Diplomatic first contact with a Battlecrab scouting patrol is an eerie affair. The Battlecrab stands as an unspeaking, unblinking monolith, with communication primarily done by the rapidly altering colour patterns on a barnacle on its shell. The barnacle is a barely capable symbiotic being but a few basic facts can be gained from the discussion:
- The Tides are thinking creatures with language and society and even their war beasts are capable of a baseline of political thought.
- Your immunity to poison is terribly upsetting to them for what seems like aesthetic reasons. All around you can see miniature octopi writing detailed observation glyphs directly onto the shells of the battlecrabs. It comes up multiple times in conversation and the crabs clack their claws angrily each time it does.
- This place is a - the word translates into 'museum', 'prison' and 'archaeological site'. Despite their knowledge of the Azura they regard both factions on the planet to be criminal tomb raiders and have reported the matter to their superiors. It would be possible to arrange a meeting with those superiors but the connotation seems to be 'turning yourselves in to the police' - though that might be a lack of the imagination of front line shock troops and not actual diplomatic policy.

[Friction roll: [b]3[/b]]

The first phase of the engagement goes masterfully to plan. The Knights charge the war droids directly into the teeth of an artillery barrage. With the Knights frozen almost into immobility the Hammer of Hatred lands a shot on centre mass, critically wounding one of the Azura champions.

But that is where the Warriors of Ceron prove their worth. As one they break from cover, launching themselves in a mad rush propelled by their grav-belts. Their shock assault tears down the remainder of the war droids and their grenade launchers lay down thick carpets of eclipse smoke - specially formulated full-spectrum stealth clouds. The casualties they take in this maneuver are horrendous but the operation succeeds at withdrawing the Azura Knight from the combat zone. Only after their lord is safe do the Ceronians begin a fighting withdrawal. Despite the losses, it's an expert operation - these troops are drilled for this specifically.

Vivisector has an important decision to make in that moment. Azura regeneration and biomedical technology is known at this point and best estimates suggest that they'll have the Knight back on her feet - er, so to speak - if not fully recovered in time for a second offensive shortly before Killstorm's gate is ready. He can either pursue the Ceronians and try to inflict a coup de grace on the wounded Azura or accept the withdrawal and entrench in place.

*

"I think..." said Boldness about the idea of hiring the Kaeri Biomancers. "That the principle is sound. But the scale is... insufficient. These people wouldn't get out of bed for a single space station but if you were willing to provide them with comprehensive intelligence on a multi-system stellar empire? They would definitely be interested in launching a war of conquest against one of your regional rivals. That is, after all, what they are here to do."

She goes quiet for a while as she contemplates the integration of anti-magic into her schemes, fingers flicking at rapid speed. "The Azura are resistant to courtly intrigue at the operational level because their baseline level of such behaviour is so high," she said. "You'd likely get a non-lethal honour duel out of that at operation at best. It's not that it can't be done but a single blow is rarely enough - we're talking about a sustained infiltration and operations involving dozens of commando strikes, matched with major military assaults. High degree of risk, significant losses even if it works. Possible, if you're prepared to commit the assets."

She shook her head at the final question. "The Oratus is a bioweapon - essentially, she contains a unique virus that can make her the centre of a hivemind of up to a thousand infected which will fall under her absolute control. She can make a legion go rogue, essentially, but you can't cover up a rogue legion."