The Captain took a moment to process the entire spiel. It had been a three-hour briefing and that was, according to Kaiser, with the short version of their entire history. The woman started with the beginning in her own mind and seemingly re-explaining everything, "Lemme get this fully, alright? So... Some four-and-a-half Centuries ago, the world underwent a massive, catastrophic societal collapse courtesy of the discovery of a new, volatile material which coupled with a sudden, massive onset of tectonic activity that caused the entire Pacific Ring of Fire to explode... This is what you call the Calamity, which was, in turn, followed by the Long Cold."
"Yes," Kaiser nodded, leaning against the table in the briefing room, with everyone else around them seemingly eyeing the Captain. The rest of the group, including Monarch, Prez, Comic and Diplomat, all looked at the woman that was clearly about to blow a gasket, considering how red she was getting. She covered her face and sighed deeply, rubbed her eyes with the heels of her palms, then looked Kaiser in the eye again, wearing a straight face, despite the gaze filled with disbelief.
"The Long Cold... Being the resulting, man-made Ice Age that covered most of the Northern Hemisphere and, presumably, spread out to the rest of the planet over time, courtesy of some of the secondary explosions that must've rippled through the crust, detonating the other volcanoes in the world, courtesy of this unknown material you guys call 'Cordium'. Which is a poorly-understood, highly-fucking-volatile mineral you use for everything from power generation, to fuel and weapons, as is standard human nature," She then continued, her voice denoting irritation. Upon a nod from Kaiser, she blinked, then sighed, "Which all leads us to today..."
She looked around at the people within the base, "Wherein, after a war against a fledgling mercenary state based in the old-days Pacific territories of Australia, New Zealand and New Guinea, not to mention what's left of Thailand, the Philippines and other local countries, all of which is now named Oceania as a whole for a nation, the Pacific Federation emerged as one of the strongest military and industrial powers, if not the strongest, considering it's got control of most of the world's geothermal and Cordium supply, which is here, in the Pacific."
"Brief and some of those names don't really sound familiar, but pretty much what happened, although the Feds were a powerhouse even before the Oceania war," Kaiser answered.
"And now, in year 432 After Calamity, which is like... Your new calendar... Mankind's dealing with yet another possible global war relating to the desire for independence of the nation of Cascadia, which we're in. It's a massive geothermal energy and Cordium supplier, controlling a lot of on the Western Seaboard of America and apparently separated from the mainland by a sea that just suddenly emerged instead of the larger mountain range that was once part of the Seaboard..." She finished, "A war in which Sicario, a Merc Company post-Oceania, fights for because you all have a contract with the locals..."
"Which is where I come in," Stardust, captain Griffiths, waved, "Welcome to our home, Captain Rose. I am Captain Griffiths. TAC-Name Stardust."
She nodded in greeting to him, then requested, "Would you mind giving me a brief rundown as to why Cascadia is currently rebelling against the Pacific Federation, Captain? Including a little history of the Federation itself, if at all possible...? I want to know what I'm getting myself into before I deploy any form of a diplomatic unit to try and bring the Feds to the negotiating table so I can hear their side of the story, too."
"Of course," Stardust nodded. He pulled his backpack off his back, unzipped it and pulled out a series of files which he placed on the table, sliding them toward Captain Rose. She caught the items and picked them up, parsing through them. They were newspapers and reports about the Federation's massed military mobilization, it seemed. Stardust began, "A few years ago, the Federation began an imperialistic expansion program through the use of their military, fueling their war machine with the supplies we and all other member states brought to the table, all the while they began to more openly and harshly tax the citizens from the outer provinces."
"So, it's a combo of not wanting your resources used for warmongering and Taxation Without Representation?" Rose smirked. The man nodded approvingly, to which she chuckled and said, "I see the American way never changes, even centuries after the Apocalypse wiped out all traces of the old human civilization..." before she sighed and turned serious again, "However, as I said, until we get the Federation's side on this conflict, we can't promise we will assist any side. What we want is to bring both groups to the negotiating table..."
"You can try," Diplomat spoke, "But the Feds ain't known for giving up easy."
"Diplomacy backed by guns should be more than enough," The Captain murmured hopefully. She arranged her uniform and said, "We'll go have a chat, figure out the truth after listening to both sides, then decide what to do to stop this conflict from escalating any further than it already has. Until then, I wish to ask that you wait for us to understand what's going on before launching any air sorties."
"Afraid we may not be able to comply," Stardust stated firmly, "Our forces will need Air Support. Feds won't agree to a ceasefire so soon after the Conflict's begun, meaning we'll still be fighting down here until you manage to get the Feds to either back down and get themselves out of our country. Our government will say what I'm saying right now:We will only accept a full withdrawal of Federation troops out-of-country."
"I'd expect nothing less," The UNSC captain replied, then sighed, "We will talk more in the coming few days... Once we've hopefully established a presence to talk to the Feds."
She walked back out onto the Tarmac under the gazes of everyone at the base and boarded the aircraft that she'd come down with, followed by her escort of seemingly SOF troops. Kaiser hummed, then stated, "An interesting bunch..." as he watched the aircraft lift off with his crew. It turned up and flew higher and higher, 'till it was on the same level as the starship's hangar inside of which it vanished.
"That's gonna be a hard thing to negotiate," Noted Prez as she stared up at the ship, "You guys think they'll manage it?"
"She seems determined to stop the war," Stardust noted, "Though that'd cut your contract a bit short."
"Frankly? As long as any sort of massive regional conflict that could snowball into a global one is avoided?" Diplomat started, looking around at the rest of his friends, "Some of us might not mind it," to which Kaiser simply let out a short chuckle. He was well aware that the staff didn't want to actually fight this war, what with many of them being Cascadian by birth and only having trained in the Federation, but alas.
Monarch said calmly, "The Federation isn't known to give up easily on anything. I think the UNSC being the megaphone through which the CIF basically tells them to get the hell off our lawn might just tick them off enough for them to start swinging Cruise Missiles at that ship... Provided it's even gonna be anywhere near the Federation Mainland when the first talks begin."
The entire group hummed, agreeing, before Kaiser ordered, "Alright, folks. Enough chitchat... Disperse and prepare. We're gonna need someone running air patrol in the morning..." before turning around, yawning as he spoke, "Tonight's been a busy night for all of us..." and entering the building once more, to seek out a place to sleep. Monarch and President looked to one-another, then to the rest of HITMAN.
"Yeah, the boss is right," Diplomat sighed, "Back to bed. Maybe, when we wake up, we'll find out this was all a weird fever dream we had together."
Logi murmured quietly, "Last time I'm letting you fuckers force me to take Mefloquin. We aren't even dealing with Malaria this far fucking North, god fucking dammit..." as she walked toward her warehouse, wherein she would continue her job. Light chuckles escaped the group, followed by Kelleher, Stardust and the rest of the gang departing for their sleeping arrangements, which left Monarch and Prez just staring up at the sky.
She burst into a giggle, which caught Monarch's attention. He looked to her, somewhat worried, before she waved it off and said, "Sorry, sorry, it's just... Can you believe this is our First Contact of a sort?" and that seemed to further confuse the worried pilot She clarified, "We've literally just met space aliens! Well, technically, humans, but they are extra-terrestrial!"
Monarch paused at that, taking a moment to process it as his Wizzo continued giggling, staring up at the sky with the biggest smile on her face. He looked up once more as well, then a smile crept its way onto his face. He nodded and said, "I guess you're right. Holy shit, we just met aliens... And they want to stop us from fighting each-other," as that hint of childlike wonder came to him.
"This is gonna be freaking interesting to write to the folks at home," Prez quipped, still giggling. Then she slowly stopped as her face dropped, going from happy, to a hint of sadness. Upon noticing his Weapons Systems Officer's glum look, Monarch stepped up and placed a hand on her shoulder, firmly, yet slowly squeezing it. She looked up at him, smiled, then sighed and looked ahead, before stating, "Guess I gotta get back to that maintenance check on the old Warbird..."
"Need a hand?" He asked. She looked to him, worried.
"Shouldn't you get some sleep?"
He shrugged, then replied, cool as a cucumber, "The wake-up call to come meet captain Rose kind of shook me awake and I probably won't be able to sleep for a while, so, let's go. May as well get some work done and prep the trusty F/D-14 for battle," before he motioned to her to lead the way. She smirked, nodded, then showed him to follow as they made a dash across the tarmac toward the HITMAN Hangar. Entering the place and turning on the lights, they were met by the bird, which was still being worked on by Prez and Prez alone, at least until recently.
Some wires hanged out of the old girl, as well as a couple of fuel lines. The plane had been emptied of fuel. Off to the sides, some components sat on makeshift tables made of munitions boxes, including the strange munitions dispersal unit of the aircraft. The Munitions Dispersal Device was a strange item that was a bit too much to get into. Even Monarch wasn't sure of how it worked. He just knew there was some anomalous property to the damn thing that made it the way it was. Which suited the pilot and WSO just fine, really.
MDD and hanging wires aside, the rest of the plane had pretty much been finished, including the hydraulics lines which Robin was now double-checking. She'd once again shed the dirty flight jacket, leaving herself only in the dirty black tank top and the beaten green gloves she wore even during flights. He hummed, stepping forward, then started looking for things he could help fix in the meanwhile. He'd learned a thing or two about maintaining the bird from her, after all.
23rd of July 2552 Standard UNSC Military Calendar
Local Early Morning, above Rowsdower AFB, 'Cascadia'
Aboard UNSC Phoenix-class refit warship Liberator
The Wake-Up Protocol had begun long before the Captain had even left the Hangar with the Pelican. Much of the crew had still been in cryosleep when they first woke up above this strange, broken version of mankind's homeworld. The bridge itself was now abuzz with life as the crews on the deck worked continuously on updating and updating IFFs and systems, while also trying to link with anything resembling a SAT network above the planet, somewhat to no avail.
Beyond the windows of the bridge, lay a sprawling mass of hills, mountains, ice, tundra and sparse plants that extended as far as the eye could see, far into the Northern region of what must've once been the Canadian mainland and lit by the orange light of the rising sun. The base below them slowly began to come to life as well, with the first signs of activity being the launch of pairs of aircraft to run the base's air patrol and Early Warning, taking into account the Radar was apparently being repaired, still.
The Captain of the UNSC warship loomed over the holographic display that showed the planet, their location on it and the locations of their two escorting Frigates in high orbit. Paris-class heavy frigates, armed to the teeth and ready for just about anything stupid the Covvies might pull if they ever arrived. Well, as ready as two lightweight ships might be...
"... And that brings us to our current predicament above this world ablaze," Rose sighed, finishing the briefing with the staff aboard her vessel, including her AI. She looked to said AI, a rendition of Hades, the god of the underworld, then asked, "What do you have for me, Hades? How likely is it that this kind or anomalous bullshit happened at all? Because, from what little I know of certain sciences, this seems really unlikely."
"I am still making the calculations," The half-human, half-demon clad in dark armor replied with a booming voice, "But, if this new item... 'Cordium'... Is to blame, I think it'd be best to have our scientists verifying it. It sounds like an amalgamation of volatile materiel that led to the most unstable fuel in the world..." and he hummed. The Captain sat herself down, sighed and rubbed her eyes.
"Maybe we should deploy a task force to the Front Lines, to help keep the peace, or at least evac Civvies," Suggested the Marine Colonel aboard. Colonel Haggerty commanded the entire force of Marines and Shock Troopers aboard the Liberator, a whole six thousand infantry and their support equipment. A Brigade Combat Team, if one were to go by modern terminology.
"Feds would probably see it as us assisting the Cascadians," The Captain replied, "And I don't want to pick sides when it comes to human factions unless my hand is forced into it... For now, we stay put. I want our own SPY-SATs deployed from aboard the Frigates and I want hourly reports on what the Pacific Federation-Cascadian front looks like. I also want information on what other conflicts the Feds are currently engaged in and a direct line to their government, if possible."
"All will be done," Replied the captain of one of the two UNSC Frigates.
"The last of the items on the list, much sooner than the others..." Hades murmured as he seemed to be working on something. A holographic display screen danced in front of the armored avatar's face as he tapped away. He spoke, "I have detected a communications hub that has recently been activated and is currently providing Theater-wide communication for the Federation forces present in Cascadia, as well as jamming and EWAR against Cascadian forces. Said Array is located several hundred kilometers away, located within a desert, according to orbital imaging and cross-referencing. It seems to be a very powerful station."
"Can it potentially provide us a link to the Fed government?" She inquired, looking at the AI. It nodded, to which the woman ordered, "Alright. Patch us through."
"They have a minor electronic warfare defense suite I must breach first, with your permission, ma'am?" The AI requested. He got his approval from the woman in the form of a nod back, to which he began the intrusion procedures. While wireless intrusion was some times harder than direct physical intrusion, the electronic warfare and ELINT suites of the UNSC warship were enough for the AI to be able to break through the wireless connections. Hades then hummed as his processors ran hot, before he stated, "Mission accomplished... We are live on the Federation network, ma'am."
She nodded, then cleared her throat and activated the transmit system, starting, "To any and all on the Federation's communications network, this is the warship Liberator, star vessel of the United Nations Space Command. We greet our fellow humans as the only representatives of the Unified Earth Government and UNSC currently stationed above your planet. This is Captain Eda Rose, highest-ranking officer among the UNSC forces, speaking to any and all Federation forces who will listen:We come in peace and request to speak to those in charge of the Federation as a whole, as well as the commanders of their operations within the North-West American Nation of Cascadia in order to facilitate a ceasefire and an understanding in matters pertaining to the war. Please, respond as soon as possible."
A brief moment of tense silence followed as the Federation seemed to scramble, presumably to understand who broke through their com protocols to so-brashly announce their presence. The Captain looked around at her men, tapping her foot impatiently as she waited for a reply that might never come in the first place. She sighed, gripping the side of the holo-table tightly, slightly bending the metal. She paused as, at first, static filtered through the com line, then a voice cleared through, replying in an emotionless, calm tone, "This is Crystal Kingdom, General Headquarters of the Federal Armed Forces and active command center for Operations within Cascadia. We request full identification and... A repeat of the last message, did you say 'space'?"
The woman grinned, then stated proudly, "Affirmative, United Nations Space Command starship Liberator, replying to handshake. Hello, Crystal Kingdom."
"... Interesting, if true," The man replied with confusion in his voice, "We understand you're looking to enter talks with us and the Cascadians, correct?"
"And bring an end to this strange-ass conflict before it even starts, yes," She replied, then leaned back into her seat, "If it's possible, I'd like for an audience with the government of your nation and that of Cascadia. We can meet on Neutral Ground if the need arises, but we do want to make sure that no human blood is shed in a useless war from which nothing good can emerge for either side."
"Your request may take time to bring to fruition, Captain. You have to understand that a lot of the things you said seem implausible at the very least, if not downright impossible. And even if we wanted to, the CIF began this war with their attempted act of secession from the Federation," Crystal Kingdom replied, the clapping of keyboards echoing in the background, "If we are to attempt to even ask the government officials to allow you to come in for talks, it'll take proof of everything you've said so far, including your own quote-unquote 'starship's' presence."
"We understand," The Captain chuckled, then said, "Hades, send forth a picture of our ship from one of the drones we launched around Rowsdower."
The AI nodded and sent forth the image, through the communication array's audio-visual system. Audible gasps echoed through the com line, followed by Crystal Kingdom stating, "We'll... Make sure this gets priority over everything else the Prime Executive and the rest of his government may be doing currently... And we'll be back to talk within a few hours, hopefully..."
"Much obliged, Crystal Kingdom," The woman replied smugly. She gave a single wave of the hand to the com officer, who turned toward her as she capped off the conversation with, "If you need to contact us, this is our radio frequency. Send a ping and we'll accept it for when the talks are set to begin. From there, we'll see what we can do so you folks start getting along. This has been the Liberator. Over and out."
The link cut, to which the Captain sighed in relief, stating, "Well, attitude... Let's get ready to move it, people. I want this ship back in orbit and next to its escorts within the next few hours... Until then, I'll go talk to commander Frenken about what he and his mercs are going to do while the ball gets rolling properly for the peace talks. Hades, you have the bridge."
"Aye, ma'am," The AI replied, its avatar not even turning to look as the Captain departed the bridge, presumably aiming for the hangar. He continued running diagnostics on their FTL drive to figure out just what had pulled them out of Slipspace. That would be the main task of the AI for the foreseeable future, a task to which he pushed most of his processing power. He asked some of the scientists on staff to also help with it when they weren't busy.
The situation at hand proved to be quite interesting, however. An alternate Earth? Damage done by a massive eco-geological disaster that led to a total collapse of civilization? A new mineral that had anomalous properties worthy of an investigation so thorough, it'd make even the ONI agents aboard the warship blush? Hades enjoyed a challenge like this, as did captain Rose. It was why they were a perfect team, a sort of 'match made in heaven'.
Both thought this, even as she currently descended once more toward Rowsdower AFB to have a chat with mister 'Kaiser', the commander of Sicario. Her aircraft touched down closer to the airfield's control tower this time, dropping her and her squad of ODST escorts off to the sight of Kaiser already being there to greet them. He gave the woman a mock salute, then inquired in a laisses-faire manner, "Came down to us lowly terrestrials, then, cap?"
She snorted, amused, then replied, "I merely came to have a chat while I wait for a signal from the Feds."
"They actually agreed to talk?" Frenken seemed a bit stunned.
"After we sent them pictures of our ship above Rowsdower," She noted, "Now. You got any good coffee around? Ship reserves are pretty tight at the moment and I'd rather save the crappy MRE stuff we have for emergencies," before waiting for a moment. The Sicario mercenary leader chuckled, then showed her to follow along with her boys. Up in the tower, Diplomat and Comic had watched the exchange, a little dumbfound and carrying mugs of coffee with them.
"... Bets on them winding up together?" Comic broke the ice, taking a sip from her coffee, which contained an insulting amount of Whiskey.
"Fuck it, going four hundred dollars on it," Dip replied after a moment's pause.
Meanwhile, in the hangar of HITMAN, one of the most adorable things had occurred. Specifically, underneath the war machine that was flown by the lead, which had been completely repaired by the dawn of the first light and now had everything, including its MDD, lay two people, both of them fast asleep and stained by oil, dirt and sweat, courtesy of the repair job. Both pilot and Wizzo faced each-other, sleeping incredibly peacefully together. It was a strange sight...
And, for Legion, who'd come in with coffee for both, 'twas very fucking adorable...