This completes this thread. The station was totaly abandoned shortly afterward and captured by the Kusari Empire. However the Blood Dragons and the Outcasts (a group from further afield in league with the Dragons) started to become increasingly involved in the war from this point onward patialy as a result of the events portrayed here.
All posts by Carnifex were writen by me. All other posts were writen by their respective authors. All posts are the work and property of those who wrote them. Also... disclaimers suck, hehe.
Monday, February 22, 2010
#15 by Carnifex
Ten minutes later the Armoured Transport had landed and the bay contained the entirety of the remaining personelle on the base, not that many in all. The loading ramp lowered and a handfull of heavily armed marines stood at the ready. Reginald stepped up onto the ramp with them just as it hit the deck.
"You seemed in such a hurry to evacuate the base over the com, is there an attack on the horizen or something?" he asked.
"We're in an armoured transport deep behind enemy lines hauling a load of civilians, if I'm not mistaken there was a similar situation not long ago and a freighter was nearly oblitirated. What other reason do we need to have to be in a hurry?"
Turning to the massed population of the base the marine began to hurd everyone into the bowls of the ship with a loud speaker.
"Everyone onto the transport right now, this is the last ship out of here and it leaves in five minutes!!"
Six minutes later the transport was making tracks back to the cover of the nearby gas clouds and the Kyushu jump hole while the Bretonian fighter pilots stayed behind to prevent anyone getting suspisious.
"You seemed in such a hurry to evacuate the base over the com, is there an attack on the horizen or something?" he asked.
"We're in an armoured transport deep behind enemy lines hauling a load of civilians, if I'm not mistaken there was a similar situation not long ago and a freighter was nearly oblitirated. What other reason do we need to have to be in a hurry?"
Turning to the massed population of the base the marine began to hurd everyone into the bowls of the ship with a loud speaker.
"Everyone onto the transport right now, this is the last ship out of here and it leaves in five minutes!!"
Six minutes later the transport was making tracks back to the cover of the nearby gas clouds and the Kyushu jump hole while the Bretonian fighter pilots stayed behind to prevent anyone getting suspisious.
#14 by Carnifex
Pieces of debris huddled around the jump gate and were slowly and quietly drifting off in every direction. The battle was over, the combatants nowhere to be found. Most of the Blood Dragons had died or been forced to eject in their own escape pods and the ones who hadn’t had retreated the moment the Samura re-enforcements had arrived from Sapporo station had appeared at extreme scanner range. White 1 and White 2 had been escorted back to Sapporo and the Matsumoto’s fighters had followed after the retreating Dragons.
Reginald sat on the landing deck which now looked dirtier and more unkempt then the rest of the station. Some of those escape pods from the Kinjiru had gotten away, he thought to himself. Even if they hadn’t, there was no guarantee that the stolen information was even on that ship. It probably didn’t matter all that much though. Regardless of whether or not he lost his job and was black listed by Liberty corporations for all but the most menial tasks he was still stuck on this station, well behind enemy lines in a war that was heating up.
“Reg..?” came a voice from behind him.
Startled for a moment he turned to see one of his construction ship operators had quietly entered the silent landing deck still toting a large high-powered shotgun like it was his best friend.
“What is it?” Reginald asked.
“There’s a Liberty Armoured Transport that’s just emerged from the Kayo, they’re sending a tight-beamed signal asking to speak to whoever is in charge.”
Reginald’s mouth dropped open slightly. Things are either about to get better or a lot worse he thought to himself.
Reginald sat on the landing deck which now looked dirtier and more unkempt then the rest of the station. Some of those escape pods from the Kinjiru had gotten away, he thought to himself. Even if they hadn’t, there was no guarantee that the stolen information was even on that ship. It probably didn’t matter all that much though. Regardless of whether or not he lost his job and was black listed by Liberty corporations for all but the most menial tasks he was still stuck on this station, well behind enemy lines in a war that was heating up.
“Reg..?” came a voice from behind him.
Startled for a moment he turned to see one of his construction ship operators had quietly entered the silent landing deck still toting a large high-powered shotgun like it was his best friend.
“What is it?” Reginald asked.
“There’s a Liberty Armoured Transport that’s just emerged from the Kayo, they’re sending a tight-beamed signal asking to speak to whoever is in charge.”
Reginald’s mouth dropped open slightly. Things are either about to get better or a lot worse he thought to himself.
#13 by Carnifex
As Reginald looked on he could see, via one of the work cameras attached to the gate, the shields of the Kinjiru flickering, about to fail. They dropped and she started taking fire, her engines gave out, she started to drift. The fire intencified as a dozen large escape pods launched, some of them busting into fireballs and spinning out of control as they became new targets for the Blood Dragon fighters.
The other Samura transports saw this and one of them made a run for it engaging cruise engines. The other transport hesitated and tried to make a run for it too late. Dragon fighters fired cruise disruptors and disabled its cruise engine. Lukily it wasn't the primary target so it was able to slink away without taking too much damage.
The Blood Dragon's were starting to take losses of their own. More and more ships were arriving to assist the Samura convoy. Back on the station Reginald felt a sence of rightchous malice growing inside of himself in direct proportion to the likelyhood of the death of those who had stolen the materials during the riots.
The other Samura transports saw this and one of them made a run for it engaging cruise engines. The other transport hesitated and tried to make a run for it too late. Dragon fighters fired cruise disruptors and disabled its cruise engine. Lukily it wasn't the primary target so it was able to slink away without taking too much damage.
The Blood Dragon's were starting to take losses of their own. More and more ships were arriving to assist the Samura convoy. Back on the station Reginald felt a sence of rightchous malice growing inside of himself in direct proportion to the likelyhood of the death of those who had stolen the materials during the riots.
#12 by Carnifex
Reginald watched the battle from the landing control centre on the Chugoku Gate Construction Site. The continued calls for help had suddenly hit a nerve with his conscience, after all those ships were laden with innocent people and chances are some were already dead and more cirtenly would be before this was over. However Reginald was able to push all of this to the back of his mind all to easily. 'If we support them then the Dragons might turn on us and that's the last thing we need right now,' he thought to himself, perhaps more as an excuse then as sound reasoning. 'No, we wont help them, they are as good as enemies to us now.'
Meanwhile the battle continued outside. Yet more torpedoes had been launched at the transports, most intercepted by the Kinjiru's turrets. Only two hadn't, one had dealt a glancing blow to the Kinjiru's shields and another had impacted the gate just meters from White 1. The Matsumoto's fighters swept in on the attackers the moment they arrived. The odds were now even between the sets of fighters and the embattled transports started taking less of a beating however the Dragons were not giving up. A conserted effort was being made to attack the Kinjiru from multiple directions at once time and time again. From a distance the unfinnished gate looked like a nest of hornets that were spewing bolts of energy at eachother while half of them tried to kill the queen.
Meanwhile the battle continued outside. Yet more torpedoes had been launched at the transports, most intercepted by the Kinjiru's turrets. Only two hadn't, one had dealt a glancing blow to the Kinjiru's shields and another had impacted the gate just meters from White 1. The Matsumoto's fighters swept in on the attackers the moment they arrived. The odds were now even between the sets of fighters and the embattled transports started taking less of a beating however the Dragons were not giving up. A conserted effort was being made to attack the Kinjiru from multiple directions at once time and time again. From a distance the unfinnished gate looked like a nest of hornets that were spewing bolts of energy at eachother while half of them tried to kill the queen.
#11 by Illogical Lemon
Nagahide held on tightly to the controls as another volley of fire hit their shields, causing them to drop even more. The situation wasn't looking good, as these Blood Dragon ships seemed to be in a completely different class to the ones he swatted practically every day. Worse still, the construction site's guns were conspicuously silent, apart from a solitary shot or two when a Dragon came too close to them. There was always the possibility that the mercenary's attack had damaged their turret control interface along with the power, but Nagahide believed that DSE were hoping for the Dragons to destroy them and ensure that their company secrets wouldn't be revealed. Nevertheless, he opened up communications to them again. Come in, CGCS! We need support out here, do you copy?
It was then that he saw three of the Dragon ships launching torpedoes at him. Quickly he brought the Kinjiru's rapid-firing defence turrets to bear on the incoming missiles, managing to strafe two of them down but wasn't quick enough to stop the third. He closed his eyes and braced for the impact, but to his surprise it sounded more distant than he had expected. He looked around, and saw that the torpedo hadn't been aimed at him – instead, it had gone through the gap that had been made when the Kinjiru had been forced forwards. It had hit White 2, dealing heavy damage to the ship. He cursed, and quickly reversed the ship to cover the gap and protect the vulnerable transport.
Bringing his guns to bear on an overeager Dragon that was flying directly at them, the pirate ship quickly fell to the overwhelming onslaught. However, it's debris continued at them, hitting the Kinjiru hard and overloading her shields. Nagahide flicked the switch to activate the shield batteries, which quickly brought them back online but only to a third of their maximum strength. Once again in his career, he found himself cursing whoever had designed the Dromedary line of ships for not giving them a battery capacity to match the powerful shields. Opening group comms to White wing, he ordered White 3 to transfer their batteries over to him, which was quickly done.
He risked a glance down at the scanners to see how many enemies remained, and was relieved to see that fighters were finally arriving from the Matsumoto to assist. Now we may have a chance, he thought to himself.
It was then that he saw three of the Dragon ships launching torpedoes at him. Quickly he brought the Kinjiru's rapid-firing defence turrets to bear on the incoming missiles, managing to strafe two of them down but wasn't quick enough to stop the third. He closed his eyes and braced for the impact, but to his surprise it sounded more distant than he had expected. He looked around, and saw that the torpedo hadn't been aimed at him – instead, it had gone through the gap that had been made when the Kinjiru had been forced forwards. It had hit White 2, dealing heavy damage to the ship. He cursed, and quickly reversed the ship to cover the gap and protect the vulnerable transport.
Bringing his guns to bear on an overeager Dragon that was flying directly at them, the pirate ship quickly fell to the overwhelming onslaught. However, it's debris continued at them, hitting the Kinjiru hard and overloading her shields. Nagahide flicked the switch to activate the shield batteries, which quickly brought them back online but only to a third of their maximum strength. Once again in his career, he found himself cursing whoever had designed the Dromedary line of ships for not giving them a battery capacity to match the powerful shields. Opening group comms to White wing, he ordered White 3 to transfer their batteries over to him, which was quickly done.
He risked a glance down at the scanners to see how many enemies remained, and was relieved to see that fighters were finally arriving from the Matsumoto to assist. Now we may have a chance, he thought to himself.
#10 by Carnifex
"This is Samura White 1 to the...."
The squadron leader of the Blood Dragons called out stongly over the wing's closed channel, "All Dragons, target the source of that transmission. All weapons free, if you get a clear shot then take it. Good hunting."
The Samura transports were slowly manuvering into position sheltering next to the fins of the gate claw with the Kinjiru covering their colective soft spots. As the Dragons moved in the firing was sporadic on both sides while the fighters weaved in and out of the gate's structure, some better then others. The close quarters neutralised the range advantage of the Kinjiru's weapons and the weaving of the Dragons made ammuniton runs against the transports difficult. The first few supporting Kusari fighters began to arrive, ones which had already been in space in the area when the distress call went out. The turrets of the Construction Site remained quiet with the exception of the occational warning shot when a Blood Dragon fighter strayed too close to the station. The com-chatter amoung the combatants was at fever pitch.
A Blood Dragon fighter swung around the outside of the gate and manuvered through an opening near the Kinjiru. Kicking in his thruster the pilot tried to wedge his ship between the Kinjiru and the gate, not quite managing it and popping out to the side before quickly dissapearing behind the gate. The Kinjiru swayed to one side. Moments later a second Dragon tried the same thing and this time managed to push the Kinjiru further from the shelter of the gate structure. The two ship's shields flared violently before the fighter's shield gave out and it crashed into the gate, bits of it tearing off as it tried to speed away to safety. Three Dragon ships outfitted with torpedoes and already on a bombing run lined up with fingers on the triggers while the remaining fighters turned away from the re-enforcements and toward the now more exposed Kinjiru, squeezing past eachother to get through the openings in the gate claw.
The squadron leader of the Blood Dragons called out stongly over the wing's closed channel, "All Dragons, target the source of that transmission. All weapons free, if you get a clear shot then take it. Good hunting."
The Samura transports were slowly manuvering into position sheltering next to the fins of the gate claw with the Kinjiru covering their colective soft spots. As the Dragons moved in the firing was sporadic on both sides while the fighters weaved in and out of the gate's structure, some better then others. The close quarters neutralised the range advantage of the Kinjiru's weapons and the weaving of the Dragons made ammuniton runs against the transports difficult. The first few supporting Kusari fighters began to arrive, ones which had already been in space in the area when the distress call went out. The turrets of the Construction Site remained quiet with the exception of the occational warning shot when a Blood Dragon fighter strayed too close to the station. The com-chatter amoung the combatants was at fever pitch.
A Blood Dragon fighter swung around the outside of the gate and manuvered through an opening near the Kinjiru. Kicking in his thruster the pilot tried to wedge his ship between the Kinjiru and the gate, not quite managing it and popping out to the side before quickly dissapearing behind the gate. The Kinjiru swayed to one side. Moments later a second Dragon tried the same thing and this time managed to push the Kinjiru further from the shelter of the gate structure. The two ship's shields flared violently before the fighter's shield gave out and it crashed into the gate, bits of it tearing off as it tried to speed away to safety. Three Dragon ships outfitted with torpedoes and already on a bombing run lined up with fingers on the triggers while the remaining fighters turned away from the re-enforcements and toward the now more exposed Kinjiru, squeezing past eachother to get through the openings in the gate claw.
#9 by Illogical Lemon
Nagahide sat down at the controls of the Kinjiru, and prepared for takeoff. As it had been the last to land, it was the closest to the bay doors and therefore would be the first to leave, followed by White 3 and with White 2 at the rear.
As the Dromedary left the bay into open space, Nagahide checked his scanner, and saw that instead of a full Empire attack the damage had been caused by a single mercenary. It was then that a large number of new contacts appeared, and his blood ran cold - several wings of Blood Dragon fighters were closing in, and fast. Immediately he launched open comms. This is Samura White 1 to the Matsumoto, CGCS and all friendly fighters in the area, we have a large number of Blood Dragon fighters closing in on us at high speed! We are lightly armed and carrying hundreds of civilians, please send assistance! Next, he switched over to a private line to Katsuma Shiiroto, aka Black 1 and the leader of their escort flight back at Sapporo. Black 1, this is White 1! We have a large number of Blood Dragon ships closing in, launch immediately and head over here with all haste!
Nagahide then considered his options. He could head at full speed towards the Matsumoto and the safety of its cannons, but the Dragons would be on top of them before they could even get halfway, leading to the certain destruction of at least one of the transports. Alternatively, he could dock back onto the station, but he wasn't sure how long the heavily damaged site would last, not to mention that the DSE people would definately try and search them again. Just then, a better plan came to mind. He would head around the construction site, and move the transports into the protection of the nigh-indestructible gate. The Kinjiru would position itself behind them at the opening to protect them, since it was much more heavily armed and armoured than the larger ships. There, they would attempt to hold out until reinforcements arrived and pushed the Blood Dragon force back.
Behind him, he could see White 2 had just exited the station. He opened up comms to the transports. White wing, do exactly what I tell you to, and we may just make it out of here alive...
As the Dromedary left the bay into open space, Nagahide checked his scanner, and saw that instead of a full Empire attack the damage had been caused by a single mercenary. It was then that a large number of new contacts appeared, and his blood ran cold - several wings of Blood Dragon fighters were closing in, and fast. Immediately he launched open comms. This is Samura White 1 to the Matsumoto, CGCS and all friendly fighters in the area, we have a large number of Blood Dragon fighters closing in on us at high speed! We are lightly armed and carrying hundreds of civilians, please send assistance! Next, he switched over to a private line to Katsuma Shiiroto, aka Black 1 and the leader of their escort flight back at Sapporo. Black 1, this is White 1! We have a large number of Blood Dragon ships closing in, launch immediately and head over here with all haste!
Nagahide then considered his options. He could head at full speed towards the Matsumoto and the safety of its cannons, but the Dragons would be on top of them before they could even get halfway, leading to the certain destruction of at least one of the transports. Alternatively, he could dock back onto the station, but he wasn't sure how long the heavily damaged site would last, not to mention that the DSE people would definately try and search them again. Just then, a better plan came to mind. He would head around the construction site, and move the transports into the protection of the nigh-indestructible gate. The Kinjiru would position itself behind them at the opening to protect them, since it was much more heavily armed and armoured than the larger ships. There, they would attempt to hold out until reinforcements arrived and pushed the Blood Dragon force back.
Behind him, he could see White 2 had just exited the station. He opened up comms to the transports. White wing, do exactly what I tell you to, and we may just make it out of here alive...
#8 by Carnifex
Reginald watched calmly as Nagahide helped the girl limp away. Despite the crowds of panic stricken people jostling past him to get to the ships and the DSE personal who were now in dissarray, some even brave enough to fire at the roof in a vain attempt to bring calm, Reginald felt almost relieved by the suddeness with which events had disintegrated. Now it was entirely out of his hands, but it wasn't over. As the last of the Samura employes climbed aboard the transports Reginald cleared the bay of all DSE personal and assigned each to their emergancy stations.
At roughly that same moment several wings of Blood Dragon fighters, armed to the teeth and in full formation, emurged from the Kayo cloud in cruise and intent on one thing and one thing only. The death of the head of Samura, the Blood Dragon's oldest enemy.
At roughly that same moment several wings of Blood Dragon fighters, armed to the teeth and in full formation, emurged from the Kayo cloud in cruise and intent on one thing and one thing only. The death of the head of Samura, the Blood Dragon's oldest enemy.
#7 by Illogical Lemon
Nagahide was about to reply when the sound of explosions broke out, along with the station shaking and the lights flickering even more than they were before. He nearly fell, but was supported by one of his guards. "Sir, it sounds like the Empire has begun another attack!"
Nagahide furrowed his brow. "I see... I understand their line of thought. DSE would never expect another attack to take place while the head of Samura is here." He turned to Reginald. "I'm sorry, but we need to get our people off this station to safety at once. The Empire won't attack us when we reach space." He stepped past the surprised man and took a loudspeaker out of the hands of a DSE man, who had been co-ordinating the search to this point. "All Samura personnel," he said through the device, "This is Lord Nagahide Samura. You are to board the transports at once, we're getting off this station right now."
The Samura civilians nervously picked up their pace towards the ships, but the DSE 'guards' tried to hold them back and continue the search. At this point, another explosion could be heard in the distance, which knocked out the lights. As the emergency back-ups came online, some of the Samura people being held back panicked and struck out at the guards. With that, the small amount of order that was being held suddenly broke, and Samura employees everywhere began screaming and pushing towards the ships, in a desperate bid to save themselves.
Nagahide ran over and helped up a Samura civilian who'd injured her leg in the chaos, supporting her towards the nearest transport. His guards surrounded them, pushing back any Samura employee who got too close in their frenzy. As he passed Reginald, Nagahide said to him, "I'm truly sorry about all of this. I'm sure you wish this war would be over, and I want you to know I feel exactly the same way. I have nothing against Liberty, and I hope that when the war ends we can return to having good relations between our Houses." With that, he carried on past the man towards White 2.
Nagahide furrowed his brow. "I see... I understand their line of thought. DSE would never expect another attack to take place while the head of Samura is here." He turned to Reginald. "I'm sorry, but we need to get our people off this station to safety at once. The Empire won't attack us when we reach space." He stepped past the surprised man and took a loudspeaker out of the hands of a DSE man, who had been co-ordinating the search to this point. "All Samura personnel," he said through the device, "This is Lord Nagahide Samura. You are to board the transports at once, we're getting off this station right now."
The Samura civilians nervously picked up their pace towards the ships, but the DSE 'guards' tried to hold them back and continue the search. At this point, another explosion could be heard in the distance, which knocked out the lights. As the emergency back-ups came online, some of the Samura people being held back panicked and struck out at the guards. With that, the small amount of order that was being held suddenly broke, and Samura employees everywhere began screaming and pushing towards the ships, in a desperate bid to save themselves.
Nagahide ran over and helped up a Samura civilian who'd injured her leg in the chaos, supporting her towards the nearest transport. His guards surrounded them, pushing back any Samura employee who got too close in their frenzy. As he passed Reginald, Nagahide said to him, "I'm truly sorry about all of this. I'm sure you wish this war would be over, and I want you to know I feel exactly the same way. I have nothing against Liberty, and I hope that when the war ends we can return to having good relations between our Houses." With that, he carried on past the man towards White 2.
#6 by Zenelix
In a landing bay, onboard the Matsumoto, waited Zenelix onboard his Warmonger. He was concentrating on his computer's scanner, which was showing the traffic outside the battleship. The ships he was most interested in were the ones tagged as 'Armed Forces', indicating they were Bretonian. Why they were still here Zenelix didn't know, and could really care less, but he knew that they would surely recognise him from his presence in the attack a few days ago. If they were the same pilots, he didn't want to have to go against them whilst fulfilling his contract. Suddenly, he noticed a change in their flight pattern - it seemed they were ending their patrol and heading to the construction site.http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=3673036072047181129 Zenelix clicked his knuckles, knowing that this was the opportunity he'd been waiting for. As soon as they disappeared from the scanner, Zenelix opened up comms to the docking control room. "This is Independent Zulu, requesting permission to launch."
Once in space, Zenelix flew towards the construction station. The station's guns turned warily towards him, and he believed they also recognised him. He grinned. "Come in, Chugoku Gate Construction Site. As is always the case with these things... it's nothing personal!" With that, he opened fire on the station, and began evasive maneuvers against the returning fire.
Once in space, Zenelix flew towards the construction station. The station's guns turned warily towards him, and he believed they also recognised him. He grinned. "Come in, Chugoku Gate Construction Site. As is always the case with these things... it's nothing personal!" With that, he opened fire on the station, and began evasive maneuvers against the returning fire.
#5 by Carnifex
Reginald was walking quickly along one of the darkened corridors leading to the landing bay where the Samura ships had set down while talking into a small com device.
"They are still running a patrol pattern a few klicks from the station Reg," came a voice through the com device.
"Tell them to get back to the station and docked in bay one right now. The last thing we need is a bunch of Bretonian fighter jockeys outside when those Blood Dragons arrive," replied Reginald irritably.
"Reg," came the voice again, "Are you sure this is a good idea? We're playing with fire here."
"Look, Meg... No one is going to find out, as far as they will be concirned it'll just be a bad coincidence. Now tell those Brits to get their exaust ports back here and safely on the station." This last sentance was said just as he entered the landing bay.
Looking around at the noisey, disheveled mass of people collecting at the far end of the bay he noticed a man flanked by men who were obviously guards approaching a group of DSE personal. Reginald jogged over to him as one of the DSE personal pointed Reg out to the guarded man.
"Are you in charge here?"
"Yes, I am the Project Manager here at the Construction Site."
"Why are you searching these people?" demanded Nagahide motioning to the mass of Samura personal who were now slowly filtering through the net of makeshift DSE 'guards', small piles of computer pads and hand held equipment begining to form in places.
"I'm afraid I can't let any DSE property leave this base Sir, regulations and all that," concluded Reg nonchalantly, "I could lose my job if this equipment here is just alowed to walk right off my station." He looked forlornly at the small collections of scrap begining to litter the ground around the DSE personal.
"They are still running a patrol pattern a few klicks from the station Reg," came a voice through the com device.
"Tell them to get back to the station and docked in bay one right now. The last thing we need is a bunch of Bretonian fighter jockeys outside when those Blood Dragons arrive," replied Reginald irritably.
"Reg," came the voice again, "Are you sure this is a good idea? We're playing with fire here."
"Look, Meg... No one is going to find out, as far as they will be concirned it'll just be a bad coincidence. Now tell those Brits to get their exaust ports back here and safely on the station." This last sentance was said just as he entered the landing bay.
Looking around at the noisey, disheveled mass of people collecting at the far end of the bay he noticed a man flanked by men who were obviously guards approaching a group of DSE personal. Reginald jogged over to him as one of the DSE personal pointed Reg out to the guarded man.
"Are you in charge here?"
"Yes, I am the Project Manager here at the Construction Site."
"Why are you searching these people?" demanded Nagahide motioning to the mass of Samura personal who were now slowly filtering through the net of makeshift DSE 'guards', small piles of computer pads and hand held equipment begining to form in places.
"I'm afraid I can't let any DSE property leave this base Sir, regulations and all that," concluded Reg nonchalantly, "I could lose my job if this equipment here is just alowed to walk right off my station." He looked forlornly at the small collections of scrap begining to litter the ground around the DSE personal.
#4 by Illogical Lemon
Thank you, Nagahide replied in a friendly voice, moving to docking bay two. White 2, you're first, then White 3. I'll move in last.
...
Once all three ships were down and secured, Nagahide walked to the top of the ramp by his ship. Behind him stood 5 of his trusted bodyguards, a necessary arrangement considering the governments behind the two companies were at war. The massive bay they had landed in was a mess, with half of the lights flickering and piles of debris caused by the Kusari Empire's attack lying in piles against the walls and scattered across the floors. Despite this, it was still practically empty, save the three Samura ships. Even they barely filled half the bay however, leaving plenty of room towards the back for hundreds of people.
Nagahide could see the first of his employees starting to enter the room from the far entrance. They looked filthy and worn out, but he could practically feel their joy as they laid eyes on the Samura ships. He started to think that this would go easier than expected, but that line of thought stopped dead once he noticed armed DSE personnel enter from the side doors. They moved in between the Samura employees and the ships, making it obvious they were planning to search them all before they could board. Nagahide clenched his fist for a second, before calming himself down and walking towards the nearest DSE group he could see.
"What's going on here?" he called to them as he got closer.
...
Once all three ships were down and secured, Nagahide walked to the top of the ramp by his ship. Behind him stood 5 of his trusted bodyguards, a necessary arrangement considering the governments behind the two companies were at war. The massive bay they had landed in was a mess, with half of the lights flickering and piles of debris caused by the Kusari Empire's attack lying in piles against the walls and scattered across the floors. Despite this, it was still practically empty, save the three Samura ships. Even they barely filled half the bay however, leaving plenty of room towards the back for hundreds of people.
Nagahide could see the first of his employees starting to enter the room from the far entrance. They looked filthy and worn out, but he could practically feel their joy as they laid eyes on the Samura ships. He started to think that this would go easier than expected, but that line of thought stopped dead once he noticed armed DSE personnel enter from the side doors. They moved in between the Samura employees and the ships, making it obvious they were planning to search them all before they could board. Nagahide clenched his fist for a second, before calming himself down and walking towards the nearest DSE group he could see.
"What's going on here?" he called to them as he got closer.
#3 by Carnifex
The request sounded through the landing deck control room speakers eliciting both apprehension and relief from the occupants. Reginald Huntly was the project manager on the Gate Construction Site and he had been dreading this moment. As soon as it had been discovered that some very valuable materials had gone missing during the riots he had been hoping that they could be found quickly and quietly. Now those materials were going to have a chance to leave the station and if they did then Reginald would certainly lose his job.
‘Missing’ was in fact a misnomer in this case. Most of the items in question were data files. The originals were intact in the station’s restricted access computer network deep in the DSE only section of the station. However the activity logs clearly showed requests for duplication of the files despite the lack of any record of anyone signing in at a terminal, a security protocol that had apparently been overlooked by those responsible when they covered their tracks. To make matters worse the riots had caused power losses so the surveillance system had been down.
So ‘stolen’ would be a more accurate description. Missing was a word used to re-enforce the need to find the stolen material in the minds of the station’s DSE personnel.
“Sir..?” said a feminine voice from behind Reginald, “What is your reply?”
Reginald paused momentarily and breathed deeply. “Tell them to begin their approach Meg.”
“Ok,” replied the voice, a hint of tension detectable. “Samura White Wing, you are clear to begin your approach to docking bay two,” a pause while considering if anything should be added, “Umm.. Welcome.”
Reginald was already moving out of the messy and dark control room, “Harry,” he said to a tired looking and unwashed engineer standing by the door, “Get everyone to start moving the Samura guys down toward the bay two floor and make sure our people are armed, we’re going to search all of those Samura workers thoroughly before we let them go.”
“All six hundred Reg?” he replied in a whining tone.
“Yes, nothing that doesn’t belong to Samura is to leave this base. Not if we have anything to say about it.”
All through the station people, most of them sleep deprived and irritable, started to move through the piles of rubbish, destroyed furniture and equipment strewn about the now poorly lit construction base toward the launch pads.
‘Missing’ was in fact a misnomer in this case. Most of the items in question were data files. The originals were intact in the station’s restricted access computer network deep in the DSE only section of the station. However the activity logs clearly showed requests for duplication of the files despite the lack of any record of anyone signing in at a terminal, a security protocol that had apparently been overlooked by those responsible when they covered their tracks. To make matters worse the riots had caused power losses so the surveillance system had been down.
So ‘stolen’ would be a more accurate description. Missing was a word used to re-enforce the need to find the stolen material in the minds of the station’s DSE personnel.
“Sir..?” said a feminine voice from behind Reginald, “What is your reply?”
Reginald paused momentarily and breathed deeply. “Tell them to begin their approach Meg.”
“Ok,” replied the voice, a hint of tension detectable. “Samura White Wing, you are clear to begin your approach to docking bay two,” a pause while considering if anything should be added, “Umm.. Welcome.”
Reginald was already moving out of the messy and dark control room, “Harry,” he said to a tired looking and unwashed engineer standing by the door, “Get everyone to start moving the Samura guys down toward the bay two floor and make sure our people are armed, we’re going to search all of those Samura workers thoroughly before we let them go.”
“All six hundred Reg?” he replied in a whining tone.
“Yes, nothing that doesn’t belong to Samura is to leave this base. Not if we have anything to say about it.”
All through the station people, most of them sleep deprived and irritable, started to move through the piles of rubbish, destroyed furniture and equipment strewn about the now poorly lit construction base toward the launch pads.
#2 by Illogical Lemon
Chugoku Gate Construction Site, Hokkaido System
The next day
The small Samura convoy passed Battleship Matsumoto on its way to the CGCS. It consisted of a pair of transports and a Dromedary-class freighter - Nagahide's personal ship, the Kinjiru. The assignment rotors of the station indicated that there were 647 Samura employees currently working on the station. The two transports would pick up 280 of the civilians each, and the Kinjiru was to pick up those remaining. With the proximity of the Matsumoto and with Samura's image to uphold, Nagahide had decided not to bring any escorts to the station, leaving their 4 Drake-class combat interceptors at Sapporo Station.
This is Samura White wing to Chugoku Gate Construction Site, Nagahide transmitted to the station, requesting permission to dock and begin the evacuation of Samura personnel.
The next day
The small Samura convoy passed Battleship Matsumoto on its way to the CGCS. It consisted of a pair of transports and a Dromedary-class freighter - Nagahide's personal ship, the Kinjiru. The assignment rotors of the station indicated that there were 647 Samura employees currently working on the station. The two transports would pick up 280 of the civilians each, and the Kinjiru was to pick up those remaining. With the proximity of the Matsumoto and with Samura's image to uphold, Nagahide had decided not to bring any escorts to the station, leaving their 4 Drake-class combat interceptors at Sapporo Station.
This is Samura White wing to Chugoku Gate Construction Site, Nagahide transmitted to the station, requesting permission to dock and begin the evacuation of Samura personnel.
#1 by Illogical Lemon
Chugoku Gate Construction Site, Hokkaido System
January 2, 807
The station was in chaos. Despite the fact that DSE knew of the Kusari Empire's impending attack, and were well prepared for the fighting outside their station, they had overlooked a major detail - the Samura employees working on the station. They hadn't been informed by the DSE or by their superiors of the attack, and went into a state of panic when the time came. As such, rioting was taking place all over the station, as the DSE security tried to keep the peace and hold back the screaming masses who were attempting to reach the escape pods.
However, not all of the Samura employees were caught off-guard. There were a select few who had been posted on this station since its construction, who had been waiting and preparing for such an opportunity. As soon as the first alarms went off, they made their move. Mixing in with the crowds in order to move around the station, they used the confusion to make their way towards the restricted sections. There, while the guards were preoccupied with the rioting, they managed to sneak in and aquire various documents and blueprints – items they'd been waiting for years to take. With these in their possession, they escaped the restricted areas and disappeared back into the masses.
Shinjuku Station, New Tokyo System
A few days later
Nagahide stood in his office, staring out of the window. His office was immaculately tidy, mainly because he spent so little time in it. He had countless identical offices all over the station, and switched between them seemingly at random. Officially to the company this was done to protect him from assassins and terrorists, however the truth was that it made it impossible for anyone to know where and who he was meeting.
The room was very simply furnished – a single desk with a computer at the side (which was never used – it contained only basic and 'official' data, in order to throw off any overly curious employees or spies who should gain access), and three chairs. The walls were plain and bare, just a basic silvery steel as could be found in the corridors or elsewhere in the station. The window technically wasn't one – it was in fact a highly advanced monitor screen, connected to a series of cameras positioned elsewhere on the station, set up to make it indistinguishable from a real window. Also, the room was completely bare of any cameras or other security measures, ensuring that anything that went on inside was kept a secret.
The communicator on Nagahide's ear burst to life suddenly, interrupting his thoughts. “Sir,” the voice of his secretary came through, “A message has come through for you.” “Go ahead.” Nagahide replied in a friendly manner.
“Yes, sir. The message is, 'The shipment bound for Sapporo has arrived, however we need some help getting everything unloaded and set up.'” Nagahide froze for a second as he understood the meaning of the code, before quickly composing himself and replying, “Thank you, Osei. Oh, and that reminds me, could you inform the news services that I will be making an announcement in an hour?” “Yes, sir.”
With that, the communicator turned off. Nagahide stood motionless for a few seconds, before a wide grin spread across his face. After years of waiting and wasted resources, Operation Full Circle would finally pay off.
January 2, 807
The station was in chaos. Despite the fact that DSE knew of the Kusari Empire's impending attack, and were well prepared for the fighting outside their station, they had overlooked a major detail - the Samura employees working on the station. They hadn't been informed by the DSE or by their superiors of the attack, and went into a state of panic when the time came. As such, rioting was taking place all over the station, as the DSE security tried to keep the peace and hold back the screaming masses who were attempting to reach the escape pods.
However, not all of the Samura employees were caught off-guard. There were a select few who had been posted on this station since its construction, who had been waiting and preparing for such an opportunity. As soon as the first alarms went off, they made their move. Mixing in with the crowds in order to move around the station, they used the confusion to make their way towards the restricted sections. There, while the guards were preoccupied with the rioting, they managed to sneak in and aquire various documents and blueprints – items they'd been waiting for years to take. With these in their possession, they escaped the restricted areas and disappeared back into the masses.
Shinjuku Station, New Tokyo System
A few days later
Nagahide stood in his office, staring out of the window. His office was immaculately tidy, mainly because he spent so little time in it. He had countless identical offices all over the station, and switched between them seemingly at random. Officially to the company this was done to protect him from assassins and terrorists, however the truth was that it made it impossible for anyone to know where and who he was meeting.
The room was very simply furnished – a single desk with a computer at the side (which was never used – it contained only basic and 'official' data, in order to throw off any overly curious employees or spies who should gain access), and three chairs. The walls were plain and bare, just a basic silvery steel as could be found in the corridors or elsewhere in the station. The window technically wasn't one – it was in fact a highly advanced monitor screen, connected to a series of cameras positioned elsewhere on the station, set up to make it indistinguishable from a real window. Also, the room was completely bare of any cameras or other security measures, ensuring that anything that went on inside was kept a secret.
The communicator on Nagahide's ear burst to life suddenly, interrupting his thoughts. “Sir,” the voice of his secretary came through, “A message has come through for you.” “Go ahead.” Nagahide replied in a friendly manner.
“Yes, sir. The message is, 'The shipment bound for Sapporo has arrived, however we need some help getting everything unloaded and set up.'” Nagahide froze for a second as he understood the meaning of the code, before quickly composing himself and replying, “Thank you, Osei. Oh, and that reminds me, could you inform the news services that I will be making an announcement in an hour?” “Yes, sir.”
With that, the communicator turned off. Nagahide stood motionless for a few seconds, before a wide grin spread across his face. After years of waiting and wasted resources, Operation Full Circle would finally pay off.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)