Xanan News Service: From the Spur to Your Inbox!

[MattAtlas]

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH A FREE SOLARIAN FLEETS LIEUTENANT

Act 1 Article 12 of the Amor Patriae arc

A Himean man is the sole host for this segment of Interviews and News, one of the most famous Xanusii services. It revolves around interviewing both exceptional and ordinary people. This time around, however, the guest was known to be a rather special one. The host of the show is sitting in a rather cosy sofa, while on the holoscreen behind him one can see a Solarian Navy figure, clearly video calling from a ship of some sort.

“Welcome, our faithful guests, to a special episode of Interviews and News! I’m Jude Scholes, and today, I’ve got a special guest for you all! Life as a mercenary is known to be a harsh one. The Xanu News Service has managed to obtain an interview with one of these mercenaries, a certain Lieutenant Yann Mueller. He is currently engaged with the Caravaggio, one of the cruisers that has traveled the most across the Spur. Mister Mueller, why don’t you tell us some about yourself and your ship?”

“Oh, uh, yeah, sure,” the Solarian - a Lunan, by the sounds - responds, with an uncertain tone, “I’m Yann. I didn’t really become part of the Fleets, like, it just happened. We were in the outer ring, and then everything started going to sh– hell, and then our Admiral said that we’re on our own now, and the government wouldn’t help because Frost kicked the bucket and the Navy’s imploding… so we all just nodded our heads and went with him. I mean, what were we gonna do? Mutiny? Go back to Earth to get court martialed? We have families too, you know,” Mueller says, with a hint of resentment.

“As for our fleet, well… basically, the biggest thing that’s happened to us is that we got hired by these corporate guys from Biesel… the Horizon, I think it’s called? And they wanted an escort, or something. Well - I’m just a navigations officer, so I don’t really have all the details, but I know that most of the enlisted really hate their guts. Especially one of our sergeants, Gallagher, because she says she lost someone there, or something. Not really my problem. I mean - everyone here knows death’s at the door. We just live day to day.”

“That’s a bit of a coalheaded philosophy, from a normal person’s perspective, but you people are in different circumstances,” Jude begins, with the Solarian looking distinctly confused by the word ‘coalheaded’, “What happened after that?”

“Well, we came back to the Fleets after our contract was like… done, or whatever,” Mueller begins, “Then, we got a fat contract from these guys, the Middle Ring Shield Pact. It’s called that way, but if you ask me, it’s really San Colette’s show… and they’re Solarians, so most of us at least feel like we’re fighting for a better cause this time around. Yeah, if you ask one of the enlisted, they’ll say it’s for the money, but that’s not really entirely true, I think. Most of us hate these Front fu–” he censors himself, “--mmh, idiots. Obviously we wouldn’t have helped if the contract wasn’t big, because you know, it’s dangerous, but you get what I’m saying, right?”

“I think I do,” the Himean host says, nodding along, “So, you all said you brought phoron with you, right? How much of a key factor was that in this battle?”

“Yeah, we did bring a bunch of phoron. There are some scientific details that I won’t really explain, but basically, if you have a lot of phoron to burn, you’re a lot more mobile. And that helps a lot at a distance, especially if you need to keep a mobile defence going - like we do. We don’t really have the numbers to take on them, so we need to take pot shots from far away and then leave immediately. We can’t really afford to lose ships with risky moves, so we have to play it safe… have you seen how many Regensburgists there are? It’s insane, man. They’ve got so many fleets, and they’re all fully crewed… I don’t get it.” Something can be heard being spoken from a loudspeaker in the distance. The Solarian turns to face it, and then turns to face the camera, worried.

“Regensburgists, you say?” The Himean asks, intrigued, “Anyway, I assume your time’s running out?”

“Yeah, we’re… we need to get to battle stations, basically. We’re almost at the first line of defence… these Coletters are pretty philosophical, you know?” Mueller gives a short, worried chuckle, “They call it the Llorente line, after their first president. It’s pretty poetic. Anyway, yeah, we need to go.”

“Thank you for your time, then,” the Himean anchor says. The Solarian nods, gives a “Bye!”, and then quickly turns off the camera.

“Scruples aside, this eclectic mix of people is the only thing standing between San Colette and its occupation. Will they succeed or not? We’ll leave the predictions to you - you can tell us your opinion by messaging the number or email on your screen right now. And now for our next segment, Light’s Edge and its Secrets…”

Edited September 17 by NewOriginalSchwann

[NewOriginalSchwann]

Live Updates: War in the Northern Wildlands

Act 1 Article 14 of the Amor Patriae arc

The traditional XNS jingle plays, heralding the revealing of Deschamps, Gopal, and the map. The black section, marking the Front, has increased. The League’s portion has not.

“Good evening and welcome to another of our segments on the ongoing Northern Wildlands conflict,” Gopal begins. “Dire news has reached us from the Victoria System, where Pact defenses fell earlier today in the face of a Front assault. This video discovered on Chirper shows some of the moments leading up to this event.”

The video switches over to a recorded feed from what appears to be a spacecraft’s external camera, which is pointed at a large orbital structure containing a warship. Military-minded observers will recognize this as a Hephaestus-produced orbital dockyard partway through the construction of a Taipei-class heavy cruiser. The camera has no audio feed but does observe a small craft — perhaps a shuttle — flying away from the structure. A few moments of utter silence pass before the camera is shaken by something and six thin objects appear below it, rapidly moving away from the camera and towards the dock.

The missiles strike the dock in the traditional eerie silence of space combat, and the dock itself is consumed in a series of explosions too large for the yield of the missiles. The Taipei-class hull violently cracks in half and its fore is tossed clear of the explosions by concussive force, then is itself destroyed by another missile. As the dockyard breaks apart into useless chunks and begins falling into the planet’s atmosphere, the feed cuts out and switches back to the analysts and their screen.

“Our best estimate places this as having been shot by the FSF Caravaggio at 1800 GST yesterday,” Deschamps says, looking at Gopal. “Similar destruction has been reported at the New Peoria warp gate in the system, which was allegedly destroyed by a nuclear device launched by the FSF Borgia.”

“And the Front now controls the system?”

“Correct. This video was posted to 64tan by what we assume is one of their marines. A warning to our viewers that this is graphic content.”

The camera switches to footage of an unknown man in a SRF gargoyle voidsuit with “SGT PORTER” written on its forehead  seemingly recording himself on a camcorder. Muffled speech which sounds like Nral’Malic standard is cut off by a gunshot which lights up the dark room in a brief flash of light. The Sergeant barely reacts.

“Guys,” he begins, his voice muffled by the suit, “we’ve taken back New Peoria for the Alliance!” he flashes a thumbs-up, then briefly spins the camera around to look out a window. The SRF’s flag flutters in the breeze, standing above a mostly-ruined square littered with destroyed civilian vehicles. An anti-aircraft emplacement sits destroyed next to what appears to have been a spaceport until recently. “We drove the aliens out and killed all the,” a loud beep, “we could find!”

Porter then flips the camcorder around. “And we’re coming for their sponsors next! San Colette! Your days are,” another loud beep, “numbered!”

The feed cuts, returning to the analysts. They look grim.
 

“With Victoria and New Peoria lost,” Gopal begins, zooming out the map and zooming it back into another system surrounded with Pact, mercenary, and Front markers, “it’s likely the Pact will likely have to retreat to the Igman System, another industrial system like Victoria.”

“Can they hold?”

Gopal sighs. “We’ll see. They’re still holding the League at Hudson’s Star, so we’ll see. Unfortunately, we need to take a brief commercial break. Up next is the renowned Mariska van den Soeterik.”

The XNS goes on a commercial break. This one appears to be dedicated to a smaller local company producing household goods. Nothing too exciting.

Edited September 17 by NewOriginalSchwann

[NewOriginalSchwann]

XNS Exclusive: Interview with a Gadpathurian Naval Officer

Act 1 Article 16 of the Amor Patriae arc

A Himean male is the sole host for this segment of Interviews and News, one of the most famous Xanusii services. It revolves around interviewing both exceptional and ordinary people. The host of the show is sitting in a rather cosy sofa, while on the holoscreen behind him one can see a Gadpathurian cadre leader. The cadre leader, a middle-aged woman with a prominent burn scar across the left side of her face (complete with an eyepatch),  appears to be using a video call of some sort, and is in a fairly dingy industrial room.

“Welcome, our faithful guests, to a special episode of Interviews and News! I’m Jude Scholes, and today, I’ve got a special guest for you all! With Gadpathur having been recently accused of supplying Solarian warlords with weapons, many have been asking for a Gadpathurian response! The Xanu News Service has managed to obtain an exclusive interview with Commodore Lavanya Tripathi, officer in charge of a Gadpathurian patrol squadron which has been stranded in Konyang by the recent warp gate lockout! Commodore Tripathi, why don’t you tell us a bit about your squadron? How are you handling these accusations?”

“They’re absurd,” Tripathi practically spits. “The United Planetary Defense Council has always fought for the Coalition’s best interests, and the All-Xanu Republic’s recent cooperation with the Solarian enemy to ‘expose’ this is nothing more than retaliation against us for proposing we take decisive action against these so-called Wildlands!”

“Much of the reaction to Gadpathur’s intervention proposal has been negative, and some have accused it of moving the Spur closer to a Second Interstellar War during an ongoing economic crisis regarding phoron. Do you have anything to say in response to this?”

“We are not the ones who should be accused of bringing the Spur closer to war!” Tripathi responds, angrily pointing at the camera. “Who is responsible for these Wildlands but the Solarians, and who now fights themselves within it? We have been presented with an opportunity to end the menace to our Coalition once and for all, and we have wasted it through the dithering of politicians and businessmen! What the Coalition needs is decisive action, and that is what Gadpathur will provide if we are directed to!”

“That’s a bit of a coalheaded philosophy, from the perspective of most Coalitioners. How do you int–”

Before Scholes can finish his statement, he is cut off by the Gadpathurian.

“How dare you imply we are coalheaded when we are the only ones with the strength to take action!” Tripathi slams her fist down next to the monitor, causing it to shake briefly. “Cowardice in the face of the Enemy is what caused billions of my ancestors to die to the Solarians! I won’t have any more of your frivolous comments, and I will not save you when the Solarian comes for you!”

Tripathi then reaches behind her video camera and shuts it off, leaving a somewhat surprised-looking Scholes sitting on his sofa. He looks at somebody offscreen and gives a hand signal, then looks back to the camera with a polite expression.

“Well, that was Commodore Lavanya Tripathi of Gadpathur! As our guest has ended the interview early, we’ll be back after a short break!”

Edited September 17 by NewOriginalSchwann

[NewOriginalSchwann]

LIVE: Coalition Responds to Ongoing Violence in the Northern Wildlands

Act 1 Article 17 of the Amor Patriae arc

This broadcast appears to have, for better or worse, begun partway into a very heated debate. Pravin Thaman, Gadpathur’s representative in the committee, has just slammed his hand down on his table with enough force to knock over his glass of water.

“You work with the Solarians instead of us! Us, Rohan!” another slam. “Our planet has bled more than any other in the Coalition, and it has bled at the hands of the very Solarians you now cooperate with!”

“Xanu has done no such thing!” Rohan Magar responds from his seat, angrily pointing at Thaman. “What YOU have done is nearly bring us to the brink of a Second Interstellar War!”

“Don’t insult the dead of Gadpathur, Representative! We have done what any member of this committee should,” yet another slam, “have been doing! We provided the means to protect our people from the Solarians!”

“You armed a warlord state which threatens us!” a voice from the side calls out, revealing Kwan Seok of Konyang. “Representative Thaman, what do you have to say for yourself?”

“I have nothing to say to Solarians who only joined us out of convenience.”

“How dare you!” Mi-Hi Gim, of Konyang’s military, calls out from her seat next to Seok. “The Konyang Armed Forces have fought League incursions as often as any member of the Coalition’s border force, and it turns out you were arming them the entire time? How does Gadpathur intend to wash the blood from its hands?!”

“Gadpathur has nothing to wash from its hands as it has done no wrong!”

Gim stands quickly, causing her chair to clatter to the ground behind her.

“How dare you imply you’ve done nothing wrong when you’ve contributed to an active war on our border!”

A gavel bangs, silencing the debate before one party can become more physical with the other.

“I call this meeting back to order!” Rohan shouts. “Konyang, is security a concern for your delegation?”

Seok nods as Gim sits down.

“It is, Representative Rohan. Commander Gim and myself would like to have more naval forces moved to the border zone due to the ongoing violence, if only to assist in the growing humanitarian crisis at the border,” Seok says, keeping his tone professionally level. “While I understand the Coalition has historical grievances with the Alliance, we cannot simply let people suffer.”

“The measure goes to vote!” Rohan bangs his gavel. “Assunzione?”

“The Republic of Assunzione has no objection to both protecting our borders and aiding the needy. We support this measure,” Violante responds.

“Himeo?”

“The United Syndicates likewise support Konyang’s proposition,” Dirksen replies.

“Gadpathur?”

“Gadpathur will send defensive vessels to Konyang, but we will not aid Solarians unless they renounce their citizenships.”

“Must you be so obstinate even during a time of crisis?” Violante asks from the side, a touch of anger to her voice. “It is our duty, by the Light of Ennoia, to aid the needy. I hope you can see the Star’s wisdom.”

Thaman does not respond before Rohan speaks.

“The All-Xanu Republic supports the proposition. The measure passes by universal consent, and this meeting is adjourned for recess!”

Rohan smacks his gavel once again. The delegates move to begin standing, and the video footage fades out.

Edited September 17 by NewOriginalSchwann

[MattAtlas]

LIVE XNS EXCLUSIVE: PACT RETREATS AS ENEMIES GAIN GROUND

Act 1 Article 18 of the Amor Patriae arc

After the traditional XNS jingle the camera zooms in on none other than van den Soeterik, seated behind her desk and wearing one of her seemingly infinite number of white suits.

“Good evening, and welcome to the Xanu News Service. Today’s top story comes to us from the Wildlands, where the Middle Ring Shield Pact has confirmed it is starting to surrender more and more ground to neighboring warlord states.”

 

The camera switches to a view of de Noi, the presidential spokeswoman, standing at a podium and reading from an electronic tablet. The feed starts mid-sentence.

“—it is with a heavy heart that the Pact announces this retreat, and we are only taking it out of necessity.”

“What about the refugees?” A reporter in the crowd asks, sounding similar to Liao Qi.

“They’ll be provided for to the best of our abilities. The Civil Guard recommends refugees who are so willing to take up arms in the defense of the Republic.”

 

The camera cuts again, this time showing a disheveled-looking man and woman in their early middle age. A child holds onto the woman’s coat with one and, and an IPC plushie with the other. Liao Qi, the unflappable reporter of XNS, points a microphone towards the woman, who promptly begins speaking.

“We never wanted this,” says the woman, identified as Maria Wu by a subtitle. “We were just trying to make a living, and moved to New Peoria from Silversun back in ‘55 to be engineers in the shipyards. And— god!” she sniffs, rubbing her nose with the back of her sleeve, “—we barely made it out!”

“You were on the last ship through the warp gate, right?”

Maria nods. “We were. They detonated it after we were through. I— I felt it detonate, in transit. It felt like a— a wire brush being dragged over my eyes! I thought we wouldn’t make it, but we warped out right after the feeling began. There was a, there was this Solarian ship which defended it, I heard. I don’t remember the name!”

“Caravaggio, honey. It was the Carvaggio,” the man responds.

The woman nods, remaining silent for a moment before speaking again. “We should… get going, sorry. I hope the Navy comes soon. They’ll fix this.”

 

Edited September 17 by NewOriginalSchwann

[NewOriginalSchwann]

Live Updates: War in the Northern Wildlands

Act 2 Article 1 of the Amor Patriae arc

Following the typical XNS jingle the camera focuses on a screen displaying the Northern Wildlands flanked by analysts Ajit Gopal and Delphine Deschamps. The right side of the map is significantly more red than before, and the left is much more black. The gray Pact-labeled chunk in the middle has shrunken even more.

“Hello, and welcome to another analysis of the ongoing War in the Northern Wildlands,” Gopal begins, tapping something out on a slate he’s holding in his hands. “With the Pact having officially declared a collapsing retreat we’ve seen rapid changes in the balance of power in this three-front war.”

The map zooms in on the SRF’s advance. Pact forces have decreased since the last time this section was examined, but the Front retains a significant numerical advantage. New Peoria, only recently lost by the Pact, is now well behind the frontlines. San Colette itself is visible on the edge of the screen. An arrow which leads from New Peoria to San Colette has been drawn onto the map.

“As you can see,” Deschamps says, pointing at the map. “This is expected to be the Front’s expected line of advance towards San Colette, and the phoron contained within its strategic reserve.”

“How long will it take them to reach San Colette?”

“That depends on their rate of advance,” Deschsmps hits another button on her PDA, causing multiple Pact units to expand into smaller windows shoring their projected combat readiness. For anybody who does not read Freespeak, it makes little sense. Those who can may notice that almost all Pact units which are not Civil Guard or Free Solarian Fleet mercenaries are very ragged. An observer from the Horizon may notice that one of the larger units is FSF Combat Group “Krueger’s Revenge,” led by the Taipei-class heavy cruiser Caravaggio.

“Almost all of the units still capable of fighting are either Colettish or mercenary forces, with most of the Pact’s other units having been exhausted in the fighting on this front, or repositioned to the League’s front,” Deschamps swipes at her PDA, causing the front to swap to the League side. The League decisively outnumbers the scattered Pact forces on this side, who seem to be held together by a limited numbers of mercenary units and Colettish forces.

“My sources indicate the League front isn’t holding as effectively as the Front’s side,” Gopal interjects.

“Exactly! At the current rate of advance the League will likely reach San Colette first, but the Front appears to be preparing for a major assault based upon what we know. Both seem to have the same goal of reaching San Colette, so it might only be days until it’s under siege.”

“Days?” Gopal seems to be barely able to contain his surprise.

Deschamps nods, then both go silent for a moment. Gopal breaks it.
 

“Unfortunately, we’ll have to go on a short commercial break. Please stay tuned to XNS for further news regarding the ongoing War in the Northern Wildlands.”

Edited September 17 by NewOriginalSchwann

[MattAtlas]

XNS EXCLUSIVE: Interview with Colettish Volunteers

Act 2 Article 2 of the Amor Patriae arc

 

After the initial XNS fade-in the camera focuses, as typical, on the distinctive figure of Mariska van den Soeterik.

“Hello, and welcome once again to the Xanu News Network! As always I am your host, Mariska van den Soeterik. Today’s top story comes from Liao Qi, who has been in San Colette since the start of the War in the Northern Wildlands. Liao?”

The camera switches to Liao Qi, who looks much less clean-shaven than normal. Leticia de la Fuente, his Civil Guard escort, stands off to the side in a plate carrier with a Colettosh SMG draped over it. Judging by the backdrop, they’re somewhere in Nueva Isabel.

“Thanks Mariska. I’m here today with two volunteers, both from very different countries, who are here for the same purpose: defending San Colette.”

Noyer pams the camera to the side to reveal two humans in Solarian Army gear, though one has taken the unconventional step of tying a Biesellite flag around his arm and wearing what is undoubtedly a Legion beret. The first individual, who has the text “RED DEVIL” written on her vest, speaks first.

“Hey, yeah, thanks for interviewing us! I’m Alexis Watts, from Mars. I used to be in the 37th ‘til I went AWOL to come here!”

“Why did you desert the Solarian Army to fight in San Colette?”

Watts looks at Liao as if he has asked her the most obvious question ever.

“Because they’re actually fighting against the Front? Frost fu— sorry. Frost ruined my whole planet, yeah? I figured my Colonel will  be okay with sending a few of his freaks to Hell for what they did to Olympia — even if I gotta buddy up with Captain Miranda over here.”

Watts laughs and claps the other volunteer on the back, who shakes his head while laughing with her.

“My name’s not actually Miranda, she just gives me shit for having served in the Legion. I’m Mike Forsythe, from Mendell.”

“And why did you leave Biesel for a warzone?”

“It’s the right thing to do! A lot of people showed up to bail us out back in ‘62, and we didn’t do enough to pay them back. Plus, I lost some friends to the 35th back during the invasion. Figured I’d come and get even.”

“Do you run into a lot of volunteers like yourselves?”

“Oh yeah!” Watts responds enthusiastically. “We gotta lot of people from all across the Spur! Even got a few Elyrans and Imperials, plus Coalitioners! Our governments might not wanna do anything for San Colette, and we might be from all over the Spur, but we’re all united in believing we gotta do something!”

Forsythe nods his head. “So many that we figured we’d try to organize it into a cohesive unit. That’s how we ended up forming the First Colettish Volunteer Battalion, and I ended up in charge of it.”

“Have you had many challenges?”

Forsythe shakes his head. “A few at the start, but it’s not too different than being a Prefect back in the Legion. Everybody’s working together for a greater cause, and most of us are human anyways. My old adjutant tagged along to help us out, and she might be the only synthetic we have. She’s up to her eyeballs in requisition forms, but that’s where shells are the happiest, yeah?”

“Have you seen any combat so far?”

“Yeah! We were in the thick of it on New Peoria, until we had to pull out. Fragged a whole lotta 35th goons. Say what you wanna say about the Imperials and Miranda’s boys, but they know how to shoot! Once we get done with R-n-R we’re gonna be back out there, kicking Front teeth in!”

“When do you think that’ll be?”

“At this rate?” Forsythe responds. “It might be tomorrow, at the rate it’s going. For today though? We’ll just have to wait and see.”

Qi nods, turning the mic back to himself. “Thank you both for your time. Back over to you, Mariska.”

The camera, with its view of San Colette, fades out.

Edited September 17 by NewOriginalSchwann

[NewOriginalSchwann]

Continued Reporting: War in the Northern Wildlands

Act 2 Article 4 of the Amor Patriae arc

Following the typical XNS jingle the camera focuses on a screen displaying the Northern Wildlands flanked by analysts Ajit Gopal and Delphine Deschamps. San Colette sits in the center of the map, now effectively completely surrounded by the League and Front. Judging by the map, the Front and League are now fighting one another in addition to the Pact.

“Hello, and welcome to another analysis of the ongoing conflict in the Northern Wildlands,” Gopal begins. “As you can see, the Pact has effectively been defeated as a fighting force outside of San Colette, a system designed by the Solarian Alliance to serve as a defensive stronghold.”

“That’s correct," Deschsmps interjects, “and we have footage acquirer from Chirper showing the Pact’s retreat from one of the last systems it controlled outside of San Colette, Novo Igman.”

Deschamps hits something on her PDA, causing the screen to flip to what appears to be a Solarian Army helmet’s heads-up display. The helmet’s wearer is breathing quite heavily, and appears to be halfway through inserting a new magazine onto her Solarian assault rifle. Due to shaky hands the magazine fails to properly set the first time, resulting in an untranslated Tradeband whisper (an expletive, for any familiar with the language) being hissed as she inserts the magazine again and chambers its first round.

“Lieutenant Escoto, we have to get to the L-Z,” a man shouts from behind. Escoto’s camera turns, revealing a man in Solarian Army armor with a Colettish flag on the front.

“It’s two blocks away. Don’t panic and get yourself killed.”

The man nods, then goes quiet. The camera turns, revealing more men and women in Army armor with Colettish flags.

“Alright, listen up!” Escoto begins. “We’re evacuating this place and heading back to San Colette, understood? Form up on me and let’s go!”

Escoto stands and her unit follows her lead, rapidly taking off through the ruined streets of what must have once been a fairly peaceful neighborhood. Scattered ruined vehicles, and the occasional body, are common sights as the Coletters sprint through the streets. Near the end of the first block a man wearing an odd mix of Solarian Army armor and Gadpathurian surplus rounds the corner ahead of the Lieutenant and is put down by  several gunshots.

“League bastards!” One of the soldiers shouts from behind the camera’s field of view.

The group keeps running, eventually crossing through what seems to be the last block and coming into the view of a shuttlecraft as Escoto lights a flare and holds it over her head, not breaking her run in the slightest as she does so. A man on the shuttle’s docking ramp wearing a Navy jumpsuit gestures for the group to run to him.

“Anybody behind your squad?”

“Nobody friendly!” Escoto shouts back as she runs up the ramp and turns around, watching her fellow Coletters follow behind her. “You’re good to take off once we’re all on!”

As the last Coletter boards, nearly tripping over her feet in exhaustion, the Navy enlisted speaks into his headset. With a whine the shuttle begins taking off from the landing pad and rises into the sky above the city, clearly showing the widespread devastation of the area. A Solarian Navy strike craft, flying too low for comfort, flies over the landing zone and drops its payload onto it as soon as the shuttle is reasonably far away. The entire clearing erupts into flames as the Navy enlisted whistles and a Colettish soldier crosses himself, both watching the fire spread."

“Never thought I’d see that shit in action!” He shouts as he hits the loading ramp’s controls, causing it to fully close. “Get some rest, yeah? Fleet’s running interdiction, so we’re going to be fine.”

The camera nods and the helmet is removed, revealing Escoto’s face as she turns it around to check the camera. She appears to be in her early 20s at best and has suffered a nasty – though not crippling – facial burn across her right cheek which has been hastily bandaged. She shuts the camera off and the XNS newsroom reappears.

“With both the Front and League engaging one another near San Colette,” Gopal says, focusing the map itself on San Colette, “it seems unlikely a serious attempt to launch an assault will be undertaken in the immediate future.”

“I’m not so sure. It’s well-defended, yes, but the Front in particular has a significant numerical advantage over the Pact even when we factor in their defenses. Plus, their more advanced drives have a greater need for phoron.”

“That’s true, but can they handle assaulting both San Colette and fighting off the Front? That’s going to be a lot riskier for them to try."

Deschsmps nods. “We’ve been wrong before, but we’ll see.”

"Unfortunately,” Gopal interjects, “we’ll have to see after this commercial break.”

The camera switches into an ad for nanopaste sprays, with the last image of the war room being a positively neglected-looking Deschamps sighing.

Edited September 17 by NewOriginalSchwann

[NewOriginalSchwann]

Live Updates: War in the Northern Wildlands

Act 2 Article 7 of the Amor Patriae arc

Following the typical XNS jingle the camera focuses on a screen displaying the Northern Wildlands flanked by analysts Ajit Gopal and Delphine Deschamps. San Colette now stands alone, completely surrounded by the Front and the League.

“Hello, and welcome back to our continuing coverage of the Northern Wildlands,” Deschamps begins. “As you can see San Colette remains surrounded by the forces of the League and Front, both of which are engaged with one another. Information from this area has been spotty at best, but neither side appears to have launched a serious assault on San Colette itself.”

“They have not, and it appears the League is currently attempting to engage the Front in the northern region of the former Pact. Prior to the Collapse this area was home to many small to medium-sized shipyards, and control of it would allow for repairs of many Solarian Navy, and auxiliary, vessels in use by the warlords.”

“Right, and these systems aren’t as well-defended as San Colette.”

“They aren’t! But, many of them have had their shipyards destroyed by either fighting or by the Pact itself during its retreat. New Peoria, one of the Pact’s largest shipyards outside of San Colette, may take years to be fully repaired, and these warlords don’t have that amount of time.”

“What about the Republic of Biesel? Have there been any raids there by the League?”

“Not yet.” Gopal zooms the map out to show the Biesel-Wildlands border. Significant Foreign Legion and mercenary forces are positioned along both the League and Front borders. “Biesel has moved almost every unit it can spare to the border with the Northern Wildlands in order to discourage attacks, and the Coalition has done the same near Konyang. The Alliance, as you know, has been conducting maneuvers on its border for a few weeks.”

“Which makes whatever resources are left in the Wildlands even more important to secure, and explains their hesitancy to assault San Colette. It’s going to be difficult for either to take it while effectively holding their rival off, especially as the Pact and Coletters are likely taking this time to dig in.”

“You’re exactly right, Delphine. But, unfortunately, we’ll have to go on a short break before we continue!”

The camera, displaying a typically disappointed Deschamps, fades out into an ad for Xanu-produced lawncare equipment which proudly brags it is “Xanu built, Arusha tested.”

Edited September 17 by NewOriginalSchwann

[NewOriginalSchwann]

Continued Reporting: Ongoing Fighting Near San Colette

Act 2 Article 10 of the Amor Patriae arc

Following the typical XNS jingle the camera focuses on a screen displaying the Northern Wildlands flanked by analysts Ajit Gopal and Delphine Deschamps. Little has changed from the last time the map was shown, and fighting seems to be concentrated around San Colette itself and the more northern systems home to much of the Pact’s former shipbuilding industry. In this northern region the League appears to have made some gains, and is approaching New Peoria.

“Hello, and welcome to our continuing coverage of the War in the Northern Wildlands,” Gopal begins, tapping his PDA and causing the screen to focus upon San Colette. “As you can see by our map, the Front has focused much of its efforts here.”

“That’s correct,” Deschsmps interjects. “The Front is likely attempting to fully surround San Colette in order to besiege the system more effectively, and will have to force the League out of its positions outside San Colette in order to do so. But—“

Deschsmps taps her PDA and the map moves north to New Peoria, where League forces appear to have an advantage in numbers over the Front. An image of a Yincheng-class light cruiser painted in League colors comes up on the screen. It’s badly damaged but is being repaired in a dockyard.

“—their focus on San Colette is costing them ground they may not be able to lose near New Peoria. However, most intelligence points to this being some form of delaying action.”

“And what about the League?”

“The League has never had the supply chain the Front possessed prior to 2465, and has often relied upon raiding and ‘unofficial’ aid from Coalition member states. Their assault in the north has been pushing the Front back slowly but at great cost to themselves. Many are now asking how long they can keep this assault going.”

“Any guesses, Delphine?”

“Isn’t your department in charge of League OSINT?”

“They are, but I want my friend’s opinion! Come on, you can focus on something other than the Front for once!”

Deschamps pauses, considering something in her head.

“I don’t know,” she replies. “A month at best, probably? I imagine it’ll be less than that.”

“—and we’ll be able to discuss that right after this short break.”

The video fades into an ad for duty-free Cytherean imports.

Edited September 17 by NewOriginalSchwann

[NewOriginalSchwann]

BREAKING: LEAGUE RETREATS FROM SAN COLETTE FOLLOWING FRONT COUNTEROFFENSIVE

Act 2 Article 11 of the Amor Patriae arc
 

Following the typical XNS jingle the camera focuses on a screen displaying the Northern Wildlands flanked by analysts Ajit Gopal and Delphine Deschamps. San Colette itself has been totally encircled by the Solarian Restoration Front’s forces while in the northern sector of the former Pact the League appears to be in a general retreat, having lost the territory it gained during its offensive. An arrow has been traced in the north which leads further inwards from the offensive and towards the League itself.

“As you can see,” Deschamps breaks the initial silence, “the Front has effectively seized total control of the space surrounding San Colette, which has caused the League offensive in the northern Pact to collapse due to concerns of being cut off and encircled by the Front’s forces. Ajit?”

“The League will likely draw its defensive line here,” Gopal taps his PDA, causing a line to appear close to San Colette which runs vertically from the League’s border to the Coalition’s border. “It’s far enough away for them to reinforce but close enough to put pressure on the Front’s positions near San Colette, such as the Helium-3-rich system of Lhokgon, which the Front is currently using as a major resupply depot.”

“Right,” Deschamps responds. “Most of the Chirper posts from Front troops there indicate the facilities are relatively intact, which is a surprise to me.”

“It’s possible the Pact could’ve been using them up until the system fell, as it’s barely a Lightyear from San Colette. Everybody needs fuel, Delphine. They might have left the facilities as a distraction, considering how dedicated both the Front and League seem to be to seizing it.”

“Do you believe the League has enough forces to mount a serious assault?”

“They might. Take a look at this video my team pulled off of Chirper.”

The feed switches to an exterior camera on, judging by the Solarian Common text at the bottom of the video, the Armsman-class frigate Worker’s Liberation. The tiny frigate, following a series of signals from a larger ship ahead of itself, turns to face a warship which effectively dwarfs it, and takes up the video’s entire screen. After a moment of buffering the frigate’s sensors properly identify this as the Wallbreaker, a Mumbai-class fast battleship. An uncommon sight in the Wildlands, these vessels are some of the largest found in the hands of post-Solarian warlords. The feed cuts out as the Worker’s Liberation begins to turn its camera.

The feed returns to Deschamps and Gopal. Deschamps, for her part, appears fairly surprised.

“They have a functional battleship?”

“They do, and it’s in relatively good condition even after almost three years of fighting. The Front and Pact both have their own battleships, but most are currently engaged in or near San Colette. The existence of this vessel means the League likely still has enough reserves for another serious assault, which changes how the Front will have to approach the situation – particularly regarding Lhokgon.”

Deschamps nods her head, thinking to herself.
 

“Unfortunately, for now, we’ll be right back!”

Deschamps barely contains her disappointment prior to the camera fading into an ad for an Xanu-produced computer system. 

Edited September 17 by NewOriginalSchwann

[NewOriginalSchwann]

Continued Reporting: Front Launches Assault Towards League-Held Pact Shipyards

Act 3 Article 1 of the Amor Patriae arc

Following the typical XNS jingle the camera focuses on a screen displaying the Northern Wildlands flanked by analysts Ajit Gopal and Delphine Deschamps. San Colette itself remains totally encircled by the Solarian Restoration Front’s forces, and appears to have remained static. The Front has, over the past few days, opted to push its advantage while it has it and has forced the League further away from San Colette. Lhokgon, a major Helium-3 refining planet, remains the focus of intense fighting, and the front has barely shifted here.

“As you can see by the map,” Gopal begins, causing the map to zoom onto the League-Front line of skirmish. “League forces have been pushed further back, effectively causing them to lose any remaining gains they held from their earlier offensive. With the Front holding the momentum, what can we expect to see over the coming days?”

“We can expect the Front to push its advantage in renewed assaults against the shipyards under League control in the Pact’s territory, which would further cripple the League’s offensive power as they’d have to retrofit and repair within their own territory rather than what facilities they have either captured intact or repaired to a relatively functional state.”

“I don’t think the League will give up territory so easily, especially with its Gadpathurian support cut off “ Gopal responds. “They’re losing ground before the shipyards, yes, but look at Lhokgon. They’ve barely given any ground there, likely due to the presence of capital ships such as the Wallbreaker, which has been confirmed as active in the region. Have you seen anything on the OSINT side for the Front?”

“We have. Front sailors near ‘Fortress Lhokgon’ as they commonly call it have expressed frustration at Front high command for prioritizing their offensives over breaking the League’s assault on Lhokgon, which has been grinding down their forces in the area. The Front’s main defensive line sits outside of Lhokgon and has been, according to Front reports and footage uploaded by League vessels, slowly pushed back.”

“But with the Front pushing them back elsewhere, can they sustain this offensive?”

Deschamps pauses, considering the question.

“—I don’t know. The Front may be attempting to force the League to overcommit themselves to Lhokgon and cut off their advance, but that’s speculation at this point.”

“Unfortunately, this speculation will have to come after the next commercial break. We’ll be right back!”

The screen transitions into an ad for extreme cold-weather gear imported from Himeo.

Edited September 17 by NewOriginalSchwann

[NewOriginalSchwann]

XNS Exclusive: Colettish Militias Prepare for Invasion

Act 3 Article 2 of the Amor Patriae arc

The camera zooms in on, as always, Mariska van den Soeterik, the dedicated host of XNS’ foreign news segment. Her augmented eyes glow slightly as she reaches across the table for her PDA.

“Good evening and welcome to XNS’ foreign news hour. I’m your host Mariska van den Soeterik. Our top story these evening comes from Liao Qi, our reporter on the ground in San Colette. Liao has had difficulties remaining in contact with the XNS due to San Colette’s siege, and the following prerecorded message was provided to us via an encrypted transmission with the assistance of the Colettish government; we go now to Liao’s latest reporting.”

Liao Qi, looking more haggard than usual, stands in front of a Colettish government building with a line stretching into it. Individuals, mostly in civilian clothing, are steadily exiting it in small groups led by Civil Guard officers while carrying, or wearing, surplus Solarian Army arms and armor. A man in the uniform of the Civil Guard stands to Qi’s side, looking nearly as tired as the reporter.

“Right,” Qi begins, pointing behind himself at the building. “I’m at a Civil Guard distribution in Nueva Isabela where San Colette is preparing for a grim scenario: a situation in which San Colette itself has become a battleground. With me today is Civil Guard Captain Wilfredo Iniguez, who’s in charge of this center.”

Qi turns his microphone towards Captain Iniguez.

“Thank you. This facility behind us was, before the war, a station of the Nueva Isabela Police Department. Now it’s a mustering point for those volunteering to serve in the Civil Militia where they’re assigned to training squads run by the Civil Guard.”

“Are there many volunteers?”

“More than we thought there would be. We have both Coletters and refugees volunteering for it. I’d rather have them in the Civil Guard but,” Iniguez sighs. “I don’t think we have the liberty of time.”

“What will these, ah, militias be tasked with, if worst comes to worst?”

“The militia’s role is to defend our cities, towns, and villages from any invaders while the Guard and other professional forces fight the invaders on the open field. I won’t lie to you, reporter: I do not wish it had,” the Captain pauses for a moment. “…come to this. It will not be easy for our Republic, but we will not go without a fight. The Front can count on that.”

“Do you believe the Alliance will intervene?”

The simple question seemingly makes the Captain grow wearier simply by hearing it, and he pauses for a moment before speaking again.

“We can only pray they will, reporter. Many more will suffer if they do not.”

The film cuts out at this point, with an untranslated Tradeband warning featured in the middle of the screen. Any who speak the language will recognize it as saying “RECORDED BROADCAST ENDED.” van den Soeterik looks at the camera from behind her desk.

“While the situation in San Colette is unstable, we will do our best to keep you informed. After a short break we will go to our reporter in Suwon regarding the rumored increase in organized crime activity on Konyang.”

Edited September 17 by NewOriginalSchwann

[NewOriginalSchwann]

Continuing Coverage: League Launches Counter-Offensive Against Lhokgon, Front Ceases Active Offensives in Response

Act 3 Article 3 of the Amor Patriae arc

Following the typical XNS jingle the camera focuses on a screen displaying the Northern Wildlands flanked by analysts Ajit Gopal and Delphine Deschamps. San Colette itself remains totally encircled by the Solarian Restoration Front’s forces, and appears to have remained static. The Front has stopped its advances along the entire front and has even ceded ground it gained in some locations. Lhokgon, a major Helium-3 refining planet, is marked as a system contested between the Front and League, which has pushed up to the system itself.

“So,” Deschamps begins. “As the subject matter expert concerning the League, what are your thoughts on this offensive?”

“It’s a risky move on their part but at the same time it’s likely the only way they can contest the Front’s Hammer Drive advantage without Lhokgon and its Helium-3 facilities the Front will have to start rationing its fuel, which will make them much easier for the League to pin down and combat. This means the Front has to defend the system, which has caused it to abandon its offensive against the League’s repair facilities for the immediate future.”

“Can the League afford to commit itself to this offensive for a long time?”

“No,” Gopal shakes his head. “They’re still suffering from supply issues and are outnumbered by the Front. But, with the Front having to commit so many forces to San Colette’s siege, they might be able to achieve regional superiority near Lhokgon, which likely has the Front’s high command concerned.”

“Right, right. San Colette itself, judging by limited communications from the system, has not been seriously assaulted aside from a few probing attacks which haven’t seriously contested the Pact’s defenses. OSINT suggests they’re arming almost any vessel — or citizen — they can find that’s willing and able to be armed.”

“And the Alliance?”

“There’s been rumors of intervention but nothing beyond that. The post-purge Navy is significantly tighter-lipped than what came before it, and they’ve kept the flow of information under control. The ‘exercises,’” Deschamps makes air quotes as she says the word, “near the Wildlands border are clearly meant to intimidate the Front while bolstering Solarian morale, but we don’t know anything about a potential intervention.”

“It’s an interesting scenario. Even if they intervened, would they make it to San Colette in time? They’d have to cross the entire Front.”

“I don’t know,” Deschamps responds. “It depends upon how far their drives can travel, and if there are any warp gates which will accept the Navy’s warp drive ID.”

Gopal looks down at his watch.

“Hold that thought for a moment Delphine! We’ll be right back after this word from our sponsors!”

The camera fades out.

Edited September 17 by NewOriginalSchwann

[NewOriginalSchwann]

XNS Exclusive: Inside the Rock of San Colette

Act 3 Article 3 of the Amor Patriae arc

The camera zooms in on, as always, Mariska van den Soeterik, the dedicated host of XNS’ foreign news segment. Her augmented eyes glow slightly as she reaches across the table for her PDA.

“Good evening and welcome to XNS’ foreign news hour. I’m your host Mariska van den Soeterik. Today’s top story comes from our very own Liao Qi who, with the assistance of the Colettish government, has managed to send us this recording of his visit to a Civil Guard defense platform. Without further ado we now go to Liao’s recording.”

The camera clicks over to a nondescript industrial corridor with Qi, who appears to have been able to shave since his last broadcast, standing on the side of it. In the corridor behind him an industrial IPC clad in a brown uniform pushed a cart full of equipment to an unknown location. Qi clears his throat.

“While I can’t name this facility it is one of what the Pact refers to as the ‘Rock’ defensive line, and will likely be one of the first facilities engaged in the event of a Solarian Restoration Front incursion. We asked staff here what they think of this, and the response was similar for most: they’re nervous, but they’re not willing to give up without a fight.”

The view switches to a male human in a drab brown uniform with his face blurred out. The man is labeled as J.D.

“This Guard soldier,” Qi narrates, “is originally from Lycoris. As a result, his likeness has been obscured in order to ensure the safety of his relatives still residing in Front-controlled territory.”

“We’re nervous,” JD begins, his voice distorted artificially, “but we won’t back down from a fight. This isn’t my home, but people have taken refuge here. We owe it to them to stand and fight.”

“Are your fellow troops concerned?” Qi asks from offscreen.

“No,” JD replies. “We know what we have to do. We might die fighting, yeah, but the Front would probably kill us anyways if they got to us, so we might as well fight. Better to die in control of your own destiny.”

“Do you have anything to say regarding the Alliance?”

“I hope they don’t let us die in vain, man. A whole bunch of people are going to die if they don’t intervene.”

The film cuts out at this point, with an untranslated Tradeband warning featured in the middle of the screen. Any who speak the language will recognize it as saying “RECORDED BROADCAST ENDED.” van den Soeterik looks at the camera from behind her desk.

“We’ll do our best as a network to keep our audience updated regarding San Colette,” van den Soeterik says. “For now, please have a good night — and stay safe.”

Edited September 17 by NewOriginalSchwann

[NewOriginalSchwann]

BREAKING: LEAGUE OFFENSIVE SMASHES THROUGH FRONT DEFENSES, SAN COLETTE CONTESTED!

Act 3 Article 4 of the Amor Patriae arc

Following the typical XNS jingle the camera focuses on a screen displaying the Northern Wildlands flanked by analysts Ajit Gopal and Delphine Deschamps. While Lhokgon remains a focus between both the League and Front, an unexpected change is featured on the map now: a red corridor showing a rapid advance by the League which has reached the outskirts of San Colette, where — judging by the map — it appears to be actively engaging the Front in a pitched battle for control over the siege. Between Lhokgon and San Colette a significant Front force belonging to the 31st Fleet appears to be engaged on all three sides in a desperate attempt to stop itself from being encircled.

“It appears,” Gopal begins, pointing to Lhokgon, “this attack was most likely a diversion intended to distract the Front from its defense of San Colette, which is now actively engaged by the best units in the League’s forces.”

“So it would seem! The Front’s forces are in a difficult position due to the remnants of the Pact being present in San Colette, which has effectively trapped some of their forces in a position where they cannot defend or retreat. Take a look at this video discovered on Chirper by one of our analysts.”

The camera switches to a brief introduction which displays a fluttering League flag set to low-quality Plutonian electronic music, which Deschsmps appears to promptly mute. The introduction switches to an external camera mounted on, judging by text on the camera’s screen, the SRFV Purity of Will, a Yincheng-class light cruiser. The vessel is burning quickly towards a field of asteroids when an alert appears on its screen in bold, red Solarian Common characters: DANGER: MUNITIONS INCOMING — BEGIN EVASIVE ACTION. The camera rattles and shifts as the entire vessel shifts into a hard turn to port, but manages to identify an unknown cylindrical object incoming to the light cruiser before it impacts.

The railgun shell punches through the shield and frontal armor in the blink of an eye. Before the camera can fully register what has happened a series of explosions rock the front of the vessel as it pulls further into its evasive maneuver. A larger explosion amidships rocks the camera once again, but it manages to capture a shocking sight: the front of the Yincheng losing power entirely and, with a silent scream, falling off of the vessel entirely. The stern of the vessel, apparently trapped in its doomed  evasive maneuver, continues onwards.

The feed cuts out shortly after this and transitions to the League’s flag again, where “Comrade Smith” of the 67th Fleet promises this will be the end of all corporate traitors and notes the footage was recovered from an adrift black box. The camera switches back to Deschamps and Gopal.

“There’s going to be more engagements like this over the coming days as the League and Front continue to fight over control of the siege,” Deschsmps says. “I’m not sure who’s going to win.”

“Neither am I,” Gopal replies. “It seems like most of the League’s heavy assets are committed to this offensive, and they’d still have to break through the Pact’s lines if they defeated the Front. It’s risky.”

“It is.”

“Unfortunately that’s all we have for today. Our coverage of the Northern Wildlands will continue as the agitation develops.”

The camera fades out to the two analysts discussing something amongst themselves which is not, for whatever reason, picked up by the camera.

Edited September 17 by NewOriginalSchwann

[NewOriginalSchwann]

Fighting Continues Near San Colette, Front Halts Lhokgon Offensive

Act 3 Article 6 of the Amor Patriae arc

Following the typical XNS jingle the camera focuses on a screen displaying the Northern Wildlands flanked by analysts Ajit Gopal and Delphine Deschamps. While San Colette remains mostly unchanged, Front forces near Lhokgon have managed to push the League back and have relieved pressure on a nearly-surrounded 31st Fleet force in the process. A black square labeled “35th Fleet” is currently positioned in Lhokgon and appears to be pushing the League back.

“As you can see by the map,” Gopal begins, “the League’s decision to withdraw forces from Lhokgon and commit them to San Colette had effectively ended its offensive operation there, particularly with the arrival of the elite 35th Fleet earlier yesterday. This places their entire offensive towards San Colette at risk.”

Deschamps nods her head, then speaks.

“It’s hard to imagine the Front not capitalizing on its gains near Lhokgon, assuming it has enough fuel, if the League can’t withdraw from its positions near San Colette quickly enough. Do you believe they’ll be able to, Ajit?”

Gopal shakes his head.

“If we’ve seen anything so far in this ‘civil war’ the League has proven it’s often unable to effectively coordinate, which may be due to its lack of a strong leader such as the Front’s Admiral Verglas. However, the coordination issues are likely another symptom of its ongoing supply issues following the end of Gadpathurian support.”

Deschamps seems somewhat surprised.

“It’s impacting them that badly?”

“It is. Most League-connected Chirper accounts we can find have become increasingly desperate for donations — any donations — over the past few weeks as fighting has worn them down. The Front’s situation will likely become this bad in the near future but, for now, their reserve of Solarian Navy equipment has allowed them to sustain operations much more effectively.”

“Why attack San Colette then?”

“I don’t know. They were presumably trying to encircle the Front near Lhokgon but couldn’t finish the circle, which let the Front reinforce and break the League’s positions.”

“Do you think they’re spent as an offensive force?”

Goal nods.

“I think they are, unless they can retreat in good order. We’ll have to judge they after the break!”

The camera fades out.

Edited September 17 by NewOriginalSchwann

[MattAtlas]

XNS Exclusive: Interview with an Officer of the Konyang Armed Forces

Act 3 Article 7 of the Amor Patriae arc

A Himean male is the sole host for this segment of Interviews and News, one of the most famous Xanusii services. It revolves around interviewing both exceptional and ordinary people. The host of the show is sitting in a rather cosy sofa, while on the holoscreen behind him one can see a Konyanger naval officer. The officer appears to be in his early middle age and is starting to go gray, though there remains a sharpness to his eyes and face. He appears to be in a well-decorated office with a painting of a ship in flight behind him.

“Welcome, our faithful guests, to a special episode of Interviews and News! I’m Jude Scholes, and today we have a special guest with us — Captain Jung-Hee Eum of the Konyang Armed Forces!”

“Thank you for having me on,” Eum replies.

“Now, Captain, Konyang has been at the Coalition’s frontline for most of the War in the Nortthern Wildlands. Has it seen any impact?”

“I would be lying if I said we hadn’t been impacted by the conflict, Jules. But thanks to the KAF, and our partners in the Coalition, we’ve been able to endure the conflict without it impacting our civilian population. We’ve had to fight off cross-border raids by the ‘anti-corporate’ League but they’ve never gotten past our vessels.”

Scholes nods along.

“Seems like you’ve got it in the glove, then!” Scholes cheerily responds. “On the subject of the Coalition, do you have any thoughts on Gadpathur’s alleged involvement with the League?”

Eum grimaces for a moment, but recovers his neutral expression — and tone — before speaking again.

“Gadpathur has contributed ships to the Coalition’s unified fleet in Konyang, and we appreciate this. I’ll leave any discussions of politics to the politicians.”

“Right, right. Wouldn’t want to act as coalheaded as the last officer we had on,” Scholes briefly laughs. “How has life been for a naval officer since you hung up your gloves with Sol and joined the Coalition?”

Eum looks at the camera with an expression of confusion for a moment, then looks at something offscreen, then back to the camera.

“Are you asking how we’ve transitioned to being part of the Coalition as a military? I’m not familiar with Himean Common.”

“I am! Sorry if it’s hard to get around it — it’s a habit hard to get out of.”

“Right. It’s been easier than we expected to integrate into the Coalition and to bring positronics into our ranks, even if the logistics of it means we have to have separate units. Positronics have proven effective, and the KAF is happy to have them.”

Scholes pauses and looks down at his watch.

“And that’s all the time we have for now! Captain, thank you for your time!”

“Thank you for having me on. I’m glad the KAF could present itself better than Gadpathur’s navy.”

Scholes laughs in response!

“You can’t fault their master of begrudgery, that’s for certain! Up next is the latest from Light’s Edge, so stay tuned!”

Edited September 17 by NewOriginalSchwann
6->7

[NewOriginalSchwann]

XNS Exclusive: The Volunteer Tapes, Tape One
Act 3 Article 8 of the Amor Patriae arc

The camera zooms in on, as always, Mariska van den Soeterik, the dedicated host of XNS’ foreign news segment. Her augmented eyes glow slightly as she reaches across the table for her PDA.

“Good evening and welcome to XNS’ foreign news hour. I’m your host Mariska van den Soeterik. With San Colette surrounded by the Front communications from it and Liao Qi, our on-location reporter, have become sporadic at best,” she swipes something on her PDA. “However, with the assistance of the Colettish government, we have been able to acquire a series of interviews done by Liao shortly before the encirclement. These interviews, which feature members of the First Colettish Volunteer Battalion, will be aired on XNS over the coming weeks per Liao’s request. Without further ado, here is the first of what Liao refers to as the Volunteer Tapes.”

The camera switches to a feed of a woman in Solarian fatigues sitting in a chair inside of an office. The windows, distressingly, appear to have been covered in sandbags. She looks tired, but enthusiastic, even if her blonde hair is a mess.

“Hey! Do I need to introduce myself?”

“Yes, just for the record,” Qi replies from somewhere offscreen.

“Sure! I’m Alexis Watts, from the 37th, currently serving as the two-eye-sea for the First Colettish Volunteer Battalion. That’s, uh, the second in command for folks who don’t know Army talk.”

“You said you came here to fight the Front. How have things been since our last interview?”

Watts exhales upwards, unintentionally blowing one of her messy bangs into her face. She shifts it back to the side.

“It ain’t been great since then. We were on Nova Igman before it collapsed and we were one of the last Pact units to exfil. The League ain’t as good at fighting as the Front, but they’ve got a lotta ships and a lotta idiots who signed up ‘cause they think they’re saving Sol from the megas.”

“What would you say to these League soldiers, if you could speak to them directly?”

“Depends. Do I got a rifle?”

“Not this time.”

Watts shrugs, then leans back into her chair.

“Shit, I dunno. I’ve never been much of a philosopher, man. Guess I’d, uh, tell’em they’re mostly just enriching their own bosses, yeah? Then ask why they’re not invading Biesel instead, ‘cause they’re real corporate.”

“Why do you think they’re not invading Biesel?”

“Simple: they ain’t actually anti-corp, they’re just a bunch a’ looting assholes — sorry if you gotta beep that out — who wanna make money off’a people who ain’t able to defend themselves. They’re more like Frost than they think, ‘cause they’re all—” a beep plays and Watts looks at the camera. “Sorry, that one’s for sure gotta get beeped, right?”

“It does, but don’t worry about it. You were saying?”

“Yeah. They’re attacking the Pact ‘cause they don’t wanna fight anybody who can beat ‘em, and Biesel’s mercs can probably give ‘em a good whipping, which means they ain’t gonna be able to loot as much as they wanted. That’s why they only started fighting after the Front attacked. They’re cowards, and they’re gonna die like cowards when the Alliance shows up. Count on it!”

The tape cuts out at this point.

Edited September 17 by NewOriginalSchwann

[NewOriginalSchwann]

LEAGUE BEGINS RETREAT FROM SAN COLETTE - FRONT FORCES BEGIN COUNTEROFFENSIVE

Act 3 Article 8 of the Amor Patriae arc

Following the typical XNS jingle the camera focuses on a screen displaying the Northern Wildlands flanked by analysts Ajit Gopal and Delphine Deschamps. The League thrust towards San Colette has begun to contract in response to the threat from Lhokgon, where the 35th Fleet has pushed the League back even further.

“As predicted a few days ago,” Deschamps says as she points to the League forces near San Colette, “the League had begun a retreat from its positions near San Colette due to Front gains near Lhokgon which threaten to cut off their forces. The question for us as observers is now if the League can maintain the order of its retreat until they’re safe, or if the situation will collapse.”

“Posts linked to League forces near Lhokgon indicate many believe  they can’t hold their positions for very long. Most of the League’s best forces were diverted for the attack on San Colette, which has left many of the units left to hold Lhokgon demoralized. Compounding this,” Gopal zooms in on Lhokgon, causing the 35th Fleet marker to split into the Fleet’s squadrons, “is the presence of the 35th Fleet on the Front’s side. Delphine?”

“The 35th Fleet is perhaps the most battle-tested part of the Front as it invaded Biesel in 2462, though at the cost of much of its effective strength. It’s regenerated to full strength since that point by integrating Navy defectors and is still centered around the veteran core of the Fleet which invaded Tau Ceti. They’ve been in charge of the offensive near Lhokgon and have rapidly pushed the League back near it.”

“Do you think the retreat will collapse?”

“Collapse in what way?”

“Either by being cut off or by having the fighting retreat break down,” Gopal clarifies.

Deschamps ponders the question for a moment, then clicks her tongue.

“If the Front advances much further near Lhokgon and keels to their current rate of advance,” she says, “it’ll cause a panic which leads to the retreat collapsing. That’s my theory.”

“What’s the worst-case scenario for the League?”

“The absolute worst-case scenario here would result in the League effectively ceasing to exist as an offensive force, particularly against the Front, if they lose a significant number of units during their retreat.”

Edited September 17 by NewOriginalSchwann

[NewOriginalSchwann]

XNS Exclusive: The Volunteer Tapes, Tape Two

Act 3 Article 9 of the Amor Patriae arc

The camera opens to a typical-looking Solarian woman sitting in a chair. She is wearing fatigues which appear to be about two sizes too large for her and has a blue Legion beret upon her head. Glossy hair, softly glowing eyes, and the way she seems to never blink indicate this individual is most likely a synthetic.

“Should I introduce myself?” she asks in a relatively strong Silversun accent — an Expatriate one, for those familiar with the planet — with a steady, almost mechanical intonation.

“Yes, we’re rolling,” Liao Qi responds from offscreen.

“My apologies. I am Cynthia, Commander Forsythe’s aide-de-camp. My duties mostly consist of radio work for the Commander as my nature makes me simply more efficient at most administrative tasks.”

“Why is that?”

“It is quite literally what I was built to do, Mister Qi,” Cynthia smiles slightly, crossing one leg over the other. “It’s not the same as working in a shuttleport as a radio coordinator, but it’s certainly similar. I never thought I’d be calling in orbital fire l when I was handling shuttle schedules and launches.”

“How did you come to be in the Legion, and meet Forsythe?”

“It’s a long story, but I can summarize it. I was working on Mictlan during the Collapse and, well, our shuttleport collapsed,” Cynthia shrugs. “Getting purchased by Idris didn’t seem like a great prospect, so I cashed out and signed up to get citizenship. I ended up in Forsythe’s unit on Mictlan.”

“What did you do on Mictlan?”

“I don’t want to talk about it,” Cynthia responds quickly as a sudden darkness crosses her face. “We did what we did for a cause we believed in at the time, and that’s all I’ll say.”

Qi, for his part, recovers fairly quickly.

“Right. As a free positronic how has it felt to fight for a Solarian member-state, considering the Alliance’s stance on positronics?”

“It’s an odd feeling. Most Solarians we meet assume I’m Battalion property, when I’m my own woman. They tend to get confused if you explain it, so I sometimes act as if I’m just augmented. The Battalion itself is more accepting, even if the Dominians tend to stare.”

“Why come here if you’ve only been met by confusion?”

“If the Front beats San Colette and the Pact, they’ll go for Biesel next. I cannot stand by like so many do and wait for the crisis to come to us. We have to stop it here, and stop it now. Evil can’t be left to fester.”

“Any closing remarks?”

“I’ve heard about what the Front does to people like me — synthetics, I mean. I’m not going to let myself be captured in a functional state and be turned into a political officer.

Cynthia pauses a moment before speaking again.

“And if I die here, at least I died doing something other than working in a shuttleport until decommissioning.”

Edited September 17 by NewOriginalSchwann

[MattAtlas]

LIVE: Coalition Special Committee Discusses Wildlands Crisis

Act 3 Article 10 of the Amor Patriae arc

The camera switches on and reveals a quite lively room featuring the previous members of the special committee in a very heated debate. Pravin Thaman, Gadpathur’s representative, is currently banging one of his shoes into his desk.

“You must lift the warp restrictions immediately!” Thaman shouts to the committee, still banging his shoe on the desk. “You will doom us all if the League falls to the Hopperites!” (redaction's note: Hopperites refers to 'followers of Terrence Hopper', the Admiral responsible for the mass bombing of Gadpathur)

“Absolutely not!” Mi-Hi Gim, representative for the Konyang Armed Forces, stands out of her chair on the opposite side of the room and stares down Thaman. “You would bring us into another Interstellar War where Konyang is the frontline!”

Thaman stops banging his shoe and looks at the Konyang delegation.

“Of course the Solarians oppose me! Can my fellow Coalitioners not see that Konyang is cut from the same cloth as the Hopperites? Can they—“

“How dare you compare the men, women, and synthetics of the Konyang Armed Forces to the Solarian Restoration Front!” Gim shouts back. “If it wasn’t for Gadpathur supplying the League, the Pact may have held the Front back!”

Thaman slams his fist into his desk!

“Do not accuse Gadpathur of causing this, Solarian!” Thaman storms over to Gim and Kwan Seok’s desk. “You insult the honored dead of Gadpathur!”

“And you insult the sacrifices we have made to defend the Coalition! Our Coalition, Representative Thaman!” Gim shouts back as Rohan Magar, Xanu’s representative, bangs his gavel in an attempt to reestablish order.

Thaman looks at Kim for a moment, eyes burning with hatred, and opts to slap her across the face! Kim barely reacts and a sickening crack is heard from Thaman’s hand before he begins screaming in pain. Kim shoves the Gadpathurian away from herself as two Xansan police officers stationed in the room rush over and grab onto Thaman, one tackling him onto the ground and the other moving to restrain his hands.

“This session is now in recess!” Magar shouts from his podium.

The feed cuts out shortly after this.

Edited September 17 by NewOriginalSchwann

[NewOriginalSchwann]

LEAGUE RETREAT BECOMES ROUT — FRONTLINE RETURNS TO PRE-OFFENSIVE BORDERS

Act 3 Article 11 of the Amor Patriae arc

Following the typical XNS jingle the camera focuses on a screen displaying the Northern Wildlands flanked by analysts Ajit Gopal and Delphine Deschamps. The League thrust towards San Colette has completely collapsed and the League itself appears to be in a full, general retreat across its frontline. This is almost certainly the worst-case scenario discussed by the XNS several days ago.

“While the League’s retreat has been fairly orderly,” Gopal begins, tapping the screen and bringing up an image of a destroyer Mumbai-class battleship in League colors, “the loss of the Wallbreaker to a phoron tanker used by the Front as an IED several hours ago caused a general breakdown in cohesion and widespread panic, which caused the retreat to collapse as it turned into a route.”

“And you believe this has effectively ended the League’s offensive capabilities?”

“I do. Most of their capital ships were, according to OSINT, committed to this offensive and few survived the retreat. With their supply lines to Gadpathur cut and insufficient port facilities under their control, there’s not a lot the League can do at this point beyond trying to hold its ground and hoping San Colette will distract the Front for long enough to let them regenerate some of their losses.”

“Considering the Front’s chatter, I don’t know if they’ll give the League the chance. Most Front officers who are present on the Extranet seem to believe the Front will push forward until the League is eliminated, thus securing the entire Wildlands. After that there will be nobody to stop them from taking San Colette and its phoron reserve.”

“Nobody aside from the Alliance, at least,” Gopal replies. “What’s the latest on them?”

“It’s a mixed bag, Ajit. Some parts of the Front think Sol will officially recognize them after they take San Colette, and Frost-aligned Navy officers will coup the government to make this happen. In San Colette the hope is for intervention, which has become popular across the Alliance. The Solarian Navy is, for better or worse, as tight-lipped as ever.”

“Do you think they’ll attempt an assault before they defeat the League?”

“It’s always a possibility but doing so would ensure they can’t commit their full strength to San Colette, and the planet’s defenses will be difficult to break through with anything less than, say, a full battlegroup, probably.”

“Only time will tell, right Delphine?”

“Right, Ajit. Unfortunately, it’s time for us to go on a short break. Stay tuned for more on the War in the Northern Wildlands.”

The broadcast fades out.

Edited September 17 by NewOriginalSchwann

[NewOriginalSchwann]

XNS Exclusive: The Volunteer Tapes, Tape Three

Act 3 Article 12 of the Amor Patriae arc

The camera focuses on a broadly-built and middle-aged Solarian man with a well-maintained, though slightly grey, mustache. His Solarian Army uniform is one of an officer and appears well-maintained, though it has obviously seen some signs of recent combat. A kepi perched upon the man’s head marks him as an officer of the famed 12th Silversunner Coastal Infantry Division, also known as “Mistral.” The kepi features the rank insignia of a Lieutenant Colonel upon its front — a very high rank to be present in San Colette, where he is nominally a deserter from the Solarian Army.

“We’re recording, you can start,” Qi says from offscreen. The man nods.

“I am Lieutenant Colonel Hale Kaohi, commanding officer of the Second Colettish Volunteer Battalion. It is my honor to fight for the Alliance while so many of my fellow soldiers will not,” Kaohi narrows his eyes in seeming disgust for a moment. For any familiar with Silversun, the Lieutenant Colonel has a quite strong Silversunner Native accent.

“Did you come here directly from the Army?”

“Yes, with many of my troops. We must preserve our Alliance even if the Navy is too cowardly.”

“Doesn’t that make you a deserter, to speak technically?”

“I am a patriot. Something you colonials,” Kaohi points to something unseen behind the camera, presumably Qi. “Could have learned back in ‘75. But I am not here to discuss the mistakes of the past, only the concerns of the present. I agreed to this interview to implore the Alliance to aid us.”

“Do you think the Pact can hold without the Alliance?”

“No,” Kaohi responds bluntly. “We can only delay our inevitable deaths. My soldiers are aware of this, and we do not intend to die without having made a difference.”

“Have you seen any combat since the encirclement?”

Kaohi shakes his head.

“None. We’ve been training Coletters on how to be soldiers in the meantime, and working with the First Battalion to coordinate our efforts.”

“Forsythe, the other battalion commander, is a veteran of the Tau Ceti Foreign Legion. Has that impacted your relationship at all?”

“It has not,” Kaohi responds bluntly yet again. “I do not believe the Legion is at all equal to the Army, but anyone willing to come and stand against Frost’s fascism and communist insanity is worthy of my respect.”

“Do you have any closing comments?”

“I intend to die on my feet. I’ve lived a good life, reporter. It’s better I perish fighting for something I believe in than die knowing I could have made a difference.”

The tape shuts off, with the last image being the Lieutenant Colonel’s serious gaze seemingly attempting to drill a hole through the camera’s lens.

Edited September 17 by NewOriginalSchwann

[NewOriginalSchwann]

BREAKING: FRONT BEGINS ASSAULT OF SAN COLETTE

Act 3 Article 13 of the Amor Patriae arc

The camera zooms in on, as always, Mariska van den Soeterik, the dedicated host of the XNS’ foreign news segment. Her augmented eyes glow slightly as she reaches across the table for her PDA. She looks markedly more stressed than she typically appears.

“Breaking news has reached us from the Solarian system of San Colette, where forces aligned with the Solarian Restoration Front have begun an assault on its defenses. We go now to a secure emergency communication established between our station and an unknown location in San Colette where our Liao Qi, our reporter in San Colette, is located. Liao, can you hear me?”

The camera switches to a video of Qi in a fairly dark room which, all things considered, may very well be underground. He looks exhausted and appears generally disheveled – his clothes are dirty and there are notable bags under his eyes. He is wearing a military-style vest without any visible press tag.

“I can hear you Mariska, can you hear me?” Qi’s audio comes through crackly, but audible.

“I can. Are you safe?”

Qi takes a moment before responding. Connection issues, perhaps.

“I am,” he nods. “The situation on San Colette itself is stable – as stable as it can be, I guess – but it’s not good. The Civil Guard and Free Solarian Fleets are holding for now but nobody’s sure if they’ll be able to hold off the entire Front. We’re lucky they opted to do this now – the assault, I mean,” he pauses. “Maybe lucky’s not the right word, but– it’s fortunate, I guess? They could have waited and thrown their entire weight against the Civil Guard.”

“How is the civilian population handling it?”

“As grim as this sounds, most knew this was coming. It’s a bit of a relief for some to know it’s finally happened – the Front’s finally something they can tangibly defend against instead of the skirmishing that’s gone on over the past few months.”

 

“What about the Alliance? Have you heard anything about them?”

“Well,” Qi pauses, then begins again. “It’s complicated. Understandably I’m not really privy to the internal workings of their government, but the general population is certain – or at least they’re confident – that Sol will eventually intervene, that they have to intervene. They simply don’t know when that’ll be.”

“And what about you? Any thoughts on the Alliance from somebody who saw their conduct on Mars?”

Qi exhales, running a hand through his hair. He pauses for a moment before speaking again.

 

“I’d rather see the Solarian Navy than the Front.”

 

Before Qi can say more his feed turns to static with “SIGNAL LOST” layered over it in Freespeak. The camera switches back to a concerned-looking van den Soeterik.

“While we attempt to reestablish a connection with Liao we’ll go onto a brief commercial break. Please stay turned.”

Edited September 17 by NewOriginalSchwann