[capnq]

From Chancellor Naiduin's personal journal, dated 2411.9:

After almost eight and a half years of warfare, I have finally gained an insight into the Xi'Chung's tenacity. The new starmaps from the Eee's long range explorers indicate that the only connections between Xi'Chung space and the rest of the local cluster run through Alioth, either directly via Carcaroli, or by a longer route crossing both the Cluk-Ruk and Tictsin home systems. As an interesting sidenote, the Eee maps also imply that an isolated subcluster of five systems lies coreward from Alioth, with no warp points connecting them to the rest of the cluster. Professor Guakiih, the most brilliant theoretical astrophysicist in Tictsin history, believes it may be possible to generate an artificial wormhole to reach these systems, and is lobbying for more research into stellar manipulation technology, but our military efforts must remain a prority.

We have finally taken the war to Xi'Chung space. An assault fleet consisting of four Drubak cruisers, the newest Enkoping light cruiser, and two prototype designs struck the Xi'chung research base on Curyok VII. The first Flekkefjord light carrier, with its complement of Flen and Falun fighters, lost an engine when it underestimated the range of the planet's weapons platforms, but the Trellenborg troop transport remained untested, because our lack of experience in planetary assault caused us to misjudge how much firepower was necessary to suppress the defenses; the base was completely destroyed before we could land any troops. Our second assault, on the Curyok VIII mining complex, went perfectly; the sole defending platform was devoured by a single wave of Seeking Parasites before it could return fire. Once we evacuate the twenty-six million Xi-Chung survivors, we can settle our own people there and dismantle the habitation domes. If we successfully take Curyok VI next, most of the prisoners can be relocated there.

Intelligence reports had led Admiral Taaguur to expect to face twelve LCs patrolling the system, but he discovered that the seven actually encountered were mostly derelicts; only two of them had undamaged weapons left with which to defend themselves. Apparently the Eee have been quite sucessful since joining our war against the Xi'Chung. Five more enemy LCs are approaching Curyok VIII, plus two in reserve protecting Curyok VI; Queen Kazitkra flatly refused our demand that she withdraw her forces.

[The Cue Kappa dropped into 5th behind my Tictsin about 20 turns ago, due to losses in their war with the 2nd place Sergetti; the Xi-Chung are still solidly in 1st, Eee 3rd.]

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Cap'n Q