Ambience Tactical Mainframe: Strategic Projection: BLACK SHIP SCENARIOS: 07/07/2175
Scenario 12: Black Ship first strike: objective: Trade Disruption
Active assumptions: Variables are as observed. Black ship possesses limited mass destructive capacity. Assume passable observed knowledge of Terran trade ports and economic activity.
Black Ship launches limited assaults on major trade centers. First target: Hangzhou, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Brisbane. Shipping infrastructure destroyed. Second target: Hawaii. Third target: Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego, Lima. Fourth target: New York City, Boston, Atlanta, Rio de Janeiro. Fifth Target: London, Oslo, Marseille, Naples, Tunis, Dubai, Sevastopol, Cape Town. Sixth Target: Archangel, Mumbai, Bengal. Estimate death toll 6.7 million dead 12 million wounded. Full shipping disruption achieved within 48 hours as minor ports are targeted. Estimated economic damage: 12 Trillion Hegemon Credits. Starvation in Djibouti, UAE, Lebanon, Kenya, Sudan, South Sudan, New Zealand. Estimated rebuild time: fifteen Earth years.
Official Transcript: The Recap with Michael DeVoris: 07/09/2175
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DEVORIS: Welcome to the weekend recap, I'm your host Michael DeVoris. We've got an extensive show for you tonight, but before we begin, I'd just like to take the opportunity to remind everyone at home tonight, whether you're watching this show on an overhead or on your Interlink, that Ambience Corp recently released the new fourth generation Interlink device, and all Hegemony citizens are encouraged to install the upgraded neural interface at the soonest possible opportunity. You can get the fourth gen at any Ambience facility, the procedure is quick and painless, and the Hegemony will provide both monetary credits and Sesame points to the next hundred thousand citizens to go through the upgrade procedure. And now to the news, and it's been an eventful week, especially the weekend. On Tuesday of this week, the Terran Interstellar Authority recalled 55 ships from border positions and garrisons along the border with Grushan and Novan space and redeployed them across the Earth system, with several stationed in various positions from Neptune to Jupiter to Mars. TIA spokesperson Melania Tsarneva reported that the Terran Star Fleet was conducting military exercises and told Hegemony citizens quote, "not to worry," and that "there is currently no threat to the Hegemony or its citizens." However, on Friday, a foreign starship entered the system and made its way towards Earth. Sources at the Jupiter base say that task forces stationed there were ordered to intercept, and then ordered back to Mars and Earth. Correspondents reporting from the civilian base at Neptune reported sightings of two Terran destroyers adrift and caught in Neptune's gravitational pull. The unidentified starship continued on course to Earth and entered geosynchronous orbit above Montana. It was night at the time, and Montana residents described sightings of a flash of bright light in the sky upon its arrival. For more on this, we turn to my first guest tonight, TIA spokesperson Melania Tsarneva. Ms. Tsarneva, thank you for joining us on the Recap tonight. Now, obviously there are a lot of questions and rumors floating around right now about this mysterious unidentified starship and the apparent loss of multiple Terran ships. What light can the TIA shed on this unusual chain of events?
TSARNEVA: The TIA is currently conducting military exercises in the Earth system simulating a possible foreign invasion of the Earth system. Several ships were simulated casualties, and so are currently behaving as derelict ships until the simulation concludes. The presence of the black ship in the Earth system is an entirely separate occurrence. The TIA, as well as the Hegemony Diplomatic Commission, are investigating its presence and its intentions with the greatest interest, however all communications indicate a positive outlook for future communications.
DEVORIS: So, are you telling us that this "black ship" represents an unidentified alien race?
TSARNEVA: I'm not at liberty to disclose that information at this time.
DEVORIS: How do you explain the light over the sky in North America on Friday night? There are a number of people who wonder if it was the result of some sort of nuclear explosion. How does the TIA respond?
TSARNEVA: I'm not at liberty to disclose that information at this time.
DEVORIS: Ms. Tsarneva, many North American residents are concerned about the presence of the black ship, since they are in direct weapons range of the thing. What can you tell the residents of North America?
TSARNEVA: All I can tell them is that if their intentions were hostile, they would have attacked us by now.
DEVORIS: The Grushan Federation and the Nova colony have both expressed fear and displeasure at the sudden redeployment of the fleet. The Novans have protested and mobilized their forces in anticipation of an invasion and the Grushan have sent task forces to the Yveran and Hezheran systems, as well as a task force in reach of the Nova colony. The Grushan Senate has pledged to support Nova in case of a Terran invasion. What is the response of the TIA to these actions?
TSARNEVA: I think that it demonstrates just how much hostility there is towards us from both Nova and the Grushan. The Hegemony has the right to command its military in any way that it pleases, and to say otherwise would undermine Terran sovereignty, and that I think is their ultimate goal.
DEVORIS: TIA spokesperson Melania Tsarneva. Thank you for joining us. Now it's been over a hundred and thirty-two years since the Grushan made first contact with Earth, and up till this point, no other alien races have made contact with humans or, to our knowledge, the Grushan. With that in mind, we turn today to experts to tell us just what first contact procedures would look like if this black ship represents an unidentified alien race. Joining us today are Mei Fan-Yang from Sun Yat-Sen University in Beijing, Michelle An from the Hegemony Department of Foreign Affairs, Andrew Fallon from American University in Washington DC, and linguist Shan Lan-Lan from Peking University. Thank you all for being here. Now, my first question tonight for Ms. An: I think that it would greatly benefit citizens to know exactly what first contact protocols will be and how will they be implemented by Hegemony authorities?
AN: Well, the first step will obviously be establishing a line of communication, whether that be through long band light wavelengths such as radio, or short band methods like lifi, or maybe even contact in person. And, certainly, face to face communication is the best option, but we have no guarantee that an alien race even has face to face long band or short band data transmission, or if their software is compatible with ours, so while we can obviously send radio signals, and we will, if this object is classified as alien in origin, begin transmitting on those frequencies, but it will be difficult to make initial contact. After contact is made, we will have to work through each other's language, which is a process that can take weeks or even years depending on how their language is constructed and how different it is from ours.
SHAN: Breaking through the language barrier can sometimes be extremely hard. Grushan language, for example, is indistinguishable from animal noises to human ears. Some of your viewers don't know this, but Grushan don't vocalize like humans do. They bark, chirp, and click like dogs and birds. So, when they landed on Earth in 2043, Terran linguists weren't able to distinguish one word from another. It was ultimately one of the Grushan scientists who figured out how to replicate human vocalizations with a computer and synthesized a language which Terrans could then translate. That whole process took months and even when it was concluded there were still a lot of kinks in the system.
DEVORIS: So, how likely is it that this thing is an alien starship? Because as we know, the Hegemony has neither confirmed nor denied our questions about its identity.
MEI: Well, Michael, as we know, the Hegemony has yet to confirm the ship's point of origin or nationality, so we have no reason to believe that it is alien in origin. For all that we know, this could be an experimental Hegemony ship design; in fact, that might also explain the military exercises that Ms. Tsarneva was just describing. They could be testing the new design in combat scenarios.
FALLON: I'm afraid I don't see how that could be the case. Michael, you forgot to mention, but I'm a military technology expert from American University, and I have to say that this thing is something far beyond technology that the Hegemony possesses. It-
DEVORIS: And how do you know that?
FALLON: Well, for one thing, it has almost no EM signature. Stealth planes we have now are able to evade radar, which is EM waves in long wave bands, but this thing seems to have the ability to evade multiple frequencies, including infrared, microwave, ultraviolet, gamma, x-rays and to a certain extent the visible spectrum. The Hegemony just doesn't have that kind of technology, and to my knowledge, neither do the Grushan.
MEI: Is it so hard to believe that Terrans have advanced ahead of Grushan?
FALLON: That's not what I said. It's possible that we have reached the point where we can advance past the Grushan. But that ship up there is lightyears ahead of either of our capabilities, and to me that indicates that they probably come from a race more advanced than the Hegemony or the Grushan Federation.
MEI: So, you'd believe that it's just a coincidence that it arrives just days after a Hegemony military exercise began?
FALLON: Maybe, but there are simpler explanations.
MEI: Such as what?
FALLON: Well, that military exercise might have been an operation to apprehend the black ship, whatever it is. I-
DEVORIS: So, you're saying that the Hegemony would lie to us?
FALLON: I'm saying that it's not a coincidence that it and the Terran Star Fleet arrived within a week of each other, and-
MEI: And so that means that there was a fight?
FALLON: Well, I have a cousin stationed on the Hangzhou who my family hasn't heard from for some time, and-
MEI: Of course not! He's been in a military exercise. They probably have radio silence orders.
FALLON: I lost touch with him before the fleet was recalled to Earth.
DEVORIS: Both of these explanations seem to fit the facts; however, the Hegemony backs one more thoroughly, so it seems reasonable to work in the framework of this one until we have reason to believe otherwise.
AN: There are several reasons that the Hegemony might want to keep an alien contact undisclosed for now, as well. For one thing, they may want to keep civilian traffic from interacting with the ship, or civilians sending hostile surface traffic in its direction. There's a lot of isolationist sentiment in regions of eastern Europe and especially North America, no offense Mr. Fallon. If the Hegemony is interested in making peaceful contact, the last thing that they want is to have it translate isolationist propaganda before official representatives break the language barrier.
FALLON: If the Hegemony was afraid of that, I suspect that they'd have to close down all communications and transmissions in the Western hemisphere, and there's no way that they can do that without causing a riot.
SHAN: Are you implying that your Western friends and neighbors are disloyal?
FALLON: Of course I'm not. But shutting down all broadband channels on half of the planet...
SHAN: That would only be difficult if Americans and Europeans were disobedient to the Hegemony.
DEVORIS: All right, I hate to break this up for now, but we do have a break coming up in just a moment. I'd like to take this moment to remind everybody to go out and install the new fourth generation Interlink device at your nearest Ambience Corp. facility. We'll be right back.
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[End Transcript]
Ambience Tactical Mainframe: Strategic Projection: BLACK SHIP SCENARIOS: 07/07/2175
Scenario 57: Black Ship first strike: objective: Administrative Disruption.
Active assumptions: Variables are as observed. Black ship possesses limited mass destructive capacity. Assume passable observed knowledge of Terran trade ports and economic activity.
Black ship launches limited strikes on administrative centers. First target: Beijing, Shanghai, Tokyo, Canberra. Second target: San Francisco, Los Angeles, Buenos Aires, Lima, Mexico City, New York City, Washington DC, Philadelphia. Third target: London, Paris, Berlin, Madrid, Moscow, Kiev, Kinshasa, Nairobi, Johannesburg, Cairo, Jerusalem, Istanbul, Tehran, Krakow. Fourth target, New Delhi, Mumbai, Hanoi. Estimate death toll 60 million dead 78 million wounded. Estimate economic damage 11.5 trillion Hegemon Credits. Estimate rebuild time 60 years.
The Thoughts of Yong An-Hong: Translated by Alexandra Yuan: Copyright 2205, Centauri University Press: Hanson Harbor, Nova
07/09/2175
The black ship waits in orbit like a vulture, and there is nothing that we can do in response. The fleet has gathered in geosynchronous orbits and beyond Earth's gravitational pull within direct weapons range. All planetary weapons are locked on the ship's signature, but I fear that the inevitable result will be the same as before. No earthly power seems sufficient to stop this thing. If it decides to strike upon us, I fear we will be powerless to resist.
And yet, the official position of the Hegemony must remain unchanged. If the people were told what danger pressed upon them, chaos would ensue, even among those who own the fourth generation Interlink and are otherwise peaceful citizens. So, we have ordered the networks to spread calming perspective and refocus the narrative on less important matters. Ambience executives have issued no alerts and have assured me that their content will focus away from the black ship and onto more trivial matters.
This development could not come at a worse time. We are in the middle of the most extensive social reform in Earth's history; the fourth generation Interlink will unify the people as never before. Some have said, not without merit, I believe, that this may even make archaic social drivers such as currency obsolete; the arcane cash of the early twentieth century was done away with under Chinese leadership after the founding of the Hegemony, and with the new reforms that this marvel of the modern world puts the human race on the verge of doing away with all self-serving social transactions altogether! We are on the verge of eradicating social unrest, war, poverty, and social and class discrimination! The Grushan in all their imperial glory have never come close to doing that; in some Grushan colonies, medieval bartering and feudal lordship is common. On earth, we have the potential to do away with all of that. Then the Grushan would look upon our society with awe and envy.
But for the great project of humanity to be cut short so brutally by one foreign starship! It is indeed a bitter drink to swallow.
The admirals are divided on how to deal with this threat. Admiral Ito wishes to bombard the ship until it dies or we run out of missiles. Admiral Winters and Admiral Gottred want to wait and see what the black ship does before acting. Admiral Yi and Admiral Fayyad agree with Ito, and Admiral Chen and Admiral Jung want to send diplomatic envoys in shuttlecraft. The generals are worse. General Chaffin, General Shang and General Yao have all asked for immediately troop deployments along the American continents, while General Duo and General Kang have suggested mobilizing garrisons across the planet and placing the Americas under martial law. General Ashiko hopes that aerial patrols will be sufficient.
President Yan called an emergency session of the Hegemon Council. Ambience CEO Shen Wai-Fun, Google CEO Damien Carts, Amazon-Alibaba CEO Mei-Ling Bezos, Hegemon Media Division Director, Warren Hillman, Monsanto CEO Travis Mercer, Mineral Resources Director Tao San-Yun and exo-colony coordinator Fajid Mubarak were all present, along with the President and myself. We discussed the options available to the Hegemony and the Corporations. The best option, we concluded, will be to attempt contact with the vessel and do everything possible to avoid appearing threatening. However, if the black ship begins bombardment, we will launch nuclear weapons in response and test Admiral Ito's proposal. We have also made preparations to signal the Grushan ambassadors to call for military support; if they come, it will be a dark day for the Hegemony; Grushan imperialism has already corrupted the Nova colony, and if Earth is placed at the mercy of the FGSF, then all hope for the great project of humanity is lost. Yet, to preserve humanity, the Hegemony is prepared to do what it must.
Ambience Tactical Mainframe: Strategic Projection: BLACK SHIP SCENARIOS: 07/07/2175
Scenario 145: Black ship first strike: objective: extinction.
Active assumptions: assume significant mass destructive capabilities.
Black ship launches hereto undemonstrated mass destruction capability. Scenario projections include atmospheric catastrophe. Energy weapons ignite atmospheric gasses. Projected death toll: 14 billion. No rebuild capability.
Cynthia Mattingly: A City Girl in the Boondocks Vlog: 07/10/2175: Ellensburg, Montana
"So, I have to tell you guys about this amazing date that I had last night.
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"She's a city girl in the boondocks!"
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"So, last night I'm up late studying for my final in integrated algebra, and I'm sitting here in my room doing something with finding x and y intercepts in a quadratic function.
"Then, suddenly, I hear this tapping on my window!
"And I look back, and I just think to myself, 'what on earth is that?' But, I figured, like, it's probably a bird or something, right? And, you know, I'm not even sure I heard it, so I decided to just ignore it, right?
"So, I go back to my math homework. But I hear the tapping outside again. And then it just keeps going and going until finally, I'm just like, gah!
And so I get up, and go over to the window to see what's actually going on.
And then, outside, I look down and it's Brent throwing rocks at my window! And he just looks up at me and waves with this huge smile from outside.
"So I open the window and ask him, 'what on earth are you doing?' And he just grins and goes, 'well I'm waiting for you to come out with me of course!'
"And of course I ask him, 'why didn't you just text me or link up?' he shrugs and says, 'I thought it was more romantic. You know, old movie stuff or whatever.'
"Isn't he so sweet?
"And I'm just thinking, 'it's ten twenty at night!' And that's what I tell him. And he goes, 'well it was ten fifteen when I got here! If you hurry, it'll be ten twenty-two before we leave!'
"'Leave? Where are we going?' He just smiles and says, 'come on, and you'll see.'"
"So, you guys haven't met my parents, of course. They don't like vlogs and they're super busy with their jobs and whatever. Not that I'm complaining; I know how difficult it is to find good jobs in this economy.
"Good grief, it's all that Billy Aucaman ever talks about with his friends.
"But, so, Mom and Dad are really stick-in-the-mud about my dating, and studying and whatever. They really don't like Brent, because they say he's like a big social climber or something, like that's not exactly what everybody is.
"So, anyways, I can't go out the door because they'll see me and ask, and then they might stop me or make Brent leave or something. So I have to climb out the window...
"And I'm, like, barefoot, because my shoes are next to the front door, and I couldn't go and get them...
"And Brent takes me on this long walk to the edge of town and to the creek that goes past the edge of town, and there's this amazing midnight picnic set up, with candles, and cookies and real fruit punch!
"Real fruit! I haven't had real fruit in years, not since leaving Atlanta, only that fake stuff they put in Xinhua Fruit Juice!
"And I ask him, 'why are you doing this?' I mean I was thankful, but still, like, shocked, because I thought he was busy with finals and stuff. And then he just looked at me, and he smiled, and he said, 'because you are more important than any stupid Hegemony history quiz. I wanted to be with you tonight.'
"Wow, right?
"And then of course we made out for, like...
"A long, freaking time!
"And I know I told you guys that I was going on a diet, but I didn't care last night at all, we ate all of those cookies and drank all that wonderful punch.
"And then we made out some more...
"And then I made it back home late, like super late, I think it was like one...
"Oh, I know what you're thinking, and yeah, I took a C on that test, but I'm a sophomore in High School, and I still have a B in the class.
"And, I mean, the minimum GPA for Sun Yat-Sen University is 3.7, so that's still in reach.
"And, you know, with all the wealth and amazing opportunity and good fortune that the Hegemony gives us, it's important to remember that we're not here for any of that. I mean, it's nice, and definitely important, to be able to have international trade and influence, and stuff, so Sesame points, grades, credits and everything that comes with that stuff will always be important to me. But at the end of the day, that's not really what matters, is it? It's love that makes life worth living, not points and grades and credits. And I think that every once in a while, we have to just let go, and follow our hearts, and be with someone who we, like, and admire, and enjoy, and sometimes that has to come before the stuff that all of our parents tell us is important.
"Or, at least my parents. I swear, they haven't slept together since my sister was born. All they ever do is work and stuff.
"That's no reason for them to tell me that I can't be with someone who I enjoy in my heart, you know?
"And oh boy! It was amazing!
"That's all I have for today guys. Thank you so much for watching! Like and subscribe. Maybe even share your favorite ever date in the comments section.
"Bye!"
[End Vlog]
Some details of history have been lost in our attempt to catalogue the events of the history of the black ship. The events that occurred in Ellensburg, Montana immediately after this vlog post are among those details. While William Aucaman chronicles events in his personal journal daily, the next week contains many entries entirely unrelated to Cynthia or Olivia Mattingly. The April Macalister Laws of 2180 make it impossible to access direct Interlink recordings of events through the eyes of witnesses, and no handheld records remain that are helpful in the task. Thus, we are left to speculation. The consensus of Archive historical analysts, witnesses Cynthia Mattingly, William Aucaman, Adrian Aucaman, and local law enforcement seems to point to a single interpretation.
Shuttlecraft from the black ship were sent to various places on Earth. One landed outside of urban Moscow. A second landed outside of Beijing. A third landed in the woods outside of Ellensburg, Montana. The exact purpose of this third landing site remains unclear. The ship's pilot seems to have patrolled the outskirts of the town covertly for several hours. It seems extremely likely that it had reached the creek described in this vlog by sundown, and may have waited there for several hours, perhaps gathering food or water. Then, it may have witnessed the illicit escape of Cynthia Mattingly and her boyfriend Brent Calhoun. When they had completed their activities at the water's edge, it followed them like a shadow in the darkness to the home of Cynthia Mattingly. Perhaps this explains why fear claimed that home for its own in the summer of 2175.
Jon Brain, Chief Archivist of the Interstellar Historical Commission