Tragic Inferno Attack at Bleakstone : PS 100.9.30



Solrain Core (Alana Miklos/ TRINN) - Thousands of colonists are reported dead today in a shocking attack on the Bleakstone orbital facilities by the Inferno. Civil and military sources within the Solrain government have confirmed that most of the structures at Bleakstone Field have been destroyed, with at least 3000 dead or missing. Recovery operations are continuing, but with little hope of discovering survivors.

It is believed Rear Admiral Jonas Kell, who was conducting an inspection tour at Bleakstone with a small naval detachment at the time of the attack, is among the dead, lost with his entire command during the assault.

The attack may not have come as a complete surprise to the local authorities. Upon condition of anonymity, a Bleakstone Colonial Authority official has stated that more defensive resources had been requested from the Commonwealth Council several times since the Eden disaster. TRINN requested comment from a Commonwealth Navy official spokesman, and received the following reply: "Admiral Kell's inspection was a step in an evaluation process before additional military assets could be allocated to the colony. All available forces are now being redeployed to meet this new Infernal threat, and Solrain Core is not at risk", addressing our interviewer's concern that Bleakstone is but a single jump from Solrain Core.

Naval and paramilitary forces, largely contractors from the Combine, are now expecting a new front in the struggle with the Inferno, centered on the Bleakstone frontier. The Commonwealth is still reeling from the attacks at Eden in what is now designated "Hell's Gate" sector. On news of the attack, Zelcane stock led the rest of the Commonwealth Open Market with a drop of another 22%, closing at 143.2, due to the expected impact on operations caused by this new tragedy. In a related press release, the Combine has announced it has commenced recruiting for a new squadron within its mercenary operations division, and that interested pilots with combat experience should contact their local Combine office. Combine stock closed up 8% in today's trading, at 201.4.

From "A Traveler's Guide to Solrain Space", published 99.4.01 by Zelcane Data Archival Systems:

Transmission 1: Humanity is fragile

We don't belong here. You know that as well as I do. If you've traveled along the edge of civilized space, you've seen the things I've seen. The wreckage of alien vessels, colossal ghosts shattered and left to drift. Perhaps you've tried to salvage tech from the hulks, hoping to find a shard that still has a surge in it. You might be a 'roid raider, a forerunner, or a gun for hire protecting those in need. It doesn't matter to me. Octavian, Quantar, Solrain – on the Edge, we're all human. The things that brought us here were something else. And the echoes of their war could still destroy us all.

I've been listening to the messages coming across the Edge, and in recent months, I've heard everything from screaming terror to cold dread. Something is out there, something indefinably evil. The survivors I've found speak of living ships pulsing with malevolent crimson light, dark angels that move with impossible grace and speed. Think back to the stories you were told as a child, of the horror that drove our ancestors across the galaxy, and you'll know what these must be… the Conflux. It was providence alone that saved humanity from the Conflux a century ago. Now, in our drive for profit and glory, we have woken the ancient terror again. I fear this is the greatest threat to humanity, but it isn't the only one.

Humanity is its own enemy, driven by greed and military ambition. Now more than ever, we need to stand united. Instead, we continue to turn on one another. Empire and Commonwealth battle over disputed sectors, and pirates prey on the innocent. The powers of the Core don't want you to listen to the tales from the Edge; they call us traitors and rumormongers. But I believe that the fate of the Skein – of humanity itself – lies in our hands. We will not rest until we find and expose the dangers of the Skein, both the mysterious forces of the Edge and the deadly aspirations of the Core powers. There are others who feel as I do, scouts and forerunners from all worlds.

I am expecting contact within the next week, and I will upload my reports to this secure location. Help us. Join us. And spread the world. The Universe as we know it is in danger.