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Post by shredderdx on Jul 26, 2013 14:41:55 GMT -8
It was a dark night. The planet's one and only moon was hidden behind a veil of black cloud cover. It was a perfect night for a search and seizure. The Szor Empire chose this night to obtain a technology they desired, away from an undeserving empire.
It was a team of eighteen. Known as SFR Squad 11, their primary objective was to retrieve a data cache. The cache would describe the information for a new type of technology that would greatly advance the Szor Empire. However, they must do so without being detected. This entails not deleting the original data. The secondary objective was to not harm any of the opposition.
In three shuttles, launched from a cloaked spacecraft in orbit of the planet, six squad members huddled and waited to strike. They were .6 miles from their destination. After reaching their first destination, they would then disengage with the shuttles. Orders were a radio blackout with all but each other, the only exception was an emergency. The next step would be to covertly enter the domain of the Maracai Triumvirate research station.
Once they had disengaged, the eighteen armed squad members headed to their target.
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Post by Dr.Freeze on Jul 27, 2013 8:15:44 GMT -8
Somewhere, hidden within the system's asteroid belt, was the research facility, a station built inside a hollow asteroid. It has been orbiting Shag'atai for almost a hundred years, yet nobody ever bothered about it's protection until a few years ago. With the discovery of new sentient, spacefaring life, the Great Gathering saw the necessarity to make sure no uninvited guests would ever come close to the facility.
Kazad, son of Kadok, was the captain of the Glorious Heritage, a Datu class Tribeship. His orders were clear: Keep any approaching ship away from this station. If it ignores the warning, remove it with force. Initially, it sounded very pleasing to the trigger happy Kazad. Trigger happy... that must be why they have picked him for this task. Much to his misfortune though, the only ships which ever approached the facility were the supply ships that kept the station alive.
But even worse than the lack of ships to fire upon was the fact that things were getting more interesting throughout the Triumvirate; space pirates seeked to claim the Maracaian territory as their new hunting ground, and strange living ships have been observed in several border systems. Yet he was forced to wait in these desolate wastelands.
This day was different though. Kazad felt that something was not right. He didn't know what it was, but it made him nervous, and he let his crew know that they should prepare for something, whatever it would be.
The atmosphere was tense on the ship's brigde. "Captain..", one of the bridge officers looked almost disappointed. "What is it, officer?" "The full sensor sweep you ordered has just finished. There is absolutely nothing out there." "Good. let's hope it stays that way." Only three more weeks, Kazad thought. The last thing he needed now was a surprise attack that may convince the Great Gathering to keep him there even longer.
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Post by shredderdx on Jul 28, 2013 12:41:33 GMT -8
At the head of SFR Squad 11, Lieutenant Vinter Seckt, a message was being received.
"Moon Breaker, this is Skyward Alpha. Do not respond. Head to original coordinates. Details askew, the tiger may be falsely asleep. Proceed under the moonlight."
Lieutenant Seckt understood. Covert missions called for codes beneath codes hidden under falsehood. He gave hand gestures to the rest of the squad what about the message he had received. However, it had to be passed down the formation to reach every soldier. Their formation was made up of three triangles, all missing a base. Six men made up each triangle.
At the final destination, Seckt saw that this was not the final. There, they saw a spacecraft. Seckt noticed that it was Maracaian, but not meant for war. It was meant for transportation of cargo. He understood. Seckt ordered his squad onto the ship, luckily four of them were pilots; he had wondered why they had come. However, only two were necessary to fully operate the vessel. New coordinates were given to the pilots, which they relayed to the rest of the squad.
The squad took off, towards the asteroid belt.
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Post by Dr.Freeze on Jul 29, 2013 16:16:52 GMT -8
"Captain, a ship just entered scanner range. It is one of our Freighters." Kazad almost dropped his cup of tea. No supply transports were scheduled for today, and the transport ships were always on time. This smelled like a trick, though he hoped it was just a mistake in the cargo management. It just had to be a mistake.
"Officer, are you sure it is one of ours? It may just be a civillian transport passing by." He knew how ridiculous this idea was. Nobody ever passes through Shag'atai.
"Cargo PBY-3159. That's definitly one of ours, and it's two days early." Kazad sighed. "Alright. Navigolus, plot an intercepting course. Keep the weapons lowered, we do not want them to panic already. Let's see what they have to say." He has never been that afraid before in his life. Only three more weeks and the cloaking field of the research facility would be ready, and he would finally be moved to an anti pirate task force. It was the long awaited ticket out of this hellhole. He would not let anybody ruin this.
"We are in com range now." "Good, open a channel. Transport ship PBY-3159, This is Kazad, son of Kadok, captain of the Glorious Heritage. You are not on schedule. Explain yourselfes."
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Post by shredderdx on Jul 30, 2013 14:37:21 GMT -8
Lieutenant Vinter Seckt was caught off guard by the incoming transmission. He thought they would land first. However, it seemed that certain intel was either wrong or missing. So, he acted on his feet. "Staff Sergeant Neckl Ozck, prepare a return message. Edit it to reveal as if we are Maracaian transporters." Seckt told this by the mouth, to prevent a radio signal being intercepted.
"Yes, sir," Ozck responded. He tapped away at the control panel. He was one of the best engineers the Szor Empire had to offer. Seckt planned to keep it that way.
A Maracaian voice was transmitted to the ship. "Greetings, Captain Kazad, we apologize for the confusion. A message should have been delivered to you previously. This ship is highly needed for support for an anti-pirate force. We were sent early to meet this necessity."
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Post by Dr.Freeze on Jul 31, 2013 15:53:55 GMT -8
Relieved, yet annoyed, Kazad replied: "Watch your mouth, son. Is that how you address your superiors?" Without waiting for an answer, he continued, " You have our permission to approach the facility. Proceed to the supply dockingbay." he sat down in his captain's chair. Whoever was responsible for this should be sent to an asteroid mine, he thought.
Without further interruption, the Glorious Heritage headed back to the research facility and entered a standard defensive position.
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Post by shredderdx on Jul 31, 2013 21:01:54 GMT -8
Seckt rested back onto his heels, relieved. "Alright soldiers, we're in. However, we must establish a way to slip out of the craft unnoticed, to prevent confrontation."
Ozck spoke up. "Sir, we could fake a crash landing. If we do that, they might then send an emergency response team. We could sneak out before they arrive, and then covertly infiltrate the base."
"Excellent, Staff Sergeant. Now, how would we fake a crash landing?" Lieutenant Seckt asked.
"Easy enough, sir. First, by overloading the data mainframe, followed by a small explosion in Engine Two, then a quick loss of fuel, would be almost exactly simulate a common electrical error," Ozck responded.
"Do what you can to make that happen," Seckt ordered. "The rest of you, brace for impact."
After a careful fumbling of the controls by Ozck, the temperature quickly rose, which was followed by an explosion. Alerts blazed, and the craft shuddered. The transport craft soon crashed into the asteroid. The fake crash felt too real. However, none sustained any injuries.
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Post by Dr.Freeze on Aug 1, 2013 16:29:26 GMT -8
Kazad was just about to settle down when he witnessed the explosion. "Oh for the saviors' sake", he quietly said to himself, and the officer at the sensor station quickly confirmed what the entire bridge crew just saw. "One of the vessel's engines exploded, captain. It is out of control." While he was still speaking, the freighter crashed into the research facility. The entire front section bursted, and debris were floating away.
The day was just getting better and better, Kazad thought. Anybody who just happens to be in this system must have noticed this. "Activate all weapons. If anybody was searching for us, they most certainly found us now." "As you wish, captain" An alarm signal appeared, and the ship's hull began to move. Hundreds of turrets came to life and emerged from their housings, torpedo tubes were loaded and opened, and the three massive plasmalance cannons began to glow in a purple hue.
The lights on the ship's bridge flickered for a second as the reactors powered up to maximum capacity. Kazad enjoyed the sight of his ship turning into a death machine. Quite ironic that a civilisation that despises war could create something like this. But as history showed, the alien is not always as friendly. Sometimes, it refuses to think rationally, and negotiation is not possible. Sometimes, the alien just needs to be slain.
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Post by shredderdx on Aug 1, 2013 18:13:52 GMT -8
As Seckt returned to his feet, he was pleased. The crash sent him directly inside the research facility. Looking to his men, he began issuing orders. "To your feet men, and hurry. The response team will be here any second. Activate cloaking and pursue objective."
Soon, all seventeen other squad members disappeared from Lieutenant Seckt. He soon joined them. However, he knew they should all be just as cautious as if they were "visible." They could all be seen in ultraviolet light. To their advantage, they could pick up ultraviolet emissions via receptors in their helmets. Remaining to the shadows, or trying to, and not emitting any sounds, the team progressed to their objective as quickly as possible.
Through various hallways and doors, they ever so carefully made their way through the foreign research facility that they know so well.
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Post by Dr.Freeze on Aug 2, 2013 16:20:26 GMT -8
At the crashsite, a rescue team was searching the wrecked ship. "No bodies, no wounded...", one of them noticed. And indeed, the ship seemed empty so far. "Maybe they have evacuated this section before the impact", one of his colleagues replied. "You're propalby right, yes"
They proceeded with their search, but even in the largely undamaged rear section of the ship, they still failed to find any signs of the crew. When they reached the bridge, the team was slowly getting nervous.
"Empty... Why would the abandon the bridge? Just where the heck are these people?!" one of the team was visibly concerned, "maybe there is something else on this ship..." "Don't be foolish", his colleague quickly replied, "they are hiding somewhere. They propably don't know that the oxygen levels are okay here, that's why they aren't coming out of their holes. But guess what, our friends on the Glorious Heritage have some fine sensors. If they can't find the crew... well, then there propably is no crew."
Relayed by the facilities com array, the request was sent to Kazad's ship.
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Post by shredderdx on Aug 2, 2013 16:55:56 GMT -8
Seckt and his team had reached the entrance to their destination. However, a massive door impeded their progress. Pondering for only a moment, Seckt wondered what to do next without causing a disturbance. He soon found a control panel. "Ozck, hack that panel and get us in," Seckt ordered.
"Yes, sir." He went right to it. "Very complicated ... but also beautifully elegant. There must be some sort of pattern ..." he mumbled. "At best, we will be through in approximately seventeen minutes, sir."
"And worst?" Seckt dared ask.
"At worst ... two and a half hours."
Seckt controlled his anger. Surely the Natural Order would grant them the opportunity to become stronger. This data was key for them gaining strength.
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Post by Dr.Freeze on Aug 3, 2013 16:16:46 GMT -8
"Captain, the rescue team onboard the crashed freighter requests a full scan of the wreck. Apparently, they can't find the crew." Kazad was staring through the bridge's main window, waiting for anything to appear. Then, he turned around and looked at his com officer. "Are they not aware how delicate this situation is?" He sighed. "Alright, scan the ship and transmit the survivors' coordinates as soon as you found them".
After a few moments, Kazad noticed that his officer at the sensor station was seemingly confused about the results of the scan, and he spoke up "Any results yet? Have you found the missing men?" The officer looked at him, not knowing what to say "Captain, it... it seems the only people on this ship are members of the rescue team. There... there is no crew."
"No crew? But that would mean..." Kazad abruptly stopped as he noticed that he has been fooled.
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Post by shredderdx on Aug 4, 2013 14:16:21 GMT -8
Seckt had ordered his soldiers to stand guard as Ozck performed his skills onto the control panel. Time was ticking passed, a whole eleven minutes had already passed. Not even the time frame of the minimum required time has passed. Seckt must retain his patience. He would ask for an update in nine minutes. If the job was completed in less, then all the better. The response to the update request would dictate when the next update would be requested.
No one had reported any disturbances, yet. This was a good time to develop an escape route. A route for mission success, a route for mission failure, and a route for secondary mission failure.
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Post by Dr.Freeze on Aug 5, 2013 16:01:04 GMT -8
"What do you mean, the alien has infiltrated this facility?" Chief of security Tefal was a bit surprised when the captain of the Glorious Heritage contacted him. After all those years sitting in his dark security control room, he never expected an actual incident.
"Well, let's see..." he looked at the many screens around him, each showing the surveillance data of a security camera. Everything seemed fine so far, not even suspicious heat signatures could be found. Then, he got an idea. He switched to infrared, then to ultraviolet light. He noticed something on one of the screens. It was barely visible, so he increased the camera's sensitivity. Then, he saw them; a group of eighteen creatures, standing right in front of the main computer room.
He pressed a button on his desk, and a channel was opened to his security teams. "Attention, brothers. We have intruders in sector 3. Eighteen individuals, presumably armed. Capture them alive if possible. This is not a drill."
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Post by shredderdx on Aug 7, 2013 7:45:02 GMT -8
"Sir, there is a transmission being sent from somewhere in this building," Comm Officer Gector Xeck informed Seckt.
"What is being sent?" Seckt asked.
"Some sort of warning, not repeated. We are running out of time."
Seckt turned to Ozck. "Our time has been shortened. We need immediate access in there."
"Sir, the only possible immediate entrance would be to blow the doors open," Ozck warned.
"Our secondary objective has already been compromised. Stand back Staff Sergeant," Seckt ordered. A demolition expert on the team stepped forward, and established a small, but very powerful bomb onto the door. "Everyone, move to cover," Seckt commanded.
"Twelve seconds until detonation," the demolition expert announced.
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Post by Dr.Freeze on Aug 8, 2013 16:47:38 GMT -8
Security Squad Alpha was on their way to the intruders' location when the detonation alert went off. The Squad leader immediately opened a channel to the chief of security. "Chief, what happened?"
"Our friends used explosives to get through the security door. I guess they were running out of patience, maybe they even know we're after them."
"Alright, we will hurry up then." Alpha replied.
"Don't worry, I have dispatched combat drones to guard any possible escape route. A group of them should pass your location now"
Alpha looked back, and to his surprise, the drones were already approaching his squad just to speed past them a second later. They were flying little machines, only about 40 centimetres large, and armed with a single plasmagun. Seperated, these drones would only pose a minimal threat. In swarms however, they can easily become a deadly opponent for even the most well prepared attacker.
The chief spoke up again, "They will face either death or captivity."
"Let's just hope they are not stupid enough to run into these things."
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Post by shredderdx on Aug 10, 2013 18:11:37 GMT -8
"Forward, men. The enemy will engage soon. Employ defensive position!" Seckt ordered. The squad members complied, and formed three rhombus-shaped formations, each made up of six soldiers. Every soldier faced the outside. "Expect engagement," Seckt warned. Together, they moved toward their final objective.
Ozck began his abilities to unlock the data cache they were after. The rest of the squad took up a defensive position around him, and readied their arms. They were expecting for any sort of hostiles, organic or mechanic.
"Thirteen minutes until access," Ozck stated with certainty. He trained for this, not for unlocking doors.
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Post by Dr.Freeze on Aug 14, 2013 16:08:41 GMT -8
"We have arrived at the security door", Alpha spoke quietly into his com unit. He looked at the large hole that was once a bomb-proof bulkhead. Then, he adjusted the visual sensors of his helmet according to the chief's specifications, and he immediately noticed the brightly glowing figures. They were taller and more muscular than the common Maracai, and they were bipedal.
"Are the drones in position, chief?" he asked. "Yes brother. You are clear to engage the intruders."
Alpha gave a sign to the rest of his squad, and each of them made their non-lethal shockrifles ready. Then, he threw a flash grenade right through the destroyed security door and took cover.
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Post by shredderdx on Aug 15, 2013 10:06:38 GMT -8
"Grenade!" a Szoran soldier cried out. He followed this by kicking it back. However, still half of the squad became disoriented from the flash-bang.
Assuming they were targeted for shoot-to-kill, Seckt cried out: "open fire!" He took up a covered position, and fired his automatic ballistic rifle. The rest of the squad followed suit, even Ozck.
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Post by Dr.Freeze on Aug 16, 2013 17:59:11 GMT -8
From behind his cover, Alpha witnessed the firestorm that was released by the intruders. There was no doubt they were using lethal weapons, as debris of the paneling flew around, and one inattentive Maracaian squadmember got hit in the shoulder. He was thrown back by the force of the impact, and a nearby warrior pulled his bleeding brother behind cover.
"Return fire!" Alpha shouted. His squad was still ordered to use shock rifles, and this was not likely to change. They all knew that capturing these aliens was the only way to uncover any hostile operations in the future.
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