To: The Core

[Foxglove]

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:::[ESTABLISHING VIDEO FEED]:::
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ID: Cordelia Lyell
Location: Durban Station, Omicron Rho
Subject: The Zoner Problem
ENCRYPTION: INVINCIBLE

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To whom it may concern,

My name is Cordelia Lyell, Guildkeeper of the Core and entrusted with handling the Zoner Problem in Delta and all things related to that. Consider the Chief Arcani hereby relieved of his temporary position, as now I myself will be handling this matter in the Exalted Guildmaster's stead. I will be your addressee in all issues related to the Core.

It is more often than not that I find certain documents on my desk that should not be there. Seldom is one of them merely containing the self-righteous rambling of a man wallowing in self-pity and a false sense of a need to express himself. Reading your message was painful, to say the least. However, since I fancy myself to be a reasonable woman, I shall address each one of your points raised one by one — one should not be able to say that I do not take my time reading absolutely everything.

These seemed to be your raised points in the same order that they were raised:

- The CoF are, in fact, all Zoners. Declaring war on them is declaring war on all.
- The CoF only acted in self-defense, wanting the conflict to stop.
- The houses wouldn't like the Core stopping their corporations from supplying hostiles.
- The Exalted Guildmaster himself said that Zoners remain unharmed, as well as the CoF.
- All the CoF, and by extension, the Zoners ever wanted is peace and quiet.

To address these points, I shall begin with the first assertion.

So you proport to be representing the entirety of the Zoners as the CoF? Ignoring the fact that this is sort of counter-intuitive given the fact that most who live as Zoners left the houses exactly due to the same reasons, which is not wanting to be governed by the houses. And then you say that declaring war on the CoF is the same as declaring war on all Zoners? This train of thought is fallacious due to the simple fact that people are individuals. Declaring war on a governing body — such as CoF proports to be — cannot equal a declaration of war against all Zoners due to your own philosophy of self-determination.

You do not represent all Zoners. You represent certain Zoner sects or communities like the Omicron Supply Industries, Med Force Enterprises, or even the religious TAZ. The majority of Zoners wants to live in piece and quiet, I would agree with you there, thus I find it funny that you want to use them as shields in this matter if they have no desire to associate with the CoF. You representing all Zoners is simply not thinkable without completely defeating the purpose of choosing the Zoner lifestyle!

This actually ties in directly to you wondering how the houses would react to some of their corporations being intercepted by the Core's law enforcers during the Delta Events. In fact, you tell me: How would a governmental force react if some of those under their jurisdiction were to disregard the law enforcement authorities of their allies? I rest my case.

You also assert that the CoF only engaged in self-defense of the Freeport, pleading for peace the entire time. Since you are so keen on facts, you are likely aware of the Zoner forces that destroyed civilian AP-Manufacturing transports that entreated entrance at your "safe haven" for civilians. Furthermore, a Core entourage of ships that escorted one of our Guildkeepers to the Freeport to request actual talks with its authorities was viciously attacked by the Freeport's denizens.

Do not act like you bear no fault in this, Sir. The fact that people call themselves civilians says absolutely nothing about their willingness to commit acts of violence against others. The fact that anyone could call themselves a Zoner enables such actions. I myself could identify my own ship as a Zoner vessel, because the only requirement for being a Zoner is a personal choice! So why is it so hard to grasp that literally the entirety of Sirius' degenerates simply seize the Zoner name and use them to their own nefarious ends?

The Exalted Guildmaster himself said the following, and I'm quoting from your previous message:

"The Core does acknowledge the No Fire Zones placed around Freeports, however in Omicron Delta we have our law which must be enforced. The Edge Worlds are a hostile place and we seek to change that. That can only be attained via appropriate legal measures enforced by us. If we see a Corsair, Order or any other hostile or law breaker within the vicinity of the Freeport causing trouble or otherwise, they will be dealt with if necessary. Regardless, our priority is to protect the Freeport and the Zoners that inhabit it. They are forgotten by The Order, betrayed by the Corsairs, and attacked by the Machines. We will not follow a similar path and will ensure the safety of the Zoners against all these threats."

The parts in green should be self-explanatory. What needs to get through to you is that Core law supersedes the law of the CoF in Omicronis. We respect the NFZ as long as there are no terrorists, criminals, aliens or further degenerates in the area that could endanger the lives of those that trust us, the Core, to ensure that they may live a peaceful life in Omicronis. However, I agree with you that we did in fact violate the line written in red. Piracy is an unlawful act in Omicronis, and the Zoner perpetrator should have been dealt with accordingly. What ended up happening was the highest ranking officer, Jessebelle Fillian, taking matters into her own hands by wielding her Godgiven powers like a sword of vengeance against those who are less than her. I grant you that this behaviour cannot be tolerated. The Core would be willing to indulge your desire for them to be trialled. However, we cannot condone barbaric practices like executions. What are we? A dystopia?

"Rather than let that create conflict, The Core may be willing to adjust it's laws to incorporate Freeport 11's neutrality - but our objectives will maintain priority where possible. Whilst we can respect the NFZ, we certainly cannot respect the hostile intentions of criminals, especially in Omicron Delta. We do try to force engagements out of the NFZ, however sadly we are not always successful. The process of reporting criminals would be especially tedious, when we are fully capable of dealing with them on our own. Our methodology ultimately leads to less casualties and strives towards more peace within Delta."

It seems like you were unable to read these statements properly, because the Exalted Guildmaster never granted the Freeport its inviolability.

Let me put things into perspective, Mr. McCool. The Core has always made its intentions of keeping its own goals above those of the CoF. However, we are not your enemy. You do, however, associate with our enemies, and that is dangerous. There can be no peace as long as you allow dangerous forces a safe haven in Omicronis, where they will then start off like reavers to prey on the weak, those we bear responsibility for. No amount of anecdotes from your part will change that fact.

Given all this, I can decisively answer your question on who is warmongering here. The Confederacy has done its utmost to endanger the lives of civilians by brining them in the proximity of degenerates for decades, the resulting deaths of this blatant negligence outnumber those who perished in the Delta Calamity manyfold.

And you have the audacity to make demands, you, who directly enabled this to happen?

I could now summarize why you are exactly what we were accusing you of being, but I shall not bother. All you have going for yourself is a certain set of skills to bend vocabulary in a way that makes fools believe what you said, but once people actually look at the substance, they find the merit of your words evaporating. You call yourself a scientist, Mr. McCool, yet you rely on anecdotes to bolster what you are peddling in a pathetic attempt to cater to the lowest possible denominator.

I cannot possibly express my contempt for you adequately, yet this personal antipathy shall not deter me from doing my duty. The Delta Calamity is, as you said, something that rapidly spiralled out of control due to miscommunication and a pack of smokes. Those who are responsible must be smitten with the Hammer of Justice decisively and, yes, that includes our own people. If we wanted to raze the Freeport to the ground, we would have done so already.

The Core is willing to return to the negotiation table once you stop being preposterous and barbaric. Be aware, though, that the Core is not interested in less than supremacy over its sovereign space in Omicronis.

That would be all.

-C. Lyell
Guildkeeper, The Core

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