Juran Stealth Satellite[
The Virtual Intelligence watched the Rurnians with mildly more internet than normal. The Rurnians always were eccentric, thinking ground-warfare was the key in the age of space, but the VI wasn't advanced enough to truly be derisive or judgmental, so it simply thought to itself that they were just... eccentric.
But a different type of activity had begun lately- ship launches, from the surface. Another odd thing- it's far easier to build spaceships in orbit, where they'll never have to deal with the stresses of gravity- but the VI simply added the information to the next packet.
Then something truly foreign happened. In the thirteen solar cycles- thirteen years to the natives- the stealth satellite hadn't seen a single ship or probe enter non-Rurnian space. Because of this, the Juran Councils had decided to leave the nation alone, to watch and glean what they could until there was enough stability to make a small force capable of easily annexing the nation.
But there was a fleet, already warping out to another solar system. The satellite took long hours to collect passive data from the emissions of the hyperjump, and finally concluded its report: the Rurnians were entering unknown space- to them- with a fleet focused around colonization.
Before the Rurnian fleet had even made it halfway to their destination, Juran warships were on an intercept course, having already warped over from a nearby solar system. The Rurnians had kept to themselves, never poking their head outside their bubble once, and so the Juran Empire had began to encompass that bubble. The alien ships would be dropping right in the middle of the spacial region's major mining and industrial node.
Juran Defense Fleet
Three destroyers, two cruisers, one heavy cruiser. There was a support carrier en route, along with four more destroyers, but this was going to be the heavy cruiser's captain first action- he had been sitting around collecting dust, as one of the few ships stationed here and there as protection against pirates or the like. The new Fleetmaster had already sent a message to Region Command, but they had yet to be able to request an actual fleet. So, it was just aging defense ships against some unknown, normally recluse entity.
The fleet was almost to the rendezvous point when the unknown fleet exited their flight into the industrial system. The Fleetmaster's heavy cruiser already in position, plus a cruiser. The other cruiser was being escorted by a destroyer, approaching from the bottom-right, from the other side of the system. Slightly above them came the last two destroyers, only ten minutes away from the heavy cruiser and their new Fleetmaster.
The Juran in charge glanced at his display- a single light-hour away from the new alien entities, the Rurnian, who hadn't been in the system long enough to detect him. Because sensors were limited to the speed of light, he wouldn't be detected for another hour. Meanwhile, he was connected to a complex systems of quantum sensor stations and satellites scattered all over Juran space. The moment the Rurnians dropped out of warp/hyperspace and settled into realspace, quantum sensors would detect the location of the exit. Anytime one tears through the veil between warpspace and realspace, it creates brief quantum rifts. As such, it's easily detected.
And these Jurans knew exactly where this rather small, technologically inferior race was.
An hour later found the Jurans waiting for the encroaching Rurnians just inside the edge of the system.
[In the Rurnians' native language:] "Cease acceleration, Rurnian Fleet. The Juran Empire welcomes you to its borders, and demands that your fleet states your intentions, and that you power down weapons, warp drives, and thrusters. Prepare to have your flagship boarded by Juran marines.
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