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Felini Society
In the days before the arrival of the conquering Flagritz to their homeworld, the felini were primitive. Their technology was little better than Stone Age. Their culture was largely nomadic based on oral traditions though they did have a written language that they carved into rocks and trees. They built bridges, and erected seasonal settlements and occasionally feuded. Their legends were enacted in their operas. Though many non-felini can stand the long high-pitched wailing which account for the vast majority of the play the acrobatics in the final scenes are always spectacular and worth watching.
The invasion was fast and brutal. Claws and spears were no match to the advanced technology. Strafing of felini hunting parties from the air, destruction of their ancient sites and wholesale slaughter of the larger and more organised prides quickly brought the entire species to its knees.
It is estimated that more than five million felini were killed during the first year. As the apex predatory species on the world, their population was less than fifteen million at the time.
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The entire species was enslaved but in order to make them useful to the Empire, they needed to work the imported machines and build the urban and industrial zones for the newly arriving Flagritz population. For this they needed educating.
As the felini became tech savvy they started underground movements, coordinated and discovered many things about the universe, especially the method by which the Flagritz arrived a wormhole. This wormhole however opened and closed at six month intervals.
For years they prepared and millions more died at the hands of the Flagritz but eventually they were ready. When the wormhole closed, they attacked. The battle was hard won as the Flagritz used both biological agents and nuclear weapons in a desperate bit to turn the tide. In many places the felini refused to revolt. It is now thought that in these locations integrator caste/peace factions controlled the slave populations and as such the populations were better (if not well) treated despite being always under threat of what might happen. Even now there are many that believe that a peaceful liberation may have been possible and the ecological destruction of the world could have been averted.
By the time the wormhole was again open, the felini had control of starbases on the world and even a few outposts off-world. During the next few years the fighting was brutal though the felini gained the upper hand simply due to numbers and access to resources.
It is thought that the Flagritz attempted to open an artificial wormhole directly from their homeworld in order to bring in an armada and their vast army though something went wrong. Both the armada and army of Flagritz Empire was largely destroyed along with a fair chunk of the Flagritz homeworld.
After this the felini spent years rooting out and executing every last Flagritz from their home system.
Post Emancipation
While there were a few proponents of returning to the old culture it was never seriously going to happen on their homeworld or for that matter any other. Education and technology forced onto the felini had become a way of life. They could no longer return to their nomadic, hunter-gatherer life style. They relied on transport, industry, medicine and cultivation too heavily to give it up (also reflected in their increased longevity and birthrate). The world could no longer support their population. Most of the native fauna had been killed in the war and the world was a wasteland. The felini lived in urban environments, supplemented their previously meat diet with ever increasing amounts of vegetables and grains and alcohol consumption had for many become a way of life. For better or worse, the felini way of life was changed forever.
Matriarchy
Society is based on a dominant male and his extended harem. This may be because females outnumber males by around six to one by the time they reach adulthood, though in childhood they the ratio is closer to three to one. What happens to the males? Females live more than three times as long as males and can recover from damage that would permanently cripple a male. A crippled male will invariably undertake voluntary euthanasia. Females, though only taking one partner at a time and then generally until death, may well, over their lives produce cubs from three or more fathers.
Cubs are raised by the extended family though by the age of ten have largely reached maturity at which time they tend to move away to complete their education or learn a profession. It is around this time that males form their large groups and gang fights are quite common both within cities and out in the wilderness. This accounts for a lot of deaths amongst the male population. Living fast and dying young is a way of life for the felini. Few males live beyond thirty years and rarely ever enter academic professions. There have been historical exceptions with a few notable venerable professors. In these cases though it has been noted that they have been smaller than average and never established a harem.
Upon the death of the dominant male, the harem will generally split. Quite often there is a period of negotiation between the females of other harems as to where they go though new males will invariably make themselves known (sometimes even before the old male has died).
Opera
One of the few aspects of their ancient culture to survive the transition to their current way of life is their appetite for live drama in the form of operas. They have little time for media as entertainment, even media presented using cutting edge virtual reality. Only on distant worlds with small felini populations will a media substitute be tolerated.
The Clans
The operas combine oral tradition of storytelling though heavily embellished to the point determining the slither of truth from the fantasy is a practically impossible. There are long drawn-out acts where the prima donna (they are always full female cast) can take the stage for more than an hour. Highly edited versions can be found for aliens on multi-special worlds. These are rarely more than the acrobatic scenes and a few voice-over explanations as to how the plot arrived there. They rarely make a lot of sense to non-felini.
The first felini encountered by the rest of the Peripheries (with the exception of the Flagritz) were called the Clans. These were encountered in the Cluster Periphery. They were technologically advanced and had a history that revealed their ancestors had some centuries ago been removed from their primitive homeworld and uplifted. There are a few unsubstantiated stories relating to their use as troops for the uplifting alien abductors. The war that destroyed the Dewiek Nation is thought to be instrumental in their history, leading to their free will to determine their own fate.
The Clans and the Felini have differing cultures in many areas, though from an outsiders perspective they can appear similar. The most notable distinction is the role of the male. Males within the Clans live on average more than a decade longer than those from the homeworld something both cultures are proud of for very different reasons. The males in the Clans also play a greater role in civilian government and technology.
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Star Date: 221.3.3

Meklanmania
Meklan scout ships continue to be seen around the Orion Spur periphery. These cyborg creatures in service of hidden ancient masters appear to be terrorising the Wimble Nation in particular. Despite public lamentations against the hardship of defending themselves, the Wimble leadership have not yet responded to our request for comment.
 Artist's impression of a Meklanised Wimble
However, Xavier Fox, CEO of Galactic Transport and Trade, did give us the following statement:
“We have engaged several Meklan ships, although currently the source has not been identified. GTT Directors have been running patrols and have engaged and destroyed numerous ships that have attacked outlying outposts belonging to different affiliations. The pattern of ships encountered leads us to believe there is a central source, but until that is found we would suggest any affiliation with assets in the area provide adequate defences.”

Doomsday On Pause
At the site of the Thete anomaly, the Dewiek Nation has sent media sensation Sharon Aleman to the scene. Aleman, whose cybernetic enhancements allow her to directly interface with her ship’s sensor array, led her hardened crew into a dive of the outermost “edge” of the anomaly. After spending several days collecting and analysing data (mere minutes to the rest of us outside the anomaly), Aleman reported her shocking discoveries.
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Star Date: 220.50.5

Veil Lifted on Flagritz Home Space
As the Hellcadium ISR field continues to fluctuate, one of the newly exposed systems is Junista inside the previously hidden and inaccessible home periphery of the Flagritz Republic.
Over the past few weeks Flagritz Republic patrols and platforms have dealt with a number of scout ships from the Human Empire as the IMP wasted no time in exploiting this opportunity to poke around in their old enemy’s backyard. It is understood that at least one of these unarmed scouts was destroyed with no one willing to estimate how many more might be buzzing around.
Coincidentally, suspected IMP lackey, SSL TOAD, has also been overheard showing an obsessive interest in the Flagritz periphery. However, we have received no reports of this being anything other than his usual drug-fueled, barely decipherable mutterings at this stage.
Either way, this sudden, uninvited interest in the Flagritz Periphery has left the FLZ leadership muttering darkly about appropriate measures being taken. Defensive fleets and supporting structures are being deployed in the Junista system and beyond in expectation of further uninvited guests.
 When You stare into the Flagritz Periphery...

Thete's Timey-Wimey Tease
Investigation into the Thete anomaly continued in the Dewiek Pocket Periphery. The anomaly was scanned from all angles by a number of the Dewiek Nation’s best sensor ships and officers. The data, collected over several weeks, was sent to one of the DEN’s most advanced scientific laboratories for analysis.
What they found will shock you!
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Star Date: 220.45.1

Perfidion Reached
Long speculated by theoretical Stellar Cartographers, Perfidion Reach finally opened in the last few weeks. Immediately, the Detinus Republic boldly staked a claim on the first accessible system, Hellcadium. Only time will tell the true value of this strategic move but their much-taunted bureaucracy may have finally proved its worth.
Early reports from scans of the system reveal a wildly fluctuating ISR field. Rumours suggest that at least one ship was destroyed as it was forced into an asteroid belt chasing a stable jump field attempting to exit the system. Casual travellers are warned away from the system at this time for their own safety. Leave it to skilled explorers and navigation officers.
 Mathematical model of Hellcadium ISR Field.
We spoke to Captain Zakiyah Ummahi via subspace link. Zakiyah led the first DEN expedition into the Perfidion Reach. "Spirits remain high but this is largely down to the extended R&R we were all forced to take immediately prior to jumping into this hole. Initial scouting reports show at least one planet with plenty of forests and grasslands which might help if we're going to be stuck here for Folkvar knows how long waiting for this damned ISR field to stabilise."

Valhalla Stargate Reopens
Dewiek engineers and scientists have finally managed to re-enable Stargate Valgrind this week and the protective Exclusion Zone is to be lifted. If DEN investigators discovered who caused the gate to malfunction, or why, they were not willing to share it with us. Military sources, however, have announced a project to provide a significant boost to the already formidable defence platform in the stargate’s orbit.
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*** Inter Galactic News ***
Empire - DEN action grinds to a halt
After months of tension relations between the Empire and the Dewiek Nation, which rose to several large scale fleet actions ending in the DEN losing over 60 Direwolf warships in Solo, things appear to have moved from antagonistic to unfriendly. With the Solo system being a particular issue an agreement has been reached between the Wolf Mother of the DEN and Xavier Fox of the GTT. Since this things have become very quiet, not just because the shooting has stopped, but also because my reporters have been on their summer holidays.
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News For Discerning Naplians! ---- Special Galactic Edition ----
(The Host sits at his desk as the studio lights dim, and a single spotlight bathes him in light. He looks straight into the camera and begins to speak: )
Host: Naambta! Good Greetings, and welcome to the show.
This is News for Discerning Naplians, and i’m sure you are all showing much impatience to see this week’s Panel Discussion. We will be discussing religion with the Lady Ghadir of the Temple of Ya Zoon, renowned neo-naplian spiritualist Chairman TonTon, and a very special guest from our imperial neighbours, Bishop Samantha Porteus of the Brotherhood. But before we get to that...
(Looks demonstratively at his digital wrist watch. )
... it is time for a word from our sponsor.
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******Empire Syndicated News Network (ESNN) ******

Welcome to the latest version of ESNN, giving the news and views from the ESNN's reporter and news anchor, Ainsley Moore, making this the peripheries' most favourite unbiased publication in the known universe from our new home in the Heartland,
And so with the news from the last few weeks,
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*** Inter Galactic News *** DEN assault FEL base and get wiped out CIA Trade fleet caught and destroyed by the DEN Krell denounce worship of the True One
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***** Inter Galactic News *****
Huge fleet skirmish at the London/Crossley wormhole
A large fleet of over 700 DEN warships responded to the EMP action in Crossley, where a 4000 hull DEN platform was destroyed. Reports show the DEN ships caught a group of CIA ships napping and inflicted significant losses on the humans. IMP and GTT fleets moved to assist the CIA, matching DEN fleet numbers, but the arrival of over 1200 Hexamon ships seems to have tipped the battle in favour of the DEN-HEX alliance.
The combined DEN-HEX force pushed through the wormhole into the Heartland area of human space and retaliated, attacking several CIA platforms in response. The outnumbered Empire fleets abandoned the area and fled, they are currently waiting for the larger alien force to make their next move from their hiding places.
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***** Inter Galactic News *****
Admiral Lord Simms killed after a long and distinguished service to the Empire.
The Imperial Services have intercepted and serious damaged several DEN ships on the way to the Empire’s home systems. Unfortunately during the action Admiral Lord Simms was injured and reports from the Viceroy indicate he has passed away, fighting the enemies of the Empire like any true Imperial Officer.
The Viceroy has stated that the officers and crew of the DEN ships have been captured and are now awaiting trial at a secret IMP base.
DEN continue to strike at the Empire
Reports are coming in of multiple engagements between the Empire and the Dewiek Elder Nation over the last week. With several battles taking out Empire ships in the Heartland of the CIA.
AFT turn to piracy
The Association of Free Traders have, after a long history of neutrality, turned to piracy this week. AFT Drake boarded an IND ship in the Halo periphery, killing several of the crew in the process. Independent trader Jarlebanke Langhofdi immediately took to the public communication channel demanding an answer to why supposedly peaceful traders had killed his crew and taken his ship.
The AFT remain silent over the attack.
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***** Inter Galactic News *****
Combat Special Edition
Since the DEN started shooting at those lovable FEL fluffballs things have certainly been heating up. So we through it would be prudent to bring you, gentle beings of the peripheries, a special edition in order to keep you updated with all the latest action in regards to who the DEN are shooting and who is shooting them.
Felini strike back at Dewiek
Reports have come in of the FEL striking back at the DEN in the Kallisan system. A huge FEL force supported by the IMP and CIA assaulted DEN positions taking both the platform and base called Lucien. There was much rejoicing in the FEL camp as the Felini proved they were not such lovable fluffballs after all!
GTT get sucked into the war
A passing fleet of GTT warships got caught in the fighting and this saw the GTT enter the war. When asked about this CEO Fox pointed out they are not warships at all, they are trade defence ships. So how they came to be in the DEN system of Kallisan is a mystery to us. But the GTT CEO was clear that they only engaged using support and defend orders to protect allies. Needless to say, the CEO commented “We found ourselves on the Dewiek Nation’s enemy lists pretty soon after.”
Dewiek Nation attacks GTT positions in Orion Spur, breaking DOM system rules
A fleet of DEN warships has engaged and destroyed a significant number of GTT cargo ships and escorts in the DOM system Monument. The GTT immediately took to the public channels to ask why the DOM were not doing something. In reply the DOM issued a statement to stop, which the DEN ignored.
The DEN newssheet "The HOWL" published a completely unbiased review of the attack shortly after.
DOM make a choice
After the above incident and then further raiding by the DEN, taking out a few GTT cargo ships in the DOM system of Coptuv, the DOM seemed to have been faced with a choice of stopping drinking their tea and doing something or just hoping it would go away. Instead they seem to have decided to abandon the whole idea of being an active affiliation and we have since folded. The lengths some people will go to not to have their elevenses disturbed is truly staggering. We asked the DOM for a statement on their new system rules to share with our readers but have received no replies.
DOM positions share out
Just as we were going to press news has come in of various DOM assets being given to other affiliations or sold. Hopefully we will have more on this story in the next issue of your favorite factual newsheet. Yes, that's us at the SSS.
*** Affiliations ***
AFT Association of Free Traders (54) - Marion Tweedy CIA Combined Intelligence Agency (64) - Laton CIA DNA Displaced Natives Asylum (66) - DNA people DTR Detinus Republic (58) - Morley Decker DEN Dewiek Elder Nation (67) - Urd DOM Dominion (57) – we believe the DOM are now inactive FCN Falconian Republic (70) - Bacran FEL Felini Tyranny (49) - Juris FLZ Flagritz Republic (47) - Kayxaer FET Frontier Exploration & Trade (56) - Cu Chulainn GRC Gracians (13) - HG1 GTT Galactic Trade & Transport (52) - Xavier Fox GCE Garcia Enterprises (4) - Neil HEX Hexamon (23) - Ando IMP Imperial Services (51) - Jack Jones KRL Krell (30) - Namica KRT Krell of the Reverence Temple (37) - Kal Torak KST Kastor Kastorians (12) - Kastor MZC Mizuchi Combine (86) - Mizuchi MOH Mohache (73) - Listens MIC Mohache Independent Commune (76) - Sleeps with Dragons NLF Naplian Liberation Front (38) - NLFHQ RIP Regularly Involved in Piracy - Githyanki RRH Roy Robert Holdings (39) - Roy Roberts SMS Stellar Mining and Smelting (53) - MikhailM USN Ulian Stellar Nation (34) - Oeipus Prime WMB Wimble Nations (25) - zz
* Leader MAY be inactive, affiliation may be active ** Affiliation has no leader but this is the only known contact
NPC / FoC: ARC, CIV, CGT, FRE, HBO, HEF, IND, ISP, JCN, MEK, MRC, PIR, PRV, TCA, TRN, KAS
Inactive: ANT, BHD, COD, HVE, IDC, RIP, RCF, SKW, TAG
Deceased: CAL
*** Submission ***
By private message to The Editor or via Mica if you prefer to remain anonymous.
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