July 13, 2001 (thing)

2352.1.23 A pirate band offered valuable information in exchange for passage through our territories. They are fleeing after I conquered their home worlds. Their meagre fleet entered our space days later. Clan Leader Talos, a veteran warrior who offered his services to me after four years of fighting in the Engazo nebula, led a fleet of corvettes in the vicinity, and it was this fleet that intercepted the pirates. Their destroyers were no match for us and we suffered no loss. My agents tortured the pirate captain and he revealed his secret: that a valuable trans-galactic shipment was leaving shortly from the Shinari Republic to the Iberon Empire.

2352.3.14 A small scout force found more debris near the planet of Mordor--armor from the ship of T'ral the warden. Years ago, T'ral was a homeless Krakhen eager to prove his prowess. I gave him a fleet and he proved useful. However, he met his end in our campaign to eradicate the pirates a few years ago. Last month, we developed the anti-matter ray and my scientists informed me that a more powerful weapon is in development. In three months' time we will have this weapon, dubbed the Destructor Ray. This fearsome weapon would fit well on our newly developed Heavy Cruisers.

2352.9.12 The Fleet of the Fist located the heavily-armed convoy with the valuable cargo transports that the dead pirate captain had said contained valuable cargo. I ordered the Fist back to their garrison in Cair Andross. I reserved the task of eliminating this to General Talos. The ambush went well and all distress signals were jammed. We suffered no significant loss. However, the cargo was only worth 100,000 credits. A lesser Lord would find the prize a bounty, but for the Krakhen this is but a small drop hardly worth our attention. Just as well that we executed that pirate captain.

2353.1.4 Our long-range stealth radar picked up the signals of a decent size Solarian Fleet passing near one of our planets. It was travelling at a warp factor of 16. This could mean one thing: the Terrans have discovered the secrets to the Mk 5 Warp drive. Their ships now rival the speed of our cruisers and heavy cruisers. These Terrans have become stronger.

2355.4.24 We received the news a few days ago: the Toulen Empire is no more. Though I do not grieve their demise, I wish that they had fallen before the Krakhen. Instead, their worlds are now ruled by the Solarians. I now think that we may have seriously underestimated these humans (damn them!). However, we are not yet strong enough. In the east there is still the Shinari Republic, and to my south, the Iberon Empire and the Cheblon Clans.

2355.7.6 A scout disguised as a trading vessel confirmed what our long-range scanner had told us: the Solarians have colonized the world of Tor 7. How dare they. They have occupied a world clearly within our unspoken borders. Our own terraforming ship and a colonization ship were already on the way to Tor 7 when we found their fledgeling colony, so our ships had to be diverted to a less habitable planet. With Tor 7 under their control, Cair Andross would be isolated from the rest of the empire. No doubt the Solarians would use it as a base to spy on our activities. I must make sure that Tor 7 is one of the first planets we attack; atacking them now would be easy as the colony is new and undefended. However, I am not sure of the Solarian's strengths, so I have ordered my warriors to ignore their presence for now.

2356.2.20 The Solarian Federation has declared war on the Iberon Empire. I have sent my newly formed Imperial Fleet from their garrison in Isengard to Osgiliath, near the Iberon border. This new fleet contains all of our newly develped cruisers and heavy cruisers--the pride of the Krakhen empire.

2356.3.1 I witnessed the battle between the Federation Fleet and the Iberon Fleet. The fast Solarian fleet of about 12 capital ships clashed with the Iberon fleet of about 40 vessels. The Iberons were numerous but our intelligence indicates that their fleet was composed mostly of destroyers and corvettes. They were no match for the Solarian ships, the composition of which is still unknown to us. Our best estimates suggest that they have cruisers and heavy cruisers, equal to my Imperial Fleet, but more disturbing is that they may have ships more powerful than our heavy cruisers. This is of course, absurd.

2356.3.3 The Solarian fleet emerged victorious, losing one capital ship and some fighters. The Iberon fleet was annihilated. This troubled me a bit but I dare not show this in front of my warriors. They seemed to relish the chance of fighting a worthy adversary. Well, later on we will have a chance to test our strength against the Solarians. I have ordered the Imperial Fleet to "save" the now lightly-defended Iberon planets from the marauding Solarians. We are not at war with the Terrans and my seers think that they do not want a direct confrontation with us...yet. If we joined them in the war with the Iberons, we could lull them into a false sense of security and bring a few more planets into our control. Better yet, by conquering some of the Iberon planets we keep them from falling into the hands of our undeclared "allies", the Solarian Federation.

2357.2.5 The Iberon Empire is no more. Six of their planets fell easily before the might of our forces. Unfortunately, our new holdings are interspersed with planets of the Cheblon Clans. These lousy Iberons know nothing of defensible borders. I fear that the new territories, a very welcome source of revenue, would soon become a liability when the time comes for us to deal with the Cheblon clans. The rest of the Iberon Empire now lie in the hands of the Solarians. I wish I had acted sooner, for now our nemesis possesses even more resources.

2357.7.12 The young and over-eager general of the Imperial Fleet made a fateful decision two days ago. When the victorious Solarian armada wandered suspiciously close to Osgiliath, this young general ordered an attack. The account of the battle confirmed my fears. The Solarian fleet had one ship that exceeded our heavy cruisers in size and firepower: a Battleship. My young general's fleet had heavy cruisers bristling with torpedoes and were equipped with the yet untested Destructor Ray. The Imperial Fleet caught the Solarians unawares. Our own fleet wiped out their armada, including their new Battleship. Our losses were minimal. My young general could hardly contain his pride when he apologized for making a bold decision without obtaining my approval. I shall not punish this upstart...but I will wait. He has forced the Krakhen to a war with the Solarian Federation. We've destroyed their fleet but their planets are well fortified and though we can dominate space, our own ground forces are not strong enough to assault their planets. With most of the former Iberon and Toulen Empires in their hands, they have vast resources and it would not be long before we face another Solarian armada.

2357.7.15 The Shinari Republic has declared war on us. This was not a surprise. These Shinari cowards are reputed to be weak in battle and hide behind their Solarian allies. I look forward to subjugating these weaklings, but already I fear that we may have over-extended ourselves. The Krakhen are now at war with two empires. Only with the Cheblon Clans do we maintain a semblance of neutrality. A large Shinari fleet of nearly 60 capital ships is suspected to be close to Cair Andross. General Talos's Fleet and the Fleet of the Fist are on the alert.