Galnet News

The Mars Tribune has been closed and its owner arrested in the wake of the spy robot scandal.

The announcement was made by Detective Captain Ramesh Thorne, who was recently reinstated to, and promoted by, the Federal Security Service:

“Kingsley Cordova, editor Lana Sigrid and other employees of The Mars Tribune have been arrested for blackmail and corruption. The newsfeed has been permanently dissolved, and the Cordova Group conglomerate subjected to a government audit.”

“I would like to thank the anonymous whistle-blower who exposed Cordova’s scheme. She has now removed the surveillance program from all Achilles Corporation PA912 robots in exchange for immunity from prosecution.”

Chief Editor Lena Ravenhill wrote in The Federal Times:

“The Mars Tribune abandoned its professional ethics in its hunt for salacious headlines, thereby undermining the role of honest journalism in our society. We are relieved to see justice done.”

Admiral Frederick Yamamoto has been announced as the sixth member of the Alliance Council of Admirals.

The position had been vacant for months after the previous appointment, Riri McAllister, was discovered to be the coordinator of terrorist group the League of Reparation.

The induction ceremony was conducted by Fleet Admiral Hayley Sorokin, who said:

“After many years commanding the Alliance Defence Force in the Zaonce system, Admiral Yamamoto has more than earned his place on the Council. His experience will help enhance security for all member systems.”

Vanya Driscoll, political journalist at The Alliance Tribune, commented:

“Many expected the role to be filled by an officer from the Lave fleet rather than Zaonce, so the decision has ruffled some feathers. It has also not gone unnoticed that Admiral Yamamoto is a close personal friend of President Gibson Kincaid.”

Here are this week’s major stories.

A leaked Imperial Internal Security Service report on Nova Imperium has revealed that the group’s leader is one Duke Kaeso Mordanticus, a former naval admiral from a long line of decorated veterans. The report reveals that Mordanticus still has contacts and influence in the Imperial Navy, and that Nova Imperium’s ships are mostly run by ex-naval crews.

Meanwhile, an Achilles Corporation engineer who helped design the robots at the heart of the spy robot scandal has given evidence to former FSS inspector Ramesh Thorne. The engineer claims she was blackmailed by Kingsley Cordova, owner of the Mars Tribune, into installing surveillance programs on PA912 administration robots. All the affected robots have now been made safe.

In other news, the Independent HIP 29241 Green Party operation to recover escape pods in the Meene system has reached a successful conclusion. The captured mercenaries were interrogated by the Meene Defence Force, leading to the realisation that several of them were junior officers in Sirius Corp’s private fleet. The engineer Ram Tah, who operates from Phoenix Base in the Meene system, has claimed that Sirius is trying to obtain his research by force. The Sirius Corporation has refuted any allegations of criminal activity.

Finally, Olelbis Holdings, an organisation based in the Olelbis system, has announced an elaborate social function at Polyakov Orbital, the faction’s base of operations. In support of this event, Olelbis Holdings has placed an open order for various rare commodities, and has pledged to reward pilots who deliver these commodities to Polyakov Orbital in the Olelbis system.

Popular author Olav Redcourt, who was recently reported missing, has been found alive and well at a writers’ retreat at a remote outpost. The writer is apparently hard at work on his new book, a science fiction novel.

And those are the main stories this week.

Popular author Olav Redcourt, who was recently reported missing, has been found alive and well.

Margot Hist of the Dervish-Foss Literary Agency told the media:

“I can reassure Olav’s fans that he is in good health, and has checked into a writers’ retreat at a remote outpost. I can also reassure Bonespire Publishing that he will soon pay their fees for contractual breach, having sold most of his belongings.”

“Olav is currently hard at work on his new science fiction novel, despite my attempts to convince him to choose a more popular genre.”

When asked why these facts were not made public sooner, Ms Hist replied:

“Unfortunately I didn’t know there was concern about Olav’s whereabouts until I returned from holiday – there are no communication facilities at Skyglow Havens on the Rhea Archipelago.”

A link has been established between the mercenary group recently intercepted in the Meene system and the Sirius Corporation.

Security Chief Harper Vargas of the Meene Defence Force said:

“With the vital assistance of the galactic community, we were able to apprehend several of the mercenaries. Interrogations revealed that a number of them were in fact junior officers in Sirius Corp’s private fleet.”

“Other mercenaries confirmed that the attack was funded and organised by these individuals, which raises the question of why Sirius should be involved with this criminal enterprise.”

The engineer Ram Tah, who operates from Phoenix Base in the Meene system, commented:

“Did Sirius really think it could obtain my research by force? Or was this an attempt to scare me into accepting Li Yong-Rui’s offer?”

A spokesperson for the Sirius Corporation refuted any allegations of criminal activity, and insisted there would be a full inquiry.

Olelbis Holdings, an organisation based in the Olelbis system, has announced an elaborate social function at Polyakov Orbital, the faction’s base of operations.

In support of this event, Olelbis Holdings has placed an open order for quantities of Deuringas Truffles, Mokojing Beast Feast and Mulachi Giant Fungus, and has pledged to reward pilots who deliver these commodities to Polyakov Orbital in the Olelbis system. The organisation has also placed a kill order on all ships on its wanted list, to ensure that those contributing commodities to the campaign can do so safely.

The campaign begins on the 15th November 3304 and will run for one week. If the final target is met earlier than planned, the campaign will end immediately.

The Independent HIP 29241 Green Party has announced that its appeal to recover escape pods has been enthusiastically received by the galactic community. Hundreds of pilots supported the initiative by delivering pods to Felice Dock, and by protecting contributing ships in the Meene system.

Security Chief Harper Vargas of the Meene Defence Force gave the following statement:

“We have recovered a number of key figures within the mercenary group, and interrogations are underway. We will share more information when we have it.”

Pilots who contributed to the initiative can now collect their rewards from Felice Dock in the Meene system.

The Federal Times has revealed a connection between the Cordova Group and the spy robots scandal.

Chief Editor Lena Ravenhill wrote:

“Ramesh Thorne’s recent appeal elicited a response from an anonymous whistle-blower – a robotics engineer employed by the Achilles Corporation who helped design the robots at the heart of these events.”

“The engineer has attested that she was blackmailed by Kingsley Cordova, owner of the Mars Tribune, into installing surveillance programs on robots belonging to well-known people in the Sol system. The accumulated data was relayed to the Cordova Group, which published it in The Mars Tribune.”

A spokesperson for the Achilles Corporation said:

“The engineer has provided us with a ‘kill switch’ that remotely deletes the spy program she designed. This coreware update has now been transmitted to all PA912 model robots. We can therefore assure our customers that there is no longer any risk of their private information being misused.”

A report compiled by the Imperial Internal Security Service on isolationist group Nova Imperium has been leaked.

The Rewired news service broadcast the report in full:

“This document compiles our latest intelligence on Nova Imperium, as requested. Although the group has not yet committed any crimes, its threat potential should not be underestimated. Its isolationist message resonates with those fearful of Thargoid invasion, and its rallying cry of ‘Empire for the Imperials’ aligns with the more conservative citizenry.”

“We have identified the group’s leader, the Imperator, as Duke Kaeso Mordanticus, a former naval admiral from a long line of decorated veterans.”

“Evidence suggests that Mordanticus still has contacts and influence in the Imperial Navy. Nova Imperium’s ships are mostly run by ex-naval crews, bound by loyalty to their former commanding officer.”

“We will continue to monitor Nova Imperium and report on any developments.”

The family and colleagues of author Olav Redcourt have reported him missing. A police investigation has so far failed to determine his whereabouts.

Redcourt recently hit the headlines when he terminated his relationship with his publisher, Bonespire Publishing, midway through a promotional tour.

In the wake of the author’s disappearance, Bonespire released the following statement:

“We can only assume that Mr Redcourt is trying to avoid paying his fine for contract violation, which runs to several million credits. Of course, should he agree to continue writing the bestselling Corsair King series, we would be happy to waive the damages.”

Literary critic Kayla Shah offered an alternative explanation:

“Obsessive readers of the Corsair King series have sent death threats to Redcourt for not delivering exactly what they wanted. Now that he’s turned his back on the series, might he have been kidnapped by a rabid fan and forced to write more novels, or even murdered as an act of revenge?”