Black-Bart

Cerberus Plague Outbreaks in the Bast, Una and Santjalan Systems

Reports that the Cerberus Plague has reached Hart Station in the Bast system, Hoard Orbital in the Una system and Cantor Terminal in the Santjalan system is causing fear amongst the population. So far a cure hasn’t been found for this disease despite the continuing work of Carl Simmons, the Chief Medical Officer of Newton Dock, and medical teams in the surrounding systems. In a statement he reiterated that people should remain at home.
Hospitals and care facilities in these systems are already overloaded as the number of infected people rapidly rises. Volunteers and local security personnel are aiding the health services in managing the crisis as well as trying to maintain the rule of law.
Any pilots in the region are being called upon to help deliver medical aid to the affected starports.Update from Galnet News

Cerberus Plague Spreads to the Bastes, Maheou Ti and Ochoeng Systems

News of fresh cases of the Cerberus Plague has caused mass panic among the populations of Shepherd Hub in the Bastes System, Yegorov Station in the Maheou Ti system and Roddenberry Gateway in the Ochoeng system. Even though the number of cases reported so far is relatively low, the medical services and hospitals have been overwhelmed by citizens desperate for treatment, despite not being infected.
Station authorities have appealed for calm and restricted movement to only the most essential travel. States of emergency have been declared and open contracts for urgent medical and aid supplies are being issued for these systems.Update from Galnet News

Victoria Wolf VI and Commodore Stone launch Operation Augeas

In a joint press conference, Victoria Wolf VI, First Merchantress of Wolf 406 Transport Co, and Commodore Helena Stone of the Alliance Defence Force have announced the launch of Operation Augeas. This is a campaign to rid BD-22 3573 of criminal elements troubling local miners and traders. The Federation has acted swiftly after receiving the results of the investigations led by Commodore Stone. The local absolutistic factions, however, need to be dealt with more bluntly.
Wolf and Stone, who besides their main responsibilities also have seats on the board of the Alliance Elite Diplomatic Corps, explained that they have secured the funds to pay out a bonus for all bounties cashed in Planck Orbital.
Stone was eager to point out that this is not a military operation. The ADF will observe the situation and only intervene in case of escalation as “the system does not fall under the jurisdiction of the Alliance”.Update from Galnet News

Cerberus Plague Shuts Down Station Services

Due to the ongoing crisis caused the Cerberus Plague, key station services at the following starports are not currently available. The following starports are affected:
In the Dajoar system:
Thiel Port
Crown Terminal
Patrick Terminal
Macquorn Rankine Port
Ejeta Enterprise
In the Eleu system:
Finney Dock
Bao Orbital
Elder Station
Tem Station
Pierce Gateway
Bradshaw Station
In the 20 Ophiuchi system:
Chargaff Port
Artsebarsky Gateway
The following station services are unavailable:
Re-arming
Market
Bulletin Board
Docking
Shipyard
Outfitting
Black Market
The authorities on these starports report that services will remain offline until the Cerberus Plague has been contained and resources can be spared to work on these facilities.Update from Galnet News

Date Set for Imperial Wedding

The Office for the Emperor has published details of the wedding between Emperor Hengist Duval and Florence Lavigny. The wedding will take place at midday on Wednesday 29th July. Invitations have already been sent out and this reporter is one of the lucky few to provide news updates from the wedding entourage itself.
Senators and some prominent patrons together with well known celebrities from all over the Empire have accepted invitations from the Imperial Palace, and have flooded the Emperor’s communications team with their responses. The Emperor himself took a few minutes from his busy schedule to give his thanks:
“The well wishes both for my recovery and upcoming marriage have warmed my heart. I am strengthened by the love that senators, patrons, clients and citizens of this great empire have shown me.”
With the news of the wedding date being set, the newsfeeds have erupted with speculation of the outfits for the Emperor and his new Regent. Those boutiques who most closely match the actual attire are likely to see a windfall as everyone celebrates by purchasing the latest trend in fashion.Update from Galnet News

Fuel Rat Deep Space Relay Rescue

The Fuel Rats received a distress call from Cmdr Neospike as he returned from Sagittarius A* when a broken fuel scoop left him stranded over 3,600 light years from civilization. The Reboot/Repair sequence failed to fix the fuel scoop.
Several commanders responded to the distress call, including Domaq, Paul_Kavinsky, Rusticolus, Cpt_Shinobi, Surly_badger, and Anuranium.
Cmdr. Domaq quickly arrived on scene and provided an initial refuelling to ensure the ship could remain powered while the other ships moved into position.
A relay operation involving several ships and roughly 540 limpet drones then proceeded. Speed was a priority due to the damage Cmdr. Neospike’s ship had undergone leaving all of his systems at less than 5%.
As of this reporting the Fuel Rat initiative has rescued over 190 stranded pilots.Update from Galnet News

Prism Senator Missing

In the early hours of this morning, a security alert was received from the Imperial suite where Senator Kahina Tijani Loren has been residing.
The entry to the residence was found to be locked, and no response was received from inside. Security personnel were authorised to break in.
The interior of the suite was found to be pristine, with no evidence of habitation. In-room holofac consoles were found not to have been used throughout the duration of the Senator’s apparent occupation. A search has revealed no sign of the Senator’s whereabouts.
Ambassador Cuthrick Delaney made a brief statement to the press. “Senator Kahina has previously empowered me to represent the Prism system on her behalf. I will do my best to discharge that duty according to her instructions. Senator Kahina is a very private individual, and has not sought my, or any other, counsel in the last month. We do not know where she has gone. Naturally we are concerned about her safety and would urge anyone who knows of her whereabouts to contact the authorities immediately. Her disappearance is very disturbing indeed.”
Reaction across the Empire was muted, but many have speculated that something underhand has happened to the visiting Senator.
“Doesn’t matter what Delaney says,” said a commentator from the Imperial Citizen. “Prism belongs to Patreus now, Kahina’s just abandoned it and all the citizens she professed to care about. She’s a coward and an irrelevance.”
“Did she get too close to the fires burning in the Empire?” asked Kazien Vantris, chief editor of the Imperial Herald. “Or is she pursuing some other objective? She was always determined and bold. Wherever you’ve gone, Lady Kahina, farewell.”
Lady Kahina’s Imperial Courier, the ‘Seven Veils’, still at the Capitol spaceport, was impounded and examined. It was found to be completely stripped of all valuable equipment, with the modifications made at Avalon shipyards discovered to be carefully crafted fakes.
Lady Kahina’s Imperial tiara was found in the cockpit, along with a small medallion bearing an ancient symbol on one side and the word ‘Salomé’ on the other.
The symbol is believed to belong to an organisation some refer to as ‘The Dark Wheel’.Update from Galnet News

A Clash of Titans

In this third article in GalNet’s series about the defining moments in human history, famed historian Sima Kalhana discusses the first war between the Federation and what would become the Empire.
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Although there had been other small-scale incidents beyond the Solar System, the war between the Federation and Achenar (as it was then) was notable as the first large-scale interstellar conflict. Much has been made over the years of the Federation’s reasons for invading Achenar, in particular the claim that the annihilation of the native sentient species was little more than a slim pretext. While it was certainly true that the principal reason for the military action was Achenar’s refusal to join the Federation, it is also worth noting that the protection of xeno-culture and life forms was a key tenet of the Federation’s founding.
Under the command of Admiral Richard Morgan, a fleet was assembled at Beta Hydri and began its transit to Achenar towards the end of 2323. That region of space was relatively unexplored and thinly populated at the time, meaning that the fleet lacked the logistical support needed for a mission of this scale.
Despite a long and fragile supply line, Morgan chose to engage the defenders in a single large battle. Achenar was alerted to the plan and laid an ambush for the invaders, applying the infamous pack-hunting formation against the Federal fleet initially, then against its supply lines.
Throughout 2324 the Federal fleet continued to try and establish a foothold in the system, but with little success. The constant attrition took its toll on the invaders and in 2325 Achenar counterattacked in what is now remembered as the ‘Great Battle of Liberation’. Every local ship, civilian and military, was pressed into service in a coordinated attack against every element of the invasion fleet.
The battle succeeded in pushing the Federal fleet out of Achenar and they retreated to their base in Beta Hydri. Bolstered by improved supply, the Federal fleet held its ground. Skirmishing between the two navies continued for another fifty years. During this time, and seeing the need for a buffer zone around their home system, Henson Duval expanded into the nearby systems. This heralded the change from a single-system colony to a pan-system empire, and so the Empire as we know it today was born. Update from Galnet News

The Unfettering of the Pegasi Sector

The Kumo Crew has been known to brand free citizens as slaves and ferry them to an uncertain fate in their capital system, Harma. The Imperial blockade of Harma and the surrounding systems has intercepted thousands of these slaves, many of whom are emaciated, deeply bruised, and otherwise afflicted.
One fresh graduate of the Imperial Naval Academy had this to say regarding his observations:
“10 years ago my family had a slave. It wasn’t until he paid his debts and returned to his family that I learned he was not my brother. My father told me on that day to remember Peter, my “older brother,” because I too may become indebted, or sponsor a slave like my “brother.” That is Imperial Slavery. This… this slavery must be destroyed.”
Philanthropic representatives of Sirius Corp. have extended humanitarian services by returning the slaves, liberated by the Imperial fleet, to their homes and families.Update from Galnet News

Governor Joel Xander Removed from Office and Arrested

Joel Xander, the Federal governor of BD-22 3573 of the Federally aligned Forrester Station, has been removed from office and arrested by Federal agents in a surprise raid early this morning. Xander and members of his family have been taken off the planet in an escorted Dropship marked with the insignia of the Federal Intelligence Agency.
While there is no official statement about the allegations against Xander at this time, recent events in BD-22 3573 give reason for speculations about the background of this dramatic arrest. It has been suspected for a long time that Xander’s friendly relations with local rulers like King Justice II of the Justice Party and Supreme Leader Anxo Lino of BD-22 3573 Flag might some day cause trouble.Update from Galnet News