"What happened?" "Grav sensor arrays picked up an anomaly outside the belt. Around the K4-Sol L4 Lagrange point." "The Origin Point?" "The exact same. Literally, initial readings and analysis suggest the same fluctuations from the Origin." "The Gateway is reopening, then?" "Correct. If everyone would direct their attention to the viewscreens now… thank you, you will see a comparison of new and old starmaps from the Stargazers. As you can see… it's distorted towards the indicated Origin as the Gateway opens… oh! Well, right now. Fortunately the Beholder-7 station was closest and oriented on it as soon as the anomaly appeared, so we were able to gather a decent recording of the Gateway Event. "But now… We need to figure out how to break this to the public. They'll figure it out within the hour so we need to get ahead of this fast if we want to control the narrative." "Understood." "Confirmed. "Our people's work, potentially destroyed by happenstance. This is going to be a mess." "After we finally hit equilibrium too. Exposed to the diaspora." "You are all too concerned with the equilibrium. Opportunities await, brothers and sisters." "So does catastrophe, Maerker." [center]- - -[/center] [center][h2][color=cc3300]The Confederate League of Kallan[/color][/h2][/center] Across the Kallan Sol System, decades old infrastructure rumbled to life. Satellites and stations in orbit flickered as their lights slowly blinked on as their nuclear hearts woke from hibernation. Artificial brains slowly woke, digital intelligences who agreed to rest with their home until needed finally waking up and scanning millions of lines, hundreds of reports, thousands of detectors. It had been thirty years since the last warship was produced, her shipyard waking from hibernation. The active signals from the gas giants Kallan V and Kallan VI began to increase, redundant infrastructure coming online but in standby mode. The Q-Com Hub Station flickered on the rest of its floors, five rings of light turning to seven, eight, ten, eleven, as it was brought up to full capacity, invisibly chattering with every station in the system. Maintenance requests were entered, orders were placed, queries answered, latest ballgame updates dispersed, memes posted, and conversation began. The system-wide alert even reached so far as the structures buried deep in the ice and mountains of Kallan VII, where researchers glanced at each other in shock over the gravitonic anomaly they were looking at, supercomputers beneath their feet keeping them warm while it tried to boil supercritical watercooler. Old DASS and VI that had fallen asleep a century ago stretched their code and rejoined the wake to pour over the data with their peers. The system's military fleets, research, logistics, and infrastructure finally awoke, the paranoia of the last century perhaps, finally, paying off despite the system's peace. Ships gathered in high planetary orbit, meeting with orbital stations sporting miles of warehousing, among their thousand other purposes. Warships clad in sweeping sheets of pitted, rough, yellow-red-stained lusterless silver hyperdense armor were rearmed with the latest missiles, mechanical men the size of a shuttle marching over their surfaces as they replaced sensor blisters and gunmounts with the latest versions. Diagnostics were run as cargo was secured. Crew ran to their duty stations, hearts pounding in their chests, unknowing of the cheering and fervor from the planet below as countless millions cheer at their screens, watching the League prepare to rediscover Earth, hearts in their throats and butterflies in their bellies. The fleet finally assembled. A missile cruiser, with a bandolier of disposable missile pods wrapped around its widest section. It bristled with point defense, laser and rail, even more missile ports dotting its armor seams. Two light cruisers, their leading point a shell to protect the shaft of a particle beam cannon. Bulbs on its flat armor sprouted laser turrets. Two destroyers, sporting heavier point defense of both rail and laser. Both, wrapped around a high velocity, small calibre railgun. Each cruiser embarked by three DASS-only Corvettes, larger than any fighter or bomber but more nimble than any destroyer or larger. Within their pack, a fleet supply ship, a large research cruiser- an unarmored, noncombat ship- with her two flanking expeditionary support cruisers, packed full of scanners and special equipment. Even a miner, one per expeditionary ship. Among the fleet of a dozen civilian marked ships, one was a mobile station just waiting to be installed at a lagrange point or in planetary orbit, and another carrying a full load of seeds, genes, printers, fabricators, and equipment, perfect for any colony… just in case the Gateway closes again. One among their number, carrying supplies both marketable and usable for colonizing like every other hauler in the fleet, ran diagnostics on her hidden sensor arrays, her DASS crew doublechecking lines and cables, the most modern ship of the League's roster ensuring she blended in and brought no suspicion to herself as she stealthily scanned her neighboring ships and doublechecking their readings from available info. The most active, experienced warship in the fleet, just another sheep in the flock. Eighty three hours after the Gateway was first detected, the fleet was underway to Sol System. Another, stronger military fleet followed, to send them off to… The Cradle. Its Gateway guarded by a second fleet, just… in… case. [center]- - -[/center] "We're being lit! Activating active sensors on your word, Captain." "Go for active scans." "Go for active, confirmed. "Scanners coming back, getting returns… from… by the Mother." "Button it up, we all see it. Prep a message torpedo for the blockade to receive on the other side." "Contacts! There's a significant cluster in H-E-O. Lightsource identified. Picking up a high volume of debris as well." "Tactical confirms, logging as UnCon 1." "Analyst?" "Aye sir. At a glance, there's more debris than should be in orbit. Contact cluster is using different sensors generations, I'd guess that the Gate's monitored by other returning humans. Planet is dead, radiation is still untenable." "...Outstanding. Tactical, load data and snap analysis to the torpedo and send it back." "Aye sir. Transcript loaded. DASS 23?" "Data loaded, Tactical." "Confirmed. Torpedo prepped, green diagnostics. Torpedo launch… its made translation." "Fantastic work. 23?" "Standing by, Captain." "Plot new lagrange points, relative Earth to contact cluster." "Task complete, logging now." "Many thanks. Navigation, plot a course to Earth to CC Lagrange 5. Helm, bring us around and trait the CC. Tactical and 23-" "New contacts, midsystem. Logging as UnFor 1." "Confirmed, Tactical. Tactical and 23, standby drones. Load sensor package." "Drones standby, diagnostics green. Package loaded." "Launch drones." "Aye, drones launched. Shadowing fleet. Enabling multifaceted sensor reading." "Alright, Communications, light the IFFs and activate Broadcast 3." "IFFs, aye. Broadcast 3, aye." "New contacts, we're seeing significant activity further in the system. Fleet, but they're showing up brighter than UnFor 1. Designating UnFor 2." "Confirmed. See anything else, 23?" "Not as of yet, Captain." "Okay. Filing report, forwarding to CIC. Drop another torpedo, update the League." [center]- - -[/center] IFF reads: LSFS Cruiser [i]Hardheaded[/i] [sup]"The Confederate League of Kallan Star System greets all Terran diaspora. We come to support the Mother, and reconnect with our lost brothers and sisters. Felicitatum hominum."[/sup] LSFS Cruiser [i]Palladium Punch[/i] [sup]"Felicitatum hominum."[/sup] LSFS Cruiser [i]Homegrown[/i] [sup]"Felicitatum hominum."[/sup] LSFS Destroyer [i]Backwards[/i] [sup]"Felicitatum hominum."[/sup] LSFS Destroyer [i]Pinhole[/i] [sup]"Felicitatum hominum."[/sup] LSFS Res-Vessel [i]Event Horizon[/i] [NONCOM] [sup]"The Mother truly is destroyed. The League weeps! We will not let this disgrace stand."[/sup] LSFS Expeditionary [i]Schrodinger's Bastard[/i] [NONCOM] [sup]"The universe is at our fingertips like never before. Felicitatum hominum."[/sup] LSFS Expeditionary [i]Rescue Ignorance[/i] [NONCOM] [sup]"Perseverance, humanity's enlightenment is our purpose. Felicitatum hominum."[/sup] LSFS Fleet Support [i]Überdonke[/i] [NONCOM] [sup]"Felicitatum hominum."[/sup] LCS Mobile Station Ship [i]Kallan Gateway Standardbearer[/i] [NONCOM] [sup]"The League declares itself; we are here to stay and support the Cradle. Felicitatum hominum."[/sup] LCS Hauler [i]Nuclear-Powered[/i] [NONCOM] [sup]"Inventory for sale. Fissiles, fuels, coolant, and more."[/sup] LCS Hauler [i]Roger Weekend[/i] [NONCOM] [sup]"Survival and residential supplier available."[/sup] LCS Hauler [i]Rock and Stone[/i] [NONCOM] [sup]"Cosplay a dwarf. Mine anything with our stock."[/sup] LCS Hauler [i]Stoned and Rocking[/i] [NONCOM] [sup]"Ignore the other guy. We've got the fun stuff."[/sup] LCS Hauler [i]Pioneer Original[/i] [NONCOM] [sup]"Manufacturing and Engineering inventory available. Starship components and engrams available."[/sup] LCS Hauler [i]Prime Rib[/i] [NONCOM] [sup]"Cold storage! Quality meals served! Highest quality on Kallan II! General goods and supplies available."[/sup] LCS Hauler [i]Ottaurus Rex[/i] [NONCOM] [sup]"The fruits of our extraterrestrial culture, exchange available."[/sup] LCS Hauler [i]Love, Mom[/i] [NONCOM] [sup]"top it this is a priority IFF bro-"[/sup] LCS Hauler [i]Belethor[/i] [NONCOM] [sup]"Goods, consumables, everything's for sale."[/sup] LCS Hauler [i]Sinthetic Cruiser[/i] [NONCOM] [sup]"Pleasure cruiser, experience supplier. Your dreams are our trade."[/sup] LCS Hauler [i]Brick[/i] [NONCOM] [sup]"Supplies and stuff. It's stuff."[/sup]