Confederation service Ship (CSS): Spyglass
"i'm telling you" said Thel Grett, a female Distel Science Officer "there is nothing out here, no strange energy readings, no planets worth mining and only a few worth colonising. This sector is functionally empty"
Captain Quinn Stuart replied "I know". He sighed "but the probes we've sent out here have all reported strange unidentified radiation and particle traces, it has to mean something"
Thel's interest was piqued "i know, Baryons and leptons with unusual charges and abnormal polaron formations, if we do find the source then there could be an entire set of particles we don't know of"
Quinn nodded "activate slipstream drive and move on to the next sector over, we're done here" he said to the Skaan Helmsman "ETA 30 seconds" he replied.
"you know, if we do find adequate samples of these unusual particles, what exactly would it mean?" asked Quinn. "it could theoretically, as i have already said, mean there is an entire particle set we don't know of, and for a scientist such as myself such a prospect is huge" Answered Thel. Quinn raised his eyebrows for a moment "let's hope this isn't bust then"
"we're here, near an E type planet and a fair sized moon" reported the helmsman. Quinn nodded "anything on sensors?" he asked Thel. She looked at the sensor report "more than just something, here are abnormal baryon and lepton readings everywhere" she said in a surprised tone. "can you find the source?" Asked Quinn. "no sir, i'll need to adjust the sensors to cut through the radiation. she answered. "Alright" said Quinn "but do you have enough sampels to put together a decent study?". "enough to last a month, which should be enough" replied Thel.
"Tell me when you can get sensors working, if we can find the source of this oddity, all the better" said Quinn. "And helmsman, bring us in geostationary orbit over the planet, main continent if possible" he ordered. "yes sir, but the readings on this planet are strange, the atmospheric stats are almost identical to that of earth, the main difference being slightly more oxygen and less carbon dioxide." Quinn stroked his chin "how strange, from this angle the land looks much the same as well. could potentially be carbon based life down there, sentient or not"
Thel looked up "sounds interesting, after we've solved this particle problem we should probably send soem away teams down there" she said. Quinn nodded "not a bad idea, this isn't just a science vessel, who says we can't get some exploring done in the process" he noted.
"any luck with those sensor modifications?" asked Quinn, a little while later. "it isn't easy, the abnormal energy they're emitting is making it difficult" she answered. the Tactical officer, (Kest Malit) a stel-krett man spoke up "just so you know, sir, this radiation could potentially scramble the targetting sensors at a bad time" he said. "let's hope nobody hostile turns up. are there any known raiders or pirates in this area?" Asked Quinn. Kest looked at his console "not that I know of. The nearest known sector with pirate activity is over 50 light years away".
Quinn was quiet for a moment, then spoke up "What are the chances of sentient life on that planet?". "possible, but it's difficult to tell with these limited sensor readings. even so, Sentient life is generally quite rare so I wouldn't count on it" she explained. "you know" spoke up kest "for a being that lives in the hotm you really are cold" he stated. "I would say the oppisite about you" Replied Thel Calmly. Kest only looked confused, Quinn allowed himself to smile, but tucked it away quickly.
"any luck with the sensors?" inquired Quinn for the tenth time, impatience creeping into his voice. "getting there" replied Thel with equal impatience "but i wish these particles weren't so erratic, that would make my job much easier". Quinn turned to Kest "how far away is the nearest Spiral controlled world?" he asked "Just incase we have to deal with raiders in this sector". Kest looked at his console for a moment. "Ten light years away, 40 seconds of slipstream travel", Quinn nodded "are there any other ships in this system?" he asked. Kest did the scans, looked confused and kept tappign away at his console "no ships, but a few probes made of...unusual materials have been detected". Quinn leant forward "what kind of unusual?". "if the scans are correct" mumbled kest "basic metals, steel and brass, with traces of silicon". "That is unusual" repleid Quinn "could it have originated from the planet we're in orbit of?" he asked. "according to trajectory calculations, that's most likely" said Kest "but what confuses me is that it appears to be hollow. I wish i could tell you more, but this radiation has reduced our sensors to basic functions only". "how annoying" huffed Quinn.
Quinn was pensive for a moment "Thel, could you tell me the condition of that object's alloys? if there are any". Thel nodded "the sensor mods are nearly done, so the resolution will be increased". there was a tense silence as they all waited for the results. "it's just as Kest said, primarily steel and brass with a hollow core. metals appear to be in good condition, and are well refined. this has to be from this system, from an artificial source" Reported Thel. "i'd like to meet them if possible". Quinn squared his shoulders "when the mods are done, we'll have a chance".
some time later, Thel gave a long sigh "it's done, we finally have maximum sensor resolution and range. the radiation is no longer intefering". "ah, good" replied Quinn "now, run some scans and see if you can trace the source of the radiation, Kest, send out a probe and retrieve that other object, it might hold something interesting". both saluted, a large probe dropepd out of the ship's hangar and set off for the other object.
"have you found the source?" asked quinn for the thousandth time that minute. "yes, actually" said Thel impatiently "it's coming from the planet belowjavascript:void(%200%20); by the looks of it, we should send some away teams and probes when possible. Quinn nodded "good idea. and Kest, how's that probe going?". Kest looked up "the probe just came in with the anomalous object, a science team is studying it now and are requesting your presence". Quinn stood up "alright, i'm going down to the science team. Thel, you have the bridge" stated quinn.
several minutes later, in the Probe hangar
Quinn walked in, several white-coated scientists buzzed around the device, holding scanners and other devices. "what can you tell me about this...thing?" Quinn asked the lead scientist, Pesh Bleck. a tall Distel man. "it's nothing i've seen before" replied Pesh "it's a sphere, as you can see. 60 Centimeters internal area, the shell is 5 centimeters thick". Quinn nodded "does it have any anomylous properties, though?" asked quinn, a hand on his chin. "well, for a start it's filled with the strange radiation that this space is blanketed with, but it appears to be moving in an erratic manner. i'm not sure where it's drawing the energy to do so from". Both men looked at the device "it also had some strange carvings on it", he said, studying the carvings "which says it was manufactured rather than formed naturally" said Pesh, waving Quinn over "they look like..."said quinn, trailing off. "Pesh, are you seeing what I'm seeing?" said Quinn shakily. Pesh rubbed his visor "that's....english script" he almost whispered. there was a stunned silence. "is someone joking here?" asked Quinn with a frown. Pesh shook his head "not likely, the trajectory data given by the probe said it came directly from the planet we're in orbit over" he answered.
Quinn closed his eyes, in deep thought "we shall have to study this further to get more answers" he sighed. "but what does the script say?" he asked. Pesh looked back to the small sphere "it says...." he mumbled "The origin of this device is from the planet of Equus, activate this device to be lead to where you will be welcomed by the Equestrian people". Read Pesh slowly. "alright" said Quinn "but how would we activate it? there are no obvious switches or microcircuits". Pesh ran a finger over the device. "i don't...". Then suddenly, the device began to float, the writing on it glowing light green. Everyone was speechless, then a small port opened in the front of it, pointing towards them, everyone not dared move or make a sound. The next moment, there was a Flash, knocking everyone onto there backs and knocking some out.
"urgh" grumbled Quinn, he nudged Pesh "Pesh? are you alright?" Pesh stirred "I...I think so". both men picked themselves up. quinn took his communicator out "Quinn to sickbay, casualties in Probe bay, repeat, casualities in probe bay. send medical assitance". he ordered. he clutched his head "did we activate some kind of weapon?" he huffed. Pesh felt his visor for cracks "possible, but when the flash happened i saw a set of numbers which i can't forget". Quinn frowned and turned his head "me too, if my memory serves me, then they seem to be geographical co-ordinates". pesh sighed "maybe that's their idea of leading us to them" he grumped. "pesh, i'm returning to the bridge. keep everything under control down here". Pesh saluted "yes, sir."
At the bridge:
"Captain, are you alright?" asked Thel worriedly "I heard a report of an incident in there". Quinn went to his post "don't sorry about me. helmsman, i'm giving you some geographical co-ordinates, get us there". "at once" replied the Skaan.
Quinn pressed a button "attention crew, we are entering thr atmosphere, brace for turbulance" he stated. "where did you get those directions from?" asked Kest. Quinn sighed "the device implanted them in my memory...painfully. and before you say it, i will rest when there's time". Thel opened her mouth to speak, but said nothing. "we're at the co-ordinates" reported the helmsman "exact numbers". Everyone's eyes widened "that's civilisation, no doubt about it" he said, looking at a large castle built out the side of a mountain.
Quinn took a deep breath, never having performed a first contact event before. "Thel, open all hailing frequencies" Thell nodded and tapped a few buttons. Quinn breathed deeply and again "Greetings, new people. We are of the spiral federation ship Spyglass. We come in peace on a diplomatic mission, and hope to make further contact.
For about 30 seconds, there was silence. then a female voice edged with excitement said "Greetings, spyglass. to the Principality of Equestria."
The year is 2800 ACE, and Humanity along with several close allies have risen to the status of the coveted Type III Civilisation, a mere dream for many, reality for others.
But men alone could not do this, meet our allies...
The Skaan: a tall, muscular and militiristic Reptillian species who make up the backbone of the military. Their long held warrior and honour codes lead them to always fight the good fight alongside all those who take their side. One of their most distinguishing features are their claws (replacing hands) although they function similar to hands, each "finger" is instead a fearsome claw of varying length. Despite what you might think, they are fully Bipedal and stand at 8-10 feet tall.
The Distel: A humanoid Silicon based race of people. Their skin, though rough by feel is pliable similar to human skin. they have a penchant of fascinating anyone they come across, because at first glance they look like a bipedal stack of shapely animated crystals. In spite of initial difficulties understanding their biology, they are fully sentient and extremely intelligent but do not last long in fights, as they are typically quite slender, their skin and bones are also harder but more brittle than carbon based tissue. They have a 3 fingered hand with an opposable thumb, because of the planet they evolved on they must wear pressurised bio-suits Heated internally at 70 celsius unless on their homeworld or artificial conditions for them.
The Krentt: Another humanoid race, carbon based this time but with Copper based blood which loans their skin an unmistakable green colour, leading some early explorers to erroneously think they were infused with plant cells. The most humanoid of the four races (save for Humans themselves), cosmetics can make them almost indistinguishable from Homo Sapiens. they usully stand 6-7 feet tall. Unusually for humanoids, they usually have little or no body hair at all, and sometimes have blue stripes on their skin originating from deposits of copper hydroxide. They have the highest population of the four races, and have a naturally very fast metabolism allowing them to heal faster than others, however this does often give them an overexcited personality.
And last, the name of this grand project is the Spiral Confederation. Named after the perseus Spiral where the continent-spanning capital city lies, the Confederation itself spams more than a third of the galaxy with plans to push ever further into unknown territory.
But enough setting the scene, there's a story to be told...
