Category: Soteria News Service

Soteria News Service

A Questionable Pattern Evolving?

A questionable pattern is starting to become clearer as new documents are against released to the public. The source of these documents appears to be the same as the source that released the documents dealing with the Spartans and still remains anonymous. Reading the documents makes it clear that there may be more of a story to tell with regard to the universe which they came from.

The Spartan documents make mention of a group called the Covenant, for which we know very little with the exception that the group which commissioned the Spartan’s to be made was in some kind of conflict with them. This fresh set of documents tells of the Covenant committing utter acts of atrocity against the human races, going so far as to “glass” planets, a process which involves destroying all life on a planet through orbital bombardment with high energy plasma weapons. Weapons which, incidentally, the newly arrived vessel Severed Grace has. Questions have been raised in the highest levels of government, questions that the Department of Military Actions and Services has few answers to. Largely the department has left the running of the Schatten System to Solas Tempus, as the primary facilities in the system are military in nature – the organization has adopted a policy of allowing newly arrived vessels and people to promise they will abide by the local laws to avoid being incarcerated to sent back.

Sending a newly arrived person or vessel back can take months as the Janus Project can take a significant amount of time to find the originating reality to return a new arrival to. However, if Solas Tempus is willing to allow such dangerous individuals as the Spartan’s and a Covenant battle cruiser to remain in the system unchecked with with an obvious conflict between those two sides there is a serious question to be made on whether or not Solas Tempus is competent to manage such things, at least under their current leadership.

Rebel Alliance Revealed!

Documents have been obtained by our reporters that the Rebel Alliance has had similar dealings as the Spartans. Detailed information from the X-Wing of Alema on pervious missions tells a rather extensive story of the Rebel Alliance having a complete and total disregard for the the lives of civilians. In one mission to a planet which is not named, the Rebel Alliance slaughtered 10,000 or more civilians to destroy the Imperial outpost. Another mission killed some 1,600 people, without giving the option for surrender.

In the first completely actionable information found is a detailed report about a mission involving a significant amount of civilian casualties. The pilot, Alema, is reported as being the cause of 1,045 civilian deaths when her fighters caused extensive damage crushing an entire village in a rock slide when she accidentally fire a torpedo into a rock face. Further, the Rebel Alliance command is noted to know that a future mission will have a high likelihood of civilian casualties.

Other Investigations Painting a Picture

Two other investigations also paint an additionally disturbing image of how things are run in the system; that of Tal Ravis and of John Angelos, both of which have active investigations into their conduct with similar subject matter. In the case of Security Chief Angelos the question has been raised about his relationship with a young 16 year old resident of the station and while STS has declined to release her name to the press for obvious reasons this runs parallel with the potential relationship being had by Mr. Ravis and a new arrival who – by all accounts – is even younger. Both of these add to a dangerous image of Fleet Admiral Thomas and his second, Admiral D’Amico, paying little attention to civilians which rely on them for protection.

Station Structure Command Hindered

New reports have surfaced about a confrontation between Nimbus Station Executive Officer Mike-037 and several of his subordinates. The confrontation occurred in the fighter bay of Nimbus, starting out as a heated disagreement between two groups of enlisted personnel. The argument itself was nothing to write home about, a simple disagreement over the exchange of shifts. However, this disagreement became even more heated and more critical when the XO overheard the disagreement and stepped in to investigate.

Mike-037 inserted himself to calm things down and ended up making them worse. The two sides of the argument joined forces grilling him with questions about the released documents. What would have normally been an issue where several crew would have likely disengaged and calmed down at the sight of a superior turned into a heated stand-off between the group of enlisted man and the station’s second in command. It becomes clear from the video linked below, the crew demonstrate a complete lack of respect for the Lt. Commander.

The article gives a link to a surveillance video showing the confrontation.

One thing, however, is crystal clear. Lt. Commander Mike-037 is unflappable during the confrontation, he maintains a clearly authoritative stance and does not get angry in what must have been an entirely frustrating situation. Whether one is to believe the documents accusations the XO was perfectly willing to take the focus and frustration of the group and let it roll off his back and that should be a strong note about his character.

Our own investigation into the actions of Nimbus Station XO Mike-037 have uncovered a conversation told to us by medical staff on condition of anonymity, for fear of reprisal. The conversation took place in the Nimbus Station Sickbay on May 21st. At the time a new Spartan had just spliced in and been treated for multiple injuries. Mike himself admitted that he found it easier to kill aliens.

The pair also had a conversation about the potential for using the developing fan clubs against the system. Apparently the pair have had some degree of experience dealing with the manipulation of public opinions, mentioning being used for propaganda purposes. The entire issue is further complicated by the apparent unwillingness for Mike himself to speak to anyone about this issue, at least nowhere that is visible to the public.

Investigator Dispatched

The Department of Protection and Investigation (DPI) has sent investigators to Nimbus Station in order to determine the nature of the allegations and if there is any thing actionable to be done. A high level official within the department commented that the investigators may expand their investigation into other areas if they feel it is necessary to do to. This further highlights the other problems facing Solas Tempus and the political fight they are embroiled in right now.

Colony Site Approved

The new site for the first civilian colony on Soteria has been approved, near the Anguta Bay. The site has been designated as Alpha Site for construction purposes and Minister Vaber has opened it up to the public to name the first city of Soteria. Starting today the Minister’s office will be accepting naming suggestions in order to choose among them. The entire public can vote on and submit what it thinks the city should be named.

The site is being surveyed right now for the exact details of the cities layout and placement. The initial breaking of ground should occur sometime in the next week. Plans for the city, thus far, include plans for both commercial and industrial parks, hoping to attract civilian businesses and services to come to Soteria and help develop the planet. There is some pushback from naturalist groups that the planet should be left largely alone, especially after what happened to the base Nysa.

Governor Orders Investigation

Governor of the Schatten Star System, Andrea Maddox, has called for a civilian lead investigation into the documents recently released to the public. Although there was some question as to whether or not the Department of Judicial Services would allow the investigation, they have confirmed that they are pushing forward with the Department of Protection and Investigation and opening a formal inquery into the alleged activities. Under the law Mike-037 cannot be proscuted for the crimes of his people nor for crimes commited in another universe. However, the documents have brought to light items which seriously jepordize the faith which has been put in his ability to do his job. Since Mr. 037 has declined to shed light on the accusations against him it leaves many wondering if the accusations are true.

In addition to the DPI inquiry the Civilian Oversight Board has been given the green light to open their own investigation into the matter with the blessing of Director Alice Barnes of the Department of Military Actions and Services. At this point it is impossible to say what the two independant investigations may find.

In a statement yesterday Fleet Admiral Lance Thomas made the position of Solas Tempus clear, saying that the record since joining the organization of Mike-037 has been exemplary and he has carried out every order and has shown no evidence of mental instability. The Admiral went on to say; “Doing this job I have seen a great many people over the years who are capable, I have also seen a fair number of people over the years who are steadfast and loyal, and I have seen an even smaller number of people over the years who are brave and willing to push forward with courage. I have, however, seldom seen a person who is capable, loyal, and couragous. These are not qualities that I take lightly nor are they qualities which are in great supply. Lt. Commander Mike-037 has the full faith and confidence of myself, Admiral D’Amico, and the rest of Solas Tempus. These documents released reflect one thing and one thing only, accusations against a group which cannot be confirmed and we dare not condem a man for the actions of a group he belongs to, this is enshrined in our constitution and the 8th Gaurentee, which probhibits such things. Until some shed of evidence that the Commander himself commited actionable crimes against civilians I stand by him, as do my officers.”

The statement makes it a certainty that if the civilian investigations come to a negative conclusion, it will be the first test of the government’s ability to control and regulate the organization. Personal accounts about Admiral Thomas himself suggest that he may not be as willing as others to concede authority over someone he claims we should not even be looking into in the first place. His interpretation of the constitution is correct, however, Mr. 037 cannot be prosecuted for crimes which occured outside the Concord by others, no matter his affiliation. The investigations held will be to determine if Mr. 037 is to be trusted with military authority. A finding of wrongdoing by either the COD or the DIP could force the hand of Director Barnes or Prime Minister Th’chaaveq and end with an order to bar Mike-037 from military service.

Pushing for Colonization

Governor Maddox has incidacted that she is pushing forward with plans to break ground on the first civilian colony of the Schatten System to be located on Soteria. Several different sites are being looked at for what will become the focal point for civilian politics on that world once established. Currently the political powers of the system are housed on Nimbus Station, a military run facility. While the Governor had originally wished to take control of the station it became clear that this was an ill-conceived notion when, recently, the station and occupants left the system for several months. Details about why this happened are classified and the only statement releasted indicates that Solas Tempus conducted operations under the Temporal Command division of Blue Team. This suggests a temporal event of some kind occured, but the operational details are classified and Admiral D’Amico has instructed civilians to contact the office of the DMAS office for public relations to obtain further information. The new colony site is expected to break ground soon and Solas Tempus engineers have already agreed to be available to assist in construction efforts.

Farming Settlement Site Approved

A site has been chosen for the new farming settlement on Soteria. The settlement will be built by the agricultural group Temperance and Sustenance which will supply the settlement with the initial supplies needed to begun cultivating the land. This is a great boon to the agricultural economy of the system which has thus far relied nearly entirely on shipments in and food and other natural materials. Though some of these materials have been gathered on Soteria the biggest need by far is that of food stuffs. The group has approved a site just south 990 kilometers south along the coast from the Anguta Bay. If successful the group is planning to begin supplying food within a 5-7 year period once cultivation can get established at the required levels. It will be at least a full year, however, before the first crops are seen from the new settlement.

The Concord has gaurenteed supplies for the settlement and Solas Tempuas science teams have also pledged support for the new site as needed. Engineers from the military have also already received requests for assistance in construction of new facilities.

Latest Arrival Sighted – A Spartan

In the light of the current controversy reguarding Mike-037 the appearance of another Spartan today on Soteria was troubling. Details are scant at this time, other than he was injured and had a child with him who was deceased. This latest sighting has also prompted the DPI to begin looking into other Spartan’s who may also be on the station but not holding official positions. Another of the group is known to be on Nimbus Station, Alicia-052 though it is unknown if the DPI plans to question Alica about the conduct of the Spartan’s.

A Population Divided

Given the recent revelations about the station’s X.O. the population has started to divide along the expected lines. While many people just want answers there are two growing groups; the group that believes the X.O. should be treated solely on the merit of his conduct since coming here and those who believe that even the accusation of such crimes is enough to disqualify a person from holding such a position. While this started as a matter for the civilians which did not penetrate into the ranks of Solas Tempus there is at least one confirmed report of the X.O. being impared from diffusing a conflict by questions regaurding the released documents. Solas Tempus may soon find itself in the difficult position of defending a man who may well have commited what we would consider war crimes. Whatever the outcome, it is clear that we may never know the truth. The actions of the Spartans prior to being here was in an entirely different reality and that in and of itself will likely keep many things in the dark.

Mike-037 Fit for Command?

The release of the Spartan documents, which detail atrocities commited by the Spartan’s calls into serious question the position of Lt. Commander Mike-037, currenly the XO of Nimbus Station here on Soteria. The documents detail the chilling activities of the group and the attempted coverup by their own military.

The public response to this information has been quick and fierce, calling for the civilian government to revoke the comission of Mike-037 in order to preserve the security of future operation. This is the first time the fledgling civilian government has been asked to override the direct appointments of Solas Tempus command, particularly Fleet Admiral Lance Thomas and Admiral Sal D’Amico who cleared Mike-037 for duty and approved the appointment to become Executive Officer of Nimbus Station.

Borg Captive Sighted?

Unconfirmed reports say that the Borg captive has been interviewed by Admiral D’Amico himself. The details of the conversation are unknown, though repeated requests for more information have been filed with the civilian government following a refusal to comment by Solas Tempus itself. The Serenity Concord has also declined to comment except for a press release stating that they are reviewing the potential issues associated with the continued captivity of a Borg drone.

Icarus League Fighting Again

The Icarus League is again filing legal suit. The recent decision that certain “droids” aboard some of the spliced in vessels qualify for rights under the ALFRE (Artificial Life Forms Rights and Enforcement Act) has sparked the group to begin the legal battle to get all such beings classified as autonomous and given rights under the law. Thus far the New Hope and the Cabur have both complied with requests by the Turing Agency to interview and otherwise assess their droids to determine their status but it is unclear how the Captains of those vessels would feel about their entire stock of droids being given the same rights as the human crew. Currently the group has simply filed requesting the court to invoke the ALFRE Act and simply declare the droids a race unto themselves of artificial beings on the merits of past discoveries made. Both the Cabur and the New Home have had roughly the same percentage of the droids on board declared to be sentient. This method is the most expedient but it is unlikely the court will summarily grant such a status itself and instead issue an order for the Turing Agency to make a more detailed analysis. Since the agency is so young it is unclear at this time what qualifications are in place already to determine if a group of artificial beings such as the droids constitutes a race.

Fan Groups Organize

On the lighter side, several groups in favor of Solas Tempus have begun to organize themselves, specifically in order to create a convention. It is unknown when this might occur but a growing movement of people see many of the key and best-known figures of Solas Tempus as sort-of icons and a subculture on Nimbus has started to develop and is gaining speed. Reporters have encountered fans of the organization before and often interviewed such people for their opinions about Solas Tempus’s activities, however in recent weeks such fans and advocate have begun to group together. In particularly interesting advent is that habit of some people to dress up as or similar to key figures in the organization. Already prior to the release of the AI known as Leo from his holographic isolation some of the members of the Icarus League were sighted dressing up or otherwise giving themselves a similar look to how Leo has been seen in the past.

Currently there are sightings of people dressing up as Captain Drem Confoscho, Admiral Lance Thomas, Captain Aytise Alshat, and even the infamous Tal Ravis has gained a significant following. An interesting aside, the current questions against the station XO, Mike-037, has only intensified the support of some civilians fans who have been extremely vocal on a wide variety of potential explinations, including that he is not responcible for what others have done but also going so far as to say it is a Federation plot to keep such a skilled person from continuing in such a critical position. This movement is quickly gaining speed and many see it as people having a good time after spending months trapped alone with an unsure future, though military sources have declined to comment on such activity.

Akron Mystery Intensifies

Solas Tempus released documents recently which reflect a mysterous encounter with a derelict vessel, the USS Akron, the boarding party encountered resistance from unknown parties and Solas Tempus has been tight lipped about its possible connection the computer system anomalies and system failures which occured after the boarding party returned to Nimbus. It was noted, however, that derelect vessel was able to follow us through the wormhole intact and is currently in the Schatten System, though the exact location has yet to be disclosed. Further details are not forthcoming and have been classified by Solas Tempus.

It has also been confirmed that at least one person is missing since the boarding party to the Akron, that of Flask, who worked on board the USS Drakon and is noted as being a valuable member of the crew. His exact location is unknown at this time, while the official statement is that he is on an a classified mission under direct orders of Admiral Sal D’Amico there are uncomfirmed rumors that he was left on board the Akron for some unknown reason. As a final note, an area near the asteroid belt close to Schatten II has been cordoned off and has been declared a no-fly zone, reasons could be related to the Akron but Solas Tempus has not responded to request for comments.

Tal Ravis – Improper Conduct?

Accusations surrounding the now infamous, Tal Ravis. His name is most recently known for the daring rescue of Fleet Admiral Lance Thomas but also of the far more infamous role in the destruction of not only an aggressive force attacking installations here in the Schatten System, but also over half of the Umbral Shipyards, which caused the appearance of the Umbral Rift. Sources inside the security forces for Solas Tempus have revealed that there are accusations of misconduct relating to a peculiar new arrival, which has caused some serious concern. This new arrival is reportedly very young and could be involved in an improper relationship with Mr. Ravis. While details on exactly what kind of relationship may be suspected are confused, it is documented that the new arirval has been seen calling him Master on numerous occasion and is prone to appearing in public in scant clothing. Admiral D’Amico’s office has declined to comment and Solas Tempus Security has similarly said that they are unable to confirm or deny whether Mr. Ravis is currently under investigation or not.

Disturbing Documents Released

New documents have surfeced from an unknown source which detail the programs which trained the Executive Officer of Nimbus Station, Lt. Commander Mike-037. The documents tell the story children being abducted and replaced by clones and then trained for military service starting as young as age 6. Detailed in the documents are reports of children being not only educated in general terms but conditioned for combat. At age 14 the children are left in the forest as a final test, upon rendezvous with each other they are promoted to Chief Petty Officer.

While so far this is not an uncommon practice among militaries in our own universe, the documents released then detail the augmentation of the young teens over a period of 4 years where some 40 of the original 70 children die or become too disabled to continue. Following this the remaining 30 “Spartans” are put into what appears to be standard military training routines. They finally see combat later and are extensively successful.

At the same time the political machinery behind the program promotes the idea that “Spartan’s Never Die”, this is done through a variety of ways but most notably, none are listed as dead, simply Missing in Action. Later, a reporter native to that universe is killed when attempting to inform the publica bout the truth to the program. This is done to cover up the fact that the Spartan’s commited war crimes, mass killings and slaughtering of civilians. The detailed atrocities are extensive and paint the image of a monsterous group of people who have dangerous propensity for extreme violence.

OOC: A link to the original data is provided. Ask Mike for Details.

Borg Prisoner?

On condition of anomyniity, sources within Solas Tempus Security have confirmed that a Borg is being held. The Borg has reportedly been severed from the collective. It is unknown the purpose for the continued incarceration of the Borg, security chief Angelos has been unavailable for comment thus far. This raises serious questions for the continued security of the station.

Announcements

  • A new vessel, the Severed Grace appeared and created a tense situation temporarily where it was possible the vessel may turn hostile. Someone from the same universe, Orn’VaOrnomai, was able to diffuse the situation shortly after the vessel’s arrival.
  • John Angelos and Itza were married on May 13th, 2385 not long after returning to the Schatten System.
  • A new vessel has appeared through a Splice, the Irvyn, which appears to be some form of ironclad flying vessel and is currently docked with Nimbus via the ocean docks. It’s Captain Clancy spliced in separately.
  • The head of Solas Tempus, Fleet Admiral Lance Thomas, and Captain Drem Confoscho of the USS Drakon have announced their impending marriage, though a specific date has not been set.