Gehenna churns bellow the flashing motes of light as waves of boiling metal sweep over the orbiting ship hulls, radiation piercing through space like echoing gunshots as atomic warheads detonate against armored starship. Fighters pass in rapid streaks ahead of their payloads, leading ferrous slugs of metal and kinetic warheads as they slam into the formed fleets, puncturing armor and rupturing shields. Point defense guns pivot and wait in anticipation as the strike craft hurl past at speeds well above what the naked eye could ever perceive, and with quick bursts of fire cut down the passing ships one by one, turning the tiny ships into charred ash and dissipating chunks of slag shotgunning across the system. The fighters that survive continue on their way, chased by interceptors as the Commonwealth fleet's formation breaks and the ships begin to launch their payloads, firing clouds of medium range missiles and railgun rounds at the decelerating Union fleet closing in on their position in Gehenna orbit.
A moment later, the second salvo hits, cracking through the hull of a cruiser with a silent flash of light that sends its armored hull rippling like water as it boils in an instant, and the ship begins to spin, sending water and atmosphere bleeding out into space in a wide arc as in the distance flashing of light sparkle among the Union ships, the attackers' shields flaring like the glimmering teeth of some great animal's maw.
GAS THE SQUIDS NUKE THE WHALES STAB THE MONKEYS TRUST NOTHING THE VOID IS WATCHING US
Nathaniel Campbell
Time for Diplomacy
Caleb Myers
IT IS TIME.
TIME FOR HIVE QUEEN QUEST.
Adrian Clark
Reminder to check the thinkers locked memories.
Eli Thomas
We really must tell the Commonwealth what we're doing on Gemini.
And we really must wrap these negotiations up quickly. I'm sure the Valen ambassdor on Gemini right now is desperately scrambling to get to a Q-Comm to notify the greater Valen clans of this. If he hasn't accomplished it already you'd better bet he'll redouble his efforts when he hears we're trying to get ALL the Expanse worlds including Aral where their hypergate priest currently is.
On the upside if we pull all of this off and capture their hypergate priest and then get hypergate tech the Valen will probably respect the shit out of us for our cleverness and dickery until the end of their days.
Camden Harris
Not yet.
Lucas Roberts
HYPE for mother
Benjamin Cruz
Why? I agree on telling the commonwealth about this.
Aaron Jones
We could easily capture Aral planet whether they know about that or not.
Jose Brown
I fully agree, now is the right time to look at it.
Jeremiah Mitchell
But we want to capture the planet WITH the Valen that's overseeing the hypergate construction on it rather than without him. It would give us quite the bargaining chip to any dealings we have with the.
Robert Richardson
Because the void is likely to start their attack if we do.
Henry Bennett
HYYYYPE
Brandon Reed
Q&A session with Gemini citizens when?
Kevin Long
IT'S HIVE TIME
Jason Sanders
oh, oh dear, are we gonna have to help with that?
Ryder Jackson
...
Nathan Taylor
There is nothing that could possibly be in that thinker that would increase Their interest in us beyond what it already is after Tenebris. This is one of mothers thinkers here, not a void shard.
Fully second bringing the Commonwealth into the loop about our negotiations with the Union.
Connor Hall
That doesn't make sense. It's not like the psionic canon, where we're messing with parts of them. We could try to (non-psychically) prob for some info of what it's hiding.
Austin Perez
They will probably only send ceph raids at us when we read, unless the tinker memories has information on the void gods weakness that they have to manifest on space to destroy us i don't expect them to come.
Jayden Perez
Are you not posting the various tech and resource posts anymore?
Joshua Cox
The only way he could leave so quickly is if they finished the Hypergate.
Evan Parker
He could have a ship with a canderon-based FTL drive for exactly this reason.
Kevin Cox
This is a continuation to last weeks threads. The week after next will be the next real big thread
Jason Allen
>There is nothing that could possibly be in that thinker that would increase Their interest in us
It's not about 'interest'. It's about their capabilities, which are dependent on the state of their target.
We don't know at what tier of Fucked those locked memories are. They might be at or below our current level, or they might be above. It's a gamble.
It turns out they were only ignoring us before because it believed we were not a threat, that nothing could stop them now, nothing!!!
And then we stopped the climax of their master plan that has been cooking for like a hundred years at the 11th hour.
Look at the thread number. it's still the same day as 4 threads ago, time has not advanced.
Samuel Sanders
We could easily intercept those.
Owen King
Chaos surrounds your ambassador drone as technicians and officers swarm about the room. Admiral Yogesh stands proudly as he examines the readiness reports of the fleets placed under his command fill the display before him. Several of the monitors along the room's periphery fill with news and alerts as a low murmur begins to wash over the technicians and comm officers, until someone quickly moves to Yogesh with a data pad and a look of grave concern. He takes the data pad and looks at it a moment before going wide-eyed, and with a flick of his finger sends the images to the central holo-display.
A vast armada of hive ships floats through the sky of Gemini, casting innumerable shadows across the city as static discharge leaps from ship to ship like lighting, your Hive ship's shadow blocking out what little sunlight there is in the evening twilight as the city is cast in shadow. Klaxons blare and screams echo through the streets over the sounds of distant sirens and the shouted orders of PDF troopers. The camera jitters with static, flickering as nearby advertisement holograms stutter and die, shattering into floating motes of static as their speakers begin to chitter and murmur with a choir of inhuman voices.
Admiral Yogesh eyes your drone carefully without tilting his head as your speaker watches the display with veiled amusement, and then turns back to the officer.
"When was this?"
"A few hours ago, roughly. The spacetime difference on Gemini is-" Yogesh waves a hand in dismissal as he cuts off the officer.
"Does Magnus know?"
cont.
I am very sorry for missing last week's regular thread, but I was quite ill at the time. Very sorry. As for this week, due to scheduling issues I'll be unable to run for very long, and will need to miss next week. Because of this, I figured it would be best to just run a .5 tonight, and save the big 60 for the next full thread which should be on the 21st.
Carter Ross
Seems like the Commonwealth already knows.
Adrian Nelson
...How did they get this footage off of Gemini with the quantum comm shutdown?
Jack Rogers
spies
Evan Thomas
They only closed off UNION Q-Comms. There is bound to be COmmonwealth spies with their own illegal q-comms
You idiot
Elijah Young
not a problem QD, its not like we're paying you to do this
Brandon King
Hope you get better soon
Kill a goat to gain blessings from the gods
Nathan Wilson
Breaking my heart here QD but that's fair. Hope your health rebounds.
Bentley Perez
Just do your best to stay healthy and well-rested. please don't go on a hiatus again. I'm not sure I could handle the withdrawal from the drug that is HQQ without you again.
Christopher Cox
You're the last user who should get to call other anons idiots, user.
Gavin Cruz
pls no not again this is how it starts
Logan Myers
So for all purposes we should act under the notion that commonwealth and valen clans spies have seen our fleet over the planet and will be basing future diplomacy on what happens here between us and the union
Wait unity must be seeing this! so what is that nerd saying back on Zero pol
Joshua Foster
I'm sure some iterations of our second/third-favourite nerd are squee-ing while anticipating the repercussions of our opening hand.
Before you ask, our favourite nerd is our daughteru of course.
Jason Sanchez
Followed by Lee
Carson Campbell
"No. He's still in the middle of his speech." The officer says. He pulls up the stream of the speech, with Magnus gripping his podium like a wrestling opponent as he shouts from a balcony flanked by banners of the Commonwealth's member worlds, all held between several dozen story long Commonwealth flags draped over the face of the building from which he speaks. Beneath him, in the streets illuminated by the light cast back from the spotlights affixed onto the massive eagles of the Commonwealth flags, battalions of troopers march along a parade ground to a number of waiting troop transports. The admiral looks over the spectacle with some hint of disapproval.
"A bit flashy, but it gets the message across." He says. "Make sure someone tells him after the speech and to contact me as soon as he can." The officer nods quickly and turns to leave. Admiral Yogesh looks you your drone expectantly. After a short moment of silence between you he speaks.
"You have no obligation to explain your interactions with other nations to us, but I would appreciate if you did." He says.
>Write in
While there won't be a thread this coming week, after that I do hope to get a few midweek threads up before running 60 on the 21st, so hopefully it won't be that long.
Luke Ross
that is fucking uncanny
Asher Young
I'm not sure what the fuss is about, I assume that anything that one civilization does all the others know within the hour, when it comes to the Human/Valen/Squids.
Landon Johnson
They attracted the wrong type of attention
Charles Collins
We need to explain why we are getting involved after they asked us to ally with them
Explain that the union fucked up with void shards big time
Adrian Turner
Inform him they contacted biblical deamons.
That about as close an analogy as we can provide them while keeping their concept of them safely vauge, since knowledge is a gateway.
Jordan Foster
Human politics are human politics.
Hive had to chastise the Union for their foolish actions.
Logan White
"The Union made a mistake. A big mistake. We've already the Magnus this much."
Josiah Fisher
They preformed the greatest heresy possible and we are now "Negotiating" for releasing the expanse, our ancestral home, to us.
Colton Ross
The Union has engaged with forces outside it's understanding and has brought the attention of dangerous beings to this section of space. The Hive will deal with this and extract a price from the Union in return. This will be non-negotiable.
Grayson Young
> resent union actions have increased the hives need for resources so the hive is currently making its claim of the space you humans call the expanse
Owen Gomez
They were stinking up the place. Being unsanitary. Contamination.
In human terms, it is classified.
Jason Reed
Remember when we told you that the Union was placing us all in grave danger? Well, they went ahead with it, and cost the hive dearly in doing so.
Wyatt Lewis
This, we need to let the Commonwealth know we're trying to gain the Expanse.
Carson Wilson
We should also tell them that we hate Killinger and list off his crimes which include the Mirage incident.
Brandon Brown
Magnus wasn't there, user, geez. it was Yogesh we told there was a disturbance.
Levi Cooper
Nah
We cant be seen as expansionary power cause it make the cw think we are going to take over their planets after were done with the scavs
And we did say something about the union messing with things big time already
Gabriel Roberts
Guess I misremembered.
Grayson Brown
So I know this will be a controversial suggestion but I vote for cloning Seiner. BUT AS A CHIMERA Best way to spook Killinger
Also we need to get Lee his abomination-cat
Carter Howard
May not matter if the war starts today
Dominic Torres
They were expanding into our territory. No.
Lucas Hill
>We cant be seen as expansionary power cause it make the cw think we are going to take over their planets after were done with the scavs Hahahaha No. Those will be our worlds, the Commonwealth can come over if they play nice.
Jonathan Powell
"Humans have made grave blunders in the Union. This speaker has informed you of this." Your drone chirps. "The Hive was forced to intervene for the safety of all, at great cost, and is now negotiating with the human Union." The admiral looks at you with some suspicion.
"I ask because helping us against the Union wasn't exactly a part of our deal, and I would like to know exactly what it was they did so we can avoid doing it ourselves." He says.
>Inform him the Hive is reestablishing its ancient claims on the Expanse >Inform him it is connected to the contents of the Mirage wreck, and its retrieval is of great importance >Inform him it is related to research into 'forbidden technology' >Write in >Other
This is a decently accurate assumption. The various established factions have been spying on each other for quite some time, so anything big that happens like, well, everything you've been doing in the past few weeks, will manage to make the rounds in the rumor mill rather quickly
Thomas Thompson
>>Inform him the Hive is reestablishing its ancient claims on the Expanse >>Inform him it is connected to the contents of the Mirage wreck, and its retrieval is of great importance >>Inform him it is related to research into 'forbidden technology'
Thomas Martin
>Inform him the Hive is reestablishing its ancient claims on the Expanse >Inform him it is connected to the contents of the Mirage wreck, and its retrieval is of great importance >Inform him it is related to research into 'forbidden technology'
Chase Mitchell
>>Inform him it is related to research into 'forbidden technology'
Evan Gonzalez
>Inform him it is connected to the contents of the Mirage wreck, and its retrieval is of great importance >Inform him it is related to research into 'forbidden technology'
Alexander Reed
I propose we have the ambassador drone say something like >"The hive has an enemy. One that enslaved the Ceph, the Skyla and a Queen. One that grows stronger the more that is known about him. One that the Union were about to bring into this corner of reality." and to refuse to explain that part of the topic further.
Lincoln Price
>Inform him the Hive is reestablishing its ancient claims on the Expanse >Inform him it is connected to the contents of the Mirage wreck, and its retrieval is of great importance
Camden Russell
>>Inform him the Hive is reestablishing its ancient claims on the Expanse >>Inform him it is connected to the contents of the Mirage wreck, and its retrieval is of great importance >>Inform him it is related to research into 'forbidden technology' And we cannot emphasize just how 'forbidden' this is.
Asher Jenkins
>Inform him the Hive is reestablishing its ancient claims on the Expanse >Inform him it is connected to the contents of the Mirage wreck, and its retrieval is of great importance >Inform him it is related to research into 'forbidden technology'
Oliver Phillips
>Inform him it is connected to the contents of the Mirage wreck, and its retrieval is of great importance Also just tell him "black crystals with strange energy are BAD BAD BAD, do not touch them"
Caleb Foster
>Inform him the Hive is reestablishing its ancient claims on the Expanse >Inform him it is connected to the contents of the Mirage wreck, and its retrieval is of great importance >Inform him it is related to research into 'forbidden technology' The enslaver has seen us, and now it watches. Also supporting this.
Nicholas Mitchell
Should we mention how this same forbidden technology destroyed Luna?
James Cook
We should also express to him we were trying to hide until this point. >Inform him the Hive is reestablishing its ancient claims on the Expanse >Inform him it is connected to the contents of the Mirage wreck, and its retrieval is of great importance >Inform him it is related to research into 'forbidden technology' We should also that they are not our only allies and the Scavs are not our only enemies.
Eli Hernandez
>Inform him the Hive is reestablishing its ancient claims on the Expanse >Inform him it is connected to the contents of the Mirage wreck, and its retrieval is of great importance >Ignorance is their best protection >Explain that all that have faced the outside menace have either perrished, where enslaved or forced to sacrifice the majority of their existance to escape their view
Charles Garcia
Not yet, let's hold off on that until we're ready to ask the Commonwealth for all data related to the weapon they built there.
Ayden Cook
Probably not. Then they'd know it's also a path to fleet destroying ultimate power after checking the archives.
No admiral alive probably remembers the details of the lunar death ray, but they can find out if they have something to cross reference.
Jayden Hernandez
Damn do I love that imagery of our armada.
Liam Smith
>they By this I mean the Commonwealth.
Carson Garcia
>Inform him it is related to research into 'forbidden technology'
Forbidden
FORBIDDEN
O
R
B
I
D
D
E
N
Michael Wright
Yes, be sure to extra emphasize FORBIDDEN.
Brandon Smith
oh fuck its back!!! HAPPIEST TIME OF THE WEEK.
Angel Clark
This
Brandon Harris
FORBIDDEN OO R R B B I I D D D D E E N N
Oliver Jones
Supporting >Inform him the Hive is reestablishing its ancient claims on the Expanse >Inform him it is connected to the contents of the Mirage wreck, and its retrieval is of great importance
Adam Rogers
NECRONOMICON
Levi Martin
How about this: we ask them to show us all their super-secret research shit on the promise of us helping with anything that we don't deem FORBIDDEN and on condition of them halting anything we deem so. Offer Scav's FTL drive - full schematics plus a couple of human-style ships equipped with it - as hands down offer, given they are likely to be investigating it already.
Do you think they'd be up for that?
Jaxson Brown
Nahhh.
We should be as vague as possible. White Queen indicates vagueing it up is safer. No identifying specifics about the enemy's associations.
Jace Parker
Fuck, let me try this again.
FORBIDDEN OO RR BB II DD DD EE NN
Alexander Garcia
QUEST DRONE MY LORD AND MASTER BEHIND THE QUEEN!
How big are thinkers?
Andrew Miller
You do know that: Forbidden = shiny do want! Unless we explain. I suggest: The closest approximation we could find in you culture without damning you would be the fictional works of one Howard Phillips Lovecraft, just worse by approximately several orders of magnitude.
Nolan Turner
I support this. I've never been a big fan of hiding everything from the humans
Jonathan Price
IT IS FORBODEN
Easton Russell
FORBIDDEN O E R D B D I I D B D R E O NEDDIBROF
Oliver Young
From the pastebin on hive biology: >Thinker – On their own, the thinker resembles a bloated beetle with a two foot radius. Its entire body is a brain, with no sensory or digestive organs, and no method of independent movement.
Grayson Phillips
>Inform him the Hive is reestablishing its ancient claims on the Expanse >Inform him it is connected to the contents of the Mirage wreck, and its retrieval is of great importance >Inform him it is related to research into 'forbidden technology'
Also >Other The Union has been engaged in varying levels of hostilities against both the Hive and some of its allies, and we wish this opposition to end, one way or another. We have more important threats to prepare to face. Explain along the lines of They're going to be very concerned with the basics of who our friends and enemies are, so they can feel that they understand our basic motivations and can trust them.
Cooper Howard
Veeky Forums automatically deletes repeated spaces, those word boxes won't work if you're going to be lazy about it and only do the outside.
