Ngoverse/"The Administrator" series: The Silent Black Ocean.

[Cannonshop]

Continued from: The Absolute Zero

New Readers can begin this Here.

Somewhere along the Exodus Road...

the emergence wave was significant, and the satellites left in this system picked it up almost immediately.  a Potemkin class transport cruiser,  using a 'Ryan formation' with a Leviathan class dreadnought and several smaller ships kicks up quite the emergence wave.

What is a Ryan Formation?  In the early days of human colonization, the "Ryan Ice Cartel" used grouped jumpships to move massive ice-comets from outer solar systems inward to pirate points to supply terraforming efforts.  The formation itself largely became supernumerary and was eventually forgotten as development outpaced it and the acceptance of the risks of such operations declined in the years leading up to the Star League.

The method did enjoy a short revival of sorts, as a tactic of terror by the Word of Blake in the Inner Sphere, and The Society during their uprising in the Clan Homeworlds.

these ships were escorting a massive hull, one packed to the gills with...something. 

It is 3160, it is late November, the Satellites are part of a network left behind by Comstar after Operation Serpent, and the data is being reported to a receiver that has gone unmonitored and ignored since the 3080s.

or rather, had, until this year.

the resolution on the camera, which has spent the better part of the last eighty years without maintenance, isn't the best.  The small fusion core and solar panel supplemental power supplies are slightly out of adjustment, and the Comstar monitoring spy satellite has seen better days-days when it was maintained...

but it still works.  the HPG transmitter in the core still works, and it's sending the alarms down a chain of relays and side-relays, back to Terra.

the images will get there in a week or so, as the data worms its way through a network that is only just this year being brought back into service with the aid of the Wolf Empire and the surviving technical crews from the Federated Suns protectorate of Taussen.

A week before, and the signal would have been lost.  a week later, and it would have been arriving at nearly real-time, the warning that the Homeworld Clans were coming...and this time, coming in force.

For the next 96 hours, in this system that is necessary only for recharging a jump core if you don't want to burn fuel,  transports and warships are erupting into being at both Zenith and Nadir.

Eventually, on the 97th hour, the camera catches sight of the fighter star that kills it.

Meanwhile, far from here, nearly a year's travel from this point and well antispinward of it, LCS Discovery, a Beagle Class Exploration cruiser, and her supporting formation of Cutters and Frigates, are overseeing the archaeological efforts to determine what killed an alien race, and where that enemy came from.

Ironically, The fleeing Homworlders could answer that question...

[Sir Chaos]

Uh oh.

[JA Baker]

Dun dun duuuuuuuuun!

[Daryk]

Another story! :excited:

And this one has shades of the later Dune books (the ones actually by Herbert, not his son)…  ^-^

[Euphonium]

Tagged

[Sharpnel]

Ping. One ping only.

[cklammer]

Ziel erfasst.

[Giovanni Blasini]

I'm not clear what the Ryan iceball style jump is carrying. I think that's by design, but wanted to make sure I wasn't just extra-dense this morning.

[Sir Chaos]

I'm not clear what the Ryan iceball style jump is carrying. I think that's by design, but wanted to make sure I wasn't just extra-dense this morning.

I´m guessing something that contain A LOT of refugees.

[JA Baker]

I'm saying it's a repurposed space-station.

[ThePW]

I'm saying it's a repurposed space-station.

Is it a MW2: Mercs reference? The ice ship you defend?

One Ping. One Ping Only.

[Giovanni Blasini]

Wouldn't anything carried like that, normally, get pulverized? I mean, we don't care if ice does, because it's still ice on the other side. I'm wondering if this is a unique Lyran take on dropping comets or asteroids on someone.

[glitterboy2098]

Cannonshop has used the formation for moving large items intact before in these stories, so evidently in this continuity it is possible to move things without shattering them. perhaps the standard Ryan cartel method was actually a flawed version, which could be perfected if you had skilled enough jump-navigators?

[JA Baker]

Is it a MW2: Mercs reference? The ice ship you defend?

Okay, it's been longer than I care to think of, but IIRC, that was purely in-system

[Cannonshop]

Engmann, Chainelaine Isles...

KCGS Morgan icaza was a Cutter, part of 9 Division LCN Reserves, and their 'patrol zone' included a lot of former Jade Falcon held worlds outside the Lyran Commonwealth as an aftermath of the campaign to smash the Jade Falcons in response to Malvina's Mongol Madness.

Someone had to take up the job of patrolling out here, and while LCN was rapidly gaining the ability to do so, it was by indirectly leaning on the Coast Guards for the actual manpower.

Kowloon's Coast Guard was still technically the militia for a single collection of minor worlds-a regional formation not meant to engage in long-distance missions, but needs must, when devils drive demands.  Plentiful ships plus a long lead-time on personnel meant that you recruited where you can.

"How are they doing down there, Piper?"  Commander Ira asked.

"Surface teams report the civil population is recovering technologies from the ruins now that the surface is safe, Sir...oh, and congratulations."

"It is not Congratulations until our tour out here is finished." he said, "That is four months away.  To be clearer, I am not entirely sure being assigned to a Landmark class is much of a promotion."

His XO grinned, softening her harsh Icaza heritage somewhat.  "Gravity deck, showers..." she teased, "A true capital ship? not a promotion?"

He groaned, "Paperwork, a crew in the hundreds so I never get to properly know my comrades, and having to speak Deutsch even in quarters?  I admit, I will not miss having to negotiate who gets to sleep in the bed, and I will not miss having three out of four heads packed with supplies or needing to go on space-walks of the hull to get time to myself!"

"YOU are just too Kowloonese." she said, and giggled, "A prim and proper boy from Hue under that hard-nose spacer persona."

"And you are just as qualified for a Destroyer as I am." he told her.

"Ah! but see, they did not ask for me." she said primly, "They wanted the Buhallin boy, not the Icaza girl."

"before I leave for LCN regular service, I'm going to write you an OER that will drag you right over behind me!" he mock-threatened.

she rolled her eyes.  "As if.  someone has to do this job, and someone has to do that job.  I am perfectly content to remain a Guard Lifer, taking small boats into places you can not fit a half million tons of destroyer."

"I am writing that OER, Piper." he said, "our heritage is Jade Falcon, and while our cousins smeared that name with feces and called it 'mongol', we belong-all of us-in the Regular Fleet, to serve with distinction and redeem our bloodname."

"Seyla sir."

"Hey, sirrah, Mum, could you two maybe take it in the missile mags or something? we're tryin' t'wuhk heah!"  RTO Devin McCammon's Arluna accent was thin enough not to need much speech correction therapy before he deployed.  Ira looked past his executive officer at the boy-man who handled their signals.  McCammon's pale skin made the plague marks stand out more.

"I'll get you too, Mac." Ira said, "I want to try and get all of you into the regulars."

"Sirrah, all due respect, th'only one y'all needs is-" he stopped.  "Incoming signals, header is priority Alpha one alpha all points bulletin...holy shit.  Clanner fleet detected in transit along the Exodus road, hull counts are in excess of ninety one vessels, identified hull markings indicate combined Clan fleets from at least six different Clans, and they're not traveling light."

"on my display, Arto." Ira ordered.

[worktroll]

Dun dun duuuuuuuuun!

This ...

Options do not include the Omnivoracity from Starfire, could include the aliens from the Dahakverse, or the Xenophones from the SPI series of games, but ... Cannonshop, ever read Passage at Arms by Glen Cook? Or the related Starfishers trilogy?

[Cannonshop]

This ...

Options do not include the Omnivoracity from Starfire, could include the aliens from the Dahakverse, or the Xenophones from the SPI series of games, but ... Cannonshop, ever read Passage at Arms by Glen Cook? Or the related Starfishers trilogy?

I confess I have not.

[ThePW]

Cannonshop has used the formation for moving large items intact before in these stories, so evidently in this continuity it is possible to move things without shattering them. perhaps the standard Ryan cartel method was actually a flawed version, which could be perfected if you had skilled enough jump-navigators?

Nooooooo… well, maybe yes but something occurred to me. In SBY 2202, two Dreadnaughts dock to either side of the stricken Andromeda (who because of battle damage could not jump +/- reasons unclear). That occurance ushers in how Capt Smiling face goes with his BB-type drone Andromeda fleet later in a futile overhead attack of the Comet Empire structure: The 2 Drone Class-D's jump with the Andy already hot loading its WMG. Spoilers for those.... who have not watched yet. You should!

[Cannonshop]

LCS Discovery, 9 months antispinward of the Lyran Commonwealth...

Star Captain Sara Tseng knocked on the Admiral's sea-cabin door.  "come"

the hatch toggled and opened, "Admiral, we have gotten a flash traffic from LCN command."

Rear Admiral Michael Hogarth looked up from his present task-reviewing Materiel reports from the Discovery taskforce.  "Flash huh? what is it?"

"They have detected a Clan fleet..a massive fleet, coming down the Exodus Route, presently it is believed to be moving through the Veil."

"The Caliban Nebula?" he asked.

"Yes." she answered.

"We are a hell of a long way off if they want us to try to intercept, Star Captain." he said, "Is it a recall order?"

"Neg, sir." she said, "But it is concerning."

he sighed, "you have family in the Dominion, yes?" he asked.

"Yes."

"I have family in the Commonwealth, and I'm sure Tai-Sa Hinomori has told all of us her stories about her family in the Combine.  We have a job to do here, until we get the recall order, we need to be doing it."  He told her.  "What is the word from the other captains in the task-force at this news?"

"Some are asking when we will be returning, Sir."

He nodded.  "Understandable.  I'll call a general staff assembly at nineteen hundred for all senior officers, and we will discuss options and contingencies."

"Sir?"

He swiped left on the screen in front of him, "last time, Admiral Ngo was called back because of a war with the Republic." he said, "THIS time, the operation is multinational as is the mission.  every ship from participating governments is here voluntarily, and the last time the Clans invaded it was devastating to at least three nations-but if we don't answer the questions here, that could put every nation in peril, not just ours.  I can't order the Hiryu to stay here, I won't force your people to stay if they want to go home, but I'm going to argue that our mission out here has precedence unless or until we get orders from home to return."

"Aff, Sir."

"Nineteen Hundred, have your Dominion officers present." he told her, "And make sure it's passed throughout the task-force that all field-grade and above officers are expected to attend either by link, or in person.  is that all, Star Captain?"

"yes sir."

"Dismissed."

[Daryk]

This Hogarth is still made of win, I see...  8)

[worktroll]

I confess I have not.

Passage at Arms is basically Das Boot in space. This quote made me think of it:

I admit, I will not miss having to negotiate who gets to sleep in the bed, and I will not miss having three out of four heads packed with supplies

You could safely read it and not have any impact on your current story. However, I'd stay clear of the Starfisher trilogy for now.

[Cannonshop]

Overview: The lay of the land in 3165...

The Wolf Empire holds Terra, and most of the remainders of Prefecture X.  This has not given them the massive advantage that Alaric had hoped for, instead it fulfills the grim prediction of Sharon Ngo in the 3150s, that the former Terran Hegemony is indeed largely stripped of useful resources and overloaded with trillions of hungry mouths forcibly idled by circumstance.

Luckily, the Empire's portions outside of that area, are sufficient to provide for the resources needed to fix this, and there's an outlet to move those trillions into less cramped and crowded conditions.

Alaric is having to learn how to govern his slice of the galaxy.  Lucky for him, he has cousins Julian and Trillian to give him useful advice on how to handle a population that outnumbers his entire warrior caste by milllions to one.

as it has turned out, Nick Kerensky's social theories only work with relatively small populations.  Being the ilClan isn't turning out to be the road to paradise after all.

The Confederation's leadership has begun a series of economic reforms, much of that inspired by (or directly copied from) the Magistracy of Canopus, who share a joint rulership under Chancellor/Magestrix Danai Centrella-Liao.  Surprisingly  to some, her ability to keep the peace with Davion on one border, and Marik on the other, has led to a massive expansion outward into the Periphery, bringing much-needed wealth into the Confederation.

This hasn't crippled their military spending by any stretch of the imagination, and the CapCon has licenses to produce a number of hull types besides their own Stealthy destroyers, including a license-copy of the Marsden II class cruiser and the Sampan IV class Cutter.  These vessels are mostly used to patrol new holdings out in the outer periphery, and as adjunct forces for the MAF's Naval branch in addition to forming a strong supporting structure for the CCAF/Naval forces.  Pirates have begun to truly miss the days when the Great Houses were more interested in fighting each other over a throne on Terra.

House Kurita has begun purchasing additional warships from yards in the Commonwealth to supplement their Carrier fleet.  Notably, their major purchases have been from the 'used' market, and include Sampan II and Sampan III and III* cutters.  These are being retrofitted at the Combine's restored shipyards with better technology to serve as fleet scouts and multi-system 'reaction vessels' in a defensive role.  the Combine versions dispense with the large(ish) marine complement and have a number of adaptations applied to make duty less punishing on crews.  Discussions for purchase of Landmark class destroyers have resulted a small number of the over-produced vessels finding their way into Combine service as escorts for Carrier task groups, again with significant changes to the design at Combine yards to make them a better partner for the DCA's super-carrier forces.

The aid-package to the Ghost Bear Dominion included hulls, and it included training packages.  the ships themselves have Clan-spec weapons and armor laid over Lyran manufactured hulls.  Engineering work has already begun in the Ghost Bear Dominion to design a domestically produced 'flagship' vessel less impractically large than the Leviathans that they lost during the short combat phase of the Commonwealth/Dominion conflict, and a contract with Clan Snow Raven has boosted training numbers for Ghost Bear warship crews to fill seats on their new navy.

LCN training observers have noted a significant improvement in Ghost Bear's crew quality and equally significant improvements in the Dominion's ability to grasp deep-vacuum strategy.

The FWLN have expanded significantly.  Both with the purchase of Marsden II class cruisers, and bulk purchases of Sampan IV and IV* cutters to supplement their own domestically produced destroyer designs, as well as reactivation of yard capacity to produce their own domestic designs with improved technology.  Relations with NIOPS have improved significantly, especially after a FWLN task force suppressed a Marian offensive aimed at NIOPS in 3160.  The subsequent war with the Marian Hegemony is ongoing, with the FWLN demonstrating a grasp of Lyran-style "Neutralization warfare" against the bandit kingdom.  Nikol Marik's official stated position being "Peace will be maintained."  Bandit groups along the League's periphery are on notice, and noticing.  Meanwhile, the FWLN is building up quite a bank of experience and capability.

[Cannonshop]

overview continued...

House Davion, the Federated Suns, has had perhaps the more bizarre turnaround, fielding what is in effect two navies, with the newer service outstripping the senior one both in impact, and prestige, in less than a decade.  While senior admirals in the FSN continue to cling to traditionalist doctrines and home-grown dogmas, including the insistence upon the 'Ram' designation for the Kentares class light escort carrier, as well as massive influxes of research funding into the 'Ramming Prow' device (which has, thus far, not proven to be particularly useful, nor proven to deliver potential uses outside of respected FedSuns naval circles). The "Patrol Force",  technically a nationalized militia adjunct to the AFFC, has proven to be extremely effective in dealing with piracy and in repelling an attempted Taurian attack on the Federated Suns border.

all without plowing a single ship into another ship.

Observers suggest that the AFFC/N will wind up much like the LCAF Transport Command, as the First Prince has personally strangled funding of dedicated superiority designs to the 'proper navy' in favor of expanded transport capability, while at the same time encouraging the 'dirty brownwater' Patrol Force's expansion with additional Kentares and Fox class vessels, as well as license purchase of unmodified Marsden II and Frederick Steiner class cruisers and battleships to bulk up the Patrol Service's numbers and strength.

When confronted by this at a press conference, the First Prince shut down discussion with the statement "They get results."

[Cannonshop]

"it's not the Star League..."

"...we're not trying to run a super-state because That failed."  Sixty year old Admiral Sharon E. Ngo tapped the display.  "These guys? they knew it, when they kicked your ancestors out of 'club kerensky'.  I don't suppose anyone's tried making contact with them to find out what in the ****** they think they're doing coming this way."

"Yet we do, in fact, have a de-facto superstate forming." Khan McKenna noted, "Your Lyran Commonwealth wields power and influence over the other Inner Sphere states, you managed to put Devlin Stone out to pasture and plant Alaric Ward, a Steiner-Davion scion, on Terra as ilKhan of the ilClan."

"yeah, look how well that's worked out for him." Sharon said, "It wouldn't have worked any better for your bunch, only you'd have an even longer supply line.  A Trillion people he can barely keep fed isn't what any of your dreams expected, is it?"

"Fair...no, nobody has attempted to directly contact this massive fleet."

"Well, we've got six more months before they hit the frontier of inhabited space." Sharon said, "I assume your Clan wants first or second try before us dirty spheroids step in."

McKenna snorted, "We do not want 'first or second try'." he said, "The Homeworlders made the...separation quite clear-with violence."

"Hmnh.  So what are we actually talking about?"

"Military options." he told her.

"Diplomatic options are usually less costly in the short run and the long run-and I speak as someone who made an entire Clan Realm get to their proverbial knees and beg for mercy using military options."  she examined the trac-plot carefully.

"They lack that experience-these have not been defeated by Inner Sphere forces, I am not sure they know how to react to it, except that it will likely be to react badly."

"They are hauling a station.  The Gravity shear from using Ryan methods isn't good for anything at the center of it, including people, unless they've somehow found a way to get around it."

"Our scientists have some speculations about that-mostly from work begun by the Blakists and Taussen."  McKenna said.

"Yeah, our eggheads do too-but testing those hypotheticals hasn't gone exactly well on our end." she noted.

"ours either-but they are doing it."

"if it has been done, it can be done, if it can be done, someone will do it." Sharon agreed.  "Okay, so what are we looking at with this incoming fleet?"

"Lots of mothball ships, lots of ships in poor repair, possibly pressed into service in a hurry-but not so hurried that they could not do it in an organized manner."

"Disaster maybe?" she asked, "are we looking at a second or third exodus?"

He froze, and looked thoughtful.  "I just realized...that is not a stupid idea."

"It's an obvious thing, McKenna." Sharon said, "Look at this imagery-those fighters are running minimum fuel burns, that means they aren't stopping for gas, or haven't been, or don't intend to.  Those hulks being group-jumped don't have weapons ports or emplacements, and those Potempkins aren't carrying assault droppers in nearly what would be an efficient configuration for military invasion forces-those dropships are mostly old models, and patchy-looking."

"They will want to land." he said.

She nodded, "let me speculate a sec here-these guys are on the run.  They shot the sats instead of trying to slice them or use them to contact the owners, which means they think they need to fight...which they might, if they want to be in charge of wherever they end up, and I know Kerenskyists back home, their dogma and doctrine-and so do you, being one.  You're anticipating military action because no matter how up shit creek these guys are, they're going to want to fight for dominance once they get here."

"Aff.  That is the most likely to be correct assessment."

"AND we don't have a formal 'Star League' and being Kerenskyists, they're going to want to impose theirs if we don't have one of our own-or even if we do."

"Precisely."

"I'll take your proposal up with the Archon when I get back." Sharon said, "I assume you're already discussing things with Alaric and Tseng, and being where you are, I speculate you've been in talks with Kurita and Davion?"

"We have.  They have been...reluctant.  A unified front will be necessary regardless of whether the solution is military or diplomatic-a diplomatic outcome can not happen if they believe the Inner Sphere to be...out of order."

"I hear that."

"How is your Alien Hunting going?" he asked.

"We found a couple of dead civilizations antispinward so far." she said, "Nobody alive yet, nobody to tell us what happened to them, only some pretty ****** worlds and leftover hardware and debris...I really wanted to go this time."

"When I heard about your fool's mission I wanted to go." he said, "Grand adventures, new conquests..."

"Not so grand an adventure, mostly it's finding new ways to be horrified." She countered, "Trillian won't let me go out again, she insists on me being here in civilized society."

[Daryk]

Well, at least Trillian has the good sense to keep Sharon around...

And it's now "a couple" of dead civilizations??  ???

[Nikas_Zekeval]

For your benefit Sharon, or for 'civilized society's' benefit? ;)

Well, at least Trillian has the good sense to keep Sharon around...

And it's now "a couple" of dead civilizations??  ???

Yeah, unless we are talking Fae level touchy about social faux pas?  Sounding more like xenophobes, "we have to get them before they get us!"

Problem with that line of thinking?  You can't exactly clean up all the evidence, so someone is going to find what you did.  And then decide given your track record to do unto you first, or at least consider it and be ready if you do try it on them.

[Daryk]

You know... what if it was an unfettered AI stomping non-human civilizations to "protect" humanity from them?

[Sharpnel]

V-ger has returned.

[worktroll]

Did we get a date on how long ago the first xenocide event found was?

Prior or post fall of the original Star League?

What have Tabby and Maggie and Sybil been up to?

[Giovanni Blasini]

Did we get a date on how long ago the first xenocide event found was?

Prior or post fall of the original Star League?

What have Tabby and Maggie and Sybil been up to?

IIRC, prior.  It was definitely stated as the evidence pointing towards the SLDF, rather than, say, ComStar or the proto-Clans.  I'd have to go back and reread it for details, but IIRC somewhere in the 28th Century.