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Discussions in Edinburgh - Shryke - 02-13-2011
The conference room was nothing more than a hastily converted officer's galley, furnished with a large table and surrounded by chairs. Holding its position near the far edge of the Islay Cloud, the International was busy preparing itself for the arrival of the Gaian delegation. The trip to Edinburgh was quick and uneventful, and now the Typhoon cruiser sat in passive mode as to be as undetectable as possible for the duration of the proceedings.
The interior was stripped of everything except the bare essentials. There were no pictures, posters, or anything except the bare bulkheads of the ship. The only illumination was provided by a strip of lighting running down the lenght of the room in the middle. Normally they are all lit, but for the purposes of this meeting only the table was well lit. The corners remained dark, but not to the point where they offered cover.
This was all intentional in order to create the feeling that was more of an interrogation, as opposed to a meeting of two delegations.
There were three people in the room, with Commissar-General Ulrich Eichel seated at the table, a Fedaykin named only Talib standing in the far corner from the entrance, and a woman sitting at a console flanking Eichel.
Ulrich's formal dress uniform contrasted sharply as with Talib's. It was perfectly pressed, isnignia and medals polished to a glistening shine, and worn with a distinct sense of arrogance. On the other hand, Talib's drab brown overcoat seemed as forgettable as his featureless face. An important asset for a man who's duties make it imperative that he not be remembered or even seen for that matter.
The last person in the room was a striking young woman sitting behind a small console. She was to act as the meeting's secretary, recording everything that happened in the room. While it seemed redundant, Ulrich knew full well that digital records are easily tampered with an erased. Not quite as easy as something sitting in a safe inside his office.
"Tanya, if you would be so kind as to ask the bridge crew to transmit our co-ordinates to our Gaian guests," Ulrich asked with a slight smile on his face.
"Of course, Commissar-General," she replied.
Tanya spoke into her headset as she relayed the orders, then after a few seconds nodded at Ulrich indicating the task had been completed.
Discussions in Edinburgh - Kontrazec (Somni) - 02-13-2011
*Jonah had been sitting in his quarters,calmly beading another dread of his hair,when he heard a beep from his neural net transponder.He knew what was to come,and he typed in a quick message: "Be there in a moment,hang on while I pick up Druce." He then stood up and hurried to Druce's chamber. As he passed through the hallways,he eyed a few conversations,a few Gaian chicks along the way,and eventually he reached Druce's door. He pounded on it,blatantly ignoring the intercomm on the wall,and yelled: "Druce,mon,let's get goin'. Da General be waitin'."He leaned against the wall and tapped his foot.*
Discussions in Edinburgh - Kontrazec (Somni) - 02-16-2011
Jonah kept banging on the door.
"Druce,mon,come on,we gunna be late. Dis ain't some sideways deal,dis be a general o' da Coalition...chop chop,ya?"
From inside the cabin came a muffled grunting sound,then Jonah heard Druce's voice;
"Lad,I ain't ready yet,ye scurry on,I'm gonna be there in a few!"
Jonah sighed,and headed towards his Claymore, the Primordial Breath. As the Islay dock gate slowly slid up,Jonah maneuvered the boat outside.He locked to the location signal for the International.After a short cruise,he was there,and he skillfully maneuvered the boat to lock on the International's mooring point.He left the confines of the Claymore,and shuffled into the mooring corridor.As he held his transponder,reading instructions how the hell to get to the bridge on this large thing,he was eyed on every corner by tidy,obviously disciplined and mostly large crewmembers.As he slowly shuffled along the ship's corridors,he realized he was lost.He looked around,and connected to the same neural net source the coordinates came from.He then spoke slowly;
"Oi,um...whoeva' be hearin' dis...I kinda be a bit lost in dis huge monsta' o' a ship yah got,send me sumkinda map or sumthin',gotta reach da bridge."
He braced himself for the gale of laughter he expected as a reaction from the whole crew.
Discussions in Edinburgh - Shryke - 02-16-2011
"Follow me," a voice said from a behind Jonah.
Without waiting for the Gaian to answer, the man turned around and began walking down the corridor. He was of Arab descent, and was a thin man, and wore a plain brown coat that seemed simply too large for his frame.
As the two wound their way through the main deck of the ship, Talib chimed the door, and it slid open a moment after. He entered the room, and returned to the corner where he was standing before.
"Ah, you have arrived," Ulrich said as he stood up and walked over to the man extending his hand.
"Commissar-General Ulrich Eichel of the Sirius Coalition Revolutionary Army."
Discussions in Edinburgh - Kontrazec (Somni) - 02-16-2011
Jonah radiated a sense of general impression from the General's appearance.He extended his hand in return;
"Guardian Jonah Blint o' da Nature's Last Hope. Pleased ta' meetcha'."
He shot a glance around the room,and at the tall man.He shifted a tad awkwardly.
"Uhm. Dis be mighty strange. Yah always gotcha interior like dis? So cold,so...lifeless?"
He tossed a quick wink to the woman at the console,then turned his warm jasper gaze at the General,lazily extending a smile.
Discussions in Edinburgh - Shryke - 02-18-2011
Eichel didn't pay heed to the question the Gaian asked. He made his way back to his seat, and pointed at the chair to his left, offerring it to Jonah. From a leather briefcase he pulled out a file and opened it, containing the intelligence report gathered by an SCRA operative on the NLH movement.
"Let's get things under way, shall we?" He said.
Without waiting for the Gaian to respond he turned and nodded to Tanya, who tapped a few buttons on her console and a paper record of the meeting started being produced.
"This meeting is to address a few matters of importance to the Coalition concerning the Gaian movement, and frankly, whether or not you are a threat to the revolution. Of other importance is of course your stance on the Molly movement in Dublin whom we are supporting, and what sort of activities you undertake in the pursuit of your ideals."
He shifted through a few pages of his report and pulled out a particular sheet.
"First, I must address something that is of particular concern to me. What exactly is the nature of your relationship with Corsairs, particularly the ones calling themselves... Shaulancas, who have threated my operative personally?"
As soon as the question was finished a seaman aboard the ship entered the room.
"Ah, but where are my manners," Ulrich asked and produced a smile.
"Would you care for something to drink or eat? I'm afraid borscht isn't on the menu, but I'm sure the cook can make something to your taste."
The comment about borscht being a reference to the last time a Gaian contingent met a hostile Coalition force, something that Ulrich hoped would bring back memories of what happens to those who come under fire from Fighter Corps pilots.
Discussions in Edinburgh - Kontrazec (Somni) - 03-10-2011
Jonah coughed uncomfortably.He had known of the borscht "incident",of course. Also,he had no wish whatsoever to anger the General,for obvious reasons.He shuffled discretely to his chair and sat himself down.
"Uhm,about da Shaulancas...we be havin' a sorta...live an' let kill agreement,if yah catch mah drift. We occasionally accompany dem on our Dublin raids,against da BMM.About da otha' Corsairs in general...well,we tryin' ta' get as far away from cooperatin' widdem,since dey be a buncha' murderin' zealots."
Jonah shifted in his seat,as if sitting on a nail or somesuch. He smiled at the General.
"An', to be frank, mista' Eichel, dere be no need ta' mention da borscht incident,ya? Le's call it bygones be bygones. Say one o' da Hope been readin ancient Earth documents 'bout da namin' conventions o' someone called "Russians". Boutcha dem Mollys... We generally be fine wit' most o' dem. Da Garda an' da independents be a buncha' utter morons, an' every time dey decide ta' provoke, dey get da pointy end. Da otha's we gots no problem wit'. Deyre minin'...we suppose we could ignore dat,as long as dey care about how dey dealin' wit' da waste. If we get anutha' Leeds in Dublin t'anks ta' da Mollys, we gunna have a problem dere. Aboutcha revolution...well,yah gotta tell me what it be about,den I be ready ta' state mah position on it."
Jonah turned his jasper gaze on the General inquiringly.
Discussions in Edinburgh - Shryke - 03-17-2011
// For those of you watching at home, this thread was supposed to have been done long before this civil war happened. Due to technical difficulties we are forced to continue now. So if you guys are scratching your heads, just pretend its mid February. //
"Interesting," Eichel said as he took out a pen from the inside of his coat pocket, and checked something off a sheet of paper.
"You would side yourself with notorious pirates and murderers to strike at working class people who are merely trying to provide a living."
The sheet of paper in front of him was written in Arabic. It was a little used language inside the Coalition, and Eichel took full advantage of that.
"Green tea."
The seaman snapped off a rigid salute and exited the room.
"The Mollys do not particularly interest me. They are band of drunks who have deluded themselves into thinking they can wrest Dublin and all its mineral wealth from Bretonia's hands. More-so, their penchant for tactics that mimic those of the Corsairs like those Shaualancas while claiming some moral high ground is amusing. If you kill them here and there, well it is not my concern. What is of concern is that you are tolerating the presence of Corsair, but if you say you are trying to distance yourself, we can leave it at that for the time being."
Eichel looked at Jonah briefly and flashed a smile before looking down at his sheet once again. He let a few moments pass in complete silence.
"Let us move on to the crux of what Nature's Last Hope really is, shall we? Simply put, what is the reason for your existence?"
As Eichel asked, he tilted his head to look at Jonah directly in the eyes.
Discussions in Edinburgh - Kontrazec (Somni) - 03-17-2011
"Well,dere be many definitions o' da NLH in general. We be an idealist group fightin' mainly fah' da benefit o' nature an' workin' against dem who take Motha' fah' granted."
Jonah paused,and eyed the General.
"I dun expect'cha ta' undahstand what we be believin' in. As well as I might not undahstand what yah fight fah'. You mention attackin' decent civilians tryin'a make a livin'? Well,dere be plenty o' otha ways ta' make a livin', many o' dem not includin' makin' environmental catastrophies in highly-populated systems."
He coughed slightly,and raked a hand through his dreads.
"Da ting be,General...da BMM be responsible fah' Leeds,da way it look. I be sure yah seen dem sector-wide clouds o' pure filth an' toxic waste. If yah haven't...take a look. If dey be allowed ta' develop furtha', dey would no doubt do dat ta' Dublin...den da Taus...den, Gaia knows what else dey might destroy. I be a simple man,mahself. I enjoy sittin' in da Hell's foliage terrace, da chirp o' a bird, da smell o' rain... Da only reason we gunna consider helpin' yah ta' change a planet be... da fact dat yah wanna make it livable, *again*."
He put special emphasis on the last word.
"Now,ta' answah' yah primary question; Who be da NLH? Well, dear General. We be a ragtag crew, seemingly unlinked and way too different and odd ta' work togetha'. Howeva'... we all share da same ideals. We all love nature,an' all it represent. We believe in da natural ordah' o' tings, an appreciate nature da way Gaia made it, pure, untarnished, beautiful. We live fah' da day when humanity gunna learn ta' appreciate da small tings once again, when real hedonism gunna be takin' a dive in da crystal clear cool waters o' a mountain lake, takin' a walk an' lettin' da grass caress da soles o' yah feet..."
He paused, glanced around the room,and continued:
"Da day mankind gunna learn ta' decorate a giant space like dis wit' some life, somethin' livin' an' breathin'... Dun get meh wrong, yah lovely assistant here makes da room much more bearable, but yah need life, mon, life!"
He stood up and waved his arms around vaguely.
"See dis? Dis all around yah be Gaia! She be in yah,in yah soul, da very essence o' life. Every star, every planet, every lake, every plant, every human... Gaia be in dem all. She be all an' she be nothin', she be fury, an' she be love. Every time yah get da shivah's, Gaia be upset about sumthin'. Her life force be what keeps us all walkin' an' tickin'. Do yah wanna see dat beauty destroyed? Would yah stomp on a precious orchid if yah saw one? Every time Gaia be hurt,I feel it...like a knife in mah chest, like a fire burnin' mah soul... Dun be like da rest o' mankind, mista' Eichel, please. Try ta' undahstand."
He sat down calmly,and directed his eyes on the general, a small tear seen in the corner of his eye.
Discussions in Edinburgh - Kontrazec (Somni) - 03-17-2011
"Well,dere be many definitions o' da NLH in general. We be an idealist group fightin' mainly fah' da benefit o' nature an' workin' against dem who take Motha' fah' granted."
Jonah paused,and eyed the General.
"I dun expect'cha ta' undahstand what we be believin' in. As well as I might not undahstand what yah fight fah'. You mention attackin' decent civilians tryin'a make a livin'? Well,dere be plenty o' otha ways ta' make a livin', many o' dem not includin' makin' environmental catastrophies in highly-populated systems."
He coughed slightly,and raked a hand through his dreads.
"Da ting be,General...da BMM be responsible fah' Leeds,da way it look. I be sure yah seen dem sector-wide clouds o' pure filth an' toxic waste. If yah haven't...take a look. If dey be allowed ta' develop furtha', dey would no doubt do dat ta' Dublin...den da Taus...den, Gaia knows what else dey might destroy. I be a simple man,mahself. I enjoy sittin' in da Hell's foliage terrace, da chirp o' a bird, da smell o' rain... Da only reason we gunna consider helpin' yah ta' change a planet be... da fact dat yah wanna make it livable, *again*."
He put special emphasis on the last word.
"Now,ta' answah' yah primary question; Who be da NLH? Well, dear General. We be a ragtag crew, seemingly unlinked and way too different and odd ta' work togetha'. Howeva'... we all share da same ideals. We all love nature,an' all it represent. We believe in da natural ordah' o' tings, an appreciate nature da way Gaia made it, pure, untarnished, beautiful. We live fah' da day when humanity gunna learn ta' appreciate da small tings once again, when real hedonism gunna be takin' a dive in da crystal clear cool waters o' a mountain lake, takin' a walk an' lettin' da grass caress da soles o' yah feet..."
He paused, glanced around the room,and continued:
"Da day mankind gunna learn ta' decorate a giant space like dis wit' some life, somethin' livin' an' breathin'... Dun get meh wrong, yah lovely assistant here makes da room much more bearable, but yah need life, mon, life!"
He stood up and waved his arms around vaguely.
"See dis? Dis all around yah be Gaia! She be in yah,in yah soul, da very essence o' life. Every star, every planet, every lake, every plant, every human... Gaia be in dem all. She be all an' she be nothin', she be fury, an' she be love. Every time yah get da shivah's, Gaia be upset about sumthin'. Her life force be what keeps us all walkin' an' tickin'. Do yah wanna see dat beauty destroyed? Would yah stomp on a precious orchid if yah saw one? Every time Gaia be hurt,I feel it...like a knife in mah chest, like a fire burnin' mah soul... Dun be like da rest o' mankind, mista' Eichel, please. Try ta' undahstand."
He sat down calmly,and directed his eyes on the general, a small tear seen in the corner of his eye.