BOOK III: 2500

2500

The Y’All war was still very fresh in every ones memory, many lives had been lost and the Fleet was less than half of it’s original strength.

The Kermac knew this and they did not loose any ships. A new previously unknown species of the GC, the Kar_Theev began harassing United Stars Colonies and moving large fleets of ships deep into United Stars space. At first they merley crossed over the buffer zone (An area of space established in the Cease fire agreement from the first War) and returned into GC space.

By the cease fire contract, neither side was alowed to operate any military units in the Buffer zone.

Despite the new technolgies Stahl brought back and the access to advanced Saresii tech, the United Stars where not ready to fight yet another war. Ships could be replaced relativley fast, but space ship crews had to be trained and that took time.

The gigantic alien ship of Admiral Stahl the now designated USS Devastator was in space dock, where it was retrofitted with Terran technology and examined.

The Kermac would strike soon, they needed to do it soon and everbody knew it, and yet everybody hoped it would not escalate in yet another war.

The Saresii where no longer able to negociate.

By sheer accident Roy Masters, a boy from Planet Green Hell discovered that the Wurgus had planted a Super Nova bomb inside Sol,(The Terran Sun) after being paid to do so by the Kermac.

Roy saved the live of the Wurgus Senior Patriarch and the Wurgus revealed the plot to the boy.

It was literally in the last minute, when the device was deactivated, a Kermac fleet was spotted, hiding in the Kuiper belt waiting for the terran sun to go nova and attack and destroy whatever might have survived the catastrophy.

Nobody expected the Kermac to be able to penetrate so deep into United Stars space. Similar Supoer Nova devices had been planted also in the suns of Saran ,Pan Saran and Ult.

There weren’t enough Navy ships close enough to engage and stop the Kermac fleet even without the Sun going nova.

Roy Masters commanding a Wurgus battle fleet however attacked the Kermac fleet after they already pased  the orbit of Netune. Along with a handful of Navy ships the Kermac fleet was stopped and beaten ,but not before they bombed Lassel City on Triton killing half a million Tritonians.

The United Stars did not bother with declaring war but mustered every ship and personnel to retaliate.

In a series of hard fought space battles United Stars fleets pushed deep into Kermac space. Especially the Kar_Theev proved to be a formidable opponent. Terran ships with Translocator cannons however made the difference, there just weren’t enough of them to win every engagement.

2516

The High Lord of the Blue Merchants appeared before the Assembly at Pluribus during the height of the conflict. The Blue Merchants where biologically related to the Kermac, posessed much of the same psionic powers but did not engage in any galactic politics.

No one knew where their home was, the Blue Merchants traveled the stars in big, technologically advanced space ships. Never engaged in any hostile activities and when attacked retreated.their declared only interest was trade and commerce. They traded in anything from ores, minerals over technolgoy and information.

They operated seven known trade centers, all in unclaimed space on large hollowed out asteroids. Those trade centers where know to many space faring civilizations and every species was welcome to offer their wares at those trade centers.

The High Lord pleaded for a peace agreement between Kermac and the United Stars and could arrange for a conference.

The United stars argued that the Kermac where the aggressive part and did not adhere to the first agreement and their clandestine sneak attack on major worlds of the Union was unforgiveable. The High Lord responded that he was fully authorized to accept any reasonable peace terms, short of Kermac capitulation.

Meanwhile a Terran ship under the Command of Captain Juniper Allison emergency landed on a uninhabited planet in GC space and dicovered something unpresedented and reported its finding to Fleet Command.

It was agreed to have the Conference and a temporary cease fire was accepted on both sides.

While the Conference was planned and a suiteable location discussed, every ship the United Stars could spare moved to that System Captain Allison had made his discovery.

The Conference took place on one of the Trade Centers. At first the Conference went nowhere and it almost ended with the Terran delgation threatening to leave.

Again the High Lord of the Blue Merchants intervened and addressed the Kermac in a very frank tone: “ You are well aware of the new technology the Terran posess. It is only a matter of time and all their ships will be equipped with those terrible and powerful weapons and inpenetrable shields. The Kermac civilization will perish.

We Merchants usually don’t interfere in such things and most of the time war is good for business, but not this time. We are of the same heritage, although you do not acknowledge us, you are still our kin and our religion is the same. We the Blue Merchants decided that we must do whatever we can to prevent your destruction. Negociate conditions for a permanent cease fire!

This is our warning: We Blue Merchants travelled this and other galaxies for aeons. We made contact and traded with Civilizations far advanced and we have means neither of you can comprehent at our disposal. If you our brothers violate the terms of this treaty we will be the intrument of your utter destruction.

To you the United Stars we are thankful that you agreed to this conference to give peace another chance. If you come to an agreement we will enforce it.

To show you that we are indeed capable of doing this, observe!”

The Blue Merchant pointed out a viewport and a numerous  fleet of big star ships appeared seemingly out of nowhere. The ships  where alien and somehow organic. “this is only a small percentage of what we can deploy.”

On September 12, 2516 a Permanent Cease fire was agreed upon. The United Stars demanded two Star systems and the Kermac reluctantly ceased the demanded territory to the United Stars.

A new buffer zone was drawn and called Free Space. Neither side was allowed to send any military units into that zone. Neither side was allowed to establish colonies or bases inside free Space. Trade and civilian traffic however was allowed and welcome.