Free Worlds Middle

7/25/2019 Free Worlds Middle

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# Copyright (c) 2014 by Michael Zahniser## Endless Sky is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the# terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the Free Software# Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or (at your option) any later version.## Endless Sky is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY# WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FORA# PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU General Public License for more details.

mission "FW Diplomacy 1"landingname "Free Worlds Diplomacy"description "Travel to to meet up with Alondo, who will explain

more."source

near Sabik 1 100destination Longjumpto offer

has "event: navy occupying the south"on fail

dialog `You have failed an essential Free Worlds mission. If youwant to complete the story line, revert to the autosave or another earlier snapshot of the game.`

on offerconversation

Às you are landing, you receive a message from JJ, on behalf of the Council. The message reads:`

` Captain , sorry that we have been out of contact. We need your help once again, to assist in a diplomatic mission. Pleasemeet up with Alondo on as soon as possible. He will give you more information.`

` Sincerely,`

` Jean-Jacques and Freyaàcceptevent "catalytic ramscoop available"

on completedialog Às you are landing, Alondo contacts you and asks you to

meet him in the spaceport as soon as you have a bunk prepared for him.`

mission "FW Diplomacy 1B"name "Free Worlds Diplomacy"description "Bring Alondo to to meet with Parliament. Your guar

antee of safe passage will expire on ."autosavesource Longjumpdestination Earthdeadline 24to offer

has "FW Diplomacy 1: done"passengers 1blocked "You do not have a bunk free for Alondo. Return here when you do

."


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on faildialog `You have failed an essential Free Worlds mission. If you

want to complete the story line, revert to the autosave or another earlier snapshot of the game.`


`You meet up with Alondo, who insists on not telling youanything until you are safely back aboard your own ship. Once you have broughthim to his room, he says, "Here's the deal. The Senate has been secretly reaching out to other worlds, and three of them have decided to join us: New Portland,Dancer, and New India."`

choice` "That's great news!"`` "Why haven't I heard of this yet?"`

goto heard` "Indeed it is," says Alondo. "Any worlds joining

us would be reason to celebrate, but these three are particularly important because they are on the trade route to Tarazed. If we control those systems, our supply convoys will be much safer."`

` "Why isn't this public knowledge yet?" you ask.`label heard` "Well," says Alondo, "apparently the Senate was

not being as secretive as they thought. Somehow word leaked out to the Republic

that those worlds were defecting, and a massive Navy fleet moved to occupy thosesystems. Which means we're on the brink of another bloody battle."`choice

` "Don't worry, I'm sure we can defeat them."`

goto defeat` "Is there any way to avoid a fight?"`

goto avoidlabel defeat` "I'm sure we can," says Alondo, "but with heavy

loss of life on both sides. We want to avoid that if at all possible. That's where you come in."`

goto plan

label avoid` "That's what we're hoping," he says, "and that'swhere you come in."`

goto planlabel plan` "How so?" you ask.`` He says, "We've arranged for you to be granted s

afe passage through Republic space for the next three weeks. That's enough timeto bring me to Earth and back. If I can meet with Parliament in person, maybe Iwill be able to work something out."`

choice` "Okay, let's go to Earth!"`

accept

` "How do we know this isn't a trap? You're willing to risk your life for this?"`

` "If we can save thousands of lives from being lost in a needless battle, it's worth the risk," he says. "Now come on, the clockis ticking. We need to be safely back in Free space before your safe passage expires."`

accept

on acceptevent "fw safe passage starts"


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event "fw safe passage ends" 24

mission "FW Diplomacy 1C"landingname "Free Worlds Diplomacy"description "Bring Alondo to to meet with the senior Navy offic

ers. Take as direct a route as possible, because your safe passage expires soon."

source Earthdestination "New Wales"clearanceto offer

has "FW Diplomacy 1B: done"passengers 1on fail



`You drop off Alondo and wish him luck. Hours pass, and

you begin to worry that he has been taken prisoner or killed. But finally he returns, looking very discouraged. "It makes no sense," he says. "The tax revenue they get from those three worlds doesn't come close to covering the cost of defending them. They should be glad to let them go."`

choice` "So, the Senate won't give up those worl

ds without a fight?"`goto fight

` "Maybe they're afraid of the precedent it would set if they give in to us."`

goto precedentlabel fight` "That's right," he says. "Amazing how heedless t

hey can be, sitting in their comfy Parliament house deciding the fates of others."`goto next

label precedent` "Yes, that seems to be what's at stake," he says

. "But by now they should see the writing on the wall. Amazing how callous theycan be about the lives of the Navy crews who are following their orders."`

label next` "So, we just head home in defeat?" you ask.`` "Not quite," he says. "While we have the chance,

I want to talk with the Navy leadership directly. Landing near the secret baseon New Austria would be way too provocative, so I've arranged to meet with themon their base on instead."`

choice` "Okay, if that's what it takes to avoid

another bloody battle, I'll take you there."`accept

` "Are you insane? Flying straight into the largest Navy base in the sector?"`

` "Don't worry," he says. "The Navy takes honor very seriously. If they promise our safety, we'll be safe. At least until that grant of safe passage expires, that is." You have serious doubts, but you have no choice but to obey him.`


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accept

mission "FW Diplomacy 1D"landingname "Free Worlds Diplomacy"description "Bring Alondo back to . Take as direct a route

as possible, because your safe passage expires soon."source "New Wales"destination Longjumpto offer

has "FW Diplomacy 1C: done"passengers 1on fail



`When you land on , Alondo says, "You should join me for this meeting. You may find it eye-opening."`

` Four of the Navy generals who are stationed here

have agreed to meet with you. You discover that one of them is from the Dirt Belt. Another grew up in the Rim, and admits to you that if he were not serving the Navy, he would be fighting for the Free Worlds. All four of them seem sympathetic to your cause, and express genuine regret not just for the Navy lives that have been lost, but for the Free Worlds losses as well.`

` And all four of them state, without any hesitation or equivocation, that if the Senate orders them to continue to fight the FreeWorlds, they will fight until all possibility of victory is gone.`

` Alondo thanks them for their time and their honesty, and you return to your ship. "Well, it was worth a try. Now we just have toget home safely," he says.`

accept

on completedialog `You are still finding it hard to believe that you made it to Earth and back in one piece. Alondo thanks you for transporting him and says, "Now I just have to break the bad news to the Senate. JJ and I will meet youin the spaceport bar in a few hours, once we've decided what our next steps willbe."`

event "navy using mark ii ships"

mission "FW Southern Recon 1"name "Reconnaissance"description "Fly through Rastaban, Delta Sagittarii, and Albaldah to get

a sense of the Navy's strength in those systems, then report to ."autosavesource Longjumpwaypoint Rastabanwaypoint "Delta Sagittarii"waypoint Albaldahdestination Trinketto offer

has "FW Diplomacy 1D: done"on fail


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`Alondo and JJ are in a somber mood when you meet up with them in the bar. You can't help remembering that Tomek always used to be a part of these gatherings, before he turned against the Senate. And now it looks like your next major battle will be fought without Tomek's expert guidance.`

` JJ says, "We've done all we can. Sooner or laterwe will have to fight the Navy for those star systems. So to start with, , we'd like you to scout them out and report back to us on the Navy's presencethere. Freya is on Trinket, gathering a fleet. Report to her there when you're done."`

accept

mission "FW Southern Recon 1B"landingname "Electron Beam"description "Steal an Electron Beam from a Navy gunboat and return it to

for Freya to look at. She thought your best bet for finding lone gunbo

ats might be the Wei or Alnasl systems."autosavesource Trinketdestination Trinketto offer

has "FW Southern Recon 1: done"on fail


on offerevent "gunboats in Alnasl"

conversation`Freya thanks you for performing the scouting mission, and you give her a copy of your ship's logs to analyze. As she looks through them, almost immediately something catches her eye. "Looks like the Navy is fieldingsome new weapons," she says. "Some higher-yield torpedoes, and a beam weapon even more powerful than heavy lasers. Those beam weapons in particular worry me."`

choice` "Yes, that kind of negates the advantage

I was hoping we'd have due to our new plasma turrets."`` "Does that mean we're not going to attac

k them after all?"`goto attack

` "Well," she says, "the plasma turrets weren't th

e only ace up our sleeve, but still, it's frustrating that the Navy still has such an advantage over us technologically."`

` "What should we do?" you ask.`label attack` "We're going to have to fight them eventually, b

ut first we need as much information as we can get on their new weapon systems.I'd like you to find one of their gunboats that has the new electron beams installed, steal one of them, and bring it back here. I imagine one of them can't bemuch bigger than twenty or thirty tons, so you ought to be able to find space for it. Think you can do that?"`


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choice` "How can I find a gunboat that's all by

itself? They're usually a part of a bigger fleet."`` She thinks about that for a moment, then says, "

The Navy has shifted most of their capital ships to the defecting systems in thesouth. That means that some of the systems up north will have lighter defenses.You might try Wei or Alnasl. Good luck, Captain."`

accept

on completeevent "normal in Alnasl"outfit "Electron Beam" -1dialog `You hand off the Electron Beam to Freya's science team.

They tell you that she's waiting for you in a cafe in the spaceport.`

mission "FW Southern Battle 1"name "Escort Battle Fleet"description "Travel to to gather a fleet of experimental new wa

rships, and escort them back to Trinket."source Trinketdestination Zugto offer

has "FW Southern Recon 1B: done"on faildialog `You have failed an essential Free Worlds mission. If you



`Because this world is a tourist destination, there areinnumerable small cafes in the spaceport. You meet up with Freya in one of the smaller ones. "Thank you for acquiring that weapon sample for us," she says. "It's typical Republic weaponry: far more efficient than anything we're able to make, and very well designed. My engineers were kind of in awe as they disassembled

it."` choice` "Do you have any tactical advice on figh

ting ships with one of those installed?"`goto advice

` "Is there any chance we can reverse engineer it and build our own?"`

goto reverselabel advice` "Well," she says, "its range is very slightly sh

orter than our plasma turrets. You might be able to use that to your advantage if you can position your ship just right so that you can hit an enemy target butthey can't hit you. You may find that useful in the upcoming battle."`

goto battlelabel reverse` "Maybe, although we haven't even mastered the ar

t of building heavy lasers yet," she says. "We certainly won't have time beforethe upcoming battle."`

goto battlelabel battle` "So we're definitely going to attack the Navy?"

you ask.`` "We have no choice," she says. "We tried diploma


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cy. If we don't show a willingness to support new worlds that want to join us, or if we don't seem to have enough strength to defend them, some of those that have joined us already may start to return to the Republic."`

choice` "Okay, I'm ready to fight."`` "I wish it hadn't come to this, but if y

ou think it's our only option, I'll join the fight."`` "Thank you," she says. "But there's one more thi

ng we must do to prepare for battle. I mentioned before that we have an ace up our sleeve. It's a new warship designed by Southbound Shipyards, intended to be amatch for a Cruiser. They've only finished building three of them. I'd like youto travel to Zug and escort them back here. Once you return, we'll prepare forbattle."`

accept

mission "FW Southern Battle 1B"landingname "Escort Battle Fleet"description "Escort a fleet of experimental warships to ."autosavesource Zugdestination Trinket

to offerhas "FW Southern Battle 1: done"on fail



`When you land on , a Southbound Shipyards executive leads you to a hangar. The hangar is huge, but it clearly was not meant tohold a ship as large as the one it now contains. There is barely enough space for the cranes and catwalks being used by the construction crews. He says, "The Dr

eadnought is a new design, the largest ship we've ever built. Only three of themhave been completed so far." You can't help but be impressed at the size of theDreadnought: as bulky as a Cruiser, it looks like a cross between a Bastion andan Argosy freighter.`

` He then leads you out to a section of the spaceport where three Dreadnoughts are parked. Next to them, and looking tiny by comparison, are five Furies. You ask, "Are those Furies part of the battle fleet, too?"`

` "Yes," he says, "equipped with some fancy new weapons from Barmy Edward up at Kraz Cybernetics. I haven't seen them in action yet, but he's convinced they'll be useful against the Navy."`

` You thank him for his time, and meet up with thecaptains of the battle fleet, arranging for them to follow you back to Trinket.

`accept

npc accompany savegovernment "Free Worlds"personality timid escortship "Dreadnought" "F.S. Sequoia"ship "Dreadnought" "F.S. Sitka"ship "Dreadnought" "F.S. Rosewood"ship "Fury (Flamethrower)" "F.S. Montag"


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ship "Fury (Flamethrower)" "F.S. Faber"ship "Fury (Flamethrower)" "F.S. Beatty"ship "Fury (Flamethrower)" "F.S. Mildred"ship "Fury (Flamethrower)" "F.S. Clarisse"

on visitdialog "You have reached , but you left part of your con

voy behind! Better depart and wait for them to arrive in this star system."

on completedialog `You land on with the battle fleet. Time to meet

up with Freya in the spaceport.`

event "battle for Rastaban""reputation: Republic" = -1000system Rastaban

fleet "Small Free Worlds" 10000system Lesath

fleet "Small Southern Merchants" 800fleet "Large Southern Merchants" 1600fleet "Small Free Worlds" 800fleet "Large Free Worlds" 1100

system Sargasfleet "Small Southern Merchants" 600fleet "Large Southern Merchants" 2500fleet "Small Free Worlds" 1000fleet "Large Free Worlds" 1500

mission "FW Southern Battle 2"name "Attack Rastaban"description "Travel directly to the system, so that you will ar

rive on and join the battle against the Navy. Disable or destroy all Navyships in system."

source Trinketdestination Dancer

clearanceto offerhas "FW Southern Battle 1B: done"

deadline 3on fail


on offerevent "battle for Rastaban"conversation

`When you meet up with Freya in the cafe, she looks like

she hasn't slept in several days. "I can't believe we're headed for another major battle," she says. "I keep hoping the Navy will just pull back and not forceus to fight them."`

choice` "It doesn't seem likely that Parliament

would allow that."`` "Yes, their sense of honor can be inspir

ing at times, but right now it's annoying."`` "Indeed," she says. "Although, based on what Alo

ndo said, the Navy hinted that if we made such a show of force that there was no


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way they could win the battle, they could honorably choose to retreat. So, if they start trying to retreat, let them go. But I suspect it will be a difficult battle to win."`

` "What's the battle plan?" you ask.`` "The fleet from Southbound Shipyards will be tra

veling with you," she says. "Other fleets with other commanders will be converging on Rastaban separately, at approximately the same time. So, you have no timeto lose. You must travel directly to Rastaban from here, or else you will arrivetoo late to join in the fight. Good luck, captain."`

accept

npcgovernment "Free Worlds"personality heroic disables escortship "Dreadnought" "F.S. Sequoia"ship "Dreadnought" "F.S. Sitka"ship "Dreadnought" "F.S. Rosewood"ship "Fury (Flamethrower)" "F.S. Montag"ship "Fury (Flamethrower)" "F.S. Faber"ship "Fury (Flamethrower)" "F.S. Beatty"ship "Fury (Flamethrower)" "F.S. Mildred"ship "Fury (Flamethrower)" "F.S. Clarisse"

npc

system Rastabanpersonality heroic uninterested staying disablesgovernment "Free Worlds"fleet

names "free worlds capital"variant

"Falcon (Plasma)""Osprey" 2

fleetnames "free worlds capital"variant

"Falcon (Plasma)""Osprey (Missile)" 2

fleet names "free worlds capital"variant

"Falcon (Heavy)""Osprey (Laser)" 2


"Falcon (Plasma)"fleet


"Bastion" 2


"Bastion (Heavy)" 2fleet


"Falcon" 2

npc evade


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system Rastabanpersonality heroic uninterested stayinggovernment "Republic"fleet

names "republic capital"fighters "republic fighter"variant

"Carrier (Mark II)""Lance" 4"Combat Drone" 6

fleetnames "republic capital"fighters "republic fighter"variant

"Carrier (Mark II)""Lance" 4"Combat Drone" 6


"Cruiser (Mark II)""Combat Drone" 4

fleet

names "republic capital"fighters "republic fighter"variant




fleetnames "republic small"

fighters "republic fighter"variant"Rainmaker (Mark II)" 2

fleetnames "republic small"fighters "republic fighter"variant

"Rainmaker (Mark II)" 2fleet

names "republic small"fighters "republic fighter"variant

"Rainmaker (Mark II)" 2


"Gunboat (Mark II)" 3fleet


"Gunboat (Mark II)" 2


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"Gunboat (Mark II)" 3fleet


"Gunboat (Mark II)" 2

on completeevent "fw southern expansion"

mission "FW Southern Battle 3"landingname "Sweep for Navy Ships"description "Travel through the systems near Rastaban and make sure that

the remainder of the Navy occupation fleet is retreating. (If they are fleeing,let them flee.)"

autosavesource Dancer

to offerhas "FW Southern Battle 2: done"waypoint Girtabwaypoint Albaldahwaypoint "Delta Sagittarii"on fail



`As soon as you land on , you contact Freya and

let her know that the system is yours. "That's great news," she says. "Now we need to make sure they've pulled back from the neighboring systems, too. Take a few ships and sweep through Delta Sagittarii and Albaldah and make sure they're clear. Leave the rest of the fleet on Dancer to handle the prisoners and repairs."`

choice` "What should I do if I encounter Navy sh

ips on my patrol?"`goto patrol

` "What are we going to do with the prisoners?"`

goto prisonerslabel patrol

` "If they're fleeing, let them flee," she says, "but if you discover a strong Navy presence remaining in one of those systems, report back to Dancer before engaging them. Meanwhile, I'll ask Alondo to contactthe Navy generals and see if we can get Katya back in exchange for those prisoners."`

goto katyalabel prisoners` "Well," she says, "my hope is that we can trade

them for any of our people who have been captured so far in this war. IncludingKatya."`


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goto katyalabel katya` "You think she's still alive?" you ask.`` "Certainly, and having this many Navy prisoners

gives us a great bargaining chip for negotiating her freedom. Now, gather your patrol, and by the time you get back, I hope we will have arranged for her release."`

accept

npcgovernment Republicpersonality fleeing uninterestedsystem "Delta Sagittarii"fleet "Large Republic"fleet "Large Republic"

npcgovernment Republicpersonality fleeing uninterestedsystem "Girtab"fleet "Large Republic"fleet "Large Republic"

npcgovernment Republicpersonality fleeing uninterested

system "Albaldah"fleet "Large Republic"fleet "Large Republic"

on completedialog `You've finished patrolling the nearby systems. Now you c

an meet up with Freya in the spaceport, and hopefully she will have good news about Katya.`

mission "FW Southern Prisoners - Release"name "Return Navy Prisoners"

description "As a goodwill gesture, return the Navy prisoners to , rather than imprisoning them on Clink. Your safe passage ends on ."source Dancerclearancedestination "New Iceland"to offer

has "FW Southern Battle 3: done"to fail

has "FW Southern Prisoners - Keep: done"deadline 7


`You find Freya and Alondo watching over a large hangarwhere several hundred Navy crew and support staff are being kept under guard. Alondo says, "I contacted the Navy generals. They say Katya is not under their control; she is a prisoner of the Intelligence bureau, and arranging her release could take weeks. But they promised that if we return their prisoners now, they will ensure Katya's release and return her to us soon."`

choice` "How do we know they won't break that pr

omise?"`` "Why not just keep the prisoners until w


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e have Katya back safely?"`` Freya sighs. "Alondo claims that the generals va

lue their honor so highly that we can trust their promise. I am not so sure. Even if the generals do their best, what if Intelligence refuses to honor the dealwe make?"`

` Alondo says, "On the other hand, if we release these prisoners on parole as a gesture of good faith, it could bring us much closer to a diplomatic end to this war. Which would be far preferable to another battle as bloody as this one."`

` Freya says, "And meanwhile, JJ is off on a top secret mission. And that means he's not available to consult with, and we need tomake this decision now."`

` "And since we cannot agree," says Alondo, "we are giving you the deciding vote."`

choice` "What do you mean?"`

` "We will be putting you in charge of the prisoner convoy," says Alondo, "and arranging a week of safe passage for you. If you think we should return the prisoners as a gesture of goodwill to improve our chances of a diplomatic end to this war, bring the convoy to ."`

` "But if you think we should hold on to the prisoners until we receive Katya safely back," says Freya, "bring the convoy to Clink. Understand?"`

` It's a serious choice facing you, with no clear

right decision. You thank them for trusting you, and begin preparations to escort the prisoners.`accept

on acceptevent "fw safe passage starts"event "fw safe passage ends" 7

npc accompany savegovernment Escortpersonality timidship "Blackbird" "F.S. Charity"ship "Blackbird" "F.S. Good Hope"

ship "Blackbird" "F.S. Stoutheart"ship "Blackbird" "F.S. Nightingale"ship "Blackbird" "F.S. Turtledove"

npcgovernment Republicpersonality staying uninterestedsystem "Kaus Borealis"fleet "Large Republic"fleet "Large Republic"fleet "Large Republic"fleet "Large Republic"

on visit

dialog "You have reached , but you left part of your convoy behind! Better depart and wait for them to arrive in this star system."

on completekarma ++set "fw delivered prisoners"

mission "FW Southern Prisoners - Keep"


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name "Keep Navy Prisoners"description "Rather than releasing the Navy prisoners, deliver them to t

he mines on Clink, to be held until Katya is returned to you."source Dancerdestination Clinkto offer

has "FW Southern Battle 3: done"to fail

has "FW Southern Prisoners - Release: done"

on completekarma --set "fw delivered prisoners"event "fw prison on Clink"

mission "FW Southern Prisoners - Released"landingname "Report to Dancer"description "Report back to Freya and Alondo on Dancer that you chose to

release the prisoners."source "New Iceland"destination Dancer

to offerhas "FW Southern Prisoners - Release: done"on fail



` has become the home of a major Navy base almost overnight; the number of ships and people here is almost overwhelming. You return the prisoners, who have all taken an oath of parole to take no further partin the war against the Free Worlds. One of the four Navy generals who you and Al

ondo met with earlier is here, and as you are unloading the prisoners, he says,"More volunteers for the 'Oathkeepers,' I see."`choice

` "Who are the 'Oathkeepers'?"`` "The officers you granted parole to months ago.

We reassigned them all to duty in the north, patrolling for pirates."`` "You mean they really do honor their promise not

to fight us?" you ask.`` "Of course. They swore a vow, after all." You su

spect it's not quite that simple, but decide that questioning this general's word would be pointless. As you are getting ready to leave, he says, "Don't worry,we will be returning Miss Reynolds to you shortly. The ship carrying her shouldarrive here in a week or two."`

` You hope he is telling the truth. Now, it is time to meet with Freya and Alondo and decide what should be done next.`

launch

npc accompany savegovernment Escortpersonality timidship "Blackbird" "F.S. Charity"ship "Blackbird" "F.S. Good Hope"ship "Blackbird" "F.S. Stoutheart"


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ship "Blackbird" "F.S. Nightingale"ship "Blackbird" "F.S. Turtledove"

npcgovernment Republicpersonality staying uninterestedsystem "Kaus Borealis"fleet "Large Republic"fleet "Large Republic"fleet "Large Republic"fleet "Large Republic"



mission "FW Southern Prisoners - Kept"landingname "Report to Dancer"description "Report back to Freya and Alondo on Dancer that you chose to

keep the prisoners on Clink."source Clinkdestination Dancer

to offerhas "FW Southern Prisoners - Keep: done"on fail



`You drop off the prisoners at the mines of Clink, to beheld until the Navy returns Katya to you. Now, it's time to meet with Freya andAlondo and decide what should be done next.`

accept

mission "FW Southern Break"landingsource Dancerautosaveto offer

has "fw delivered prisoners"

on offerevent "fw occupying the north" 50conversation

`You land on Dancer and report to Alondo and Freya thatthe prisoner transfer is complete. "What do we do now?" you ask.`

` Freya says, "Well, I hope we're done with fighting for a while, now. We'll stay here to hold this system against any Navy retaliation. And, we'll keep hoping that Parliament might come to their senses and agree to a diplomatic end to this conflict. In the meantime I suggest you spend some time doing whatever it is you do to earn money on the side - carrying passengers or freight or hunting pirates. We'll contact you when things begin to move forward again."`

choice


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` "Sounds good. I'll hope to hear from yousoon."`

decline` "You're sure there's nothing else I can

do to help the Free Worlds right now?"`` Alondo says, "You might hear from some other fol

ks who could use your assistance, but as for the Council, I think it's a waitinggame for us right now. Please don't think we aren't grateful for your help, Captain. All we're saying is that hopefully, for a few months at least, we'll all be able to take a break from fighting and go back to actually living our lives. And don't worry, we'll contact you as soon as things get interesting again."`

decline

mission "FW Southern Break Ends"name "Return to "description "Travel as quickly as possible to , to rejoin t

he main Free Worlds fleet."landingsource

near Rastaban 1 1000destination Dancerto offer

has "event: fw occupying the north"not "FW Northern 1: offered"


`Soon after you land on , you receive a messagefrom Freya: "Greetings, Captain ! I hope you've made good use of your timeoff, because we're about to be right in the thick of it once again. As soon asyou're able, please come rejoin the fleet on Dancer. We have some urgent and sensitive work to do."`

accept

mission "FW Northern 1"landingname "Northern Expansion"description "Take a fleet to (visiting Alphecca and Seginu

s along the way), securing those systems to allow them to defect to the Free Worlds."

autosavesource Dancerdestination "New Tibet"waypoint Alpheccawaypoint Seginusclearance

to offerhas "event: fw occupying the north"

passengers 1blocked `You receive a message from Freya: "Captain, please meet up with

us as soon as you have a bunk free for Alondo." You have no bunks free, so youshould return here once you have made one available.`




17/52


`When you land on Dancer, the Free Worlds fleet appearsto be preparing for another battle: missiles and torpedoes are being loaded ontoships and crew members are running around. You eventually find Freya and Alondo, and ask them what is going on.`

` "Another three worlds have secretly told us theyare ready to defect," says Alondo, "and this time around we want to get there before the Navy does."`

` Freya says, "We need you to take Alondo, along with the ships that we've been able to muster, and fly through the Seginus and Alphecca systems, then land on . If all goes well, you will get through to before the Republic can muster reinforcements. Drive off any Republic ships you encounter along the way."`

accept

npcgovernment "Free Worlds"personality heroic escortfleet "Large Free Worlds"fleet "Large Free Worlds"fleet "Large Free Worlds"

npc

government Republicpersonality fleeing uninterestedsystem "Wei"fleet "Large Republic"fleet "Large Republic"

npcgovernment Republicpersonality fleeing uninterestedsystem "Seginus"fleet "Large Republic"fleet "Large Republic"

npcgovernment Republic

personality fleeing uninterestedsystem "Alphecca"fleet "Large Republic"fleet "Large Republic"

on completedialog

`As soon as you land, Alondo rushes out of your ship tomeet with the governor of and "get these papers signed before they change their minds." He tells you to meet him back in the spaceport in an hour.`

mission "FW Northern 2"name "Meet With Freya"description "Now that the northern star systems are secured, go back to

to meet with Freya and work with her to remove any surveillance equipment the Navy installed in the Wei system or elsewhere."

source "New Tibet"destination "Dancer"to offer

has "FW Northern 1: done"on fail


18/52


on offerevent "fw northern expansion"conversation

`You wait in the spaceport bar for a while. Your Free Worlds uniform has drawn a good deal of attention from the locals: a few of them waved to you when you came in, or gave other subtle signs of approval, but no oneis sitting with you. They probably want to avoid getting into trouble with theRepublic if the Free Worlds is not able to hold this planet.`

` Finally Alondo arrives. "Come on," he says. "Let's talk outside." He seems tired, but not frightened.`

choice` "Is everything okay?"`` "Did they agree to join us?"`

` "Yes, yes, of course," he says. "But taking on six more worlds all of a sudden - I just hope it's not more than we can handle. When the Navy recovers from the battle at Rastaban and strikes back, now we havemuch less idea where that strike will fall."`

` "So, what do we do next?" you ask.`` "We need to move more of our fleet up here to th

e front," he says, "but I'd be willing to bet that the Navy has installed survei

llance equipment on Hope, and maybe a few other planets in this sector too. Which I should have thought of before, because in order to be sure we've tracked every last one down, we need Freya's expertise in signals and sensors. So, I'm sending you to meet up with her on Dancer."`

choice` "No problem. Don't worry, we'll be able

to handle this just fine."`accept

` "Aren't you afraid the Navy will strikewhile I'm off fetching her?"`

` "Of course," he says. "But I talked with JJ, andhe thinks they're still recovering from the last battle. And if their sensors all go dark, that will be a big deterrent to keep them from attacking - certainly

more of a deterrent than you could add by staying here with our fleet."`` "Understood," you say. "I'll go get Freya."`accept

mission "FW Northern 2A"landingname "Sweep Hope"description "Bring Freya to and destroy any Navy sensor emplace

ments that she finds there."source "Dancer"destination "Hope"

to offerhas "FW Northern 2: done"

passengers 1blocked "To continue this mission, you need a bunk free for Freya. Retur

n here when you have made one available."on fail



19/52


Às soon as you land, Freya shows up at your ship with asmall suitcase full of clothes. "No time to waste," she says. "Let's get going.Our first target will be , since we know for a fact that they were installing something there."`

accept

mission "FW Northern 2B"landingname "Sweep Hope"description "Bring Freya to to check for any Navy surveillance

stations."source "Hope"destination "Clark"to offer

has "FW Northern 2A: done"passengers 1on fail



Às you approach the planet, Freya sits down at your ship's sensor console and begins fiddling with some settings that you didn't even know existed. She seems entirely focused, and clearly knows what she is doing. You recall being told that she is an engineer, not a politician or a military commander, which makes the fact that she has been able to step up as such a strong leader in the Council very impressive.`

` "Yup, eight different stations," she says finally, "including this one that I nearly overlooked, buried twenty feet under the ice, that is acting as a relay for them." She points out each station on your map,and you fly by each one and destroy it. "Now," she says, "that was what had me

most worried, but for the sake of completeness we should sweep the other new worlds, too. Let's go to next."àccept

mission "FW Northern 2C"landingname "Sweep Clark"description "Bring Freya to to check for any Navy surveillance

stations."source "Clark"destination "New Holland"

to offerhas "FW Northern 2B: done"

passengers 1on fail




20/52

`Once again, Freya works some sort of magic with your ship's sensors and manages to locate another surveillance station. "Right in the middle of the city," she says. "We'll have to go there on foot and disable it."`

choice` "Are you worried that it might be guarde

d?"`goto guard

` "Okay, I'll grab my favorite guns and explosives!"`

goto gunslabel guard` "A little worried," she says. "We should be arme

d, just in case. But I'm not picking up any human heat signatures from the building, and it wouldn't be like the Navy to leave some of their own behind for us to capture."`

goto destroylabel guns` "Now, now," she says, "we just convinced this wo

rld to join us, let's not go blowing up their whole factory district. I don't see any human heat signatures, but you can bring your weapons anyway just in case."`

label destroy` Warily, you approach the sensor installation, ki

cking down the door to an old abandoned warehouse. Freya is right - it's not gua

rded. She shuts down the transmitter, then asks for your help bringing some of the sensors and other equipment back to your ship. "I always love having a chanceto look at Navy technology," she says. "Now, let's head to ."`

accept

mission "FW Northern 2D"landingname "Sweep Clark"description "Bring Freya to to check for any Navy surveillance

stations."source "New Holland"

destination "New Tibet"to offerhas "FW Northern 2C: done"

passengers 1on fail



`You spend quite a while flying back and forth above thesurface of , but Freya is unable to locate any Navy signals originating

from the surface. Finally she gives up. "It's an out-of-the-way planet," she says. "Any fleet coming here would pass through Alioth or Seginus first. So I guess they didn't bother to put anything here. Time to head to New Tibet and meet upwith Alondo!"`

accept

mission "FW Northern 3"landing


21/52

name "Freya to Zug"description "Bring Freya to , to help with ramping up Dread

nought production."source "New Tibet"destination "Zug"to offer

has "FW Northern 2D: done"passengers 1on fail



`As you approach , Freya quickly locates two Navy surveillance stations and contacts Alondo, asking him to send some Free Worldspersonnel to destroy them. Then you land, and Alondo comes aboard your ship todiscuss your next steps in person.`

` "There's a good chance we've taken care of all the sensors in this sector," says Freya, "so we can start moving our fleets around here without tipping the Navy off. And I just heard from Southbound Shipping that they've got two more Dreadnoughts ready for service."`

choice

` "Only two? I was hoping to get a Dreadnought of my own soon!"`goto two

` "Don't we need to defend Rastaban and the other systems to the east, as well?"`

goto eastlabel two` "Patience, Captain," says Freya. "Building proto

types is very different from doing mass production."`goto zug

label east` "Yes," says Freya. "Which means our fleets will

be stretched thin. We really need them to ramp up Dreadnought production."`

label zug` Alondo asks Freya, "Do you think you could helpthem in the shipyards? After all, you were a superb fleet supply manager back inthe Defense Pact days."`

` "I'll do what I can, if you think you're all sethere," says Freya.`

` "I'm fine," says Alondo, "and JJ is on Rastabannow, guarding our other flank. So you can take a break from being on the front."He heads back outside, and you and Freya get ready to visit the shipyards on .`

accept

on complete

"salary: Free Worlds" = 2500conversation

`As you are landing on , Freya says, "I miss Katya. It's hard being the only woman on the Council."`

choice` "Don't worry, the Navy said they're tryi

ng to find her and return her to us."`` "Do you think the Navy reneged on their

promise to free her?"`` "I don't know," she says. "I hope the Navy will


22/52

keep their promise. But in the meantime, three people on Council is too few. Wedidn't want to say anything to you until the Senate cleared it, but we've nominated you to take Tomek's spot on the Council. What do you say?"`

choice` "I'd be honored. Thank you."`

` She grins. "Don't mention it. You've been with us since the beginning, and we've all come to trust what you have to say. I wishwe could throw you a big dinner or something to celebrate, but... well, we're all busy with the war right now. But Alondo and JJ both said to tell you they're glad to have you on board. And you'll get a salary increase, of course. Which youought to celebrate by buying us both a few drinks in the spaceport bar before you leave. Okay?"`

choice` "Okay, I'll meet you back at the spacepo

rt in a few hours."`` "Great," she says, smiling. "See you then." She

picks up her suitcase, and hurries over to the shipyard.`

mission "FW Northern 3B"name "Dreadnoughts to "description "Escort two more Dreadnoughts to , to help defe

nd the front against any Navy incursions."

autosavesource "Zug"destination "Clark"to offer

has "FW Northern 3: done"on fail



`Freya turns out to be a whiskey drinker, like Tomek. By

the time she has finished her first drink, she is chattering quite passionatelyabout starship design: load balancing, stress lines, shield matrices, shipboardcomputers. Rather than dulling her intelligence, alcohol just seems to reduce her ability to explain things in ways a non-specialist can understand. You try tosteer the conversation towards something less technical...`

choice` "So, why did you join the Council, initi

ally?"`goto council

` "Where's your home planet?"`goto home

` "How long do you think it will be beforethey're mass-producing Dreadnoughts?"`

goto dreadnoughtslabel council` "Well," she says, "you know the Council. Visiona

ries, big picture people. They needed someone who could take care of the actualconcrete details. Data crunching for our 'thousand eyes' program tracking piratefleet movements. Supply chain management. This was back in the days of the Pact, of course, before we had officially separated from the Republic. And I had worked with JJ in the past, so he asked me to come with him and help out on a larger scale."`

goto leave


23/52

label home` "I grew up on Earth," she says, "deep in the bow

els of one of the major cities. Even as a kid I hated that dirty old planet andknew my only shot of leaving there was to be smarter than everyone else. It wasn't until years later, when I came back to visit with some money in my pocket anda bit more perspective, that I was able to travel to the few parts of Earth that are still pretty, and realize how precious our home world is."`

goto leavelabel dreadnoughts` "Ugh," she says, "let's not talk about work whil

e we're busy relaxing." You refrain from commenting that all her talk about starship design sounded a lot more like work than like a fun relaxing topic of conversation.`

goto leavelabel leave` You hang out in the bar for another hour or so,

and then she says to the bartender, "Two bottles of champagne to go, please." Hegives her an odd look, but the Council is well enough respected that he does not question her.`

` You walk over to the shipyard, where the two newly completed Dreadnoughts are parked side by side. "Time to christen our new ships," she says, handing you one of the bottles. You each fling a bottle at one ofthe ships, and shout out...`

choice

` "For victory!"`` "For peace!"`` "For justice!"`

` "May it come soon," echoes Freya. "Now, tomorrowmorning the crews for these ships will be ready, and we'll need you to escort them to . I'll stay here and do my best to help manage the equipment supply chain and construction crews." She says goodnight, and wishes you a safe journey tomorrow.`

accept

npc accompany savepersonality timidship Dreadnought "F.S. Bartlett"

ship Dreadnought "F.S. Magnolia"

on visitdialog "You have reached , but without both the dreadnou

ghts you were assigned to escort! Better depart and wait for them to arrive in this star system."

mission "FW Northern 4"landingname "Meet Convoy"description "Travel to , to escort a convoy of medical supp

lies. Watch out for Republic attacks."autosavesource "Clark"destination "New Kansas"to offer

has "FW Northern 3B: done"clearanceon fail

dialog `You have failed an essential Free Worlds mission. If youwant to complete the story line, revert to the autosave or another earlier snap


24/52

shot of the game.`


`Waiting for you on is a message from Alondo: "Hello Captain! We've got another minor crisis: a merchant fleet was supposed tobring us a shipment of medical supplies from up North, since many of our worldsare running short. But, the Republic is threatening to attack the convoy if theytry to cross over into our space, so they're waiting on , just inside of the Republic's territory. Please go meet up with the fleet and bring it back to New Tibet."`

accept

mission "FW Northern 4.1A"landingname "Medical Convoy"description "Escort a convoy carrying medical supplies safely to . Do not fire on the Navy Oathkeeper ship that is in orbit there."autosavesource "New Kansas"destination "New Tibet"to offer

has "FW Northern 4: done"karma >= 2on fail



`You land on and meet up with the fleet you will be escorting. A few minutes later, an urgent message comes in from Alondo: "We've got a crazy situation here. Return to New Tibet immediately with the convoy.You will find a Navy Oathkeeper ship in orbit. Do not attack them, just see to

it that the convoy lands safely." The Oathkeepers are Navy officers who swore not to fight the Free Worlds, so you can't help wondering what they are doing on .`

accept

npc accompany savepersonality escort timidgovernment Merchantfleet

names "civilian"cargo 4variant

Freighter 4



npc savegovernment "Navy (Oathkeeper)"personality heroic staying uninterestedsystem Aliothship "Cruiser (Mark II)" "N.S. Peacemaker"


25/52

mission "FW Northern 4.2A"landingname "Medical Convoy"description "Escort a convoy carrying medical supplies safely to ."autosavesource "New Kansas"destination "New Tibet"to offer

has "FW Northern 4: done"karma < 2




`You land on and meet up with the fleet you will be escorting. A few minutes later, an urgent message comes in from Alondo: "We've got a crazy situation here. Return to New Tibet immediately with the convoy.

" He provides no further information.`accept

npc accompany savepersonality escort timidgovernment Merchantfleet

names "civilian"cargo 4variant

Freighter 4npc

government Republic

personality heroicsystem Sarinfleet "Small Republic"

on visitdialog "You have reached , but you left part of the conv

oy behind! Better depart and wait for them to arrive in this star system."

mission "FW Alphas 1.1"landingname "Liberate Poisonwood"

description "Destroy all pirates ships in the system with the help of the Navy Oathkeepers, then land on the planet and let the Navy troops eliminate the Alphas."

autosavesource "New Tibet"destination Poisonwoodclearanceto offer

has "FW Northern 4.1A: done"on fail


26/52


on offerevent "alphas capture Poisonwood"conversation

`You land the convoy safely on , but everyone seems to be busy with whatever new crisis it is that Alondo alluded to; no one approaches you to help unload the ships. Eventually you track down Alondo and ask what is going on, and why there is a neutral Navy ship in orbit. "We just received word that Poisonwood has been captured by pirates, while all of our fleets were busy guarding the front," says Alondo. You recall that Poisonwood has remainedloyal to the Republic, even though they are deep inside Free Worlds territory.`

choice` "If we liberate them, will they switch t

heir loyalty to our side?"`goto loyalty

` "If they're not one of our worlds, why should we help them?"`

goto helplabel loyalty` "Possibly," says Alondo. "But that's not what is

important. Before they were overrun by pirate troops, one of the colonists mana

ged to take a photo of the pirate leader."`goto photolabel help` "Because one of the colonists took a picture of

the leader of the pirates who attacked them," says Alondo.`goto photo

label photo` He hands you a small printout of a photograph. I

t is a somewhat blurry picture of a group of armed pirates running down a streetin a desert town. What grabs your attention immediately is that several of thepirates appear to have green skin. You recognize that as the mark of the Alphas,the sociopathic, genetically engineered super-humans who enslaved entire planets during the Alpha Wars, five centuries ago.`

choice ` "It must be a trick. There can't still be Alphas around. Maybe the pirates dyed their skin green to make people fear them."`

` "How is it possible that some of the Alphas are still alive?"`

` Alondo says, "This may be a trick, but we can'tafford to take that risk. The Alphas were the greatest threat humanity has everfaced. And before they contacted us for help, Poisonwood reached out to the Navy." As he is speaking, a shadow passes overhead. You look up and see the unmistakable silhouette of a Navy cruiser, coming in for a landing.`

choice` "Are you insane? You're letting the Navy

come here?"`` "We're going to work side by side with t

he Navy right after that awful battle?"`` Alondo explains, "It's only one cruiser, an 'Oat

hkeeper' ship, sworn to take no part in our war. The Free Worlds have almost notroops trained for ground combat, so without the Navy's help we would be unlikely to be able to eliminate the Alphas."`

` The Navy ship lands, and a man steps off who yourecognize immediately: General William Danforth, who is something of a folk hero throughout human space, and who you have heard is the commander of the entire


27/52

Oathkeepers regiment. With him is a man who he introduces as Commander Aaron Nguyen of the Navy Humanitarian Corps. As Nguyen shakes your hand, you are struck by the fact that although he is your enemy, you see no trace of hostility in hiseyes - in fact, his expression is surprisingly warm and affectionate.`

` "We have no room for error," says Danforth. "These Alphas must be eliminated, and they must not be allowed to escape. On that, at least, we can all agree."`

` Freya says, "Captain will lead the attack." She beckons to two of the Free Worlds captains. "Marco, Emily, you will jointhem with your Falcons. Destroy any pirate ships in orbit, then land and securethe facility. Understood?" You nod, and prepare to take off for the system.`

accept

npc accompany savegovernment "Navy (Oathkeeper)"personality escort heroicship "Cruiser (Mark II)" "N.S. Peacemaker"

npcgovernment "Escort"personality heroicship "Falcon (Plasma)" "F.S. Alder"ship "Falcon" "F.S. Starry Warrior"

npc kill

government "Pirate"personality heroic stayingsystem Graffiasship "Leviathan (Heavy)" "Dread Lord"ship "Leviathan" "Dominator"ship "Firebird (Plasma)" "Vengeance"ship "Firebird (Missile)" "Revenant"ship "Firebird" "Draugbreath"

on visitdialog "You have reached , but the battle is not over -

you've either failed to kill one of the pirates, or left one of your ships behind in a different system."

on completeevent "liberation of Poisonwood"conversation

`The ships in orbit are eliminated, but there are stillthe Alphas and their servants here on the ground to take care of. Danforth's ship unloads a squadron of troops in heavy battle suits. The Navy troops move withfar more precision and purpose than you have ever seen among the poorly trainedFree Worlds soldiers.`

` They sweep the city and quickly ascertain that the Alphas are holed up in a large factory. The troops encircle the building andburst through the doors, and soon you hear the sounds of explosions and gunfirewithin. You wait with Commander Nguyen in an alley facing the building. "I'm wit

h the Humanitarian Corps," he explains. "Killing things is not in my job description."`

` Just then, one of the second floor windows shatters and a figure comes tumbling out, rolls, and starts running in your direction. Then it does something you would swear no human being is capable of: while still moving in your direction, it begins leaping from one wall of the alley to theother as easily as you would run up a staircase, gaining altitude with each jump so that soon it will pass two or three meters above your heads. Several Navy troops are running after it, but they hold their fire to avoid hitting you and Nguyen.`


28/52

choice` (Try to shoot it.)`

goto shoot` (Try to grab it.)`

goto grablabel shoot` You open fire, but it is leaping back and forth

so fast that it is almost impossible to hit. But then you see Commander Nguyen climb onto a nearby dumpster and leap into the air, managing to grab the creatureby the leg as it flies by.`

goto pinlabel grab` Unfortunately, by now the creature is far outsid

e your reach. But then you see Commander Nguyen climb onto a nearby dumpster andleap into the air, managing to grab the creature by the leg as it flies by.`

goto pinlabel pin` The two of them fall to the ground and roll over

and over in a jumble of limbs. You and the Navy troops run after them, afraid to shoot for fear of hitting Nguyen. But somehow Nguyen gets the upper hand, pinning the creature in a full nelson hold, with his legs wrapped around its body tokeep it from kicking him. "Kill it!" he shouts.`

choice` (Kill it.)`

goto kill` (Let the Navy troops deal with this.)`goto navy

label kill` While Nguyen holds the creature still, you put a

gun to its head and pull the trigger. Not even an Alpha can survive that; the creature goes limp. Now that you can get a good look at it, you can see that it does indeed have green skin.`

goto endlabel navy` While Nguyen holds the creature still, one of th

e Navy troops puts a gun to its head and pulls the trigger. Not even an Alpha can survive that; the creature goes limp. Now that you can get a good look at it,

you can see that it does indeed have green skin.`goto endlabel end` Nguyen gets shakily to his feet; he looks stunne

d and very pale. "Thank you," he says. The sounds of gunfire within the factoryeventually dies down. "We'll continue to patrol the city," says Nguyen, "in casethere are more of them. Then I'll meet you in the spaceport." He heads off backinto the city.`

mission "FW Alphas 1.2"landing

name "Liberate Poisonwood"description "Destroy any pirate ships in orbit around , then lan

d and eliminate the Alphas and their servants who have occupied the city."autosavesource "New Tibet"destination Poisonwoodclearanceto offer

has "FW Northern 4.2A: done"on fail


29/52


on offerevent "alphas capture Poisonwood"conversation

`You land the convoy safely on , but everyone seems to be busy with whatever new crisis it is that Alondo alluded to; no one approaches you to help unload the ships. Eventually you track down Alondo and ask what is going on. "We just received word that Poisonwood has been captured by pirates, while all of our fleets were busy elsewhere," says Alondo. You recall thatPoisonwood has remained loyal to the Republic, even though they are deep insideFree Worlds territory.`

choice` "If we liberate them, will they switch t

heir loyalty to our side?"`goto loyalty

` "If they're not one of our worlds, why should we help them?"`

goto helplabel loyalty` "Possibly," says Alondo. "But that's not what is

important. Before they were overrun by pirate troops, one of the colonists mana

ged to take a photo of the pirate leader."`goto photolabel help` "Because one of the colonists took a picture of

the leader of the pirates who attacked them," says Alondo.`goto photo

label photo` He hands you a small printout of a photograph. I

t is a somewhat blurry picture of a group of armed pirates running down a streetin a desert town. What grabs your attention immediately is that several of thepirates appear to have green skin. You recognize that as the mark of the Alphas,the sociopathic, genetically engineered super-humans who enslaved entire planets during the Alpha Wars, five centuries ago.`

choice ` "It must be a trick. There can't still be Alphas around. Maybe the pirates dyed their skin green to make people fear them."`

` "How is it possible that some of the Alphas are still alive?"`

` Alondo says, "This may be a trick, but we can'tafford to take that risk. The Alphas were the greatest threat humanity has everfaced. We have very few people trained in ground combat, but I've gathered someof our best and loaded them onto a fleet that will be accompanying you. Destroyany pirate ships in orbit, then land and secure the facility. Understood? And don't let any of your escorts die; they're carrying the troops you'll need for theground battle." You nod, and prepare to take off for the system.`

accept

npc accompany savegovernment "Escort"personality heroicship "Falcon (Plasma)" "F.S. Oak"ship "Falcon (Plasma)" "F.S. Alder"ship "Falcon" "F.S. Starry Warrior"

npc killgovernment "Pirate"


30/52

personality heroic stayingsystem Graffiasship "Leviathan (Heavy)" "Dread Lord"ship "Leviathan" "Dominator"ship "Firebird (Plasma)" "Vengeance"ship "Firebird (Missile)" "Revenant"ship "Firebird" "Draugbreath"

on visitdialog "You have reached , but the battle is not over -

you've either failed to kill one of the pirates, or left one of your ships behind in a different system."

mission "FW Alphas 1.1A"name "Danforth to "description "Escort General Danforth's ship to , so that he

can leave Free space without being accidentally attacked."autosavesource Poisonwooddestination "New Tibet"to offer

has "FW Alphas 1.1: done"

on fail dialog `You have failed an essential Free Worlds mission. If youwant to complete the story line, revert to the autosave or another earlier snapshot of the game.`

npc accompany savegovernment "Navy (Oathkeeper)"personality escort heroicship "Cruiser (Mark II)" "N.S. Peacemaker"

on visitdialog "You have reached , but you left the behind

! Better depart and wait for them to arrive in this star system."

on offerset "fw alphas done"event "death of nguyen" 35conversation

`When you meet up with Nguyen, he still looks very worried. "We think we killed them all," he says, "but we can't be sure. Also, we recovered some instruments for genetic manipulation from the factory. The Alphas can't breed normally, because if their offspring inherit some of the Alpha mutations but not others, the result is rarely viable, and even those that live long enough to be born don't have all the Alpha traits. So, they rely on artificial insemination instead."`

choice

` "Well, it's good news that you recoveredthose instruments, then."`

` "It would be," says Nguyen, "except that we alsodiscovered that several dozen of the women who were taken as slaves... are nowpregnant. We'll have to ask them to terminate their pregnancies. It's the only safe decision, but I still don't like it." He sighs. "I'm a Buddhist, you know. Committed to doing harm to no living thing. That's why I joined the HumanitarianCorps. They promised me I'd never be asked to take a life."`

choice` "Is that why you didn't kill that Alpha


31/52

yourself, on the street?"`goto street

` "That doesn't seem like a moral dilemmato me. We know those children will grow up to be monsters."`

goto kill` "Couldn't we let the children be born, i

f that's what the women want, then imprison them or something if they do turn out to be Alphas?"`

goto livelabel street` "Yes," he says. "Silly, isn't it? Anyway, this i

s my job to deal with; you need to go find Danforth."`goto end

label kill` "Well," he says, "I envy you for living in a uni

verse where decision like this are easy. But to me it's still a painful choice to make. Anyway, that's my problem to deal with, not yours; you need to go find Danforth."`

goto endlabel live` "The Alphas were originally bred to be super-sol

diers," he says, "a weapon in the hands of a despotic government. As much as I hate to admit it, there are certain branches of the Republic who would love to get their hands on a small army of impressionable Alpha children. Far better for t

hem to die than for that to happen. Anyway, that's my job to deal with; you needto go find Danforth."`goto end

label end` He leaves, and you return to Danforth's ship. Da

nforth says, "Hello there, temporary ally. It was an honor to fight alongside you, while it lasted."`

choice` "You too. I wish we could bring this war

to an end."`` "If the Republic would just leave us alo

ne, we wouldn't need to be enemies."`` "I know," he says. "But for now, I need to retur

n to my fleet. Which means I'll be needing an escort out of your territory, justto make sure no one attacks me. Maybe you could take us by way of New Tibet? I'm sure Commander Nguyen would appreciate one last visit to the Buddhist monasteries there before that world becomes closed off to us completely." You agree, andhe begins preparing his ship for takeoff.`

accept

mission "FW Death of Nguyen"landingto offer

has "event: death of nguyen"


`Soon after landing on , you receive an encodedmessage from General Danforth, the leader of the Oathkeepers. "Captain ,"he says, "I would like to thank you once again for allowing us to assist you onPoisonwood. Unfortunately, I have bad news that may concern you. Commander Nguyen, who was with you when one of the Alphas was apprehended, has been assassinated, shot in the head at point blank range. His attacker has not been found. We fear that this may be retribution for his part in the action on Poisonwood, and we


32/52

urge you and your crew to be cautious. With deepest regards - Danforth."`decline

mission "FW Alphas 1.2A"landingname "Return to the Front"description "Travel to , to bolster the defenses there."source Poisonwooddestination "New Tibet"to offer

has "FW Alphas 1.2: done"on fail


on offerevent "Poisonwood reverts to Republic"set "fw alphas done"conversation

`The ships in orbit are eliminated, but there are stillthe Alphas and their servants here on the ground to take care of. Your escorts u

nload the troops, who spread throughout the city and quickly determine that, asfar as the locals know, the Alphas are all holed up in a large factory on the outskirts of town. The locals also inform you that the Alphas have taken dozens ofprisoners and are holding them in the factory.`

` As you are trying to prepare the Free Worlds troops to storm the building, suddenly one of your escorts, the Starry Warrior, takes off. You radio the captain, who responds, "Sorry, Captain, but I'm followingorders. Alondo suspected you wouldn't like this." Then he opens fire on the factory, destroying everything within several blocks with blaster fire and torpedoes. He does not stop firing until there is nothing left but smoldering rubble in that entire section of the city.`

` The Alphas are presumably dead. So are their prisoners, and any of the locals who were unlucky enough to be close to the factory

when it was destroyed. The governor of Poisonwood, unable to conceal his anger,asks you to take your troops and your ships and leave his world immediately.`` You send a message to the Council asking what yo

u should do, and they tell you to leave the planet and join Alondo on ,to help bolster the defenses there. You leave with a heavy heart, gladthat the Alphas are gone but wishing things here on had ended differently.`

launch

mission "FW Bloodsea 1"landing

name "Alondo to "description "Bring Alondo to to meet up with Freya, who has suc

ceeded in working out most of the remaining kinks in the Dreadnought productionline."

source "New Tibet"destination "Bloodsea"clearance `Alondo manages to convince the spaceport to let you land "fre

e of charge."`to offer

has "fw alphas done"


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passengers 1blocked `Alondo contacts you and asks, "Do you have a bunk ready for me?

" You do not, so you will need to free one up to continue this mission.`on fail



`You report in to Alondo, who listens to your description of the battle for Poisonwood with a grim expression on his face. "It's not theend, of course," he says. "It seems like no matter how many times we win a battle against the Alphas, there are more of them out there. But I'm glad that the immediate crisis has been dealt with."`

choice` "Isn't there any way we can track down t

he rest of the Alphas?"`` "What is our next mission now?"`

goto next` "Not really," he says. "There are probably small

enclaves throughout human space, and perhaps beyond our space as well. All we can do is make it harder for them to grow powerful."`

` "And how do we do that?" you ask.`

label next` "The Senate has authorized a diplomatic missionto Bloodsea," he says. "It's the smallest of the pirate worlds, and we're goingto see what we need to offer them to get them to join the Free Worlds. The official settlements there only amount to a few thousand people, so it shouldn't be too hard to convince them that joining us is better than resisting us."`

choice` "Okay, sounds like fun!"`

accept` "Wait, didn't things go south rather qui

ckly the last time we attempted this?"`` Alondo grins. "Yes, but the Free Worlds is in a

much stronger position now, and the pirate worlds know it's only a matter of tim

e before they are forced to become civilized. And, the incident on Poisonwood proved that we can't afford to fight a war on two fronts. We need to eliminate thepirate threat, and a diplomatic solution with them is the only sort that will last. So, let's get going!"`

accept

mission "FW Bloodsea 1.1"landingname "Ships from "description "In order to work toward a peace treaty with Bloodsea, meet

up with a convoy of heavily armed merchant ships on ."

autosavesource Bloodseadestination Zugto offer

has "FW Bloodsea 1: done"to fail

has "FW Bloodsea 1.2: done"passengers 1

on offer


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conversation`The local leaders are unwilling to meet aboard your shi

p, and Alondo is afraid you will be ambushed if you venture too far away from it, so eventually they agree to set up a tent on the landing pad next to yours andmeet there. Outside, a storm is raging, the rain mixing with salt spray from the blood-red ocean nearby.`

` As you talk, it becomes clear that the inhabitants of Bloodsea are ashamed of how destitute and undeveloped their world is. Several of them have visited the island spaceport on Deep, and after dancing aroundthe issue for a while, they make a request: if the Free Worlds builds them a real, modern island spaceport, they will join the Free Worlds.`

` One of them lays out a detailed list of amenities the port must have: concrete seawalls, raised landing pads, floating docks, sturdy hangars and warehouses, and various defense systems "for when the others learn that we've decided to join you." Also, the deal is off if you show up in orbit with a fleet that "looks like an invasion fleet rather than a construction fleet."`

` You thank them and return to your ship. Alondo asks, "What do you think?"`

choice` "Well, building a spaceport is probably

cheaper than fighting a major battle."`goto port

` "They're asking a lot. Why don't we just

invade them?"` goto invadelabel port` "Yes," he says, "except that I can almost guaran

tee that when we show up on their doorstep with everything they asked for, somelocal warlord will attack our ships, steal our supplies, enslave our workers, and build himself a nice cozy island fortress."`

goto attacklabel invade` "That's certainly the simpler option," he says,

"especially because I can almost guarantee that when we show up on their doorstep with everything they asked for, some local warlord will attack our ships, steal our supplies, enslave our workers, and build himself a nice cozy island fortre

ss."` goto attacklabel attack` "So, we attack them?" you ask.`` "You're on council now," he says. "I'll leave it

up to you. Option one is, we bring them the supplies and workers, in merchant ships, but use very heavily armed merchant ships in case they double cross us. Option two is, we go to Dancer and see if JJ can lend us an invasion fleet."`

accept

mission "FW Bloodsea 1.1A"

landingname "Supplies from "description "Stop on so that the ships you are escorting can pi

ck up more supplies and workers, then bring them to Bloodsea to help build a newspaceport."

autosavesource Zugdestination Deepto offer

has "FW Bloodsea 1.1: done"


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passengers 1on fail



`Waiting for you in the spaceport on are two Behemoth heavy freighters, which will be carrying the equipment and workers to Bloodsea. You can't help notice that nearly a third of their cargo space has been converted into extra outfit space, and both ships have a pair of plasma turrets mounted on them, and what looks like torpedo launchers as well.`

` While you are on Zug, you and Alondo meet up with Freya and ask how the Dreadnought production is going. "We're nearly there," she says, "just one or two kinks left to work out. They've produced another two prototypes, but not enough to start selling them yet. I know, you're itching to pilot one of your own. Believe me, we're working as fast as possible."`

` Your next stop is to pick up more workers and construction supplies on .`

accept

npc accompany savegovernment Merchant

personality escort heroicship "Behemoth (Heavy)" "F.S. Bungles"ship "Behemoth (Heavy)" "F.S. Humble"

on visitdialog "You have reached , but you left the freighters b

ehind! Better depart and wait for them to arrive in this star system."

mission "FW Bloodsea 1.1B"landingname "Supplies to "

description "Escort these two freighters to , to help builda new spaceport. This may just be an excuse for pirates to attack you."autosavesource Deepdestination Bloodseaclearanceto offer

has "FW Bloodsea 1.1A: done"passengers 1on fail



`You stop on , and wait as more supplies are loaded onto the two Behemoths you are escorting. Your final stop is . Alondo thought it likely that some pirates would try to intercept your convoy and steal its cargo, but as long as both freighters land on the planet without being captured or destroyed, you will be able to begin the construction project and thusmeet the demands of the people on to convince them to join the Free Worlds.`


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accept

npc accompany savegovernment Merchantpersonality escort heroicship "Behemoth (Heavy)" "F.S. Bungles"ship "Behemoth (Heavy)" "F.S. Humble"

on visitdialog "You have reached , but you left the freighters b

ehind! Better depart and wait for them to arrive in this star system."

npcgovernment Piratepersonality plunders staying disablessystem Antaresfleet

names piratevariant

"Raven (Afterburner)" 2Hawk 2"Fury (Flamethrower)" 3Sparrow 5

on completeset "fw bloodsea done"event "dreadnoughts for sale"event "dreadnought deployment" 40event "bloodsea joins free worlds"event "bloodsea spaceport completed" 100conversation

`A few of the locals on Bloodsea appear surprised that you actually brought the supplies for a new spaceport, and that you arrived withall the supplies intact. But after meeting up with Alondo, they agree to hold their side of the bargain: from now on, Bloodsea will be a part of the Free Worlds, with all the rights and responsibilities that implies. And that means that they will refuse to knowingly harbor any pirate fleets or other known criminals.`

` Alondo tells you that he will catch a ride backwith the freighters when they return. "But, you'll probably want to head out sooner," he says, "because I've got some good news for you. Freya just contacted me, to say that they're now ready to start selling Dreadnoughts to certain selectmembers of the Free Worlds, including you. That also means she's done with her work on Zug, so she'll need you to give her a lift from there."`

accept

mission "FW Bloodsea 1.2"landingname "Invasion Fleet"

description "Rather than pursuing a diplomatic agreement, meet up with JJ on and gather a fleet to invade and subjugate Bloodsea."

source Bloodseadestination Dancerto offer

has "FW Bloodsea 1: done"to fail

has "FW Bloodsea 1.1: done"


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mission "FW Bloodsea 1.2A"landingname "Capture Bloodsea"description "Take a Free Worlds fleet to invade the system and

eliminate any pirate resistance, then land on ."source Dancerdestination Bloodseaclearanceto offer

has "FW Bloodsea 1.2: done"on fail


on offerevent "battle for bloodsea"karma --conversation

`When you meet up with JJ, he says, "So, it's going to be battle rather than diplomacy? I suppose that may be for the best; I'm sure thepirates were planning some sort of double-cross. But still, it's too bad we couldn't find a peaceful solution."`

choice ` "Alondo convinced me that the Bloodsea natives were just planning to betray us."`

` "I don't think the pirates will understand any language except overwhelming force."`

` "Perhaps," says JJ. "At any rate, we'll never know, now. I need to keep most of my fleet here, to defend against the Navy, but I've selected a few of the strongest ships to accompany you to Bloodsea. Good luck, Captain."`

accept

npcpersonality heroic

ship "Dreadnought" "F.S. Bombastic"ship "Falcon (Plasma)" "F.S. Equalizer"ship "Falcon (Plasma)" "F.S. Enforcer"

npc evadepersonality heroic stayinggovernment "Pirate"system "Antares"fleet

names piratevariant

"Firebird (Plasma)""Raven (Afterburner)" 2

"Hawk (Rocket)" 2"Fury (Flamethrower)" 3Sparrow 5

ship "Leviathan" "Freedom"ship "Manta" "Lucifer"ship "Bastion (Heavy)" "Punisher"

on completeset "fw bloodsea done"event "dreadnoughts for sale"


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event "dreadnought deployment" 40event "bloodsea independent"conversation

`You land at the main spaceport on Bloodsea with Free Worlds ships circling overhead, ready to bombard the locals if they show any signof resistance. It is a tense atmosphere, and the leaders sullenly agree to givethe Free Worlds access to their planet and to avoid knowingly supporting piracyor other criminal activity. You have won this world, but you have clearly not won the hearts of the locals.`

` A while later, you receive new orders from Alondo. "I've got some good news for you," he says. "Freya just contacted me, to saythat they're now ready to start selling Dreadnoughts to certain select members of the Free Worlds, including you. That also means she's done with her work on Zug, so she'll need you to give her a lift from there."`

accept

mission "FW Dreadnoughts Ready"landingname "Meet Freya on "description "Freya is done overseeing the initial production run of Drea

dnoughts in the shipyard on Zug. Meet up with her there, to give her a ride to w

herever she is assigned next."source Bloodseadestination Zugto offer

has "fw bloodsea done"on fail


mission "FW Albatross 1"

landingname "Freya to "description "Bring Freya to , to meet up with JJ and make plans

for convincing Albatross to give up piracy and join the Free Worlds."autosavesource Zugdestination Dancerto offer

has "FW Dreadnoughts Ready: done"passengers 1on fail

dialog `You have failed an essential Free Worlds mission. If youwant to complete the story line, revert to the autosave or another earlier snap

shot of the game.`


`Freya comes to your ship soon after you land. She is beaming, and looks more relaxed than you have seen her in months. "Southbound Shipyards is churning out Dreadnoughts now!" she says. "Still only at a rate of onea week or so, but for a ship this big that's quite impressive. And it means youcan now buy one of your own, if you've got enough savings. Seriously, even if you can't afford one yet, be sure to stop by the shipyard and check them out." She


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is clearly very proud.`choice

` "Great job, Freya! I'm really glad to have a talented engineer on the Council to help get things done."`

` "Glad to hear it. Now, what is our nextaction against the pirates?"`

goto pirates` She smiles. "Thanks. It was actually really refr

eshing to be able to tackle a concrete, solvable problem for a change, instead of all this nebulous political stuff. Speaking of which, our next step will be togo visit JJ. He's going to be doing the diplomatic outreach to Albatross."`

goto alondolabel pirates` "Right, right, back to work," she says. "Well, i

t sounds like the next order of business is for you to transport me to to take JJ's place there while he makes a diplomatic visit to Albatross."`

goto alondolabel alondo` You ask, "Wait, doesn't Alondo usually handle th

e diplomacy?"`` "Usually, yes," she says. "But the locals on Alb

atross specifically asked for JJ. They're a very traditional population, and JJis well-known as both a family man and a brave soldier. Whereas Alondo is... Alondo."`

choice ` "Fair enough. Let's head to !"`accept

` "Wait, I don't understand. Why don't they like Alondo?"`

` She looks genuinely surprised that you don't know. "Alondo is gay," she says. "There are few worlds here in the South where thatwould bother anyone, but Albatross is one of them. So Alondo is taking a breakto go visit the Senate, while JJ deals with this particular diplomatic situation."`

choice` "Okay, I feel silly for even asking. Let

's go meet up with JJ!"`

accept` "Ah. That certainly explains a lot."`` "It seems crazy that anyone would be bot

hered by that in this day and age."`` "Yes," she says. "Yes, it does. Now, let's go me

et up with JJ."`accept

mission "FW Albatross 2"landingname "Visit Albatross"

description "Bring JJ to Albatross to negotiate with the local leaders and perhaps convince them to join the Free Worlds and give up their support of piracy."

autosavesource Dancerdestination Albatrossclearanceto offer

has "FW Albatross 1: done"passengers 1


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`When you meet up with JJ, he looks exhausted. "Our scouts are reporting that the Navy is building a massive base on New Iceland," he says, "just a few jumps away from here. So every day I look up at the sky and wonder if today is the day when they will invade."`

` You talk for a while and agree that despite thethreat from the Navy, dealing with the pirates is important. JJ explains that Albatross started out as a sort of farming commune: independent, but not associated with any illegal activity. But they were dominated by pirates, and since then,one pirate overlord after another has held sway over the planet. So in principle at least, the locals ought to welcome the idea of Free Worlds protection.`

` While you are traveling with JJ, Freya agrees tostay here and work on a better surveillance network, to give Dancer advance warning if the Navy decides to invade.`

accept

npcsystem Nunki

government Piratepersonality staying disables plundersfleet "Small Southern Pirates"fleet "Small Southern Pirates"

mission "FW Albatross 2A"landingname "Hunt Ryk Bartlett"description "Hunt down the pirate warlord Ryk Bartlett, who has been plu

ndering merchant convoys in the vicinity of Zeta Aquilae. (Only his personal ship, the Dread, must be destroyed.) Then, return to Albatross."

autosavesource Albatrossdestination Albatrossclearanceto offer

has "FW Albatross 2: done"passengers 1on fail


on offer

conversation`Your meeting with the elders of Albatross happens in se

cret, by night. They are afraid that if their current pirate overlord, Ryk Bartlett, finds out that they have met with you, they will face retribution. JJ begins by describing the Free Worlds' offer: all the benefits of the mutual defense pact, in exchange for an agreement to uphold human rights and the rule of law, plus offering financial support for the Free Worlds.`

` "Begging your pardon," says one of the elders, "but what makes you different from any pirate organization that comes in here, demanding our money in return for 'protection'?"`


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choice` (Let JJ answer that.)`

goto jj` (Try to give an explanation myself.)`

` "We're a representative government," you say, "with open financial records and clear human rights guidelines that we uphold."`

goto unconvincedlabel jj` JJ explains about the Senate, that each world ha

s a say in how the Free Worlds income is spent. "And," he says, "we will not take your children as slaves, or force you to work i

Free Worlds Middle

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