Turns of AXT042 Fourth Thread

[Flubber]

2241 to the gaians

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The foreman was sitting at a supervisors meeting when his aide slipped into the room and beckoned silently. The foreman excused himself as the aide led him to an adjoining briefing room. The head of the DIA was waiting for him and quickly handed over 2 sheets of paper. The foreman quickly began scanning the first, his brow furrowing. He flipped to the second page and sighed. he waved the paper and quietly asked "are you sure about this?"

The security chief met the foreman's gaze , " Certain"

"You were right to tell me immediately. I presume that these are our only viable options . . . In that case implement option HOMEGUARD. Tell no one of this news but contact Captain Steele of the Foreman's Loyal Fusileers and tell him to meet me tonight. He is the best person to advise on how to control this situation.

[Tenchusatsu]

Year 2241 to Stephen.
_______

The Planet's Enquirer.com, Gaia's Leading Tabloid Journal
Year 2241, Feature Story

GOVERNMENT PLANS FOR 'SECRET POLICE' REVEALED!!!

In an exclusive, TPE has heard from "trusted sources" that the Gaian federal government is authorizing the creation of a nationwide Secret Police force.

According to these sources, the Secret Police will use unconventional methods to force law and order upon the Gaian people. Word has it that the Cloning Vats have led to unprecedented population booms in every base of the Gaian nation. This had turned into a nightmare for law enforcement, who sees crime increasing exponentially as population and number of Gaian bases increase.

So instead of managing population control through conventional means, we have learned that some in the Gaian high command are advocating the creation of this new Secret Police force. They plan on using ultra-modern technologies like eugenics and covert psionic telepathy. These technologies are currently just beyond the reach of Gaia's scientists, but there are reports that covert research projects are nearing a breakthrough. These projects, among other things, will enable the discovery of tools necessary for this new gestapo.

No one in the Gaian Headquarters nor in the Covert Ops Center had any comment, but at least one Senator in Parliament has raised suspicions. Stay tuned as we keep you updated on the latest developments, only on The Planet's Enquirer!!!

Because enquiring mindworms want to know!

[Flubber]

2241 to Allen

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The foreman had spent a sleepless night after sending dispatches to all his trusted friends. his meeting with the captain of the Loyal Fusileers had given him some comfort but the captain was uncertain that he could control the situation. the foreman had finally managed to doze when the he was awakened with a start by the head of his intelligence agency.

The foreman rubbed his eyes "What of homeguard ??"

The intelligence officer sighed " It was a moderate success. the fusileers put on a show of force and nothing materialized in the home island. All bases and units seem to be under control. Your government is still in control of the bulk of the Drone homeland."

" MODERATE SUCCESS ??? THE BULK ??? What does that mean?"

" I am sorry to inform you that dissident elements have taken control of the bases and the forces stationed at Xi hero's Waypoint, Onward TO Gaia, Phi Sector and Xi Bunker. We believe that forces loyal to Colonel Xi initiated attacks against the gaians. The rank and file probably just followed orders from their officers without knowing anything about the lack of authorization. There are several other frontire bases with which we have been unable to make contact."

"Is there news from the front?"

"Only a message from Colonel Xi making exhorbinant claims of capturing two gaian bases. He claims that if you do not publicly endorse this attack, he has enough clout with the council to have you removed as the leader. If these attacks were as successful as he claims, he may very well have that support."

The foreman slumped back on his bed as he contemplated the resumption of war.

"What of the bases we control. What is their status??"

" We have ordered increased readiness for all troops and have begun to gather energy credits but we have not begun to call up more troops. The bulk of the empire continues to build peaceful infrastructure"

"Do we have any response from the gaians"

" Not yet but they will hardly be suprised. We had a cease-fire only. We were not pact brothers or even signatories to a peace treaty. heck in 4 more years the cease fire would have been over and we would have gone back to shooting at each other full scale."

" I fear that full scale shooting is exactly what will happen. By the actions of these few I may be forced to pursue a war that benefits neither side. . . . That is NOT ACCEPTABLE. I want options. Be back here in two hours with some viable options that lets me avoid a full scale war and does not allow the government to fall completely under the control of those that reject peace. I want OPTIONS damn it !!"

[Flubber]

The foreman looked up from his dispatches as the intelligence chief entered

" WELL ??"

" You are still not in total control. The homeland is secure for now BUT your control of the Council of Supervisors is tenuous if you intend to oppose the confront the dissidents directly. The gaians are demanding the return of those bases immediately"

The foreman stared at the wall charts " well that is what we should do but I am not seeing many loyal bases in the area"

"Unfortunately you are correct, in three years at best you may gain control of all your forces. There are those four bases that are in open revolt and about 5 more that appear to be supplying the dissidents while waiting to see how this plays out."

"So what are my options?"

The intelligence chief handed the foreman a memorandum and slumped onto a nearby chair as the foreman began to read.


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CLASSIFICATION : FOREMAN"S EYES ONLY

RE: OPTIONS TO DEAL WITH DISSIDENTS


EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Put succinctly, your leadership has two immediate problems, one military(logistical) and one political. The dissidents controlo the bulk of the military forces on the frontier an it is estimated that it would take 3-5 years to gather the forces necessary to suppress this revolt, assuming the loyalty of current troops.

The political problem is even trickier. The dissidents are not oublicly announcing anything of their military gains at the moment. When their plans to unseat you failed they changed tactics and now hope to pressure you into supporting this resumption of hostilities. They are even willing to let you take credit for this stroke. if you denounce the attack and attempt to suppress and prosecute them, the political situation gets dicier. many moderates are not in favor of the attack but given its success will oppose any attempt to militarily suppress the dissidents.

OPTIONS

1. Publicly endorse the attack and war

This will result in full scale war. The gaians will have no trust whatsoever for your leadership and future peace may be impossible to maintain.

2. Publicly Denounce the Attack

The political result is impossible to predict. Xi is a popular commander with his troops, the politicians and the public. He has chosen well in making a highly successful surgical strike with minimal loss of life on either side. Our projections include a variety of scenarios that continue the conflict. Our estimate is 25% that you can maintain control of the government if you denounce the attack.

3. The border Skirmish option

In many cease fires there are artillery duels and the like with related fighting. It might have been possible to portray this as such but the magnitude of the gains make this difficult. Intelligence reports that the strike force captured TWO size fifteen bases of the gaians. It is difficult to dismiss this as a border skirmish.

4. Attempt to deceive the dissidents and then suppress them

This option is to praise the dissidents actions while moving secretly to suppress them. The chances of success are estimated at less than 10% since a large force would have to travel through many bases and there will surely be dissident spies.

5. Stall

At this moment dealing with the gaians diplomatically is difficult since you do not have the ability to impose any diplomatic solution you seek. This option involves "supporting" the dissidents while at the same time garnering council support for a later peaceful solution, including the return of the captured bases. There is a high likelihood that the gaians will not believe our intentions in any event


As can be seen there are really no superior options. Some lead to a full scale war, others likely lead to a full scale war with a pro-war Drone leadership that would never accept peace.

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"So I am completely boxed in ??"

" Not completely sir, but any talk of crushing the dissidents will likely result in your removal from office. Once they learn of this, many on the council will se Xi as a hero. You could find support for a peaceful withdrawal with Xi getting a medal for his masterstroke. Xi is a pragmatist. He now sees that you cannot be unseated by force and that you have sufficient support as long as you take a middle position. he will look for a way out of this that maintains his position and status. Here's what you do . . .

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A MESSAGE TO THE WORLD FROM FOREMAN FLUBBER

Tonight I speak on a grave subject. Today, Colonel Xi of the 14th air wing detected a threat in a border region between ourselves and the gaians. The colonel immediately and on his own initiative ordered a pre-emptive strike to neutralize this threat. These attacks were precise and surgical and attained their objectives with a minimal loss of life on either side.

WE salute our success but believe that, in the interests of peace that continued occupation of these gaian bases are not necessary. If the gaians agree, I have ordered a phased withdrawal. We will vacate the southernmost base in 3 years and the northernmost in 4.

To the gaians, I say this. . . . Today we stand upon a precipice. We have demonstrated Drone military power and now seek to withdraw in peace. If you attack us, or attempt to probe us, we will fight . The choice is yours.

[Tenchusatsu]

Well, this is my reward for pursuing peace and assuming you'd keep your word. How naive of me.

The game is pretty much in your hands now. With this act of betrayal, the balance of power may now be permanently tipped in your favor. I'll continue playing the game, but just for a few more turns. If you don't return those bases in three years, I will no longer waste any more time on this game.
_______

Public Statement from Lady Deirdre Skye
Mindworm Pass, Provisional Headquarters

As you may have seen on the holonews by now, the Drone military has broken the cease-fire prematurely and have now taken control of Song of Planet and Gaia's Landing. Worse yet, many of our other bases were attacked as well. They chose the perfect time to slip the knife into our back, and we have paid the price for foolishly trusting them.

Right now, I ask everyone to remain calm. I realize that mass disorder has broken out across our great nation, but please understand that panic will only make the situation worse. We need to be united for the coming years ahead.

I have asked Druid Tenchusatsu to do whatever is necessary to prevent further military incursions. However, I specifically asked him not to strike back. Unfortunately, he was not able to stop a couple of police squads from making ill-advised hasty attempts to retake our capital. We admire their courage and patriotism, but we cannot endanger any more lives needlessly. This is a time to regroup and rebuild. Any token attempt at retribution will only anger our aggressors even more.

The Foreman has contacted me and told me he will return Song of Planet and Gaia's Landing to us in due time. He also tells me of a military coop that he is trying to suppress. Whether or not we believe him is beside the point. The damage is done, and we must do whatever it takes to protect what remains of our Gaian nation.

Please bear with us in these very difficult, tragic times. As I have said before, we must focus on rebuilding and protecting what we still have at the moment. We must put aside our anger and our desire for revenge, for those emotions will only lead to recklessness and further loss of life. Let us unite in rebuilding and refortifying our great nation of Gaia once again. Thank you, and may Gaia bless us all!

[Flubber]

The foreman was meeting again with his intelligence chief

" well foreman, it appears that the dissidents will withdraw since there will bw no negative consequences at home for them other than the agreed reprimands. Early indications are the gaians are accepting of the timetable for withdrawal but a word of caution. . . the gaian leadership feels that you have betrayed a sacred trust. You must remain on guard"

" A SACRED TRUST ??!! We are the last two factions standing after decimating all the others and they expect trust ?? Up until 10 years ago we were sworn enemies and our cease-fire was due to expire in 4 years. I don't condone what our troops did but the gaians can hardly be suprised. The dissidents had less than 10 units at their disposal and 2 would have been sufficient to capture the two gaian bases."

"All the same the gaians are screaming "

" Ahh #$@^%$#$ If those darn dissidents had not succeeded we could have dismissed this all as a border skirmish. I am demonstrating the ultimate in good will by ordering a withdrawal when pushing on could decimate the gaian homeland. . . . I will heed your warning though. We will continue a posture of armed vigilence on all frontiers. "

" And foreman you will have to expect that the gaians will arm themselves after this incident. "

" As they have every right to do. As for us I want an AAA troop and an interceptor in every base on ther frontier. See that it is done. . . . and sweep for those dang probeships."

[Tenchusatsu]

Year 2242 to Stephen.
_______

Gaia's Tribune.com
Feature Editorial
G. Gordon Giddy, Author of "I'm Smart, You're Dumb, and Other Laws of the Universe"

ALL DRONES DESERVE TO DIE

I don't know about you, the reader, but I'm pissed. I'm pissed not only at the Drones who attacked our defenseless bases and raped our homeland, but also at the doves, those idiotic, tie-dyed, tree-huggin', and weed-smokin' hippies who ignored my cries for a stronger military.

Anyone who's watched my talk show knows exactly what I've been saying for the past ten years. We cannot simply toss away our guns and expect other nations to do the same. I've received criticism after criticism for what they called "radical, extremist" views. I've been called a "barbarian," a "warmonger," hawk, baboon, you name it. I've even received a death threat or two, supposedly from the same people who hypocritically preach non-violence.

Well guess what? The same four words that I've said countless times before come to mind: "I told you so." But that's beside the point.

Now we have Lady Deirdre "Pie in the" Skye stubbornly holding onto her pacifist views. She tells us not to retaliate, that somehow it's only a minority of the Drone nation that supported this blatant attack on us. By implication, she is saying that the majority of Drones are peace-loving and disapprove of this travesty.

To that I say one word: Bull. And here are three reasons why:

1) The Drones are still a Democracy.

By the propaganda coming from the Foreman's Headquarters, you'd think that the Drone government has switched to a fundamentalist military regime all-of-a-sudden, no? But that is not the case at all. They are still a Democracy, which by definition is a government "of the people, for the people, and by the people." Whatever the government is responsible for, the people are responsible for, because the government is the people, and the people are the government.

2) No Drone is ignorant of current events

We now live in an age where information is free-flowing and freely exchanged. It is obvious that each and every Drone citizen knows what just happened in Gaia, despite the Foreman's obvious attempts to play dumb. If they were somehow sheltered from the news or denied access to such information (if that's even possible), I could understand. But their economy and their societal values tell otherwise. Their economy remains a Free Market, which itself depends on a free-flow of information. And up until recently, their societal values revolved around Knowledge, which depends even more on the same free-flow than a Free Market.

3) The silence coming from the Drone population is deafening.

So now we can conclude that the Drones know exactly what is going on. But instead of feeling sorry for us, they go on with their business. That means they approve of the rape of our nation.

Now as a former law-enforcement officer, I know that if you are present with an acquaintance, and your acquaintance commits a crime, you are also guilty of that crime by association, even if you did not directly carry out the act yourself. I state the obvious: Each and every Drone citizen is guilty of this heinous crime against our Gaian nation by association.

So I call upon each and every red-blooded citizen and patriot of our Gaian nation and ask him or her to make life extremely difficult for the Drones. Bomb their Children's Creches, poison their waters, refuse to comply with anything a Drone wants you to do! The only good Drone is a dead Drone!!!
_______

Personal Log, Year 2242
Druid Tenchusatsu, First Advisor to Lady Deirdre

I remember a quote from old America. Their revered general and first President George Washington said, "To be prepared for war is one of the most effectual means of preserving peace."

However, we followed another slogan, one that is almost the inverse of what Washington advised. The slogan goes like this, "You cannot simultaneously prepare for both war and peace."

Now I know who was right.

I just had lunch with the Defense Minister in his quarters on Alpha Prime, home of the Command Nexus. Though I wondered if he even had the time to chit-chat considering our dire situation, he insisted on this meeting. And what he told me was shocking, something that, if true, would suggest that our offer for peace with the Drones was a fatal miscalculation.

He claims that we were on the verge of a major strike which would have tipped the odds of the war in our favor. But before he could give the order, Lady Deirdre called for peace, and he was forced to withdraw the attack. Although he was just as weary of war as I or the Lady was, many of his immediate subordinates were not. Some of them even said that his order to withdraw was the hardest order they have ever had to obey. They were obviously very eager to press the advantage that I did not know we had.

(For the purposes of security, I won't record the details of the planned strike. Suffice to say that there was nothing the Drones could have done to stop it.)

As for the here and now, I am overwhelmed with a sense of despair. As much as I'd like to kill each and every last citizen of the Free Drone empire, I must admit that we were not entirely without fault in this tragedy. Obviously we were naive to think that a cease-fire could hold up if they have a stronger military than we do. I think we even took our Citizen's Defense Force for granted. But more than that, I think we became blinded by our own greatness and arrogance. We should have known that the Drones were jealous of our progress. We should have known that they desired our medical technology so much, they would have killed for it. The occupation of our Cloning Vats and the stealing of our Human Genome Project prove this theory. And we should not have traded prudent defense for speed in research.

Now I am faced with the daunting task of rebuilding our broken nation. Right now we are at the mercy of the Drone military occupying our former capital. The Foreman claims that the attack was not carried out by his orders, that it was actually the result of a military coop. I don't know why he continues to stick to that story, since practically no one in our Gaian nation believes it. But what choice do we have?

He promised the return of those bases in three years, along with their projects, but I no longer trust his word. This time, we are building up a massive military to hold him to his word. Even if our military buildup is belated and hopeless, we will not go down without a fight.

Yet I know that Lady Deirdre ordered me not to retaliate, and I understand her position. Retaliation would get us nowhere. But this time, we will bring about peace through strength. Even if our efforts seem futile from a militaristic point-of-view, perhaps our sheer willpower will make up for it. I can only hope ...

[Flubber]

2243 to Allen

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The foreman reviewed the intelligence reports. He saw that the gaians were constructing 26 helicopters and 2 new probeships. he knew that all of those were offensive weapons with absolutely no defensive value. he told himself that their reaction was to be expected . He decided to continue to force the withdrawal of Drone troops but to recommence troop production himself across the lands of the Drones as a precautionary measure if the gaian buildup continued next turn.

[Tenchusatsu]

Year 2243 to Stephen.
_______

Transcript of Security Holocam Footage
Provisional Headquarters, Mindworm Pass
Conversation between Defense Minister and Head of Intelligence.

DM: I don't get it. The Druid is ordering a military buildup of massive proportions. None of the units we are constructing or training are defensive units. But the Lady has ordered him not to attack. What's the point of building all those units if we're not going to attack?
HoI: Well, for one thing, the Drones don't know that.
_______

Intelligence Report
Covert Ops Center, Fallow Time
The State of the Occupied Bases

We have overwhelming evidence that the citizens stuck in the occupied bases, Gaia's Landing and Song of Planet, are indeed being mistreated and oppressed like prisoners of war. Once thriving centers of a proud Gaian nation, the two cities have now been transformed into grey desolate wastelands.

Many of the domestic centers of commerce and recreation have been decimated by the invasions, and that has created widespread drone problems for the Drones, ironically speaking. They've had to resort to using Drone empaths to "drug" the populace into a psionic stupor. As a result, production and energy gathering is non-existent, research has shut down, and farms are left unworked. Food reserves are rapidly dwindling, and soon a severe famine will claim thousands of lives.

Meanwhile the bulk of the Drone occupiers (who aren't in the military or the team of empaths) are busy trying to operate the Cloning Vats. Combined with their societal value of Power, they appear to be cranking out clones of top elite soldiers. But not only that, they are also using the Vats to spit out more factory hands, farmers, stock market analysts, and other workers of menial positions. This has led to a population boom in the Drone bases, much like the booms we've experienced when the Vats were under our control.

In short, "rape" is definitely the most appropriate word to use for the occupation of Gaia's Landing and Song of Planet.

[Flubber]

Open message from Foreman Flubber


People of Planet

I stand before you bearing sad news. In recent years, Free Drone forces acted on their own initiative to attack our rivals, the Gaians. I was not a part of planning this attack but saluted the success of our forces.

Colonel Xi the architect of the attacks has been recalled home and has accepted that further aggression by the forces he controls is unwarranted. Loyal Free Drone forces have been moving into positions in all frontier bases to ensure that the governance of the central command structure is obeyed. We have promised that we will vacate the Gaian bases and we shall be good to our word. The southernmost base will be vacated on this year and the Gaians have indicated that they will re-occupy the base without any spy actions. The northernmost base will be vacated next year and returned to gaian control.

Unfortunately, dissident groups are unhappy wiyh our overtures of peace. In two frontier bases, radicals have exploded devices at the main energy terminus,causing the destruction of those bases. Conversely, misguided pacifists at 4Drilling Grounds have purported to join the Gaians. WE have advised the gaians not to interefere as we will deal with this as an internal Drone matter and police units will shortly restore control.


We have come through a difficult time but note that the gaians are permitting our forces to withdraw as agreed. We hope this is the beginning of a new era of understanding and good will. However, we also note that the gaians are undertaking an unprecedented arms buildup. We understand their renewed caution but will state that the massing of large numbers of offensive weapons is provacative and can lead to misunderstandings. We hope they will see fit to focus their military might on weapons of defense.

[Tenchusatsu]

I'll play the turn later today, but I couldn't pass up the opportunity to advance the storyline ...
_______

Transcript of Secure Holovid Conference Call
Newly Constructed Gaian Headquarters, Mindworm Pass
Conversation between Druid Tenchusatsu and an Intelligence Agent somewhere within Drone territory
Security Level: TOP SECRET

(Image of the agent is on the screen. He is hunched over his portable spy camera. Surrounding him is crimson xenofungus, obviously providing cover for this clandestine conversation.)

DT: Say that again? You said they want to de-fect? (The word comes out of his mouth like it was in a foreign language) As in change sides? Join us? Renounce Drone citizenship and call themselves Gaians?
IA: (in a whisper) That's exactly what I meant. The rebel leaders tell me that they have just taken control of the base.
DT: (a mix of extreme nervousness and elatedness crossing his face) Rebel leaders? What rebels? Why wasn't our intelligence network aware of them in the first place?
IA: We knew that the Drones had widespread problems trying to control dissidents in most of their bases outside of their home island. It makes sense that some of those dissidents could organize and become a formidable rebel force. And it's not surprising that they escaped our infiltration networks. If we were able to detect them, so would the Drone authorities.
DT: Hmmm ...

(Brief pause, but too long for the comfort of the Intelligence Agent.)

IA: Uh, sir, I can't remain here for long. I need your orders on how to proceed soon.
DT: OK, for now hold off on their offer to defect. As much as I'd like to count them as our new friends, recognizing their defection may have grave consequences for us all. I'll call an emergency meeting of the senior advisors and discuss the situation with them. Understand.
IA: Yes, sir.
DT: Good. I should have an answer for the rebel leaders by the time of your next call. Druid Tenchusatsu out.

[Flubber]

At a town hall meeting at 4Drilling Ground

" . . . mayor Quimby, did I just hear you right?? I thought you said that you had unilaterally declared OUR town has joined the Gaians. Are you mad ??!!

Mayor: " Well . . . er . . . I thought it was best. . . . you see . . . Planet spoke to me last night and told me to protect the plants and the animals and the fungus and everything. I also passed some bylaws banning industrial development, eating meats or using animal products for any purpose. In addition I decided to spend our entire budget on a "pretty flowers" festival. . . ."

The deputy mayor seized the podium " I had no part of this I swear to you and I managed to get a message out to the Drone forces. A police unit should be here shortly to take control. We plan to hospitalize the mayor, cancell the festival and appropriate funds to necessary public works as per the budget"



The crowd left the hall murmuring oaths at the mayor, who, oblivious to his surroundings, was continuing to speak eloquently on the beauty of nature.
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Back at Central command


" Foreman, we have news that there was no real uprising at 4Drilling Ground. Apparently their mayor is mentally unbalanced and declared the town as sovereign gaian territory. We have the mayor headed to hospital and the deputy mayor has revoked the decree"

" So the town is now back under control"

" Not quite foreman. The town sheriff is obeying the last order given by the mayor and has not permitted the Gaian flag to come down. He says he will only leave his post when relieved by another police unit. A unit should be dropping into town any minute now and the gaian flag will come down"

[Tenchusatsu]

Year 2244 to Stephen.
_______

Transcript of Security Holocam Footage
New Gaian Headquarters, Mindworm Pass
Emergency Meeting of Senior Advisors

Foreign Relations Minister: This is a bad idea. Recognizing their cessation from the Drone union will be a futile gesture! And the Drones will only become enraged at the token proclamation!
Lindley Ling, Head of the Mindworm Trainers: We just can't turn our backs on them! They are oppressed people crying out for our help! We can't just let the Drones walk all over them! At least make a public statement!
Defense Minister: Lindley, I hope you realize we have no way of sending reinforcements to the rebels at 4Drilling Grounds. They are too far away for even our finest elite needlejets.
Colin Cooley, Head of Gaian Intelligence: (muttering) Yeah, great job our "finest" did in defending our homeland ...
DM: Hey! We sure didn't get any warning of attack from your crack agents, I mean, agents on CRACK!
Druid Tenchusatsu: (right as Colin rises in anger) That's enough! We all share the blame for not defending our homeland, and now hundreds of thousands of our people are suffering because of our arrogance. The last thing we need is to destroy what little unity we have left with juvenile blame games.

(Colin opens his mouth, as if to say something, but the Druid sends Colin a cold, stern gaze. Colin stares back briefly, then sits back down and bows his head slightly, knowing well what the Druid just silently ordered him to do.)

Druid: Very well. I've heard enough arguments for one night. Mr. Defense Minister, is there any way we can arm the locals? Any way whatsoever?
DM: The rebel leader tells me that all of their Formers have been recalled into their base. They were able to add some Plasma Steel Armor to one group of Formers, and they were also able to use our tools, techniques, and training methods of our Citizen's Defense Force.
Druid: I see ... And the bad news, now that you've already run out of good news?
DM: Well, none of our AAA defensive weaponry is compatible with the Drone Former machines. And we know that the Drones are sending at least one task force of their new Shard Choppers to retake the base. Yes, the only thing the rag-tag band of rebels can do against the Choppers is fire desperately into the air with handheld shredder pistols.
Druid: >SIGH< Well, I guess that's it, huh?
DM: I'm afraid so.

(A sullen silence fills the air of the conference room. Every person there knows they are sending their new friends to certain doom.)

Druid: (as if able to read minds, despite having no psionic ability) Well, we're not going to let them die in vain. I'll make an announcement tomorrow morning, saying we officially recognize the rebels' request to join our nation. I'll also proclaim that we will do everything in our power to defend each and every Gaian citizen, including our new rebel friends.
FRM: Sir, I understand the PR motives for making such a statement, but do you think it will carry any weight, especially if we can't even arm them against one simple Drone task force?
Druid: There are many other dissidents within the Drone empire. Maybe if we turn the rebels at 4Drilling Grounds into martyrs, they'll be inspired to follow in the rebels' footsteps and take up arms against their oppressors in other bases. It's a longshot, but I think we should take it.

[Flubber]

2245 to allen

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In the news tonight

A watchman with a nightstick dropped into 4Drilling Ground and quelled the so-called "Rebellion of the Demented Mayor". No Free Drone citizens were hurt although there are reports of some looters destroying some formers and crawlers during the brief period of unrest. Reports indicate that the citizenry were amused by gaian portrayals of them as an oppressed people.

Sea levels continue to drop across Planet as the Free Drones continue their long term strategy of utilization of the oceans. Unconfirmed reports indicate that the gaians are constructing additional spyships and sources indicate that it is felt that these methods will deny the gaians access to many Free Drone cities.

In the capital, the foreman reconvened the council of supervisors, ending a brief period of martial law necessary to deal with a number of outside threats. The foreman was quoted as saying that " our society is a democracy and barring extreme emergency it should always remain a democracy."

On the frontier tonight there are disturbing reports that the gaians appear to escalating the arms race to new and disturbing levels. Twenty gaian factories continue to rush to build the latest in gaian helicopters. The ministry of defence has issued a statement indicating that there is no cause for alarm and they are prepared to deal with the threat posed by the gaians. At home there are reports of new stronger anti-air defenses, increased interceptors, trained locusts and an increase in helicopter production . Analysts are refusing to speculate as to whether this is a sign of renewed hostilities or merely a show of force designed to dissuade attacks from the other side.


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At Air wing command

"Base we have spotted a gaian probeship, Request permission to engage . . ."

"Eagle one. . . request denied. Mark the coordinates and return to base. I repeat DO NOT ENGAGE."

[Tenchusatsu]

I'll finish the turn later
_______

Personal Log, Year 2245
Druid Tenchusatsu, First Advisor to Lady Deirdre Skye

Well, the rebel uprising at 4Drilling Grounds has been put to a quick end, and the Drones didn't even have to break a sweat. It's amazing how efficient their propaganda machine is and how well they keep their own people in the dark. You'd think that a Democracy would object to military generals violating the chain of command or prevent the threat of a coup d'etat, but all of their citizens continue to voice support for militarism and barbarianism. Just look at the intelligence reports of Song of Planet, where all of the captured citizens are starving and forced to work as Engineers for their captors. Yet not a single peep of this is seen on the Drone news media. I guess the Drones are just as much of a Democracy as the "People's Democratic Republic of North Korea" was back on Earth.

The only difference is that the Drones have real military might to back up their oppressive regime. Might makes right, I suppose.

Meanwhile, Gaia's Landing is now back in our control. Luckily we did not lose any more citizens than were already lost in the initial attack, and we are struggling to rebuild our Tree Farms before famine strikes. But for now, Gaia's Landing is no longer our capital; as of tomorrow, I will officially declare Mindworm Pass as our new capital. Not that this will come as any surprise to anyone on Planet.

Finally, I've ordered the restart of our research efforts, as well as the relocation of our Universal Translator project in Lucky Autumn. It warms my heart to see that our research capabilities remain strong, despite the rape of Gaia's Landing, and despite the loss of many tidal generators as a result of the Drones' impressive Solar Shade. In fact, some of our researchers report that when they turned on their computers, they found their previously incompleted work to have completed itself! That would explain why the research reports say that the next breakthrough will be in 0 years. Could it be that our computers and Net Nodes are somehow becoming alive and sentient?

[Tenchusatsu]

Year 2245 to Stephen.

[Flubber]

Turn 2246 to allen

[NorthSwordsman]

What, no color commentary, pyschological warfare? Hmmm......

[Tenchusatsu]

Year 2246 to Stephen.
_______

Transcript of Holovid Conference Call
Conversation between Druid Tenchusatsu in Mindworm Pass and Defense Minister in Dreams of Green

DT: Report on "Operation Payback"?
DM: Unfortunately, we were only able to achieve one of the three objectives. Chi Sector succumbed to our Mind Control probe, and we obtained the schematics for their new Trained Shard Choppers. Unfortunately, our assault on their forward base was not as successful. Not only did we lose the two Mind Controlled Shard Choppers, we also lost a lot of our own choppers in the process.
DT: And the Drones' ability to retaliate?
DM: They have a few Shard Choppers already within range of our mainland and our northwest bases. This time they won't be able to take us by surprise, but I'm afraid there's little we can do to prevent one or two bases of our own from falling.
DT: OK, you did a good job considering that the odds were stacked against us. Notify all AAA troops and police to be on high alert from any Drone attack.
DM: So you do expect a violent response from them?
DT: I expect some B.S. from their propaganda machine, like "Drone blood has been spilled on Drone soil," then renewed attacks and reinforcements on their front line. They'll even stick to their "Mad Colonel Xi" story, I suppose. After that, anything is possible.
DM: Looks like we're at the mercy of the Drones.
DT: Uhhh, when were we not?
_______

Gaia's Tribune.com
Scientific Poll of 500 Gaian citizens

Would you support action of military retribution against the Drones? (asked before the failed Operation Payback)

Yes: 75%
No: 20%

Did you think the Gaian military should have struck back at the Drones? (asked AFTER the failed Operation Payback)

Yes: 35%
No: 50%
Don't know: 10%

(These polls have a margin of error of +3%.)

[Flubber]

2247 to the gaians
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Personal Log of foreman flubber


the gaians have shown their true colors. On the very moment that we graciously return their base to them they attack in the most cowardly and devious fashion. I have ordered my personell to prepare for war and our initial counterstrikes have caused a lot of damage. We have recaptured both Song of Planet and Gaia's Landing. I expect to hold neither of them as their military or secret police will retake them shortly but it was sufficient to deny the gaians those production centres for this fiscal period and as a bonus it threw a good chunk of their bases into open revolt.

I will continue science efforts but for the most part this has become a war to determine the supremacy of Planet. I have a lot of respect for the abilities of the gaian military but I hope that a larger number of bases combined with our greater productive capacity will win the day

----------------------------------------------------------------------------
An address by foreman flubber to the Drone people


My people,

We once again find ourseleves at war with an intractable enemy. We are not blameless in this as our Colonel Xi had attacked the Gaians and taken two of their bases a scant few years ago. However, I made the error of believing that the gaians were committed to peace and did not push the attack. In fact I voluntarily returned those bases to gaian control. However, at the very moment that we vacated Song of Planet, gaian forces launched attacks on a number of fronts. Chi sector was lost for a time.

However I am pleased to report that the forces of the Free Drones were prepared and have struck back. We have recaptured Chi Sector and for good measure have also captured Song of Planet and Gaia's Landing with a small commando team. While it is not anticipated that this team will be able to hold those bases, the team has done a remarkable job to sow dissension in the Gaian ranks.

My people, I come to you tonight to confess an error in my judgement. I truly believed that the gaians would commit to peace. I now see that the only path to peace will be through reducing the military threat that they pose. This will not be an easy task and there are bound to be setbacks before we prevail.

And I am confident that we will prevail. We are the most industrious and hardworking people on Planet. Our capacity for worh is unsurpassed. All I ask is that you each provide an additional effort so that we might defeat this agressor.


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In Drone Intelligence HQ

" Seaprobes are no longer a threat ?"

" No we have eliminated most vulnerable ports and managed to hit most of their probeships. But we must note that thier land probe force is being augmented. They are a clear threat to us. We must be vigilent

[Tenchusatsu]

Year 2247 to Stephen. It's the endgame now.
_______

Personal Log, Year 2247
Druid Tenchusatsu, First Advisor to Lady Deirdre Skye

The public continually cries out against war. Funny how they didn't when we were winning.

I now realize that Operation Payback was a mistake. Of course, had it succeeded, or had the timing been a little better, historians would look back and call it a brilliant move. Now, it will go down into the history books as a cowardly, shameful act, not a bold, daring move as I had originally hoped.

Meanwhile, Lady Deirdre is still suffering psychological depression and stays out of the public spotlight. Reportedly she has been conversing with the captured Commissioner Pravin Lal. They're probably getting drunk on sorrows, despair, and past mistakes. I would join them, but I've got a nation to run and a war to fight.

As for our military operations, we have once again taken back Gaia's Landing and Song of Planet, but our hold on those two bases is tenuous at best. Luckily they continually open themselves up to probe actions, but I fear even our superior intelligence will not save us this time. But who knows? Maybe the Drones will make another huge tactical mistake?

Yeah, and Locusts might fly out of my butt ...

[Flubber]

At Free Drone HQ

" shouldn't we be concerned that the gaians can probe back the bases that we take with commando units or probe them for tech.?"

" Of course we are concerned. But we have determined that they will likely be able to probe away tech in any event so there is no gain in taking inordinate caution or spending inordinate resources in trying to protect tech. Within a few short turns they will likely have all the tech that we do and it will become a non-issue"

"What about the bases, won't they recapture them immediately??"

" Yes, but every year we keep the productive capacity of those bases from producing ANYTHING useful for the gaians is to our advantage. While they should be easily recaptured, they will have to expend either cash or military force just to retain their current lands. As well, we note that our capture of the HGP has thrown a large number of their bases into disarray"

" So will we attempt these commando strikes in future years??"

"That depends. the gaians are building a substantial chopper fleet and our first goal should be to contain those choppers ASAP. We are building more of them than they are so if they want a war of attrition that is what they shall have."

[Tenchusatsu]

After posting my part of the storyline, I forgot to add the most important tidbit! So here it is ...
_______

E-mail, security level: TOP SECRET
From: Colin Cooley, Head of Gaian Intelligence
To: Druid Tenchusatsu
Re: Project Big Sister is ahead of schedule

(This e-mail was received and opened after the Druid made his last log entry.)

I am pleased to inform you that Project Big Sister is well ahead of schedule, despite the Cloning Vats constantly changing hands. We are now standing by for further instructions.

By the way, how is Lady Deirdre these days? We'll need her to guide and focus our empaths. Unity and singularity is of utmost importance for this project. Next to Lindley Ling, she is our strongest psionic talent. Yet unlike the youthful and impulsive Lindley, Deirdre is better able to bring focus and direction to our empaths. I hope and pray to Gaia that she isn't too depressed right now.

[Flubber]

On the street at Free Drone Central

" Did you see the news? Some of those Gaians acted like they have lost already"

" Ahh thats a bluff. They want us to think we are winning so we will slack off and get careless. Didn't you hear . . . they took back their two bases again today. We are right back to where we were when this started. "

" We'll win though . . . Our boys are the best !!"

" Well I hope so . . . but our secret police is no match for theirs. best I can figure is that we just have to outproduce them and see what happens."

[Flubber]

2248 to the gaians

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

From a columnist in the Drone weekly blurb


. . . our leaders claim we are winning this war but I don't know. Just take the latest battles, they claim they inflicted "heavy damage", whatever that means, but even the military brass admit they captured no bases on this mission. Its easy to claim success but when that success is not supported by something tangible, I question the veracity of our leadership. Frankly I do not believe them. . .

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In Free Drone HQ

" Why did not the foreman order the capture of those bases? After all, three different bases were entirely emptied of defenders and could have been captured."

"It was a conscious decision by the foreman not to allow such easy probe opportunities."

"Isn't that a flipflop?. . . It seems the foreman cannot follow a consistent strategy."

"Well he saw that the gaians were running thought control and there would be less disorder caused due to their better police-- there seemed less advantage in capturing bases so he chose not to do it. Also being unpredictable can be an asset as the enemy cannot count on your response."

[Tenchusatsu]

Year 2248 to Stephen.
_______

Fleet Garrison, Sea Base
Security Holovid Footage
Year 2248, after the Drone aerial assault

A set of 30 cm. steel doors open up, and a Gaian citizen (formerly a citizen of Sparta) emerges from the bomb shelter. A lady of Hispanic origin (who looks curiously like the former Colonel Santiago), she looks up at the bright, clear sky through the pressure dome. The Drone choppers hit all of the anti-air defenses, but left the civilian structures unscathed.

Another former Spartan citizen also emerges, a tall, muscular blond man with a face that looks as if it was chiseled out of rock. Much like the lady, he also gazes at the sky, then at the decimated air defenses.

The lady starts to say to the man, "Well that wasn't so bad."

"What do you mean?" replies the man. "Isn't it obvious that the Drones are merely toying with us?"

"You know, I can't believe we're still under the rule of that weak-ass Druid Tenchusatsu and his whore, Lady Deirdre 'Kiss me, I'm a ****in' pacifist' Skye!"

"Yeah, I hear ya. So you thinking what I'm thinking?"

"That we should just join the Drones? Makes sense to me. Col. Santiago always respected strength, and to honor her memory, we should join up with the strong ... aaaaaaarrrrgggghhhhh!!!"

Suddenly the lady clutches her forehead with her right hand as she doubles over from a sudden migrane. A short while later, the man follows suit. After several seconds of pain, the two shake their heads, then straightens back up as if nothing happened.

"Boy, that was weird," says the lady.

"Yeah, sure was," replies the man. "Come on, we gotta go help the others in putting out the fires."

"Sure thing. Long live Gaia's Stepdaughters!" she says in a very dramatic change of attitude.

"Long live Gaia's Stepdaughters!" repeats the man who obviously received a similar attitude adjustment.
_______

Gaia's Tribune.com
Scientific Poll of 500 Gaian citizens

Do you support continued war against the Drones? (asked right after the failed Operation Payback)

Yes: 35%
No: 50%
Don't know: 10%

Do you support continued war against the Drones? (asked just one week ago)

Yes: 99%
Don't know: 1%

(This latest poll has a margin of error of +0.00001%.)

[Flubber]

2249 to allen

===========================================


PRESS BRIEFING AT NEW DRONE CENTRAL (military press relations officer is speaking)


". . . . report another successful mission into gaian territory. We won 22 battles and lost 6 according to latest reports. Our missions continue to reduce the capabilities of the Gaian military and cripple their infrastructure. We have completely decimated the defending troops in 5 gaian bases. Until the gaians restore air defenders to those bases, they will be useless as staging points for their forces. Questions ?? "

" John Jones - Daily Blabber . . . How can you call the missions a success when we lost troops and captured NOTHING"

(press officer) " As we have said, we are engaged in a systematic attempt to degrade the military capabilities of the gaians and our missions to date have done that. Our esyimates is that we have reduced the gaians forces by 12 % and their industrial capacity by 19%. We expect to inflict further reductions on them by further attacks"

" Biff Steele-- Guns and Ammo . . . Is you reticence to attack a result of the powers of the gaian secret police? We have heard rumours that they have amazing powers of mind control."

" We have a great respect for the mind control powers of the gaians and for that reason are making every attempt to avoid putting our troops in positions where they may be mind controlled. Our secret police forces have created some countermeasures but the reality is that they take time to implement. Therefore the prudent course is to ensure an area is relatively safe from probes. No area is completely safe BUT by systematic attacks we hope to clear certain areas"

" Ima Frade -- Daily Capitulator. . . What about reports that the gains are developing magic secret police that can airdrop into anywhere?"

(press officer) "That is not true. The gaians have paratroopers just as we have BUT the aerocomplex prevents ANYONE from dropping within 2 km of our bases. They must land and it is then that they are vulnerable"


" Alberto Hoover -- Spy Day . . . We are getting reports that the gaians are building a new secret project . . . How can this be if the Gaians are in such dire straits as you claim?"

(press officer) "They are not in dire straits. make no mistake about this. They are a powerful empire with many capabilities. We must continue to work hard if we are to win this war. As to the secret project . . . yes they are building one through great effort and sacrifice by their people. We believe it is an attempt to discover technoligies with which they may better fight this war. We are looking at options as to how we may best deal with their abilities once this project is complete. Thats all the questions for now, I will have a further briefing at 1800. Thank you"


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Diary of foreman flubber


The gaians are proving to be wily adversaries. While we have the ability to capture a number of their bases, the existence of nearby probes and probeships makes that unwise. They are hoarding energy now and our scientiest have noted that they use energy when they mind-control our guys. So I half expect an attempt on a major base of ours. The other possibility is that they are collecting energy to push through the universal translator thing. Either way does not seem that good for us.

I see the only good option is to continue our degradation of their abilities. Every base that does not have a good AAA defense is useless to them as a staging area. Every troop that manages to kill their formers and crawlers, reduces their ability to strike back.

If only I could get a handle on their probes. They pop up everywhere and anywhere and Planet only knows where they will show up next.

[Tenchusatsu]

Year 2249 to Stephen.
_______

Transcript of Security Holocam Footage
Secret Project Construction Site, Lucky Autumn

Scientist 1: Why the heck are we constructing a Universal Translator, anyway? Everyone on Planet speaks English, don't they?
Scientist 2: I guess some people want to glean some wisdom off of the writings and glyphs engraved on the monoliths. Perhaps that will lead to new technology discoveries ...
Scientist 1: Hey, wait a minute, hold on ... I just got an urgent e-mail. We're to change our project to The Pholus Mutagen.
Scientist 2: Say again? How the heck are we supposed to just change horses in mid-race?
Scientist 1: Well, according to "Secret Projects for Dummies," all we need to do is hit this here button that says "Change."

[Flubber]

Turn to Allen

[Tenchusatsu]

Year 2250 to Stephen. Game is almost over.
_______

Covert Ops Center, Fallow Time
Report from Probe Team, somewhere within a field of fungus

You have miscalculated, sir. The Pholus Mutagen did not give us freedom of movement through the fungus, as you had surmised. Instead, the fungus is only acting as a defensive shield for us, which I'm afraid would be inadequate against the Drone air force.
_______

New Gaian Headquarters
Mindworm Pass

Druid: Well, what do you think?
Advisor: My honest opinion, sir?
Druid: Do I ever ask for anything less?
Advisor: No, sir. Well ...
Druid: ... well?
Advisor: Let's just say I think you should write your last will in testament.