“Sara- Ah, yes Madam President I shall tell you what information I have readily available at this moment. Currently, we’ve only secured 13 survivors from the Strataric Battlecruiser Pobornik. I fear that those 13 are the only ones lucky enough to make it out of there alive, an old friend is amongst those possible survivors as well… I do hope you remember Melor?” Velhanz tilted his head slightly towards the ground upon saying his best friend’s name.
“We estimate that 241 lost their lives and it has been confirmed that an explosion happened on the ship. We can not confirm the cause for the explosion at this time though, I apologize. You should also be getting a message soon, please check your mail” Velhanz discreetly sent an email to Sarah. The contents describing the class reunion on Myriad II.
“Arcadia also got news of Myriad II under attack by pirates, please assist with securing the station if you have any ships close by. That is, up to you and your captains. Velhanz out” Velhanz saluted and the channel closed. So many familiar faces… and WHY THE HELL ARE MOST OF THEM WORLD LEADERS?!
As suggested, Sarah checked her email, and smiled. With everyone, it’d probably be filled with Royal Guards.
Unfortunately, by that time, the Osprey VII that dropped off the astronauts had fired its burns and had re-entered Urth’s atmosphere, postponing the launch of a military vehicle, or any craft.
The monstrous Myriad II station came into view slowly as the two FR-29 “Harbinger” gunships zoomed through Low-Urth-Orbit. “Captain, bring us to the platform closest to the action”, the gruff voice of Colonel Michael Conway said, as the speaker stared out the window at the looming orbital structure. “Roger that Colonel”, came the response from the pilot.
Colonel Conway had been dispatched with 21 other Adumaran SCAF(Special Combat Assault Forces) soldiers to Myriad station the moment the FRA government had heard about the pirate attack. The FRA government had always taken the SEPC seriously, Michael thought. Almost too seriously sometimes.
<We are approaching Myraid II station now>, the pilot’s voice said over the intercom. The two Gunships slowed as they maneuvered themselves into coordination with the station’s movement, and eventually were able to dock with the station after getting clearance from the Deck Officer.
The pirates in heavy armor suits stayed out of cover and continued advancing towards the airlock to the greater station, while those in civilian gear moved behind the stacks of shipping containers. Bullets plinked around the cavernous cargo hanger and tore holes through several bulkheads. Those that hit the pirates armor, however, buried themselves inside the heavy alloy and staggered their users back. Penetration resistance on the specially-designed suits allowed the wearers to be spared the more grievous injuries, though they did sometimes fall over or stagger back when hit.
The fighter craft, which had spin their engines up by this point, lifted from the deck. Two began unloading their weaponry into the hanger doors, while the third spun around and began a similar fusillade in the direction of the station security group. Two pirates were hit with pulse lasers and staggered to a stop, their chest plates heating to a cherry-red. Their comrades moved to support the break, firing their grenades and heavy anti-material weapons to destroy the back wall of the cargo bay as well as the security. two teams of hauler gear-equipped raiders climbed on top of one of the trolleys stacked with cargo pods, and with a swift input from a command console by their armor-clad fellows, they were sent along the conveyor track into the service tunnels leading off from the compartment.
The departure of the cargo trolley was accompanied by the launch of several grenades and a punishing burst of PDT fire from the escort craft hovering about the hanger.
The others manage to blow apart the door, and ride the explosive decompression out into space, where they twist on RCS bursts and blast out into the void with a pulse of their engines. Distantly, micro-missile drones flash from the pinpoints of light the fighters have become, and arc back to different spots in the station. The remaining pirates in the hanger, about 80, anchor themselves in place behind whatever cover they can find with their mag-boots.
Instantly, Myriad II’s point defense system turned on and started gunning down the micro-missiles. In the Command Center the stations shields were raised to take care of the stragglers. Myriad rocked slightly as the remaining missiles impacted with the shield. Patrol ships 305, 1038, and 1015 are mobilized to assist with the pirate threat.
Over the cargo bay’s intercom, SEPC security forces demanded the pirates to surrender. Petty Officer 1st Class Johnson Newark shot again, killing a pirate with a tungsten core bullet through the head.
“Good shot, theres another one, 320m and closing… It looks like he has a grenade. Take him” Johnson nodded and shot again, the pirate hitting the deck as the grenade landed a few feet in front of him. Unfortunately, the grenade exploded and gave the pirates a small time window to get up and move to new cover. SEPC security forces began to push, capturing the ground abandoned by their adversary. Two platoons would close in from the West and North in an attempt to surround the pirates. PT-305 fired its bow turret, a GAU-9 30mm cannon, in a strafing run on pirate positions while PT-1038 unloaded a squad of security officers to replenish Shiori Platoon and Delta Platoon, which were taking heavy casualties in defense of the right flank.
The heavily armored pirates drop their advance on the left flank and melt into the maze of cargo containers and shipping equipment. They leave a scattering of grenades and mines in their wake, making following a deadly task. Several are cut down by the patrol craft before they can make it to saftey. The pirate combat ship still inside the hanger drifts itself over the bulk of the huge cargo vessel still anchored in the center of the bay and begins blasting at the ship firing upon the ground forces.
The pirates on the right flank charge the security forces they are up against. Using the serrated bayonets on their rifles and hefting huge axes, they cut a swath through the soldiers towards the exit nearest them. Three drop under the combined laser fire from the defenders as they run. The heavy caliber rounds in their guns tear through the bulkheads and armor of the station, and some hit oxygen lines and electrical systems, and soon enough a fire is spreading in several adjacent hallways. The other members of their force emerge from their run through the cargo pod maze and begin to reinforce the right pirate flank.
The other pirates plant duffel bag bombs around the station and then are killed by security.
(OOC: I’m assuming that FTL is in use, so I get to use Alcubierre warp drives)
The bridge of the SRFS Valiant
"All weapons, standing by
Admiralissimo John Vega was being given a status report by bridge officer. He had transferred, and now got to enjoy the wonders of space. He had order the flagship to warp to SEPC space to aid the other warpship (plus, he sort of missed the ‘action’ he faced at the Northern front at the infamous Four Days War).
The helmsman came up to him. “Exotic matter at full.”
Vega replied, "Excellent. Put medium power into the drive; the trip should take about 30 seconds, with detours. Tell the autopilot to avoid hostile space. It should automatically turn it off and turn the ship. It should halt upon entering SEPC space. Use thrusters to navigate to the station, and the pirate ships.
Five minutes later
“Torpedo bays armed.”
The officer had returned, and had told Vega that, as commanded, the engines had been powered down (though nobody outside of the ship knows that) to focus power on shields and lasers. The torpedoes had their own guidance system, and with their initial trust from being ejected from the tubes, could maneuver (RCS works wonders) their way to the target.
Vega ordered, “Fire all the torpedoes that can hit the pirate ship. Arm the guided missiles. When the bays and missile holders aren’t firing, put all power on lasers.”
The missiles, unlike the torpedoes, had a built-in propulsion system (besides RCS), and could just turn in the direction of the target, instead of having to use lateral RCS to push the torpedo into the enemy. They were used more.
The heavy metal ramps crashed down onto the ground, and the SCAF soldiers streamed out of the Gunships. <All units, make for the hangar entrance immediately!>, Michael’s voice said over the radio. And with that, the small troop moved to the large blast doors.
They opened the door, and gained their posture upon seeing the many civilians rushing about in the corridors. The two squads began a quick march through the station, and eventually turned into a jog when they started seeing other security teams heading in their direction.
The men flipped their helmets down, and entered the large dock area through a small maintenance shaft close to the roof, guns raised. After they had all filed in silently and taken in their surroundings, they each aimed at an unsuited pirate, and fired.
OOC Post: Young, there are some things that contradict your post here. When Myriad II is put on lockdown, all civilians would’ve been escorted to designated safezones that only security and some of the stations higher ups would know about. These safezones usually change around once per month and there are usual drills in case the real thing happens. All civilian levels would go on lockdown and areas would’ve been cleared of any civilian presence, which is concentrated in the safezone. This leaves only security forces behind. It would be quite suspicious to see men step out of an elevator with heavy duffel bags into an abandoned mall level guarded by heavily armed security officers. Sorry to ruin the civilian massacre/hostage taking fun, but this kinda had to be brought up or it would bother me for centuries to come if i didn’t handle the issue.
The pirates are forced back into their cargo ship which goes full throttle out of the cargo hanger and then goes to FTL. The pirates that have hid in the maintenance tunnels blow up the entire hanger bay and a good chunk off the side of the station is completely demolished due to the concentrated explosives that were packed into the cargo containers that weren’t used as boarding pods.
As soon as the Osprey VII touched down on the runway and onto the taxiway, the flotilla of T-3s, T-4s, and T-5s, one after another, took off and went through the Karman Line.
As they aligned to the orbit of Myriad II, they saw nothing. They radioed SEPCF Security.
“Atlaesian ships here. What happened, and what do you want us to do?”
The SEPC patrol ships would’ve been flung out into the void of space by the explosion, PT-1038 was completely obliterated by the blast while PT-1015 & PT-308 escaped barely alive. Shorai Platoon of the 5th Panzer Grenadier Division was also eradicated alongside five other SEPC platoons that were lost in the blast. A few minutes after the blast, repair teams were dispatched with EVO suits to get to work on repairing and salvaging a mess. Soon, repair bees and Myriad II’s damage control team was hard at work on a project that could possibly take a whole year to finish.
“This is Myriad Command, a huge bomb just went off in Deck C. Repairs are currently underway and we need all the help we can get. Our forces have been brought down to just five platoons and we are requesting temporary insertion of any allied SEPC troops to help keep security. Myriad’s lines have been stretched thin after the bombing, which happened after a pirate raid on the station. We’d also like it if you could send some repair teams over to help speed up fixing this mess” said the communications officer in the Command Center.
Traffic going to the cargo deck of level C would be diverted to other ports in the station while the cargo bay and some of the area around it was being repaired. The lockdown on Myriad II was lifted but general quarters remained. Security filled the hallways leading to the damaged sector of level C and prevented anyone besides repair teams from entering. Life aboard the station soon returned to normal with the exception of a hint of paranoia in the air.
[hr]
11/29/2199, One day after Myriad II C Level incident.
Arcadia returned to Myriad and Velhanz submitted his report. Melor and the other survivors of the Pobornik were rushed out of the ship and into hospital facilities in level A of the station where they would be identified and put into separate rooms.
“Oh crap, Ayase should be on Myriad by now!” Velhanz thought out loud in his quarters. The crew of the Arcadia is supposed to be on shore leave after all… Arcadia is being grounded for some refits. The class reunion is coming up too. Velhanz let out a small sigh and holstered his Howa Model 93FS, which the newest sidearm in service with the Setznan Self Defense Force. The Beretta M6E that used centuries old 9x11mm Parabellum made from lead and brass was replaced by the more modern M93FS, which completed the transition from shot and shell to pulse laser ammunition. Velhanz exited his quarters and disembarked from the Arcadia after checking that everything was in working order. He then went off to find his little sister.
Michael’s eyes blink open slowly as he struggles to get up from the ground. What had happened? He looked up, and saw that a huge chunk of the station had been blown off…and that his oxygen levels were running very low. He finally got up and saw that several of his men, about 8, had died in the blast.
Over the next few minutes he helped several of his own team members, as well as station security team members, off the ground and to a place to sit. He then gathered his remaining platoon, and marched through the airlock, being relatively careful, and on to the command center of the station. The doors opened swiftly, and he entered the room with two of his men. “Who’s in charge on this station?”
“We need ships in the sky on this. Now more than ever.”
“Admiral, I respect that you’re concerned but more ships will just-”
“I’m ordering the Starfarer into orbit.”
“It’s a six person crew, we haven’t gotten our overhaul in. We need time-”
“Look. Avilah, you only got your command a few months ago. You need to trust me when I say, this isn’t up for debate.”
“Very well. Is my ship at least refueled?”
“Yes. You have full reserves of ECR27 and S27, you’re ready to fly.”
“Fine. But if my crew gets space madness, it’s on you, dude.” Lily waved a finger at her superior, old friends since academy days. Aura looked much as it always had through the large plate-glass window; Great and ever-growing. Ships took off and entered orbit regularly.
“I’ll see you around, Saite.” She trotted down the hall of the administrative office, turning to get to the train station. Two stops brought the uniformed captain to the Stonewall Spaceport; A huge collection of spires with ships flying up and down the sides. Aura gleamed from the bay windows of the rail station.
The Starfarer gleamed like it did when it was commissioned. The two main nacelles held up the rest of the hull, and made an opening for the cargo ramp that Lily jogged up and entered the ship through.
Two of the security guards in the command center would move to intercept.
“That would be me,” said a man sitting in between two other high ranking officers on a platform that overlooked the whole command center. “Identify yourselves and state your business. Command is currently in a frenzy and i’d like it if my personnel gets the time they need to fix the situation.”
The grim look half disappeared from Michael’s face, but he retained his posture. “I am Colonel Conway of Adumaran SCAF Unit 16. My team was dispatched to the station the second the Adumaran government heard of a pirate attack. I am here to tell you that the Adumaran government wishes to post me and my team on Myriad II Station for a time to help ensure peace. Another drop ship will be arriving shortly to reinforce my team’s numbers to 25.”
“The help is appreciated Colonel, I am Admiral Manusco Gonzalez, I run this mess” The Admiral sat back down and crossed his arms.
“The man to your far right is Lieutenant Colonel Shiro Akatsuki, director of Operations and Personnel. I know that you outrank him but he’ll assign you you’re orders and be in command of SEPC member nation troops coming in to assist with security for now.”
“Thank you, Admiral. For now, I’d like the Adumaran troops to patrol C deck with the Setznan Military Police” said Akatsuki, who now stood up from his seat. “You will be joining Squad B from Zulu Platoon, have fun, you’re working with some of our younger members. Working alongside a more experienced person and studying them is usually the most effective way of growing, I hope you will give Squad B some good guidance”
“Do you have any questions, Sir?” He’d ask the colonel politely.
(Keep in mind the amount of explosives that were detonated equate to about 450,000 cubic feet of plastic explosives, as there were 60 containers full measuring 12x12x50 feet. The amount of force this would apply is difficult to calculate as some were in vacuum and some were in atmosphere sections of the station, but it has been generally accepted that this much of the station would be missing or damaged. )
The remaining pirate escort ship, with one being slagged by defense fighters and the other being vaporized in the explosion, manages to limp away from the station and the ever-expanding cloud of debris. A sluggish roll manages to avoid a piece of deck plating several dozen-meters long, but a smaller chunk of metal is impacted in the process. Electricity arcs across the frame of the ship, and it begins to list with the loss of RCS control.
Michael nodded here and there through the lecture, and shook his head in the end. “No sir, I’ll get to my task immediately. Thank you sir.” He saluted with a small smile on his face, and walked out of the room, guards close behind.
As he was walking down the halls with his platoon, when he got a communique from a Harbinger Shuttle that had just docked outside the station through his helmet, <This is Colonel Conway, go ahead>. <Colonel, its good to hear you. The reinforcements you requested have just arrived, and are making their way to your position.> <Thank you captain, Michael out>.
