SDNWorld Redux: Story Thread the Fourth

[Siege]

Diplomatic Note sent to major world leaders

In light of heightened piracy off of the F-ing continent, the Old Dominion would like to provide that a Coalition anti-piracy taskforce be formed.

Diplomatic Communique, Priority Three

The Commission for Business and Justice (CBJ) welcomes the Old Dominion initiative toward a joint piracy task force. The North Frequesuan Coast Guard has expressed eagerness to accept the help in cleaning up the northern shores of the continent. The NFT is willing to further support the endeavor by opening several of its ports to the ships of the task force, as well as the services of its Underway Replenishment Squadrons and long patrol squadrons.

In light of recent events and the sensitivities of the Sabikan and Indhopali governments the CBJ proposes that an admiral from an unaligned nation be placed in charge of the task force. The NFT insist that all intelligence gathered by the task force be distributed equally to all member nations, and that all member nations be kept apprised of all times of all the task force's operations.

[RogueIce]

Diplomatic Note sent to major world leaders

In light of heightened piracy off of the F-ing continent, the Old Dominion would like to provide that a Coalition anti-piracy taskforce be formed. The purpose would be to:

(1)Allow a internationally agreed upon set of ROEs.
(2)Allow a internationally agreed upon jurisdiction for trial.
(3)Ease the inevitable tensions when CATO and MESS warships are operating in the same area.
(4)Allows the cost of piracy suppression to be split among the naval powers, rather than overburdening minor F-ing continent nations.
(5)Allows a unified chain of command so that information in the battlespace can be rapidly disseminated towards vessels on anti-piracy and Maritime Interdiction Operations.

I note that any such Taskforce(what the OD is tentatively calling CJTF-15) will need to have permission to make port calls in the NFT and Port Nike. If everyone contributed 2 or 3 ships to the taskforce it would be very capable indeed. The size of the taskforce could be supplemented by local powers such as the NFT and Tian Xia(beyond what they provide to CJTF-15) if a surge is needed. The Old Dominion is willing to supply 2 surface combatants and 2 RQ-4B BAMS Dominionhawks for it's initial contribution.

The Old Dominion would be more than willing to recognize a non-MESS member Admiral in charge of CJTF-15, specifically a PeZookian, Cascadian, or someone from the UCSR.

Shinra Republic Navy Staff Study Regarding Coalition Joint Task Force Fifteen (CJTF-15)

Summary

The Navy feels that such a formation will be valuable to both the diplomatic and military goals of the Shinra Republic. Diplomatically, it will help to ease MESS/CATO tensions, as the proposal from the Old Dominion highlights. Additionally, the reduction of piracy around Frequesque will help to increase stability in the region. Finally, the observation of foreign naval forces in action (including CATO units) will be of benefit to intelligence. The following recommendations are provided for action:

[*]Replenishment Squadron Nine (REPRON-9) and Replenishment Squadron Ten (REPRON-10), consisting of three (3) Fortuna-class frigates (FFG) and one (1) each of Gaia-class dry cargo ship (AKE) and Helios-class oiler (AO), be provided on a rotational basis to CJTF-15 (or as otherwise designated).
[*]Forces from Fleet Activities Syl (FA-Syl), consisting of Cruiser Destroyer Squadron Eleven (CRUDESRON-11) and a detachment of aircraft from Patrol Squadron Five (VP-5), be provided on an as needed/as requested basis.
[*]Overflight rights be requested from appropriate Frequesuean governments to expidite deployment of VP-5 aircraft where needed. In addition to or sperately, emergency landing rights for same.
[*]Recommendations be made that Commander, CJTF-15 (or as otherwise designated) be from the Cascadian Navy, given close cooperation between both Republics in the past. Additionally, it is believed that a "neutral power" commander will allieviate certain diplomatic concerns.

---

Results:
- Offers of ships and aircraft as above. If you want details of what ships comprise CRUDESRON-11, let me know. The VP-5 detachment is four (4) P-3Cs.
- Overflight rights for the P-3Cs, in support of the anti-piracy mission, sent to all F-ing Continent nations, except those I already have them for (the Vineyards and Tian Jiao, obviously). In addition to that (or seperately, if overflight is denied) requests made to at least allow for emergency landing, if required.
- We request a Cascadian admiral. Both because of the neutrality angle, and because we have such good relations with them. No offense to you PeZook, of course.

[Grand Moff Yenchin]

Re: Anti-Piracy Task Force

The Kingdom of Serenity is willing to send out the cruiser KSS Red Kid to support the action against piracy.

[Karmic Knight]

Ground Broken on 'Port Victoria' in the Northern Untamed Wilderness

To the West of the former TXN Port Nike, the Commonwealth Navy Begins building Port Victoria to station military vessels and aeroplanes at.

Vinish Ports Closed to Non-Vinish Military Ships

The Commonwealth of Vineyards has closed its ports to all military ships from non-Vinish nations, with the exception of the Shinra Republic, and select MESS ships. Ideas have also begun to be discussed of closing airspace and territorial waters.

edit: changed direction based on geographic incompetence.

[Steve]

Removed. I'm tired and unwilling to simply post a more involved "retraction" in-character, if it's desired I'll throw something together tomorrow. After I sleep.

[Lonestar]

Ares Blog

Intolerant, Fredericksburg depart for anti-piracy mission

The ODN's newest LHD, the Intolerant has departed for an anti-piracy mission off of the North coast of the F-ing continent. The Intolerant has only recently been brought into commission, and completely missed out ojn the Sirnothi War of Liberation. She is deploying with 8 CA101s and 4 AV-35s. A Brickhall spokesperson stated the reason why the AV-35s were included on an anti-piracy mission was to gain competancy on LHD operations. the Intolerant and her sister are the only ODN warships other than CVNs capable of operating AV-35s.

The DDG Fredericksburg will be joining the Intolerant on the mission.

2 RQ-4B BAMS Dominionhawks will be stationed out of Port Nike airfield to aid in the mission.

It's unclear who will be the leader of the multi-national taskforce, but it's likely that either a Cascadian or a PeZookian Admiral will be placed in charge, at least initially.

[Siege]

Ground Broken on 'Port Victoria' in the Northern Untamed Wilderness

To the West of the former TXN Port Nike, the Commonwealth Navy Begins building Port Victoria to station military vessels and aeroplanes at.

Page One Article, San Dorado Times

... the Syndicate has issued a strongly worded statement condemning the Commonwealth of the Vineyards for breaking ground on a new military base in the northern wilderness. "Surely the King has knowledge of recent events, so he must know precisely how sensitive a matter the militarization of the northern wilderness is to the NFT", the statement read.

"There is no tactical or strategic reason why the Vineyards would even consider opening a base [in the wilderness], and therefore we cannot read into these recent actions anything but at best an utter disregard for the interests of the Trust, and at worst a willful desire to antagonize the NFT. The Vinish actions constitute a blatant provocation, and the Syndicate strongly urges the Commonwealth to reconsider its actions and withdraw from the wilderness."

Sources in the higher echelons of the Trust have informed this newspaper that the Syndicate is considering implementing a trade embargo against the Vineyards should the Commonwealth government refuse to withdraw...

[Darth Coyotus]

FLYSPECK ISLE



Neither Lukin, nor Jackson nor Kelah knew where they were, exactly. It was a miserable, god-forsaken island in the middle of thousands of kilometers of nothing-nowhere sea; the highest point seemed to be about 4 meters above sea level. There was scrub brush along a central ridge, surrounded by rocks coated in thick layers of migratory sea-bird dung, and a sandy beach. The whole thing was barely 600 meters long and maybe 50 meters at its widest. It was flanked by at least three smaller versions of itself as well.

"This island cluster," the Japanistani Kempeitai officer said, "Is not even on most maps. Even many of the best navigation maps have it listed as underwater sandbars. We think that, centuries ago during Duke Frequsque's transoceanic navigations, it was underwater. Now it is a spot for a species of migratory predator birds. Like us," he said, smiling at his own humor.

The island was now host to a small scattering of Japanistani tents and some outdoor supply depots. It was cleverly disguised to look like a meteorological observation station, complete with weather balloons ready to launch. The technicians, a handful of Japanistani Navy and Army in uniform, and more "civilian" techs which were Kempeitai in civilian clothes, had elaborate cover stories and backgrounds in meteorology ready in case someone stopped by to ask them about their presence. The islands, being in international waters, were claimed by no one-- except Japanistan, as of three days prior.

They expected no visitors, however. But later that afternoon, a speedboat, far too small to be out this far on its own, showed up. Probably launched from a ship over the horizon, Jackson thought. In it were some rough-looking types that eyes them warily-- wanna-be vicious killers taking in the sight of real vicious killers in whose shadows they remained.

"Welcome," the Kempeitai officer greeted the thugs. "We have your supplies over here." No introductions were made as he waved over both the RUF command group and the collection of nine ruffians. A small team of Japanistan Seabees opened a hidden underground bunker, revealing several neat rows of rocket launchers.

"RPGs will create harm to many ships," the Kempaitai officer said, "And surface-to-air will discourage the imperialist helicopters that hound you. All are leftovers from Shepistani stores." The pirates grunted their approval, and picked up some of the weapons. "My colleagues here will teach you how to use them," he said, motioning towards the RUF cadre, "Please, take everything you see here, and let us know when you will require more..."

[Siege]

Under The Waves

The Swarm-class SSK Stalker had observed the cluster of miniature islands for two days now. They were little more than glorified sand banks, but they were nonetheless of interest to the admiralty. Not because of anything inherent in these barren rocks, but rather because of who had taken up position on them.

It had been a NFCG flying boat on a long-range patrol which had spotted the tramp trawler heading out to sea. Not willing to risk detection in case he was dealing with pirates the pilot had relayed the boat’s course to coast guard HQ, which had informed the navy, which had dispatched one of its nearby submarines to see if anything was going on out here.

And so, apparently, there was. A Japanistani flag waved atop the rocks among tents, weather balloons, anemometers and other meteorological equipment. Captain Reddick admitted that the place was cleverly disguised—but the fact remained that if these people were really meteorologists they wouldn’t be visited by speedboats dispatched from motherships. Speedboats piloted by mean-looking men, and hauling boxes that looked for all the world like they might just contain weapons.

“There goes another”, the officer of the watch nodded and turned away from the periscope. “That makes what, four speed boats so far?”

“Five”, Captain Reddick answered. “Yeah, they’re trafficking weapons all right.” He smiled. “Load tube three.”

“Err, captain…” His second-in-command scratched his chin. “You realize that if we’re wrong about this we’ll be blowing away an innocent meteorological expedition?”

Lance Reddick shrugged. He was of traditional Coilerburg military stock, so his ideas of the value of human life was slightly different from the NFN mainstream. Besides, he was itching for a chance to empty his missile tubes. “They’re only Japanistanis. Plus we’re using a Tomahawk, half the world uses those, so no-one will be able to trace that back to us.”



Mere minutes later the unitary warhead mounted atop the Tomahawk bursted over the Japanistani outpost on Flyspeck Isle. The Japanistanis had no chance; the glorified sand bank was scourged clean by cleansing fire of the explosion in a single instant.

Result: It's a bad day to be in the Kempeitai .

[Lonestar]

Sidewalk Café, Sheppish Quarter, Nexus City.

“Getting sloppy, my friend.” Anton Shepilov’s voice came from behind Al-Tikriti. He circled around and sat down in a chair across from him. “All that soft living in Japanistan must have done the trick, eh?”

Al-Tikriti gave a twisted smile. That ‘soft living’ including working alongside Kempeitai, getting his hands as dirty as he ever did with the ISI. Shepilov had been a member of the SRGC, and the two armed agencies of Shepistan shared a mutual loathing of each other.

“Anton. I heard you coming, and I noticed your Domino friend over there.” He nodded to a man on a street corner, listening to an MP3 player. Responding to the nod Marius Mercure cheerfully waved.

“Marius is a capital fellow, no need for racial pejoratives.” Al-Tikriti raised an eyebrow at that. The man really had converted to Dominionite ways! “What are you doing here, Tikriti?”

Al-tikriti was stunned by the question, as Shepilov had invited him to the country. Wheels began to turn. “I’m here looking for work. With the change of Administration I think there are opportunities for a man such as myself with the General back in charge.”

“And how were you planning on, ah, filing your application?”

“I was expecting someone like you to find me. Your…’legitimate business’ has a contract to provide bodyguards to the General, does it not? I recognized one of my coworkers from the Kempeitai on the street, and made sure the recognized me.”

Anton Shepilov gave a thin smile and remained silent for a few seconds.

“My Friend, I do not know what you were led to believe, but this is not a new Shepistan. That country is gone forever, and every year the inkblots of the ‘cleared land’ in the Shepistani security Zone grow. Rhee Anh Sheppard was put in place here to rapidly bring order to the country. But the country is the Nation of Sirnoth, not the New Republic of Shepistan. You are wanted for any number of crimes in any MESS or CATO nation, and you chose to come here? How could you be so stupid?”

Al-Tikriti remained quiet.

“My friend, because I am such a nice guy, I am warning you: get out now. And avoid commercial travel, the Dominionite Intelligence services will be looking for you. This advice is all the help I will give you.” Then, without even a by-your-leave, Shepilov stood up and walked away.

Inwardly, Al-Tikriti swore. He had wanted so badly to resume working for the General…now what? If that idiot Shepilov had found him then surely BMI or some other MESS or CATO agency knew where he was. He needed to leave the country. But go where? San Fuego? Siddiqui had set up his own little fiefdom there, and may be willing to help him get back to Japanistan.

He threw some money on the table and started walking. How the Hell would he get out? All the ports were under Coalition security control, the best he could hope for would be a fisherman’s wharf.

But he could only rely on getting as far as an OICAS state, and he didn’t like his chances. Regardless, he needed to move out of his apartment, tonight.

He worked several blocks to his apartment, and walked up the stairs. He could hear his neighbors arguing in the atrocious local Shepistani dialect. As he reached out to turn his doorknob he received a shock of electricity, as he had been tasered. His door flew open, and a big man grabbed him and threw him into the apartment, slamming the door behind him. He could see some kind of jury rigged device on the doorknob from the inside. The man swung a 18 inch maglite around, hitting him on the forehead. Al-Tikriti staggered back.

“Who…”

The man hit him with the maglite again, and this time Al-Tikriti fell. As he tried to stand up the man jabbed a needle into his neck.

“My name is Alexander.”

[CmdrWilkens]

The Middle of Nowhere
Patrol Route P-3SW
SUBRON2-PG3

HIS WHORE Miranda Kerr

"Sir I've got mechanical noises, they are definately doing something, the damn CZ keeps screwing with things otherwise I coulda told you for sure what's going on sooner skipper"

"Good one to hear anything Jonesy..what do you make of it"

"He's a little early for his snorkle going up so I'm not sure but...wait sir"

"What is it"

Sonar Technican's Mate 2nd Robert Jones was trying to pierce the tens of thousands of yards seperating his highly tuned ears from the sound he was trying to pick up. He'd been doing this for nearly five years now and was already on the fast track ever since his work in tracking down the rogue Shepistani boats after the Biowar. Now even with five years worth of comparison sounds and a wonderful processor upgrade that allowed him to better isolate oddballs he was haiving trouble.

The issue, as always, was that he wasn't listening to the sound "direct" as it were. Instead the Kerr was lying well over 50,000 yards away (at least) from their current target sitting in a convergence zone to listen in. The problem with convergence zones was that they were never perfect. If they had been close enough for direct readings he would be able to tell the Captain (really a Commander but the skipper is always the Captain) what the crew was eating for lunch from the way they chewed...but this was a tad more difficult.

"Sir, let me have the comptuer double check me but I'm 99 certain that is a launch transient, lots of real quick bubbles but no follow on so either he just dropped something in the watter real quick like or its a missile going up...yeah Betsie here agrees with me probably a cruise missile launch."

"XO did we get any brief on the North Fuckers doing weapons testing out this way or anything else on that side?"

"Nothing's in the book sir, I'd say if he only launches one then he was playing tag with someone but if he tosses a bunch up then we've got us an hoenst to good read on the spot they are using as an offshore range."

"Nav anything out this way at all?"

"You've got a couple reefs and shoals that have big ol stay away markers but nothing else"

"Allright COMM get ready to shoot off a quick sat bounce and let PacCom know that we've got at least one NFT launch and are standing by to observe."

"Aye sir, we will need to...

---
Three days later

CAP was an oddity for PHIBRON 3 but that was mostly because they only had a single squadron each of Sea Harriers and Ospreys to do anything long range. Mostly they maintained a watch with the STAR systems on one of the escorts rotating around. Yet for reasons unknown two days earlier an Operational Immediate had come through the lines directing the PHIBRON to make a pass by the Frequsqian Shoals and run a CAP the whole way down.

What they found was interesting indeed. There weren't any shoals (well there were but that was roughly half a dozen miles north of the marked spot) but rather a series of small specs of dirt with debris packed on it still glowing with radiant heat. Rather quickly the CAP radioed back that whatever had been there wasn't anymore.


---
Five days later
Cayman, Cayman Islands

"There he is, not sure how he survived but we found him in a storage bunker..."

"So you hand him along after a thorough debreifing?"

"Well of course, WISH doesn't have near enough contacts in Japanistan for our liking so of course we talked to him...but my boss or her boss or his boss decided that we shoudl send him home to carry the news."

"You tend to prefer the status quo and you knwo this will upset things."

"'Course it will but this is one of those rare cases where upsetting the status opens up the cahnce to figure out where things actually were when we kicked over the can."

"Ahh I see"

Indeed he did but Maj Shinomura was doing his best to hide the fact. He knew he was being played a little but only a little. The Wilkonians were trying to funnel info to Japanistan so the later would kick over a hornet's nest. The surviving Kemeptai officer along with his perfectly forged documents had been in the weapons storage bunker furtherst from the blast center and had actually managed to survive by sheer luck. The overpressure had rendered him unconcious and smoke from the wrecakge almost choked him but he survived long enough to detonate all the remaining weapons and gather up what was left of the meteorlogical equipment...photos of which the Wilkonian Marines had taken copious numbers of. Now he was going home along with the information, including a brief bit of confirmation from the Wilkonain's, agian, that this was an NFT sub the acoustical signature being well matched.

He didn't know what would end up coming from the confrontation but he knew that the IRT woudl stand to benefit from the shift in focus, when people change priorities rapidly they always expose holes. So he would shuffle the data and the man along to the Japanistanis but tell his superiors to watch out. WISH was up to something and they were probably hoping to catch the IRT in just the same trap he was hoping to catch everyone else in.

[Fingolfin_Noldor]

CATO Defence Journal

New lines of military communication satellites to be launched

Two new lines of military satellites will be launched from launch pads in the UCSR, NFT and from the Jerusalem cosmodome. One line involves surveillance satellites which will fly above the exclusion zone set by Imperial Japanistan, and another is a line of military communication satellites with greater bandwidth for communication than before and highly resistant to jamming. A total of 10 surveillance satellites will be launched and placed in high orbit, and possibly more. Some 10 communication satellites will be launched.

[Raj Ahten]

On the Piracy Issue

Indhopal released a statement saying that it would not be sending ships to join the international armada's forming to perform anti piracy operations. Such measures were seen as unnecessary. Indhopal reiterated that being enemies of all man kind, any pirates found by Inhopali forces would be dealt with appropriately.

Meanwhile

The ambassador from Japanistan received an invitation to the Presidential mountain retreat to discuss matters of state.

Defense News

Indhopal's new battle rifle, built in partnership with Byzantium, was beginning to see use with special units on a trial basis.

[PeZook]

Orena Evening News

PeZookia to back Cascadian leadership of the anti-piracy task force

Withdrawing from proposal of a PeZookian admiral, the Defence Ministry agreed to support the Cascadians in command of the international anti-piracy task force.

"Cascadians have comitted the most assets to the operation, and thus their battle groups is naturally suited to carry the flag - not only does their carrier possess the best command and control facilities, but a Cascadian officer will serve to balance the inevitable tensions arising during joint operations."

[Lonestar]

Intolerant, Nearing Velaria

Captain Eric Howe, Commodore of the ODN Taskforce twisted his mouth a little as he re-read the new set of orders. He had been given command of the D.N.S. Intolerant when it was still the PCU Intolerant, and so he had managed to miss out on the Sirnothi War of Liberation. It had left a sour taste in his mouth.

Then came the spectacular pirate attack off the NFT, and the OD-proposed counter-piracy initiative, which led to the Intolerant being the only LHD the ODN considered available for the mission, as well as the DDG Fredericksburg. They had set out for the F-ing continent, then been ordered to Velaria…apparently the San Doradons had a bug up their collective ass about the anti-piracy taskforce gathering off their shores.

Howe glanced at the orders again. And no wonder. "It is the assessment of the Wilkonian Intelligence agencies that the NFT has launched an attack on a Japanistani installation on Flyspeck Island…" the orders went on to inform Howe that the deployment would be increased to 8 months, and that the SSN Dolphin had been quietly dispatched to watch his taskforce. He was to slow the pace of his taskforce until the Dolphin caught up.

"8 months?" Howe muttered. "Christ, the boys are going to like that." He glanced out of his cabin's window(the only berthing cabin that had such a luxury) and looked at the flightline. 8 CA101s, 4 MQ-4s, 4 AV-35s…and he was going to be spending his time chasing assholes in speedboats while worrying about Japanistan lashing out someone.

Great.

Results: Filler episode.

[Siege]

Co-written with PeZook

Virtue of Courage, p.5



Dębkowski straightened out his uniform jacket, saluted the flag and finally shook hands with the cruiser's commander.

"Commodore! I'm glad to finally meet you."

“Captain”, Tahilani shook the hands of the grizzled PeZookian captain. “It is an honor to shake the hand of one as courageous as you. This way please.” The commodore led the captain to one of the bridge wings, where cadets had prepared a table with tea and refreshments. The scene was lit in equal parts by electric light spilling from the bridge and the flickering flames of the Royal Jones’ floating hulk.

Pouring Dębkowski a cup of finest Darjeeling tea, hand-picked on the southern slopes of the Kirkwood Mountains. “There. Now, I hear several of your men were wounded when the pirate dogs attacked. May I enquire as to how are they doing?”

"Thank you for your concern", the captain replied, "We had twelve...casualties", the word was obviously hard to swallow for a man who personally taught seamanship to every single cadet aboard the Virtue Of Courage, "Two heavily wounded...one of them won't ever see again, the other will require prostethics to function. We moved them to the Canissian frigate, and their helicopter flew them to San Dorado for treatment."

Dębkowski sighed, looking at his ship - peckered with rifle fire and scarred by RPG explosions, "Two of my men didn't make it, unfortunately. It's a shame when such young people meet a fate like that, when us old dogs continue on."

“True”, Tahilani smiled ruefully. For a brief moment the two captains sat in silence, looking out over the now-calm waters of the Pacific Ocean. “On the brighter side,” the commodore considered, “perhaps the doctors can help your wounded better than you might expect. An old friend of mine, he was blinded by white phosphorus during Iler’s War. Three years ago, they call him to a hospital in San Dorado. They fitted him with chips and wires and now he can see again, after twenty years of blindness. Cameras for eyes!” Tahilani shook his head. “I remember days when the best prosthetics we had were made of glass.” He smirked. “Those were the same days that my old ship could still hope to make a difference in a fight. It’s been a long time since last I had a chance to do that.”

"I can't say I'm glad to have given you that chance, considering the circumstances... Nevertheless, I'm very grateful for your timely appearance.", Dębkowski answered sincerely, sipping his tea, "And I must say the sight of the Varuna charging into the fray brought back some memories of my own."

There was a brief pause as the PeZookian recalled the glorious past, "It's true that much has changed since our time, for better or for worse. If what you say is true about doctors being able to restore sight to the blind, I'd guess for the better. Though it's hard not to miss the simpler times. You commanded the Varuna during Iler's war, correct?"

“Ah, no”, the commodore leaned back as he recalled some of his glory days. “I was but a lieutenant then, in charge of the ‘A’ and ‘B’ batteries. We would steam ‘round the four shores of Frequesue and let our guns speak for the Raj whenever it behooved the Maharaja. When the tyrant launched his war of conquest, we sailed east with the great white Mahrata fleet to let him hear what Tanstaafl thought of his dreams of Frequesuan domination. Iler sent his greatest warships to destroy us, and our armadas clashed off the Sabikan coast. Varuna dueled the Hochbaden, 48 hours straight. We both had carrier support, but those pilots couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn and even when they did something it wasn’t enough to put us or them out of action. We kept shooting, broadside after broadside, for hours!”

The commodore chuckled throatily. “The Coilerburger captain was very skilled. He would stay very distant, then suddenly pop smoke and charge at us from behind the grey clouds, all guns firing. And the captain… Captain Sourav Azhar… He was truly a character. He stood on the bridge, bellowing commands so loudly it seemed we could hear him even over the sound of our guns. I thought it was fashionably heroic at the time. Now I wonder if maybe he was just getting frustrated.” Tahilani shook his head. “In the end, neither of us could truly sink the other. By the end of the second day, and we were running low on oil and ammunition by this point, we scored a lucky hit near the aft of the Hochbaden that, as it later turned out, bent one of its prop shafts. They had to peel off and limped back to Coilerburg.”

He took a sip of his tea. “Iler was furious that his proud navy had been unable to defeat us. Their captain was relieved of command after that”, Tahilani recalled. “He survived the war, and the sinking of the Hochbaden several months later by Indhopali cruiser squadron. Went on to become a businessman. I hear he lives in Rotherburgh still.” The commodore smiled. “It seems now like that was a much simpler time.” He stared at the battle-scarred Virtue of Courage. “What about you, captain? I doubt you always sailed on this ship…”

"Oh, she's my burial post, really.", Dębkowski smiled, "A way to put me away somewhere so that I won't get in the way of the younger generation. I used to command a destroyer in the navy, Burza it was called...an ex-shroomanian tin can and the most gracious ship I ever saw. Back then, we spent most of our time chasing down Border States pirates, which is somewhat ironic I suppose..."

Tahilani smiled, "When was that, captain? Seems like a long time..."

"Yes, it was", Dębkowski laughed, "I moved past sixty last year...even then, I was one of the youngest, if not the youngest commanding officer in the entire force...but we were short on personnel, the pre-war navy was almost entirely destroyed by Shadow occupiers, so we had to make do. I have to agree, it was simpler. Much simpler...too much automation now. After twenty years of teaching at the naval academy, I can surely say that I outlived my time there...it was time to let the younglings handle all that, so I requested to be put in command of the Virtue Of Courage - so that I could teach the pups something about cameraderie and seamanship...this was supposed to be my last cruise, incidentally. I guess I'll be going away with a bang."

“Indeed”, the old commodore agreed. Then he frowned. “Speaking of which… Even with a mothership the pirate scum cannot have come from far away. They must have had a base fairly close by. In the wilderness, most likely.”

“I thought the wilderness was patrolled by your coast guard?” asked Dębkowski.

“There are many kilometers of coastline. The guard cannot be everywhere at the same time…”

“Sirs”, Singh interrupted the two captains. “I thought you might want to know--one of our motorlaunches has retrieved what we believe to be the pirate captain. He is still alive.”

Captain Dębkowski obviously looked surprised, "I'll be damned!", he exclaimed, "The bastard has a tough hide. That the sharks didn't eat him..."

"Transfer him to the brig", Tahilani instructed his first officer and got up, "I believe it is time we returned to our duties, captain. Allow me to say it was a pleasant conversation."

The PeZookian stood up as well and saluted his counterpart, "Likewise, commodore. Likewise.", he looked at the Royal Jones' husk, "The thing I regret the most about this whole thing is that I won't have the opportunity to join the punitive expedition..."

“In Tanstaafl there is a saying”, Tahilani smartly returned the salute. “‘Don’t praise the day before the end of night’. You may yet get what you wish. So, until we meet again, captain Dębkowski.”

[Lonestar]

Ares Blog

As Lunar Mission reaches historic moment, MSA-Dominion announces new spaceprobe programs
On the eve of a historic moment in exploration, MSA-Dominion has announced three new spaceprobe programs to expand out understanding of the solar system.

(1)The Comet Rendezvous Asteroid Flyby(CRAF) probe will examine a comet during it's near-sun portion of it's orbit.

(2)The Messenger Probe will visit Mercury, while also carrying instruments to observe the sun in greater detail than on Earth or Earth Orbit.

(3)The Deep System Surveyor will visit the Neptunian system, release a atmospheric probe into Neptune, then move on to visit the Plutonian system. It's likely that a Pezookian consortium will design the atmospheric probe, as they are designing the Titan probe from the OSS

The Libruls are already decrying the massive amount of spending on the Dominion's contribution to MSA. Librul leader Lord Winton said that the funds could be better put to use with social programs and arts endowments…[More]


What kind of Navy for the ODN?
The ODN of 2030 will be significantly larger and more capable than the one of 10 years ago, but major doctrinal splits have occurred within the Navy Department as to what role the ODN should have in the future. The deployment of the Intolerant and Fredericksburg in an expeditionary manner are at odds with the continental defense doctrine that the STAR ships mandate, as well as plans to limit "low end" vessels to the Impact Crater region.

Indeed, the only new major fleet unit envisioned being added to the ODN by 2030 that has not been funded is a new CVN, which will replace the aging Bulwark as it reaches it's 50 year mark. By then all the AEGIS CGs will be retired, and the 4 oldest DDGs will be retired as well….[More]

[RogueIce]

Major Reorganization announced for the Shinra Republic Air Force

Today the SR Air Force announced a massive reorganization plan, the goal of which is to create a more homogenized force structure. "The current SRAF fighter wing is presently composed of two types of aircraft. The goal of this reorganization is to have each wing be composed of a single type of aircraft, to be more in line with the Air Forces of other nations. Additionally, this will help streamline the training and logistical concerns of the present force," the Air Force Chief of Staff announced in a press release. The Air National Guard will also be reorganized in a similar fashion to its active duty counterpart, with various assets shuffled between the services. Finally, Air Force leaders acknowledged that this would accompany a "slight increase" in Air Force strength, though the extent of this increase was not made public.

((OOC: Basically posting in here what I announced on the appropriate wiki page. Also, you might want to check my Navy article as it outlines my force structure in a more complete form now.))

[PeZook]

Day The Earth Stood Still

Jerusalem Space Center, T-5 days

Damian Kaklamanis stood before the panoramic window of his office, gazing at the spectacular sight before him. A crawler transporter was slowly rumbling forwards, away from VAB-1, silhouetted by the sun setting over the desert. It carried on its back a Saturn III launch vehicle, which would take a three man crew to Selene.

It's really too bad..., he thought to himself, thinking of the MSA's Moon mission scheduled for launch tomorrow. FASTA has done what it could to accelerate the date of their own moonshot, but their rival space agency managed to catch up in the race surprisingly fast. Dr. Kaklamanis knew today that barring extraordinary circumstances, the Daedalus flight would most likely be a success. Personally, he wasn't worried - a difference of a mere week was irrelevant, for all practical purposes - FASTA had several missions planned, and grand projects of lunar development waited for the go-ahead. The future looked bright for the space program.

There was only one problem...

The intercom on the director's desk chimed to life. It was his secretary.

"Director, another call from Stasograd. Representative Kanevich this time."

"I'm still unavailable, Janice.", Kaklamanis replied and sat down in his padded chair. All day, he's been getting angry calls for politicians who based their careers on the space program. He expected the amount of angry amateurs to increase as it dawned upon more and more people that FASTA would lose the race and become second best - but as Director Of Flight Operations, he had more important things to do.

He turned his PC back on, and after reviewing the congratulatory note to MSA astronauts and flight teams, dug back into his presentation for the Funding Comittee. He had to protect his agency from budget cuts - either he convinced the Comittee to let him go ahead with all the planned programs, or FASTA would, indeed, be forever stuck to playing second fiddle.

Goddamn politicians

[Beowulf]

Medium Terra Orbit/Black Sands Test Range

The rocket hung there, waiting to be activated.

"So, you think you've fixed the problem?"

"Yes, sir."

"Well, we'll see. Hit it."

The turbopumps started. Initially feeding a essentially distilled water, until the flow velocity reached the necessary speed, it switched to the saline solution after a short period of time. The turbopumps fed a reaction chamber through adjustable injectors. As the flow volume increased, the adjustable orifices increased in size as well, allowing the minimum velocity to be reached much quicker. After the switch over to saline, the water no longer was vaporizing and flash freezing due simply to the lack of pressure, but was vaporizing from the heat of the nuclear reaction taking place right outside the reaction vessel.

"Well, it didn't blow up this time."

Since they were trying to avoid having the engine blow up, the shutdown sequence initiated before the engine ran out of plutonium salt water. It was essentially the startup sequence in reverse. Adjustable orifices closed down as the flow rate decreased, followed by a change in distilled water, effectively ending the reaction.

The entire test was only minutes in duration, but already had added several km/s to the speed of the rocket. Because this was, ostensibly, a scientific mission, the rocket was headed for Ares, and would conduct photographic surveys as it whipped past.

OOC: Completely unrelated to the moon shot.

[Lonestar]

Ares Blog

Wilkonian Consortium wins 3.2Bil ROB contract to rebuild Nexus City Port Facilities

The Sirnothi Provisional Coalition Authority has announced that a Wilkonian Consortium has been awarded the contract to rebuild the Nexus City Naval Station and the commercial Port of Nexus City. The award is the first of the so-called "mega contracts" awarded, because of a need to bring the Port of Nexus City up to it's pre-war capabilities…[More]

[Darth Coyotus]

Five days later
Cayman, Cayman Islands

"There he is, not sure how he survived but we found him in a storage bunker..."

"So you hand him along after a thorough debriefing?"

"Well of course, WISH doesn't have near enough contacts in Japanistan for our liking so of course we talked to him...but my boss or her boss or his boss decided that we should send him home to carry the news."

"You tend to prefer the status quo and you know this will upset things."

"'Course it will but this is one of those rare cases where upsetting the status opens up the cahnce to figure out where things actually were when we kicked over the can."

"Ahh I see"

Indeed he did but Maj Shinomura was doing his best to hide the fact. He knew he was being played a little but only a little. The Wilkonians were trying to funnel info to Japanistan so the later would kick over a hornet's nest. The surviving Kemeptai officer along with his perfectly forged documents had been in the weapons storage bunker furthest from the blast center and had actually managed to survive by sheer luck. The overpressure had rendered him unconscious and smoke from the wreckage almost choked him but he survived long enough to detonate all the remaining weapons and gather up what was left of the meteorological equipment...photos of which the Wilkonian Marines had taken copious numbers of. Now he was going home along with the information, including a brief bit of confirmation from the Wilkonain's, again, that this was an NFT sub the acoustical signature being well matched.

He didn't know what would end up coming from the confrontation but he knew that the IRT would stand to benefit from the shift in focus, when people change priorities rapidly they always expose holes. So he would shuffle the data and the man along to the Japanistanis but tell his superiors to watch out. WISH was up to something and they were probably hoping to catch the IRT in just the same trap he was hoping to catch everyone else in.

Kemeitai HQ
NeoTokyo



"The debriefings have concluded," the Colonel said, "And we have, essentially, war."
"We are not prepared for war yet," the General replied, "Not entirely." Members of the Sunshine Council were at the HQ building to take in the latest news from Major Shinomura's debriefing.

"There is a very narrow list of suspects, once we consider the area, the strategic goals, the various factions potentially involved," the Colonel said, "Two primary suspect powers from the Frequesquean continent, in particular. The problematic aspect of this is that both are recently admitted into the CATO alliance."

"So... our theories that CATO and MESS are secretly in collusion with one another may not be entirely accurate?" the General asked.
"We believe they are working together --more or less-- to build an alliance of confrontation against us," the Colonel said, "But we may have over-estimated the level of cooperation between them. After all, why would they work together to contain us, if not for some greater goal? So they can compete with one another for imperialism and plunder with Japanistan out of the way. They do not wish to fight a three-way war, so they work together to eliminate us, and leave the world ripe for plunder between them."

"So, this may be evidence that CATO is ready to take a more aggressive stance against us, while the MESS is not yet ready."

"Perhaps," the Colonel said, "It could also be that the MESS nations are, in fact, trying to erode us in a more perfidious manner. The CATO countries seek to simply confront and annihilate us; the MESS is willing to erode our society through pleasantries like trade and economic warfare, leaving military conflict as simply one option among many."

"But they directly attacked Shepistan," the General said,.
"And put CATO on alert because of it," the Colonel said, "If they are allies against us, they are allies only of convenience, and until such time that we are eliminated as a threat. There remain, apparently, more hostile of one another's long-term goals than we had previously thought. It was a MESS nation that brought us our witness and the submarine information."

"So, the MESS is using more subtle strategies, then?" the General asked, "Trying to play us off against CATO?"
"I believe we would do it if we could," the Colonel said, "A peace fell in their lap; they seized the opportunity. If MESS could use us to wear away at CATO, without them having to exert themselves, they would, don't you think?"

The General was silent, thinking. Finally, he agreed. "I think you have reached an appropriate conclusion," he said, "Still, we cannot allow this transgression to go unpunished. A response will be had. And we will also release a public demand that the criminals who attacked our weather station be turned over to us for trial."

"What of the pirate operation, Sir?" the Colonel asked.
"We continue it," the General said, "More carefully, but with more vigor. If what you say is correct, and the MESS and CATO nations are in a tense and untrusting alliance, then the more armed, nervous ships we have patrolling the area on hair-trigger alert the better. Sooner or later, someone will make a mistake, and recriminations will be had. Tensions will raise, tenuous trust will erode, and perhaps out enemies will do their work for us after all."

[CmdrWilkens]

[An Excerpt from “Race to the Moon” © 2018 Columbia-Monterrey Publishing]
Chapter 23: The Skyward Reach

“From the standpoint of a century ago, these accomplishments are breathtaking. From a longer perspective, they are mythic. If we manage to avoid self-destruction, so that there are future historians, our time will be remembered in part because this was when we first set sail for other worlds.”
-Carl Sagan

Looking back now the weather in March was particularly favorable for a launch given that northerly winds had usually fed a steady stream of rainstorms down on the Cape in previous years. In the whole previous history of the MSA only one other launch had taken place so early in March with most occurring either well into April when winds tended to bring drier air down from the mountains or in February when colder temperatures kept atmospheric developments less likely. Yet in this case a series of small blizzards had delayed delivery of components to the final assembly point in Puerto Lempira and final movement by sea to Cape Mosquito and the Segovia River Launch Facility. Planners had to continuously adjust the launch date backwards until they finally reached March 11th and 12th as the dates to put Daedalus 7 and Daedalus 7B into orbit.

The first launch, Daedalus 7, took place just after 10 in the morning with gentle winds out of the northwest providing mostly clear skies and just a patch of scattered clouds around 10,000 feet. The launch itself though delayed by nearly a month was almost flawless from the scattering shots displacing the thousands of migratory birds in the shallows of the river edge to the perfect shot that MSA cameras were able to capture of the ascent and roll over of the Jupiter launch vehicle. Daedalus 7B took place 14 hours later and was far less pretty. Clouds had moved in during the day and launch control considered delaying until the next morning when a window would open from 7 to 8. Fortunately a rapidly developing thunderstorm actually cleared the area as it swept inland on strong easterly winds and pulled most of the disturbances inland with it. Chronology remains disputed but apparently sometime around 10 in the evening Mission Control in the Shinra Republic gave the go ahead to resume launch prep for a night launch and rendezvous the next morning in orbit. At 12:42 AM the Delta IV Heavy launch vehicle carrying the Earth Departure Stage strove skyward.

----

[Transcript, MSA Archive #17-33412, Daedalus 7 Lunar Descent Audio]
Wednesday March 15th 2017
Lunar Lander “Titan”

“Roger Titan we show you as 100km and descending smooth”

“Copy Houston, we are on profile descent currently 42 meters per second”

“Copy Michael, how is the drift looking”

“John how is the drift…showing negligible?...Houston we are showing negligible”
“Copy that Michael, you are on VOX by the way.”

“Switch to VOX…why the hell should we be switching to VOX? John, Jullian, Lev sounds like they are asking for VOX…”

“Negative Michael YOU are on VOX please switch over to PTT-B and stick with Horatio for final descent.”

…

“Copy, switching to B”

“Now in final descent phase, ground looks good.”

“Right, we show you slowing clean, distance to surface is 27 kilometers.”

…

“John, reset your rangefinder to “HIGH” and check for me”

“Yeah Houston we’ve got 17.6 and falling, descent is now at 32 meters per second.”

…

“Okay Titan we show you as under 1km, resolution is now local only.”

“Copy local only, we are at 960 meters falling at 14 meters per second and still slowing.”

“Lev can you check and make sure we are still good for drift.”

“Drift good at 21, landing zone is showing good.”

“Houston we are less than 60 from touchdown, manual override is on standby, roll is 33 and leveling”

“We are at 500 and 13”

“300 and 10, John check the LZ again.”

“Looks good, I got the shadow out there. Altitude (and) velocity lights (on)”

“3 1/2 down, 70 up, 13 forward. (Pause) 11 forward. Coming down nicely.”

“Gonna be right over that crater. 5 1/2 down”

“50 meters, 6 1/2 down”

“Okay. 25 meters. And it's looking good. Down a half, 6 forward.”

“Drifting forward just a little bit; that's good. Contact Light! Shutdown!”

“Houston we are down, we have contact light and confirmed shutdown,”

“We copy you Down Titan.”


---

[Chapter 23 continued]

Landing was obviously the hardest part of the operation but what the world was waiting for has to be the pictures of the first person to step out onto the Lunar surface itself. During the long months of planning that had led up to this mission it was determined to give the Mission Commander the first steps out of the door. Thus it fell on to Major John Meadow, Wilkonian Imperial Marine Corps, to first step foot on Selene.

Meadow was raised the son of a modestly wealthy railroad engineer and an artist. His father worked for Monterrey Southern Railroad for nearly 35 years starting when he was only 16 as a station assistant. Shortly after his 19th birthday and just after receiving a promotion to Shift Manager for maintenance operations he met and then married Julia Guitierrez Rodrigo an aspiring artist and sculpter from the Baja peninsula. John would be their second son and the first in family history to enter the Marine Corps. His education was originally a complete course of classics and earned him a degree in Political Science from the University of Panama’s Kincaid School of Arts. Upon entering the Marines through enlistment and then moving into the enlisted commissioning program Meadow entered on a lifelong passion for flying which would also see him seek out and earn a Bachelor’s Degree in Aerospace Engineering with a minor in Mathmatics and a Master’s in Missile Engineering from the Defense University of Wilkonia. He was selected for the X-plane program in the Old Dominion under the umbrella of MSA-Dominion and would be the third person in space from a MESS-aligned nation, subsequently he would become one of the first four Astronauts in the Pegasus and then Daedalus programs rising from Captain to Major during that time.

On the morning of March 15th as the capsule “Titan” detached from the Orion Service Module at slightly over 120km above the lunar surface he was acutely aware that baring some abort malfunction he would shortly be stepping onto the shores of the furthest point from Nova terra that any man had yet tread. His careful study of the classics would lead him towards his now world famous recitation. Prepping for the exit he and Flight Engineer Lev Titov, of the USCR, jokingly exchanged words about how the later would have to accidentally cause a malfunction in Meadow’s suit in order to ensure a Crimson was first on the moon. Both proceeded to the airlock and at 17:45 Costal Standard Time they both began to exit the Altair lander. The descent itself was rather short and as he moved down the ramp Meadow began to recite his planned phrase:

“Out of the Great Sea to Middle Earth I am come. In this place will I abide, and my heirs, unto the ending of the world.”


Notes in OOC

[PeZook]

Diplomatic note to government of Wilkoina

His Majesty king Paul I wishes to pass his congratulations to the brave crew of Daedalus 7, and the scientists, engineers, techniciands and support personnell of the MSA for achieving a historic mission. It is the opinion of His Majesty that the date of March 15, 2017, will live forever in the history of mankind as the culmination of Man's ingenuity, insatiable curiosity and drive towards exploration and furthering our knowledge of the universe.

For this achievement, PeZookia would like to present the crew of Daedalus 7 with the Order Of The White Eagle, the highest civilian award of our nation, granted only for greatest cultural, scientific or diplomatic achievements.


Order Of The White Eagle

Press release by the Foreign Ministry

It is with great joy that PeZookia received news of the succesful landing upon the surface of Selene. While we are aware of recent tensions between MESS and CATO countries, this historic achievement transcends national and alliance boundaries, to truly bring closer the people of the world.

Already, March 15 2017 is being called the "Day The Earth Stood Still", as more than two billion people watched the live transmission of the landing. It is indeed possible, that for this one day, most armed conflicts on Nova Terra ceased, while their participants marvelled at the significance of this grand moment in history.

Even more amazing is the upcoming lunar mission by FASTA - which will, God willing, also succesfully put a joint crew on Selene's surface. Not only will this mission prove that humanity has, indeed, made its first steps into a larger world, it will also futher cement relations between the two grand alliances - which, despite their differences, were able to come together and achieve a symbolic gesture expressed in joint crews of Daedalus and Selene lunar missions.

It is therefore the will of His Majesty kind Paul I that the day of March 15th be declared a national holiday, to celebrate the grand spirit of Man and his will to endure hardship in order to expand his horizons, and learn new things about our universe.

====================================



Faktor X: The Aware Human

Lunar landing a fake! Shocking discoveries in photographic material from Daedalus 7

As world leaders fall all over themselves in cogratulating the Wilkonians in their "success", the more inquisitive minds amongst us ask ourselves the question: What if the entire thing was a grand spectacle? What if the landing, touted as the greatest achievement in Man's history, never actually happened?

If you are one of those people who do not automatically believe what the media wants you to, read on. If you are not, then perhaps this article will open your eyes.

We shall begin with photographic material. Take this "historical" photographs for example:



This is Daedalus 7 flight engineer, Lev Titov, walking down the ladder of the lunar lander. Note the anomalies: he should be shrouded by the shadow of the lander, yet all the details of his space suit are clearly visible. On Selene, shadows should be pitch black, with no atmosphere to scatter the light.

Furthermore, he is clearly suspended from ropes: his right foo is obviously not standing on the step of the ladder, thus he should be unable to support himself.

Other pictures include further anomalies, such as irregular shadows - indicating several light sources:



No flag shadow:



And others. Furthermore, consider this: to get to Selene, Wilkonian astronauts would have to cross belts of deadly radiation surrounding the Earth, called the Ven Allan belts - TWICE! These belts contain radiation so intensive that, to shield against them, the Daedalus spacecraft would have to carry two meters of lead shielding onboard.

This, we think, makes the situation clear: we were duped! Neither the Wilkonians nor anybody else could've possibly landed a human on Selene, thus any material the missions produce will obviously be a fake.

Selene: Refuge for the wealthy?

Recently, the entire world was stunned by pictures of the first lunar landing. But was it really the first?

Analysis of rocket launches performed from various testing ranges in Messica and the UCSR indicates that the potential amount of resources put on the moon could exceed two thousand metric tonnes! This wouldb e enough to construct a truly massive base using local resources.

If we assume (nor unreasonably) that CATO and MESS nations are all part of the same plot by the NWO, what does it tell us? There is something going on at the surface of Selene, and we are being fed pure propaganda about it!

It would seem that this project is part of the larger "Project Badbeam", of which evidence has been surfacing throughout the Internet for the last twenty years. If this base is being constructed on Selene right now (and the evidence seems overwhelming), then the realization of this horrifying project is closer than we think.

I suggest all aware people in the world begin their preparations. We may need to fight for our very lives soon.

====================================================

Orena Evening News

Finance Comittee to hear King Paul's report on FASTA funding

In light of the recent Wilkonian moon landing, the Parliamentary Finance Comittee has announced it will review the validity of continued FASTA funding.

King Paul is scheduled to testify before the comittee in two days to, as representative Buczyński put it, "Try and convince the representatives of the people that ten billion of taxpayer dollars per year is spent on projects that benefit PeZookia's interests".

While experts point out that FASTA moon landing was delayed because of completely unforeseeable reasons, parliamentary representatives have been quoted on several occasions as opposing continued funding for FASTA. Street demonstrators across PeZookia are also demanding that FASTA funding be ceased.

Wilkonian embassy showered in mail

Barely two days after the succesful Moon landing, the Wilkonian embassy in Orena is having trouble processing all the congratulatory letters and post-cards.

"It's really quite a logistical challenge", one embassy employee was quoted as saying, "Especially since every letter has to be checked for potential bioagents, as per procedures established way back after the Pathogen War. We do appreciate it, though: every one of us here feels like we're part of something great - historical, even."

The PeZookian Postal Service has reportedly opened a special service for delivering congratulatory mail to the embassy, to ease the burden placed on the local Wilkonian staff.

A commemorative series of postal stamps has also been released and entered circulation. The entire run of 200 thousand units has been sold out in mere hours. Despite additional prints, Ubay prices these stamp have already passed twenty dollars, and continue to climb.

[CmdrWilkens]

Astronauts invested as Grand Knights, Order of the Empire
March 25th 2017
Columbia, Capital Province Wilkonia



In a midday ceremony King Andreneas II confered upon the entire crew of the Daedalus 7 mission the rank of Grand Knight in the Order of the Empire marking the largest such conference of the honour since the Second Tonkenese War in the previous century. Although only one member of the crew, Major John Meadow Wilkonian Imperial Marine Corps, is a citizen of the Empire a special dispensation of Parliament allowed for each member to receive full honours and granted each member, regardless of citizenship, the full privledges of their rank. The Order itself is the third highest order within the category of Personal Titles. By virtue of its award each member is granted a lifetime Knighthood and membership into Parliament.

While the precedent of taking the floor by virtue of title remains rare observers have been quick to point out that the dispensation means all five crew members who are not Wilkonian citizens have been granted to priveledge of the floor of Parliament. In paticular the grant of the title to the Shadow Cosmonaut Lev Titov has aroused more than a fair amount of grumbling from the far right Know Nothing Party though it has yet to find any voice within the mainstream right wing parties.




The three lead astronauts, Mission Commander Meadow (L), Flight Engineer Lev Titov (C) and Pilot Michale Nylander (R) were given a private audience with the Sovereign immediately afterwards as the Crown has repeatedly insisted upon the future of spaceflight as being vital to the nation, to the alliance, and to the world. In a statement made just after the three departed the Crown indicated it woudl continue to vigorously pursue a full throated expansion into space.

"We have just begun to touch upon the limitless possibilities of mankind. The hope for all peoples is to lift themselves up and touch the heavens. Today six brave men and women have returned from being nearer to the face of God than any before. If there is any truth in the boundless possibility of mankind it has been in the search for the next shore over the far horizon. If we leave nothing behind us save the legacy of taking to the stars then great shall be the acclaim for all of us in the annals of the world."



During the formal reception afterwards much was already being made of grumbling both in MSA members such as Canissia (which did not have a member onboard) and the Shinra Republic as to the huge costs associated with continuing the push in space. Likewise rumor has already surfaced as to doubt in several FASTA nations as to funding levels moving forward. While no official statement has yet been made several confidential officals with the MSA have indicated that the agency might be willing to help channel funding to FASTA in order to "keep the competition there and push us to go further." Many flight planners indicated that it was only the powerful incentive of being first that kept so many working so hard for so long, all have indicated that without a second major agency pushing the boundaries of spaceflight it would be difficult to motivate not just politicians but also the huge staffs they have on hand.

On the lighter note gossip colunists are already abuzz with columns as to the mysterious guest who attempted to acost and profess his undying love for Mission Specialist Lieutenant Colonel Jullian Davies, the only female crewmember. While a career Shinra Republic Army Air Corps officer she has already received more than a dozen offers to pose for Men's Interest magazines. While she has not indicated any interest speculation will likely continue as the crew will continue to travel on a publicity tour starting in Wilkonia before heading to The Republic of PeZookia later this week to partake in festivities associated with the award of the Order of the White Eagle to the crew.