1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197
198
199
200
201
202
203
204
205
206
207
208
209
210
211
212
213
214
215
216
217
218
219
220
221
222
223
224
225
226
227
228
229
230
231
232
233
234
235
236
237
238
239
240
241
242
243
244
245
246
247
248
249
250
251
252
253
254
255
256
257
258
259
260
261
262
263
264
265
266
267
268
269
270
271
272
273
274
275
276
277
278
279
280
281
282
283
284
285
286
287
288
289
290
291
292
|
The Osirion Project - STORYLINE
This file contains ideas for the universe background, the factions and
the storyline. It _will_ contain spoilers.
FACTIONS
Borderworlds
Colonial Militia
Great Houses
- House Lindblade
- House Illia
- Lance Council Capital
Tsu-Khan Empire
PLACES
INDEPENDENT COLONIES
- Ghant system
planet Ghant
Alexandria outpost (Colonial Militia)
Battleship custodian
planet Seymour
Regula mining operation
asteroid field
- Brogha system
planet Brogha
HOUSE LINDBLADE
- Lindblade system
planet Lindblade
- Burtonian system
planet Burton
Trent outpost
LANCE COUNCIL CAPITAL
INDEPENDENT WORLDS
- Lantanian system
planet Lantania
BORDERWORLDS
- Carolian system
planet Andros
planet Corthio
great war battle field remains
- Karelian system
no Planets
Karelian nebula
Colonial border station
- Anarian system
Anarian nebula
Anara research station
TSU-KHAN EMPIRE
Kiana system
Kiana Prime
HISTORY
The Great War
Over 300 years ago, the great war between the Colonies and the Tsu-Khan
Empire almost wiped humanity out of existence. With respect to the cause,
it was a war like any other: resources and territory. The Empire had depleted
most of its natural resources and launched an ambitious project to find
a suitable location for a new homeworld. Exploration and conquest led
to the inevitable encounter with the Colonies.
Most of the human population was ignorant of the presence of alien lifeforms
in their galaxy. The scant pieces of evidence that did exist were well-kept
secrets by the political leaders of the time. The Colonies were controlled
by several Major Houses, each with their own agenda's and changing aliances.
None of the House Lords had the motivation to order a thorough investigation
into a mad man's testimony of outer world creatures.
The ware come without warning. On the edge of know space, in the Caroli system,
two new colonies had been founded outside the jurisidiction of the great houses.
The settlers were finishing the construction of their hyperspace jump gate, to
connect the system to alied borderworld systems. Unfortunatly, the Tsu-Khan
Empire had located a few suitable planets just a few parsec away.
The Andros colony was the first to fall. It didn't take long for the Tsu-Khan
battle group to destroy the defenceless setlement. By the time they arrived at
the Corthio colony, the local alliance had scrambled any battleship it could
find to fend the invasion. The Colonial fleet was no match for the overwhelming
superiority of the Tsu-Khan ships. In a few hours, the battle was over, and the
Corthio colony was reduced to ashes.
The story repeated itself across the Borderworlds. These independend world were
usually inhabited by pacifist that had escaped the turmoil of the central worlds
or had a mutual understading with one of more of the great houses. The Tsu-khan
did not care, and the majority of the Bordworlds was utterly obliterated. What
remained was a few primitive settlements scatered across the smoldering remains
of the Borderworld planets.
The relations between the Borderworlds and the Major Houses were strained with
conflicts of interest. The central planets didn't really care unless some economical
or strategical advantage was involved. Slowly the Houses got drawn into the the war,
and after almost a year of hostilities most of the House Lords found their armies
involved in a full-scale war. A war they realised, they couldn't win.
With the Borderworlds out of the way, and the Tsu-Khan fleet at the border of every
Major House, there wasn't much they could do to oppose the Empire. It was in this
dark hour of history that a secret meeting took place that turned the fate of history.
Five small ships, each carrying one of the remaining House Lords arrived at their
rendez-vous point on a small neutral planet near the centre of the Colonies.
The Alliance
The planet used to be the stage for the House Council, by then a long forgotten
tradition, where the Lords of the Major Houses used to work out their differences
with dialog, or discuss current events. In the years before the Great War, this
tradition had been neglected and oposing views were usually solved with a friendly
border scrimish followed by a royal monetary compensation.
These times were over. For them, this war wasn't about money, power or territory.
It was about survival and it was clear by now that none of the Major Houses possesed
sufficient strength to fight the Empire on its own. A new alliance was formed and it
was decided that it should not only include all the Major Houses, but also any
independent system that was still capable of fighting. The Lord of the house Lindblade,
who's territory had been on the front line since the beginning of the war, and considered
as moderate amongst the Hosue Lords, proposed to assemble a fleet in the Lindblade
system to prevent the Empire from gaining a foothold in the Central Systems.
Within days, the largest fleet in human history had united under one banner. Out of fear,
out of desperation, but most of all, out of hope. A news reporter from the era described
it as ".. an overwhelming sight of Armegeddon, but unlike some ancient scriptures, with a
sense of pride and dignity ..." and ended his report with the question if they really had
any chance against such a formidable enemy.
It didn't take the Empire very long to be noted of the fact that humanity was about to
make its last stand. It reacted promptly by sneding in the First Fleet, a group of elite
Tsu-Khan Warriors that hadn't been allowed to take part in the operations so far. They
were eager to fight and prepared as always to were dispatched to dismiss the Alliance
fleet and end the human opposition once and for all. The Supreme Commander of the Tsu-Khan
fleet would see to it himself.
It is said, even the smallest person can change the course of the future, and in this
case it was a lonely scientists in the Anara system. His work involved the meaning of life,
the universe and related subjects, and ignoring the dangers of the war was his way of
dealing with the situation. His latest experiment required him to pilot a small,
almost unpowered vessel into the Anarian nebula, where he could conduct measurements
of the small variations in the local hyperspace field.
He was performing another scan of the sector when suddenly his instruments went off
the scale. To his amazement he suddenly found himself on the edge on area where the
First Fleet had decided to regroup and refuel before they sneaked into Alliance Territory.
The small vessel, unpowered and only slightly larger then a life support pod, managed
to elude the Tsu-Khan sensors through the high levels of radiant present in the nebula
and send a warning message the Alliance Fleet.
With the help of the detailed scientific information about the nebula, the Alliance
managed to jump right on top of the unsuspecting Tsu-Khan fleet. Within minutes,
the Emperial Flagship, primary target of the assault, had taken massive damage and was
burning in the flames of explosive decompression. It was at the heart of the fleet
when it exploded, and most of the heavy fighters and cruisers were hit by the shockwave
and the massive rain of high-speed metallic debris following it. Some managed to retreat
to Tsu-Khan space, most fell victim to the united firepower of the Alliance fleet.
News of the victory spread like fire through the Colonies, and the battle became legendary
even before the Alliance fleet had returned. The heroic tales of the fleet plowing through
the Emperial forces like a knight with a spear, gave birth to the name
"Battle of The Lance".
Turning of the Tide
Project Osirion
The Karelian Incident
STORY
I. Chocolate milk
A cup of steaming hot chocolate milk! There were times I would have
laughed it the mere idea, but in these outskirts of the galaxy
chocolate was a hard to find commodity. And fresh milk? You'd have to
have almost criminal connections to find it. fortunatly I had, and I did.
These were times for celebration. I had spend the loan I managed to get
from the local planetairy bank on a small transport ship and I had just
finished my first day of marmitium transport from the Regula mining
operation to Alexandria outpost. Not the glorious life I had gotten used
to on the central planets, but at least a decent one with its small pleasures
once in a while, like the cup of chocolate milk. The hundred credits I payed
for it made sure it rivaled the best Keldorian brandy, without the flavour
of slightly fermented rodent droppings and the associated legendary hangover.
I almost felt like home and the small room I rented above the local bar
started to feel like one. After I left the central planets, I ended up on
Alexandria outpost where the local bartender was kind enough to offer me a job
in his modest establishment. He probably did it more out of sympathy then anything
else, but as it turned out, I'm great at doing the dishes and I always enjoyed
our conversations. That is, until last week, when I met Brent.
I never really got to know him very well but he must have remembered me from high
school. I was sitting at the bar when he suddenly tapped my shoulder. My memories
of him were vague. As he sat down, I ordered him a drink. We had some chit-chat,
shared a few memories of distant times, but it didn't take hime very long to come
to the point.
Brent was the business type. "The rising star of the Regula mining operations,
overseeing all shipments of marmitium in the Ghant system", to quote his words.
His phrases like "A smart man could make a fortune" sounded rather hollow to me,
but he did have a point. 500 runs to Regula to pay the loan for the ship.
Another 1500 more to get myself a ship big enough to hold a small cabin with all the
luxuries a simple life would need.
Repetetive? Boring? Perfect! Add an autopilot and this life could be more relaxing
then a luxury vacantion on Lantania. With this simple business but rock-solid plan
laid out in front of me I managed to convince the manager of the local planetairy
bank to provide me with the necessary funds for my operation which were quickly
exchanged for Micron Corporation's latest Vector model. It's a small ship:
the cockpit, a living compartment with a sleeping corner and a cargo hold
just big enough to hold a few metric tons of whatever the owner had in mind.
All it misses is a pair of blasters to shoot the mosquitos from the windshield.
That would have added another 50 runs to the price.
The first two runs went smooth. Nothing unexpected. Pick up supplies at Alexandria,
fly all the way to the Regula mining operation station, exchange the supplies
for a shipment of marmitium and head back. I had just hit the impulse drive with
the third load in my cargo hold when I noticed something out of place.
A blip. And a big one too. No civilian vessel had an EM radar signature that powerful.
I peered through the windows and as planet Ghant grew bigger on me I could clearly
distinguish a second bright spot next to the familiar one Alexandria had become to me.
I quickly requested the computer for an identification and it didn't take it very long
to come up with an answer. Battleship Custodian. Colonial Militia registration number
CM-2542. It must have jumped in when I was docked at Regula.
Curious. While the Ghant system was officialy under the jurisdiction of the
Independent Colonies, nobody had any real business here. Sure marmitium was
a great industrial fertilizer, but my guess was that the military's interests
would lie elsewhere. For now, I just decided to ignore the matter. I had just made
a fresh start in live and I was determined not to let it get ruined by unfortunate
circumstances.
It was hard to ignore the massive battleship looming over the station, but I docked and
went straight to the bar. The bartender looked at me as I walked in and pointed me to
my regular place at the bar. "I'll be right back", he said, and disappeared into the kitchen
compartment. As on most quiet evenings, the regular customers were kind enough to leave
my seat unocupied and it didn't take the familar surroundings long to ease my exited mind
into a more relaxes state. "Here you are, one cup of steaming hot chocolate milk. I'm not
sure how or where you got it, but I am sure it is the real deal. No one would get it into
his mind to synthesize anything without having an actual market for it."
As usual, my bartender was right, and that was exactly why I liked this stuff, even if it
costed a small fortune. "But then again", he continued and turned has eyes towards the large
space window at the other end of the bar, "life can be full of surprises."
II. Surprises
It was hard for him to hide his unsettledness. "I just had a talk with the station supervisor
and the commander of that battleship floating out there". "The Custodian", I replied. "I had
the ship computer run an ID on it". "You'd better take care of that fancy new ship of yours",
he said. "They were here to inform me that the Colonial Militia has decided to assign a detachment
to the Ghant system, effective immediatly. All fleet operations in the system will be under the
command of the battleship Custodian. They als dropped some kind of communication sattelite
in the center of the system. God knows what these guys are up to."
The military is always involved in business the common man would rather not know about, but I had
to admit, it just didn't sound right. A battleship in the Ghant system was curious, but a
more permanent presence didn't make any sense at all. I picked up the small metal spoon lying
next to my cup and stirred my hot milk. "I wouldn't worry to much. They've probably discovered
some interesting radiation in the neighbourhood and now they want to turn it into a weapon. You
know these kind of people, of it goes kabooom, they immediatly like it"
|