SOURCE: Imperial cruiser "Thetalos", high orbit over Crete ENCRYPTION LEVEL: High DESTINATION: Council of Elders
Venerable Elders of the Council,
this is captain Corazon Santiago of the cruiser Thetalos, humbly asking for your attention to advance two proposals that, I believe, could greatly benefit our Empire and our people.
The Food Issue:
Crete is currently unable to sustain our population through conventional agriculture methods. The solution we used so far is to import food; while it is without doubt an immediately effective measure, it is, by its own nature, unstable, and subject to the whims and wills of those that provide us that food. Pardon me for using strong words, but I consider it unacceptable.
There is another solution, that so far has not been properly explored. Yes, our planet lacks arable soil, but we do not necessarily need soil to grow food. I'm talking about hydroponics. I have been privately running an experimental hydroponic garden for some time; its size is limited, of course, and my skills aren't the best ones to ensure it an optimal yeld, but all considered, I believe my tests to be a success.
Hydroponic bays can be replicated and manufactured much more easily than biodome technology, and they can be built on planet and in space with only minimal construction differences. We can dig tunnels on the planet, our mountains could host dozens of layers of farms. If only we could install a hydroponic farm for each city in Crete (the costs would be very limited, it is a surprisingly basic technology), then the food from Barcelona station could be entirely diverted to supply the space facilities, and the whole food distribution would improve exponentially. With the vegetable part of our food produced that way, we could afford to import more of those "less necessary" foods.
This is of course just a preliminary exposition of the project; should the Coulcil show interest, I can produce more detailed information.
War:
War, yes. On our doorstep, most of the times, given the somewhat exposed position of Omicron Gamma. We are at war with the Zoners, the Order, the Hessians, the Mollys, the Hunters (until recently), the Nomads, the Houses of course, not to mention the Outcast Cartel, obviously, whichis an entirely different matter. I'm sure I forgot someone. Well, they're a tad too many, aren't they? I won't even look into the reasons for each of those ostilities, since they're always very valid ones. And it's not my habit to look into the past; I prefer the future.
The Empire needs safer boundaries; more than that, the Empire needs to claim its legitimate status within Sirius. That is why I am humbly proposing a pacification process, divided in several phases, in order to make our space safer and our reputation more worthy of our people.
PHASE 1: The Zoners.
They're our neighbours, and they've always been good neighbours, until recently. Yes, certain groups have repeatedly insulted us, and our patience was bound to deplete sooner or later. But now that they tasted the aftermath of their actions, I believe it is time for us to take a breath and think about our part of the aftermaths. Since peace talks are already ongoing, I won't add much on this point, unless the Council should ask me to do so. I'll just add my personal recommendation to reach any form of agreement.
PHASE 2: The Bounty Hunters.
We're already half way to a good solution, since there's a Non-Aggression Treaty with the Core. We shoud think about strenghtening that bound, by gaining at least official neutrality with the whole Guild. Both parties would have much to gain from such an agreement; logistic sharing is just the proverbial tip of the iceberg: a joint action against the Hessians, the Order and the Nomads, safer routes for our supply convoys (artifacts could still prove a tricky part for the Core, but I'm sure a common ground can be found), and by gaining official standing with the Guild, which has in turn official standing within the Houses, we would have opne door for the next phase.
PHASE 3: The Houses.
Ok, at this point you must think "This hermana must have lost her mind, si?". I understand completely, but I beg you to consider our current position. We are no less outcasts than those that bear that name. Our finest men and women waste their skills in acts of piracy, deserting the security of our space, and they are so used to that life, that the mere thought of improving themselves beyond that point made them laugh when I suggested it. I may be a pointless visionary, but I believe the Corsair Empire deserves to be more than what it currently is. While our hated enemies the Outcasts willingly decided to revel in crime and drug dealings well beyond their own sustainance needs, we have been forced to piracy to fetch what we need to survive, but we can do much better than that.
So, here's my "idea loca". Open our frontier to the Houses. With the reputation boost from an official tie with the BHG, it shouldn't be impossible to do, and we would have much to offer. First, our direct neighbors: to Bretonia, we could offer assistance with their big security issue in Dublin (we're already at war with the Mollys, right?) which is diverting much of their military from their own wars, perhaps being handsomely paid for that. To Rheinland, we could offer a hand against the Hessians (which are, again, already our enemies), and in exchange receive food shipments from Stuttgart, for example. As for the other Houses, they would find that a decrease in hostilities along our borders would allow us to increase our moves against the Outcasts and their drug dealing allies, and they will hardly complain about it. Apart from the single agreements, besides, open frontiers would mean a steady income of independent and maybe even corporate traders, bringing supplies and wealth. The Zoners and BHG could help in convincing the Houses that artifacts are dead harmless trinkets, thus maybe lifting the ban from their trade.
Note that none of the above actions would force us to change the way we live, if we do not want it to happen; we could gain official standing and still be faithful to our history and people. We could become what we should have always been: House Hispania.
Ok... *shrugs* That is pretty much all. Now, please take a moment to think about my words before sending shock troops to capture and internate me, si?
excuse the delay, but the proposed actions are not to be taken lightly. Neither we did take them as a secondary matter. And we admit you stole quite a bit of our time with this message. Now for the long-awaited reply, si?
You say hydroponic farms would be the solution. But there is an issue hidden within. Hydroponics require water. More specifically, desalinated water, even more specifically, desalinated water with approximately 11 essential minerals included in it. All that inside cooled, anti-radiation secured farms. To produce this kind of farm in quantities you propose would mean draining our resources for several years, and without a guarantee of success, it is a project that would either solve ONE of our current issues or it could be the cause of our death as a nation. Now, when taking this into consideration, having hundreds of millions of Corsair lives in your hands, what do you do? There is more to import than food, Captain. Matter of fact, at this very moment, we have more food stocked at Barcelona than ever. Recent Zoner shenanigans made us pile up some - just in case. That all, together with further reinforcing our relations with the Kusari representatives and the Interspace Neural-net Division. If you wish to help with imported goods, I propose you get in a ship and go persuade some convoys to give us a share.
Your proposition on the food solution was denied almost unanimously.
To your other suggestions:
- Zoners -
Captain, I’m not sure where you have been living in the last few decades, but we - Corsairs living in the Omicrons with Zoner presence - have experienced various things, and many of them were not considered friendly behaviour. Repeated insults of the Zoners often ended up in them being dead somewhere in a hidden corner of space, with a Corsair ships floating around, enjoying the thrill of the hunt. We have no intention of waging war with Zoners, for one. No. We simply want to increase our influence in certain areas and put them in their places. The Zoners obviously believe they are above the Corsairs in our neighbouring space. We plan to show them otherwise, if we haven’t already. Negotiations are being conducted this very moment, Captain.
- Bounty Hunters -
No. The current deal with the Bounty Hunters Guild Core is a temporary agreement of ceasefire, bound only to certain areas. An alliance between Corsairs and the Bounty Hunters was not and is not - due to our and their fundamental policies - doable. No. An alliance between the Corsairs and the Bounty Hunters is out of the question, given the deep-rooted hatred our people have for them. Indeed, we have the proverbial gun to each others’ back.
- Houses -
When you say we must ask ourselves whether you are loco, you are right. Do you expect Bretonia and Rheinland to just come and stand next to us, hug each other with a sincere feeling of happiness? After three centuries of ruthless fighting, millions of lives lost? Would you expect the Corsairs to bow to the Kanzler or the Queen? Or would you perhaps want them to bow to us? That will not happen - Not in our lifetimes, at least. We - the Council - would rather die than make a deal with Rheinland or Bretonia. But you are young - perhaps you will see the things in a wider perspective later.
The only way we will gain the recognition that we as a nation deserve is by proving ourselves as a people to the rest of Sirius. This goal is a long-term one, and as has already been said, will not be achieved in our lifetimes.
In conclusion - We took a look in you farms proposal, other replies were based on years of experience, Captain. We would not want to let you down. We support our people thinking critically and give us their suggestions. These however, are too radical.
- The Elders
:: transmission end ::
Corsair LawsCorsair Court Our forces combined, no-one shall stand before us. Our enemies shall be burnt and cast to the wind, our troops marching forward over their mangled corpses. True we stand alone, with wolves circling, but our isolation lends us our strength, for we are one and they are divided.
The days of Darkness are no longer, for we are the Corsairs and we are fear incarnate! Viva los Corsairs, the Empire shall rise!
The blood of the Hispania runs in our veins. The blood of our enemies shall wet our hands.