Weber shrugged Your system lady Ross, I'd rather not tread on allies toes if I can help it. It is entirely up to you, Crayter would be welcome, but only if they have ships to spare. He walked over to the large glass window looking out over the forest You will have the support of the service for this attack my lady, I will request the the SCRA send some of their pilots up top to assist us when things kick off. Was there anything else?
- Yes. The Drake system, and the neighbouring Inverness and Newcastle. I understand that Bretonia is likely unable to commit to fully... Cleanse the area of undesirable elements. At the moment, at least. But I belive groundwork should be laid beforehand, so that we can deal with the threat as soon as the opportunity presents itself. An information exchange related to the area and related parties would be a good start. The Guard lacks information on any matters regarding the region that our Legion operatives were unable to procure, which puts us at a severe disadvantage when trying to deal with local Nomad nests. I'm sure you can understand the benefit of a well informed ally to aid you there.
Weber turned around, a small smile on his face. By 'Undesirable elements' you would not be speaking of Auxesia by chance would you? Inverness lies under the authority of the Junker congress, although Auxesia would undoubtedly take issue with that statement. The smile grew a little at the thought of Auxesia, their consistent arguments of protecting humanity being a poor front for their rather obvious ambitions to hoard technology at everyone else's expense. Newcastle is one of the most heavily fortified systems in Bretonia, by virtue of the fleets currently stationed there and Drake...Drake is not something I wish to get involved in lightly. The smile disappeared at the mention of Drake, a system that no one ever volunteered to patrol due to the nature of those who dwelt within and a system that he lacked resources to deal with, although that was supposedly Auxesia's job, they had done a far better job in ignoring it if nothing else. We...might, be willing to agree to this idea, yes. But what good is it to you? The Gaian's don't venture into that system, from what I understand few people do, and fewer still come back.
- We do not venture there, yes. But we would like it if no... Things ventured out of it as well. Cleaning that system up would do everyone a favour. As for Auxesia... No, I did not. Not at all, dare I say. The Guard was under impression that they were an ally of the crown, given that Armed Forces went as far as to disregard our ships coming under assault. Should I understand that this relationship has changed?
Weber gave a small chuckle The relationship remains unchanged, but we are a House intelligence agency so it was never that good to begin with, and now with things being what they are, our interests are beginning to...come into conflict.He moved back to his desk and sat down, irritation now replacing his formerly calm look. But if you are asking whether or not I trust them, the answer is simply, no. No I do not trust a group who deals in questionable technology, talks with questionable people and has questionable motives at all. The Gaian's deal in black and white, your motives are clear. You know what you want and work towards that end goal making it very clear to everyone else, as you have done with me for example. Auxeisa deals in shades of grey, which is the open interpretation of what they ought to know and have. This creates problems, and brings them into conflict with us. I simply cannot fight a war when our supposed 'allies' either hide information from us, or simply don't give us information and so stab us in the back by extension. They, of course, will argue otherwise and the beauty of working with shades of grey, means that their actions are open to interpretation. So it is very hard to figure out what they are doing. So no, Lady Ross, the relationship has not changed, but it is not good as it is.
Weber leaned back into his chair before continuing, The Inverness system offers a great many opportunities simply because it is a backwater system that no one has any interest in or goes to. It is removed, quiet, sparsely populated and lawless, this allows Auxesia free reign over the system, they can do whatever they like there. It is also home to the Drake Jump hole, and I do not believe that the Auxesians chose this system for it's sights. An organisation that prides itself on holding on to technology and dangerous goods and God knows what else naturally wouldn't house militaries and police wandering about the system where they can be seen. So that begs the question, what do they have to hide? or, more importantly, what are they up too? Auxesia has been spotted in Rheinland, the Omegas, the Taus, Kusari and the Omicrons. They are well organized and very influential, and I do not believe that they would share any information or technology out of the goodness of their hearts. Rather that they would share information only when it benefits themselves. If the Gaian's want to operate within the system and settle any outstanding scores with the Auxesians, I see no reason to interfere. But if you were to stumble upon something that might give insight into what it is they are actually doing and you happened to pass that information along, that would be most appreciated, and he said leaning forward with a look of dead seriousness I'm sure you would agree that a grateful intelligence service is far more desirable than an ungrateful one. So, miss Ross. How say you?
- The Covenant is a very elusive organisation, director. They barely patrol Inverness itself, which makes it difficult for us to even meet a patrol, let alone collect intelligence data. We have only managed to encounter them once, after all. It was a suspicious encounter, I will admit. One of my subordinates spotted a wing of Auxesian fighters alongside a group of Nomads. They were highly protective of the aliens but, alas, we have failed to procure solid evidence from the encounter. Nevertheless, I believe Fleet Captain Harrington, as Inverness is under his jurisdiction, would be interested to establish some sort of... Understanding when it comes to the system, if that is what you seek. As for me, I say my operatives would make an attempt to find out, director. Any intelligence about the Covenant and its allies would be of great help in that endeavour.
A sad sympathetic smile crossed his face Alas, I can give you nothing. It is the will of the higher ups that nothing is done to antagonize them, so I'm afraid I have nothing to give. But should something come your way, I'm be sure to let you know, if it aids your endeavors of course. He looked at her and thought for a while, before realizing he had nothing else to say. Was there anything else my lady?
- Nothing else, director. I am afraid I cannot promise anything, if the Service is unable to aid us. Should we collect something that seems to be of interest, we might forward it, but without any pointers, anything to work with... - Ross shrugged. - The possibilities of us turning up anything groundbreaking is slim.