To: Republican Provisional Assembly (RPA|), CC: TFP|; From: Dave Synk, Technocracy

[Dave Synk]

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identified: Paladin Dave Synk

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Good evening,

On behalf of the Technocracy of Auxo, I humbly greet you esteemed Assembly. Because of the ideals of freedom, liberation and further progress and ascension of our communities, our collaboration took birth. I am here to strengthen that resolve between our organizations by creating the basis of a cooperation deal. We would require more regular access to your gold regions, for both us and our friends from The Task Force Prometheus. I am sure you'd know their history pretty well.

Of course, this request does come with an offer from our side as well:

• State of the art medical equipment - The performance and efficiency of our equipment are much more amplified than the regular things on the market which will give you quicker recovery times to sustain your armed conflicts.
  
• Munitions - Self explanatory.
  
• Cybernetic Upgrades - Augmentations for extra calculus, hand-eye coordination, reflex upgrades and quick decisioning which can be decisive against the Bretonians slower inputs.
  

Given how this deal goes, we could potentially offer a small assistance quick reaction group against Bretonia. That would translate to station a fighter and a bomber wing that would quickly react to your calls of assistance. That is still to be discussed and decided by High Command.

We eagerly await for your input.

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Rudimentary creatures of blood and flesh, you touch my mind, fumbling in ignorance, incapable of understanding.
- Sovereign

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Source: "Maguire" Comms-Net
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From: Matthew J. Burns
To: Paladin Dave Synk
Subject: Your Offer

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Greetings, Mr. Synk.

Our gold supply is already available to the Technocracy, given the extensive technical aid with studying and integrating advanced technology provided by your people, as well as previous combat support. If you now offer medical aid and cybernetic enhancements as well, we can certainly discuss that.

However, we have never heard of this Task Force Prometheus before. Our only successful inquiry has turned up a connection to the former Liberty Insurgency, which was already on the way out when the Assembly was created. I would like more information about this group - and their motivations.

Godspeed,
Matthew Jamie Burns

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[Weapon]

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identified: AUX-LM0-333 'Megiddo'

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Distinguished Members of the Provisional Assembly,

I am Stratarch Megiddo, and I represent the martial arm of the Task Force Prometheus. While we are home to a some displaced members of the Insurgency, we are not them, and reject their junta which swallowed the Legion whole. What we are is a group of former Legionnaires dedicated to the restoration of the Commonwealth of House Liberty, the civilian government of Vespucci and Kansas whom we once served.

Long ago, our two organizations worked closely, engaging in both exchanges of technology and joint logistics operations. We even have in our possession a badly damaged Scylla-class, the Iblis, provided to us in an agreement with your predecessors circa 816 AS.

At this present time, geopolitical complications and limited force projection limit our ability to assist the Assembly in joint combat operations. This may change in the future, pending certain developments.

What we can offer you currently is the establishment of a logistics artery between Dublin and Kusari, where good Molly gold is in high demand. No movement survives without capital, and we are more than happy to establish a joint logistical pact with your movement should the Assembly prove amenable. Should this interest you, my artificial self will bring your terms to our logistics corps, and perhaps arrange a meeting so that our two causes may come to stand each other better.

Non Omnis Moriar
Megiddo

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Source: "Maguire" Comms-Net
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From: Matthew J. Burns
To: Stratarch Megiddo
Subject: Task Force Prometheus

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Stratarch Megiddo.

We have not had dealings with the Commonwealth for years. As far as we knew, their remnants have been interned on Planet Erie, currently occupied by the Republic of Liberty. If your task force is taking refuge with the Technocracy to continue their fight, that is a new development for us. We are not as caught up on recent events as you can imagine.

Unfortunately, Arranmore lost the records of transfer of the Iblis. While the Assembly has no claim to the vessel, we would be happy to assist with repairs, or purchase it back from you if you deem it unusable. Destroyers are high value assets for us as they are for you, I imagine.

About the trade deal... There are many enterprising adventurers willing to run our gold into Kusari. We cannot guarantee that we will be able to supply you before our other partners. I should also point out that the Kingdom is ramping up their efforts in locking Dublin down. So far, they have not succeeded, but only time will tell if our movement will be able to weather the coming storm.

While dealing with us has its risks, angering Bretonia must be an acceptable outcome to you. If that is the case, we can certainly arrange a business partnership.

I look forward to your reply.

Godspeed,
Matthew Jamie Burns

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[Denelo]

Incoming transmission...

Identification: High Logarch Denelo Mori, Task Force Prometheus
Source: Valravn Citadel
Encryption: F2-33-DU-BL-1N

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I appreciate your patience while I taught my niece a much-needed lesson.

But introductions first: I am High Logarch Mori of Task Force Prometheus, the second Supreme Commander of the Hellfire Legion—or, at minimum, his digital ghost—brought forth by Technocrat wizardry. Our command structure has settled, and I will be taking over communication from here.

Your last message caused quite a stir. You understand, of course: Many of our people were refugees rescued from Leeds, as are many we hope to rescue from Libertonian oppression on Erie. My own niece chose Bretonia as her home. While older Legionnaires like myself knew of Bretonia's crimes, of the inevitability of their warmongering ways, it was more graceful to allow the younger ones to feel the knife between their own ribs—to understand firsthand the depravity of Bretonia, lest they stumble when it came time to do what had to be done. It has, conveniently, also allowed us a bit of a public relations victory, but that is merely a bonus. Bretonia has sprung the diplomatic trap, and in so doing snipped the last threads between the refugees of Leeds and their homeland.

With that aside, let us move into negotiations. With our internal divisions silenced by Bretonia's own actions, we are ready to fully support the movement for a free Dublin. We are, as you said, coalescing thanks to the support of the Technocracy. Commonwealth civilians, loyal military, any opposed to Knight's foul junta and Libertonian oppression: All are present. Our fleets are scattered, but returning. The repair of the Iblis would be invaluable, and we are willing to station military vessels in Dublin in return. While our capital fleets are limited by our situation, our snubcraft are myriad.

Likewise, as my peer the Stratarch mentioned, our frigates stand ready to run the Bretonian blockade. Pinched as we are between Xeno and Crayter lines and with over thirty years of experience in Liberty, our logistics fleet is more than prepared to establish difficult supply lines. We ask for no preferential treatment, only offer our aid in securing capital to further fund the continued independence of Dublin.

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Non omnis moriar,
High Logarch Mori
(he/him)

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Source: "Maguire" Comms-Net
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From: Matthew J. Burns
To: High Logarch Denelo Mori
Subject: Task Force Prometheus

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A machine?..

Interesting. Your command structure places at the top an artificial imprint of someone who, as I understand, has given their life for a cause they believed in a long time ago. One must now ponder what would happen if one of our own Founders was remade in such a way. We are not tech-fearing luddites, of course. But the thought is... uncomfortable to me. Ours is the cause of the living, with the memory of those gone before to inspire us -- not to rule over us through cold machine logic.

After familiarising myself with the attached communique I must ask you to hold off on your offer to station military assets in Dublin for now. If I understood correctly, you feigned an interest in collaborating with the Bretonian government to foster feelings of betrayal among your people when said government inevitably refused. A cynical manipulation indeed, one that I myself may learn from. Yet, you present it to us now with such openness that we must wonder if your shift from offering a trade agreement into an offer of full support for our movement is born out of similar strategic calculations.

What exactly are your motivations for supporting the cause of Free Dublin? Are you looking to benefit from our gold trade? Are we to be a convenient distraction while you accomplish your goals elsewhere? How does your cause overlap with ours? What is the Technocracy's role in all of this?

Until we have more information, this negotiation will not be able to progress, I'm afraid.

Godspeed,
Matthew Jamie Burns

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[Denelo]

Incoming transmission...

Identification: High Logarch Denelo Mori, Task Force Prometheus
Source: Valravn Citadel
Encryption: F2-33-DU-BL-1N

Beginning voice transmission...

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One of the top, yes. We are led by a council known as the Exarchy. It is made up of several former leaders both organic and inorganic, that we never again may be destroyed by a single power-mad individual as we were by Victoria Knight. While your discomfort with the concept is familiar to me, it is beyond my personal experience. I am a military man, not a philosopher, and prefer to leave musings on the nature of my existence to those more qualified than I.

My role in this council is external affairs. As such, I understand your concerns. I share our approach and that communique with you because of my long experience: I have seen negotiations fall apart over simple misunderstandings before, and am loathe to repeat those mistakes.

I will list each of our goals here in order of priority, from most to least important. While a simple format, its intent is the same as above: To prevent any possibility of misunderstanding.

First and most important is simply ideology. We tend to find common ground with fellow liberation movements—especially fellow non-authoritarian leftists—because we see something of ourselves in you. Hessians, Mollys, and Bundschuh: These have ever been our preferred international partners. While our own local issues are more concerned with the military itself than its corporate proxies, we are even now working with local Zoner partners to liberate Pennsylvania as you have Dublin. We live in a sector defined by man's inhumanity to man, and find empathy and mutualism the most effective salves.

Second is history. One of our foremost strategic goals is the rekindling of old alliances, and the alliance was the Mollys was one of the oldest—I believe the oldest that survived until the fall of the Commonwealth. The Iblis itself speaks to this history: One of our earliest destroyers outside of the original Ragnarok's battlegroup, it is the product of our prior arrangements. How can we look upon it and not offer aid? We are, at heart, a fairly romantic movement, and we highly value history and legacy. It is why I was revived, and it is one of the several reasons for our offer.

Third is diplomatic. Our hosts in the Technocracy requested it, and we owe them our existence.

Fourth is materiel. The Iblis requires repairs, and while you have already generously offered to aid in this, the instability in Dublin could pose major risks to that and future such operations.

Fifth is economic. Any gold Bretonia cannot steal is gold that is inaccessible to Liberty. While we already have our own access to Dublin gold via the Technocracy, wars are won on both sides of the logistical coin, and we must both deny resupply of this critical construction and repair material to the Liberty Navy and prevent the accumulation of Bretonian power, lest their alliance with Liberty strengthen. Here we can—without resorting to attacking innocent Libertonian workers as our Pennsylvanian allies sadly sometimes do—both reduce the number of warships we must face and introduce a point of tension between the Republic of Liberty and their closest ally. We would be fools not to seize such an opportunity in both hands.

Sixth is educational. While the sheer scale of the Commonwealth and the brutality of those who ended it gave us a large pool of pilots to draw on, these are largely green and unseasoned. Each engagement with Bretonian forces gives real-world experience our pilots lack, especially given the inconsistency of Libertonian forces. Furthermore, international collaboration discourages the formation of xenophobic tendencies. While this is rarely a concern due to how many of our number were rescued from Leeds, xenophobia is like a creeping vine, and must ever be held in check with fresh experience lest it choke the life from a movement.

I hope this helps enlighten you. Should you have further questions, please present them as you will.

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Non omnis moriar,
High Logarch Mori
(he/him)