Hunting the MAlignment: MWW Clue's

Is the GA aware of the RF? I thought the mention of that was part of McBryde's download on a details to be revealed on a "after you get me out of here" basis.

If so, knowing that an RF does exist might make it worth while to picket systems within x number of light years of Mesa to watch and possibly track military traffic. Or perhaps one could conduct a wormhole search within those systems -- using proper stealth, of course.

Or, perhaps you could wait until the RF declared itself by joining together which could provide a proper focus for your search.

Caution would seem to me to strongly suggest picketing the Torch wormhole. My idea of dropping a squadron of Nikes through there got shot down. But I would sure make sure that nobody could come through from the other side either. Maybe even a strong fleet base could be established there to serve the GA's interests in the area as well as to picket the wormhole.

Don

SharkHunter wrote:--snip--

JohnRoth wrote:...The biggest clue is probably Albrecht's movements from the RF meeting, the meeting on Darius and then back home to when he issues the next set of orders. Getting all 11 of the RF heads of state together for a meeting -- and the implication is that they do this regularly -- implies that they're all probably less than two weeks away from Mannerheim -- including wormhole transits and using the streak drive. That doesn't say anything about Albrecht, since Mesa is essentially the same distance as Visigoth, and Darius is right next door to Mannerheim (one wormhole transit and 10 ly).

That was it exactly, found it... Just prior to the meeting Albrecht tells his "sons"

Mission of Honor wrote:"In the meantime, though," his father said rather more briskly, "I want you and Daniel to come to Mannerheim with me."

A bit later RFC tells us that Mannerheim has the largest navy in the Alignment, and in Torch of Freedom we know that MSDF knew about Harvest Joy's destruction at "SGC-902", plus Mannerheim trying to keep a wormhole junction 'hid' until they can acquire the rights to it, something they've been working on for many years. Curiouser and curiouser...no?

Curiouser and curiouser, indeed. But how much of this info would be available to the GA? It is known to the reader, obviously enough. But it's not a usable clue until the GA knows about it...

Don

n7axw wrote:

SharkHunter wrote:--snip--
That was it exactly, found it... Just prior to the meeting Albrecht tells his "sons" 'In the meantime, though," his father said rather more briskly, "I want you and Daniel to come to Mannerheim with me.' A bit later RFC tells us that Mannerheim has the largest navy in the Alignment, and in Torch of Freedom we know that MSDF knew about Harvest Joy's destruction at "SGC-902", plus Mannerheim trying to keep a wormhole junction 'hid' until they can acquire the rights to it, something they've been working on for many years. Curiouser and curiouser...no?

Curiouser and curiouser, indeed. But how much of this info would be available to the GA? It is known to the reader, obviously enough. But it's not a usable clue until the GA knows about it...

Don

Yeah that. Weeza all wondering which prong of the fork will poke it's way into that little nest, courtesy of the RFC plotline, no?

n7axw wrote:

Hutch wrote:So, the Malignment has disappeared to Darius and nobody knows where the heart of the Evil Conspiracy (tm) is.

But like any good mystery, the MWW has left clues on how they might be found.

Two are rather recent; Anton's research on the missing Mesans and the two 'Non-GAUL' escorted personnel, both in CoG.

But that doesn't mean that there isn't other clues out in the Honorverse.

I note that in Torch of Freedom, Drs. Kare and Wix remarked about the 'kick' in the wormhole readings and were noticably absent when the Harvest Joy made it's first (and final) passage through the Torch wormhole.

Now, spending several pages of text to show that these two gentlemen were not killed and that they have every reason to examine the 'killer' wormhole closely (and knowing as we do where that wormhole eventually leads), makes me think that we have not heard the last of our two eminent scientists and that they have a role to play in unravelling the mystery.

We shall see, eventually.

Hi Hutch,

Could you expand a bit on the two non-Gaul missing Mesans? I seem to be losing a gear here in terms of what you are talking about. All I can come up with are Gail and Zach and there would be no way for Anton to know about that.

Don

Don,

I think he was mentioning this as two separate clues - Anton's research and Gail and Zach (if and when they fall into the GAs hands), not that Anton is aware of Gail and Zach as two of the missing Mesans.

Hutch wrote:So, the Malignment has disappeared to Darius and nobody knows where the heart of the Evil Conspiracy (tm) is.

But like any good mystery, the MWW has left clues on how they might be found.

Two are rather recent; Anton's research on the missing Mesans and the two 'Non-GAUL' escorted personnel, both in CoG.

But that doesn't mean that there isn't other clues out in the Honorverse.

I note that in Torch of Freedom, Drs. Kare and Wix remarked about the 'kick' in the wormhole readings and were noticably absent when the Harvest Joy made it's first (and final) passage through the Torch wormhole.

Now, spending several pages of text to show that these two gentlemen were not killed and that they have every reason to examine the 'killer' wormhole closely (and knowing as we do where that wormhole eventually leads), makes me think that we have not heard the last of our two eminent scientists and that they have a role to play in unravelling the mystery.

We shall see, eventually.

n7axw wrote:Hi Hutch,

Could you expand a bit on the two non-Gaul missing Mesans? I seem to be losing a gear here in terms of what you are talking about. All I can come up with are Gail and Zach and there would be no way for Anton to know about that.

Don

Don,

fallsfromtrees wrote:I think he was mentioning this as two separate clues - Anton's research and Gail and Zach (if and when they fall into the GAs hands), not that Anton is aware of Gail and Zach as two of the missing Mesans.

Don, fallsfromtrees has it, I meant to show two clues and apparently I was not clear about that. Apologies.

As for the comment above (I can't remember who it was) regarding Anton, yes, all he is establishing is that 'some' bigshots have apparently left the planet. The next mission for him and Victor is to figure out how and where they went.

I wonder what he will make of the actions at Balcescu Station (and for that matter, other data that will be comng in on unusual ship traffic with some odd passenger lists....for numbers-crunching Anton (and Princess Ruth), this may lead to places where Victor and Thandi may use a more....direct...appraoch to obtain information.

We shall see, eventually.

n7axw wrote:Is the GA aware of the RF? I thought the mention of that was part of McBryde's download on a details to be revealed on a "after you get me out of here" basis.

No, the GA does not know that the RF exists. Top officials of the GA have speculated that the Alignment may have gained control of some systems across the League, but they have no evidence and no obvious way to identify them. It is pure speculation on their part.

If so, knowing that an RF does exist might make it worth while to picket systems within x number of light years of Mesa to watch and possibly track military traffic. Or perhaps one could conduct a wormhole search within those systems -- using proper stealth, of course.

Rather impractical, since there is no reason for the RF systems to be anywhere near Mesa. The wormhole to Visigoth puts Mesa within easy reach of half of the systems in the Core and a quarter of the Shell of the League.

Or, perhaps you could wait until the RF declared itself by joining together which could provide a proper focus for your search.

We don't know for sure that they plan to join together right away. They could just as easily each form separate mutual defense groups with local neighbors, and only later form a larger conglomeration for mutual defense.

Caution would seem to me to strongly suggest picketing the Torch wormhole. My idea of dropping a squadron of Nikes through there got shot down. But I would sure make sure that nobody could come through from the other side either. Maybe even a strong fleet base could be established there to serve the GA's interests in the area as well as to picket the wormhole.

It is plausible that a paranoid like Zilwicki or Ruth might decide to picket the wormhole. But it is equally plausible that they don't think of it. There is still no reason to suspect anything about the wormhole. That could easily change, but for now there is no special reason to do it except paranoia.

SWM wrote:snip
It is plausible that a paranoid like Zilwicki or Ruth might decide to picket the wormhole. But it is equally plausible that they don't think of it. There is still no reason to suspect anything about the wormhole. That could easily change, but for now there is no special reason to do it except paranoia.

I think that there is very little danger of ships coming through the Torch wormhole. Unless you can get every ship in the system before it can escape into hyper, and turn the planet and destroy every asteroid minor and station in the system, the fact that ghost ships came out of the Torch wormhole is going to be a huge indication of how to find the MAlign, and that it is in fact not a killer wormhole, but a wormhole with killers on the other side. I can't see the MAlign taking the chance of handing that kind of intelligence windfall to the GA.

fallsfromtrees wrote:I think that there is very little danger of ships coming through the Torch wormhole. Unless you can get every ship in the system before it can escape into hyper, and turn the planet and destroy every asteroid minor and station in the system, the fact that ghost ships came out of the Torch wormhole is going to be a huge indication of how to find the MAlign, and that it is in fact not a killer wormhole, but a wormhole with killers on the other side. I can't see the MAlign taking the chance of handing that kind of intelligence windfall to the GA.

That's why it's got to be a one shot full on invasion force only, and having Torch and the RTN in existence likely screws any plan that the MAlign may have had in that direction into the ground. After the failure of "Ferret" to turn the planet into a smoking cinder, somehow I don't think that Rozak is now the only customer for the Erewhonese ammo ships, and mutual defense treaty wise, I'd imagine that the RMN just might have parked a Sag-C or larger and some dispatch boats somewhere within useful range of the planet AND wormhole. Those work awfully well a la Spindle, etc.

They're not stupid those dang neo-barbs in that neck of the woods, and they have the example of Grayson on how to get a single star system up and running in modern RMN warefare.

fallsfromtrees wrote:I think that there is very little danger of ships coming through the Torch wormhole. Unless you can get every ship in the system before it can escape into hyper, and turn the planet and destroy every asteroid minor and station in the system, the fact that ghost ships came out of the Torch wormhole is going to be a huge indication of how to find the MAlign, and that it is in fact not a killer wormhole, but a wormhole with killers on the other side. I can't see the MAlign taking the chance of handing that kind of intelligence windfall to the GA.

A surprise attack through the Torch Wormhole is a one-shot tactic. By the time the MAlign uses it, they won't care if anyone knows about it because they'll be loose and rampaging in a sector they are supposed to be far from.

SWM wrote:

Or, perhaps you could wait until the RF declared itself by joining together which could provide a proper focus for your search.

We don't know for sure that they plan to join together right away. They could just as easily each form separate mutual defense groups with local neighbors, and only later form a larger conglomeration for mutual defense.

And that isn't even going to be suspicious, under the circumstances - that's what the GA is after too, after all. It's not even implausible that some forward-thinking system governments have been making moves to establish political liaisons inside the Solarian League, for mutual benefit among those systems beside any they get within the League, and against the possibility that the League will collapse.

The only thing wrong with the RF is that it's an Alignment tool. It's carefully designed not to look like one, either, and that part of the plan is still going just fine. For that matter, it's entirely possible that some of the RF leadership regards the Alignment plan as secondary to being a part of the nucleus of a new, more effective interstellar power - a price paid for sponsorship.