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#Post#: 103--------------------------------------------------
Attack on Imperiopolis - Part I
By: MichaelH23 Date: August 2, 2015, 11:43 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
Despite their loss of the Caledonia and Hellonde systems to
Imperial/Coalition/IGF/GUJF forces, the rebels remain a serious
threat, thanks to design diagrams for advanced starships and the
continuous cloning of troops using DNA from five volunteers who
had suffered greatly from the many wars Trekylon had been forced
to fight. No one knows who is supplying the rebels with
advanced-tech, although Intelligence Minister Luther Sloan
suspects a rogue Section 31 agent is involved. He is on a
personal mission to locate and terminate the leak at all costs,
while at the same time keeping the information as tightly
guarded as possible to avoid enraging the Laptev allies and
provoking the main foreign enemy, the Barlat Concordiat.
Meanwhile, as operations are underway to free the captive
colony-systems of Ateara, New Columbia, New Oberon, and Taborica
from rebel occupation, the rebels have planned a major offensive
deep into the heart of the empire, Gaia itself. Imperiopolis
becomes the new front-line in the Civil War.
OOC: This attack takes place at the same time as the New
Columbia and Ateara campaigns and is to be considered the last
great rebel offensive in the Civil War. This attack also plays
into the later story of the Rebuilding Period and the creation
of artificial governments in the unclaimed parts of Gaia.
[quote]From GNN NEWS: Today, operations have begun on the worlds
of New Columbia and Ateara V as the Imperial Parliament begins
their debate on a proposal by His Imperial Majesty Drake I to
grant amnesty to rebel and rebel symapthizer groups who have
committed no other serious crimes against the empire. Drake I
has also proposed an Act of Tribulation which would bring the
rebel hierarchy to trial and could result in executions of the
guilty. Foreign observers have commented that such an Act could
jeopardize continued support for the Drake monarchy if passed by
parliament. In other news, several nonaligned nations have sent
emissaries to the Imperial capital of Imperiopolis. They have
been in closed-door meetings which the press has not been
allowed to record. No word from the Imperial Chancellor's Office
as to the nature of the secret talks. We'll continue to follow
these developments...[/quote]
Downtown Imperiopolis, near the 12th Street Cafe
For GNN Field Reporter Burton Armos, today was just another day.
He was one of only four reporters covering the day-to-day
happenings in Imperiopolis, with many covering the Parliament
debates, and others offworld covering the battles. He was stuck
covering the petty events like crime, celebrations, and local
government matters. Thankfully, today was Sunday. While crime
didn't know a day, and celebrations had become rare thanks to
the Civil War, at least the city-council was not in session and
wouldn't be until tomorrow. Today, he could relax at his
favorite bench by his favorite cafe, sipping an espresso and
watching the hovercars pass by. The sky was a brilliant blue and
the sun was bright. For him, the Civil War-as exciting as it was
from a newsreporter's perspective-was far away.
After finishing his espresso, he took a walk down the sidewalk
along 10th Avenue. Occasionally window-shopping at stores and
nodding to everyone that passed him, Armos was not prepared for
the phonecall that came thru his wristcomm. While they were more
accurately known as commcalls, the old label of phonecall stuck,
despite telephones having disappeared from all but antiques
museums. Armos sighed, hoping this call was not a crime-scene
call. He activated the commline and the voice of his Chief in
the Capital Office, Colby Corwin came online.
Corwin [voice] - "Burt, I've just gotten wind of something that
could be explosive."
Armos - "Let me guess, the Great Houses of Xie have actually
apologized for their role in forcing us to flee the Milky Way
and want to restore the systems there that they greedily
seized."
Corwin [voice] - "Sarcasm does not become you. Obviously, if the
Xie actually apologized, that in itself would be the news story
of the century. There is a rumor that the rebels are getting
help from a rogue agent from something called Section 31."
Armos - "Oh please! Don't tell me you buy into that conspiracy
crap about some hidden agency that answers to no one and will
endorse anything including nuclear war to preserve the empire."
Corwin [voice] - "Shake your head in disbelief if you want, but
this rumor could actually and finally prove the existence of
Section 31."
Armos - "And what am I supposed to do about this rumor?"
Corwin [voice] - "I'm uploading a series of informants and
locations to your home computer banks. When you return home,
look over that list. Your assignment is to track down the
people, go visit the locations, and get me a story. If this is
Section 31, we need to expose it once and for all."
Armos - "A wild goose chase, in other words. Gee, thanks. I was
actually hoping for a boring story to cover."
Corwin [voice] - "Be glad you still have a job. That attitude
could've cost you, and it still might. Get it done. Corwin out."
Armos dropped his arm and sighed. He would have to cut his
Sunday walk short in order to hurry back to go over the list. He
hated having the small-time assignments while everyone else was
covering the more important news. Resigning himself to complete
his new assignment, he turned about and walked back the way he
came. His house was only three miles from the cafe.
#Post#: 106--------------------------------------------------
Re: Attack on Imperiopolis - Part I
By: MichaelH23 Date: August 3, 2015, 1:46 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
An hour earlier, Intelligence Ministry Building
The Intelligence Ministry Building, commonly known by its
nickname, the Polygon, showed more activity than usual. This was
largely due to the war effort, but there was a foreboding aspect
to it as well. The Polygon was first built within weeks of the
settlement of Gaia, and became the bastion for both the military
and intelligence operations. With over 10 corridors in a
23-sided polygonal structure, self-sustaining gardens, a
hospital, a mag-lev tie-in, and grocer contained alongside
several offices, a conference room, a situation room, a map
room, and the main control center from which intelligence could
be gathered and analyzed. Unknown to everyone but the most elite
agents, a subterranean chamber serves as the secret bastion for
the otherwise baseless organization known only as Section 31.
Here operations which cannot be endorsed by the Intelligence
Ministry upstairs, the Imperial government, or even His Imperial
Majesty Drake I, are planned and executed with terrifying
efficiency.
In a hurried walk to the control room closest to the central
hub, which was set aside as a garden for those who wanted some
time away from their work, Luther Sloane, donned in a jet-black
suit with no identifying lapels or rank pins, carried papers in
his hands. He had received the papers from a report written by a
trusted agent within 31 who had been tracking the data-leaks
which benefited the rebels. While there was no ID on the source
of the leaks, the information being provided was damning. He
charged into the Control Room and walked straight toward the
dais, which caused a holographic display to pixelate and
dissolve away.
Sloane - "Attention, attention. There has been a leak in our
databanks going to the rebels. I am enacting Security Protocol
001 immediately. No unauthorized access to computer banks
without expressed permission of myself or His Imperial Majesty
Drake I."
Agent #2 - "Sir, what about the information already out? Can we
change the codes to scramble that and prevent further future
downloads?"
Sloane - "Whoever did this knows our systems inside and out.
Scrambling them would not be effective as they would employ
countermeasures and reopen the lines."
Agent #7 - "We could tap into the lines and discover who is
feeding the data to the rebels."
Sloane - "That is exactly what I want you to do. This is our top
priority. I will move the operations relating to the Civil War
to another department. Track down the source of the leaks, I
will personally deal with him or her. Resume your stations."
As the operations resumed, with their new mission, Sloane
stepped off the dais. The holographic display from earlier,
returned promptly. Sloane walked to a dark area of the Control
Room, then checked to be sure no one was watching him before
pressing a cloaked control pad on the wall. The floor rippled as
the holographic camouflage disappeared. A round portal appeared
in its place, with a spiral staircase leading into darkness.
Sloane took one last look before beginning his descent. As soon
as his head was clear of the portal, the camouflage rippled back
online, concealing the portal once more. Sloane was thankful
that the camouflage could recreate the solidity of the floor, or
else he would have to silence anyone who stumbled into the
chamber. He was the only one who knew the keypad codes to
activate, deactivate, and operate the portal camouflage, as well
as the blind created holographically to conceal the keypad
itself. He descended the stairs, in total darkness, until he
reached the bottom. Lights activated immediately, and Sloane
could see a set of double-doors just ahead. A keypad with a
retinal scanner and fingerprint scanner lit up to the right of
the doors, and Sloane walked toward it. Kneeling, he allowed the
scanner to scan the blood vessels in his retina, which served
the same purpose as fingerprints in identifying a person.
Because the blood vessel patterns were just as unique as
fingerprints to an individual, the development of retinal locks
in the 21st century ended the threat of break-ins once and for
all.
cont'd>
#Post#: 107--------------------------------------------------
Re: Attack on Imperiopolis - Part I
By: MichaelH23 Date: August 3, 2015, 3:14 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
<cont'd
After scanning his retina, Sloane placed his hand on the
hand-scanner pad. A Red light from beneath his palm scanned his
hand. The red light which had been flashing, turned green.
Sloane waited until the doors opened before stepping through.
Inside, the bustle of activity was more pronounced than
upstairs. Here, the various agents were being trained to carry
out various assignments. Because Section 31 had no actual base,
and because all the knowledge of the organization was contained
within the minds of the agents themselves, combat training was
essential. Second to that was knowledge of various poisons, for
when agents found themselves under threat of capture by the
enemy, as well as for assassination missions. Waiting for Sloane
as he entered the spartan chamber, Agent Lucsy looked anything
but reserved. Lucsy stood at 5 foot 2 inches tall, yet somehow
seemed smaller when standing before Sloane, at 5 foot 9 inches
tall. His greying hair was another hallmark of life as an agent.
The inside joke went that the moment you were anointed an agent,
you began to age ten years in a single year.
Lucsy - "I just got the report. Some data on our bioagents was
leaked to the rebels."
Sloane - "When?"
Lucsy - "Two days ago. Its likely the rebels have a lead on
developing bioweapons."
Sloane - "Damn. I had hoped that that information would not be
found. Anything else to report?"
Lucsy - "Yes. There was an entry made two months ago, just after
the Nihal terrorist bombing. It took that long for us to finally
uncover the number of the ID that made the entry."
Sloane - "Who was it?"
Lucsy - "Agent Harris. He disappeared not long after the entry.
I strongly believe that he's the leak we're looking for."
Sloane couldn't restrain a growl from emerging from his clenched
lips. He had personally brought Harris into the organization,
trained him in espionage and counterespionage techniques,
interrogation, and assassination. He could not believe that
Harris would not only turn rogue, but traitor.
Sloane - "Flag any new attempts at entry by him, as a
precaution. However, I refuse to believe he'd betray the
organization, or the empire."
Lucsy - "Sir, the evidence is there. He must be the guilty one.
There is no other possibility."
Sloane - "Perhaps someone killed him and did a telepathic scan
just before Harris died, downloading the information into their
own memory."
Lucsy - "That is not possible. Agents are trained to take their
own lives when threatened. Harris would've been dead before he
was even killed, let alone scanned."
Sloane - "Perhaps Harris has decided not to fall on his sword.
In any event, until you provide me with irrefutable proof, I
refuse to believe that he's a traitor."
Lucsy - "I'll get that proof, Sir."
Sloane - "See to it."
Lucsy turned on his heel and walked away. Sloane could barely
hear a sigh of exasperation escape Lucsy's lips but decided not
to pursue the matter. He was just as annoyed as his agent.
#Post#: 108--------------------------------------------------
Re: Attack on Imperiopolis - Part I
By: MichaelH23 Date: August 4, 2015, 1:45 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
Planet PG23A-4766, outside Imperial space
Planet PG23A-4766 was once a world exploited by the local
spacefaring powers for the mineral wealth. Mines and tunnels had
been dug into the planet's crust in search of the valuable
minerals titanium, impervium, monotanium, and platinum. Over
time, the minerals were extracted and the planet was stripped
clean. Once the last mines were used up, the miners packed up
and moved on. As their governments saw no further value in the
planet, it was abandoned to travel in orbit of the white dwarf
star SG23A alone. The surface was constantly exposed to 400 mph
winds and blizzard conditions resulting from the loss of warmth
from its parent star. It was not the ideal place for a
clandestine meeting, but then there were no such things as
ideals places for clandestine meetings.
Robert Harris, former Section 31 agent-turned-rogue was standing
inside a chamber deep within one of the numerous abandoned
mines. He was thankful this meeting was deep inside the planet
as he had forgotten to bring his cold-weather gear and would've
instantly frozen to death in the -325*F blizzard conditions. He
was growing impatient with the people he was meeting because the
time was growing longer. He knew that the longer he remained in
one place, the easier it would be for Imperial Security or even
agents of Section 31 to locate him. Even though he knew he was
now a fugitive, he felt justified in helping the rebels based on
the fact that the empire had not only been defeated three times
in a single year, and forced from the galaxy of its birth, but
now there was an emperor on the throne who was not even of the
noble class. He felt it his duty to assist the rebels because
they shared his dream of restoring the former Imperial dynasty
to the throne and returning the empire to the Milky Way galaxy
to seek revenge against the foreign powers who had wronged them.
A sudden scraping sound broke his reverie and he looked up to
see three men walk out of the darkness. One of them was the
rebel military leader, Alden Tate. The other two men remained in
darkness, not revealing their identities. This was the common
way of meeting and Harris knew it would be too much to ask who
the men accompanying Tate were.
Harris - "You're late. I could've been tracked by Imperial
Security or Section 31 here."
Tate - "Your status is not a concern of mine. Do you have the
data-crystal with the fighter information?"
Harris reached into his pocket and produced a crystal shimmering
in a faint blue glow. Pulling it from his pocket, he held it up
for Tate to see.
Harris - "This also contains files for how to replicate the
A-virus, and Bioagent Green."
Tate reached for the crystal, but Harris pulled his hand back,
taking the crystal out of Tate's reach. Tate scowled.
Harris - "We need to put more distance between ourselves and the
empire in future. I will not continue to risk capture to feed
you information like this."
Tate's scowl deepened, and the two men behind him reached toward
their sides. Harris suspected they were armed.
Tate - "You might want to use a different tone with me, Harris.
You wouldn't want me to cripple you and leave a signal for your
former employers to track back here, would you? I imagine they
would be most outraged with you."
Harris - "Your threats no longer matter to me, Tate."
For several seconds, both men regarded each other. Then Tate
burst into laughter.
Tate - "You got balls, I'll say that much. Because of that, I
pass to you this warning. Do not return to Gaia."
Harris - "Why not? How else will I be able to feed you
information?"
Tate - "You have other locations with computer banks. As for why
you cannot return to Gaia, I will only say that I have a little
surprise to deliver to the Pretender. One which will result in
the Pretender being delivered to me in chains."
Harris - "I still have family there, in the capital."
Tate - "Then you better hope they leave it. I'm sure your former
agent friends will be looking for them in order to draw you out.
Otherwise, they're likely to become casualties of war. If you
should choose to ignore my warning, even for your family's sake,
I am not responsible for your survival. After all, everyone's
replaceable."
Harris stood, frozen in place.
Tate - "I take your silence as understanding. Go now, before you
find yourself wishing you had been killed here by my personal
security."
With that, Tate and his two guards melted back into the darkness
of the deep tunnel. Harris stood affixed to the spot for a
moment more, then reached down to the device clipped to his
belt. He pressed the button and waited. With a shimmering
curtain of energy and a musical tone, the environment of
PG23A-4766 disappeared, replaced by the interior of a
stealthship. Harris walked to the bridge, a short distance from
the pad, and took his seat at the controls, just as a
shuttlecraft emerged from behind the rock-ice world. The shuttle
banked to starboard before going into warp. Harris entered the
coordinates for his own destination and shortly afterwards, the
stealthship was also in warp.
#Post#: 109--------------------------------------------------
Re: Attack on Imperiopolis - Part I
By: MichaelH23 Date: August 5, 2015, 1:23 am
---------------------------------------------------------
Home of Burton Armos, just outside Imperiopolis. 1317 Hours
(3:17 ET)
Armos was not known as a clean-freak.
His house was a disorganized chaos, which was normal for someone
whose line of work required him to have every ounce of
information at hand. By this, it was meant to have the
information on every scrap of paper, right down to the toilet
paper, and all scattered about so there was little left
recognizeable as a room. Armos tripped over his floor lamp as he
entered the house, going straight to the sofa and coffee table
in the center of the otherwise crowded room. His sofa looked and
smelled as though it had seen better days, but Armos had long
ago went nose-blind to the odors (which explained why he didn't
have many house-guests). He plopped down on the sofa and
activated the computer on the coffee table. Like everything else
in the room, the table was cluttered, with only the space
currently occupied by the computer being clean. It was a wonder
the table did not collapse from the weight. Armos stared at the
screen as the data Corwin had transmitted. As he read, his eyes
grew larger. This was no mere rumor, but had the trademarks of a
potential news story of the century.
Armos - "Oh my God. Corwin wasn't kidding. This is serious."
He read down further, coming upon the list of persons and
locations he was required to investigate. One name which stood
out shocked him to his bones.
Armos - "Allistair Kendyne? He works in the Intelligence
Ministry. What sort of connection does he have to this supposed
Section 31?"
As he looked over the locations list, one location caught his
attention.
Armos - "PG23A-4766. That planet hasn't been visited by Imperial
ships yet appears on the starchart. This is odd."
Pulling up the information on the planet, Armos couldn't help
but shiver.
Armos - "-325*F, 400 mph winds, blizzard conditions year-round.
Not the kind of place I would have a secret meeting. But then,
I'm not a secret agent."
He finished reading over both lists, then brought out a padd
with a download key which he attached to the computer.
Armos - "Computer, begin data transfer of both lists to my
personal padd."
Computer - [Working...estimated time to completion of transfer 1
hour]
Armos leaned back on the sofa. I'm not going anywhere...yet
#Post#: 111--------------------------------------------------
Re: Attack on Imperiopolis - Part I
By: MichaelH23 Date: August 5, 2015, 9:04 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
James T. Kirk Interstellar Spaceport. 0915 Hours (9:15 am ET)
Burton Armos waited at the terminal for one of the many
commercial aeroshuttles to arrive. He had had a restless night's
sleep last night, after reading over the lists sent by his
supervisor, Corwin. The fact that Kendyne was on the list
bothered him greatly. Kendyne was one of only five people in the
Intelligence Ministry who had high-level clearance and hence had
the ability to access classified information. What was just as
shocking was the appearance on the list of Robert Harris,
another of the five with high-level clearance. As the PA
announced a departure flight to Ielia's Monique Beach, Armos
pondered the significance of Harris' name on the list.
PA Voice - "Flight ST287 now boarding for the Base-star Transfer
Point, and all non-Imperial outbound flights at Gate 1-B.
Repeat. Now boarding."
Armos - "That's my flight. Guess its time to play investigative
journalist."
he picked up his bag and made his way toward the Gates. Finding
Gate 1-B was easy as few people were in line for that flight.
Just next to the desk for Gate 1-B, Gate 2 looked packed. Armos
was almost curious as to why so many people were wanting to
leave Gaia. He got into the Gate 1-B line, and before long found
himself at the desk.
Clerk - "Have anything to declare?"
Armos - "Just my cam-disk, press credentials, and phonestik."
Clerk - "Place them on the tread for x-ray scan and step through
the scanner."
Armos did as instructed, setting his equipment on the tread. As
the items moved into the scanner, he walked through the
scanner-arch. He was initially tense, but when the computer gave
an almost musical ping and the clerk gave him clearance to step
through, he relaxed. His equipment emerged from the scanner just
seconds later.
Clerk - "Have a pleasant flight, sir."
Armos - "Thank you."
He gathered his equipment, returning each to his travel case,
then picking up his suitcase, he proceeded into the catwalk
connecting the building to the aeroshuttle. Finding a seat
inside was easy, and he grabbed a window seat. He fastened his
harness as the pilot's voice echoed throughout the shuttle.
Pilot [voice] - "This is your pilot speaking. We will be taking
off for the Transfer Station just outside the base-star in a few
minutes, after some last-minute security checks. If you are
proceeding to destinations outside the empire, remain in your
seats once the shuttle reaches the TS. Flights to the moons or
Hera will change aeroshuttles and proceed to Beta-Flight.
Flights leading to other colonies of the empire will change
aeroshuttles and proceed to Gamma-Flight. Flights to Founder
Nations will change to Delta-Flight. Thank you and enjoy your
flight with us."
Armos pulled out his padd and looked on the list.
Armos - "Ameriga, here I come."
Moments later, the aeroshuttle took off
#Post#: 112--------------------------------------------------
Re: Attack on Imperiopolis - Part I
By: MichaelH23 Date: August 6, 2015, 5:40 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
Rebel Stronghold. Planet PG23A-0178
Trom Vergusson scratched his beard as he listened to the lastest
proposals from the various military commanders on where to
strike next within the empire. Their Movement For The
Restoration of the Empire had in the years since the opening
strikes of the civil war coalesced into a semi-government
referred to as the Trek Imperium. Vergusson was not the natural
first choice for head-of-state, but because of the dual nature
of the rebel ruling body, he was willing and ready to share
power with Tate as the military arm in a duumvirate. Tate was
away meeting with the feeder, which left Vergusson in charge of
overseeing the meeting currently taking place.
General Altrius Metr - "We've lost about 65% of our offensive
capabilities when we lost control of Caledonia II and Hellonde.
Plus our cells on Azuria were exposed so quickly, we couldn't
organize them into a Fifth Column."
General Oleud Maclod - "Those damned Xie ships would've started
bombarding Azuria the moment we seized control of the planetary
government. And without weapons of mass destruction to use, we
would've been helpless."
Metr - "Indeed."
Commander Troyius Geheben - "We have to tighten our control of
Ateara, New Columbia, and New Oberon as we've tightened control
of Taborica."
Metr - "Tightened control of Taborica? Don't be an idiot.
Taborica is an Imperial-allied independent world with little
strategic value beyond piratic activity beyond. Because we
control the other three systems, we have a direct conduit to
Gaia-Hera which should be exploited."
Vergusson - "Exploited, how?"
Metr - "We launch a major aerial attack on the capital, combined
with our Fifth Column operatives on the surface."
Vergusson - "I thought the damned Ishii had eliminated any Fifth
Column personnel with their assistance in the Crackdown?"
Many of the generals and commanders remembered too well what
happened the moment Vergusson and his senatorial friends walked
out of the Imperial Parliament, ushering the political phase of
the Civil War. Imperial Security, Capital Police, and Ishii and
Imperium troops worked closely to arrest and detain as many
potential sympathizers as they could. Many of the commanders and
generals managed to slip out of the noose before it was
tightened too tight. While the Ishii presence had been reduced
both as a result of other engagements and pressure from
Inuyashia and some Laptev nations, there was still sufficient
foreign troops within the capital, propping up the Imperial
government to further make of them a target in need of
elimination.
Metr - "We still have sufficient numbers to make a direct
attack."
Vergusson - "You won't be able to attack the capital directly,
with those thrice-damned foreign bastards in place. You would
need to find a new target."
Geheben - "Perhaps you've forgotten that the Imperial Palace is
just five miles from the capital, in the Capitoline Range. We
simply march on the Palace, neutralize its defense systems,
eliminate the Panther Guard and Panther Legion, and capture
Drake I."
Vergusson - "With the Pretender captured, we could then force
the foreign occupiers to lay down their arms or risk an all-out
war as well as the execution of Drake I to show them what
they'll face should they continue resisting us."
Metr - "I sincerely hope the Xie and Ishii resist. I want their
blood as payment for the deaths of my wife, daughter and son."
Geheben - "We're not in the strength to launch an offensive
against Gaia, so unless you have someone in mind, your plan will
remain on paper only."
Vergusson - "I believe Tate knows someone willing to take on the
challenge. I will inform Tate of the plan as soon as he returns.
Continue forming ideas. I want additional preliminary plans in
place for after we capture Drake I, along with contingency plans
just in case Ish'Cong and the Great Houses do decide to
foolishly resist us. Meeting adjourned."
Metr, Geheben, and the other commanders began to scatter,
breaking into smaller groups within which discussion
accelerated. Vergusson listened and watched as ideas on
implementing martial law on New Columbia, the assassination of
the planetary governors of New Oberon and Ateara, and a return
to Caledonia II were debated and discussed. Vergusson looked
forward to conferring with Tate once he returned.
#Post#: 166--------------------------------------------------
Re: Attack on Imperiopolis - Part I
By: MichaelH23 Date: September 10, 2015, 4:45 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
Independent-owned orbital spaceport, Ameriga system. 1125 hrs
(11:25 am ET)
Burton Armos stepped off the ramp and took a look around. Many
people were moving about, going to and from their destinations
as everyone did at all the busy spaceports. He made his way
across the plaza and over to a set of windows where he could get
a better view of the planet he was about to take a shuttle to.
As he walked closer, he could see a more impressive vista of the
orbital space around Ameriga. When he finally got his first look
at Ameriga and its seven moons, he was taken away by the sheer
beauty of the large globe, and the seven smaller globes which
had aligned perfectly for this view. The oceans were a blue not
unlike Gaia, with equally impressive greens, browns, whites, and
beiges. Armos couldn't understand why rebels would be involved
in such a pristine system far outside the Imperial boundaries.
P.A: - "All passengers departing for Ameriga are to board
Shuttle 1-A in fifteen minutes. Passengers traveling to the
moons are to board Shuttle 1-B in twenty minutes."
Armos - "I have ten minutes to get to the shuttle, so I can send
a message to my office letting them know I arrived."
As he pulled out his padd to send the message, a shadow fell
over him. He slowly glanced up to see a rather slim, strikingly
gorgeous woman staring down at him. It wasn't until he locked
eyes with her that he realized that she was not there to engage
in dating rituals.
Woman - "You are Burton Armos of GNN News?"
Armos - "Yes I am. And you are?"
Woman - "None of your business. You are to come with me, now.
Any resistance and I will knock you out with a tranq-dart and
drag you along."
Armos - "Its usually considered polite decorum to at least
introduce yourself before you start making demands and barking
orders like a drill-sergeant."
Woman - "I don't do polite decorum. I do matter-of-fact and back
my threats with action."
She withdrew a tube-like weapon with a small button and
targeting scanner on one end. On the other end, a dart point
could clearly be seen gleaming in the light of Ameriga's sun.
Woman - "Now, come with me willingly, or unconscious. Your
choice, but either way, you WILL come with me."
Armos put his padd away, realizing that he wasn't left with any
options. Everyone continued to pass them by, paying scant
attention to the drama he was part of, hurrying to the
shuttlebays to catch their flights.
Armos - "I still have to get my suitcase and camera-gear."
Woman - "Your belongings are irrelevant. They have already been
attended to. Now, no more attempt at delay."
Armos - "If they've been lost or damaged in any way, I'll--"
Woman - "Do nothing. You are hardly a physical threat to me and
you have no weapons beyond a Type III handphaser, which would be
ineffective against us. Move now, or be tranquilized. This is
your last warning."
Armos - "Fine. Lead the way."
Woman - "No. You will lead the way and turn where I say turn."
She prodded him with the stick, making sure not to press the
dart into his skin, yet. Armos turned and began walking. She got
behind him, keeping him close so as to hide her weapon, and
prodded him more and more as they left the plaza. They entered a
corridor which seemed to stretch forever. Armos knew this was
impossible as the spaceport was a small installation with short
causeways linking the main plaza and shuttlebus landing area to
the various smaller shuttlebays. The entire walk was silent,
except when the woman continually poked him and urged him
not-so-nicely to keep going. Finally, as they reached the end of
the corridor, the woman jabbed his mid-back with the stick.
Woman - "Touch that control."
Armos - "But that's the emergency alert button, only to be used
if there's a technical problem with one of the shuttles, and
only by authorized personnel."
Woman - "There is a modification to this particular panel. Touch
the control, now."
Armos did as instructed, then winced in expectation of an alert
klaxon blaring on the speakers. Instead, the wall next to him,
the very end of the corridor itself, irised open in a ring of
energy. Inside, he could make out blinking multi-colored lights
but nothing more. He felt another sharp jab to his back.
Woman - "Step inside. Now."
Armos again did as instructed, stepping through the energy ring
and into the new room. The woman came in right behind him.
cont'd>
#Post#: 167--------------------------------------------------
Re: Attack on Imperiopolis - Part I
By: MichaelH23 Date: September 10, 2015, 5:18 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
<cont'd
Armos went to a set of two seats that seemed to emerge from the
multicolor light show. The woman took the opposite seat and
reach toward the multicolor lights. A panel emerged from within
the light show as though coming from a hidden compartment, which
Armos supposed had to be there. Seat-belts snaked down and
across his chest as she clicked a series of switches and pressed
four buttons. Behind Armos, where he could barely see due to the
restraints, the energy ring irised closed, then vanished
completely.
Woman - "You will remain silent during this voyage, or I will
drug you with anesthizene gas."
Armos - "If you do that, you'll also go out like a light. This
craft, if it is one, won't be able to fly itself."
Woman - "That will not be your concern."
She clicked another switch and suddenly Armos smelled ozone and
felt a tingling sensation. A very low buzz could be made out and
Armos wondered what she had done. Then a cloud of white mist
began spreading all around him. He began to gag almost
immediately and turned to see whether the gas was hitting her
just as hard. As his vision began to spiral into nothingness, he
could see that the woman was showing no ill effects of the gas.
Belatedly, he realized that he was trapped inside a forcefield
which contained the gas. He could do nothing more than emit a
pained moan as he collapsed into unconsciousness. His last view
of the woman was of her sneering at him before turning her
attention back forward.
He awakened after what felt like an eternity to find himself in
yet another new location. Feeling the aftereffects of the gas,
he slowly raised his head to get an idea of where he was and
found to his surprise that the room was lit only by wall-sconces
alight with tiny flames. The walls were stone, looking like an
ancient castle from one of his fantasy movies. What seemed more
out of place in this medieval room were the various computer
banks off to his right, manned by various individuals who either
were unaware that he was awake, or didn't much care.
Armos - "Where am I? What have you done to me?"
He got, as he should've expected, no answer. The people at the
terminals continued to focus on their duties, whatever they were
and gave him no notice. He heard the familiar swooshing of doors
opening, and slowly sat up to face whoever came into the room.
His headache and his temper were on the rise now. The woman
entered the room first, and Armos was preparing to give her the
full benefit of his rage when someone else walked in seconds
later. He was a balding man, about 5 foot tall, with a scar
across his neck. He was dressed in full military uniform, rank
ID, medals, and all.
Man - "I apologize if our methods for bringing you here
were....less than ideal. My colleague has not had much use for
formality and protocol for months, and it is such a shame."
Armos - "I've had worse encounters with beautiful women before,
so this is nothing too much new, though they never threatened to
shoot me with a dart."
The woman visibly glowered at Armos, giving him a threatening
growl. The man placed his hand on her chest to hold her back,
which made Armos more dizzy. The fact that his hand was on her
cleavage should've been enough to cause her to go into a
primordial rage and break it. Instead, and with much effort, she
backed down.
Man - "My name is Alwyn. I was a member of the rebel cadre at
the beginning. My colleague here, who is very strong-willed and
angry, is Coraline."
Armos - "Okay, now I know who you two are. Now why am I here? I
was supposed to meet someone on Ameriga. This doesn't look like
Ameriga."
Coraline - "You're lucky I didn't break anything when I brought
you down here. You are the most stubborn person I ever had to
bring in."
Armos - "Coming from you, I'd see that as a compliment."
Coraline started toward him, determined to demonstrate her rage,
when Alwyn grabbed her arm hard.
Alwyn - "Your services are no longer needed. Mr Armos is no
threat, so stop treating him as such."
Coraline glared at Armos, who tossed back a disarming smile. She
bared her teeth at him, flexed her muscle, then forcefully broke
free of Alwyn's grip and stormed out of the room again.
Alwyn - "Kids these days. You'd think they'd learn by now."
Armos - "Kid? How old is she?"
Alwyn - "She is 16 and an orphan. I am partially the reason for
that. Alden Tate is the other part."
Armos moved into a sitting position on the med-bed, feeling
groggy from the gas.
Alwyn - "Given time, the effects of the gas will wear off."
cont'd>
#Post#: 168--------------------------------------------------
Re: Attack on Imperiopolis - Part I
By: MichaelH23 Date: September 11, 2015, 1:53 am
---------------------------------------------------------
<cont'd
Armos - "I hope so. I thought that Coraline character was going
to kill me."
Alwyn - "She is impetuous, to be sure."
Several nurses came into the chamber, and began scanning Armos,
who sat still and stared at Alwyn. Alwyn contented himself with
observing the staff at their stations. After a few minutes, the
nurses left the chamber, leaving Alwyn and Armos alone with the
exception of the computer operators on the other side of the
room.
Alwyn - "As I said before, I was a member of the rebel cadre at
the beginning of the Troubles. I agreed with Vergusson on the
fact that the empire needed to remilitarize in the face of
growing Barlat Concordiat power which the Laptev Axis was unable
to stop. All that changed, however."
Armos - "Nihal II and the terrorist attack?"
Alwyn - "No. The decapitation of the planetary governor of
Caledonia II changed things for me. Don't get me wrong, Nihal
was a mistake that should never have happened. Tate was a fool
for allying with The Fist in order to further the rebel goals.
But when they seized Caledonia II and executed the governor, his
wife, and their three children in cold-blood...that...was the
moment it stopped being about bringing about change to the
empire and became more about Tate's drive for personal glory and
Vergusson's imperium dictatorship."
Armos - "So why haven't you responded to the appeals from Drake
I giving you amnesty?"
Alwyn - "I played a role in that horrible act on Caledonia II. I
was the one who brought the governor and his family to be
executed like leading sheep to the slaughter. I have their blood
on my hands even if I didn't swing the axe. What I and my
fellows have begun instead is a process of feeding rebel
movements to the Imperial authorities, assisting Imperial agents
escaping rebel captivity, and giving safe-haven to Imperial
Loyalist militias needing shelter and a place to acquire
weapons. It is my rather meager way of redeeming myself."
Armos - "My boss sent me here to track down some information
about a potential rebel strike at the very heart of the empire,
Imperiopolis itself."
Alwyn - "Yes. We've been tracking both rumors and military
movements which indicate a possible strike at Gaia itself in the
coming days, though I must point out that the military movements
could be for any number of potential strikes, including a
reoccupation of Caledonia II, or a strike against Bespia."
Armos - "There are indications the rebels are getting highly
advanced help from a source, possibly within the Imperial
government or from outside."
Alwyn - "They have been receiving money through a secret fund
which I have learned was set up by a foreign government. They
use this money to purchase materials for their advanced
starships which they use in addition to the ones stolen from New
Texahoma."
Armos - "Who is the foreign government providing this secret
fund?"
Alwyn - "The Great Houses of Xie. They've learned of our
settlement of this galaxy, and they're determined to finish what
they started back in the Milky Way, especially their most
warlike House, Meiji. But that's not the biggest shock. The
rebels are building those advanced starships using schematics
they acquired from someone within our very own government."
Armos - "OUR government is working in collusion with the Great
Houses? That's impossible. There is so much hatred for the Great
Houses thanks to their role in the Barlat Assault that to even
be talking with them is high treason. What office?"
Alwyn - "The only office with the schematics secreted away would
be the Intelligence Ministry. But they're so secretive that
their own people are given the full workup before they clock out
for the day, their meals are scanned ten times before being
served to them, and they can't even use the restroom without
submitting to a lengthy search, which makes this mystery even
more puzzling."
Armos - "You may have provided me with the information I need.
But I need to know who in the Ministry is aiding the rebels and
whether they know about the Great Houses' connection."
Alwyn - "Mr Armos, I know how you can find out, but there is
something I must ask from you in return. Something important. It
has to do with this star system."
Armos - "What can I do?"
Alwyn - "These people, on Ameriga and the five inhabited
moons......they've tried to petition the empire for entry as a
commonwealth, but thanks to the Civil War, their petition has
been ignored. The rebels know about this system, and its only a
matter of time before they attempt to seize this system as a
base for their operations. If they do, and I am
found....well....they show no mercy to those they consider
traitors."
Armos - "I cannot speak directly with the Imperial Parliament,
but I do have connections with the Council of Ministers...in
particular, the Communications Secretary. I can speak to her on
your behalf and convince her to bring your matter to the
attention of the full Council and Parliament."
cont'd >
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