Black-Bart

In his keynote speech at a recent conference, Karl Devene, head of the Federal Astrocartography Department, warned would-be explorers of the dangers of venturing into the void:
“While there are some very well-organised expeditions, many are poorly prepared and have no goals beyond pursuing ridiculous myths echoing back from the edge of inhabited space. It is dangerous and irresponsible to venture into uncharted areas without proper discipline.”
“What we need is sound astrocartographic data – not a bunch of amateurs traipsing all over the place and making a complete mess of the whole situation.”
“I will be making deputations to various authorities to curtail these activities and leave exploration in the hands of the professionals.”
“If humanity finds itself in a first-contact position, do we really want some grubby, ill-prepared spacer to be our envoy? I think not.”Update from Galnet News

Arque Commodities has announced that its campaign to clear the Arque system of agitators has been a success. Hundreds of pilots responded to the appeal, taking to their ships to eliminate the criminals operating in the system.
Authorities in the Arque system have extended their gratitude to those who participated in the operation.
Rewards for those who contributed to the initiative are now available for collection at Austen Town Station.Update from Galnet News

The latest development in the ongoing Federal-Imperial conflict takes the form of a statement from Admiral Denton Patreus, who has announced plans to add three new Majestic-class Interdictors to the Imperial fleet. The announcement comes only a week after the successful conclusion of a Federal campaign to amass material for three new Farragut-class Battlecruisers.
In a candid statement, Admiral Patreus said:
“We cannot stand idly by while the Federation attempts to establish a monopoly over the meta-alloys. And if the Empire does not oppose the Federation, who will?”
“So as long as the Federation continues to expand its navy, we will continue to match it, ship for ship.”
The Empire has placed an open order for supplies and has authorised the Morai Nobles to reward pilots who deliver autofabricators, tantalum and superconductors to van de Hulst Vision in the Morai system.
The campaign begins on the 25th of August 3302 and will run for one week. If the Empire’s targets are met earlier than planned, the campaign will end immediately.Update from Galnet News

Recent articles published by the Imperial Citizen may have inspired an act of violence in the Cemiess system over the weekend. Commander Nodus Cursorius of the Chapterhouse of Inquisition reported a transmission from Commander Salomé of the Children of Raxxla, indicating that her ship had been attacked by unknown forces.
A transcript of Commander Salomé’s distress call follows:
“Heavy fire…mayday! Imperial markings! Traitors… Shields are down, we’re taking damage…it’s… I thought I sensed his arrogance! How dare… We’re being boarded. I only have moments. Please get word to the Children of Raxxla, tell them I have new information. The Rift, Hawkin’s Gap and the Conflux are connected with strange happenings in the Pleiades. They must find out before…”
At that point Commander Salomé’s transmission was silenced. Despite a thorough search, no sign of her has yet been found.
The Imperial Citizen had suggested that Commander Salomé is in fact Senator Kahina Tijani Loren of the Prism system. The publication also implied that she had engineered the events that led to her family’s death in order to position herself as heiress of the Loren family dynasty.
JaiotuUpdate from Galnet News

The Colonia Nebula is a relatively innocuous region of space encompassing the Eol Prou RS-T d3-94 system. It is also likely to become a major bastion of humanity in the years to come.
Public interest in the Colonia Nebula was piqued by the arrival in Eol Prou RS-T d3-94 of Jaques Station, which dropped into the system after making an unsuccessful attempt to jump to Beagle Point. In the weeks that followed, pilots started ferrying goods to Jaques Station to repair the damaged starport – an initiative that captured the imagination of the galactic community. The region soon became a focus for those who fear that a war between the Federation and the Empire may be looming, and who hope to escape it.
A coordinated campaign to establish a permanent outpost in the region, organised by the 80 DD-D 774-CE-2 faction, is already underway and a second is about to begin. The 80 DD-D 774-CE-2 faction has announced plans to establish an outpost in the Colonia Nebula, and has placed an open order for materials for use in the construction.
A spokesperson for the organisation said:
“A new beginning. A new tomorrow. That’s what the Colonia Nebula represents. A chance to create an interstellar community free from the internecine conflicts that blight so much of inhabited space. With your help, we can make it happen.”
The 80 DD-D 774-CE-2 faction has promised to reward pilots who deliver titanium, semiconductors and robotics to Jaques Station in the Eol Prou RS-T d3-94 system. The campaign begins on the 18th of August 3302 and will run for two weeks.Update from Galnet News

Recent reports indicate that an attempt was made on the life of Admiral Denton Patreus as he delivered a speech at Mackenzie Relay in the Cemiess system. The Imperial Internal Security Service confirmed that it apprehended three individuals carrying firearms who attempted to approach the admiral’s podium.
Following the incident, Admiral Patreus appeared slightly shaken but said: “I will never submit to terror. These individuals will be brought to justice.”
Subsequent reports identified the culprits as belonging to the organisation Emperor’s Dawn, but it is rumoured that the dissidents were bankrolled and supported by a second party.
“Emperor’s Dawn was smashed – it’s history,” said a researcher for the Imperial Citizen. “Someone else was behind this – someone with a major grudge against Patreus.”Update from Galnet News

The Canonn Interstellar Research group has discovered, recorded and translated a tight-beam transmission from an Unknown Probe directed at Merope 5c.
Research into the Probes has so far been hindered by their scarcity, but with the number of Probes found increasing, transmission analysis efforts ramped up, leading to successful decryption. The transmission was found to contain blocks of octal numbers describing planetary data such as radius, surface temperature, gravity and atmospheric composition.
The nature of the ‘receiver’ on Merope 5c is now under investigation.
Commander MuetdhiverUpdate from Galnet News

Continuing our popular series on significant episodes from human history, noted historian Sima Kalhana discusses generation ships.
“Before the development of faster-than-light travel, colonising distant star systems was a profoundly difficult proposition. For the people of the 21st Century, the answer was the generation ship. These vast interstellar arks, equipped with everything needed to sustain human life, were crewed by multiple successive generations – pioneers who were born, lived and died aboard a starship.”
“The first generation ship was launched in 2097, and in the centuries that followed, many more set off into the vastness of space. Most of these ambitious expeditions were funded by large corporations, and the penalties for interfering with them were severe, given the enormous cost of mobilising them.”
“At the time of writing, there are believed to be somewhere in the region of 70,000 generation ships coursing through the galaxy. The approximate location of most of these ships has been calculated, but not all are accounted for. Many of the corporations that funded the original generation ships have now been dissolved or assimilated by other organisations, so it is difficult to determine exactly who is responsible for some of these vessels.”
“It has been theorised that some of the original generation ships may soon reach their destinations, but since not all of those destinations are known, it is entirely possible that they could have been colonised while the generation ships were in transit. We can only hope the powers-that-be have a contingency strategy for such a scenario.”Update from Galnet News

The Imperial Citizen has published its second editorial on Commander Salomé, who the Citizen alleges is Lady Kahina Tijani Loren, the missing Imperial senator.
“According to Lady Kahina’s account, she escaped a hardened gang of freedom fighters and faced down a notorious pirate lord. Is it not more likely that she colluded with these terrorists to murder her family so she could become a senator? Is it not convenient that she slaughtered these terrorists before they could be questioned, and then did the same to her mentor? And with a sword, too.”
“Don’t forget that Kahina almost triggered a war between the Empire and the Federation. Thousands died in that battle – a battle she started. Heroine of the Prism system? Hardly. She was responsible for the largest loss of life that Imperial outpost ever saw, exceeding even her father’s appalling legacy.”
“Not content with acquiring her father’s senatorial position via her so-called ‘reclamation’, Lady Kahina then gallivanted around the core worlds trying to gain support in a bid to become Emperor. She soon found, however, that her self-image was out of step with reality. But did she return to her supposedly beloved homeworld? Of course not. She disappeared for several months only to reappear, as if she were the patron saint of explorers, on the far side of the galaxy in the Distant Worlds Expedition.”
“Along the way she engendered the support of misfits, miscreants, starry-eyed explorers and dissident organisations masquerading as legitimate factions. Why she seeks such support is not known.”
“Have no doubt – this so-called ‘lady’ is no saint. Whatever she does is solely to further her own interests, manipulating those around her as she has always done. She is clearly deluded, but her powers of persuasion are formidable. Many have sworn loyalty to her, particularly those disaffected by the politics of the core worlds.”
“Beautiful and charismatic she may be, but she is also a bloodthirsty, selfish and manipulative individual who will stop at nothing to achieve her goals. Do not trust a word she says.”Update from Galnet News

Following a week of conflict, the Pleiades Resource Enterprise has confirmed that the Federation has taken control of the Pleiades Sector IH-V C2-16 system, having ousted the incumbent Imperial Inquisition. In a statement, a spokesperson for the organisation thanked the many Federal pilots who took part in the operation.
“This victory brings with it the promise of a brighter tomorrow – a brighter tomorrow for the people of IH-V C2-16, who are now free from the dehumanising influence of the Empire, and a brighter tomorrow for the Federation, which has gained a valuable strategic asset.”Update from Galnet News