From: Cat-Gonk <catgonk@hotmail.meeh.caheeh.com> Subject: [PW!] [NC] Battle for the Shattered Dreams. Date: Saturday, July 31, 1999 5:36 PM Previously, on the surface of Tie'nek >"They have very few ships, but from what i seen, their ground military could >be a problem. Over 25% of their world has military characteristics, unless >we >attack head on with full use of Col.." Car'tos stopped, as he heard the >InComm kick in. "Alert, Unknown ship landing in sector 7 8. Alert..." It >went on. "A Ship? How did it get past the Fleet? Commander! Get in here!" >Yelled Car'tos, now running toward the blast doors. > >"Yes sir?" >"Why didn't the Scanners pick them up?" >"That ship made no noise as it entered our space. We only count wind of it, >as it left the cloud cover. Do we send a Recon?" >"Yes, bu..." >"I want Battle Ready Colossus with full soldier capacity! Also send in >Battle Ready Underlins. Whatever this ship is, it's a threat. The power to >cloak sound around the frame of the craft is deadly in the wrong hands. I >want that ship found." "Any luck with the Star Lane drive?" shouted Julian Charlesson. A Thunderball Lightning Cannon firmly in his grasp, he scuttled outside the wreckage organising a defense. From what the Albatros had picked up, the natives weren't taking any chances. >Down in the Palace of City's Docking Bay, large cranes were used to place >silver battle armor on the Colossus The Colossus knew what this meant, as >they have attacked whole worlds before with the armor on. This was their >sign to get aggressive, and they had good reason too. The Underlins on the >other hand, were given a liter kind of battle gear, it only covered their >bodies, not their limbs. The soldiers around the Bay were finding their >helmets and Pikes, and climbed on to the backs of Colossus. "Sir! The Windlaser is working!" From the top of the ship, a technician yelled down. "We've only got the upper half operational, the rest of it is fused with rock." Now that the Shattered Dreams had its capital-ship weapon working, things were slightly lookign up. The Windlaser was useless on its own, it sprayed a hail of needle-thin laser blasts in a wide arc to its front. Though the beams were too thin to be absorbed by an energy field, they were too weak to do any real damage, but they could literally osften up a target for a much more powerful hit from a Capital Ship Missile, Azure Beamer or something similar >"This is Car'tos," Came the InComm, "All troops, Battle Ready. Opening Bay >doors." The Black Blast Doors began to slowly roll away from each other, as >the 40 Plus Tie'neks atop the Colossus began to pour out of the Palace. The >Underlins (with only one Tie'nek each) started to run under the towering >beast's legs. A few of the I'Bos Fighters also took off. Back up stairs, >Car'tos found a helmet, and snapped it on. He then looked for his locker, >and found his Golden Pike. The feathers at either side of the tip waved in >the open air, as he hooked it up to back. He sled his visor down, and run to >join the rest of the battle group. "They've got air support," spoke Theore into his comm-jewel. "Any luck with the basic colony template's defenses?" "We'd need at least a week to have those things set up, and they're useless against a force already on the ground," replied Julian. "And from the size of that fleet up there, we'd need more than a single shield generator." >The ground trembled as the 200+ Colossus marched down the blue hills. The >Underlins always stayed behind from the main group, only to be sent in for >quick attack-runs. Much like knights on horseback. Car'tos looked back, and >ordered his men to ready their Pikes. Car'tos himself loved melee weapons as >much as any other Tie'nek. He reached down the side of his Colossus' >backpack, and pulled out a Comm. "They're not taking any chances, are they?" said Theore. "Looks like a big herd of, of, stuff..." >"Car'tos here, send in the I'Bos. I want a quick Recon before we encounter >them. Also tell the 'Aku' (D'ahmaren Super Cruiser orbiting Tie'nek) to get >in sight. If anything happens, i want that ship to open all cannon fire on >the planet. No use of it's Galaxy Gun unless I say so! Fleet Commander out." "And where the hell is our rescue ship? Wasn't the Condor XXI meant to be right behind us?" "Maybe they got ejected somewhere else. It happens with bad lanes." >As Car'tos put the Comm away, seven I'Bos flew overhead at an incredible >speed. Three of them flew up higher into the sky, as they dove down, with >their wings open as if ready for combat. The Comm Buzzed in, "Fleet >Commander! The ship is about the size of a Minion Destroyer. The craft is >somewhat in the ground. They are unloading some kindda of Spider-like >machines. These aliens have wings sir." "Copy that, how close are we to >them?" "Over the next hill, sir." "Very well, good hunting. Car'tos out." He >looked at his MDT Blaster, and handed the long, silver rifle to Nori. "Spiderettes ready! The three combat-equpped Spiderette body-harnesses were already being chosen riders. All three were equipped with Azure Beamlasers, used mainly for anti-armour and tank battles but deemed impractical for organic targets. But the larger warbeasts were around the size of small buildings, so perhaps only the cannon's mighty pucnh could get through their hide. >She smiled,"I will. Car'tos, we did just eat!" >Car'tos laughed, and remembered an old saying he heard on his time on Earth; >"Give them great meals of beef and iron, and watch them eat like wolfs and >fight like devils!" He yelled out loud as they rode over the hill. "Any sign of Sharadzhi?" Julian was worried about his fiance, and his son Schroeder. They might have been killed in the crash. A passing Serf shook his head. "We'll keep searching." >Car'tos looked at the new aliens with disgust, and lowered his right arm. >The sign for the Underlins to attack first. They ran below like crazed >Scythers hunting wild Tauros. The Underlins zigzagged under the legs of the >mighty beasts above them. Their riders took out their Pikes, and placed them >over the Underlin's head, as if they were going to ram them. With a backflip, Theore landed at the foot of the wreckage. "They're swamping us. Around two hundred of those larger beasts, behind a thin skirmish screen of those smaller ones." Theore took out an Orbknife from his breastplate, and released it to hover in the air beside him. With a quick mental command, it arced through the air and embedded itself blade-first in the earth, before exploding in a hail of fire and explosions. "They carry close-combat weapons, I think we're dealing with a race of savages. And they're ugly as." "Any ideas?" said Julian. "We've got the Windlaser working, and the shields still work, the Hovertank's been destroyed but there are three combat Spiderettes and enough firearms and blades for those still alive. The ship's Star Lane Drive's and missile bays are shot to hell, the scanner's out and all the countermeasures are inactive but repairable." In his hand he held a quickly-sketched plan of the wreckage, important mechanisms highlighted. "Sadly, we'll need about two months to get everything operational but that doesn't solve our problem of the Star Lane Drive." "Windlaser?" Theore's brief tactics training on Alkyr began to creep into his thoughts. "Well, we'd win a standoff with something that big on our side, but then there's still a fleet of battleships in orbit. If the attackers survive the opening Windlaser volley, we'll be crushed in close-quarters. The shield generators will protect the ship itself, and protect anyone inside it, but I'd rather leave some room for the men to fall back rather than having everyone fight against a wall." "So, what's the plan?" "They're attacking head-on from that hill to the south. Have half the survivors stay within the generator's radius, and arm them all to the beak. I'll lead the attack." Normally Theore wouldn't do anything for anyone else, but this was a matter of life and death. He pulled another two of the broad-bladed weapons from his breastplate, the orb-shaped pommel clamping onto magnetic grips in the palms of his armour. "Just don't get me with the Windlaser, and I'll be fine." Julian saluted, and scuttled back into the wreckage. An honour guard formed around Theore, made up of the bulkier Moluvians and those with past combat experience. Weapons crackling with barely controlled energies, they braced themselves for the opening salvo. >Car'tos then lowered his left arm. The sign for the Colossus to break >up into groups of ten. With a mighty yell from it's mouth, Car'tos' >CColossus reared up on his hind legs, and started to run toward the >fallen craft. The others followed suit. The 70-some Underlins could >barely keep their own; the whole world of Tie'nek shook, as the 200+ >Colossus ran into battle The Tie'nek force cleared the hill. It was time. "Here they come!" Theore raised his hand. The tower-like Windlaser swivelled around and began to glow, before releasing a blizzard of red death into the air towards the attacking force. The rest of the Moluvians waited for their enemies to come into the range of the teeth of their guns, gleaming brass-coloured armour sealed tight and every joint tensed. "For the Emperor." TBC... Cat-Gonk. ---------------------------- Do you believe in Goddish? Azure Heights Theorist Prime. http://www.geocities.com/~korelano/ Keeper of the Wigglytech. http://yoda.pagehub.com -GOT WIGGLY? Host of "Sunday Night with Cat-Gonk". http://members.xoom.com/pokezine/ "Let you not mistake your duty as I mistook my own. I came into this village like a bridgegroom to his beloved, bearing gifts of high religion; the very crowns of holy law I brought, and what I touched with my bright confidence , it died; and where I turned the eye of my great faith, blood flowed up. Beware, cleave to no faith were faith brings blood. It is mistaken law that leads you to sacrifice. Life, life is God's most precious gift; no principle, however glorious, may justify the taking of it." -Reverend Hale Arthur Miller's "The Crucible."