It was a month after the incident with the mystery red dagger. Since then the Invictus has positioned itself within a debris field orbiting a white dwarf, making the ship hard to detect. Even more when the ship has minimal systems operating. Hiding in this field was now the only option open to Commander Price. Although he didn't like it, hiding here has given him the ideal opportunity to gain critical Intel of his position and the forces fighting for power in this region of space.Turns out, the entire field consists of destroyed ships. There were ships which looked more like flying cathedrals than anything else. A bit away from them blood red dagger shaped ships from various sizes were floating around. Probably a leftover from a long forgotten war, but now a goldmine for others looking for pickings.Price ordered search teams to board the floating husks and look for Intel. The Dagger shaped ships were a no-go. Once teams got too close they all started to get sick and
It took the crew a few hours longer than expected to translate the salvaged star-charts, but now at least they'd have a tool to work with. Verification with visible constellations wasn't really difficult once the map was readable. It seems that his ship jumped in a well-traveled area, a place called the Fire Fall, whatever that may be. The system they were currently in was nothing but a relay identified by a series of numbers, Relay 571, nothing significant. What was significant was the huge amount of space this Imperium Hominis seemed to have. The Twelve Colonies were just a speck on this map by scale! At least now they knew the Imperium was vast and very powerful. Now it was up to him to figure out the next step. What now? The answer to that question would come sooner than he thought..."CONN-DRADIS, I've got a bogey bearing 305 carum 04.""Identify""Unknown contact sir, whatever it is, that sucker is HUGE! The power signature is off the charts." "Keep me inf
Traveling to Port Maw took just under a week of traveling. Both ships kept traveling in Convoy for security reasons, but because they were now well within Imperium controlled space, it wasn't really necessary. Aside from a single skirmish with a possible lost red escort the journey itself wasn't very eventful. With three days to go, the little group met up with a couple of frigates. It seemed that the SkyWatcher had sent word of their arrival. This group was some kind of Honor guard or something like that. It didn't matter what it was called, the crew on board both ships were happy with two extra ships flying alongside them.At last the small convoy entered the system on the outer edge. Slowly the group slid towards the massive spaceport, while the small escort ships broke off and took position on the systems outskirts.Docking in massive spaceport took a bit longer than usual. Not because it was harder, or busier than the battlestar crew was used to. Thi
Walking through the halls of this space station was very much different from anything he had seen before. If anything this part of the station looked more like an ancient cathedral than a hall of a space station. Though this was one. Man and material were moving through many of the same halls, going about their business. Even skulls were flying around! If anything, these Imperial guys were a weird bunch. It took a few minutes for Price and his escort of soldiers to reach the planning chamber, which could be easier described as a church nave, where he would meet Ravensburg again for his briefing. And as expected, through the door he could see the authoritarian silhouette of the Lord-Admiral standing across the room."Morning Admiral" Price said as he saluted.Ravensburg answered his salute "Good morning Commander. Thankyou for coming over. How are the repairs to your ship coming?""Your mechanicum boys are a weird bunch, a bit nervous yammering on about their mac
The journey towards the first jump point would take a couple of days. From the moment the ship left the system of Port Maw, all the crew saw were readiness drills, combat drills, or any other kind a commanding officer could think up. The crew didn't like it much. The officers on the other hand saw this as a golden opportunity to train the crew a bit more while they were still in relatively safe area.Not knowing what's ahead, everyone could use all the training they could get. In addition to that, it would keep the crew occupied.For all his experience, Mercer Trune had to agree with this. Going into combat within possibly two weeks, he had to get the hang of his new kite and fast. From the moment the ship departed Port Maw he had almost non stop briefings and classes on the Viper. Luckily his instructor seemed to be a man who knew what he was talking about.As promised Mercer met his instructor at his cabin. The man looked as if he was somewhere past his fiftie
Commander Widmann paced around in his cabin, its window overlooking the bow of the ship. He had been waiting for days already with his Escort squadrons. Waiting for the word to set off. His ships had already taken position around the cargo ships in convoy. His Sword class frigate, the Falcon, took point in the formation. They were flanked by two Firestorm Frigates, the Vigel and Achilles. The formation was closed by the last Sword frigate, the Hydra.The formation was ready to go for two days already. He could've set off already, were it not for his original backup being rerouted somewhere else. Instead he was to be reinforced at some outsider ship. And now they would have to wait for it while they should have been under way! Whoever gave this outrageous order only the emperor knows. But if he had his way he would have his head!There was nothing to be done about it now.A knocking sound came from his door. "Enter". His second in command, Lieutenant Konig entere
During the next eleven days the convoy repelled multiple pirate raids. Somehow the Pirate lords got wind of the convoy, but the attempts to stop and raid it had little result. Long before the attacks were carried out, the Viper patrols and sensor systems of the escort fleet had already seen the raiders coming. All it achieved was thinning the pirate fleet numbers while they barely delayed the resupply fleet. With the combined effort of the imperial escorts and Invictus they managed to destroy four frigates and multiple Cobra Destroyers. Apparently the pirates didn't count on a tough escort with swarms of strike craft bearing down on them like a swarm of angry bees. When the convoy was not in combat, the Invictus ran drill after drill while keeping up patrols. Mainly because of this. Commander Widmann came to see the value of the Battlestar and found respect for its commander. With Invictus controlling the space around, the imperial escorts were free to move as they saw fit, increasing
The oldest veteran appeared to be his instructor. According to the pilots Bingo was a decorated veteran of what they called 'The First Cylon War', although he rarely wore his medals. He was offered promotions multiple times, but he wanted to keep flying so he declined them all. So after all this time he still flies the same bird he flew all those years ago. Regardless of the stories told, every time the name 'Bingo' came across the table it was soon followed with: "Pay attention to what that old man says. It may save your life one day." And that he did. For Mercer the time for training was over. The ship was now in an active war zone so it needed every pilot and plane that could fly. So there he was, flying a Combat Patrol near the resupply area as Bingo's wingman. He felt sharp and ready to go. Bingo was less excited and held him back a bit. Nevertheless from the moment his Viper blasted out of the launch tube, Mercer kept his finger close to the Master Arm button. He wanted to be re
Report: FiskA few hundred meters beneath Rome.Italy.Centro di produzione TMC, divisione di Roma.(TMC production center, Roman division.)"Can't be too careful," Carl smiled.My heart skipped a beat. Did he know?I'd seen Jackson duck behind the Punisher-T from when I'd entered. I assumed Karen was behind it, too. I had to keep Carl away from my allies long enough for them to escape.It dawned on my how ironic this was. A few weeks ago I would've been furious to learn how unobservant and arrogent Carl was. Now? I was happy. His ego would be our saving grace. I just had to keep him talking."So when do I hear about this Exodus," I said, sweeping my arm around Carl and leading him away from the computer. "I'd like to hear all about it."Carl looked enthused, a beaming grin spreading across his face, and he turned towards me. I followed his lead as we marched a few dozen feet away towards a large tarp, and stopped."Well," he said, "everyone loves rapid-fire rocket weapons. You have y
The hallway smelled of oil and cleaner, burning my nose as I marched, boots squeaking against the steel floor. The hallway was cold and dimly lit, with only a few eerie orange lights for decoration. Beyond this hall was the factory floor and our goal.Karen and I moved quickly, and I couldn't shake the feeling we were being pursued. I knew almost nothing about the layout of the underground factory, we were unarmed, and we had no disguise of any kind. I was just grateful that the guards were busy dealing with the riots on the surface. If I listened closely I could still hear the dull roar of the crowds, even through the massive steel doors.Those doors hadn't been a problem- only those guarding them. We'd selected an entrance on the opposite side of the city, as far away from the riots as possible. Surveillance was lax there, with only two guards. The TMC soldiers I'd seen looked identical to the men and women Draco had been with at Yamantau- black body armor and powerful rifles.Fortu
Report: QuinnThe bustling city of Rome.Italy.The Via Claudia.Temperature: 25° Celsius (77°F)Rome. City of marble and ruins. Rome's ancient history, once the life of so many a historian, was that of dominance, failure and reinvention. Just like the city of old, the Roman capital had fallen to civil war shortly before the Third World War. Rebellion ravaged Italy's capital, with it's citizens taking a stand against their complacent government. Although Italy's political superiors refused to partake in the World War, they knew they would not be safe for long.When the warheads were launched, many cities were targeted, Rome included. But despite the accusations of its citizens, the Italian government had been preparing. In a joint effort with China, two massive energy shields were deployed over Shenzhen and Rome, sparing them from the nuclear fire that consumed so much of the rest of the world.The OMEGA Horizon Shield, known by the locals as the 'scudo orizzonte', saved their lives.
Report: QuinnThe bustling city of Rome.Italy.Outside the Colosseum.Temperature: 27° Celsius (81°F)Something behind me shattered, spraying my back, legs and neck with bits of rubble as I ran. The hot sun beat against my face as my pursuers grew closer.I didn't know if it was a person or the robot who fired, but seconds later something warm and bright zipped past my head and struck a decorative statue in front of my, shattering an outstretched arm. The plaster sprayed my face as I ran, and a moment later my head was warm. I stepped around a group of fleeing pedestrians and glanced back, seeing the ball cap laying in the center of the street, hooked around the statue's stony fingers.Oh, well. The hat didn't matter.After all, the contents of the tablet in my pocket were much more important.I tapped my right ear, triggering the hearing-aid that doubled as my comms earpiece."Karen," I shouted, "do you copy?"A gasping, flushed voice crackled over the comms. Gunfire I heard in my l
In war, your greatest enemy is often yourself. We all begin war pure, fighting for righteousness' sake, but then the ego steps in, the hubris and the greed, and you feel invincible. But eventually you'll wake up and realize that you're not fighting for righteousness' sake anymore, you're not invincible, and that you're a long way from home. Looking back at everything that happened, I would say that this applies to myself, as well. I would be lying if I didn't say I had regrets. It's over now, I suppose. All is said and done. I never wanted to become a War Robot pilot, you know. I never expected it. When the first War Robot was built I was too young to know what I wanted to be when I was older. Before I knew it, the Iron War consumed my freedom to choose my fate. I joined the Chinese-Canadian Alliance on my own free will, sure, but the very fact that this was a choice I felt compelled to make illustrates my point. Every day the Iron War takes. It takes lives, yes, as do all wars, but
Report: Park Just off the coast of Nova Scotia. Canada. The remains of an Alliance base. Former designation: "The Firmament" Six hours later... Powerful halogen floodlights scanned the ocean surface, making the water shine. The blinding glow traced along the sides of the tower, across the film of oil and over floating debris. The fires that had consumed the Firmament were almost gone, leaving charred metal and burning oil in their wake. The flames provided little to see by-even the moon was hidden by clouds, so the searchlight was necessary. I stood in the cockpit of the dropship, staring down at the water as the vessel scanned the detritus. If something useful was found, the ship's mechanical arm system would target it, snatching it from the oil slick and pulling it inside. It had continued like this for over ten minutes, with little more than scraps discovered. "We have to go, Taewi," the dropship's pilot demanded. Her eyes were wide with worry, and her hands were a tan blu
"Just what the hell do you think you're doing, sacrificing my mech?"A blur of motion swept past the Firmament, snatching the Exodus out of the sky.A dropship."Laura?" I exclaimed. "You came back!""Looks like I got here just in time, too!" Laura replied. "I've got your friend-get the hell out of here! Rendezvous in Shenzhen!""But Mallet-" Alyx began."-can take care of herself!" Laura shot back. "Trust in her, she's your General for a reason! We need to go!""We're out!" Lucas called. The dropship lurched forward.The remaining Zephyrus, distracted by Kedrick's disappearance, didn't see our ship slip by them. We were out of their range in moments.My comms crackled, fading in and out."We're losing close-range radio," Dan informed me."I'll see you guys in China!" Kedrick shouted. He had to fight for his voice to be audible over the encroaching static. "Stay strong!"The comms cut out in a burst of static, and I slumped into a nearby seat.Kedrick was safe, but everything else was
After a moment of catching our breath, Dan, Draco, Alyx and I gathered ourselves and jogged into the cockpit where Lucas sat, fingers dancing across the controls."Strap the hell in!" he bellowed. Everyone scrambled to get to their seats."No!" Lucas glared, gesturing at Draco, "not you. Zip-tie yourself to that seat or you'd better hope you can fly!"Draco frowned, but did as he was told, taking a new pair of the plastic ties from Lucas' outstretched hand and latching himself to a seat.The dropship leapt into the air, soaring away from the battle."We're here to grab you when you need it, Kedrick," Lucas stated.Our forces, sensing this was a losing battle, had begun to retreat. Around us, the Zephyrus swarmed in unison, moving as if at the will of some invisible puppet master. Instead of shooting down the mechs as they were picked up, we watched in horror as they began to fly directly into the path of dropships, bringing them down."The hell?" Draco screamed. "This is suicide! This
The Firmament was built to function at a high altitude, but that didn't necessarily mean that its inhabitants were.The massive tower was well above the height that command capsules could safely travel, as the winds were so strong that they would be blown off course.The second issue was the fact that the entire upper dome of the ship was swarming with Zephyrus.Having breached the glass dome that took up most of the tower's roof, the winged mechs were using the remainder of the surface as a staging ground, gathering up top before descending into the tower to wreak havoc. With the dome gone, the surface area of the Firmament's highest point was about the same as an interior level-a large, circular platform with a gaping hole in its centre.Alyx, Draco and I stood in an emergency airlock on the top level of the Firmament, staring across the open surface of the tower.In its past life as a launch platform, the Firmament's upper deck had been where satellite and weather systems were loca