If the Vilani unite under one ruler and choose to attack, they will be exceedingly powerfull, perhaps they will be all but unstoppable;  But even the assumed unstoppable can be surprised, we tend to develop new things more quickly than the Imperium, when they sent their fleets, we learned to beat them, we will again beat them should they come. It will likely be costly to both sides, but I believe we will prove to be too expensive. We have seen the Nuclear barrage too, we are still here and free of the Vilani. I cannot foresee the future, but I do not see us being subjugated. It would seem that you too could not see yourself subjugated and so you are not, The spirit of freedom is very hard to conquer, especially with force. We are an example, and you are an example, with me are others who refused to be subjugated, so have the Vilani won?
He waves toward the other races in the group.

In reply to Cyril Zotmund (msg # 302):

"In the past, yes, they have won. It is true that the Vilani no longer develop new technologies, but they don't need to. Do you know how many species they have defeated? How many planets they control? For every free spirit there are two that are subjugated. Perhaps more."

He is interrupted by one of the Aliens, also speaking in poor High Vilani.

"I doubt that you will ever believe that the Vilani can be defeated, and perhaps you are right. But that does not resolve the problem we have here today. We might be able to defeat these folk, but news of our existence is now out, and cannot be contained except by their agreement. Which brings us the the most sensitive point...what do the Vilani know of now, and what can be done to ensure they learn nothing more?"

There is no reason or way for them to know of you now; I can work to suppress news of your location and existence, but it is a matter of time before you are discovered again and again. Populations are expanding outward and this is one of the directions they are expanding.  The Vilani are not one of the expanding populations at this point in time.

In reply to Cyril Zotmund (msg # 304):

The alien answers.

"But you are, and apparently you hold significant military power as well. You, therefore, have the power to redirect these populations, perhaps even marking some sections of space as restricted for whatever reasons the Vilani might find offensive. Barbarian Aliens might just attract the attention we do not want, but perhaps stories of a dangerous lifeform that cannot warp might be enough to discourage them from entering. Surely you have the resources to make such a deterrent a reality? Perhaps we can use our vessels to stop those who brave the stories from ever leaving, without the proper authority."

Perhaps, perhaps not. You lag behind in technology now, it will only get worse. At some point you will be like a man with aa spear against someone with a laser rifle. We can try and limit your exposure for a while, but you cannot hope to stay hidden. It may not be the Vilani, we had a serious struggle with a group of well equipped pirates; as we told you, we found a very hostile race of religious fanatics; had they found you, they would have forced you to follow their beliefs. They were but three jumps away. We found their rebels, who were far more like us He motions between the humans and the aliens in their beliefs, so we aided them in recovering their planets. Now they would be peaceful trading partners.

We do not know the history of your people, but have  seen many cases among our own, where a great empire falls apart from internal strife and petty power squabbles. This is what we think we see among the Vilani now.

In reply to Cyril Zotmund (msg # 306):

The aliens expression seems to be a little frustrated, like trying to explain something to children, but he remains polite.

"We appreciate your optimism regarding the potential imminent collapse of the empire that has lasted for several thousand years, but we do not share it. We understand that there are others who do not have such an ordered view of the universe as you, though we are confident we can handle pirates who try to attack us, but what we are asking for is a solution that will enable us to work towards keeping these agents of chaos away from us for as long as possible. For the last 500 years, our obscurity has protected us. Whilst we are slowly advancing in our technology, we are concerned that we can be overwhelmed. Our obscurity is our greatest defense, so we would like to maintain that as long as possible. Rather than you telling us you do not want to help us in that, we were hoping to hear of a constructive agreement that would aid us to that end."

Beg your pardon, but I believe i did say we would do all we can to that end, but pointed out that  continued obscurity is unlikely to last. As for how long the Empire has lasted, Past performance does not guarantee their future success. Even Mountains are worn away over time.
   We offered trade, which cannot be done in such secrecy; it offers access to new technology now but is not going to allow you hide. I can work to hide your existance if we move quickly we can prevent further expansion of the knowledge of your existence.. You have choices to make, you can try to continue to hide ... how long it will work I don’t know, or you can choose a different course and work with those around you to defend your holdings and expand into new ones. It is your choice. I will despatch one of our ships back to our world to let hem know you wish to remain hidden if you like.

In reply to Cyril Zotmund (msg # 308):

"I believe I speak for all of us when I say we would prefer to continue to remain obscure. Perhaps at a later date we can discuss trade, but for now we are content with what we have here, and we wish to keep it the way it is. Please do dispatch whatever ships are needed to that end."

I will do so, If you have nothing further, I will personally carry that message back.

In reply to Cyril Zotmund (msg # 310):

"We have no more important message than that. We may discuss less important matters with you or one of your representatives once those matters are addressed."

The group stands once he finishes speaking.

Duke frowned "Obscurity is no real security he said to offhandedly, and then shrugged.



Interestingly

in the line of work there is a notion often quoted "Security through obscurity" as some kind of fallacy. It basically doesnt work :).

In reply to Fate (msg # 311):

So you wish us to stay or leave with all ships?

"Obscurity only works for so long. The galaxy is advancing. Do you want them to advance and you don't? We can help you advance. We mean only for peace and like strong allies"

"We are happy to have secret trading, but first please go and secure the information about our existence, as you have promised. Then we can discuss ways of secretly trading with a few trusted traders."

Very well, we shall all depart your system, how would you like us to identify ourselves in future visits?

In reply to Cyril Zotmund (msg # 316):

"Fly directly to the planet, and transmit a code we will provide you. Fly safe."

They wait patiently standing there.

Very Well, Cyril rises and leads everyone back to the ship, they close it up and take off flying back to the other two ships, relate what they have learned and then they all move to jump ... DASTAVKA is going back to Aegir.

In reply to Cyril Zotmund (msg # 318):

The two warships ask if they may stay to assist both in identification of incoming vessels and in stopping arrivals leaving, a request readily granted by the Elomites, until they should hear back from Aegir. Indeed, they even offer a site to use as a base to assist in that.

The Dastavkas trip back to Aegir with Jeremiah Jones is uneventful, taking 23 days in total and arriving back on the 3rd of August 2172, and both are directed to land. Touching down, Kalishnikov is eager to meet with you to discuss how it went.

Good day, we have discovered the Elomites, who wish us to never mention them, wipe all traces of their existence from our records, except a few that we may secretly trade with them. They are terrified of the Vilani coming in force and conquering them.  They are one of the races that moved far away to avoid Vilani control. They have remained hidden for some 500 years and wish to continue to remain so. No amount of persuasion could convince them that it was a poor course of action. I have promised that we would remove all records, keeping their existence secret a best we can.  Our two warships remain to guarantee their security, although we are unsure what benefits may accrue from that action. The Elomites are exceptionally organized and Duke can better describe their level of development and their passion for order.

In reply to Cyril Zotmund (msg # 320):

He frowns.

"The warships probably chose to stay as a sign of goodwill, until they get other orders. Right choice, I suppose, but not an ideal situation. I was hoping for more amicable terms. Still, perhaps we can do our best for the next few months, perhaps even years if they are lucky. I have kept tight control on information flow regarding your explorations in order to limit our competition moving in there, so fortunately we have only issued a warning for that system based on your previous experience there.

I am looking at setting up blocks at 1435, 1437 and 1337, as well as here and at 1540, to block of that entire area of space, and only allowing my ships through, and Labrysian ships in their region, so that can work well to give me a reason. All of these planets have habitable planets or moons, and we are already in the process of setting up an outpost 1437 and 1435.

Do you feel there is anything more you can accomplish in this region, or is it time to set out to find out what happened to the Jaques Cartier?"
This message was last edited by the GM at 09:55, Tue 09 Oct 2018.

I don't think there is much more we can do in the realm of exploration here, we'll reconfigure the ship for potentially hostile space and go search for the lost ship.

In reply to Cyril Zotmund (msg # 322):

"That makes good sense. You should also keep in mind that you may be required to rescue a large number of survivors if things have gone very badly. What three small craft do you want to take?"

Most likely the launch and a couple of fighters... and maybe an APC... have to think about that.

In reply to Cyril Zotmund (msg # 324):

"Ok, let me know. I have a lot or planning to do to follow up on your previous trips, and perhaps get a few vessels to sweep through the remaining systems to ensure no pirates are present.

When you are ready to depart and select your modular craft, let the supply department know as soon as possible, and I will see what can be done. Anything to add before I go?"

At the moment, no, but I will relay anything that comes to mind.