View source for Comm-Link:2530 - The Galaxy Gets Bigger

{{Infobox commlink
|title = 2530: The Galaxy Gets Bigger
|image = Comm-Link-SubCommittee_FI_2_Crop.jpg
|url = https://robertsspaceindustries.com/comm-link/spectrum-dispatch/12697-2530-The-Galaxy-Gets-Bigger
|type = Spectrum Dispatch
|publicationdate = 2012-09-25
|series = Time Capsule
}}

<translate>
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'''It was like the Gold Rush, planetary prospectors were desperate to stake their claim on ‘unformed’ worlds. Most followed the Federal protocols, others don’t.
'''

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'''Gaia Planet Services attempted to terraform a planet without authorization. Turns out the planet wasn’t uninhabited. A new race, later discovered to be the [[Special:MyLanguage/Xi’An Empire|Xi’An Empire]], showed up while the terraformers were building the equipment. Needless to say, they were a little perturbed. The [[Special:MyLanguage/Xi’An|Xi’An]] captured the entire crew and kept them under guard. They released one, the foreman [[Special:MyLanguage/Charles Baxter|Charles Baxter]], as a gesture of good faith.'''


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'''Back on [[Special:MyLanguage/Earth|Earth]], High-Secretary Cho, High-General Volder, and High-Advocate Machado along with a select sub-committee of Senators gathered to get a clear assessment of what happened from Baxter and what to do about the Xi’An.'''


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HIGH-SECRETARY CHO:  If everyone’s set, Mr. Baxter, please begin. Tell us about the events of that day.

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BAXTER:  I’ve been advised by the Company’s attorney-

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HIGH-ADVOCATE MACHADO:  Mr. Baxter, this is not a criminal hearing.  We are simply trying to get a clear picture of what happened.   There are still two hundred seventy-five of your colleagues held by an alien civilization.  Any help you provide us today will be taken into account when this crisis is resolved.

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'''[Baxter confers with Attorney]'''

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BAXTER:  We were surveying, looking for plant-points to set up the equipment.  There were three transports scheduled to land so we were expecting to hear ships.  I was up on a ridge when the first one came into view. I knew immediately it wasn’t ours. Human, I mean. It didn’t look like any Banu ship I’d ever seen, but you know how they are…

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HIGH-SECRETARY CHO:  Please stay on topic.

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BAXTER:  Well, next thing we knew, they were all over us. Ships coming from all sorts of directions.

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HIGH-GENERAL VOLDER:  Didn’t you run scans before landing?

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BAXTER:  Not really.  I mean,  I don’t think so.

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HIGH-GENERAL VOLDER:  Don’t you think it would be wise before attempting to terraform a planet?

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BAXTER:  You don’t know what it’s like out there. You wait around too long, some other Corp will swoop in and process that rock faster than you can blink.

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HIGH-GENERAL VOLDER:  While we appreciate your sociological insight, Mr. Baxter, we need facts, not hyperbole if we’re going to free the hostages.

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HIGH-SECRETARY CHO:  General, we have not concluded that a military action is necessary.

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HIGH-GENERAL VOLDER:  I understand but we need to have a plan on the table to enact should the diplomatic solutions go sour.

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HIGH-SECRETARY CHO:  Agreed.  Please continue, Mr. Baxter.

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'''. . .END EXCERPT'''


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'''UPE Military forces maintained a perimeter at the jump-point entrance. It took fifteen days to work out a communication system to speak with the Xi’An. That started a tense negotiation period. The Xi’An were meticulous with their demands.'''


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'''By the time the hostages were released, over fifty-seven days had passed. Though the UPE had managed to avoid war, relations with the Xi’An were tense.'''

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