The Dark Tide 3 - The Last Hope

Sensing a controversy brewing over Sol, Thunder speaks.

"Excuse me for interrupting, but I feel it's my duty as the modeartor of this peace conference to step in and try and help to resolve this issue so we can continue on. Carnotaur, though the Corocians have recently colonized Sol, it is the Human homeworld. There are thousands of years of history on that world that they value far more than you ever could. To you, it's just another colony, but to them, it's the origin of their species. Many members of the human race would be angry if they couldn't return to their homeworld. Might I suggest a joint control arrangement between the Corocians and the UE? It would be similar to the arrangement the UE and Voinians made with Pax Station. Would this be possible?"

------------------
A hatch opened up and the aliens said,
"We're sorry to learn that you soon will be dead,
But though you may find this slightly macabre,
We prefer your extinction to the loss of our job."

"I protest! To us it is not just another colony, but a trophy, that shows to all the Corocian people that we are powerful!" Carnotaur sighed. "Okay, but only on these conditions.

1-The UE will not set one foot on Luna or Mars.

2-The Corocians will build a station in orbit above Earth for the Corocian Military.**

3-The UE will only be allowed to enter the system and land on Earth. Otherwise, the system is in complete Corocian control, except for Earth.

4-The UE may maintain a few bases on Earth and land people on it whenever they like.

5-The UE will pay 1.5 million credits to the Corocians. No exceptions on this one.

6-ANY UE ship, civillian or military, can be boarded by the Corocians for inspection.

7-The Corocians will not make any major exceptions to the demands they just made previously concerning Sol.

Good?"

--------------

** - You don't know this, but Carnotaur is going to install 16 enhanced photon beam cannons on the station design for planetary bombardment. He wants to use that to keep the UE in line and maintain a strong Corocian Military presence in Sol and on Earth.

------------------
To Escape Velocity: Nova and Beyond!
--------------
Millennium. Its coming, prepare for it.
Coming to the (url="http://"http://www.ambrosiaSW.com/games/ev/chronicles.html")EV Chronicles(/url).

"I agree to your terms, Captain Carnotaur. We will meet your other demands without compromise."

------------------
I'm right.
(url="http://"http://www.pftn.f2s.com") Pilot File Trading Network (/url)

Sol is a trophy, right? How about letting Earth be colonised by humans, but keeping a small number of Corocian military bases on the planet? or give luna to Corocians and give humans earth?

------------------
The difference in
insantiy and ingenious is
measured just by success.

Yeah, I agree with Redchig!

------------------
"Life is like a trade ship going to JamesTown, you never know what you gona get."-Escape from Monkey island

As the diplomats argue angrily, Entropy slowly stands and somehow, someway, the arguments die down and all notice Entropy, who has for most of the conference been silent and forgotten. As heads begin to turn, he begins to speak:
"You talk of war and military superiority at a galactic peace conference. While you claim to be striving for peace and unity, your demands and squabbling lead only to more confilict, hate, and turmoil. I ask you to cease this right now. I will now address all your squabbles and propose a solution."
"For the Corocian- UE problem, I can immediately offer a proposal. The Corocians demands are for the equivalent of total UE submission. How can you, who existed originally to remove the Igadzra from power and yet have done nothing ot that effect, but nonetheless are the most powerful force in the galaxy, make such demands on a now humbled and powerless empire. If you continue in this manner, the UE will in all likelyhood flee this galaxy that you now control most of. In order for galactic peace to ever exist, all powers- Corocians, Voinians, UE, Miranu, Azdgari, Renegades, and Igadzra..." (He scans the room- there is but a single Igadzra diplomat in the room.) "Must demobilize all military units except for policing forces... and return all captured planets to the government that owned them today... three years ago." Angry voices cry out all around the room. "He's insane!" "What the **** are you talking about?" "Madness! Sheer madness!" Arguments immediately burst out and Entropy quietly makes his way to the center of the room where a holotable is located. He calls up an image, and calls for silence. "This is an image of the galaxy." Heads nod. That, at least was obvious. A part of the western spiral arm near the galactic core lights up in multiple colors. "This is the space currently explored by any race. As you can see, it is only a small fraction of the space available in this vast galaxy- and there are many more beyond. Since now, most of the galaxy has been unaccessable due to sensor interferance... until now." He calls up another image. A huge sensor array, with many complicated extrusions appears. Suddenly, Pikera bursts out: "Thats the prototype of the advanced Nebula Penetration device! It was stolen from Mira three years ago!"
Entropy calmly replies: "Yes, it indeed was. At the time, we had no use for it. But in the past year, we have made advances to it- anticipating the rising storm. If worse comes to worse, we would build a giant colony ship and flee to another galactic arm. This three-acre device would allow the ship to navigate without risk of interferance."
"This is the ship we have built- and brought to Station Unity."
The one wall of the room slides away to reveal a huge viewing portal, giving full view of the gigantic ship.
"This is the ship with which we will divide the galaxy amongst ourselves."
the holotable lights up again, this time to reveal the galaxy, again in may colors, each one representing a government- each one owning an equal amount of space- each one away from the swirling, nultihued core. "Each government will have an equal tract of equally colonisable space. The galactic core, with its dense habitable star systems, will belong to all."
"Nobody will need to fight for territory, or dominance- it will take thousands of years to settle all this space, even if we build a fleet of these ships- which we will. Each has terracforming capability- and can make habitable multiple planets. There are hundereds of thousands of habitable systems. We can share. We can live in peace."
"Now I give you all a question- who will join me? Who will follow me in my my crusade? The screts of the universe remain- but only for those who seek them."
"Keep these words and remember them well. Who will follow? Who will join?"

------------------
THE TRUTH IS OUT THERE!
(Lies are in your head.)

Quote

Originally posted by Titan:
**Yeah, I agree with Redchig!
**

good! i'm not hated!
oh, and spell my name right, ok?
REDCHIG H

------------------
The difference in
insantiy and ingenious is
measured just by success.

Quote

Originally posted by Entropy:
**Who will follow? Who will join?"
**

REDchigh orders his men to retrieve a large container of something that has the consistancy of silly putty. His men go to the Voinian ships (still in system) and the Cargo ship and Frigates start circling the first of the intergalactic colony ships. Soon, the ship is completely covered in Bronev Plating. The ships move on, and soon, the whole fleet is finished. Even though there are only two...
REDchigh goes to the leading mechanic at station Unity and hands him the container of Plating. The Miranu immediately drops it, and shatters his foot. REDchigh picks it up, and offers him 1M to compensate REDchigh then retrieves a forklift (vehicle, not weopon) to carry the Armor. REDchigh doesn't say a word, but walks to Entropy and hands him a Hand-held holograph machine. Entropy aims it toward a clear area and starts it.

It shows a hologram of Voinia for a long time. then it zooms out, shows the whole galaxy, then zooms into Earth. Zooms closer than any telescopes. Shows the surface as it is now. Shows ancient, rusted buildings and rogue humans living in mountain ranges, hunting the occasional mountain goat and eating berries. The picture Zooms out fast, and Entropy gets a head rush. The hologram zooms into some disabled Miranu courier, and shows through the Darkness a small family of miranu, devouring what seem to be the last of their once abundant cargo of Fuzzes. Zooms out again, this time Entropy was prepared for it. This time it fades in to show the Remains of an Azdara, on some unknown planet, and 80 feet away, a brave Adzgari warrier recording his last words as he lay mortally wounded. The hologram shows a clipping of a large scale war, with Igadzras, Zidaras, and Adzdaras, savagely killing their strand brothers. Showing bodies being thrown from ships as they explode Violently. the Hologram fades to black, and shows the synapse in a brain, at the exact moment the idea of station Unity was concieved. Then the zooms out to show the Sol system. and a year- the year of the Battle of sol. Shows the Violence- the terror- the bloodshed. scrolls onward- past the war, out of UE space, making it to Voinian Again. This time the year is the year Humans met the Voinians. Shows the Mighty Borb. speaking in front of Billions. "Now is the Time for all of the races of the Galaxy to Unite. To share a common Goal- Peace and Prosperity, to all citizens of the Galaxy. We Must..." and shows the buller entering Borbs head, and his followers rushing to help him. Shows the Vice-presedent placing the smoking pistol back in it's sheath, and claiming control of the Voinian Navy. Shows him giving the Order to override the order by borb to free all of the Slaves of Voinians. Then, The hologram ends. and everybody watches the picture shrink, and finally fade out.

REDchigh is in. What will the final agreement be?

------------------
The difference in
insantiy and ingenious is
measured just by success.

(This message has been edited by -REDCHIGH- (edited 04-04-2001).)

(Seeing as nobody controls the Strandless or the Kayans, and seeing as the Kayans are my favorite race in EVO, I'll speak for them)

In the far corner of the room, a young Kayan stood up. He was one of only three Strandless diplomats sent to the conference; the Strandless delegation had but two other members and two bodyguards. "The Kayan people and our fellow Strandless have been left homeless by the great wars and renegade incursions. Nearly 30% of our population has been lost. We have no place to call home, except Station Unity. But now this new technology, and new hope, provided by the very government that took so much from us. We have lost much in the last two years, but now the future looks brighter than ever, with peace and hope for all. The Kayans, and the Strandless, are in."

As the Kayan diplomat took his seat, Thunder stood and adressed the assembly. "These last fifteen minutes have been perhaps the biggest single historical event in the history of all our civilizations. Surely you all see now that these recent events make our territorial squabbles and diplomatic manuevring seem tiny and insignificant. Two thousand five hundred years ago, the Miranu ships entered space for the first time, and the space race was on. Three hundred years later they perfected the stardrive, predecessor to today's hyperdrive, and made the galaxy's first faster than light flight. It took them seven years, but they arrived in Lieton and found a shimmering green and blue sphere of a world, which they soon explored and colonized. Three hundred years later the Miranu had built a civilization of seven systems, when the enigmatic Council arrived. Little is known about the circumstances of their arrival or the origin of the Strands, but under their watch civilization in the Crescent grew and flourished for over 1500 years. Two hundred fifty years ago, in about 1900 by the Human calendar, the first Voinian ship left Voinia to explore the vastness of space. About 60 years later the Human race first set foot on Earth's moon. And just fifty years ago the first Emalgha fighter bravely ventured out of Emalghia's atmosphere. Now we have the chance to find our own place in history. This new technology gives us all the chance to make peace amongst ourselves and bein exploring anew. There may be hundreds of other races out there that we haven't met, perhaps more like ourselves than we know. But we'll never meet them if we destroy one another in brutal wars and violence. It's a magical universe, guys, let's go exploring!"

Thunder then paused for dramatic effect, and said one final thing before sitting down again, "For what it's worth, you have my full support, and the full support of Station Unity."

------------------
A hatch opened up and the aliens said,
"We're sorry to learn that you soon will be dead,
But though you may find this slightly macabre,
We prefer your extinction to the loss of our job."

Carnotaur gave Entropy the coldest and longest stare anyone had ever seen. "The Corocians will not disarm."

Whispers fill the room suddenly, and Carnotaur continues. "We will try to scrap some of our military, but we will still keep a large portion of it, which includes all Corocian Supercruisers.

I also offer these revised statements for the Sol system:

1-The Corocians will build a station in orbit above Earth for the Corocian Military.**

2-The UE will only be allowed to land on Earth and to a much more limited extent Mars, Luna is off limits.

3-The UE may maintain one or two dozen bases on Earth and land people on it whenever they like. The Corocians wish to live in peace with the humans.

4-The UE will pay 1 million credits to the Corocians. No exceptions on this one.

5-ANY UE ship, civillian or military, can be boarded by the Corocians for inspection if the Corocians have a very good reason (like escaped fugitives, illegal weapons, etc.).

6-The Corocians will not make any major exceptions to the demands they just made previously concerning Sol.

Good?"

------------------
To Escape Velocity: Nova and Beyond!
--------------
Millennium. Its coming, prepare for it.
Coming to the (url="http://"http://www.ambrosiaSW.com/games/ev/chronicles.html")EV Chronicles(/url).

Samurai confers in whispers with his delegation, get the nod, and rises to his feet.

"The United Earth Government agrees to Entropy's plan to expand our horizons. Let us go forth into the galaxy, and establish a new home for ourselves, that our children may grow up without this terrible war, and bloodshed... where all our people can live in peace and harmony... and if there are any humans who would stay here, let them do so... under the yoke of the Corocians... we will join with the Renegades in this task, those who were our foes... that is the decision of the United Earth Government."

------------------
I'm right.
(url="http://"http://www.pftn.f2s.com") Pilot File Trading Network (/url)

A rouge delegate rises. It is Hmali, chancellor-elect of the South tip renegades: "If the Corocians come to a peace meeting with demands for enslavement and war-mongering, than they are worse than the Igadzra they were created to destroy! If they will not agree to the to the terms of the peace treaty..." He clears his throats, "Let him! Let him have Earth! Let him have his supercruisers, and bioweapons, and massive armies! Let him have the entire sector! It doesn't matter anymore. He makes demands over a tiny peace of life-supporting ground, when there is an entire galaxy right at his feet! He asks for money from his beaten, crushed enemies, when the riches and mysteries of the galaxy could be his! Let him stay, and rot, in this tiny slice of the galaxy- everyone else has infinity for the taking! The Corocians are squabbling for pennies in a goldmine!"
"IF the Corocians will not follow ALL the terms of the peace treaty, and retract all demands, than they may keep all of explored space. The UE, Miranu, Renegades, Azdgari, Voinians, and Strandless will keep the rest of the galaxy. The Corocians will not leave the alloted space- and the other races will not enter. Nor will they need- the Corocians have already corrupted it all. The warfleets will have nobody to fight- only the ability to keep the silent Corocian masses in check."
There is a brief period of silence, and Hmali continues:
"At least that is my proposal, from one who controls scarcely 50 million people. If any other has a better suggestion, let them speak."

------------------
THE TRUTH IS OUT THERE!
(Lies are in your head.)

I agree to entropy's plan.

------------------
"The Lord loves you, and you, and YOU make the Lord very nervous!"

One of the Corocian guards almost lunged at the delagate, but another put his arm on his shoulder and he stopped.

Carnotaur sighed. "You don't understand. I realize one thing while you are all worried about total peace and so forth. I see that there will always be wars, and that is why the Corocians want to keep a good portion of their military. Besides, we don't have any bioweapons, just the designs. We didn't make much, the last two containers are on the Demon, where they are being mutated to be turned into a thing that can kill pleagues, viruses, etc. Most of our land forces will be discharged and the remainder turned into police forces, leaving the main Corocian military in the space fleet. Besides, the Corocians pride themselves on their large space navy. If we were to destroy it our morale would decrease rapidly, and soon riots and rebellions would break out. But of course, I bet you wouldn't mind that would you?"

Hmali looked like he could kill Carnotaur.

"Besides," Carnotaur continued, "Not only are we going to allow the UE to land on Mars and Luna whenver they like, we'll also need our large space fleet as a "Policing force" for the territory which we will explore. Isn't that right?"

Hmali said nothing.

"Besides, you call the Corocians quiet? We still have riots, disputes, blah blah blah. The Corocian people are by no means "Silent". You just never hear about it."

Carnotaur then looked at the other deligates. "Good?"

---------------

TO ENTROPY: You know what, you are starting to get really annoying. I mean, can you just let the Corocians have a bit of a military? Gee wiz!

------------------
To Escape Velocity: Nova and Beyond!
--------------
Millennium. Its coming, prepare for it.
Coming to the (url="http://"http://www.ambrosiaSW.com/games/ev/chronicles.html")EV Chronicles(/url).

Admiral Titan rises from his seat. I think that the crocians and every other government should be able to have a strong military, what if some aliens from another galaxy invaded, nobody would be able to fight them and we would be conqerd!

------------------
"The Lord loves you, and you, and YOU make the Lord very nervous!"

Quote

Originally posted by Titan:
**Admiral Titan rises from his seat. I think that the crocians and every other government should be able to have a strong military, what if some aliens from another galaxy invaded, nobody would be able to fight them and we would be conquered!
**

misspelled conquered..

anyway, how about all races unite to form a universal patrol? think about it! it would be awesome! we could mix our technologies. Imagine- An Azdara with 300 shields and 250 armor, phased beams, and whatever we want! our force would kick butt! Share money, and create semi-invincible ships! just think about it.. Oh, and the patrol would be ruled by a council consisting of the leaders of all major powers.

what do you think guys? (and girls)

------------------
The difference in
insantiy and ingenious is
measured just by success.

Umm... no. I dislike stories that end with everyone being allies with everyone.

Samurai rises to his feet.

"No one is accusing you of anything, Carno. We simply wish to know if you will remain behind in this small area of space, or will you follow us to a new place, where you can continue to build up your empire, far away from us. We have no objections if you wish to stay here."

------------------
I'm right.
(url="http://"http://www.pftn.f2s.com") Pilot File Trading Network (/url)

Carnotaur responded. "Yes, we want to go out and explore the galaxy. However, we would like to be in a position that we could continue to regularly visit and come in contact with the UE."

------------------
To Escape Velocity: Nova and Beyond!
--------------
Millennium. Its coming, prepare for it.
Coming to the (url="http://"http://www.ambrosiaSW.com/games/ev/chronicles.html")EV Chronicles(/url).

C'mon people! we need to settle our minor disputes for a better galaxy!

and this is coming from a voinian, so ya need to settle this, before my root-and-pillage voinian instincts kick in....

------------------
The difference in
insantiy and ingenious is
measured just by success.

(This message has been edited by -REDCHIGH- (edited 04-06-2001).)

Samurai (inconspicuously ignoring REDchigh) replies: "Oh, I imagine that will take care of itself, Carno... and never you mind what I mean. I think, Thunder, that all the issues have been taken care of."

Thunder, you may write the finale, as you did with Red Horizon, at any time you wish.

------------------
I'm right.
(url="http://"http://www.pftn.f2s.com") Pilot File Trading Network (/url)