HYPERSPACE—ECLIPSE GUILD FLEET—MK.1
Apophis sat in the captain's office, reading a book on ground combat strategy, when he received a message from Lotus telling him to look at the "Horus" forums.
Apparently, some major event was taking place right then!
While in hyperspace, all communication and information networks inside the game were disrupted, so the forum was all Apophis could access to learn news about this event.
He quickly scanned a few topics, leaving comments and following them to check back on later.
Players had perpetrated several attacks against major Federation planets, and it was a real bloodbath.
Videos and pictures filled the forums, showing scenes of ruined buildings, corpses, and pools of blood.
It all reminded Apophis of his first week on Era, and he thought about how the players truly hadn't learned from their prior mistakes.
And now those who hadn't learned instead had gained access to the power of Ascension and even spaceships.
But suddenly Apophis saw an even more troubling piece of news which filled him with alarm and fury! A fleet of players had attacked planet Era, leading to a widespread uprising against the Federal garrison stationed there, a force greatly weakened by the war against the Orc Empire!
The planet was once again about to fall into anarchy. Just as during the last days of the Tyo Republic, each guild had its own territory and ruled through its own laws.
This was critical for Apophis—and Eclipse.
The guild drew all of its income from Era through a 20% tax on planetary goods and services. If the Federation administration was driven out of Era, then the guild treasury would lose its entire income stream, all at once!
Apophis immediately contacted Lotus and the other founders through the short-range communications, which still worked, since they were all in hyperspace. "I guess everyone knows about the events happening right now?"
Lotus replied, "I tried to get as much information as I could. As far as we know, the perpetrators are players from all three SuperGuilds: Renovatio Imperii, Lord Of War, and Toxic. The attacking fleets unmistakably bear their crests. Thanks to the element of surprise, they have wiped out a large part of the remaining Federation forces. This has led to a general player uprising."
White interrupted, "Why do this now? The SuperGuilds know very well that the Federation still has the means to crush us! Besides, they'll never let Era escape their grasp!"
Hulk added, "I agree with you, White! Moreover, the wave of terrorist attacks will force the Federation to take strong measures against players as a whole. It's a disaster for the innocent players who still farm across Federation space. I can already see the GC prices collapsing!"
Apophis answered, "I think this is all part of the Coalition's plan. They want to force the Federation players to join the Orcs or the Coalition. That is, to oppose the Federation entirely. So we must decide what to do now. Should we defend Era, our territory, or do we continue on towards Cronos I?"
Lotus spoke up. "I think we need to head to Era. As White says, the chaos on Era will be limited, for the Federation will reinforce their garrison. However, we need to reaffirm our presence on Era! Otherwise, we may forever lose control of the planet to the Federation, rather than to other players."
Chocolate added, "I agree with you, Lotus. Helping the Federation on Cronos I is the least of our problems now."
Apophis said, "I agree with you, too. Era is our priority. Lotus, once we land, you'll take command of the Federation forces, as well as all of Eclipse. Take advantage of all this chaos to start a massive recruitment drive. The Federation's political chaos is such that we'll have difficulty in anticipating what the future will bring.
"However, I'm still the commander of the Eternal forces in the Federation, and I cannot desert them at such a crucial time. Otherwise, it will truly be seen as a plot by all players against the Federation. The players must bring the Federation victory on Cronos I, or Federation space will be closed to us forever."
