[ WP ] War has been raging for years upon years now . You are a reporter embedded in a famous military unit among your newest allies in this war , humanity .

**Part II updated! The main post was expanded, and what I could n't fit went into a separate post. I'm not sure if it should be continued or if the rest should be left up to the imagination. Feedback is, as always, appreciated. The second part is linked below - I did some minor spell checking and rewording to try to make it read cleaner. ** 
 
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 A flash of color and a pleasant chirp erupted from the telescreen, signaling the end of a commercial break and the start of a special bulletin. Orland Reyl, Paramount Broadcasts' posterchild news anchor, sat behind the central desk, as would be expected. It was estimated that over four hundred million telesystems were tuned in specifically for the announcement tonight. 
 
 “ Hello. This is Orland Reyl for Paramount, coming to you live with a class one bulletin. As many of you out there know, the thirtieth anniversary of the Centauri conflict is a mere three weeks away. While Elerian forces have been making leeway against the Ores, the official status remains at a stalemate. This, following recent ration cuts, more factory repurposing and increased production, leaves the future of Elerian economy in question. While the Council has expressed interest in ending the war conditionally with the Ores, a statement released from Oresen has shown that military leaders amongst their ranks are steadfast in their claim to ownership of the Centauri binary star system. ” Reyl shuffled his papers, and a diagram appeared next to his head, showing a picture of a planet – blue, with green landmasses patterned with the lights of civilization, and a solitary grey moon in the background. In Elerian script,'Blue Marble' was written underneath the image, while'Earth' was written above it in English. 
 
 “ As many of you are aware, first contact with mankind occurred three years ago as of two weeks past. Their leaders have up until now returned Elerian pleas with silence, only going so far as to condemn Oresian actions following the Great Schism. I come to you tonight with a special announcement directly from Lead Councilor Horn. ” 
 
 The screen containing Orland grew smaller and shrunk to one corner, while a larger picture took over the display, showing a tall, elegant, well-dressed and perfectly grey-skinned Elerian councilor. He cleared his throat, speaking in traditional councilspeak; captions were instantly read and provided below for the proletariat of Eleria. “ Good evening, citizens and soldiers alike. Today is a wondrous day in history for our planet and people. In the past months, our political envoys have been communicating and relaying all appropriate information to the Blue Marble's leaders, who have responded favorably. The process has been slow, I will not lie. Our languages are vastly different, and the relatively recent discovery of one another has still left many of us with shock – for two centuries now it has simply been us and the people of Oresen, and for thirty we have been at war. Adjustment will take time. However, our conflict has finally caught mankind's attention. I come to you today to tell you that the war may very well be at an end. Citizens, rejoice! When asked for aid, the human leaders have promised not just resources, but the might of the human fleet. Victory is close at hand, and this dark chapter in our history may soon be closed so that we may rebuild. Go with safety. ” 
 
 While abrupt, the councilor's words had an effect. Entertainment halls around the planet erupted into murmur; homes went silent; military bases were filled with cheering. Everyone had heard of the human military's supposed might. Neither the Elerians nor the Ores were a warlike species, but mankind was practically forged in war. Whereas Elerian medical technology could guarantee everlasting life if one so wished it, and Ores agriculture guaranteed bountiful food for all, the humans had their guns and their dreadnoughts. 
 
 The screen clicked back to Orland. He cleared his throat. “ And now, citizens, a special gift. I go now to Enys Void, live from orbit around the Blue Marble. ” The screen clicked over to show a grey-skinned, freckled, rather lanky being standing in front of a camera, dressed in what seemed to be a sealed space-suit. She stood beside a human – or rather practically underneath. She barely came up to the creature's waist. Many watching the program were surprised. While scientific pictures of humans were available everywhere, as well as various photographs of their worlds, the common knowledge of just how large they were did n't sink in until you actually saw one standing next to an Elerian. It was intimidating, to say the least. The camera moved back and panned up to try to capture both of them. The human was an old one, and his skin was pale. The oddity that was his hair was combed back neatly, and he wore dark armor up to his neck. In the background, human soldiers could be seen moving in steadfast march towards some unseen, off-camera destination. 
 
 “ Greetings, Orland. I'm coming to you now with a military councilor of Earth, Richard Schrader, ” the reporter said, pronouncing the name slowly and with a heavy, garbled accent. The human cleared his throat. 
 
 “ General, ” the word was foreign, “ are what called, ” the general said in poor Elerian. It was still incredibly good for how difficult the language was for human vocal cords – for an Elerian, it was near impossible to pronounce half of a human's tones. Regardless, captions were displayed for the sizable amount of Elerians who would n't be able to make out the words through the gruffness of the human's voice. 
 
 “ Well, jin-e-ral, I'd like to ask you some questions if you do n't mind, ” Void replied, looking up at the weathered veteran. She spoke slowly so as to allow him to process the words. It took a moment – he combed over the tonal variances in his head, the pauses that changed the meaning of the sentence, the clicks and hums, then cleared his throat and replied, “ Ask. ” 
 
 “ Your senate, jin-e-ral, has approved your forces to go to war as of now, correct? ” 
 
 “ Is correct, ” he replied after a brief moment to mull over the meaning of the words. 
 
 “ How soon can it be expected to see mankind on the frontlines in Centauri? ” 
 
 “ Matter of day, ” he continued. “ First, third, fourth and eighth fleet have mobilization as today, ” 
 
 Void's expression shifted to one of surprise. “ You do not have a period of preparation? Of prayer, or the need to conscript and train soldiers? ” The concept of a standing army was a foreign one to Elerians. Of course you would have a small defensive militia set up, but when war hit, you relied on volunteers. Only in this most recent conflict was the idea of a draft actually put into effect – as more and more Elerians died, more had to replace them. 
 
 “ All force ready to fight at all time. Have deal with insurgents, pirate, rebel, all time. Not something you have deal with; climate of combat deem necessary for us constant army. ” It took him a while to get the words out, but they were clearly understandable. 
 
 “ I see. Well, I, along with every other Elerian, have heard tales of your military might, and being here I ca n't help but feel impressed. Would you mind if the cameras turned to show the flight deck? ” 
 
 “ Correct, ” said the general. It was an affirmation – not the correct one in the Elerian language, but a sweep of his gloved hand gave a'go ahead' to the Elerian drone camera and the crew controlling it. From its place in mid air, it turned to the left. 
 
 Troops continued to march by in five-by-eight groups down the hallway. All of them were faceless – plated carbon armor overlaying insulated, thin, vacuum-proof synthetic fiber suits. Their helmets had no visor to speak of, relying on external cameras. The troops, even in their armor, looked lithe and agile, and each one walked in perfect pace with his or her comrades. Their rifles were long and black, resting on shoulders like old-world musketmen. Elerian military technology was primitive compared to this. It was polished, of course, and the technology appeared almost magical next to mankind's, but it simply did n't do the same damage, nor prevent it as humans did. 
 
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 Part Two; http: //www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/comments/2ahxed/wp_war_has_been_raging_for_years_upon_years_now/civq3yg
