LORRD CITY- The beginning of a major deal came to fruition today, when Senator Roman Lekpin of Lorrd signed an expansive trade route deal, brokering a little known 'back route' through several sectors. Including the worlds of Mentanar Vosk (Nijune Sector), Kabieroun (Nijune Sector), the Vannan (Nijune Sector), Kauron (Meram Sector), Thalassia (Meram Sector) and terminating in Praadost II (Nembus Sector) directly on the Hydian Way. "This has been a quiet project between myself, several other worlds in the Kanz Sector, and the leaders of [the aforementioned worlds]. We've all come a very long way, putting aside a multitude of differences for this, and we expect it to pay off well." The newly christened 'Lorrd-Praadost trade route' is expected to greatly benefit the inhabitants of the worlds along the route, along with the outlying worlds that were forced to pay much heavier costs to ship longer distance to the Axxila-Tangrene Hyperlane or the Veragi Trade Route. In addition, the Lorrd-Praadost Trade Route runs close to the Daranc Run, allowing for increased trade flow through the sectors it runs through.

"This was a very difficult deal to work," Senator Lekpin went on to say in a press conference. "The people of Vannan, known for their expensive and hard-to-find Vannan crystals, were exceptionally happy to be a part of this; they've been attempting to stamp out black market profiteering of Vannan crystals for some time now, and it is our combined hope that this trade route will make getting their goods to market much easier." The route wasn't without its issues, though. The government of Thalassia requested assistance from all worlds along the route in stamping out their slaver issue as much as possible. With Lorrd being at the forefront of anti-slavery campaigns, it is expected that it will contribute greatly towards these efforts. More interestingly, perhaps, is the rumor of a 'Rim Security Force' in the making, by a number of planets. While no certain facts can be confirmed, it is widely speculated that a combination of lack of Judicial Forces in the Outer Rim along with certain worlds' dislike of Trade Federation policies and heavy-handed use of their trade status, may lead to a coalition of worlds contributing ships and forces towards a central 'pool' for the defense of the Outer Rim worlds. Whether or not this is simply rumor or fact is yet to be seen.