2175 C.E.

XV: The Treaty of Yvar

Speech Delivered by Yong An-Hong: NSN Enterprise AH01-001: 09/16/2175

People of Earth. For the first time in nearly a century, I am speaking to you not on Interlink devices but on simple broadcasting devices. Ambience Corporation servers have as of two hours ago been shut down across the Terran Hegemony. Interlink devices have also been deactivated remotely by former operators of the Interlink system. You have no doubt heard the news that I am about to tell you, however; that the Zaha-Katchem have been defeated in battle by a combined Novan-Grushan fleet; that the Terran Star Fleet has been crippled by Grushan Interstellar Ballistic Missiles; that Terran armies on Nova operating out of the capital Centauri Prime have been halted in their advance to the city of Imladris; and lastly, that the remains of President Yan An-Sing have been discovered in his administrative office shortly after the Interlink itself was deactivated. The death of the President makes me the official President of the Terran Hegemony and Commander in Chief of the Terran Armed Forces.

In this capacity I have seen that the war with Nova and the Grushan Federation has become impossible for the Terran Hegemony to win. Our forces are crippled and stranded in the Proxima system; the Grushan have no limit to their jump gate capacity. Our armies are tied down; the Grushan have vast numbers that they have not brought to bear. We are like a lion that tries to stand against the wind, for though we are mighty, we can no more defeat the wind itself than we can hold it in its place. Therefore, in my first act as head of the Terran Hegemony, I have offered terms of surrender to the Novan-Grushan fleet. I have called for an immediate cease fire in all fields of battle. This includes the fleet in orbit of Nova, the armies on Nova, and the armies attacking Africa. Terms of our surrender will be negotiated aboard the NSN Enterprise and accepted by the Novan and Grushan governments by way of their representatives, Admiral Rafael Hadrian, Admiral Doromarith, and Ambassador Aglamarith. It will be signed and finalized by Praetor Almarith of the Grushan Federation.

It may be that you think that this is a time for despair, for the Hegemony has met utter and complete defeat in battle. Our proud armies and fleets have had their guns silenced in less than a month. But we as a people still live. We live on, and we will always live on, whether Earth unites under the Hegemony or the nation states of the twenty first centuries or any flag or creed that waves above us. We surrender today to prevent a pointless loss of life tomorrow, life taken in revenge for the atrocities committed in Yveran, on Nova, and in the meaninglessness of an offensive war of pride and hatred.

For now, people of Earth, breathe deeply of the air on your home planet, or of the air wherever you call home. Breath of that air and count yourselves as the most blessed creatures in the world, for the sky above you is sky and not fire, as it was on Yvar for an instant before it ceased to be. Drink water from the land, for it has not been poisoned as the Nile has been and may never be clean again. And look out into the world with your own eyes for the first time in a hundred years. I saw something different when I looked at the world with my own eyes. It was a clear vision, uncluttered by the demands of a thousand distractions that poked at me needlessly for days on end. It was a beautiful vision, not in a way that distracted or demanded, but in a quiet, simple, subtle beauty that needed no explanation or justification. It simply was, and I marveled that I had seen it. And as you do all of these things, be glad that the Zaha-Katchem did not come to Grushar or to Nova, and that we are grieving the loss of Yvar and not Alpha Ceti as we so easily could be. Surrender, this is, yes, and defeat also. But it is a defeat that is given for the gain of life, life which is beautiful and joyful. So let us lay down our arms and live in peace. Thank you.

Treaty of Yvar (main body): Signed 09/30/2175: NSN Enterprise AH01-001: Low Earth Orbit, Geosynchronous Beijing