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Twigster -> Erutkah (8/13/2016 10:21:49 PM)
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Imperial Galactic Strategic Command, Vrilya
24 January 2387, 1231 hrs.
Grand Admiral Senaris Lapuri, Supreme Commander of Imperial Space and Ground Forces had not slept in two days and could not be removed from Imperial Strategic Command Headquarters by force. As far as he was concerned the Second Shakturi War began a month ago, when the first of the first four espionage strikes against the Erutkah Refugees had been successfully concluded. The Emperor had finally authorized the covert war to begin-thankfully-which was why the Empire had temporarily penetrated the Erutkah command functions, allowing access to positions, strengths and orders of all of the enemy’s military units in the Galaxy- which was why the Grand Admiral could not sleep. The Erutkah could reveal themselves to actually be the Shakturi to the rest of the Galaxy at any time, and Lapuri wanted to be able to strike as immediately after that as possible. The situation could not really be any more tense. The ‘Erutkah Refugees’ had arrived in a remote system at the Edge of the Galaxy, some forty thousand light years from Imperial space, in September of 2377 while the Empire was still busily engaged in meaningful recovery from the Ortain Wars. For some five years after that nobody within the Imperial chain of command gave them much thought, though some at STRATCOM found it curious that the Emperor had cancelled long-planned forays into the Ancient Zones following communications with the Sentient Computer Core facility. Then in 2382 freighters and other private vessels began reporting a good deal of Daidalun Supremacy fleet activity in the Erutkah system, and this caught the attention of local sector commanders and thereby of STRATCOM itself. A scout ship was sent to observe what was happening and it was learned that Vilmuueni 3 was under blockade by the Phaerax fleet. Following this revelation, and another year of intensifying investigation by the responsible Imperial ministries and fleet commands, the prevailing view had become that indeed the Erutkah were the second return of the Shakturi. Scans and further intelligence activities indicated that the Erutkah ground battalions were extremely strong, and that after an initial period where they had constructed logistics bases throughout their half of the Galaxy, the Erutkah were now busily engaged in building a fleet of hundreds of warships. In fact, over the course of the time that the Empire had subjected them to increased scrutiny it was known that they were constructing larger and larger ships as well. Finally in 2384 the Empire’s Command Fleet appeared in orbit over Vilmuueni 3 and was actually authorized to attack the Erutkah’s space port before being recalled suddenly by Imperial order. It had been observed that the Phaerax fleet had ended its blockade of the Phaerax planet and the Ministry of External Affairs had at that time prevailed upon the Emperor not to risk a Galaxy-wide provocation. After all, as far as the rest of the Galaxy was concerned, the line of reasoning went, the Erutkah were just a single-planet civilization trying to survive. STRATCOM did, however, persuade the Emperor to slowly begin to move fleets to the Imperial sectors closest to where Erutkah activity was being observed. Another couple of years of watching greatly increased Erutkah activity- facilitated by an ongoing scouting mission in the Vilmuueni system- finally gave STRATCOM and the Ministry of Intelligence enough evidence needed to persuade the Privy Council and the Emperor to authorize the beginning of the espionage war and to move Imperial units that much closer to combat readiness. Disconcertingly, intelligence had revealed the presence of Phaerax and Vekundur ambassadors on Vilmuueni 3, as well as clear evidence of the insectoid races (the Phaerax, Vekundur and Paratis) cooperating with the Erutkah in military spheres too. It had also been learned that the Erutkah Refugees held the Boskaran Lorideos Collective as a Protectorate and that they themselves were a Protectorate of the Paratis Conformity, as well as having a Free Trade Agreement with the Vekundur. A troubling picture had emerged of the Galactic insectoid races cooperating with the Refugees- meaning, the Shakturi.
Lapuri was of the opinion that it was unclear how much longer the Empire would be able to exercise restraint now that the preponderance of evidence was so undeniable that the Shakturi had returned and that a new galactic war was imminent, regardless. All the more so now that half of the Ministry of Intelligence was engaged in operations to steal enemy technology, expose their military plans and sabotage or destroy Erutkah installations. It was a chilling thought that some of the Galaxy’s most powerful empires might join the latest Shakturi attempt to conquer this Galaxy- what would happen should an Imperial agent be captured by the Erutkah, or a fleet commander decide to open fire without orders was unknown- and therefore all the more worrisome. As of January 2387 there were four major wars waging in the Galaxy: the Core-Abiddon war, the Faerax-Napoar war, the Paratis-Ikkuro conflict and the fight between the Naxilian on one side and the Napoar and the Verkundur on the other. The Empire itself had Free Trade Agreements with both the Tarapin and the Abiddon; there was strong pressure being applied to help the Pliados Realm in their fight with the Core Axis. There had not been an attempted blockade of Clotoa since 2374, but the Core seemed intent on trying again. STRATCOM had long been of the opinion that a punitive expedition against the Core might convince them to stop their exercises against Clotoa, especially considering how badly beaten the Core force was during the last attempt, due to Clotoa’s orbital defenses having been greatly strengthened. The Tarapin Coalition was far and away the most powerful empire in the Galaxy by January 2387, producing the highest private revenue, maintaining 9 resort bases-the most in the Galaxy- and by maintaining 5,450 ground battalions on their 67 colonies, again the most in the Galaxy. The Core Axis was the next most powerful, themselves holing 60 colonies and being currently famous for having mined the most luxury resources. The Naxilian military dictatorship of the Char Dilba came next, not being overly note-worthy other than for being the third most powerful empire in the Galaxy. Next are the Paratis, feared as much for their terrifying fleet of 3,970 warships as they are for their very potent espionage force. The Phaerax are currently known for being at war for longer than any other Galactic power at 31.3 years, though the Daidalun Supremacy was quietly ridiculed for the extremely large number of ships it loses in battle. The Empire itself is reckoned the next most powerful entity, known for having the Galactic Archives, the most space ports, for having lost the fewest ships and bases in battle and for having the most effective counter-intelligence system. Next come the Ikkuro, whose legendary fleets are said to have destroyed 5,384 enemy ships and bases. Not much is known about the Ikkuro, but based on this alone STRATCOM hopes that they will side against the Shakturi in the coming war. The Vekundur rank next, having constructed the Hive Mind complex. The Pliados Realm, the Faliin Technocracy and the Lorideos Collective round out the list, the Pliados known for loving to construct bases, the last two attention-worthy only because of their mediocrity.
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