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The Nature of Predators 170
🕑 Added 2023-11-16 12:00:04 +0000 UTCMemory transcription subject: Chief Hunter Isif, Arxur Rebellion Command
Date [standardized human time]: March 25, 2137
Landing on Liberty’s Bastion, I could see the fruits of humanity’s ventures into the universe. The colonists, who’d been evacuated under threat of the Mileau shadow fleet “curing” them, had returned to the frontier. Secretary-General Zhao was making his first in-person visit to the colony, and agreed to meet me here: a shorter journey than traveling to Earth. The dignitary knew I’d like to pay a visit to Felra, who was now a permanent resident of the settlement. Her last message had been an irritating remark about how she thought I’d look cute in a sequined hat, so she’d bought one for next time we met. Dreadful. I would have to face that insufferable idea; however, the purpose of my visit was to brief Zhao on the rebellion’s progress, and inquire about the status of the Battle of Aafa.
The reality was that we didn’t have ships to lose to contribute to a direct assault on the Kolshian homeworld; our tactics had always been guerilla warfare, through and through. There was nothing glamorous in breaking up supply lines and utilizing hit-and-run attacks against ship contingents, but it was the surest play for our purpose. If our rebellion broke apart, that would mean the Arxur had no optimistic future in the galaxy—neither Giznel nor Ilthiss would detach themselves from cruelty. I couldn’t believe what UN intelligence had told me about the Dominion fighting alongside the shadow fleet.
I never imagined they’d so openly show their mutual interest in continuing the war. Giznel must be desperate to stop humanity from coming for Wriss now, regardless of how Earth has “refrained” from openly waging war against them.
The majority of the Dominion ships being at the Kolshian homeworld meant that each sector was left with sparse defenses. We couldn’t resist targeting ship counts in the meager thousands, depriving Betterment of much-needed numbers…assuming the band at Aafa fell. The copious spacecraft kept in Wriss’ central sector was halved; my rebellion hadn’t gunned for them first, since my next plan was to trumpet a certain video through open channels. Command vessels at Aafa were jamming comms to prevent the footage of Giznel and Nikonus’ collusion from being passed along, but the brass weren’t back babysitting the leftovers. That strategy had flipped several Arxur vessels that I’d been able to contact in the external sectors.
Lisa breathed in the fresh air, smiling. “This is a lovely planet. Regardless of what happens at Aafa…maybe more so, if we win, I bet humanity is going to spread out. Like them. I think this colony has a lot of potential, to be the start of something new.”
“It would also be the perfect world to hide secret experiments,” Olek challenged, with dramatic arm motions. “Much farther away from Earth than the three colonies that popped up in our territory. We could work on bioweapons and no one would ever know!”
“Olek, I’ve never met anyone as paranoid as you. You need medication.”
“I do not! It’s not paranoid when I’m right. It’d be easier if I was wrong, but other people just miss these things!”
Though our posse of three (with Kaisal staying behind to avoid offending local leadership) was standing just in front of our landing ramp, the settlement looked ramshackle and unimpressive. There were two large buildings that I could scan with my visual translators, with one labeled a communal dormitory and the other as town hall. The sole independent constructions were hab modules in front of farming fields, where Earth crops had been planted. There was little in the way of shops, apart from market stalls for food and general goods. The Mazics were constructing an embassy with proper elegance, but that was still a work-in-progress.
I thought I recalled some tidbit from Felra about the Terrans opening a new seed vault on Liberty’s Bastion. That was the closest thing to a government mission on this world. There was likely a lab-grown meat factory tucked away somewhere, far from any Mazic eyes; I guess that was hidden, since it might qualify as a “bioweapon” by the Federation’s standards. Olek needed a reality check on his fantastical conspiracies, especially after the jaw-dropping revelations of late had encouraged his outlandish theories. The glasses-wearing human was talking about mind-reading technology just last week—it couldn’t get more detached from the realm of probability.
I flared my nostrils. “Silence! The likeliest secret on this colony is the fact that an Arxur is landing, within Mazic territory, yes? I recall they weren’t pleased to see me at the Summit, so it’s bold to invite me here.”
“It’s our colony.” Lisa shrugged, bringing her arms closer to her chest as the chilly breeze nipped at her. “We can do what we want, though I don’t imagine Zhao wants to step on any toes. This planet is perfect for habitation, and we wouldn’t want the Mazics rethinking their gift. I wouldn’t mind settling down in a place like this.”
“I thought you wanted to open a coffee shop, and bring people together.”
“That’s why there’s opportunity here. Earth will pour tons of time and resources into building this place up. There’s no conveniences or entertainment spots here yet, so the market isn’t saturated like it is at home. Places like this could become something more than rushed attempts to get humans out of Sol.”
“I agree,” Zhao chimed in, having approached quietly from the side. “There were limitations from my target date of having residents here, and the United Nations’ three other Bastion colonies, by 2136’s end. In peacetime, we’ll have higher standards for new construction. If all goes well, we’re the de facto power in the galaxy—and we need to look the part. It's wonderful that you could make it out here, Isif.”
I turned my maw to face the human. “Secretary-General. I eagerly anticipate an update on the Battle of Aafa. But first, may I inquire how you’re hiding my visit from the Mazics?”
“I’m not. We don’t plan to build our alliance on lies and secrecy, and foster mistrust within the Sapient Coalition. President Cupo knows who you are, and I’ve told him that we’re coordinating our war efforts with a rebellion leader in the area. He doesn’t approve but won’t interfere.”
“Very well. I assume you wish to speak of the war efforts. I’d like to discuss further where the Arxur stand after this is over, because I believe my recent efforts made Giznel’s capitulation likely. All I need is an update on Aafa.”
“I’ll let you begin with a summary of what the rebellion has been up to, and then I’ll bring you up to speed on the battle. Don’t worry, I’ll point you to the starship docking port to find Felra. We don’t get much traffic here, but she fits in well as an inspector.”
“Felra is a strange Dossur, but I am grateful for that annoying rodent’s safety, Míngzé. How much do you already know about our plans from Jones and her informant?”
Lisa huffed, as I pointed at her with my tail. “I am not Jones’ informant!”
“You are always in touch with her, and promised to ‘handle her’ like you have some inside road? She always seems to know my plans. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out how that might occur. I am not the Federation.”
Olek narrowed his eyes. “You know, that makes a lot of sense! No wonder you shoot down my conspiracies; you’re one of them!”
“Coming from the guy who instantly believed Isif was a UN spy,” Lisa Reynolds shot back.
“And he was a spy for us!”
Secretary-General Zhao’s eyebrows shot upward, as though he were conceding the point to Oleksiy. “I have no idea if Reynolds works for Jones, though I wouldn’t put it past her—and I know she wouldn’t tell me. Old habits die hard. Still, I’m grateful that you three seem to have bonded. Now, forgive my impatience, but I’d like to get back to keeping tabs on Aafa as soon as we’re done. Can you fill me in on your recent whereabouts?”
The entire goal of my actions had been to bring as many Arxur to my side as possible; I wanted to have enough people left to cobble together a society. Turning Chief Hunter Ilthiss had hopefully been an asset to humanity’s cause, but with nothing left to lose, I’d been determined to convert more Dominion personnel. From the secondhand information Jones had given me, I knew that the command ships at Aafa were blocking the Terrans from passing along Betterment’s treason. It was my belief that we’d achieved a workaround, though the fallout remained to be seen.
I have no idea how humanity is holding up against two galactic powers. Any chaos or doubt within Arxur ranks could aid their mission.
“My people approached the vessels left behind in each sector, and forwarded the video of Giznel and Nikonus colluding. After the viewing of this footage, they were asked to join my side; a large percentage have committed forces to the rebellion, which takes Wriss’ ship count down a notch further. We also have deigned to launch attacks against any who didn’t join our side. This should help humanity to gather a Dominion surrender, yes?” I asked.
The Secretary-General grimaced. “I gave you my word that we’ll help your cause, once Aafa is dealt with, and I’ll follow through. The less ships they have, the better. I don’t imagine you find fault in having more ships at your disposal either. However, I confess it would be of more immediate use to connect with the Arxur fighting us at this moment.”
“You’re in luck. The Dominion does not have command ships to jam signals out here, since they are at Aafa. However, any fleet needs to communicate amongst itself. Specific channels are open so Chief Hunters can stay in touch with their sector, and be apprised of any attacks back here. If it comes from approved vessels and is framed as a status report, leadership has no reason not to pass it along. I have given pointers that should help some Arxur abetting the Kolshians see the truth…very soon.”
Olek flashed his teeth. “Isif is saying that the video will be playing mid-battle. We should have at least some Dominion assets turning to our side, and throwing a wrench in the Kolshians’ alliance.”
“I thought it was wise to pass along the message to each sector in person, so there was no chance the Dominion could catch wind of our intent and block the video. It’s important that they’re blindsided,” Lisa said.
Zhao tapped his chin. “I agree that we don’t want them to get a heads-up. I’ll brief UN Command, and we’ll fill the fleet in once we receive visual confirmation of hijinks. Might I say, excellent work, Isif. Without ever needing to send a warship of your own, you’re responsible for all of the extra help we’ve gotten. From saving Earth to swaying your people, don’t think we don’t know that you’ve done more than anyone for humanity’s cause.”
“Your cause is my cause. Ending the Federation. A better future. No more sapient cattle,” I responded. “Might I ask what you mean by ‘all the help?’ This means Ilthiss has been useful perhaps, yet your reference seems to be corresponding multiple parties?”
“The Duerten Shield have come to our aid too. That’s in no small part thanks to you, risking your people to stop the Kolshians from eradicating Kalqua—when you had nothing to gain. It’s telling that our chances ride on the friends and allies we have struggled so hard to get. We did what was right by ourselves and by the laws of decency, even when it was taxing. Our decisions haven’t been perfect, and there’s been some things we had to do that were unpleasant, but we opened enough eyes to the truth for it to make a difference.”
“You say ‘we’ as if I were a part of the outreach to the leaf-lickers.”
“You were, Isif. I’m proud to call you a friend of the United Nations. While I cannot guarantee what the Sapient Coalition will think about the Arxur, after this is all said and done, I promise I’ll try to do right by you. I’ll try to build a path to reconciliation.”
Lisa chuckled. “That won’t be easy, sir.”
“Believe me, I know. There are so many broken relationships, from centuries of cyclical hatred, that need mending. There are trillions of traumatized people—freed cattle, those grieving worlds that are bombed-out husks, brainwashed citizens with lives rooted in fear, and victims from the literal past. Trying to set the galaxy back on track will be a battle of its own.”
“You’ve come a long way from protecting humanity’s interests above all others,” I remarked.
“We gain nothing from the suffering of other races. Peace, equality, and community are humanity’s interests. It’s the only way Earth will ever be a safe, prosperous member of the Orion neighborhood.”
“You say that as if you believe they can truly accept predators.”
“I do. With time, I think they could even accept the Arxur.”
My nostrils flared, considering whether that could be a possibility. Before everything that had happened in recent months, I wouldn’t have believed it was possible for the prey to forgive what we’d done—and for us to forgive the long ago curse of starvation. That was before I learned that the Federation wasn’t the sole party responsible for our plight; Betterment had been the agent that wiped out our cattle, and encouraged us to seek out a sapient food source. Likewise, the herbivores had learned that the Kolshians were complicit in everything the Arxur did, with the power to stop it at any time. Chief Nikonus wouldn’t have allowed a predator race to be peaceful, and used us as a tool to justify their control.
There were so many things I’d seen on a personal level that gave me hope for the future. Felra had been willing to accept me, even after learning that I was an Arxur; that deranged Dossur tried to get a rise out of me often, and once dabbled in eating Olek’s beef jerky. Governor Tarva had been willing to work with me during the cattle exchange; she’d argued in my favor when the humans imprisoned me, and again at the Summit. There was the fact that the majority of thirty-eight herbivore species voted to let me speak at that Summit…and that the vote to join a human-led venture was still unanimous after Zhao admitted to working with me. There was even the Yotul reaching out after the event, and being pleasant to work with during battle. I’d liked and respected the feisty marsupial I spoke with during the fight for Kalqua.
There’s even that the Mazics didn’t throw a fit, with word that an Arxur Chief Hunter was landing in a predator enclave within their territory. Things have changed.
“I hope so. It seems that we will be on the outside looking in for some time,” I replied.
Zhao tilted his head. “That’s why I’m personally making an effort to keep you in the loop. You’re as much a friend of humanity as anyone in the Sapient Coalition. Just to drive my point home, the risks you’ve taken for us haven’t gone unnoticed. Now, I’m sure you’ve been waiting to hear about the Battle of Aafa.”
“That would be appreciated.”
“In short, we’ve pushed through to Aafa, and the planetary defenses are under the control of our ground troops. It’s my expectation that we’ll know who wins or loses this fight by the end of the day. It’s not like that’s the last leg of the journey, but with the new information you gave us about turning Dominion forces, I’m hopeful that humanity won’t be searching for a new home as of tomorrow. Once the result is locked, I’ll make sure intelligence passes that along to you.”
“The fate of my people is in humanity’s hands. I hope that you will succeed.”
“I hope so too, but there’s nothing else either of us can do. You’ve achieved more than I could’ve hoped for, so take comfort in that and save the worrying for another day. Go enjoy your time with Felra, Siffy. Ask for her at the docking port over there…she should be on call now.”
“I will. Good luck, Zhao. Whatever happens, it’s been an honor to work with you and all of humanity.”
The Terran leader smiled. “Likewise.”
Olek and Lisa tailed behind me, as I padded off in the direction Zhao was pointing. It was a strange world where I could express my feelings, and meet up with an herbivore friend who cared about me against the odds. There was nothing else I could do at this point, to aid the rebellion and the UN fleet’s chances. I hoped that my final contribution, ensuring that Dominion forces by Aafa got wind of Giznel and Nikonus’ scheming, paid dividends; it had to work. How could Arxur not turn on Betterment, hearing how our suffering was their intent…in conjunction with the Federation?
For all intents and purposes, I was assuming the news would cause a significant schism in Arxur ranks. Ilthiss couldn’t be the only one to react to the truth with outrage. With the numbers a bit more in their favor, humanity might be able to eliminate the shadow fleet from Aafa’s orbit. This would be the defining moment, where a verdict would be passed down about whether sapient predators had the right to exist in this galaxy.
A/N - Part 170 is here! Isif visits the human colony where Felra lives, and learns more about humanity's future of exploration. Meanwhile, Zhao apprises him of the battle developments, after our Chief Hunter tells him about his attempts to turn Dominion forces, both in the forces...and at Aafa, circumventing their signal jamming. Will the messages from turned sectors slip through the filters; how many Arxur would switch sides because of that news? Is Isif right in assuming that Giznel might have to surrender, if the Battle of Aafa goes south for Betterment?
As always, thank you for reading and supporting! For all the people who've been asking what Isif has been up to, I hope it's worth the wait to see what strings he's been pulling from the shadows.
Comments
just a person
i got a feeling we're getting pretty close to the end of this story
harkange 585
Another great chapter its cool to see that a brighter future for the arxur is still in the cards
Some Lvm
@PhycoKrusk the problem is, every conspiracy believer has motives as to why the conspiracy was made. I get a bunch of flat earth debunk videos in my youtube suggestions, and those often have clips from "globe deniers" explaining why they believe governments are lying about the shape of the world. The motives usually range from "steal money through NASA budget" to "remove people from god by denying the bible". The COVID conspirators have their own motives, most of them are built around the notion of "control". And in that regard, they are not so different from your Kennedy conspiracy, as the motive there is also control. Don't get me wrong - I am not denying that unlike the shape of the earth it is actually possible for the CIA to have carried out such an assassination, I am just saying that motives are not the distinguishing factor.
Yannis Morris
I don’t think they have that reprogramming process. I think they’re making one via whatever they’re doing to Slanek
Yannis Morris
Oh so the time when Memory Transcriptions are invented and I *think* Kalsim dies?
Qwerty Smith
Red planet still has a big massive rusty desert to the south based on where the ocean would be. Planets just red and blue now
Cera Treascair
This chapter was just... *precious!*
Bungus Grungus
I mean rocks are nature as well, if we turned mars into a terraformed reflection of earth, there would be people who would miss the red planet, and all it's interesting aspects.
Space Paladin
https://discord.gg/pascap
everything very
Posted it :) I'm u/everyveryever
TheBlack2007
Would be hilarious if history remembers him as "Siffy the rightgeous" or some nonsense regnal name like that.
PhycoKrusk
@Lvm It does have that appearance that, especially with the Shield right there, they'll have to establish total control of the planet almost immediately, or it's functionally going to be a smash & grab of whatever data they can get. There's also the mention of missiles that were apparently launched from the oceans, so who can say how deep they'll need to go? I suppose we might even have to wait to get those answers in the Nature of Predators 2: Da Soich for Ah Boy, Slanek.
Shajenko
In universe, battle of Aafa done by the end of the day. Out of universe, three weeks from now. Minimum.
Some Lvm
@Phyco: not sure regarding what part of my post you are unsure... Anyway, to be honest - at this point search for Slanek is more of a side story for me. What I am really interested in, and I am realizing now it would be difficult to show given the story format, is how humanity intends to take Aafa, and specifically how they intend to go after the leadership, and whatever secret facilities there are below the oceans or maybe even below ground. Is there also a shadow government, to complement the shadow fleet? A prolonged siege is going to end up badly for humanity, since sooner or later the rest of the Fed loyalists will get over the cyberattack. Also, without any actual progress dismantling the Commonwealth and its control over the galaxy, the SC may falter, and the more volatile allies like the Duerten will press to take charge and do it their way. So humanity will need to get boots on the ground as fast as they can, including some special units, and use every bit of intel they can scrounge up to go after the Kolshian big wigs. I don't know what POV can give us that, but its going to be one hell of a finally! As for poor Slanek, my working theory is that Kolshians do have some "reprogramming" process for organics. And that that is exactly what they did to Slanek. It is also more likely than not, that the process is irreversible, which means for all intents and purposes the Slanek we knew is dead, even if some other person is still walking around in his body. It will be tragic if the group finds him - on one hand, it will give Marcel and the others closure, on the other hand, it would be painful seeing their friend who is no longer their friend. Probably more painful than just finding a body and being able to bury it and grief properly.
Delta
Cheers mate!
Lako
In the settings of patreon you should be able to connect your discord and patreon account. That should automatically add you to it.
Delta
Perhaps I am just foolish, but how do I find the Discord? I have only recently made a Patreon account, and only realized that there is a discord...
Byron Ritchie
Great chapter and nice to see isif again after. A little bit
Reptani
Ah I see
Space Paladin
The video was not broadcast because the humans didn’t want to chance a war with the Dominion, or to let Betterment know they’d tapped their comms
Space Paladin
Ilthiss explained what the Arxur were told about how humanity didn’t think they had a right to exist, and that it was a despicable necessity per Betterment, not some massive fraud
Space Paladin
NOP2 takes place in the 2160s!
Adam Myers
@Reptani No, Isif isn't resigning, he is simply taking a breather after having done everything in his power to contribute so far. Basically, his to do list is done for the war. He is now needing to wait for the fruits of his labor to pay off before he can do more. Keep in mind that human AI tech is exclusive to humans. While the Kolshians have drone tech, the masters of AI are humanity. Deepfakes are probably not a tech either nonhuman side has, and humanity doesn't have a great incentive to blab about it.
TheBlack2007
Say what you want about the Federation, but it represented a stable order for more than 1,000 years. Like with all crumbling Empires, its collapse will bring forth both winners and losers, sow animosity between formerly allied people and create new alliances between former enemies. It's going to be utter chaos, but as some powerplayer from another universe put it so eloquently: "Chaos is a ladder." It will spawn new powers eventually. Although many former Federation species start with a huge handicap: They have almost no Tech developed on their own. The spiel the Federation pulled off with the Yotul is the standard procedure for integrating uplifts into the Federation, meaning every new species is thoroughly ridded off its own Technology and receives the Fed standard mould in exchange. They will probably need decades to adapt to being on their own. NoP2 may play relatively short into the future and still include entirely new political entities, comprising of the same species.
Reptani
Wait, what does Isif mean by there being nothing more he can do for the rebellion? Is he resigning? Why? Also, that video of Giznel and Nikonus kind of bugs me. Since this is 100+ years in the future, shouldn't that kind of thing be very easy to make with deepfakes or AI, and thus be easily dismissed by both the Kolshians and Arxur, even if it's real? Even today, people are keenly aware of how war churns out propaganda; it seems a bit odd to me that two old, totalitarian powers obsessed with the field of propaganda, so far in the future---the Commonwealth and the Dominion---could be threatened by something like the Giznel-Nikonus footage. Though since Arxur are already working with the Commonwealth, maybe that footage will have the psychological impact desired, since a lot of the Arxur are probably already feeling indignant. Still, they weren't always openly working together, and I'm still not sure why the video wasn't broadcast beforehand? Is that because it could've been easily dismissed then?
PhycoKrusk
@Lvm unsure if joking or serious In any case, I think you're right: Establishing orbital supremacy just means they can dig in for a long siege. And find Slanek, I guess. Or at least find whatever is left of him. But if they do find Slanek, who will they really find? Hear me out. We know that the Federation has the necessary technology to scan brains for, things. But we also know that the Kolshians don't release everything they have to the wider galaxy, so we cannot reliably determine how advanced they actually are in that arena. Neither do we know exactly what happened to Slanek after his neuro-signature just sort of... stopped. Nor, finally, have we actually seen Nikonus' body in the aftermath. I'm not saying anything; I'm just saying.
PhycoKrusk
They might know where they are and what they're doing, but may not know exactly why. If external communications are cut off, that says to me that the captains of all those ships were determined to be completely loyal to Betterment and will do whatever they're told because it means rewards for them later.
PhycoKrusk
@Jess I don't think the SC will need to take any action against the Dominion: Most of its fleet is going to suffer heavy casualties at Aafa; even if not completely destroyed, it's going to be severely weakened. Most of the Arxur that are now turning to the rebellion were the fleet segments left behind to secure Dominion space, so even if it manages to hang on, the Dominion is going to be locked in civil war for a time. (Or, as I have predicted previously, will fracture into a multitude of kingdoms and/or principalities as Chief Hunters decide to claim their own territory, rather than bowing underneath either Prophet-Descendant Giznel or Prophet-Ascendant Isif). The Federation will shatter into a thousand pieces, of course, so what I honestly see as the most likely stellar-political outcome will be the Arxur in one segment of Orion-Cygnus trying to hash out how they will move forward, the former Federation in another trying to do their housekeeping, and the Coalition occupying the space between them and acting as a buffer. There will continue to be fighting and skirmishes for a good while yet, whether between different Arxur kingdoms for space and control (at least until Isif goes the way we likely all hope and solidifies everything into an Arxurian Republic), the former Federation species for resources and stability (some possibly joining the Coalition while others opt to join various confederations), or the Coalition and various gangs, pirates, and terrorists. Oh, and I guess the Duerten Shield is in there somewhere too. Honestly, I kind of expect them to just turtle up and not engage with anyone unless they absolutely have to. Oh, hey, and the Sivkit Grand Herd. Maybe there's a sizable number who didn't rejoin the herd, and years later decide to form an expedition to go look for them. As I have also said elsewhere, the size of the sandbox that SP has given to us is not insignificant.
Blake S
They still feel the need to jam coms with thier own ships, putting them at a massive disadvantage by the way, so their must be some risk of axur abadonment or switching sides. The fact that they took all thier jamming ships with them and took all thier ships to aafa indicates their simply cutting thier loses and relying on the shadow fleet to fix thinga when all is said and done. How? i dont think anyone knows this is literally worst case scenario for all parties involved.
Blake S
It will be the space civil rights movement but the alabama police have nukes and bioweapons instead of fire hoses
PhycoKrusk
Based on the current technology level, any megastructures like that are a ways off in the future.
PhycoKrusk
I think all we can say for certain is that, in the era of chaos immediately following the collapse of the Federation and the Dominion, there will be a great many who look at the options available to them as far as governance, and elect to hoist the black flag and govern themselves. Take that in whatever way you like.
PhycoKrusk
@Elias Beyond just a war with the Coalition, Giznel will now also have to face an insurgency that is somewhere other than "over there."
PhycoKrusk
Well, fair points made about the flat Earth (or the related expanding Earth, which I'm pretty sure I almost got into a digital fistfight over), the Moon landing, etc. I suppose the simple fact is that I don't tend to think of those as conspiracies because, really, what is there to cover up? There is nothing to be gained by convincing people the Earth isn't actually flat (or expanding), or that 5G doesn't cause covid, and so on. I don't have any requirement that a conspiracy make any sense beyond the base level of, "You would have to gain more from it than you put into it, whatever form that gain might take." Which is specifically why I don't discount things like the CIA assassinating President Kennedy, or the FBI assassinating Dr King, or similar incidents as being covered up ("conspiracies"). For one, we know that they have all done things like this already; after all, the NSA was caught red-handed spying on Americans as part of PRISM (and, worth noting, once caught, they never stopped the program, so welcome to a watchlist, everyone). For two, if these things are true, then there is much more to be gained by convincing people that they aren't than could ever be put into the cover-up. After all, could you imagine the public reaction if it turned out to be true that the CIA is, in fact, a rogue entity that murdered a sitting US President so that America could be dragged into a foreign adventure we otherwise would not have been involved in, specifically so that the military-industrial complex could expand its reach across the world, tighten its grip over the populace, and extract more wealth and resources for the social and political elites that have long since stopped representing anyone or anything but their own animal desires? I don't imagine it would be very polite.
Some Lvm
A big hulking space lizard talking about gorilla tactics? There has to be a Godzilla vs Kong joke in there somewhere... Any way, I think Isif is wrong about one thing - eliminating the shadow fleet will not be the defining moment. What happens *after* the fleet is eliminated is what counts. Humanity's plan is much more complex and difficult than "get orbital superiority than bomb the place to oblivion", so just getting past the space defenders isn't going to accomplish the real goal. I think the real battle is still ahead...
Some Lvm
I don't know - he may be right about memory transcription, but wouldn't it be stupid putting any kind of covert research on your first exo-stellar and most famous colony? Given that humanity has now good FTL and plenty of experience settling hostile environments like our moon and mars, it would be way more sensible to stick covert facilities on some out of the way rock no one even knows belongs to the humans. I think attraction to conspiracies has nothing to do with being observant - on the contrary - the most prevalent conspiracies today are ones requiring hard denial of reality, like the flat-erthers. Or the one bout 5G towers causing Covid. Maybe it is the need to feel special by "knowing" something others don't, or maybe it is our tendency to look for patterns running amok, whatever it is, I wouldn't classify it as good. Yes, a few conspiracies over the years eventually been proven to be factual, but you need to be careful of confirmation bias here.
jr_aye
What I don’t get is why betterment and the kolshians working together would be news to the arxur defending Aafa. They’re already there, defending a prey planet, surely they would have already realized the collusion, right?
One interesting factor in this is Isif - if Betterment, the SC and the fed effectively neutralize each other, he'll be the only one with a decent fleet left. It means Betterment is likely going to collapse, and this will re-shuffle the playing field again.
Invariance
"The glasses-wearing human was talking about mind-reading technology just last week" I see what you did there!
No mater what. I still don’t see us winning the battle over Aafa I highly doubt the Arxur would just turn on the Koloshians alone once the video reaches the dominion fleet over Aafa. My prediction is that we either end in a stalemate and are forced to flee and try to inflict as much damage to the Koloshian infrastructure as possible while retreating. Or the Arxur turn on both the Koloshians and the SC resulting in a three way blood bath. By the time the battle is over, even if we win our reserves will be completely spent and we won’t have to manpower to even think about occupying the planet. So there are only 3 realistic endings to this situation in my opinion. 1. We lose completely and humanity along with her allies are forced to flee to a unknown part of the galaxy 2.we “win” but have suffered near total casualties, rendering the sc unable to mount any meaningful occupation operations, or launch any offensives against the remaining federation members, causing the conflict to turn into a massive Cold War. 3. The SC manages to defeat the Koloshian fleets but by that point we don’t have enough ships left to deal with the dominion so the Arxur loyal to ginzel have their way with Aafa and more or less completely take over the rest of the crippled federation races. Which results in another Cold War.
ToddTheSquid
I mean, I wouldn't say *most*, but a sizable minority of conspiracy theorists are just observant. Most are complete nut jobs who think the earth is flat or the moon landing was fake or vaccines cause cancer or some other stupid shit like that. Often all three.
Cartoon dinosaur
Space paladin, will humanity or any others after the war is over build any kind of mega structures? Like a dyson swarm or O'Neil Cylinders? because, even if there were planets with life and habitable to use that we could live on, I dont think we should as I believe its morally vile. I mean this colony is already destroying nature and taking up space from its native life and replacing it with earth life. Possible introducing invasive species. Haven't we dont that enough on our own plant? And O'Neil Cylinders and the like we wouldn't even have to live on any planet, if we used the asteroids in our home system we could make so many O'Neil Cylinders that they would collectively equal more space then earth or the moon. . Why destroy and take from nature when we can just build a new home from dead rocks?
Tazeell
I suspect everyone at Aafa is the most diehard loyalists they could shove in ships given everyone there is directly collaborating with the Kolshians by their very presence, fighting for a herbivore. The secret is pretty in the open already in Aafa.
Tazeell
Sounds like Isif has been busy indeed, hopefully the cause continues to spread like a virus in the Arxur ranks. The more the merrier. Was really hoping to see more Siffy and Felra to cap off the chapter but oh well. I can't imagine the message will turn the Affa fighters though, they are after all, directly collaborating with the Kolshians already. Likely all die hard loyalists in the know.
everything very
How did I not think of that haha, call me a water cannon lol
Youre a swedekisser arent you
Zhao calling Isif by that nickname and Isif not lashing at him makes me confident that they have a proper personal friendship. Very wholesome!
PhycoKrusk
Everyone always mocks conspiracy theorists, but the fact is that most "conspiracy theorists" are just observant people who take notice of worrying trends and are generally happy when they're wrong, because being correct means something terrible is, in fact, happening. (The idea of the "conspiracy theory" was started by the CIA in the wake of the Kennedy assassinations as a way to describe ideas that there was a CIA conspiracy to assassinate John and Robert Kennedy. Not saying anything, just saying)
Swan
The post war galaxy is gonna be such a cluster fuck; I'm curious if NoP 2 will take place in the immediate time after the war (like 1-2 years in the future) where humanity is still dealing with fed remnants (don't think species like the Yulpa would surrender without getting ground invaded, and letting them be could be dangerous) and indoctrination, or if it'll take place in the "Everything is fixed now" era (at least a decade in the future)
EliasArt2Life
Yeah. This is the end for the Kolshians (and Giznel). Getting the planetary defenses was already enough to tip the battle in our favor. Getting more Arxur on our side will ensure we don’t run out of ammo too soon, and push the battle firmly in our favor. It COULD make it a little harder to prevent the Kolshians from being bombed (or maybe the Arxur gain respect for us, and defend our right as the strongest party to do with the Kolshians as we wish). Giznel doesn’t strike me as the type to surrender, so I imagine we’ll have one more battle to take Wriss, but that won’t be significantly troublesome. On the bright side, the Arxur switching sides could show the SC that the Arxur were just as manipulated as everyone else, and could be the first step to peace with them.
Yannis Morris
*(looks scrutinizingly at his sapient AI Prediction)*
Izzet
I'm glad he's visiting Felra. Just imagine, how crazy would it be if they got together. Puzzlement on one side and people wanting to protect her on the other, while she prances on Isifs nose and rudely interrupts all parties including Isif with snide remarks. xD I know we kinda saw that already, but still.
Paperclip
If I don't see drawings of Isif in a sequined hat on the NOP subreddit, I'm going to throw a riot.
ace_of_aces_68
I can't imagine very many Arxur fighting at Aafa will be happy to hear the message. Still, I can't help but think that at least some of them might still fight alongside the Kolshians out of some twisted sense of dominance against humanity. That aside, it'll be good to see Felra again, that demented little space squirrel.
John Benjamin Cate
Good to see the bastion and everyone preparing for a post war galaxy! It won’t be easy but it will certainly be worth it! And I do hope to see Felra again soon!
Adam Myers
Anyone else notice that Olek is always right? (We are literally seeing the "mind reading" Olek predicts)
Delta
Ey! Insomnia for the win? At least I get to read early. I only recently signed up for Patreon, so I am making my way through the bonus content and a lot of it is reminding me of Born to be a killer, Grog's song. I feel as though the song fits humanity in this universe. Thank you for everything, I am just up to the Farsule abductee. I loved Duncan.
Jackson Hazeltine
👽
print Path
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