[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/m3FwPMV.jpgg[/img][/center] [b]--=Highfield Crossing, Horizon, Tau Ceti.[/b] Highfield Crossing was the true heart of Horizon. Whilst Couerlene and its Federal sector was the de jure seat of governance for the Federation, Highfield Crossing, only a hundred miles away, was the planetary capital of Horizon and was often where Federal officials decamped to during weekend recess, or during official recess of the assembly. Couerlene was an effective capital, but Highfield Crossing was a true city, with all the wonders and vices that could be had in such a place. It had grown from a sedate farm market town to a bustling city with the establishment of the Federation, and had, most figured, simply through proximity ended up as the planetary capital. It had its charms. Alanna had not often had time for it since her election to highest office, but she found time here and there to escape the official protocol of Couerlene in favour of the bustle of Highfield, now and again, she could even meld into the scores of people that made their way around the city, living the lives she worked to protect and make prosperous in her own way, though often the trail of security made such a thing more of a distant hope than reality. It was not one of those days today. She had found herself largely confined to the official residence in Rainley Tower in downtown Highfield, but it had given her time to meet with people she normally would of had to go in circles to do so, officially and unofficially - and her office her though far more opulent gave her nearly all the same sort of access she would of gotten if she had never left Couerlene. It was at least, quiet. A few security staff were spread around the residence, whilst a few Aides were hidden about, doing their best to make sure she didn't have to deal with minutiae. Her constant companion, Mikhail, amused himself somewhere within the sprawling penthouse, but she had one more meeting and quite a bit of reading and writing to do this evening. They would be back in Couerlene soon, but she remained hopeful she'd find just a little bit of time for a discreet backdoor entry into the exclusive new club down the street she'd heard so much about. There might be a waitlist four years long already, but being Chancellor had to have some perks, didn't it? She raised her head from the report she'd been half perusing, sunk into the scandalously comfortable chair in this office she was sure had been designed with the idea of ensuring no-one ever really got work done that didn't involve napping. There had been a sound - the entrance to the office was some absurd security measure with multiple doors that often let her knew someone was coming in a good few moments before they were. She didn't bother checking the cameras on her desk display - it wouldn't help, she never knew who she would be meeting when it came to Intelligence matters when they were not completely on the books. The inner door opened with a slight [i]swish[/i] of air and metal being moved by unseen mechanisms, and a man stepped in, nodding respectfully and approaching Alanna, who motioned to the seat opposite her - one she noted was likely far less comfortable, but still more than suitable. She took a moment to take stock of the man, he was.. average. They normally were. The Intelligence Services had a knack for taking nearly anyone and making them appear perfectly, boringly average. There was an edge of above average attractiveness to this one though, which told her he'd probably actually not been altered much, if at all. "Chancellor." He said, sitting himself down as indicated by Alanna. "C7, I've not had the pleasure previously, but in these meetings I don't think I've ever had the pleasure of re-acquaintance." She said, smiling. "Indeed, Chancellor, though as you know, there are a finite number of C's to meet. Sooner or later, you may have the pleasure of seeing a familiar face." He responded, sharing a smaller smile. Though she expected pretty much anything he did or said was calculated, not that it mattered, they were on the same side. "I Live in hope. What do you have for me that I can't get through the Committee or Minister officially?" May as well cut straight to the point, she could be business if she needed to be. "It'll be 14 total by the end of this standard calendar week. No plans for more - we don't have enough for that, as you know. Everyone thinks you don't know the entire puzzle, but that's the idea. Project Helios on track though with withdrawl from the treaty, we can unveil Helios fully and scrap plans for the fourth cover project. Shakedown testing is nearly done for the launched Helios 1, Helios 2 and 3 are on track for completion as outlined previously. The cover projects have also kept to schedule and have proven viable in simulations. The Triumvirate in High Command is in on this, of course, we're using High Admiral Lieng now as the Liason there. High Admiral Rochester has taken over all Agdenmar operations as per your request. I believe High Admiral Alyentsov has your confidence for the current Rolvian issue." C7 said, not stopping at any point for breath but never going too fast that she didn't take everything in. "I see. I'll leave the Helios timetable to AIS and the Admiralty, the public are quite invested in the cover projects, so we will certainly have to proceed with them to completion, if not their mission profile. Agdenmar is a mess, but involvement now would of been troublesome, and Lieng requires too much convincing sometimes, but he should be fine overseeing Helios. Rochester will act when appropriate, and he is considerate enough to keep us all informed, so I foresee no issues there, considering our involvement will not hide behind questionable legalities. As for Alyentsov, I've not had the honour of a face to face meeting with that particular member of the Triumvirate, but they have seemed most capable in my few encounters with High Command. Alyentsov wants to back up Piazza's 12th with Patel's 16th, Defence tells me, The Admirality gave that the go ahead a few hours ago with my blessing for whichever course of action pursued. I'm not going to personally inform the Rolvian's of that, but they'll get notification of them joining the "wargames" through normal channels by the time anything I send reaches them. Its mostly a show of intent for everyone other than the Rolvians at this point, given the guarantee I've all but given them, and all should proceed without incident, provided we do not violate Rolvian Sovereignty. On that note, speaking of violating sovereignty, anything to share?" Alanna almost leaned back in her chair, but decided against it. C7 nodded. She probably hadn't told him anything he didn't know or wouldn't find out, but she was forthright with the C's and they were forthright with her. He began to speak. "Most things you've been briefed on, there's been a number of direct engagements on Agdenmar again, though I am aware you've been given the full reports on those. Little more to provide on that. Our Embassies are relatively quiet - nothing out of the ordinary there." She knew he meant intelligence embedded in Embassies by that. "Sources are mostly detailing reactions to our withdrawl from the era of Detente, As per expectation, most don't regard the Federation as a threat in a military sense, let alone much of anything else. Biggest concerns have been economic, but that's a general concern across most quarters. Honest assessment is that the Federation will continue to be considered economically and to some extent politically, but as a military near non-entity until we take aggressive or defensive action. Nearly every political operator and intelligence agency, even those with smart analysts and good sources still measure by the standards of the Great War, it counts in our favour for the moment." Alanna nodded, she even appreciated the frankness with his admittance that other powers had good sources in the Federation - but that was an inevitable reality. It implied some familiarity, so she hoped he knew who some of them were, at least. "The Foreign Minister had thoughts on a similar assessment, he implied that its very likely that sooner or later someone will force us to lose the carrot and use the stick, to borrow an old phrase, simply because they think it won't hit them." Alanna responded, shaking her head a little. "Astute, to be sure, Minister Adler does know his craft." C7 said, matter of factly. He shifted in his seat slightly, an indication that he had nothing much more to add, unless he was specifically prompted on a subject. "I'm sure he'd appreciate AIS's praise, though I wouldn't want to make him think he's too good at his job. However, that should be all. Let's keep in touch." Alanna watched the man rise. "Never out of it, Chancellor. Have a good day." He said, and strode out of the room with a self-assured confidence that belied his near complete averageness. Alanna took a moment to reflect, before turning back to her display. There were things to respond to - some she had waited on - some were new. She drew closer to the desk, escaping the near sinful comfort of her chair, and began to work. [hider=Rolvian Response] [@Aleranicus] I can always cut to business, Prime Speaker. This is noted and understood. We have taken the decision to dispatch the [i]FASV Deepwater[/i]. It is an unarmed Salvage Vessel, and functions as an element of the Unified Fleet's auxiliary support craft. It is functionally unarmed, though it of course possesses elements necessary to engage in its primary functions, though of course at close range. Given the ongoing situation, we of course accept and encourage any and all Rolvian protection for the [i]Deepwater[/i]. The Deepwater will be under a military crew and will of course be carrying staff of the Ministry of Justice who are operating this investigation at the behest of the Admiralty. The [i]Deepwater[/i] should arrive at Manir not long after you receive this message. You once again may receive my assurances that I have personally made certain that the commanding staff of these wargames are aware that the Rolvian border is not to be violated at any time, except under explicit request from an official of the Rolvian Republic, the direct order of our own High Command or similar authority, or to engage in rescue operations as determined under Federal Law. Bluntly, however, it is not within the Federation of Nations interest to see an armed conflict take place in Rolvian space, a sentiment we can both undoubtedly share. We are however not going to act unilaterally in this regard, but will of course take all measures we deem appropriate without violating Rolvian sovereignty. In perhaps more welcome news from Maya. Federal Police and Federal Intelligence tasked to assist have a reliable lead on Doctor Foia - in that she has been traced to the southernmost continent of Maya and her exact location is likely to be discerned soon. All sources indicate that she is alive and well, and may have been "kidnapped" by a group of discontent colonists on Maya for the purposes of helping reverse the failure of a terraforming project in the region, whether she is equipped to do so or not does not seem to of factored into this groups thinking, but this rare failure has been a point of contention between the region and the planetary governor who has not rectified the situation to anyone's satisfaction. Regrettably this seems to of brought Doctor Foia into it, though thankfully, this means her safety is far more assured than if other more malignant forces had been at work. Hopefully her soon safe recovery and the resolution of ongoing concerns in the Republic will open the door to much greater co-operation between us. -Alanna [/hider] Alanna took a moment to think. Rolvius had its importance, even to projects in the Federation. They'd made a mistake before, of course, and millions of individuals around the galaxy had died, but not on the doorstep of the Federation like it had been with the Republic. She was determined that it wouldn't happen again, not on her watch, anyway, and she'd essentially just galvanized the populace for it too, making it almost an internal political matter. She couldn't force the Rolvians into anything, not without taking either military or economic action, and that was exactly the kind of strong-arming she wanted to avoid. More awaited, though. [hider=Kadathi Response] [@Predawnia] Most Honourable, First Minister Arta Smiljer Thank you for your warm words, though we both may arrive at the same conclusion through differing means and methods, we cannot ignore that the conclusion is indeed, the same, and as such is something that cannot be ignored. Whilst we must await what the future holds, we can surely now be best positioned to provide for a safer one. While I am of course, going to leave details to the Ambassadorial Staff and the Ministry of Trade, as you may of course be aware, the Federation's raw and refined materials production from private and state endeavours far exceeds that of domestic and military consumption at current rates. While I am of course, reliably informed that such excess will be reduced in the upcoming years due to increased military production and economic matters, I am certain that a trade agreement on favourable terms for us both is a matter we can surely discuss and likely come to fruition upon. Your representative is free to engage directly with the Trade Ministry and the Foreign Ministry where deemed appropriate, and I will see both departments are informed of your intentions. -Chancellor Alanna Descoix, With the Authority of the Office of the Chancellor, Unum Liberum. [/hider] Alanna didn't know the most about the Kadathi, but they were, as ever mentioned, driven by their desire to not end up part of the Commonwealth - the Ashtar had seen that was fact, now it remained up to them themselves to ensure it. Alanna had, she realised, declared a policy of containment contingent on whatever the Federation decided was keeping the peace - she saw that a coming to blows with the Commonwealth was a likely outcome of that, but hardly one she wanted to speed along. Aiding the Kadathi for now would retain some sort of balance, though if an agreement was signed she expected the Commonwealth would hardly react positively, but it was an economic matter, what it was used for was hardly for the Federation to dictate. [hider=Taulron Response] [@grimely] Unto His Imperial Majesty, Salos VI, Imperator Taulrosum It is the utmost duty of any ruler, be they born into power, anointed into it, or elected, to ensure the prosperity of their people, and assure they have the means to pursue the betterment of themselves and their families through the security provided by a time of prevailing peace. It is as such my duty to gain that peace for the Federation and its citizens, to do anything less would be a profound failure, and we welcome your acknowledgement of such. The Ashtar have shown much which is possible, though they certainly were not without flaw. The peace of the Ashtar, though imposed, can certainly not be regarded as a flaw - and so the peace that was once ensured by mutual agreement certainly cannot be considered as such - upon which we are most certainly in agreement. It may be inevitable that a conflict erupts, but the Federation of Nations is, despite what some may believe, not without the means to take pro-active measures in the pursuit of peace, using whatever means are deemed appropriate. If war comes, we will not be found wanting, but wanting of war we are not. Taulron concern for the security of the Federation is of course a welcome sentiment, and not one to be disregarded. I must admit to some manner of perplexion in regards to this request. Democracy, as such as it is established in the Federation, has a legacy spanning thousands of years of development and evolution. Even in the Federation with its grand, direct democracy, there is variation in our member states of great degrees. The enabling of the voices of ones citizenry is a laudable goal - but one that can be twisted, as we can see in many states, where "citizen" applies to few, and concentrates power in the hands of those deemed above or better than others, a concept that is not truly democracy. We do not envisage that you pursue a democracy identical to our own, however, with some bluntness, I must make it known that we will not engage in creating a mockery of one either, Though I do not assume that is your aim. The Foreign Ministry and other applicable government institutions however will be instructed to contact your own with regards to this matter. I expect that through our Embassy we may work on creating a group made up of Federal advisors and your own officials to begin the creation of a working group to ascertain exactly what the new vision for the state may be, and the work that may begin be undertaken towards it. Rome was not built in a day, of course. -Alanna Descoix With the Authority of the Office of the Chancellor, Unum Liberum. [/hider] Alanna had not expected that, of all things, and she would be sending off a number of messages around the Federation - including to intelligence. She didn't quite know what was going on here, but it wasn't something she'd disregard either. She noted the Latin, the anachronistic formality of some of it, whether it meant more than what it seemed to was a different subject, but one she'd leave to some poor analyst somewhere. She sighed. She really needed to go to that club. ---------- [center][img]https://i.imgur.com/9YFn6mp.jpg[/img][/center] [b]--=FRCHS Hermione, Hospital Ship, Agdemnar System[/b] The Hermione had been busy being put to use, a resupply ship had just arrived and gone - and many were busy offloading the supplies that were replenishing the stocks that were being used up by the recent casualties incurred by forces in the recent flurry of combat in the system. The Hermione's doctors were however, excellent, and most had undergone extensive sim-training with most notable species they'd encounter, and rates of survival even in alien patients were higher than in some hospitals found on Horizon or Hippocrates. In a way, it made the crew of the ship feel safer, having countless sick or injured individuals onboard was hardly conducive to morale, but it made the likelyhood of an enemy ship coming along and blowing them out of the sky far less likely, and a system of separate wards and security systems meant that even if opposing factions ended up being treated at the same time, they couldn't interact without intent from the command staff. Captain Argyle had been picked to command the Hermione mostly because he had intelligence clearance and familiarity with the operations of a ship dedicated to the art of healing. Being unerringly calm had also helped, given where they were deployed - and for the most part nothing too concerning had happened. Now he was staring over the shoulder of a bridge technician wondering how in the world they were going to avert a disaster. "Captain, we're looking at a faulty stabilising mechanism, whether its structural or the Devite was off and warped the containment, I couldn't say from here, but when they did this ship over it wasn't designed for this kind of power system. If we don't replace that mechanism the secondary fusion core is gonna make what happens down on that stupid planet look like a fun day out." The technician said, mostly composing himself. "Why exactly do we not have one in storage?" Argyle asked, frowning. "We did have four according to the manifest, but looks like when they converted some of the storage areas into wards and centralized the whole logistics aspect they didn't think to recheck whether they put the things back on board, who the hell messes up like that?" The technician said, growing exasperated. "This was a rush job, be glad that's the only thing important they forgot." Argyle responded, he frowned again as the ship shuddered a little. Alert lights began to blink. "We just got a uncontrolled power surge, no permanent damage but engine block one and two have just gone offline temporarily and several thrusters are firing independent of control due to a short, were basically about to begin rolling at a list to anyone outside till its fixed, Captain." Argyle rolled his eyes. "Fantastic, issue a warning to all nearby ships of our uncontrolled movement. Magnetize all docking clamps so no-one still latched onto us goes flying off or into us. Damnit, No-one out there is going to have what we need, we're going to have to call in one of the cavalry." Argyle frowned once more, he walked over to his own station, punching a few codes into a console, simultaneously sending a dispatch homeward and one out into the black void of Agdenmar. A few moments later, Argyle hit another key, bringing the holoscreen into life, a woman in a standard Unified Navy uniform greeted him, he supressed a smile, as he noted her captain rank. "Having a problem there, Argyle?" Said the woman, Argyle knew her from way back, she'd risen pretty far to end up on a [i]Pharos[/i], the premier stealth ship of the Federation. Couldn't say she didn't deserve it. "A very big one, Captain Tsang, you're going to have to break cover and come in to help us, unless you'd like us all to explode into a small micro-star for a few seconds. Personally, not a fan." Argyle said, non-chalantly. "I see." She hit a few keys herself, and nodded to someone offscreen. "What do you need?" "Stabilising mechanism for a Fusion Core, they seemed to of misplaced ours during this girls refit, I'm just glad that's all they missed - or we'de probably of blown up a lot sooner." She looked down for a few seconds, then back up. "We've got what you need, we're going to have to go live when we come in to dock and the entire system is going to see us blazing our IFF out of nowhere, so I'm sure Horizon is going to be unhappy about those questions, but that's not our problem. We'll help stabilise your movement until repairs are complete, then drift back into the black. ETA 15, hope you've missed me." "If we didn't have 45 till critical, I'd say take your time. See you on the Hermione." Argyle frowned as the holoscreen blinked out of life. At least he could be thankful the Pharos was shielded against most levels of scanning. If a dozen powers were about to get a look at it, at least they wouldn't know what it was other than it was a Federation Cruiser.