Galnet News

Following Shadow President Zachary Hudson’s call to have Congress issue a Vote of No Confidence against President Jasmina Halsey, Acting President Felicia Winters held a press conference outside Congress to address the Shadow President’s concerns about the future.

“Let me start by saying how truly saddened I am by the loss of my long time friend, Jasmina. I know that were she here instead of me, she would be deeply disappointed with the fear-mongering being bandied about by members of the opposition. Nevertheless we have to bow to process.”

“In order to allow a right and proper number of representatives from the frontier worlds to attend, Congress will meet on Monday to formally vote on the future of the Federation. Should I be chosen to continue to serve, I promise that you will get the kind of president that you deserve.”

Shadow President Zachary Hudson has continued his criticism of Halsey’s administration, finally moving to the feared vote of no confidence. In his address to Congress, Shadow President Hudson has made it clear the situation needs a resolution.

“These are uncertain times and, with no disrespect to Jasmina’s memory, we need to put an end to this weak administration and bring our beloved Federation back on track. We cannot allow ourselves the luxury of wallowing in this state of horrendous disarray for even a moment longer.”

“Had Jasmina returned, it would have made no difference. She was away trying to raise support from the frontier as she knew this vote of no confidence was coming. I call for it now. Let’s get it out of the way and move on, here on Mars and throughout the Federation.”

“We are not some Imperial dynasty. We do not allow the whims of our dead to dictate terms to the living.”

“As such, in her absence, and without any ill intent towards Secretary Winters, I am issuing a call for a vote of no confidence against the current administration.”

Shadow President Hudson today called an Emergency Session of Congress to address concerns surrounding Starship One’s disappearance.

During the meeting, the Shadow President openly mocked the idea that Starship One’s disappearance could have been caused by simple engine failure.

“Jasmina and I weren’t close – heck, we hated each other, and that’s the truth of it. But the idea, the very notion, that our best and brightest out there on Starship One would have let that bird fly with a busted engine... No way. Those guys are military. We need to be looking for who did it. We need to nail them NOW. The assassin is busy covering their tracks while we speak. This dithering inaction and woolly thinking is typical of this administration. Let’s face it Halsey had enough enemies like those onionhead guys, numerous frontier systems she has annoyed, and the elephant in the room – the Empire.”

Acting President Winters took a more levelled approach.

“I appreciate the sheer gamut of emotions my esteemed colleague must be feeling, but at times like these, level heads must prevail. We have found no evidence of foul play as yet. Our engineers are sifting through copious amounts of data and so far it does look like a very unusual catastrophic failure rather than sabotage.”

Despite claims that the disappearance of Starship One was due to a failure in the ship’s Frame Shift Drive, rumours abound about a more sinister, possibly extraterrestrial explanation.

Alex Snoori, host of the popular interstellar talk show Beyond Top Secret, had this to say to his listeners.

“It’s an outrage, that’s what it is. Do you think those Martian fat cats that rule over us want you to know the truth? I don’t think so.”

“Learn your history, people. It wasn’t all that long ago that our ancestors were being plucked out of the black right into the belly of bugs. Wake up sheeple, you don’t want to be sitting around dressed up like mutton when they come for you. Do not let the government tell you lies. You’re smarter than that.”

“There’s been a lot of hullabaloo about strange things being found out there recently. Weird, pulsing, alien things. I don’t know where they came from, but I do know that they’re creepy, and gross, and almost certainly dangerous. You think it’s a coincidence that the President went missing just weeks after those THINGS turn up? Don’t be so naive. WAKE UP sheeple, you’re being lied to.”

At a press conference held earlier today, Acting Federal President Felicia Winters made a personal appearance to address the rdisappearance of Starship One after failing to re-enter normal space following a routine hyperspace jump.

“The disappearance of Starship One has us all on edge. Tensions are high, and the rumour mills are making all their usual noise about terrorists, aliens, conspiracies and cover-ups. I’m afraid the truth will likely get you all far fewer viewers, but it is the truth that the people of the Federation need to hear from me now.”

“I’m told the early investigations from telemetry and uplink data suggest an explosive drive failure destroyed Starship One in hyperspace, catapulting all three of her protective Guardian Wing out of hyperspace. Wreckage is likely spread across interstellar space. I’m told there are parallels with the loss of the Highliner Antares way back in 3251 when she was lost with all hands on her maiden voyage.”

“I know I remember where I was when the Highliner Antares disappeared, and I fear we will always remember where we were the day Starship One was lost.”

“While we don’t know what caused this incident – yet – we do know that Starship One’s engines experienced an unexpected surge of power just seconds before making its last jump.”

“The search efforts will continue, of course. Our hearts and hope go out to the friends and families of President Halsey and all those lost yesterday in this terrible incident.”

It has been almost 48 hours since the disappearance of Starship One. Early reports indicated that the ship was lost with all hands, and in this instance GalNet is pleased to announce that the early reports were mistaken. Three ships from Starship One’s Guardian Wing made contact with Navy HQ shortly after the initial disappearance. Unfortunately, they were not able to shed any light on the ultimate fate of Starship One.

Despite thousands of Federal scouts combing the sectors along Starship One's secured route, designated Spaceflight One, no trace of the missing ship has been found.

Specialist teams from Core Dynamics and the Sirius Corporation are currently attempting to analyse the wake and uplink data captured by the President’s Guardian Wing escorts in the moments before all four ships jumped. Theories involve either a rare misjump or some sort of catastrophic drive failure. Unfortunately, results so far are inconclusive as to what may have happened to President Halsey and her team.

One member of the crew of one of the President’s Guardian Wing, who wished to remain nameless, spoke exclusively to GalNet about the last moments before the President’s disappearance.

“I’ve never seen anything like it. One minute everything was fine. Pre-jump checks? Normal. Engine power? Normal. Our drives were slaved to Starship One, as is normal. The entry to hyperspace seemed normal at first, but then there was a terrible shock wave and our ship started tumbling. We exited hyperspace uncontrolled and in deep space – something I’ve never seen before. Our ship had taken damage. We couldn’t reach Starship One via comms, but managed to make contact with the other two members of the Guardian Wing. We first searched the deep space around our positions, then jumped to the destination point rendezvous as quickly as we could. Nothing. Not even wreckage. ”

The Federal Navy are requesting that any pilots interested in helping to search along the Starflight One route should sign up for active duty as a member of the search and rescue team aboard Leoniceno Orbital in Azaleach.

At 15:00 hours universal galactic time on 26th May 3301, Secretary of State Felicia Winters assumed the role of Acting President of the Federation in the wake of the disappearance of Spaceflight One.

Speaking in an emergency broadcast to the nation, Acting President Winters had this to say:

“It is with deep regret and some trepidation that I must come before you today to announce that contact with the President’s ship, Spaceflight One, has been lost.”

“Two days ago, Navy Command received word that the President would be taking an unscheduled detour to Azaleach. Her reasons as to why remain classified.”

“12 hours ago, following entry into hyperspace, Spaceflight One went dark. All attempts by the President’s security team to trace the vessel have met with failure.”

“Squadrons have been scrambled in an attempt to find President Halsey and Vice President Naylor, and I have faith that the Navy will do everything they can to bring them home.”

“That said, in order to maintain a clear chain of command during this time of crisis, I will be assuming the role of Acting President of the Federation effective immediately. I hope I have your support, and I hope it will only have to be a temporary measure.”

Reports coming in from Saga indicate that the President has missed her scheduled meeting with delegates aboard Zudov Terminal. Maisy Stevenson, the leader of the Saga Republic Party, expressed her concern to GalNet in the following statement:

“We were expecting Starflight One to arrive a little under 38 hours ago. An escort was sent to meet Starflight One at the prearranged location, but the ship simply didn’t appear. We informed Mars and were told that the President had decided to take a last-minute detour.”

“I understand the President’s time is precious, but it would have been nice to get a little bit of advance notice. The people of Saga spent a not inconsiderable amount of time and credits preparing to greet the President, and now their hard work appears to have gone to waste. I do hope that the President manages to find time for us in her seemingly busy schedule. I would hate to think that the people of Saga had in some way been snubbed by Halsey.”

Ellie Blossum, The CEO of the Crimson Fortune Company, has today issued a statement regarding the recent unrest in Liaedin.

"As many of you know, the Federation’s influence in Liaedin has come under attack in recent months, despite many years of peace between the Blossum and the Faveol families.”

“We believe that this destabilisation effort was a deliberate act of malice, intended to encourage certain unruly members of the Faveol family to attempt to expand beyond the borders of Liaedin, as evidenced by the recent attack on Volungu.”

“The Crimson Fortune Company would like to thank Commander Wolzan and the Shadow Navy for their efforts to keep the Liaedin system in a fair balance of power. We would also like to thank the many Federal pilots who came to our aid during the blockade of Liaedin last weekend. Without your diligence, we are certain that enemies of the Federation would even now be using Liaedin as a staging area for their illegal expansionist agenda.”

The return of Onionhead to Panem may be a blessing for the farmers of Kappa Fornacis, but for their neighbours, the Fornacian dream has turned into a living nightmare.

“It’s not right,” one concerned resident of the nearby BD-18 394 system told GalNet. “Sure, they’re doing alright over there in Kappa F, but what about us? What do we get? I’ll tell you, smugglers and pirates, that’s what.”

Crime has spiralled out of control throughout the Ceti Sector, with many locals echoing the sentiment that the Farmers Union of Kappa Fornacis should be held responsible for attracting such unsavoury characters to what was once a peaceful area.

In an attempt to clean up the sector, the Independent Autahenetsi Labour Party are currently offering a range of bonus payments to any Bounty Hunters who sign up to act as Federal Ceti Sector Security Services Agents at Artyukhin Ring in Autahenetsi.