Galnet News

The Imperial Citizen has published a scathing two-part editorial on an individual by the name of Commander Salomé, alleging that she is in fact Lady Kahina Tijani Loren, the missing Imperial senator.

"We note with dismay that a certain Commander Salomé has resurfaced once again. Many will be unaware of her activities, obscured as they are by her carefully cultivated innocence and charm, so it falls to the Imperial Citizen to reveal the sordid truth. She is Lady Kahina Tijani Loren, the disgraced senator."

"Although Salomé enjoyed the comforts and privileges afforded to most high-born Imperial children, her parents had little use for a third daughter and shipped her off to boarding school at the first opportunity. This served only to foster Salomé's sense of rebelliousness and her disdain for her family."

"Despite her privileged upbringing, Salomé grew up to be petty, mean and bitter. But she was also shrewd and politically astute, successfully avoiding an arranged marriage by palming off her would-be husband onto one of her older sisters."

"Salomé hated her father, but despite her antipathy, she was clearly influenced by him. After all, this was the man who expelled colonists from the Chione moon in 3297 by bombing it – an act condemned as a war crime by the Federation."

"Loren's family was murdered in 3300 by a group of freedom fighters known as Reclamists, but she was somehow spirited safely away. She claims to have been kidnapped, abused and held to ransom, only to overcome her enemies and return the Prism system to Imperial control after a battle with the Federation. The truth is that she did nothing of the sort."

At a rally on Mars in the Sol system, Federal Shadow President Felicia Winters has addressed the escalating tension between the Federation and the Empire.

While careful not to criticise Federal President Zachary Hudson, Winters made her position on the ongoing Federal-Imperial conflict clear. Addressing citizens who had gathered to support her, the shadow president said:

"I may disagree with Edmund Mahon on a number of issues, but I share his views on the current political climate."

"Both the Federation and the Empire have access to tremendous military power, and a war between our two societies could have a disastrous impact on the galaxy. We must turn away from acrimony, and move towards mutual understanding and cooperation. It is not too late to change course."

Winters's words were warmly received by the assembled crowds.

This report presents the latest data on expansion and withdrawal among the galaxy's minor factions.

Here are the latest factions to have expanded into new systems:

El Confederation

Lacaille 8760 Allied Corp.

Himardisc Bureau

Confederation of Dewindji

Epsilon Hydri Commodities

Natural Carnai Party

Progressive Party of Sagara

Social Oresqu Resistance

Mapocori Holdings

Confederation of Chapoyo

Expansions occur when a minor faction reaches a sufficient level of influence and there is a populated system within striking distance. Expansion is costly, so when a faction expands, the wealth and development level of the system it controls are temporarily reduced.

Here are the latest factions in withdrawal:

Inupinie Jet Life PLC

Albisaki Prison Colony

Paesia Future

Mechtanitou Empire Party

Bhaguti Advanced Corporation

Progressive Party of Wolf 433

Lambayeque Corporation

Luhman 16 Central and Co

Dangarla Creative Corp.

Liberals of LTT 606

Factions are considered to be in withdrawal if their level of influence within a system drops below a certain level. If the faction's influence remains low for a total of five days, the faction must leave the system entirely. If the faction manages to increase its level of influence, it remains in the system.

According to the Galactic Finance Times, analysis of the largest corporations in the Federation and the Empire reveals evidence of a significant economic downturn in the coming years.

"We're seeing poor revenue forecasts for a wide range of corporations, including big names like Sirius, Gutamaya and Core Dynamics," said a correspondent for the Galactic Finance Times. "They should be concentrating on marketing to leverage new product ranges, but instead they're diverting resources into intensive research and development. They're ignoring the traditional sales cycle, and we don't know why. It's perplexing."

Shareholders have seen poor returns on their investments in recent months, with stock prices dropping across multiple sectors, although this has given others a chance to pick up stock at bargain prices. Several of the pertinent corporations were contacted by the Galactic Finance Times, but none deigned to respond.

Despite the GFT's report, some commentators blame the downturn on the London Treaty, which was signed by the galaxy's three major powers in 3278 following the introduction of the frame shift drive. The treaty enforces strict tonnage limitations for capital ships, and was aimed at preventing an arms race, but in recent years it has come to be perceived as a barrier to economic development.

One option for investors looking for a risky but possibly lucrative venture is a start-up called MetaDrive Inc., a small company based in the Chi Orionis system specialising in hyperdrive research. The company is reported to be seeking investment.

Continuing our series on significant episodes from human history, noted historian Sima Kalhana discusses the Thargoids.

"Are we alone in the universe? It's a question we've been asking for millennia. Even before we expanded into space, we wondered about the possibility of non-human intelligence."

"Of course, for some, the question has already been answered. We have seen the aliens and we have given them a name: the Thargoids. But accounts of Thargoid encounters are shrouded in so much ambiguity, it is hard to accept them as proof of extraterrestrial intelligence. Furthermore, there have been no credible reports of Thargoid sightings for hundreds of years."

"The first reported Thargoid encounters date from 3125, when accounts surfaced that pilots had been pulled from witch-space and attacked by mysterious octagonal starships. Witnesses asserted that the strange vessels were exceptionally fast and remarkably manoeuvrable. Pilots who survived these experiences were convinced they had encountered extraterrestrials, and named the aliens 'Thargoids'."

"As news of these encounters spread, rumours surfaced that the interdictions might be a response to an earlier human attack. Leaked Federal intelligence indicated that colonists in the Veliaze system had encountered and assaulted an extraterrestrial deputation shortly before the Thargoid interdictions began. Suggestions that the Thargoid attacks were a reaction to this attack carried more than a hint of plausibility."

"Not long after, reports of Thargoid encounters came to an abrupt halt. In the decades that followed, not one credible account of a Thargoid encounter was reported. For some, this was proof that the original reports were groundless – 'the fantasies of lonely pilots, looking for attention', as Arvan Corto of the Imperial Navy said at the time."

"But public opinion shifted in 3250 when reports emerged that the disappearance of the Thargoids might have been a direct consequence of a covert anti-Thargoid operation. An anonymous message, delivered to a number of media outlets, claimed that an organisation known as the Intergalactic Naval Reserve Arm had developed a chemical weapon specifically designed to target Thargoid technology. This chemical – known as the mycoid virus – was designed to attack plastic polymers, which were believed to be present in Thargoid hyperdrive systems. The fact that the virus also appeared to harm the Thargoids led to speculation that the aliens' bodies might contain some kind of polymer-like material. The report was dismissed by many leading political figures as a conspiracy theory, but some asserted that it contained enough plausible detail be believable."

"Since then, very little credible information has emerged. The original accounts from 3125 report that Thargoid ships can execute huge hyperspace jumps, while information purportedly from INRA documents indicates that the Thargoids originate from an ammonia-based world. There are even rumours that the Thargoids have a collective consciousness or 'hive mind'. Some of the less outlandish theories include the suggestion that electronic countermeasure technology was reverse-engineered from captured Thargoid vessels."

"And what of the barnacles, Unknown Artefacts and Unknown Probes? Many believe these objects are of non-human origin, which has led to speculation that they were created by the Thargoids. Unfortunately, however, analysis of these objects has not yielded any concrete information about their origin or purpose."

"Are the Thargoids real? Frankly, I don't know. But if they are, their true nature can only be guessed at."

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

Here are the latest factions to experience a civil war:

People's Epsilon Indi Progressive Party

CD-24 10619 Democrats

Indrians Interstellar

Baker Nationalists

Party of LTT 617

Ross 193 Network

Earls of Ross 193

League of LP 834-42 Party

Elycoco Purple Mafia

Elycoco Nationals

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:

Keries Camorra

El Confederation

Himardisc Bureau

Epsilon Hydri Commodities

Wolves of Jonai

Bagai Crimson Mafia

Guardians of Harmony

Integrated Caelottixa

LTT 18486 Jet Energy Company

Zoryang Gold Mafia

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.

Federal President Zachary Hudson has announced that the Federal appeal for construction materials received the enthusiastic support of the galactic community. Hundreds of independent pilots supported the campaign by delivering autofabricators, tantalum and superconductors to Brady Horizons in the Gooheimar system, which will allow the Federation to start work on the first of three new Farragut-class Battlecruisers.

In a brief statement, President Hudson thanked those who had contributed to the initiative.

"I want to thank you for your support. The passionate response to this appeal gives me hope that the Federation faces a bright future – one in which we can meet any threat that confronts us."

The Union Party of Ambika has announced that its two-pronged relief campaign has received the full support of the galactic community. Huge deliveries of food were received at Goulart City, and the agitators attempting to disrupt the relief operation have been neutralised.

A spokesperson for the organisation released a brief statement:

"We are deeply grateful to all those who supported this campaign. Without your intervention, I fear that Ambika could have been plunged into a humanitarian crisis. The food supplies delivered to Goulart City will now be distributed throughout the system."

Recent reports from the Empire-controlled Pleiades Sector IH-V c2-16 system indicate that the Pleiades Resource Enterprise, a Federal organisation, is preparing to launch an assault with the aim of taking the region from the Empire.

A spokesperson for the Imperial Inquisition, which is coordinating the Imperial resistance, said:

"I would not surrender so much as an inch of territory to the Federation – I am certainly not about to surrender Pleiades Sector IH-V c2-16. I hope the Pleiades Resource Enterprise is prepared for a fight."

The Imperial Inquisition has asked all Empire-aligned pilots to travel to Pleiades Sector IH-V c2-16 and help repel the Federal offensive. Similarly, the Pleiades Resource Enterprise has issued a call to arms to all Federation-aligned fighters.

The Pleiades Resource Enterprise has set out a week-long operation to take control of the system, which will begin on the 11th of August 3302.

On the 30th of June 3301, Newton Dock in the BD-02 4304 system was quarantined due to the outbreak of a mysterious plague. This pathogen – named the Cerberus Plague – eventually spread to over 20 systems and claimed 100,000 lives.

Thanks to the support of the galaxy's independent pilots, a cure derived from Ceremonial Heike Tea was discovered and used to treat victims at Hart Station in the Bast System. The cure was then synthesised, mass produced and shipped to other affected systems. On the 10th of August 3301, the last affected systems were declared free of the Cerberus Plague.

In tribute to these pilots' heroic efforts, the Buckyball Racing Club is hosting a special event at Hart Station. The race will involve a scramble around nearby medicine-production facilities and a speed run to Brunel City in Heike.

Commander Raiko