Subjugation

Groundswell

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Chapter 10: "Subjugation"
Major players	Universal Council Anomaly Fleet
Vote outcome
Major events	Sudden expansion of the Anomaly
Timeline Chronology
Previous Chapter	Next Chapter
"Groundswell"	"[[]]"

Summary

Following the escape of Montez Lycanis (“Groundswell”), a transmission was received from the fleet stationed in the sector where Mímir disappeared (“The Void”), though the message was full of static and largely indecipherable. The transmissions received regarding the Anomaly - the newly christened mass of light that swallowed Mímir and destroyed the Panopea (“The Void”) - thus far had faced similar issues; scientists on station Ignis had thereafter taken to observing the light from a distance. It was then that they discovered that the Anomaly, while previously tinted in light hues, had begun pulsating and widening, producing streaks of vivid color. At its rate of expansion, it was only a matter of time before the Anomaly reached the already-retreating fleet.

However, from what information could be retrieved from the garbled transmissions, it appeared that the research fleets reinforcing the original expedition fleet possibly possessed the means to halt the Anomaly’s advance - though any such operation would require vast amounts of energy drawn from the ships’ engines, which would leave them defenceless should they fail.

As Nexus communications were still heavily affected, the Council deemed it necessary to keep their transmission to the fleet at the Anomaly simple and concise, in order to continuously transmit it to ensure no part of the instruction was lost in the static. The Council thus put the decision to instruct the fleet to stand their ground and attempt to halt the Anomaly’s advance, or to continue their retreat, to a vote, with the seated Councilmembers briefing their respective factions accordingly.

Transcript

Report from the 26th conference of the Universal Council: time of ζ Sagittarii 3.32
Held on board station Ignis, in the neutral center of the Core Systems.

Councilmembers for the Empire: Ji Young-Joo, Ferus Haden, Thulani Ade’k
Councilmembers for the Federation: Áurea Adonis, Victor Huxley, Elijah Burkea
Councilmembers for the Union: Aish Fenix, Mandla Bankole, Haley Nguyen

The following is a transcript of the briefing on the relevant vote for those involved in the Explorer program:

… investigation from the Empire has so far yielded no results as to the whereabouts of Montez. The assailants were incredibly careful to leave no solid traces behind. Currently the prevailing theory is that there was in fact no outside help- that Montez’s escape was solely his own doing. Conversely, the missing Quantum shipment bound for the Core Systems is also still unaccounted for. The Council will be informed of any leads in either matter as soon as they arise.

Now, let us turn to the relevant vote. Many of the gathered councilmembers may already be aware of this, but two days ago, the Council received a transmission relating to the Anomaly – the name our researchers have given to the mass of light that swallowed Mímir. The report, however, was riddled with static and almost impossible to decipher.

Given the issues with these direct transmissions, scientists on station Ignis attempted to observe the light from a distance, uncovering a perturbing development. The Anomaly, previously tinted in light hues across the visible spectrum, has begun pulsating and widening itself, vivid colors streaking across its expanding boundaries. The assembled fleets are already retreating, but the factoring in the Anomaly’s current alarming rate of growth, it seems only a matter of time before it envelops the fleet entirely. Of course, there is the possibility that this expansion is only temporary, but we have no way of confirming this within such a short span of time.

There does appear to be another option; one fragment of the fleets’ transmission mentions a method of stifling the Anomaly’s growth. Unfortunately, the specifics of this method were lost in the static, but with multiple fleets of research ships currently reinforcing the original small fleet, including several of the Council’s class-S vessels, it is possible the fleets actually possess the equipment necessary to halt the Anomaly’s progress. Of course, any significant technical operation would require power to be siphoned from the ship’s engines, leaving a large amount of them at the mercy of the Anomaly’s expansion.

The Council has considered many alternatives to these solutions, mainly the possibility of sending another single ship into the light to calm the turbulence, similar to the incident with the Panopea. Though ultimately, such methods hinge too heavily on clarity of communication with the fleet, or require more time than we have in this situation.

The effects of this development have been felt all across the Core Systems, but particularly within the Federation. Communications from the Nexus are breaking down, and may planets within the faction have been thrust into darkness. Taking this into account, it is highly unlikely the Council’s comms will reach the fleet unaltered. Our transmission must be short and immediate, able to be sent to the assembled fleets as often as possible to avoid any part of it being lost. Thus, the vote placed before Council is as follows:

Should the Council place their confidence in the fleets beyond the Core Systems, allowing them a chance to stop the Anomaly’s advance? Or does the Council instruct its ships to continue their retreat, trusting that the speed of the Anomaly’s growth will slow down before it reaches them?

Your faction contact will issue a statement shortly in your respective vote channels before the commencement of the vote, twelve hours from now.

Faction Storylines

Federation Storyline

Transmission from Ana Plíšková, assistant to Victor Huxley, COO of VasTech

Empire Storyline

A directive from Ji Young-Joo, emissary of the Emperor

Union Storyline

Comm from Haley Nguyen, Union member and Vox representative

Voting Results

Story Arcs

Expedition to Mímir:	The Catalyst • The Shard • The Crossroads • The Void • Subjugation • The Cradle • Dire Straits • Last Stand
Assault on the Crimson Wolves:	The Crimson Wolves • The Ides • Groundswell
The Morn Conflict:	On the Brink
The Pinnacle Incident:	Quantum Sickness • First Steps
The Vargas Epidemic:	Blackout
The Opening:	First Contact