Here’s how it is. In the future Earth got used up. Its natural resources nearly depleted, and its human population was far too great. So we set forth, and found a whole new galaxy, and terra- formed all new planets, and moons for human life. The central planets which mostly comprised of the bodies of the United States, and China formed the Alliance, and began a war to bring all of the planets to their rule. Then the Independence came together to fight them, and the first galactic civil war, that came to be known as the Unification War, truly began.

THE BLACK

For those who fight a sacrifice has already been made. The decisions that have lead you down this path can not be undone. Now you can look forward, and never forget the reasons for which you fight, and the path that is laid only steps in front of you, and can be altered in many directions so be sure the direction you take follows what you fight for. For those who are yet to fight are those you are fighting for worth the price of the sacrifice you will make to protect them? Martyrs, heroes, heretics, saviors the choices we make will undoubtedly change us, but the view of which you are received can also, not only by those who oppose you, but also if you twist the lines of belief with self- servitude, or a cause with gain. The sides of good, and evil are always next to you, and some battles that are lost their roads were paved with the greatest of intentions, but were walked with a nefarious stride. It is easy to get lost in the dark so never roam without a guiding light.

PART 2: FOR THOSE WHO FIGHT

6 MONTHS LATER

Gemini glides swiftly through space as Miko guides it manually toward their destination. Nix sits in the co- pilots position just staring out the window. She has been trying to teach him how to fly for a little while now. Jack stands behind them as they all look out into the black anxiously. Miko looks over to Nix “Are you ready for this?” she asks quietly. Nix turns his head just enough so she can see the ’get nailed’ expression on his face “No.” Miko begins to angle the ship down, and Jack takes a seat. The blue glow of the atmosphere begins to illuminate the bridge, but the soft glow quickly disappears as they breach over the planet of St. Albans. An intense air battle is taking place just below them, and they’ve got to go through it to get where they’re going. Miko joins the fray weaving, and dodging past the first couple of obstacles that consisted of pieces of destroyed vessels that they were actually passing on their dissent. Then things get tricky as they enter the bulk of the battle. Large ships blow chucks, and holes out of the others as smaller fighters dogfight through the skies. Smoke, and debris fill the air while burning aircraft, and space ships plummet to the planet below. They weren’t on fire… yet, but the object was to get planet side not to join this fight so ideally they’d like to be able to take back off after not crashing. If anyone here was daring enough of a pilot to do this Miko was, but would she be able to? Jack, and Nix were a little more than concerned. Two Alliance fighters broke the smoke cloud just ahead of them, but it became quickly apparent they weren’t being scrambled for them because they both narrowly missed colliding with them. One of the fighters spun out of control, and slapped into the side of the Alliance carrier exploding on impact, the other just buzzed narrowly past, banked left, and kept going. “Holy Christ!” Nix exclaimed. “You didn’t see that?” “The HUD is full of bogies.” Jack explains. As they dive another carrier below them suddenly explodes, and one of the large upper panels nearly clips them as the ship continues straight for it. The carrier begins to break in two in the air creating a spectacle of fire, and debris. “Okay, do you see that?” Nix asks Miko. “Uh, hu.” She replies with no tone in her voice as she is focused on what’s going on outside Gemini. “Um…” Jack lets out uncomfortably. She angles the ship in a near nose dive heading directly for the split in the carrier. “Okay, you gonna’ turn?” No reply. “Would ya’ turn?” No reply. “Miko what the hell are you-!” Jack begins to scream, but is cut off. “Would you both shut up!” Miko screams. “I don’t need any back seat space ship drivers!” Just then Gemini blows through the center of the wreck. Flames engulf the entire ship as they pass through, and out. The flames start to fan off as they dive below the fight. Nix looks down at his HUD, and realizes that two fighters were forced to split off due to Miko’s maneuver giving room between them. He hadn’t even known they were there. It isn’t long however before the fighters are back on them, and closing in. Miko banks hard to the right, and then back up into the fight. The fighters follow tightly as she puts together a calculated dash through the moving mess of metal, and fire. She moves up under a Independence war ship, and starts to wrap around it. As they pass over the top deck a turret on the war ship blasts the second fighter out of the sky. She dips back down, and has now made an upside down circle around the war ship, and is now headed back down. The remaining fighter starts to fire upon them, and Miko puts the ship into another left bank. She evens out, and the fighter drops in just behind her, but what the fighter doesn’t know is that they’ve dropped right into the flight path of an Alliance platform. Just as the fighter gets ready to lock on, and unleash again she dips down last second, and the fighter collides directly with the platform. Now they can keep going down to the planet for the drop hopefully undetected. “Next time if you want to fly. Fucking fly!” Miko shouts. Silence dominates the bridge for a moment before Nix chimes in with “Nah, I think we’re good here.” It’s winter time on St. Albans, and fights here have been going on, and off for quite some time now. The wooded landscape where Gemini touches down is pock marked with holes from battles old, and slightly more new. The Alliance had been holding the area only two miles from here. It was important to them because this area of the surface was an excellent location for a small base, and communication array. The Independence had already made landfall where the air domination was less intense. The Knights job here was to disable communication, and aid in the fight. The method on getting here seemed to be look like falling debris. All the guys were felling that ride as they made their way out of the ship. Lopez is the first off, and when he gets out he starts wiping the vomit that was spattered on his overcoat. Campbell follows him out trying not to let out more than a prolonged chuckle. He walks up next to Lopez, and sticks out his hand. “You son of a bitch.” Lopez says as he reaches into his belt, and pulls out fifty dollars, and hands it to Campbell. This only makes him laugh harder because the vomit is not from Lopez it is from the two newer assignments Sumner, and Jones who step off looking like they still might lose what’s left in them. Jones was from Shadow. He enlisted when the planet was destroyed six months ago. He is about five feet, and ten inches, and around one hundred, and seventy pounds. He has bright blond hair with brown eyes. Sumner is a little sorter at five feet, eight inches tall, and still around one hundred, and seventy pounds with dark brown almost black hair, and blue eyes. Campbell turns to see these two while Biggs, and Wedge follow them out, and can’t help, but laugh. He told Lopez not to be against him, but he always dose. Jack, Nix, and Miko are out directly behind them. Jack walks quickly over to Campbell, and says “Hey, shut the hell up.” then gives the signal to form up in a circle. Miko displays a map of the immediate area to verify their location, and they’re right on the money with the drop. Two miles west through the forest is the Alliance camp. “Alright.” Jack starts. “We form a line, and walk at an even pace, and stay in line of sight with everyone on your right, and left. You spot anything between here, and there put up the sign. Play it safe I want them surprised, not us. I have no doubt they’ll have patrols in these woods so stay sharp. Alright form up.” They make the line at the edge of the clearing they landed in. at the top is Lopez followed by Wedge, Jones, Nix, Jack, Miko, Sumner, Biggs, and finally Campbell. Once final check is complete they enter the snow covered forest. The team walks quietly, and cautiously for some time before Jack puts up the sign to stop. In near unison the Knights drop to the kneeling position, and survey the area. Just ahead Nix sees wisps of smoke coming through the trees. Jack sends him, and Jones up ahead to check it out. Nix can hear the faint sounds of a conversation coming from the direction of the light campfire smoke that is being pushed toward them by a light winter breeze. He, and Jones walk as silently as they can with the snow quietly breaking beneath their feet. They take position just behind a large oak tree, and peer around. Two Alliance soldiers sit around a small smoldering fire outside of a temporary shelter whining about the cold, the war, and how the only good thing about being out here was they didn’t have to put up with the officers from the base for an entire sixteen hour stretch. Lopez, and Campbell watch trough their sniper scopes, and Jack through a field scope as Nix, and Jones pull out their knives, and jump the unsuspecting enemy. Nix is first in as he puts the knife through the back of the first soldiers neck, and up into his head. Jones leaps out over the fire, and tackles the other soldier, and then begins to brutally stab him over, and over. ‘What the hell?’ Jack nearly thinks out load as he watches Jones repeatedly stab the soldier ferociously, even after he is dead, until Nix pulls him off the body, and to the ground. “What the hell’s the matter with you!?” Nix asks Jones, but Jones isn’t even looking at him. He is still fixed on the dead soldier out of breath, and with a wild look in his eye. Nix swipes him across the face snapping Jones back to reality. Nix almost feels bad about being angry with him. Jones lost everything he had ever known on Shadow, and he had no chance of ever getting it back. Even where Nix himself had had his entire world swept out from beneath him as well. It was nothing he lamented losing at this particular time. He could only imagine the emotions that boiled just beneath Jones’s surface, and he secretly hoped that he would only have to imagine that type of rage. “That guy is only getting worse.” Miko whispers to Jack as they watch Nix subdue Jones. Both Campbell, and Lopez signal that they have got addition targets. Jack looks through his scope, and sees two more Alliance patrolmen moving in toward the camp. “Nix.” Nix hears his name in his earpiece. It’s Jack. “There are two more moving in on your location. Stay down, and don’t move.” Jack tells him. The snipers signal that the have a shot, and Jack gives the order, and simultaneously the two patrolmen slump to the ground dead without ever even knowing they’d been shot. “You have got to take it down a notch.” Nix tells Jones. “Sorry man. Sometimes… I just see red.” Jones explains to him. Nix looks at the savagely mauled body of the Alliance soldier. The blood covered him, and stained the snow around his lifeless body. Nix then looked at Jones. He too had blood all over his torso. “Red would be the color.” Nix says. “Hey.” Jones starts. “I’ve scene you kill plenty. Men you would’ve been calling brother if you had never switched. So don’t take the high road with me. You’re just as guilty as I am in all of this.” “There’s a difference.” Nix replies. “Where?” Jones asks. Nix wasn’t exactly sure where the line was, but he was sure he, and Jones were on opposite sides of it. They may have been brothers in arms, but it would seem that is where most of their similarities ended. “We both come from Shadow. Somewhere inside you, you have to hate them by now.” Jones continued. It wasn’t about hate, or revenge for Nix. One more thing that contrasted about them. He may have been born on Shadow, but it was a home that the only real moments he remembered of it took place on its last day of existence. A day that certainly radically changed his life, but not one he looked back on with regret on the path he ended up on. The rest of the team had now moved up to them. Jones watched Nix with a scornful eye as they fell back into formation, and pressed on.

They reached the complex almost an hour later. No one had said a word. The Knights crawled up to the edge of the woods, and took in a good look of the Alliance camp. They were on the west side of the area. The ground fighting, and air forces would be coming from the opposite direction in under fifteen minutes. No doubt the Alliance would have picked up on the movement already so the plan was to disable all communications from the ground so they could not call for re-enforcements when the brunt of the force arrived, and then use there own systems against them in the air. Jack knew he just couldn’t destroy the communications array for the mission to have its full effectiveness. So that meant going into the communications bunker. It was going to be risky, but it was necessary. Jack took one last look at the base before making his plans. In between them, and the west entrance to the bunker was a maze, of dug pathways nearly four feet deep. Placed in the ground around them were foxholes that for the moment seemed to be unoccupied. The only watch towers were closer to the center, and the cameras were tracing all over the place. That should give them a small window to move relatively undetected into the pathways. The pathways however were definitely being walked as the freshly falling snow clearly showed evidence of tracks going through them. The pathways however were their best bet, and the outlying path was just below them only feet into the clearing. Jack mapped out the way through the paths to the bunker in his mind, and the had everyone advance into the pathway below. The line now formed a column in the path, and as they moved forward Jack would tap Miko on the shoulder of which direction to turn, and she would do the same to Sumner, and so on up the column. Staying below the top of the pathway the Knights made it to the bunker unopposed. Jack was ready for a fight on the other side of that door. The Knights split to opposite of the door getting ready to raid the bunker. Nix, Miko, Wedge and Campbell formed on the right as Jones, Sumner, Biggs, and Lopez took the left. Jack set himself for the first entry, but the Jones reached out, and grabbed his shoulder. “Sir.” Jones whispered. “What?” Jack asked agitated. “Let me go in first.” He said. “No way.” “Please, sir, this is my day, my time. Let me do this.” “We don’t got a lot of time for this.” Nix added. “Let me do this for my wife, and kids, sir. Let me go in, and square things up… for them.” Jones pleaded. Jack looks back at Nix who shrugs, and shakes his head “He’s the one who wants to die.” Nix tells him. “Move!” Jack tells Jones, and they switch positions at the door. “Now!” Jones kicks in the door, and is met with automatic weapon fire that mows him down in a flash. “Oh, shit!” Lopez yells as Jones flops down to the ground. Jack, and Nix pop the tops of two grenades, and through them into the hall beyond the doorway, and then push to make cover against the reinforced wall of the bunker. The cry for grenades comes too late from the enemy behind the door as the detonate sending a fire plume through the hall, and out the door. The Knights rush into the bunker while Miko rushes over to Jones. The Knights charge into the hallway. The walls a charred along with the Alliance soldiers that were waiting for them. They fly down the staircase in front of them, and through the door at the end. The soldiers inside were ready for them, but Nix, and Jack, who were the first ones in, were too quick. The first two to advance on them were taken down in a flash. Then systematically splitting the room with the two lines behind Nix, and Jack, minus Miko, formed, and open fire on the small control room. The few remaining soldiers were barely able to put up a fight, and even in despite of their quick fire tactics most of the equipment inside the room was un-damaged. The group looks out the huge bay window into Hanger 1. A war skiff was preparing for flight as lines of Alliance troops were going out the east exit for the foxholes, and the impending battle. All the noise in the hanger must have masked their activities in the room or the time being. The hander roof began to split, and snow that was originally covering the top dropped in as flakes of still falling snow began to enter the hanger. The skiff began to rise from the hanger floor. Biggs turned around to the controls, and quickly found the Hanger 1 Override. He threw the switch to close, and the process of the hanger opening immediately started to reverse. This action however also caught the attention of the supervisors in the hanger. “Okay, we’re going to have a unit up here in no time.” Jake said. “Quick, find the power station.” Nix, and Biggs go over to the base schematic near the door. The power center was down the hall on the second basement level. It was also the access to the main generator. Nix, and Biggs quickly began to make their way to it as Jack watched seven soldiers heading up the catwalk stairs for them. “Get ready.” Jack told the rest of them. They quickly formed a defensive attack pattern around the door, and eagerly awaited the first ones to kick it in. The door burst open, and simultaneously Jack, Wedge, Sumner, Lopez, and Campbell open fire, and the first wave of Alliance fall right before them on the stairs. The base alarm begins to sound as the Knights move out onto the catwalks below the window to the control room, and start shooting at the soldiers scrambling around on the hanger floor. At this point most of the infantry that was in the building is already outside, and even though they were planning for an attack Jack was sure it wasn’t from inside. Soldiers begin to advance on them on the upper levels of the catwalks, but Campbell, and Lopez, experts even with assault rifles, make quick work of them. Suddenly in between the fire, and the return fire between them, and the floor a fuel delivery line to the skiff is hit. Fire erupts from the line, and like a gigantic flame thrower it spews flame uncontrollably. The fire send the Alliance soldier still remaining in the hander quickly trying to find a way out as much of the hander starts to light on fire. The emergency fuel shut off kicks in, and the flames stop flowing. The fire counter measures switch on with jets of CO2 burst up from the floor. The Knights use this opportunity to move down into the hanger, and out onto the battlefield.

Meanwhile Nix, and Biggs make their way to the generator platform. When they reach it Nix observes the structure for a moment. It’s around eighty feet tall. That’s pretty big compared to a person. It is big enough however to power the base while still being small enough to conceal underground. Thus not to make it an obvious target on the surface. In other words there are much, much bigger generators. Nix, and Biggs franticly look over the controls, grids when, out of the corner of his eye, Nix spots a covered panel marked ‘Main’. “Over here.” he calls to Biggs. They both go over to the panel, and see that it is locked. The lock mechanism itself uses a keycard, and if it is tampered with an alarm will sound, and the grid will not be able to be shut down. However if you happened to have procured a handy dandy little laser cutting device like Nix had just over six months ago you could just cut the hinges on the panel, and never trip the alarm. They do, and gain access. Nix pulls down the power switch for the entire base grid, and immediately everything goes out. They stand for a few seconds in complete darkness until small red strobes start to flash illuminating their way back out. “Damn it, that means there is still a back up somewhere.” Biggs says. “It’s okay though.” Nix says studding the grid. “It’s only lighting, and emergency stations. We should be okay.” “Right, lets get back up with the others then.”

Jack, Wedge, Sumner, Lopez, and Campbell exit the bunker through a bulkhead from the underground. Up ahead of them a mass of troops with light armored vehicles, and a handful of tanks assemble on the eastern defensive front of the complex. The rumble of incoming first strike from the Independence can be herd when suddenly the spotlights go out. It is only mid-day however it is overcast, and lightly snowing. The shutdown doesn’t hinder their ability to see so much as tell the Nix, and Biggs made it. “Okay.” Jack begins “As soon as the air force makes its first strike we move in on the rear foxholes.” “You got it, sir.” they all tell him. The rumble suddenly grows as the air force takes off for the first offensive. Two skiffs blast in low just above the trees. They are going too fast, and are too low to fire, but as they buzz the base anti-aircraft artillery lock onto them. They start to swing back around as two more Independence aircraft move over the trees, and begin targeting the batteries. The fight has begun. As Jack, and the others who were with his advance for a sneak attack from behind the four aircraft dog around the sky’s targeting anything heavy, and the first advantage of the shutdown is taken. At the very least a strong delay on Alliance air capabilities. Along with the communication shut down they are also blind on radar they have no idea what’s behind the trees, and now the underestimating of the ability of a rebel military movement is costing the Alliance at the start of this fight. The Independence spread the lines as the make their way through the forest, and start the charge. Light armored hovercraft, and four tanks join them on the assault of the front lines. The tanks start to target each other, but the Alliance has three more out than the Independence dose, and take advantage on the first tank destroying it. As the Alliance tanks wheel around they are met by the other Independence tanks that have already begun to fire on them. With help from the sky they are suddenly able to even the odds on the heavy tank lines at three a piece. The remaining artillery not engaged with independent artillery take aim at the skiffs, and blow one from the sky. The burning hulk however crashes right into a pill box on the northern side of the eastern front. The Knights reach the rear foxholes, and rain fire down into them. All of the soldiers inside are taken by surprise. Jack moves up ahead of them to the next set, and drops a pair of grenades in them then dives ahead of the foxholes. As the troops rise up to take aim at him the grenades detonate. Munitions inside the foxholes go up, and their section is suddenly ablaze. Some of the soldiers who survived the blast desperately escape the holes while engulfed in flames. They begin to run aimlessly causing havoc, as well as lighting other things on fire before the hit the ground dead. One of the Independent hover craft swing over some of the forward foxhole lines while the gunner on the back fires down on them. As they come back around they are hit broadside by an Alliance tank round. The hovercraft turns over in the air, and part of it explodes. One of the pieces of it acting more like shrapnel uncannily manages to hit the tank driver in the throat after slipping through the slat in the front. The tank bogs down, and begins to drive through the lines running over soldiers even Alliance ones. The two Alliance soldiers inside drive a desperate attempt to get to the driver, but are met by Independence infantry climbing on, and throwing detonator charges into the cockpit. The charges explode, and the tank rolls through its own line on fire before the burning wreck gets stuck sideways in a foxhole. The intense fighting at the front continues as the Knights forge their own secret battle in the back when suddenly from the center of the field fresh Alliance troops escape from concealed bulkheads from inside the center foxholes, and pill boxes. Nearly a third of them head for the back lines, and this causes the Knights to fall back quickly. The Alliance starts repelling the Independence as they begin to overwhelm them with numbers. With three skiffs still in the air they are doing something to keep an impending slaughter at bay, but it is not enough. The Independence is losing ground fast. The Knights retreat just as Nix, and Biggs emerge from the bulkhead, and stop them from going further. “We gotta’ move back out!” Jack tells them. “Is this both waves?” Nix asks him. “They came from the center. We’re losing ground Nix, we need to regroup. We’ve done all we can now lets move out before we have to lay down arms!” “No, no we cans stay. Everybody get ready to form a new line.” Nix tells them. “With seven of us?” Sumner whines. They all look back out to see the back of the front moving their direction quickly. They all hit the ground as bullets start flying around them. “Nix, what have you got up your sleeve?” Jack asks him. “Sir, we should move back through the bulkhead!” Sumner shouts over to Jack. “Hear that?” Nix asks Jack. “What, death?” He replies. “No… angels.” All of the Knights look over their shoulders to the woods where they infiltrated from, and suddenly more Independent Infantry burst out full speed from the forest. “Say hello to the 57th, and 301st!” Nix screams. The infantry divisions hit the field full force, and start to sandwich the remaining Alliance forces. The Knights rejoin the fray, a new hope is brought to the Independence. Lopez sprays out bullets excitedly as the back of the new infantry units rush past him. “Yeah, yeah! That all you got?” he shouts into the air to taunt his enemy when suddenly the ground shakes for a split second. “Whoa, did you fell that?” Campbell asks him. “What was that?” It happens again, and again. It is coming from somewhere on their left down the southern end of the front. “Um… that’s not from the artillery.” Nix lets out while trying to find the source of the tremors. A huge blast peals back the retractable roof doors on a hanger further down the field. They hadn’t even remembered it was there from before because it was covered in snow, but now it was clear to see as the flames evaporated into smoke. The Knights observe as they can see movement just inside the wall of thick smoke when suddenly emerging from the black cloud three armored mechanical battle tanks appear. “Oh, Jesus… MECHS!” Lopez cries out as if at this point anyone hadn’t noticed. All three are bipedal tanks with heavy gun systems, and a few rockets. Two of them are thirty feet tall, and are built lighter for grace on the battlefield while the third is an absolute brute. It’s forty five feet up, and heavily armored with additional automatic turrets on the bottom, and a cannon on top. This thing can also ride out a indirect nuclear attack, and keep it’s operators safe from fallout. It isn’t long either before that cannon becomes useful too. As one brave Independent fighter pilot moves in for an attack the mech. effortlessly plucks it from the sky. A large portion of the Independent forces near the back begin to focus on the Alliances walking tanks sacrificing the rear guard. The lighter Mechs position themselves in front of the larger one, and begin to effortlessly walk into the field. Some infantrymen shoot up at them, but are shot down by the turret systems, or just stepped on. Two Independent hovercraft move in on the right light armored mech pushing out all they can. The front two mechs release one rocket a piece at the hovercraft. The first one is blown to bits in an instant, but the second narrowly dodges the blast, however it sends the hovercraft into an uncontrolled broadside through the air right in the direction of the Knights. All of them manage to get out of the way except for Nix who drops onto his back. As the engines of the hovercraft pass over him, only inches above him, the heat blasts him like an open furnace, and the snow around him melts right down to the frozen earth. The back draft from the engines cause small fires to pop up on his overcoat, but Nix is able to quickly extinguish them. Damn, Nix thinks. I remember when this coat was new. The hovercraft personnel, however seem content to ignore that they nearly cooked one of their own as they are focused on the mech. They regain control, and charge right for it, but all the mech operator has to do is step forward. The nose of the hovercraft is smashed into the ground mid- flight. the driver, and first gunner are crushed along with it. The rear turret operator is thrust up into the are like he was on a catapult, and is riddled with holes from the gun systems operator in the mech before he even starts to go back toward the ground. Jack has a little more in store for them yet though. He has attached a small grenade launcher to his weapon, and launches a small rocket propelled grenade into the left leg of the mech. The blast effects it, but doesn’t even come close to stopping it. The rocketries that are using full sized RPG’s that follow Jacks lead in attacking the leg do. Metal is ripped, and torn hydraulic lines, and piston bust, and empty forcing the mech to take, a face plant into the snowy earth. With the mech exposed in a venerable position on of the remaining skiffs fly in for the kill. The pilot fire two missiles into the back of it destroying it. The skiff swings back around to target the other light armored mech, but like the other is shot down by the larger one. “Damn.” Jack says to Nix. “We aren’t even going to get near the big one till the other one is down.” “Keep going for the legs I’d say.” Nix replies “But be careful. These things got all kinds of tricks up their sleeves.” Independent soldiers start swarming the other light mech. It begins to stomp around, and is aided from the large mech with some turret fire. One of the men who gets stepped on survives, but his crushed lower abdomen gets pasted to the bottom of the foot as it continues to stomp around with him attached to it. Two small port holes on the bottom part of the mechs center open up, and men on the inside start to shoot down. Most of the crowed moves away for a moment, and the man stuck on the bottom uses the opportunity to pop a grenade, and hold on. The blast makes the mech stumble, and the men inside stop shooting just long enough for almost a dozen soldiers to climb onto the legs, and start muscling back metal to get at the hydraulics. Despite both mechs desperate efforts to get them off one of them eventually succeeds. Hydraulic fluid begins to stain the snow like thick blood as it spews from its legs. The machine starts to drop slowly, and loses maneuverability, but just as it looks like this fight is one the upper part launches off the legs, and hit’s the ground. Tracks pop out from underneath like ones on a tank, and the mech charges at the mob of Independent soldiers who were attacking it. It runs right through them, and even manages to squash a few in the process. It is now heading for Jack, Nix, Sumner who were going for the big one. The mech opens fire on them, and they are forced to jump to the ground, but not without leaving a surprise. In the mechs direct path they each left a ’sticky’ grenade that, as the mech blew by them, attached to the right side track, and seconds later detonated capsizing the mech. The mess of troops re-converged on the mech, gained entry, and subdued those inside. Now it was time for the big boy. The large heavy mech was doing a bang up job even by itself. It was mowing down lines, taking out vehicles, and hovercraft left, and right. This thing suddenly was allowing the Alliance to stay in this fight. The remaining skiff leveled off, and shot a missile directly for it when what looked more like a heavy mist was discharged out from the mech ahead of its body. When the missile hit the mist it exploded. The detonation knocked down everyone on the ground, but the mech as left standing. It then returned fire at the skiff using its cannon, and even managed to duck the hurling hulk as what was left of the skiff after impact sailed over it. Taking from the example that just brought down the last mech soldiers start going at its legs. As they start to get onto the legs a strong electrical current is sent through them. The current is strong enough that those hanging on the mech directly can’t let go, and actually begin to burn to death. Any others who try to pull those who are stuck on off are hit with the same current, and thrust violently back. RPG’s, machine guns, mortar fire nothing stops it at best it only slows it down. It has taken out all the skiffs, and plucked off any remaining tanks. Nothing, it seems, can stop it. Then Nix gets an idea. Nix, and Jack regroup with the rest of the Knights, and Nix lays out his plan. “The war skiff in Hanger 1. I can use it to bring down the mech.” Nix explains. “Can you even fly that thing?” Lopez asks. “We’ll find out.” Jack tells him. “Go ahead, Nix. We’ll cover you.” “Alright, just make sure nobody on our side shoots at me.” Nix tells them, and heads back for the hanger. Nix was able to make his way to the hanger quickly, and easily. Everyone was concentrating on the remaining Mammoth Mech. Tank. Inside the hanger the smell of burnt fuel, and ozone filled the air. The place was a mess courtesy of the Knights. Light debris, most of it charred, peppered the area around the skiff, and its top like black snow. Nix made his way down, and into the open cockpit of the abandoned aircraft. Once inside it was confirmed that they’d done there job’s perfectly. None of the hanger controls worked, but the skiff itself was still operational. He was going to have to blast his way out just like the mechs did. “Alright.” He said out loud to himself as he closed the cockpit, and began the ignition sequence. “Time to show Miko I’m not a complete idiot.” Outside Jack had everyone in the immediate area fall back to a safe distance, but to continue fire on the mech, and surrounding enemy targets. He knew firing on the mech wasn’t doing anything, but he didn’t want the enemy thinking they were planning anything. Sometimes the “mindless under-evolved primate rebels’ angle the Alliance had pinned on them could be used as clever subterfuge. Campbell came up alongside Jack. Both of them knew they didn’t have long before this fight was turned totally against them. It wasn’t the first time, however in this situation it would be nearly impossible to get out before a ‘lay down arms order’ came through in that event, and there was absolutely no leaving before that. So whatever Nix was going to do he’d better do it quick. Just as the two of them were starting to get concerned the roof of the hanger erupted. A tower of fire rose through the air with flaming debris, and parts of the hanger rained to the ground. The fire spectacle was great that almost no one notice the skiff shoot out of the top of the tower of flame when the explosion happened.

Nix may not have been a crack pilot, but he had been shown around a few skiffs during his time growing up on military bases, and in the academy. He put the skiff in the ready position. This retracted the ground gear on the aircraft, and put it in a sustained hover position ready for a vertical launch. The next thing was an evasion failsafe a veteran pilot showed him years ago while his dad wasn’t looking. Nix didn’t understand fully what the pilot meant at the time when he said “In case there is ever something in your way of going up.” When Nix was a kid the only thing that was up was the sky, and now Nix realized that the thing between him, and that was a roof. And the roof had to go. Like the song the Independents sung around fires sometimes there was no taking the sky. So Nix activated the weapon systems, and then armed the third switch marked under “Manual F’. A small compartment on top of the forward part of each of the two primary wings slid open revealing hemispherical rocket pods. With a thermal charge these pods were powerful enough to punch a sizable hole in the hanger roof, but small enough not to kill everything else. Nix pulled the trigger, and the pods launched as he did this he angled the skiff while remaining at the ready height to almost ninety degrees, and punched the thrusters. He was up so quick he was only a few yards behind the pods when they impacted the roof. The charges went off punching a sizable hole, like the old pilot told him they would. As Nix assented through the explosion that was coupled with all of the fumes, and vapor in the air of the hanger that ignited around him, and burst out through the hole creating a spire of crimson flame that trailed his assent. Nix climbed much more rapidly than he had anticipated. The fighter was a little quicker than their converted courier he thought to himself as he took the opportunity to look down at the battlefield. Outside of the hanger he had just come through he could clearly see the area that was being formed around the mech. With the push the Mech was making along with what was left of the Allied front they were pushing the Independence into a position to be flanked. “Time for a little detour.” Nix said as he banked the skiff down, and over. He brought his altitude down swiftly, and buzzed the mech. The skiffs weapon systems did not pick up a lock, or even a trace from the mech. Nix guessed the ’mindless under-evolved primate rebels’ angle was working for them again. He swooped gracefully along the back of the Alliance front, and the men there began to rally, but the cheering stopped when Nix drained the battery for the small sustained laser cannon that was mounted on the bottom of the skiff. It carved a column with a wall of flame that split the Alliance front, and cut off their flank by igniting the forest on the northern side. It was only seconds after that his weapon systems picked up a trace. The Mech had begun tracking him so Nix banked the skiff the right hard brushing the tree line. He banked hard to the right again, and the succession of these maneuvers made him want to vomit as the gravity from St. Albans fought against the Independent Magnetic-Gravity Unit of the skiff that allowed him to maneuver at these speeds without blacking out. He brought the skiff horizontal, and in a direct line with the Mammoth mech., and poured on the thrusters. The skiff blazed across the field breaking the sound barrier in seconds. The mech locked on, but it did not matter Nix pulled the ejection control just as the mech let two missiles fly. Nix shot off, and up into the cold air made even colder in his current rate of speed, as the two missiles ripped off the wings of the skiff, and turning it into a ball of flame. It was to little to late however, as the hulk a far too much momentum, and slammed into the giant mech. The biped death machine toppled to the ground, and the leg detachment for the tank released mid-fall landing it upside down. Yes the mech. would allow the operators to survive a nuclear attack unscathed, but nothing was ever said about the machine still working after being hit with an aircraft going full speed. The rockets in the back of the chair that had detached, and pulled Nix up into the air had finally stopped firing, and he began to fall. As this happened the chute opened, and he began to loft lightly through the air he could still see the entire battle from up here, and hear the enemy shooting at him as he fell slowly through the air. “I said make sure nobody shoots at me, damn it!” He screamed, but was sure no one could hear him. Nix had never done this before, and minus being shot at while dangling helplessly in the air it wasn’t so bad. He looked down, and saw a green ball fall from the harness as he straightened out. “What was that?” he wondered, but no sooner did the words cross his mind the chute cut lose, and Nix began to plummet. Nix knew he hadn’t been shot down because he felt the mechanism detach. Just as the ground became vividly visible, and Nix braced for the end of his life a pool of thick green gelatinous substance opened up below him, and he fell straight into it as he was supposed to he later assumed. The green gelatin broke his fall safely, and surprisingly rather comfortably. The green pool melted away within seconds, and Nix decided to stay for a moment with his face in the cold snow. It felt good right about now. Jack, and Campbell were quick to his aid, and pulled him up off the ground. “That’s new.” Nix told them. “You dumb son of a bitch!” Jack screamed at Nix. “How many more times are you gonna’ pull stunts, eh?” “Yeah, would you stop savin’ our asses. It’s annoying.” Campbell added on. “Nee ta ma duh tyen-shia suo-yo duh run doh gai si. And hey, you can’t count Athens.” Nix said to them. He was still a bit out of breath, and somewhat dazed. “No that was you, and Miko.” Jack explained as he looked around. “Where’s Miko?” He asked. His tone reminded Nix of a concerned father. Then it donned on Nix again. She was still with Jones, and he feared they didn’t save everyone today. They three of them stood silently for a moment until a young female field communications officer ran up to them. They could tell she hadn’t been there long she was clean, and her boots didn’t even have a lot of snow on them. “Sir.” She spoke to Jack. “We’ve routed Alliance Air capabilities over the area, and the Alliance is forfeiting the facility to Independence control for the time being, and are also contacting central command to negotiate the release of their remaining men. We won this fight, Sir. Good work.” “That’s our cue to go.” Campbell said as he headed off back toward the hanger. Nix, and Jack moved a little more swiftly to get back to Miko, and Jones.

Snow had silently began to fall once more by the time Jack, and Nix reached the other side of the hanger. Nix’s artwork in the form of charred debris had fallen only yards before them, but it was clear they had never even moved. It wasn’t like they’d even had a choice. Jones wasn’t going anywhere under his own power, and Miko wouldn’t have left him there to die alone. She was covered in Jones’s blood, and the field medic from the 57th was next to them speaking quietly. They quickly ran to their side. “Nix?..” Jones voice trailed off, and his eyes were distant. “Yeah, buddy.” He replied calmly as Miko leaned close to Nix. She was clearly spent. “I’m sorry, man… I’m sorry.” Jones began. “It’s alright. Just save it, okay?” “Save it? For what? I’m sorry because you were right, Nix. We are different. I’m different. My wife… My Kids…. All the shit I’ve done…. Revenge?… you were my brother… from Shadow remember?… I should have listened… may be I’d see ‘um again…” “You will.” Nix said after a moment. even as he said the words he wasn’t sure he even believed them let alone provided any council for Jones. “You know what they say brother.” “When you can’t walk. You crawl.” Jack began. “And when you can’t do that.” Miko added. Her voice nearly cracking as tears streamed down her eyes. “You find someone to carry you.” Nix finished. “Carry me. .. Back to my wife, and my kids?” Jones asked his voice quiet, and soft. “You know it.” Jones managed a feint smile before he slipped away. The medic reached out, and closed his eyes before saying a few quiet words then moving on. Miko, and Nix hugged tightly until they brought the stretcher, and shroud. It was the Knights responsibility to bring him back to the base, and that was going to be a long walk for this small family of warriors. They walked silently back through the forest the same way they had come through. No one was saying a thing, but everyone’s mind was going a mile a minute. Jones had lost when his family was lost on Shadow. Nix couldn’t help but think. He had plenty of sympathy for him. Nix knew what it was like to have everything he had ever know taken from him, but he had never given himself the opportunity to even begin to lament losing what he had lost. Mostly because in his loss he had found something to replace it. Something new to cherish. His new family was the Knights. Jack, and Miko his new best friends. They put Jones with them because of Nix. One because Nix too was from Shadow even though he could not remember it was connection enough for Jones. Secondly because he was former Alliance. No one in the Knights had ever forgotten they were fighting people just like them. Not all of them were bad, and maybe some didn’t even want to fight them. They knew they would have to kill. It was a war. They would never kill just to kill. Sometimes extreme measures were needed, and used, but it was war. But the thing they were fighting were other people. They weren’t fighting objects, or machines. They were fighting people. They had to be more than just animals. They had to somehow keep their humanity, and hope when their time came that their enemy would also be more that just animals. But Jones had remained a vessel of rage. Nothing like the man they imagined him being before Shadow’s end. A man with a family who was saving his money to bring his family to a brand new world being created beyond the outer rim. To give them the best. The Independence became an outlet for revenge, and a means to his own end. Though all of them were sure that end would have been preferably after he saw the Alliance fall. It had become clear to them all long before this day Jones had died on Shadow along with his wife, and children, and the man they’d called brother was just remnant of his great loss. An animal. Would it happen to him too? Nix thought. As more of his brothers fell, if he ever lost Miko? Would he become an animal too? They would fight, and they would even win, but the longer the war lasted it felt like he was losing his new family. Like they were all fading away. It felt like he was the only one left among the who still thought that they could still win, and even survive. They approached the patrol camp where the two Alliance soldiers lie dead one by his own hand. Nix stopped, and the rest of them did as well. “Who’s gonna’ carry them?” He asked. He was not an animal yet he thought, and after surveying the other faces he determined they were not yet either. After resting Jones on Gemini they returned to the battlefield carrying the four dead from the forest. Jack got the other officers to help organize everyone to collect the dead give them due process, and respect, and help carry them out Independence, and Alliance alike. The sentiment did not go unnoticed by the enemy when the evacuation crews were escorted out, and Gemini sailed quietly out into the black.

Nearly five hours later Nix hadn’t even closed his eyes. He lied wide awake in his bunk that was in the back of the “Captains” quarters of the Hornet class ship. The only one on board who had their own bunk now was Miko. Nix got up, and quietly crept past Jacks bed. Not that it would have mattered he didn’t think Jack was sleeping at all either. Non of them slept well these days, even when things were going good. He made his way down the narrow hallway barely noticing Miko’s door was still open. When he reached the stairway he saw her though. She stood silently in front of the steel coffin that was designed to be light, but also seal so the body inside would decay at a much slower rate. Nix walked down the stairs, and stood behind her. She had been their the entire time with him. Bleeding, and dying in her arms. Nix honestly believed that today was more traumatizing for her than it even was for Jones in the end. Miko turned, and hugged Nix, and he bowed to kiss her on the top of her head. He realized he was coming back around when one of the things that ran through his mind was “Wow, Jack would through me out the airlock if he ever saw this.” Miko looked up at Nix, and smiled lightly, but she could not hide the distress the day had put on her in her eyes. It was almost a shock when she leaned forward, and kissed him lightly on the lips. “Don’t get lost on me.” She said. Then she let go, and made her way to her bunk. He knew what she meant. Not to lose himself like Jones had lost himself. A simple request, but it could be hard to fill. That, and Jack would have his tortured, and then tossed if he ever knew she kissed him. This day held many first for Nix one of which he knew he did not want to experience again, but would seem impossible not to. One day at a time. One moment at a time. See the war through to the end. The road however just seemed to be getting longer, and everyone was getting tired. Just survive the animal would say, but Nix knew he had to do much more than that.