Exclusive rights for only 25 years, but one wonders how easy it will be for another company to break into the market after that amount of time to set up a monopoly on an entire world (and presumably the associated supercharged special interest group back on earth). understandable from the government’s perspective since they get their colony and probably a quicker return in investment from taxes. But a risky long term move.
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How did you create the "orbital map"?
Maybe I am being dense, it's been awhile since I got to play the game, but I don't remember that being a feature/possibility. Maybe new with Nemesis?
Maybe I am being dense, it's been awhile since I got to play the game, but I don't remember that being a feature/possibility. Maybe new with Nemesis?
I think their using a generator that randomly generates a planets surface. I might have actually come across the same one their potentially using. Just to be on the safe side, @Side what are you using to generate the orbital map?
It's actually the map of a Hydra Class world that I generated in a game called Shadow Empire. It had this absurdly detailed map generator where you generate a planet based on a lot of real-world parameters, then simulate the colonisation of said world, then simulate that world getting blown to bits so that you can fight over the post-apocalyptic remains. I just screenshotted it before doing the colonisation portion.
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Well my first guess was wrong but I wasn’t wrong about having seen this type of map before. I love watching play throughs of Shadow Empire.
Ah! Yes, that is one of the... 481.. games on my wishlist. <stares off into space>
It did look interesting.
Metadata
Metadata
March 2108 - Ministry of Space Exploration - Meeting room 6
“Well, yes, sort of.” The technician from the first contact team was blushing. Heinrich Walter von Roon wasn’t sure if it was from the subject matter, or having to explain it officially. “From what we can gather, it seems to be… ehm… a collection of sexually explicit images. We suspect it was sent as a prank.”
“I can’t wait to host the press conference,” Heinrich said, not even bothering to hide his smirk anymore. “Gathered members of the press, I am pleased to say that today we can present the first interstellar dick pic.”
“Well, in this case, it would be a stamen pic,” Dr. Leclair said. Her tone was so even that Heinrich couldn’t tell if she was joking or being dead serious.
Baumann didn’t get it. Of course he wouldn’t. Nobody in the room had known much of botany until last week.
“It will be easier to just show,” Heinrich said before Baumann could make his confusion heard. Leclair nodded at the technician and he typed a few commands into his slate. The image appeared on the screen at the far end of the meeting room.
“Is… Is that a plant? Or some kind of gasbag?” Baumann asked after several seconds of just staring.
“Yes, and no,” Dr. Leclair said. “From what we understand, that is sentient alien life.”
The image showed the plantlike alien that so so far was only known as ‘Beta Aliens. It showed a central bladder that they suspected was filled with some light gas to help with buoyancy. At the front was a mass of what they thought were eyes. They weren’t sure yet.
“It’s… disgusting,” Baumann finally said.
It wasn’t an unusual first reaction. Heinrich wasn’t sure what he had expected sentient alien life to look like, but it wasn’t this.
“Are we sure this is actually what they look like?” Baumann asked. “I mean, if I sent a picture of my cat, would the aliens think we were four legged and fluffy?”
“You make a good point, Minister, and there is the possibility that we are mistaken, but we do have supporting evidence.” Dr. Leclair stood up and walked over to the screen. “While we do not have anything near a complete understanding of their language, there are some repeating elements that seem significant to their culture. First is regarding stars as a source of nourishment.”
“Makes sense,” Baumann said. “There wouldn’t be life on Earth without the Sun.”
“That is correct, Sir, but it seems a bit more literal in this case. In fact, our linguists were confused until we made this discovery.” She motioned at the image.
“Another element is their apparent fear of fire,” Heinrich said. “It seems that their equivalent of ‘die in a fire’ is one of their strongest insults. Now, you noticed the gas bag they use to float, right? Our xenologists are working on a hypothesis that the bags are filled with methane, or possibly hydrogen. You can imagine how a creature with these… limitations… would view fire.”
Minister Baumann leaned back in his chair and covered his face with his hands as he took a deep breath.
“Okay… So where does that leave us? The aliens next door, who do not want to talk to us, are freaky gasbag plants who hate fire? I’m not sure this is something we should be showing to the general public. At least not until we know for sure. I don’t want to accidentally present some alien’s pet as a sentient species.”
The Minister stood up and regarded everyone in the room. “Thank you for keeping me up to date. Please forward the files to my assistant, and I will brief the Chancellor and the Kaiser as soon as possible.”
He said his goodbyes and left them. Heinrich looked to Dr. Leclair. “What do you think?”
“It could have gone better. At least he didn’t want to go public with it at once.”
“Yeah. I’m not sure how people will react to this one.”
* * *
By 2106, any hopes of easy communications with the aliens in the Eissam system had been replaced with increasing frustration. Despite continuous work by hundreds of linguists, social scientists, statisticians and other related fields, there was precious little to show for it. The main reason was the general lack of interest by the Beta Aliens[1], who reacted with hostility to any attempt at communication.
The Stettin Conference was thus forced to employ passive measures like signal interception to build an understanding of their language. This proved difficult, with the head of the First Contact Advisory Board, Dr. Lecair, comparing it to trying to learn Chinese by eavesdropping on conversations in a Beijing coffeeshop.
There was at least not a lack of conversations to eavesdrop on. The Eissam system was a flurry of activity, with the aliens establishing several mining operations in the resource rich system. And it was clear that the aliens knew humanity was there.
In addition to blasting them with LIDAR pulses, the aliens had also stolen one of the comm buoys and presumably taken it back to a lab somewhere to be studied. While replacing the buoy was expensive[2], most of the Stettin conference was ecstatic. Not only had the buoy sent back a lot of data as the alien ship approached, it was hoped this signified an increased interest from the aliens.
It was not to be. There was no further reaction from the aliens, and no ship would ever come that close again. Indeed, analysts noticed a curious pattern in the movement of ships in the system. They would often take massive detours, sometimes extending their journeys by weeks, just to keep as far away as possible from the hyperlane to Alpha Centauri. There were countless hypotheses explaining this, ranging from simple fear of the unknown to religious customs. Given the lack of concrete data, people got creative.
By 2107, the Stettin first contact team, the KWO and the German government were at their wits’ end, and they started to consider more active measures. For years pundits and online ‘experts’ had advocated for various easy solutions to the first contact difficulties. The most popular was to simply send the Johannes von Gmunden into the Eissam system and force the aliens to react. The idea was immediately dismissed by everyone who would have to sign off on the venture, but a variation on the idea was starting to take hold.
Instead of sending the Johannes von Gmunden into the system alone, it would be escorted by the three Agatha Dorn class gunships. Alternatively, the three warships could enter the system alone and try to make contact. The plan was controversial, with comparisons made to Commodore Matthew Perry ‘opening’ Japan. While the idea had its proponents, the Raumstreitkräfte were not among them. Fears that the ageing ships would be outmatched, leaving Earth defenceless, made the plan unviable.
Despite this, the plan was given the green light. That was when fate intervened, and the Bernhard Walther entered the Briscoll system. The jump was a standard affair, mostly done so that astronomers could have some up-close data of the pulsar in the system. Captain Julia Heinemann was thus surprised to find a massive space station orbiting the pulsar. This surprise was replaced with excitement when the station started blasting the Bernhard Walther with signals mere hours later.
It didn’t take long for the “Gamma Aliens” to start sending math equations at humanity. It was clear that the aliens had their own version of the First Contact Protocols. While establishing communications was still a daunting task, at least the other party was receptive.
In January of 2108, an alien freighter entered the Eissam system. This in itself was nothing unusual. The ship was one of a number like it in regular traffic to and from the system. However, halfway to its destination, when it was closest to the Alpha Centauri jump point, it fired off several laser pulses at the comm buoy. Unlike the previous high powered LIDAR pulses, this was more equivalent to a tightbeam laser usually used for ship to ship communication. This not only avoided damaging the buoy, it also gave a usable signal.
Back on Earth, the signal was poured over by researchers. Excitement rose when they realised that the signal wasn’t encrypted and contained instructions for rendering images. Indeed, most of the transmission seemed to be various image files. Work immediately began on translating the image format.
It didn’t take long for the first images to render. In the years since the discovery of the Beta aliens, there had been much speculation about their appearance. Some of it had been founded in careful analysis of their ships and behaviour. Most of it, however, was fuelled by people’s imagination. Both groups were widely off the mark.
Instead of some mammalian, or even reptile, equivalent, the aliens appeared to be some sort of sentient plant, suspended in the air by a gas bladder. For propulsion, it used a couple of small wing-like protrusions and four tentacles.
The frustration was palpable. The first contact team had been working for years on establishing contact and all they had to show for it were terabytes of lewd images. Senior members of the KWO and the German government decided to suppress the findings for the time being[3].
But a few weeks later disaster struck as hundreds of the images were leaked on several MNets. The public’s reaction was one of disgust. Not only were the aliens far stranger than people had imagined, but the nature of the images didn’t exactly put them in the best light. There were protests in several cities around the world, calling on the government to “do something” about the alien “threat”.
The authorities tried to calm people’s reactions, but with limited success. The source of the leak was never discovered.
It would be almost a year and a half of hard work, but by early July of 2109 the first contact team had a workable model of the alien language. It was basic, comparable in vocabulary to a ten-year-old, but deemed sufficient to attempt contact. The KWO thus approached the German government for advice on how to address the aliens. While a majority of the Stettin conference wanted to present a united humanity to the aliens, this idea was quickly shot down when the conference’s Canadian delegation reported back home. The Canadian government was less than enthused at the idea of Germany effectively representing them and they found a lot of support. Furious negotiations followed between the great powers.
In the end it was decided that Germany would contact the aliens on behalf of humanity. If and when contact was established, they would then introduce the other nations of the world so that they could establish their own diplomatic relations. This set off another brief round of negotiations regarding the order of introductions. In the end, the Chancellery cut through the debate when they published an ordered list and told everyone that anyone who disagreed would go to the end of the list[4]. Given that the great powers were at the top of the list, most arguments were mollified. At least for the time being.
With the diplomatic details settled, the KWO went ahead with the plan. Unlike humanity, the aliens appeared to communicate between systems using fast messenger boats. These ships would regularly travel to and from the Eissam system. The plan was to wait for one of these ships to begin its journey out of the system, then transmit the message to them. This would hopefully get the message promptly relayed to whatever authority led the aliens.
The plan was executed on the 29th of July, 2109. The message was transmitted to one of the alien messenger boats and optimism was high when 30 minutes later the ship accelerated significantly. The ship left the system, and so the waiting game began.
The answer came on the 9th of August. A single ship of a hitherto unknown design entered the Eissam system. The ship, carrying obvious weapons, immediately broadcast a message to the buoy. Back in Stettin, there was tremendous excitement as news of the alien reply spread. When it was translated, it shook everyone.
To the German government, and the people of Earth.
We, the Lavis Republic, do not recognise your right to exist.
Your worlds will burn and your bodies shall fertilise the soil.
Any ship entering our systems will be considered hostile.
We are ready for you.
[1] The Alpha Aliens were the theoretical aliens present on Alpha Centauri IV. The extinct Irassians had avoided a similar designation due to the surprising ease of decrypting their language.We, the Lavis Republic, do not recognise your right to exist.
Your worlds will burn and your bodies shall fertilise the soil.
Any ship entering our systems will be considered hostile.
We are ready for you.
[2] Early communication buoys would usually run in the millions of mark. In addition came the price of getting them into position, which required a ship to deliver them. While advances in technology would reduce the unit cost, the network remained vulnerable and expensive to maintain for much of humanity’s early interstellar period.
[3] Officially this was to avoid poisoning relations with the aliens if and when they made first contact, but later historians have suggested it was due to fear of causing an embarrassment for the government and a potential loss of funding for the KWO.
[4] This proved an especially potent threat, as the last nation on the list was the hermit kingdom of Japan.
I hope you enjoy the last update of 2021. The next update will probably take a bit longer, as I need to play some more, and the laptop I'm writing this on struggles to run visual novels. So I guess I'm leaving it on a cliffhanger.
Also, I populated the galaxy with a few custom empires that were more 'lore friendly', the Lavis Republic being one of them. For some reason they always seem to spawn next to me.
Happy new year everyone.
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Well… I honestly can’t say that could have gone worse, because official first contact with a fanatic purifier is perhaps the worst way Earth could have been introduced to a concept of a galactic community. Those people who thought they were a menace from the image leaks are going to feel so vindicated. I worry what effect the Lavis Republic being humanity’s first encounter with a interstellar nation will have on how it views of other, potentially less murderous aliens.
Hopefully humanity's defenses are ready for the Lavis. Usually, I find it most effective to dig in and protect one’s own core territory, allowing outlying, uncolonized systems to fall if need be. As long as your industry and population remains intact, you have a chance of eventually out-producing and out-teaching the Lavis.
Well, that's a terrible way to go about first contact. Hopefully, Earth will encounter more friendly aliens soon.
With Germany being the only country with an interstellar colony, I wonder how the other great powers will react to the Lavis. Will they jump at a chance to see Germany humbled or will they rally behind them for humanity's sake?
With Germany being the only country with an interstellar colony, I wonder how the other great powers will react to the Lavis. Will they jump at a chance to see Germany humbled or will they rally behind them for humanity's sake?
Interlude: The Press Conference
Interlude: The Press Conference
August 2109 - Atlanta, Georgia - United American Republic
Jordan was on his way home. He had been playing football with Elijah and the others, but then Elijah’s mom had shown up and practically dragged him into the car. It was Elijah’s ball, so that was it for their game.
There had been something wrong with her. Her eyes had been haunted, nothing like the times that Jordan had visited. Those times she’d made food for him and the other boys. This time she told them all to get home immediately.
She wasn’t the only adult acting weird. The streets were unusually deserted, and those out were talking in hushed voices or looking at their slates. Several strangers had told Jordan to go home as well.
Maybe there had been another terrorist attack. They happened ever so often. One time, while out shopping, a group of people attacked a government building. Jordan had thought it was pretty exciting until he’d looked at his dad’s face. They’d hidden in a store back room until the shooting stopped. His dad had held him uncomfortably tight through all of it.
It was times like these he really wished he had a slate of his own. Then he could at least check. Mom said he could get one when he got older, but that was an obvious lie. The real reason was simple: they couldn’t afford one. He didn’t mind, but he wished they could be honest with him.
He found the apartment building where he lived and walked up to the third floor. Even the drunks and gang members who were usually there were gone. That was a bit strange.
“I’m home,” he said as he closed the door. There wasn’t a response. From the living room came the sounds of people talking on the TV. He stepped inside and found his mother huddled up on the sofa while his father held her. Both of them were staring intently at the screen.
It was a press conference, and he recognised one of the men present, von Roon, the head of the German space program. And he’d seen the guy sitting next to him before. He was the president of Germany or something. They often had press conferences where they would announce new discoveries or achievements. But this looked wrong. They usually looked very happy and proud. Now they were serious. And there were people in military uniforms sitting next to them.
One of the journalists said something and the automatic translator activated a second later. “Are we sure the message is addressed to humanity as a whole?”
“There has been no indication that the aliens differentiate between nations,” the president of Germany said. “When we contacted them, we made it clear that we represented only one of several governments. It does not seem to matter to them.”
“Are we sure this isn’t some sort of misunderstanding?” another journalist asked.
“We’ve made several more attempts at contacting them,” von Roon said. “Most of them were left unanswered. Those times that we did get an answer, they were very explicit threats. Most of them mentioned firebombing Earth.”
“What measures are being taken?”
“We have already begun implementing several contingency plans,” one of the men in uniform said. “We are obviously not going to go into detail about them here. We have also contacted our allies about this.”
“What about China, Russia and Canada? Do they know?”
“They know,” the president said.
“What do they say?”
“You’ll have to ask them.”
Jordan sat down on the sofa, and his mother reached out and pulled him close. Normally it would be uncomfortably tight, but right now it was comforting. He didn’t understand what the people on TV were talking about, but their serious demeanour told him more than any words ever could.
“Was it a mistake to contact the aliens?” The room grew quiet at the journalist’s question.
Von Roon gave the president a quick glance before staring down the journalist.
“No further questions.”
“I want to be clear on one thing,” the president said. “We are facing an existential threat. The nature of space combat means that anyone who holds orbital supremacy for long enough can sterilise a planet with very little effort. Only the Alpha Centauri system stands between the aliens and Earth. Plans are in motion, but we have precious little margin for error. That will be all.”
The image shifted from the press conference to a newscaster. He was saying something about domestic politicians’ reactions, but Jordan didn’t listen. He turned around and looked at his parents. They both looked back at him. Both had the expression his dad had back in the store that day.
“Are the aliens angry with us?”
Just a little interlude I couldn't fit elsewhere. It also neatly ends the first "arc".
The next proper chapter should hopefully be ready soon.
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Humanity has long asked the question: are we alone in the galaxy? Now it has its answer. We are not alone. Aliens are real. They are practically next door neighbors. Oh and they hate our existence and would like nothing more Thant to see us all dead.
I love the perspective of an innocent child. He doesn’t understand as much as other characters; but he is far more aware of some things than most people give a child credit for.
This is an existentially terrifying chapter in human history. Hopefully it is not the last.
I love the perspective of an innocent child. He doesn’t understand as much as other characters; but he is far more aware of some things than most people give a child credit for.
This is an existentially terrifying chapter in human history. Hopefully it is not the last.
I also like the last chapter from the PoV of a child, especially from one of the non great powers, basically the ultimate outsider looking in on the goings on and barely understanding but also noticing things.
Lines on a Map
Lines on a Map
October 2110 - Kaiser Wilhelm II Shipyards
A Heligoland class defensive gun platform. In time large networks of these stations would protect human systems. Possessing both massive railguns and laser batteries, these stations would, in theory, outgun any hostile craft that came near it.
But when he had demanded a meeting with his German counterpart, Foreign Minister Schumacher, she had insisted on meeting at the Whilhelm Shipyards. When David’s secretary had asked why, he’d been told that ‘given the subject’, meeting there would be required.
The docking tube finished attaching, and David made his way onto the station proper. That was slightly better, the spin gravity doing wonder for calming his stomach. It still felt wrong though. It was just a third of what he was used to, and the way the floor curved upwards never stopped being strange.
A young man stood waiting at the end of the docking tube, flanked by two guards. Schumacher wasn’t there. Grumbling internally, he walked over.
“Good afternoon, Minister Kennedy,” the man said. “I am Philip Herzberg, assistant to Minister Schumacher. I was asked to take you to her.”
“She couldn’t be bothered to meet me herself?”
“She is currently discussing some matters with a representative of a foreign… government. But she will be ready to see you as soon as we arrive.”
That struck David as odd, both Herzberg’s hesitation and the general vagueness. As far as he knew, no other foreign dignitaries were on the station. He nodded at the assistant. “Lead the way.”
As they walked through the gently sloping corridors, Herzberg decided that this was the moment for small talk.
“I trust the journey from Ottawa went well?”
“No. I vomited twice. Once during the flip for our retro burn, and once on final approach to the station. I suspect I will hurl twice more before I’m back on terra firma.”
“That is unfortunate to hear. I’m sure you’ll get used to it in time.”
I hope I don’t have to, David mused.
They reached the door to a conference room, and Herzberg opened it. Inside was probably the sparsest conference room David had ever seen. A simple fibreglass and aluminium table stood in the middle, with similar chairs lining it. He noted the chairs were bolted to the floor.
At the far end of the room stood Minister Schumacher. She walked over and shook David’s hand as soon as he stepped inside.
“David, a pleasure to see you again.”
David had to suppress an urge to roll his eyes. He knew Schumacher loathed him. But there were courtesies to observe.
“Likewise. It’s been far too long.”
“Have a seat, and we’ll get down to business immediately.”
“Happily,” he said as he sat down. The fact that the chairs were bolted to the floor bothered him more than it should. “It has come to our attention that you’ve been shipping large amounts of electromagnets off-world. My government is… interested… in what you plan to use these electromagnets for.”
“Oh, it’s simple really. We’re fortifying the Alpha Centauri system with railguns and other weapon systems.”
“Uhh…” David was taken aback by how easily she admitted it. “You realise this is a clear violation of the Space Militarisation Agreement? Why ignore an agreement that has been in effect for half a century?”
Schumacher leaned forward across the table, looking him in the eyes, her smile gone. The Canadian diplomatic service had a nickname for the expression: bitch mode.
“David, I don’t know if you have noticed, but we got a bunch of aliens on our border who wants to firebomb us out of existence. Don’t you think we should do something about that?”
“The ‘Lavis Republic’? The alien civilisation who curiously won’t respond when we try to talk to them? Give me a break.”
“I know you don’t believe us.”
“I believe it’s very convenient for you. Big scary aliens who you can protect us from. Now you get to upgrade from Weltpolizei to Weltraumpolizei.”
“I don’t blame you. The Russians and the Chinese were doubtful at first as well. No reason you shouldn’t be. Philip, could you get our guest?”
The assistant got up without a word and left the room, leaving David alone with Schumacher.
“The Chinese and the Russians know?” David asked.
“Do you think we produce enough electromagnets on our own? We had to ask the Chinese and trust me, that took some convincing. Only reason you know about them is due to them telling your man in Stockholm.”
David felt queasy again. This time it wasn’t the low gravity. He was being played for a fool, and they both knew it. God, how he hated this woman.
He was about to retort when the door opened and Herzberg returned. Following was a man wearing a spacesuit. Except something was wrong. At first, he thought the man was abnormally tall, but as he looked closer he realised the proportions were all off. His arms and legs were too long, but the knees were way too high. The figure stepped closer, and he got a clear view through the faceplate.
At first, it looked like a face, but only just. There was a mouth, but the nose was missing. Instead, there were a handful of slits in the face. And there was space for eyes, but he couldn’t see them. And to complete the ensemble, the skin was a deep purple.
If the chairs hadn’t been bolted to the floor, David would have knocked it over in an attempt to get away. Instead he flailed around in the chair, but remained otherwise in place.
“David, allow me to introduce you to Yyaal tal Forges of the Curator Order. Yyall, this is David Bennet Kennedy, Foreign Minister of Canada.”
“A pleasure to make your acquaintance,” a somewhat garbled speaker fixed to the suit said. “And I do apologise for startling you. Anna enjoys surprising people.”
David didn’t know what was more surprising: the alien, or the fact that it was on a first-name basis with Schumacher.
“David here is doubting that the Lavis Republic has hostile intentions.”
“Ahh, yes. I understand that it is had to comprehend. Indeed, the Lilarobius weren’t always like that. Back in their heyday, they were a peaceful and loving people. Until the last great cycle of extinction.”
“Wait, what?” David said once had managed to collect himself. Mostly. “Cycle of extinction?”
“I’m sure you’ve noticed that the galaxy is a bit of a graveyard. There is a reason for that. Every few millennia, there is a great dying. Sometimes it’s intentional, sometimes it’s accidental. The details vary. The effect is the same. My order was founded to break the cycle. As you may have surmised, we’ve had limited success.”
Schumacher looked to David with a smile. “Just when you thought we were out of the woods of the Fermi Paradox.”
The smile didn’t reach her eyes.
* * *
Humanity’s reaction to finding sentient, extant and hostile alien life was one of disbelief. Some couldn’t believe that a civilisation capable of space travel could harness such malice against a people they had never met before. Others simply didn’t believe the Germans.
Either way, Millaray Lemun Quezada words at the Stettin conference now seemed eerily prophetic.
The Lilarobius - Human border. The fact that Only Alpha Centauri stood between Lavis Republic space and Earth was a problem for the Raumstreitkräfte, who would have preferred more defence in depth. As it stood, they would have precious little room to manoeuvre.
The first concrete government reaction came less than a month after the now infamous press conference. After a series of closed-door meetings in the Reichstag, it was decided that the Alpha Centauri starbase, until now a minor traffic control and communications hub, was to be reinforced and armed. While this was seen as a violation of the Space Militarisation Agreement in some circles, the German government had cleared it through back channels with Russia and China. This allowed the project to go ahead on a technicality[1].
The German government also approved (though not publicly) the Raumstreitkräfte to begin clandestine information gathering against the Lavis Republic. Their efforts were slow, as the navy was limited to SIGINT, at least for the time being.
Information gathering exploited the numerous holes in Lavis network security. These were the same security flaws that the first contact team had proposed using to get more data.
The Curator Order provided human researchers with many recorded solutions to the Fermi Paradox. Several of them felt eerily familiar.
As the galaxy slid into another dark age, the lilarobius would lose much of their advanced technology, struggling once more to simply maintain their numbers. And as the centuries turned into millennia, history turned into myth. But the lilarobius would never forget how close they came to extinction.
While this was of great interest to researchers and historians, it mattered little to the wheels of industry.
On the 10th of September of 2110, SMR Komet deployed its first shuttle to the surface of Sirius III. The expedition had already been underway when contact was made with the Lavis Republic. While some (mostly non-German) politicians had suggested that the expedition be halted or delayed to avoid provoking the lilarobius, this was not heeded and rendered moot when the work fortifying Alpha Centauri began.
Unlike Neu Brandenburg, the KWO had seen fit to designate a proper name to the fledgling colony: Viridian. While this was used in official dispatches back to Earth, most of those on the planet weren’t enthused by the name. Inspired by their counterparts on Neu Brandenburg, they soon decided on their own name: Grossbayern[3]. In time this name would become the de facto official name, with the ‘true’ name of the colony relegated to a bit of trivia.
Once on the ground, work immediately started on the dome farms that would dot the planet. In time these would be largely automated, but early on they required a great deal of human labour. The work was slow but it was yielding results. While Grossbayern would mostly be feeding itself at first, projections estimated that by 2130 at least 15% of the food consumed on Earth would be produced off-world.
The challenges of growing crops on an alien world led to several new technological breakthroughs. Several of these could also be utilised back on Earth.
[2] - Notably, the Lavis Republic was according to the Curator Order still governed according to democratic principles. Or at least, principles that could be compared to humanity’s understanding of democracy.
[3] - It is unclear as to why the colony was named after Bayern. Unlike the Alpha Centauri expedition, there wasn’t a clear connection, with only a handful of expedition members hailing from the region. The most popular hypothesis is that it was named in honour of FC Bayern, who had won the Reichsliga that season.
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That was an excellent interlude! Having exterminators as a first contact must really turn up the fear of a "dark forest" scenario for the galaxy.
Introducing an alien is an excellent way to reduce skepticism about them.
Well, I'm looking forward to the inevitable conflict, all we need to do is wait for the first blow
Introducing an alien is an excellent way to reduce skepticism about them.
Well, I'm looking forward to the inevitable conflict, all we need to do is wait for the first blow
Funny thing was that I learned about the Dark Forest scenario back when I was writing "The Fermi Paradox" (thanks Kurtzgesagt). I suspect humanity will be a bit more careful during first contact from now on. Maybe not give away the home address right away.
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Reichsliga is the best word.
I've been enjoying this a lot and I wish there was a way for factions to represent states.
I've been enjoying this a lot and I wish there was a way for factions to represent states.
When I did my first draft, I just cut off the first part of Bundesliga and stitched on Reich. Then when I was doing some research, I learned that was an attempt at creating a Reichsliga during late World War I and early Weimar. It didn't work out in real life, but I guess it did in this timeline.
And it would be cool to have a "Non-Unified Species" origin. Either by doing event like "On the Shoulders of Giants", or something else.
I'm glad you like it.
Sorry about the next update taking so long. I had some issues writing it. First I had to do a fair bit of research and worldbuilding. Then I got sick (twice). Then I had a technical issue with my game (the issue was located between the keyboard and the chair. A common problem in software development). It took a while to resolve it, but we're good now.
Next update should be out shortly.
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A Change in Course
A Change in Course
April 2111 - Bernhard Walther - In orbit around gas giant Ditrim I
Ditrim I, a seemingly ordinary, and unremarkable, gas giant.
She found the opening to the mess deck and pulled herself in. The coffee maker had broken again, and despite being aboard a ship filled with some of Earth’s brightest minds, only she and Petty Officer Fleischer knew how to fix it. Seeing as Fleischer was taking a well-earned rest after repairing the number four RCS thrusters and there was no ongoing reactor meltdown (the only thing taking priority over a broken coffee maker), she was the one who had to get it working again.
She floated over to the broken machine and activated the self-diagnostics system. After a few minutes of watching a wheel spin on the display, it gave her an error code: CRS1000459X. She’d bookmarked the error codes on her slate. A quick reference told her that someone had forgotten to replace the filter. Again.
Grumbling to herself, she set about fixing the machine.
She was trying to remove the used coffee grounds from inside the machine when she heard the arguing voices. She took a deep breath.
Dammit… Not now.
“All I’m saying is that he shouldn’t go around expressing his opinion like that,” Doctor Richter said as he entered the mess deck.
“We’re not England. The Kaiser is allowed to have an opinion on politics.” Sergeant Falck followed him in. “And it’s not like he was expressing his opinion publicly. He was talking to his friends. It’s not his fault there was a directional microphone pointed at him at just that moment.”
Falck noticed Henriette working on the coffee maker and saluted her.
“Captain.”
She returned the salute. “Just keeping the life support system running.”
Richter either didn’t notice her, or didn’t care. Both were just as likely.
“That may be so, but still… Supporting a group like that? He must have doubled their membership overnight.”
“I don’t see what so horrible about the First Strike Legion. Sure, they want to build more warships, but it’s not like they don’t have a good reason for it.”
“For the cost of one ship we could have another Heligoland platform with twice the firepower.”
“And none of the mobility. Don’t get me wrong, the Heligolands are worth every mark, but they can’t take the fight to the enemy.”
Richter grew silent. Typically that meant his opponent had made a very good point, and he didn’t know how to respond, or he thought his opponent had made a very dumb point. Henriette still had her face buried inside the coffee maker, so she couldn’t judge from his expression.
She closed the machine and ran a test. The machine purred once again. Progress.
“Is it really necessary to ‘take the fight to the enemy?” Richter said. “As long as we are safe, isn’t that enough?”
Falck chuckled. “Sure, that’s a viable long term strategy. I’m sure that would have worked great against the Commune, or the Americans, or the Australians.”
“Australia was a disaster.”
“It sure was, but it would have been worse if we just maintained the blockade.”
The coffee maker’s test program finished with a ping. That brought both of their attention onto Henriette.
“What do you think, Captain?” Richter asked. Behind him, Falck’s eyes went wide in horror.
With one hand she activated one of the presets on the coffee maker. It whirred into action.
“You know, Doctor, in the Navy we have this informal policy. Discussions of ‘politics, religion and sex’ should not be held in the wardroom. I’ve been thinking a lot about that policy lately, and its obvious wisdom.”
Richter stared at her in bug-eyed confusion. Meanwhile, Falck was busy dying of second-hand embarrassment. Fortunately for everyone involved, Doctor Julia Heinemann came to the rescue over the radio.
“Um, Captain?”
“Captain Holmlund here. What is it, Doctor?”
“You know that weird weather phenomenon I wanted to study?”
“I sure do.” She didn’t add that it was the only reason they were still in orbit around the gas giant.
“I… Um… This is going to sound weird, but…”
That caught Henriette off guard. The meteorologist wasn’t typically unsure of herself.
“I… I think the weather is trying to talk to me…”
Henriette grabbed the finished bottle of coffee and took a sip as she tried to process what she’d just heard.
“Huh…”
* * *
In late February of 2111, an audio recording of Kaiser Friedrich was leaked to the press. The recording, taken secretly during a get-together with the Kaiser’s personal friends, had him expressing support for the First Strike Legion, a new and growing political faction in the Reich.
The revelation was a bombshell in the German political sphere. While there was no direct law prohibiting the Kaiser from engaging in politics, it had been common practice to avoid direct political commentary since the signing of the 1968 constitution.
But more important was who he was expressing support for. The First Strike Legion was not a political party per se. Instead, it was an interest group campaigning for a more direct response to the Lavis Republic. While their critics would label them jingoists, they had little in common with the militarists German politics were used to. The most significant departure was their focus on international cooperation. The Legion did not just support working with other Europäischer Wirtschaftsbund states or the Central African Federation, but also established bonds with similar organisations in Russia, China, Canada and New England. They argued that the lilarobius would not differentiate between the various nations, so humanity would have to meet them as one.
A Legion protest in Ontario. While the protests rarely turned violent, the heated atmosphere at them invariably led to heavy police presence.
Von Kleist found his position further undermined when the Bernhard Walther made a startling discovery later that year. While investigating strange weather patterns found on a gas giant in the Ditrim system, they were surprised to find the weather talking back. Using techniques pioneered during first contact with the Curator Order, the crew was able to establish basic contact with the Dathnak, a species of sentient gasses.
The dathnak were humanity’s first encounter with some of the stranger forms of life in the galaxy. They would not be the last. Ongoing contact with them would greatly help in humanity’s study of life, sapience and consciousness.
It didn’t take long for the KWO to receive permission to aid the dathnak, and soon an alternative homeworld was located[1]. The plans proceeded smoothly, and diplomatic relations were established, though, given the dathnak’s non-corporeal nature, there was minimal interaction beyond the exchange of ideas and knowledge.
The dathnak were more influential as a symbol. Anika Ribbentrop seized the story of their near extinction and asked if humanity were to suffer the same fate, would a saviour appear at the last minute. She then argued for casting aside the Space Militarisation Agreement and undertaking an expansion to the Raumstreitkräfte. She would not only replace the now fifty year old Agatha Dorn warships with modern designs, but also expand the fleet to six ships. In a series of debates, she expertly played into the fears of the German populace, portraying von Kleist as timid and unwilling to make sacrifices to safeguard humanity[2].
It worked. In the January 2112 election, Anika Ribbentrop and her coalition won 59.7% of the Reichstag seats, earning her the right to petition the Kaiser to form a new government. The win was not unexpected. In fact, it was somewhat lesser than expected. This was due to the unexpected success of the Europäische Einheitspartei, a party that only occasionally won a seat and was generally considered a fringe party. In the 2112 election, they had won seven seats. Their leader, Adrian Vetter, had campaigned on a policy of offence instead of defence, arguing that Germany should create a great battlefleet and invade the Lavis Republic. A firm believer in German technical superiority (seemingly based only on his four-year service as a gunner in the Panzerwaffe), he dismissed any risk that could come from open conflict.
Anika Ribbentrop was pronounced as the new German Chancellor on the 14th of February, 2112. She immediately went to work. Just four days later the Ministry of Defence announced Germany’s intention to withdraw from the Space Militarisation Agreement. Two days after that, a bill was proposed in the Reichstag to build six new Edelweiss class gunships.
The new Edelweiss’ were in terms of defence and firepower a slight upgrade compared to the previous Agatha Dorns. Their chief improvement was the inclusion of the Perrin-Engberg drive from the start, unlike their predecessors which had been retrofitted to allow for hyperlane travel. This improvement led to better compartmentalisation in the event of damage.
The Russo-Chinese shipyard Gorizont/Dìpíngxiàn (Горизонт/地平线) following its completion. While only possessing three slipways, compared to the Kaiser Wilhelm II Shipyards’ five, the slipways were almost twice as large. This gave the shipyards a massive advantage when constructing bulk transport, which formed the majority of the yards’ business.
In many ways, the 2112 election marked the end of the optimism of the 2110s. The following years would see an increase in suspicion and anxiety, both among the Great Powers, but also their citizens. Germany had struck out into the great unknown, dragging the rest of humanity along. In doing so, Germany had found its greatest threat since the Second French Commune. But this time it wasn’t just the Hohenzollern dynasty that risked extinction.
[1] Ironically, the new homeworld was in the Alpha Centauri system. The dathnak were informed about the political situation with the Lavis Republic, but seeing as the choice was between certain death and potential death, the choice was simple. In time the dathnak would establish a second colony, both as a security measure and due to a population boom following the evacuation.
[2] Von Kleist and the SPD were in fact campaigning on significant increases to military spending as well. However, they were focusing on the Heligoland defensive plan, which was increasingly viewed as too passive. They were also unwilling to fund their military expenditures with cuts to basic income and services. This allowed the opposition to present far grander plans to the public.
[3] The proposed plan had the Erich Burchwald deorbit, to be placed in an exhibition connected to the Hamburg Technical Museum. However, engineers soon raised concerns that the ship would break apart upon hitting the atmosphere, as the ships had never been designed to work outside a vacuum. The Erich Burchwald was instead permanently placed into the number 3 dock at the Bismarck Transit Station.
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