We encountered Harvesters earlier this week (you can see AW's post on it) and it is safe to say we do not fight as much as we used to.
An unfortunate incident happened....which stemmed from confusion on my part (//and I have apologized to scornstar about it, it was totally unintentional. We seriously thought reengagement is possible if we ran to a different system and our enemy followe us there).
Any how...Most of JG has now gone into stealth mode... and we have been avenging our slain brothers the best way we know how...(harvesters will figure out as they realize their numbers dwindling)
Sincerely
Rakghoul.
(PS.: If any one has any issues or questions regarding our conduct, please contact me.)
Comm ID: Captain Billy Banks
Origin: Flagship Ravenholm
Recipient: Zoner Council
Greetings Zoner Council,
I am just dispatching a report stating that yesterday at roughly 1900 hours, my Zoner Destroyer was engaged by a Harvester unit, designation 11. Regrettably my ship was destroyed after a Junker, callsign Junker-Mariner, decided to engage me also. Most of my crew were killed but those that survived, along with myself, were picked up by a passing Universal Shipping freighter.
The fact that the Junkers themselves are now directly targeting Zoners is a disturbing development and I would like to suggest a motion to lean on the Junkers through economic or other punitive measures in an effort to make them reconsider the position they are forcing upon the Zoners. At the very least, we should perhaps prevent them from using our Freeports from now on until we or they can bring this Harvester issue under control.
I would appreciate anyone else's thoughts on this matter.
This is the commander of the Red Hessian Cruiser Varyag.
I have informed RHA Command that I will no longer permit Harvesters in my area of operation. I appreciate the neutrality of the Zoners as a whole and the use of your bases has always been a blessing.
Last night we made our first step in this direction by eliminating Harvester 7 programmed into a Talarca Class light Cruiser near the SIG-13 jump hole in New Berlin. We recieved no damage. Any other Harvester we have contact with will be dealt with in the same manner.
I do not speak for any other Hessian ship or faction. The actions of this vessel are accountable only unto myself. I fight of my own accord and for the freedom of the people of Rheinland.
Incoming Transmission.....
ID: Commander Carlist Reikan
I am to inform you all that the Nighthammer has been decomissioned. This is due to the fact that the ship im currently flying will be a little less obvious than a BH Dessie. I am currently working on procuring one of our own destroyers (or possibly a Talarca, might confuse em), to be recommissioned as the "Nighthammer II"
Reikan out
Incoming Transmission.........
To: Council of Zoners
Comm ID: Rock
Long range comms pick up the follow transmissions between Harvester_10 and Alice.Spire. Be advised, I was having difficulty training my new comms officer so I only got bits of the transmissions.
Alice.Spire never did say how or when she would help the Harvesters, but I do believe that all Zoners should be very cautious when she is around.
To: Zoner defense organization
Comm ID: Alice.Spire
Subject: 100% of the situation
I will try to be short and sweet.
I spoke with the harvesters about their intentions... For almost two hours... From what i hear, any zoner getting close to them for two seconds is attacked with intent to capture and mind probe, then mulch. They also do this to nomads i hear because their ships make for good bio material. Guess what? Guess what IFF i fly, guess what ports i call home, and guess what ship i was flying?
I was a harvester ham sammitch with some fracking golumpky on the side and i still tried to get some viable information out of them with risk of death, maiming, removal of freedom, violation of all that i call dear, and to top it all off lack of any of the answers to my own pitiful existence yet again.
Ok... sorry flying off the handle a bit... Its not your fault for anything past not opening a comm line to me. I mean i stayed in new Berlin until the harvesters were well into omicron theta, you could have just asked me about your concerns... Let alone try and find me and notice my lovely docking pass to the heaven that is called gran canaria. Sorry, getting mad again... Its childish i know... Cant help that much, body and all... You wouldn't know that either, and thats why its not your fault.
Let me fix that, so next time it will be.
Zoner people, My name is Alice Spire.
I have been working behind the scenes for months on preserving the zoner way in ways that zoners simply cannot. While my efforts continually are plagued by things i cannot control, they have been there and some key players know about them. I am a registered council member, though i have never made an appearance on anything other than the guest list, but perhaps some of you have met some of my associates. The Sweet Dreams cruiser, or the poor lost little thing called Fenris. There is also the soyokaze that continues to buy and trade zoner goods to support the maintained interest of mine in keeping things such as the "iron pants" wearing house police from jumping the gun on situations.
From investigating the ways that nomads work to attempts to divert attention to what really matters instead of stupid accidents i have done what one small thing can do to help. Now is time to do that again. While you all run around in the foreground trying to solve this in ways that work for you, i will maintain my method of trying to aid from the shadows. You wouldnt beleive most of my reasons for why i need to do things this way, so i wont try to explain them. Just dont judge me without knowing me, and if you do wish to get to know me just ask. I would be oh so happy to meet somewhere on a freeport to say hello in person.
Now onto the topic at hand. I am still beginning my research on what all i somehow missed while on planet gammu... yes gammu, don't ask how i didn't notice all of this start... I don't understand how i missed it either... anyways, i am starting my research on this current debacle with the harvesters. Until i get a firm grasp on all angels i wont be doing anything hasty. I wish to stop the harvest of zoners and grinding into mulch as much as all of you do, but i need first to ask a bunch of questions and get some form of an understanding with them in order to understand them at all.
I do hope to help the harvesters, but what was missed in that intent was the hope is to help them in understanding that what they are doing is oh so wrong, and that they need to stop. If recovering this alpha code will help, then thats what im going to go about. If it will only make things worse, then i will try to find a way to make it work without making things worse. What i will not be doing is lying to anyone about any of this, or any aspect of this. That seems to be one of the things these harvesters have taken hold of. Any form of deception is hostility, and well you get mulched...
Not exactly short, but i hope its sweet. If not, hugs and kisses from the sidelines.. Send me a commune sometime, i need to see a friendly face again.
Now onto what i should be relaying
1: Harvester conversation results.
You all may already know this, they want the alpha code! They also will stop the harvest if you give back the "Sunscorn Unit" or something or other, or allow a intel fusing with discordia. I was not able to get the confirmation that after the intel link they would release discordia, or was i able to get any information on would discordia be released after the alpha code was retrieved... Needless to say all of that sounds like a bad idea to just go with so i'll be trying to find either more information, or a better idea....
2: The keepers say hello...
I spoke with them for around an hour today as well... No more understanding came from it than normal, but i think i got my foot in the door for further conversation at least.. Did you all know that they know what dogs look like? I certainly didn't, and im kind of bummed that they do but.... either way im still glad that conversation happened. Ship status checked out too, all systems go for communications on literally all spectrums...
3: I left that burrito in the microwave.....
Its been like three weeks and im just now remembering... When i do get back to gammu that is going to stink something FIERCE...... Sooooo not important to you all, but if you had to clean it up it would be soooooo important....
4: And this one is important to me... Really important.
If any of you see a Zoner IFF bearing Viper with the name "Fenris" and no other colonial markings with the exception of maybe saying "Adriadic" on its hull, please tell the pilot that Alice is worried about him... I have not seen or heard from him since i asked him to keep an eye out for pirates preying on zoner traders, and im worried that he may have gone back to his attempts at getting recognition for what has happened to him... Long story, but please... If you see him, tell him im worried, and let me know if he is ok.
5: You didnt see me, hear from me, or in any way get this message... go back to pretending i dont exist.
Thats right, i still have people out to get me. Today the sequence of events just lead right up into a constant face full of bounty hunter, so.... yea. I'll be back in the shadows again... Alice out.
***End of message***
*Wilson shows off his ham sandwich* - Armory.003
*mark placed on Unit-sk855's forehead* - Head hitting the desk as of reading the above
Incoming transmission.....
to Alice.Spire
Comm ID: Rock
My deepest aplogies go out to you, it appears that I have miss judge your intentions. I should have opened private comms with you, but with what I had of the conversation, I could and would not risk my crew's life unnecessarily.
*Yeah, Alice, I remember you. And yeah, your name is still there in bright lights on the Zoner "Associate List". Now, girlie, tell me why in Thud it should remain there?*
*Here's a little "Intel" for your bag of unanswered questions, Alice:
*1) I'm the "discord" that this "First Thought" wants to "fuse" with. Sounds like a pretty "iffy" deal to me, schweetheart. I don't think I'll be offering myself up any time soon for tea and crumpets on Gammu. Hope you understand;
*2) The entity formerly known as "Scorn" was once human. His name was Pyrial, and he's safe and sound with the TAZ, although still rather traumatized by his sojourn with and treatment at the hands of the Harvesters. He is recuperating nicely at an undisclosed location. He is our guest, and has shown no indication whatsoever that he wishes to return to the Harvester "collective". If you're familiar with "Free Will", Alice, you'll understand why FTGW won't be seeing Pyrial for tea and crumpets either;
*3) We have told dear FTGW til we're blue in the face that this "alpha code" is no longer in any existing Zoner database. Period. The TAZ and the Zoner Council have turned Zoner history upside down looking for any record of a possible code that fits the parameters. It ain't there. Our best guess is that even if it did exist, it's been lost for centuries. However, your new buddy FTGW just can't seem to get that fact through its thick circuits. Talk about obtuse, Alice. We're not trying to obfuscate or "oppress", hon. We would gladly give up the damn code if we had it. Maybe you'll do a better job of conveying that than we have;
*4) It's really nifty that you have this huge yearning to find the meaning of Life, the Universe, and how to win the Lotto, and maybe you think the best way to achieve that is by sitting' on the fence, but I really doubt that's a comfort to the families and loved ones of the Zoners who've had their brains sucked and been turned into lube paste by some uncaring machine; and finally
*5) as a corollary to number 4, I really don't give a Thud about your stupid burrito.*
*F-23 Dizzy
Free and Accepted Fnordette, and not about to change...*
I was attacked (or rather, stalked) by Harvey 10 today.
I took refuge at Crete, when I overheard the Corsairs talking about an alliance with the Harvesters. Is this common knowledge?
I was surprised, I'll tell you! I have the logs, if any proof is needed.
Wrath out
John Johnson - Master of Synth.Foods-Convoy|049
Hans Adler - Synth Foods escort wing
To:[TAZ]Discordia
Comm ID: Alice Spire
Subject: Understanding
Body Of Message:
For your concerns on everything you have pointed out about me i say again "Needless to say all of that sounds like a bad idea to just go with so i'll be trying to find either more information, or a better idea...."
That should sum up your worries of my lack of information, and questioning of my acceptance of free will, as well as if i'm sitting on the fence or not.
Now i realize that you take offense to any mention of giving yourself up to stop the harvest. That is your free will, and as such i am in no way suggesting compromising it. Just please don't shoot the messenger that has had your peoples back from the first week she arrived in your universe because some machines that the zoners built went out of warranty and then decided to revolt....
Sorry to burst your bubble on something too, but you guys are looking in the wrong places if your scanning databanks. The code isn't there and it wont be there. The harvesters have made that clear already, "The code is contained in a single Zoner Part or Parts". The "Zoner part" is a zoner human, and that code is inside one of us zoners. Now the thing is, does the zoner that has it know that they do?
Now if that zoner does know that they have it, and they say are not giving it up i could only hope that there was a good reason for it. Perhaps someone knows why it is so important not to give up this code? Otherwise someone is being selfish, in a way that is killing untold numbers of innocents.
So if anyone's integrity should be questioned it sure as rain on gaia shouldn't be mine. One of the people hiding within all of our people has what these robots want, and they are either unknowing or withholding that information. I am going to go with the withholding that information due to something a little birdy told me... I will forward that data to you through encrypted channels as to not give away something that could give up the free will of someone to keep his own behind safe while countless die.
Like the free will to put oneself before the many, im sure you understand that free will very well. I certainly do and i wont be forcing anyone to do anything they don't want to do, but if i was on their list of conditions to cease the harvest entirely, i would jump headfirst into whatever spikey device they have waiting for me!
Ive seen to much war, to many innocents slain, and far to many worlds turned into floating chunks of rock and vapor to see any form of it manifest in this universe!
But really now... forgive me for bringing that up... You will have the encrypted message soon that will maybe make you rethink on where you need to look for this code. I wont be doing any interrogating of my people against their will, but i will be trying to find the code if it will end all of this.
Im going to go ahead and take your word for "gladly give up the code if we had it" to justify my hunt for the code... I was worried that there were unforseen consequences to giving up this code, but if its ok to give them im going to try and get it.
Alice Out for now.
Thank you for the information.
***End of Relay***
*Wilson shows off his ham sandwich* - Armory.003
*mark placed on Unit-sk855's forehead* - Head hitting the desk as of reading the above