by Max Barry

Latest Forum Topics

Advertisement

The Dominion of
Inoffensive Centrist Democracy

Overview Factbook Dispatches Policies People Government Economy Rank Trend Cards

4

Foreign Relations: Roswell



The initial confrontation over White Sands, 3/7/1947.

In the date corresponding to 4-8/7/1947 of Earth's Gregorian Calendar, an outdated Model 660 Surveillance Craft was dispatched to the Southern Pacific Ocean and the Western Hemisphere. The novice crew of the vessel,a t the time were made up of teenagers aged between 15 and 17, the likes of which had hundreds of hours in simulated training. They formed part of an experimental group meant to test out the limits of the emotional maturity of such young pilots, in order to see what low age group could still be trusted to be combat efficient under certain educational courses, and as part of these trials, they had no adult Junior Officer to supervise them. These teenaged pilots were tasked with making a routine patrol in the area to survey traces of suspected nuclear detonations. For the Fleet, the ensuing embarassment experience would show that cheap comes expensive and that repairing old models were not up to the task of unexpected combat situations, while also leading to sweeping inquiries over the ethics of certain tests conducted by the Ministry of Defense.



Ensign Nova realizes they're alone, the Captain is gone.
OOC: Illustration from Morita Rui's Warera Contactee

At what would become the Roswell Crash, a mix of complacency, mortal overconfidence and mechanical error became intertwined to produce disaster. The commander of the vessel ordered a very close fly by of a military installation at the goading of the Navigator, both perhaps assured that the the cloaking abilities of the reconnaissance craft made it near-invisible to people on the ground, though analyses could've been conducted at a safer distance; the crew nonetheless proceeded to hover over a military airbase at a distance of 150 meters over the ground, something which their old training manuals assured was a safe procedure. The craft then reported traces of enriched uranium, which as registered in several large piston-powered aircraft. However, Vessel #762's cloaking device abruptly lost power and the craft was revealed to the airmen below, who illuminated the skies with searchlights and promptly took to using anti-air cannons against the saucer. Though the Earthlings' AA shells proved to be of minimal effect against the craft, whose outdated engine was still charging up to permit a highly energy-consuming evasive maneuver to another location, they unnerved the inexperienced crew, whose captain ordered immediate evasive actions.

Instead of waiting to make a rapid 90° ascent dozens of kilometers upwards, the saucer swung vertically at hypersonic speeds didn't ascend suffiently in the estimated timeframe because of a faulty engine; instead, RS-762 scraped the peak of a small mountain range or hill ridge. Losing control, the vessel fell like a stone skipping across water, it's anti-inertia system only barely managing to keep the crews alive. But then then the crash-landing killed the Captain and Navigator instantly when the system failed and they were sent hurdling towards the walls and control systems of the ship at breakneck speeds. Out of the 3 pilots, only Ensign Nova suffered non-fatal injuries, attributed to the fact they blacked out in fear before hitting land and their muscles weren't tensed before impact.



Scraps of the saucer are recovered, 5-7/7/1947.

At around the first 12 hours after the crash, the site remained unmoved and the sole survivor, Ensign Nova, fruitlessly tried to contact the Air Domain's traffic control before passing in and out of consciousness. The automatic emergency relay beacon had also been damaged shortly before the impact and the Fleet had lost a crucial amount of time that could've been used to mount a search and rescue operation, as well as potentially scuttling the craft to render it useless before its retreival by US military personnel; however the political and societal implications of such an action on Earth led to intense debates within the Ministry of Defense and the Central Committee.

In those crucial hours, elements of the US Army from the nearby airbase had encircled the saucer and laid out a perimeter to secure the site also to search for any more artifacts pertaining to the crash-site. The broken androids were mistaken for actual corpses along with the 2 real corpses, those of Starshine and Nightfall; the sole survivor, Ensign Nova, was recovered outside of the saucer as they wandered outside of it and lost consciousness shortly before the crash-site was located, and was subsequently taken to the Roswell Air Army Base in an ambulance while both the dead and the EVA androids were sent to the same base in trucks and hastily preserved in child-sized coffins covered in dry ice to counter-arrest the desert's putrefying heat.

The saucer itself had to be hauled by several heavy-load trucks and tows, where it just barely fit inside a hangar from the airbase. Said saucer was moved to a larger air base in New Mexico some time in the months that followed and remained there until 1952. Ensign Nova healed from several concussions and fractured limbs in the months that followed, much thanks to our regenerative abilities as well as by aid from tissue-repairing nano-bots. According to Nova's testimony in debriefing years later, they were treated very well with the limited means that the people of the Earth possessed. They learned of the autopsy of their flight captain and the co-pilot, and though was initially disappointed by the feat, had to concede that their captors acted rationally in trying to ascertain the nature of people they considered to be mysterious intruders.



Domain UAVs fly over Washington D.C., 1952.

For comprehensive communication to occur, a common language had to be employed. As learning Anhu was out of reach for the men of Earth, Nova was frequently visited by groups of linguists and instructors who bought several children's books, illustrated encyclopedias and McGuffey's Readers with gradually more advanced levels to serve as primers, as well as dictionaries and grammar text. Nova's captors soon realized that the ensign didn't suffer from sleeplessness but seemed to be naturally restless, and they did not object to the intensive lessons, often soaking up English in 12 hour lessons throughout the whole week. This regimen continued for about 2 months until the captive was fluent-enough in English, and most importantly, was capable to answer interrogations, albeit their willingness would prove to be another matter entirely speaking.

Nova promptly revealed their rank ("her" name was revealed during lessons already, as they pointed to a photo of a supernova and then said their name eventually) and admitted that their mission was one of observation and reconnaissance, though Nova was a lot more restrained about giving out other information. The US' newest and most intriguing "POW" nonetheless claimed that the saucer's loss was produced by pilot error and not damage by flak guns. To boot, when asked about the capabilities of the Air Dominion-or "her Government"- they bluntly stated it was very grand and that all of Earth's military might was tiny in comparison. When asked if representatives of the Domain would contact the US Government, Nova responded that they were unsure but that their superiors minded many considerations before deciding things even if they likely knew of their location by then.

No coercive means of interrogation were authorized or even planned of by Department of Defense bigwigs, as the US investigation team was fearful of repercussions from the "Saucer People" or they realized that it was easier to get information from Nova by stroking their ego and letting their guard down in casual converations. Nonetheless, the extroverted Nova was subjected to rather monotonous questionnaires in between "Acculturation Sessions". Througout four years, the Anhu maintained a fairly comfortable lifestyle: which in the Ensign's case, meant a nice cot, an overstuffed chair and access to fresh meals, apparently considering everything presented to them as "worthy of a higher officer". However Nova kept to their military oaths and continuously refused to disclose information they saw as confidential about the spaceship and its technology, even if they were considerably more talkative when describing the culture and the society they came from.

Eventually, the Central Committee approved of commencing formal diplomatic relationships with the US Government, albeit discreetly. The Air Domain communicated with the US forces through a radio frequency they thought was secure and requested a rendez-vous, though Air Fleet authorities were unsure if they'd be dealing with elements of the US Federal Government or a military splinter faction. However, after a flotilla of drones overflew Washington D.C. as a form of "proactive diplomacy", their Head of State acquiesced and a meeting in a remote desert base outside of New Mexico was arranged, where representatives of the Ahnu Office of Barbarian Affairs and Air Fleet officers met with the United State's top war-cheiftains and scientific elders, codenamed the Majestic 12.

The Fleet's representative also met the US president, a certain Mr. Truman, and both parties' diplomats agreed to a trade: the Air Domain got Nova back home and the wrecked vessel back. In exchange, the US Government received a (downgraded) "export-model" flying saucer and some small amount of knowledge pertaining quantum physics and also some basic laser technology, and the Air Fleet also returned a Texas Air National Guard pilot that was rescued following an altercation with a flying saucer. Though rudimentary, this first meeting also paved the way for further talks with US authorities. Months later, after explaining the purpose and nature of abductions (genetic samplings and the creation of a sperm bank) in several other meetings, the US Government willingly accepted a quota system of abductees in exchange for more advanced technology and technical accessory. Specifically, a rotating team of mechanics and advisers were also sent to several undisclosed USAF bases around Nevada and New Mexicoto give their US counterparts tips over how to operate anti-gravity technology, while setting up several underground labs and habitats for themselves. This historical event was formalized with the Domain-American Treaty of 1954, better known as the Holloman Treaty, marked once again, by the building up of a small indefinate presence in bases within US territories; effectively and unofficially making the USA an Ahnu protectorate.

Report