Saurian scientists, now gladly at peace with Raiju, offer the weapons their Colossus carrried for those used by ships like the ones that destroyed it.
As well as prroviding an Ion Cannon in exchange for Hyper-V Rockets for miniaturization, and Inertial Stabilizer in exchange for Fusion Bomb, switching research to Hyper-X Rockets for yet more quick miniaturization (research would complete just two years later, and turn to Stinger Missiles) Raiju made sure that her trading partner would remain on the right side by agrreeing to his demand of Sublight Drives to brring him into her war with the Psilons. The spy wars continued in the meantime - three entire factories were lost at Beta Ceti, supposedly to Bulrathi spies, and the ultra-rich planet might even have noticed they were gone if it hadn't been working on industry at the time anyway to build up reserves for the war. Conventional warfare continued as well, with Mrrshan planets repelling enemy fleets every year , culminating in 2439 with the arrival of a fleet that could not be repulsed ... and two more such fleets in 2441, each at a different world!
The Mrrshan Offensive begins.
Naturally, these were Mrrshan fleets, at Helos - the Psilons' nearest colony to the Mrrshan core - Poor Laan, and the Psilons' second nearest planet to the Mrrshans: The vast terran world of Herculis. Also in 2441, the first wave of transports arrived at Helos and, in coordination with the fleet, Laan as well. Advanced Eco Restoration, developed in the same year, was all but forgotten in the rush of war - as was the new prroject, Improved Terraforming +50, even though the empire had crraved such technology since the moment it was formed. Also passing all-but unnoticed was CB-715's cancellation of his non-aggrression pact with the Mrrshan people in 2440. Defenses were already up in the north in case of just such an eventuality, and while his actions did lead to still more being constructed, he was far too late to make a difference with any kind of cold war, and though he would soon send a fleet to Mrrshan space, before it could even arrive and be inevitably repulsed, RBO-17 had won the galactic war.
GNN pays notice as the Mrrshan empire crosses the threshold of galactic domination.
The conquest of Helos and Laan prrovided no less than eight new technologies to the empire: Death Spores, Repulsor Beam, Battle Computer Mark IV, Anti-Missile Rockets, and Gatling Laser from the Psilons, plus Controlled Dead Environment, Neutron Blaster, and Improved Space Scanner from the Darlok world. Darquan immediately realized his error and begged for peace, but Raiju was no longer sympathetic. He had chosen unwisely once too often.
With her force field technology completed for her, Raiju elected to continue with a Class X Planetary Shield which would never be needed in her reign, and continued with the war.
Not to be outdone, the interstellar spy networks plied their trades, with enemy agents taking out a missile base at Aquilae in 2442 and 9 factories at Gorra two years later. Moments before the Gorra incident however, Stingrray topped them all, striking deep into Meklar territory to lift data files on Improved Robotic Controls IV from Nitzer. Her heroics were all the more apprreciated since the Mrrshan soldiers who conquerred Herculis the same year snagged only the planetary shields that the empire had just started researching, in spite of raiding 215 factories. This opened the way toward Classs VII Deflector Shields (with cloaking device as another too-late-to-matter option) - a technology which would never be needed.
The final six years of the war were a golden age for research in the Mrrshan empire - primarily, this research was accomplished via pointy sticks.
As Raiju's scientists developed yet more ECM and started work on an Advanced Space Scanner, her soldiers attempted to redeem themselves, liberating plans for no less than 13 technological developments from three different homeworlds. After the Darlok homeworld yielded hopelessly out-of-date Improved Robotic Controls III, Battle Computer Mark II, Deuterium Fuel Cells, and Neutron Pellet Gun technologies, as well as an offer of alliance from Tyranid (which was rejected in favor of a Non-Aggrression Pact the following year) Raiju made peace with the Darloks' one remaining planet, and successfully established trade with them for the first time, in the largest amount they could afford annually: Fully 25 BC. Mentar proved much more fertile ground, yielding ECM Jammer Mark II, Improved Terraforming +40, Improved Terraforming +20, Reduced Industrial Waste 60%, Advanced Industrial Tech 9, Graviton Beam, and peace. Mrrina Stingrray, just entering the prrime of her fourth life, snagged Personal Deflector Shield technology from the bears just in time for it to benefit the marines invading Ursa, even as scientists completed a prototype autorepair system and talked cheerfully about Improved Industrial Tech 6, and soldiers brought back Fusion Beam, Controlled Toxic Environment, and Class V Planetary Shield from the Bulrathi homeworld itself. That verrry year, Raiju died in her sleep, happy and at peace, for the fifth time. Young and beautiful as she had been when she first took the throne of Fierias, RBO-17 attended the Galactic Council as it met in 2450, this time decisively.
Raiju Bastet Ocelot XVII accepts her new title: High Mistress of the New Republic
With more than half the galaxy's voting power, not far from a two thirds majority from Mrrshan worlds alone, Raiju at last accepted the third offer made to her, and ascended the throne of the galaxy. No more would emperors of the old dynasty rule over Fierias however: The galaxy would be reorganized into a new republic, ending the power of tyrants for all time. Raiju still had her grreatest task before her: Uniting the galaxy in true peace, and educating its people to the point of being able to share the galaxy effectively under a single representative government - but she prroved equal to the task, with four lifetimes yet before her, and we live in the galactic peace she established to this verrry day.
So ends the history of The Lives and Deaths of Raiju Bastet Ocelot XVII, queen of Fierias, Empress of Artemis, High Mistress of the New Republic.
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Next: Concluding Thoughts
