Galnet News

Emperor Hengist Duval’s Funeral

The funeral of Emperor Hengist Duval, the 15th Emperor in the Duval line, took place today amidst a crowd of millions on Capitol in the Achenar system.

Mourners from all over the Empire lined the streets of Capitol. All over the city, the streets were filled to bursting and in a sombre reflection of the wedding a month ago, the white dress uniforms of the Imperial Naval Infantry lined the streets.

In a last minute change to tradition, the funeral procession followed a longer route through the city so that as many of the assembled mourners as possible could witness the passing of their Emperor. The procession marched at a sedate pace and was led by selected members of the Imperial Guard carrying the Emperor.

In another break from tradition and despite her age, Florence Lavigny walked directly behind the coffin even though the marriage ceremony hadn’t been completed. This has raised eyebrows among some of the more conservative members of Imperial society.

Behind the lonely widow marched the immediate family and then the members of the Senate. Behind the most powerful senators came certain patrons, the most well-considered of their station with a direct connection to the Emperor. Next were the clients and citizens and, representing the full range of the Imperial population, these were followed by some of the Emperor’s favourite slaves – which by tradition were set free after the ceremony.

The procession stretched for almost 18 kilometres and took seven hours to complete its tour of the city. Soldiers along the route provided welcome refreshment for both the procession and the crowd. When the procession returned to the Hall of Martyrs, the senators followed inside for the private internment ceremony. Across the Empire, in households and public places, the Feast of Remembering began.

A sombre hush settled across the city for most of the day, but now that the Emperor has been laid to rest, the question everyone wants to know the answer to is – who will be the next Emperor?

Utopia: More Than a Cult?

Spokespeople for Utopia have responded to recent accusations that dissidents in systems under their control are being roughly treated.

"I've been saddened by recent publications that describe the Utopia movement as a cult or oppressive theocracy," Utopia futurologist Dr Saeed McNamara said. "All societies have disruptive elements who threaten the stability of the whole, but I like to think we take a more humane approach to dealing with them than others.

“Rather than enslaving or oppressing disruptive elements, or shipping them off to penal colonies to break rocks for the rest of their lives, we introduce our problem citizens to revolutionary simulation technology designed to increase their empathy for their fellow men and women. Criminals and dissidents aren't evil – they've just become disconnected from society. We've proved time and again that seeing the world through the eyes of others, through technology, can be a healing experience."

Dr McNamara declined to elaborate further on the nature of Utopia's corrective sims, or to address rumours that those subjected to these treatments manifest radically altered personalities.

Commander Jendrassik

GalNet Focus on Democracy

This weekly roundup highlights some of the minor factions pursuing the dream of democratic freedom by holding elections (*).

Here are 10 of the 2,088 minor factions holding elections:

Baal Guardians of Tradition

Autrimpe Empire Party

Giabaing Emperor's Grace

Hirpinyi Law Party

Hirpinyi League

Sowathara Citizens' Forum

Inmutintien Advanced and Co

Gelong Jet Dynamic Holdings

Gelong Corp.

LHS 246 League

Elections occur when two minor factions of a similar political structure resolve a conflict over ownership and influence within a system.

* Data is correct at time of publishing.

The Hutton Mug

The words “I made it to Hutton Orbital” carry a certain amount of weight among pilots. As seasoned navigators know, the starport lies approximately 0.22 light years from the nearest star – a significant stretch by anyone’s standards – and it is not unusual for novice pilots, having failed to check the distance from Alpha Centauri to Hutton Orbital, to run out of fuel long before they reach the station.

Completing ‘The Hutton Run’, as the journey is sometimes called, is therefore a badge of honour among pilots, an achievement that distinguishes the amateur from the professional.

Now, a company called BlipMagnet has decided to capitalise on this phenomenon with the Hutton mug, a commemorative beaker bearing the legend (you guessed it) ‘I made it to Hutton Orbital'. The novelty item is available only at the starport, and the company no doubt hopes it will appeal to those who want to commemorate their epic journey.

BlipMagnet claims (presumably only half seriously) that the mug is made from “the salvaged frame shift drive plates of ships that ran out of fuel before reaching the station”. In fact, the company has issued an appeal for scrap materials with which to produce their next batch, and is offering anyone who delivers such materials their very own Hutton mug. Whether this will motivate those not normally inclined to undertake such punishing expeditions, or result in an epidemic of stranded pilots throughout the Alpha Centauri system, remains to be seen.

Core Dynamics Issues Statement Regarding Recent Controversy

Yesterday’s revelations from the Federal Times concerning an alleged connection between a high ranking member of the Core Dynamics board and the Highliner Antares incident have finally prompted an official response from the ship manufacturer.

“Core Dynamics takes the safety of space flight very seriously and would never deliberately act to jeopardise our own or any other corporations’ development. It is hard to accept that anyone from our company would act in such a manner. Given the gravity of the accusations the accused non-executive board member has agreed to step aside while we investigate. We have requested that the Federal Times share their information with us so that a full investigation into the matter can be carried out.”

Congressman George Fallside is the only named person in the article. When asked about the Congressman’s connection with the company and his apparent knowledge of the Vice President’s death before it had been announced the spokesman responded:

“Any impropriety by any member of the board will be fully investigated. I cannot comment on Vice President Nigel Smeaton’s death. My understanding it that has already been investigated by the relevant authorities.”

The Chief Editor for the Federal Times confirmed that they would share the information they had with the Sirius Corporation, Core Dynamics and appropriate law enforcement agencies.

Public Viewing of Emperor Hengist Duval Ceases

Today was the last day for the millions of mourners to pay their respects to the Emperor in the Hall of Martyrs. In the past month an estimated seven million mourners arrived on Capitol and have waited in line to enter the vestibule where the Emperor’s body has lain.

Of those millions fewer than half were able to actually see the Emperor despite the dedicated efforts of the Imperial Palace curators. Holographic shrines were placed along the queue of the people waiting, although some of the crowd complained that this broke tradition.

The queue reached such a size that the military had to be called in to maintain order from flashes of violence flaring up. Although apart from a few cases the offences were quite minor as befitting the sombre mood. Food, shelter and medical care also needed to be provided and many of the waiting people praised the efforts of the naval infantry.

For the rest of the day the troops will be busy again, this time clearing the route already filled with the waiting citizens in preparation for tomorrow’s funeral.

GalNet Weekly Health Hotspots

This weekly report typically covers some of the minor factions experiencing significant health issues, such as famine and outbreaks. At the time of writing, however, outbreaks have not been reported among any minor factions.

GalNet Weekly Powers Update Incoming

In the early hours of tomorrow morning (7.00am GMT), the GalNet monitoring of powers’ activities will go offline for a short period while the latest data is assembled.

Any pilots who operate for one of the powers must deliver any cargo or vouchers before this time to ensure their activities are registered.

Utopia: Commune or Cult?

Simguru Pranav Antal's vision of Utopia has taken the galaxy by storm, with recent estimates suggesting that 91.8 billion have joined the movement, and shows no signs of slowing down. Many are attracted by the commune's experimental tech and high standards of living, as well as the ideal of a better society.

But is everything as it seems? A few former utopians, who asked to remain anonymous, have come forward with disturbing testimonies. One young man said: "My sister and I lived on a Federation fringe world. Life's hard on the frontier, and we travelled to Utopia to find work. Everything was great at first – we had employment, free accommodation – but then my sister got a position assisting the local overseer. She found out they were kidnapping people and locking them up for questioning or disagreeing with Antal's wisdom. It's run like a cult. I told her not to confront them... Now I don't know where my sister is, or if I'll ever see her again."

When one of Antal's senior aides was confronted with these accusations, they appeared shocked: "Simguru Antal would never condone such practices. These are false accusations, intended to discredit Utopia, from those who have not reached enlightenment. Visitors are welcome to view our sim-archives at any time, and experience what life as a pilgrim is truly like."

Commander Stateira "Starcloak" Eleshenar

Regulus Observer | Interstellar Press

Core Dynamics has Links to VP’s Death?

In another shocking revelation the Federal Times today posted a story highlighting possible links between a non-exec member of the board of Core Dynamics and Vice President Nigel Smeaton’s death. They first referenced an interview on January 28th with Congressman George Fallside who appeared to have early knowledge of the Vice President’s death. The Congressman refused to comment on the article, but it is public knowledge of his non-executive directorship of Core Dynamics and several other major arms manufacturers.

More damning was the evidence concerning one of the crew of the Starship One, Flight Engineer Nick Baron, who had previously worked at Core Dynamics before joining the President’s Crew. From the information package sent by Elaine Boyd after her death, the Federal Times published extracts of financial records of the flight engineer.

When tracing these records through a convoluted series of transfers, one of these transfers was through a shell corporation , in which Congressman Fallside was involved. The trail of the payments revealed that Boyd must have obtained a high level clearance access, possibly provided by Agent Monroe.

When asked about today’s story, the Chief Editor for the Federal Times commented:

“There does appear to have been a conspiracy on several levels. We believe that the destruction of the Highliner Antares so many years ago may not have been an accident. When the Vice President was investigating the death of his relative, he must have discovered some of these details, and possible the dark forces killed him, and when our reporter Elaine Boyd did the same, she too was silenced. We are still not clear how it relates to the present day. Our reporters continue to investigate.

“At the Federal Times we always seek the truth and we will discover the truth here.”