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5/12/36 13:03:22 GTT, GTI Sanctuary, Alpha Centauri System

        "I was a rookie once.  Sometimes I miss it, too.  Back then I felt so young and naive and ready to take on the universe. The funny thing was that I did,  and survived. Well, let me change that: I'm still alive.  This war is far from over.  There are still thousands of young pilots to go through their trial by fire, there are still hundreds of Shivan cap ships floating around out there, so much sorrow and loss still to come., so ‘surviving isn’t an option yet.

        "They keep telling us that this is a war to save humanity.  It's been that way ever since our first hostile encounter with the Vasudans nearly fifteen years ago.  Honestly I think I prefer fighting the bone-and leather skinned bastards to the Shivans. But that really doesn't matter anymore. Am I always this melancholy? Goodness no, I just get this way occasionally when I'm alone with my thoughts. When you see over two kilometers of steel, pride, and human construction cracking open and splitting into a hundred different pieces all larger than your typical city block you might get a tendency to feel like there's no hope. 

        "Which one? The Amadeus, my second assignment. Yeah, Vega system, last year, just right after this whole war escalated into a deadly free for all. Yes, even before the peace treaty.  Hell, the Amadeus was scheduled to rendezvous with the PVD Khepher-Re to begin alliance talks the same week the Shivans jumped in-system. I'll never forget it.

        "The GTD Amadeus: it was beautiful. There's nothing like coming home from a long patrol in the depths of freespace and seeing that massive block of armed and armored metal floating outside the orbit of some planet, seeing her lights, all pinpoints of yellows, reds, and blues then hearing that sweet voice of your comm-op welcoming you back home, especially when it was the voice of Angela Perkins. You could be strapped in your seat on red alert, waiting for launch wondering whether or not you'd be coming back, and just her voice saying that soft, "Alpha two, chute is clear, on your mark." 

        "Roger, Amadeus, Alpha two clear for launch."

        "Good luck, Alpha two, see you when you get back."

        "She said that to everyone who took off. A ritual of hers, I suppose, but back to the main story:

        "Late January, we get this comm from GTA Intelligence routing the Amadeus to Vega for some sort of peace chat. Of course, if you ask around, you'll get no such confirmation, but it was scheduled to go down like that. We jump in and wait for further orders..."

1/23/35  09:34:23 GTT, Vega System Nadir Jump Node, GTD Amadeus

        "Sir, incoming tight-packet transmission from the PVD Kepher-Re," Comm-Op Angela Perkins said, pressing one hand to the side of her headset, her lips thinning as she tried to hear the poorly-sent transmission. 

        "On screen," Captain Terry Logan said, not at all pleased with the look on his comm-op's face. 

        A visual image flickered onto the main communications screen, broken by static and freezing every few images. The audio was horrible, but a Vasudan could be made out on the screen. 

        "..TD...madeus, thi.......pher-Re. Our jump dri.....functioned.......will need a day....epairs."

        Logan frowned. Vega wasn't his ideal system to conduct covert op business. Pausing for a few seconds, he told Perkins, "Open up a secondary channel, Perkins, and get me GTA Intel, find out what they want us to do, and patch us through to the Re."

        Logan regarded the Vasudan on the screen and said, "We copy you, Kepher-Re, standby." Though liberal-minded towards the other alien race, he had, after all, spent the past six years fighting against them, and time makes one realize it's always nice to ask the higher-ups before deciding to stick around in a system waiting for a Vasudan Destroyer, especially now since these new 'Shivans' seemed hell-bent and determined to destroy everyone in the galaxy, regardless of race. 

        "Captain, Intel's telling us to hold our position until the Kepher-Re arrives," Perkins replied softly.

        Logan cursed under his breath, and then offered her a crooked smile, "Well, it's only a day, right?" He turned back to the crackling image of the Vasudan officer, "Roger, Kepher-Re, we'll be waiting here for you. Amadeus out." 

        The Vasudan on the screen nodded and said something which translated into, "Our thanks for your cooperation," and then the screen winked out. The captain looked out across his ship at the stars in the distance. "Just a day," he repeated, then pressed the comm button which would page his Flight Leaders. 

1/23/35 23:12:43 GTT, Vega System Nadir Jump Node, GTD Amadeus

        Frederick Thompson saw the anomaly first, his voice rising sharply, "Sir, subspace anomaly detected! Incoming cap ship!" A few seconds later, eight kilometers from the Amadeus, the tell-tale bluish rippling effect all ships passing through subspace create as they slip back into freespace lit up the far corner of space silently, some titan of  metal sliding into the vicinity. 

        A second azure tear opened up near the first, and Thompson's voice echoed its arrival. “A second cap ship, sir!" His eyes flicked across his instrument board, and a lump appeared in his voice as he reported: "unidentified contacts, sir..." he elaborated, "sensors aren't labeling them as anything Terran or Vasudan."

        Captain Logan's soft intake of breath was carefully hidden, both by his sense of duty and by the other gasps which were occurring across the bridge.  "Roger, officer Thompson. Perkins, red alert and scramble the Alert Wing, deploy for passive defense." He turns slightly, pressing a button on the side of his captain's chair. He spoke into a small microphone imbedded in the arm, "Anthony, scramble all pilots, meet in the briefing room immediately," the lights in the bridge flickered and soon the room was bathed in a soft crimson hue, "as you guessed by now, we're on red alert. I'll meet you there," he told his flight commander.  A pause. He looked up and then spoke: "as you know we have our orders, we'll see how things go." And then he was off. The bridge buzzed with activity. There were things to do.

1/24/35 01:03:56 GTT, Vega System Nadir Jump Node, GTD Amadeus

        Captain Logan sat in his chair silently, gaze focused beyond the massive viewport before him to the two ships heading steadily for the Amadeus. They could track them visually from the groups of stars which winked out as the two cruisers passed in front of them, only to reappear moments later, their innocent twinkling restored anew. 

        "Distance, 4 kilometers sir, still closing steadily. Strange power emanations charging at various points across the ships," Thompson chimed out.

        Logan nodded grimly, then spoke softly, calmly, "Perkins, scramble all fighters; Calhoun, reroute engine power to weapons systems, Thompson, I need a constant status on those cruisers." Falling silent after the chorus of  'yes sir’s which followed, Logan's right hand slipped to his chair's arm. A finger depressed a button.

        "Attention all officers, technicians, crew, and pilots of the GTD Amadeus; we stand against two Shivan cruisers. Our orders are to remain here at Vega and proceed with the Vasudan contact. The Amadeus will engage the Cruisers shortly after the fighters are deployed. We have no idea what to expect, but hopefully the new technology we've acquired might just make this a bit easier. Good luck, and god speed. Captain Logan out." 

        The Captain watched the tiny forms of glimmering metal streak out from the launch deck, converging into light formation. Lives would be lost this day.  He sighed softly, and prayed. 

1/24/35 01:48:23 GTT, Vega System Nadir Jump Node

        As the squadrons of fighters closed on the two medusa-like cruisers, a flurry of subspace nodes lit the freespace around the alien capitals as Shivan fighters emerged, swarms of raging silent demons bringing death to the Terran forces. 

        The Terran fighters found themselves quickly outnumbered as the Shivan interceptors met them head on. Space, once again quiet, was lit by volleys of intense laserfire as Shivan and Terran fighters fought for their lives. 

        On the bridge of the Amadeus, Captain Logan mentally muted the constant radio activity and focused instead on the oncoming cruisers. The first volley of cannonfire erupted from the Amadeus, each bolt spreading a purple or yellow glow over the hull of the ship as the bolts of coalesced energy were sent passing through the emptiness of freespace towards the alien craft.

        The battle soon became an intricate dance to the music of Death and Destruction, and Fate. 
 

1/24/35 02:12:02 GTT, Vega System Nadir Jump Node, GTD Amadeus

        The Captain's knuckles remained white, clutching against the railing of the bridge as another blast rocked the torn ship. The bridge crew were rocked in their seats.

        "Port side weapons systems are out, sir!" a pained voice nearly shrieked from somewhere. A fine haze blanketed the bridge, smoke from some electrical system. 

        "Sir! Alpha and Beta squadrons down, Delta, Epsilon and Gamma reporting heavy losses as well!" another voice. Logan's head spun slightly. 

        "Are the pods clear yet?!" Logan snapped out after his ribcage was tossed against the railing again. He staggered and remained standing somehow.

        "Negative, only thirty percent have launched, and only two are in safe distance!"

        Thompson's voice shrieked suddenly, "Sir! Incoming subspace jump!" The young man's hand pointed toward a point quite close to one of the Shivan Cruisers where a large subspace node erupted, spewing forth a capital ship. Logan's eyes widened, and his voice found the words before Thompson could echo the identification: "The Kepher-Re."

        And it was true; The Vasudan destroyer emerged from subspace just in weapons range of the Shivans, and soon the PVD Kepher-Re opened up, sending terrifying volleys of fire towards one of  the Shivan Cruisers.

        The attack definitely caught the attention of the Shivans,  both cruisers slowly banked, turning to the Kepher-Re, sending a more devastating hail of return fire and leaving the Amadeus alone.

        "Sir! Shivan caps and fighters disengaging to attack the Re!" 

        "Perkins, order all fighters to pursue and keep those fighters from the Re!"

        "Copy that!"

        Logan watched, and something finally clicked in his mind. "We don't pose a threat anymore..." he said suddenly quite hopelessly, "they'll take the Re, then come back and finish us off." 

        As those words left his lips, he looked around and found the members of the bridge, those still conscious, all looking to him silently. A sob broke the silencefrom someone outside of his vision, and Logan's lip twitched uncontrollably as fear and rage boiled to his face. He clenched his teeth. There was nothing he could say to his crew. 

        The bridge was silent, save for the soft weeping of those who could not contain the fear at the oncoming death. The officers watched the Shivans chew the Kepher-Re like it was hardly worth the effort. The massive capital lasers of the Re were simply absorbed by the shield systems of the Shivans. 

        The Kepher's final moments were spent still trying to fight. Then suddenlt the ship seemed to shudder even in the midst of space and  was outlined as a thousand minor explosions and implosions dotted its bow. The reactors went supercritical before they could be rendered inoperative, and lit space with a brilliant flare of orange and yellow fire boiling outwards  before the vacuum of space sucked the life and energy of the fires.

        The bridge crew didn't need to say anything to know that they would be next. The gathered twelve waited for Death to come. Some surrendered to the cyanide caplets locked in the captain's chair, their deaths quiet and relatively peaceful. Others, like Captain Logan and Officer Perkins, simply waited, watching the Shivan ships as their laser turrets glowed a soft red before sending the final waves of fire to claim them.

5/12/36 13:17:22 GTT, GTI Sanctuary, Alpha Centauri System

        "Me and four other fighters pulled back after the Amadeus went down. The sad part was that though we made the jump, the pilots of Gamma wing actually stayed behind. I don't know why, but I can guess.  Sometimes we form such close kinships that living with the ghosts of our friends is an unacceptable option. Like I said, I don't know. Maybe it’s just a need to face the hopelessness and rage alone.  Anyway, we entered subspace and fell back to a small system near Deneb, and from there we jumped around until we finally ran into a GTA task force led by the Galatea. 

        "Our stay was short, though. We were transferred here for debriefing, and I've been here for a while simply waiting on my new transfer.  Of course I could've pulled the plug anytime between then and now, but I've seen too many people lost in this to retire or commit suicide. Heh, as if being a pilot isn’t a more formal version of the latter. 

        "I might become another statistic, another number, another name on some monument somewhere-Hell, assuming that A: there's anyone left to build one and B: assuming we even want to look back at this at all and remember.  I'm just like anyone else out there who's seen the war, fought in it, and is still alive. I fight to live and to save lives. Every pilot makes a difference, don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. There’s always hope.

        "Yes, I'm afraid of death, but it's the thought of all those who have died already that keeps me going. I'm not ready to check out just yet, but if it's meant to be, then so be it. I just hope I can take a few bastards with me. They say it's quick, though, despite the screams you'll hear over your comm...but enough of that. 

        "My transfer? To the GTD Bastion, right in the thick of it all. Yours too? Amazing how things work out, wouldn't you agree? Well anyway, I guess we'll be seeing a bit of each other then. Anyway, I've got to get some stuff done now, so I'll talk to you later, pal.  See ya in freespace if not on the Bastion first."

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