Galnet News

It has been two months since former Federal president Jasmina Halsey was admitted to the Clearwater Clinic psychiatric facility on Mars. Halsey's admission followed a period of bizarre behaviour, during which she claimed to have encountered super-intelligent beings in the depths of space.

Since then, a proportion of the Federal population has been calling for the former president's release, claiming that she was hospitalised not for the good of her health but in order to silence her. This suggestion was dismissed as "patently ridiculous" by Halsey's personal staff, but this did little to deter those campaigning for Halsey's freedom.

Now it seems the campaigners have got their wish. Today, Jasmina Halsey left the Clearwater Clinic of her own volition, having been deemed ready to return to society by her doctors.

President Halsey was met at the entrance of the clinic by a crowd of supporters, to whom she gave a brief statement:

"I would like to thank the staff of this fine institution for helping me during this troubled time. It's fair to say I haven't quite been myself recently, and I apologise wholeheartedly for any distress I might have caused."

As Utopia completes its mission in the Maia system, senior Utopian figures have voiced alarm at the deteriorating situation between the Federation and the Empire over the barnacles. One member of the commune said:

"We are surrounded by a galactic mystery. Recent events indicate that humanity may not be alone in the universe."

"Some believe we are being stalked by monsters. Others think we will soon encounter a higher intelligence. We must be optimistic, and meet the future – whatever it may hold – with a collective voice."

"I believe humanity is being watched, its actions noted. Soon, we will be judged. Our survival depends on the decisions we make right now. We must not, and cannot, fight among ourselves."

Commander Gan

Utopian News Network | Interstellar Press

"Commanders are advised to search within nebulae for rocky or high-metal content worlds with a composition of between 66.5% and 99.1% rock and 8.9% and 33.5% metal, with 0% ice. Temperatures between 194K and 451K should be sought. To narrow the field, Commanders should also seek bodies with gravity between 0.06g and 0.3g."

This text is taken from 'Barnacle Search Criteria', a recent publication from the Canonn Interstellar Research Group.

Commentators are divided on what impact, if any, this information will have on the increasingly volatile situation in and around the Merope system. But many agree that if the barnacles are being viewed as a finite resource, the Canonn's data may serve to defuse tensions, at least temporarily.

The publication of the criteria is believed to have followed a private conference between Dr Arcanonn and Professor Cora Shaw, director of the Palin Institute. Dr Arcanonn commented:

"We must not let the drums of war drown out the fact that the stated positions of the Federation and the Empire are, upon review, far from irreconcilable."

Commander Nicholas Powell

This report presents the latest data on conflict among the galaxy's minor factions.

Here are the latest factions to experience a civil war:

Petra Jet Travel Solutions

Silver Travel Organisation

Candhari United

37 Geminorum Conservatives

Lugh for Equality

Gorgon Crimson Pirates

Gorgon Front

Yawa Empire Party

Autocracy of Ross 1008

Purungkat Conservatives

Civil wars occur when minor factions compete for control of major assets such as starports. When a faction is involved in a civil war, the standard of living, development level and security level in the system it controls are temporarily reduced. Combat activities can bring a civil war to an end.

Here are the latest factions to experience war:

Ross 788 Crimson Energy Comms

Miroman Emperor's Grace

Movement for Chacobog for Equality

Glaucus PLC

HIP 31833 Empire Group

Alioth Independents

Firdaus Transport Company

Delta Squadron

LTT 9164 Democrats

Drug Empire of Wolf 751

Wars occur when a minor faction invades a star system controlled by another minor faction. For the duration of the war, the standard of living, wealth level and security level in the disputed system are reduced. Combat activity between the two warring factions determines the outcome of the conflict. If neither faction succeeds in dominating the other, the war ends in a ceasefire.

The Future of Segovan has announced that its appeal for construction materials has reached a successful conclusion, despite repeated attempts from Imperial pilots to disrupt the campaign. Large quantities of gallium and insulating membrane, and hundreds of tonnes of power generators, were delivered to Ramsbottom Hub, the organisation's base of operations, allowing work to begin on the first of a series of new Federal outposts.

A spokesperson for the Future of Segovan said:

"The Federation's opponents went to great lengths to try to stop this operation, but ultimately they failed. The construction of this outpost will proceed as planned."

Since the non-human structures known as barnacles were first discovered, they have prompted fierce debate, attracted intense scrutiny and even triggered the despatch of a Federal Fleet to the Merope system.

As the only known source of meta-alloys, the barnacles are of considerable value. It is therefore unsurprising that the Empire has issued an appeal for exploration data in the hope of finding more. A spokesperson for Bava Blue Travel Systems, which is coordinating the campaign, made the following statement:

"The barnacles are of central importance, and it is vital that we determine whether or not there are any more out there. We are therefore launching an appeal for exploration data, to begin at once, as part of a search for further barnacles."

The spokesperson was asked if the campaign had been prompted by the Federation's decision to station battle cruisers at barnacle sites in the Merope system, but she declined to comment.

Bava Blue Travel Systems, on behalf of the Empire, has promised to reward pilots who deliver exploration data to Bauschinger City in the Bava system. The campaign begins on the 14th of July 3302 and will run for one week. If the Empire's targets are met earlier than planned, the campaign will end immediately.

The second heat of the Rise to Power campaign is over. For this event, pilots were asked to head to the Nervi system and gather technical blueprints for their chosen faction. The one condition imposed on the pilots was that the technical blueprints must be stolen – a stipulation that gave rise to a number of clashes with Nervi security forces.

The final tally indicates that the largest quantity of technical blueprints was received by the EG Pilots, making them the winner of this stage of the campaign. But whether or not the EG Pilots will win the Rise to Power competition remains to be seen, as it will not be clear which faction has received the most support until the end of the campaign.

The Rise to Power competition will run for one more week, and the victor will go on to join the ranks of the galaxy's major power players.

The third and final stage of the Rise to Power campaign is about to begin.

For this heat, pilots have been asked to salvage precious gems and deliver them to Laura Elizabeth in the Meropis system. But the event organisers have chosen to complicate matters by refusing to reveal the precise whereabouts of the salvage site. Pilots participating in the event have been given just one clue to its location - the following signal:

353133313639313835 3432313232313132 31393235313932303531333139 A6B1D4H1I4K1L1M2N1O2R1U1V1Y1Z1 3132313533313132 373131323134353230 32353133313531343139

The group that manages to accumulate the most precious gems will be declared the winner of the final Rise to Power event. At the close of the event, the results of each heat will be reviewed. The faction that has garnered the most support over the course of the campaign will join the ranks of the galaxy's major power players.

The event begins on the 14th of July 3302 and will run for one week.

This report presents the latest data on democratic activity among the galaxy's minor factions.

Here are the latest factions to hold elections:

Tsondama Liberty Party

United TT 58343 Confederacy

Mu Horologii Jet Legal and Co

Uzumeru Netcoms Incorporated

Kharaitis Empire Party

HIP 19157 Progressive Party

Independents of HIP 18843

LHS 3437 Coalition

Kremainn Free

Llwyddi Di Network

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

Following a recent statement from Senator Zemina Torval in which the seasoned politician criticised the deployment of Federal battlecruisers in the Merope system, Admiral Denton Patreus has entered the debate. At a hastily organised press conference on Capitol, Admiral Patreus addressed the Federal intervention:

"Like Senator Torval, I believe that the Federal presence in Merope represents an attempt to lay claim to the system's non-human structures. This will not stand. An Imperial deputation will therefore be mobilised and despatched to the Merope system. I will take personal command of the fleet, which will depart within the month."

Patreus did not clarify whether the Imperial ships would engage the Federal fleet, or simply establish a counter-blockade. But one thing is for sure: this development can only serve to heighten tensions between the Federation and the Empire.