Black-Bart

Fight Against Cerberus Plague Continues

The drive to deliver quantities of Ceremonial Heike Tea to Hart Station in the Bast System continues, as the starport’s medical teams work around the clock to create as much of the Cerberus Plague antidote as they can. According to Carl Simmons, the Chief Medical Officer of Newton Dock, the rare tea is the only substance that can counter the virulent effects of the disease.
Independent pilots who are in a position to help with the effort are reminded that the Union Of Bast Liberals is offering incentives to pilots who deliver Ceremonial Heike Tea, which can only be purchased in Brunel City Station in Heike, to Hart Station.Update from Galnet News

Remembering the Antares Incident

Continuing GalNet’s exclusive series highlighting key events in human history, historian Sima Kalhana remembers the Antares Incident.
In last week’s article about the Sirius Corporation, I described the Antares iIncident as one of the corporation’s greatest failures. Until the recent disappearance of Starship One, this was considered the most infamous spacegoing accident of all time.
The Highliner Antares was to be the first of a new type of fast, comfortable liner, making a trip in hours rather than the weeks that were common at the time, and offering a previously unseen level of luxury – something we are accustomed to in the top-class liners of today. It was the first ship to use a production version of a new type of hyperdrive, a predecessor to the modern fast hyperdrives.
The Antares vanished during its maiden voyage in the Sirius system in 3251, with many celebrity guests on board. The event is poignantly remembered in this quote from the Federal Times:
“Your reporter watched the departure of Antares on her maiden voyage, the monolayer streamers glinting in the harsh light of Sirius as she moved gently away from the orbital habitat and out to launch range. Spacemen talk of a graveyard of lost ships, a place where all who lose their lives in the colossal drive to colonise the galaxy rest in gentle luxury.
“We can be sure that the great Highliner Antares is now in their company.”
The exact cause of the accident was never properly determined. The final report indicated that it was most likely caused by the unlucky failure of a single component during the start of the jump, causing a small fire in a key part of the drive that resulted in a massive explosion and consequent misjump at the same time. There were, of course, a great many fanciful explanations, too.
Since the accident, no confirmed wreckage of the ship has ever been found, although several claims of discovery have been made over the years. Combined with the lack of a definitive cause, this has led to considerable speculation and many conspiracy theories concerning what actually occurred.
The final safety report into the incident found there were insufficient safety precautions within the internal drive systems. This delayed the commercial introduction of these drives for several years, damaging the Sirius Corporation, and ultimately resulting in the fitting of many additional safety features to these new hyperdrives. It was later speculated that the deaths of those on the Highliner Antares effectively saved the lives of many more in the subsequent decades, as the number of ships that went missing was measurably reduced, and the new drives proved to be much more reliable than the earlier, slower drives they replaced.Update from Galnet News

The Sim-Archive of Antal Opens to Visitors

For the first time in the history of Utopia, the famed Sim-Archive, located in Antal, is being opened to outside visitors.
The archive is a vast collection of memories stored as sims, allowing others to relive the experiences of Utopian pilgrims in the form of vivid virtual reality experiences. In the past, those sims have been used to educate Utopians and to reform dissidents within the community.
Today, pilots from across the galaxy can buy Utopian sims from the more limited, public section of the Sim-Archive. In a brief statement, Simguru Pranav Antal urged all-comers to travel to Antal.
“What we are offering to our brothers and sisters throughout the galaxy is an opportunity to learn, to experience, to live through the memories of thousands. From childlike wonder, through crushing terror, to unrestrained joy, the sims we offer are not just a means of entertainment, but the purest, most direct tool for achieving empathy and consensus.”Update from Galnet News

Meet the Powers – Li Yong-Rui

Sirius Gov CEO Li Yong-Rui is the focus of this seventh article from political commentator Marcus Macmillan about the movers and shakers in 3301.
In this week’s historical article from Sima Kalhana, she wrote about the founding of the Sirius Corporation. The Li dynasty’s involvement with the Sirius Corporation can be traced back to the company’s founding almost 800 years ago.
By the age of 25, Yong-Rui had earned doctorates in physics, politics and economics. He was hired by Sirius straight from college. He then quickly made his way up the ranks, and at the tender age of 35, Yong-Rui was made Vice President of Forecasting.
He has a proven track record in business, but has also demonstrated significant insight in the fuzzier elements and in particular how to provide effective government. With these skills he was considered the ideal candidate for Sirius Corporation’s new Sirius Gov division.Update from Galnet News

Meet the Powers – Denton Patreus

Senator Denton Patreus is the latest subject in this sixth article from political commentator Marcus Macmillan about the movers and shakers in 3301.
Senator Patreus is often seen as the muscular aspect of the Imperial Senate. He is one of the more powerful senators (although lagging behind the heavyweights of Senators Lavigny-Duval and Zamina Torval) and enjoys great loyalty from his followers. This is in part due to his record of low taxation funded through aggressive economic and military conquests.
While some have accused the Senator of unethical behaviour for his strong-arm tactics, others respond that if governments put themselves into debt then they only have themselves to blame. His shrewd policies have allowed him to assemble deep credit reserves and a formidable fleet, providing him with power beyond what his standing might indicate.
Hailing from Eotienses, he is a charming and charismatic leader who prefers to govern from his Majestic-class Interdictor called ‘Imperial Freedom’. During the Emperor’s illness, he called for the Imperial throne to pass along lines of popularity rather than blood. Since the Emperor’s recovery he has steadfastly supported Hengist Duval, but many wonder if this attempted break from tradition has limited his popularity in the wider population.Update from Galnet News

Smuggling on the Rise in Conflict-Strewn Pegasi Sector

“Let’s just say I’m not flying a small ship anymore!” laughed one Commander, pledged to the Kumo Crew, when asked about the ongoing conflict in the Pegasi sector. “We all know that these Imperial types have been flying around and ransacking ships in our space, but what have they actually achieved? Archon Delaine has consistently shown us that, under his leadership, we can repel any fleet and make an absurd number of credits in the process. Who is really losing this fight?”
It is certainly hard to argue with the Commander’s logic. The combined Imperial fleets have continually undermined Kumo Crew territory, but they are yet to make any significant headway into smuggler-controlled space. Reports indicate that illegal contraband has risen at alarming rates since the conflict began, and an unusually large quantity of credits has made its way into Kumo Crew space from their aggressors’ territory.
When asked where these seemingly never-ending credits were flowing from, the Commander had this to say: “I’m a supplier of goods, some legal and some…not-so legal. People don’t care about a line in the sand – they want their trinkets and toys. War is good for business, and business is good.”
With no end in sight, it certainly seems one group will be making the most of the situation while it lasts.
Commander ShadewarlockUpdate from Galnet News

Further Outbreaks of Cerberus Plague

While medical teams across the galaxy work to develop the quantities of antidote needed to eliminate the Cerberus Plague, fresh outbreaks of the disease are appearing in other systems. Our sources indicate that the following systems are currently affected by the Cerberus Plague:
Chongguls
Xamentii
G 129-50
Cantjarisni
Rajukru
HIP 10175
Amahu
Leerham
BD-11 4280
Lougala
Any independent pilots who wish to help those affected are encouraged to deliver medicines to the systems listed above.
Update from Galnet News

Cerberus Plague Continues to Affect Starports

Although a cure for the Cerberus Plague has been found, the disease has not yet been eradicated, and it continues to wreak havoc in certain systems.
Starports in the following systems have been affected by the plague:
Bastes
Maheou Ti
Ochoeng
Una
Santjalan
In these systems, the following station services are unavailable:
Re-arming
Market
Bulletin board
Docking
Shipyard
Outfitting
Black market
Authorities in the relevant systems have reported that services will remain offline until the Cerberus Plague has been either contained or eliminated.Update from Galnet News

Meet the Powers – Zachary Hudson

Continuing this GalNet exclusive series, political commentator Marcus Macmillan writes his opinion of some of the movers and shakers in 3301. In this fifth article he analyses Federal President Zachary Hudson.
Republican President Zachary Hudson became President after the disappearance of President Halsey and a vote of no confidence in the Senate. He has always been supportive of the military, and has recently announced his support for CQC Championship as a training and recruitment tool for the Federal Navy. He is also approving additional funds to begin upgrading and expanding the fleet to counter the threats he sees beyond the Federation’s borders.
In common with most of his party, Hudson believes it is the government’s duty to be as small a burden on the individual as possible. An extensive programme of tax reduction is already planned for most households within the Federation. This has proved popular, but not for those who relied on government support before his election.
He is also an advocate of personal freedom at any cost, although that is balanced by the requirement for citizens to be responsible for themselves.
For fun, the President regularly goes hunting on the many frontier worlds offering holiday activity.Update from Galnet News

Aisling Duval Questions Convenience of Emperor’s Recovery

In a secretly recorded and unguarded discussion with one of her aides, Princess Aisling Duval is allegedly seen to question the motives of Senator Anders Blaine and other parties close to the Emperor.
“How is this possible? Am I not the most beloved person in the Empire? This is clear manoeuvring to make sure that Arissa becomes the heir. I can see her annoyingly haughty expression now. That Blaine thinks she will let him carry on doing what he wants .”
The recording has received universal condemnation from sources on both sides. Senator Blaine refused to comment directly, although an aide claimed that an investigation would be initiated.
Aisling Duval issued a statement denying the validity of the recording:
“This so-called recording is barely audible, and clearly a fabrication. I have not and would not say the despicable things portrayed in this horrid fantasy. My best technicians are already working to discover how this fraud has been perpetrated, and rest assured that the criminals will be caught.”Update from Galnet News