriate addenda for everything that was known as of, well, an hour ago. This would be going to the Chancellor, for sure, High Command, disseminated amongst fellow C's and a few others, and would no doubt trickle down in some form to just a few more, it was hard work for just a few people to ever see, but it had to be done, and they'd never stop doing it as long as the Federation called for it. They'd even prepared a comprehensive Agdemnar report. At this point, they were relatively certain they had a considerable section of the deployable Pharos assets in system, yet for what purpose was not yet for them to know, everyone only had a piece of the puzzle, though no doubt it would all come together soon. They couldn't hide that many active stealth ships for much longer, that much was known. Other, trivial matters, at least to C3's own mind were also attended to, and so they began to transmit. Data left in seconds, and wheels began to turn again. Truth be told, the game never stopped. [center][img]https://i.imgur.com/GScYCSv.jpg[/img][/center] [b]--=FMIS Triumph, Outer Asteroid Belt, Bastion.[/b] While Galatis Station was the true orbital headquarters of the Unified Navy of Nations, Triumph was often used by the Admiralty to meet and discuss in unofficial capacities, as well as conduct business between each other that High Command didn't strictly disapprove of but often needed to distance itself from. The Starbase Triumph was close enough, yet well obstructed enough to serve that purpose, and was more than outfitted enough to suit the Admiralty from Rear to Grand and sometimes even High. However, there was to be no somewhat off the books business, and certainly no unofficial meetings of Admirals of any stripe. High Admiral Cassius Rochester had had quite enough of that for this moment, thank you very much. He had gotten answers, of a sort, from Intelligence - and the Foreign and Defense Ministries had already begun their machinations for the new era, and yet, for all being at the top of High Command meant, his own subordinates were being too much like Intelligence for his own liking. He was one of three of the Triumvirate - the High Admirals who sat on the High Command with other representatives of the armed forces, and sometimes it felt like he didn't even know what anyone was doing. Rounding a corner, his silent but dutiful aide keeping a respectful distance and appearing once again a moment later. He almost couldn't tell that the latest android model was anything other than human. Almost, though he did admit to himself that it had taken a few days of conversation for it to be truly apparent. Yes, by all means, they could think, to some extent feel and express the correct emotional responses, but it was programmed, and eventually, you noticed it. That said, they were invaluable - a human could eventually be broken. Any android assistants assigned to the military deleted their memory cores the moment they got too far from their charges, or upon any order, coded or otherwise, delivered electronically or audibly. That he could talk classified matters with at least one entity at nearly all times had done him good, that much he knew. He didn't slow down as he remotely keyed open the conference room doors for the Triumph's main conference room. He knew there would be two occupants, and he had been here himself before, so he took no time to appreciate the view or acknowledge the two present, simply taking the seat at the head of the table - neither present possessing the rank and thankfully the violation of protocol to of done so themselves. He watched their faces as they looked at him, he had not been expected. Good. He took a moment to get comfortable, then began to speak. "Admiral Piazza, Vice Admiral Laurent, you both have some explaining to do, don't you think?" Martina Piazza looked at Cassius, raising an eyebrow. For a moment, she lingered, then turned to her counterpart. "It is as you say, High Admiral, though I would have to inquire as to what specific matter you are referring to?" Francois Laurent said, his earther french accent thick. He was speaking Standard English, so ever prevalent automatic translation had done nothing to ease that. "Well, Francois, I would very much like to know why we have deployed a considerable portion of Pharos assets to Agdemnar far beyond the official order of, and I stress, [i]one escort[/i]. Though of course, I did perhaps give you the implication of much freedom in my personal communications with you regarding the subject, I would very much like to know, when the Chancellor inquires, as to why [i]one[/i] has become, I believe, [i]thirteen[/i]." Cassius asked, he had of course not let even the tiniest bit of respect for getting so many stealth ships into the system in just a few resupply runs for the Hermione come into it, but it was there, in the back of his mind. "The Hermione's safety is of course, of paramount concern - and the AIS convinced the Ministry of Defence to upgrade Agdemnar information gathering priorities to a scope that could not be accomplished by the Hermione, respectfully, at all, let alone with a singular Pharos, High Admiral. Regretfully, as per protocol, plausible deniability was key and I acted unilaterally in this regard." Francois responded, simply, matter of factly. "That may very well be the case, however, in the future, all deployments of critical assets to the Unified Navy, which the Pharos programme is very much part of, are not to be taken unilaterally, at least one of the Triumvirate is to be informed at all times so that way we may all be informed and, more importantly, I do not have to cram myself into a stealth shuttle to come and berate one of my better Intelligence liasing Admiralty Members in person, and that is very much an order. Am I clear?" Francois nodded "Yes, High Admiral." He turned his focus to Martina. "And of course, you are to immediately explain to me a very simple matter, Where in the heavens is the 12th Fleet?" He asked, letting a small amount of exasperation come forth. "The 12th Fleet is currently on location or en route to a rendezvous point of my choosing, High Admiral, as you know we recently received clearance to conduct deep space war games near the main trade routes towards Rolvian territory - as we know they would not view such a thing as threatening if they detected it prior to them being fully informed, as well as given the 12th Fleets requirement to react to incursions in that area." She said, almost convincingly. "Admiral Piazza, You know full well that the 12th Fleet is nowhere near the Rolvian routes, though given latest reports, I would very much like it to be. That is also an order, from the entire Triumvirate." He avoided that Agdenmar could wait ending for that sentence. High Admiral Lieng had taken long enough to let him in on that plan - and he and the Chancellor had both decided it was too early. Lieng of course couldn't recall Piazza personally, and Cassius had had to wait until she met with Laurent. Martina nodded knowingly. "The 12th Fleet will be in position within three days, High Admiral. War games will commence shortly after, of course." "Hold off on the war games, Admiral, there's an intelligence packet waiting for you on your Command Ship from my staff, you'll understand why. Maybe you could have a little.. chat with the Vice Admiral here about getting more intelligence, if it so suits you." Cassius responded. With that, he rose - this was, after all, still off the books, so neither of them were required nor wanted to observe protocol, and remained seated, both simply inclining their heads. With that, he departed. [b]--=Office of the Chancellor, Courelene, Horizon, Tau Ceti.[/b] Alanna had done something that no recent Chancellor had done and secured a full council assent for a foreign policy matter, and it had been exhausting. She had received information and had to act on it, and everyone had been consistently convinced or so believed that the Treaty had been so harmful to whatever interest group that they were serving that they ready to tear it up even without good cause. Yet they had still required hours of debate, discussion and nearly outright argument. She had wanted to rest and consider, for a moment, before making fact what had been made law a few hours ago, though she knew that the Foreign Ministry would have just about finished informing all its ambassadors just about now, and she would have to inform the Assembly and the nation soon. She read the last reports as they came in, and signed off on a thing or two here and there. There was, however, one small matter to attend to before she faced the podium. [hider=From Horizon, with Love to Rolvius] [@Aleranicus] Most Esteemed Prime Speaker, Vannifar Your point is well taken, but is not all life lost in the pursuit of its restoration worth noting, mourning, and offering recompense for? That my be purely my own belief, but my offer comes from such a place, and has little to do with blame. Nature is, after all, its own beast. In regards to your inquiry, as of my last information from the ministries concerned, the Rolvian breeding pairs have meshed well with surviving captive natives, as well as re-introduced off world variant species. There have been no pressing issues although notably, Rolvian derived offspring have proven to be slightly above baseline intelligence recorded for the species. However, there is no issue with this and I have been informed is most likely a quirk of introducing slightly divergent genomes back together. Once a sustainable free-roaming population is once again ascertained, the Republic is more than welcome to host a breeding pair on one of its own worlds. Elephants have historically also been, to a degree, domesticated, though not without risks, if such a thing interests you. We are of course familiar with Manir and its, shall we say, eccentricities with foreign populations, though we have no legal issues in this regard. We of course cannot take responsibility for their settlement, though all and any children born to them do remain Federation citizens irrespective of if they remain, potentially in a situation as Rolvian citizens or are returned to the Federation. I am informed that the Ministry of Justice is happy to send an investigation team with whom we would of course happily invite any liason and the Unified Navy possess a number of unarmed vessels capable of undertaking the engineering work necessary in regards to the wreck so that it may be fully investigated and reviewed, as well as transporting the team at your earliest convenience. Of course, our vessel will request a customary Rolvian armed escort once inside Rolvian territory for the purposes of safety and protocol. Whilst we view Rolvian territory as secure, piracy is a scourge that one never seems able to fully eliminate no matter where one goes. Doctor Foia's disappearance concerns me on a personal level. Maya is a recently incorporated colony, from what I understand. If Federation control hasn't fully extended there, that is understandable. But the safety of my citizens is of the foremost concern to me. The Amazon project is going to require dozens of specialists with no security training be present on Terra. I fully intend for that project to continue with your blessing, but understand- the Rolvian government is monitoring this situation closely. It is my hope that she will be found alive. And quickly. From what I now understand, the local administration did not file the Doctor's missing persons report as priority, this has been rectified given the amount of time she is now missing. However, a full investigation is now underway - given my own distance from Maya, my updates on this are not as immediate as they would otherwise be, and I will of course keep you or chosen representatives informed. I must however stress that the difference between the Fringe colonies of the Federation and its core worlds is stark. In particular, Earth is a cosmopolitan world and, I believe, the richest in the Federation. While I am of course understanding of your concerns, Earth has one of the lowest crime rates in the Federation - though of course we do not know the motive, if any is extant, behind the disappearance of Doctor Foia, or even if any Federation citizen is complicit in her possible disappearance. While I may seem overeager to assuage your fears, it is an important project and an important distinction to be made. As a Terra Novan, even I begrudgingly must admit Earth is a premier world in the Federation, with few dangers beyond accidental. I would even recommend you take the time to visit one day, if not Horizon, Terra Nova, or even Chiron or Trident. There is however one major matter and one small matter I must inform you of, though you may be so informed by the time this missive arrives, though we are relaying such messages domestically to the nearest ansible before transmitting onwards to yourself. Within a short time of this communication being sent, I will be withdrawing the Federation of Nations from the Treaty of Madrigsa, commonly known as the Treaty of Detente. Given the unilateral withdrawl of at least one nation so far without contest, and the limitations it imposes upon us in regards to opposing nations who will soon withdraw who are arguably, not conducive to peace, we feel it is our only choice. You may also note that an entire Federation Fleet will be on station near the main routes that lead between my nation and yours. This is not an aggressive pre-positioning of forces, but a pre-planned positioning for matters of war games training amongst said fleet forces. The Foreign Ministry would of informed you of this previously, but matters lead to a delay in the positioning of the fleet, and consequently I am informing you personally to assuage any fears, given our two nations good relations. Please take all note that we regard the security of the Rolvian Republic as paramount at this current time, and the Federation will answer calls for aid from the Rolvian Republic, should they come, with all appropriate measures. ~ Alanna Decroix, With the Authority of the Office of the Chancellor, Unum Liberum. [/hider] "Are you sure offering them what amounts to a unilateral guarantee of independence right after putting a fleet basically so close they could take observatory photos of it is the best idea?" Mikhail asked, quietly intruding into Alanna's pondering silence. She hit send. "The Rolvian's won't see this as an opportunity to do something stupid without consequence, and I haven't signed a treaty, I won't unless they ask for one. At the end of it all, they aren't going to start a war, but somebody will start one with them. You know they will sooner or later. And you know what? I'm not content to watch them die whilst we ferry around the survivors this time." She responded, daring Mikhail to contest her. "Ever the optimist." He smiled back. "And damnit Mikhail, stop remote accessing my station!" ---------- The Podium was for the Chancellor, the Deputy Chancellor, or the Speaker of the Assembly to address the entire hall. Normally, the Speaker held it during sessions, to hold order, deliver and address protocol, and all other matters such as that. When the Chancellor took it, as she did now, it was to make a statement, a speech, or to confirm that the Referenda had called for war. It was thankfully, not the latter. She wasn't quite sure it was good enough to be the second. It was a statement, and that was that. Half the Assembly already knew. Too many eyes and ears in the Foreign Ministry - but they hadn't told the Media - and the Media would tell everyone else in the Federation, perhaps beyond, if the Foreign Ministry didn't work fast enough. "I stand before the Assembly to deliver a statement regarding a legally binding decision reached by the Federal Council regarding the Foreign Policy of the Federation of Nations at this current time." Some of those not in the know groaned, some mumbled. This was usually boring formality. "The Council has reached full assent on this subject, and as such, the Assembly must follow without contest, and may not call for legal challenge." Nearly all of those not in the know now focused entirely on her. No Federal Council had ever made a decision in full assent in nearly thirty years. "As of 15:00 Horizon Central Standard Time, The Federation of Nations, with all of its constituent member states, colony worlds and territories, officially and unilaterally withdraw from the Treaty of Madrigasa, commonly known as the Treaty of Detente." Some gasps of shock - Silence from the Pacifist and aligned blocs, though a few were nodding - they knew the treaty was dying, and they'd soon have the rest of them in line. Good, she needed their support. Then the applause started, though it only lasted a few seconds - she had not left the podium. "As your Chancellor, I receive information I must act upon in the best interests of us all, for the Federation and the community of nations it represents. As some of you may know, or come to know, the Treaty has come to lose meaning. It was only a matter of time before another would sound its coming end, and this has come to pass. As Chancellor, I listened to the talented people of the Federal Council, our advisors, our ministries and the brave, loyal guardians of our military. There was only one option - we had to withdraw, or we would not be able to protect our grand democracy and all it stands for from those who do not care for peace, for stability, for prosperity. These are three things I promised to uphold in my oath, and in my campaign for the highest office. I also championed fairness, and it most certainly would not be fair for me to limit our stalwart military to the obligations of a treaty no longer followed by those who could someday come to threaten us." Applause. She let it continue, but she had not yet left, so it died back down. "It is my vow that I will continue to stand for this Federation, as we all do. Let our clarion call for peace go out - but let us not be blind to the fact peace must often be, ironically, fought for. We will not stand aside as we once did, content to protect those most at risk but never acting truly in their defence when it matters. The Federation was born out of an ideal of peace for humanity, and by our hard work we have achieved it for many of us. Yet, we are not alone, is only humankind deserving of peace? A foolish question, most assuredly, so we must gird ourselves for action on the behalf of those who are not as fortunate as us, to prepare to protect all whom are requiring of it. That is what the Federation is for, and we shall carry that with us into the stars with dove or sword. Unum Liberum." She stood back from the podium, the applause began again, and she began to walk back into the shadows, away from the Assembly. A voice entered her ear through her earpiece. Mikhail, as always. "You wont get any more trouble from the rest of the industrialists, they know the Sanctuary Overhaul program is just the beginning - and uh, and i think you just won the Warhawks, I didn't think that was in the plan." He said. She didn't know where he was, but he was good at gauging these things, that's why she'd hired him, and he wasn't cheap. "Next time I'll throw in a few terms from the old dialectic, might give me some peace from the Vegan faction then." They both chuckled.