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on-a-mechtechnicality · 6 months ago

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Idol

The morning sun illuminated the DropShips towering over the encampment and Sigrid was making her way ‘home’. The mess tent was disappearing behind her and the sounds of the camp faded along with it to be replaced by the din of people working around the towering vessels.

She boarded, finding herself in the small human-sized corridors that made the ship feel almost cramped. The feeling didn’t last as she soon found herself face to face with the cavern that was the MechLab. It looked big from up in the overlook, where she could see the entire area, but from here on ground level she didn’t think she’d ever get used to it.

Every single Bay was lit up and most had ‘Techs working on repairing the damaged machines inside. Despite this, one of them seemed cloaked in shadow. No light reflected onto the walkway in front, and from where she just entered she couldn’t see into the Bay.

The moment she could though, it all made sense.

Sigrid blinked.

Siggy opened her eyes and bounced to the mirror. In it she saw a girl with a great big mop of unruly red hair. She sat down and brushed and brushed and brushed, and then started braiding, just like Mom had showed her. Each strand meticulously on display.

Behind her on the wall hung her dream. On the left of the twin posters an impressive looking ‘Mech stepped out of a blazing inferno. Legs bending backwards, striding resolutely forward with two arms and great big rocket pods on its shoulders.

Beside it was a much more sedate but much more interesting dream. The same ‘Mech, now laid out in excruciating detail in an exploded technical view. Sometimes when she couldn’t sleep, she looked over the poster to read all the things she read a thousand times. Where the actuators were, where the sensors were, every single line on the diagram committed to memory, familiar and comforting.

And then she blinked again.

In front of her, black as a moonless night, stood her dream. A towering and proud machine, dormant but steadfast. Almost… alive.

The engineering on the foot in front of her was masterful, if she looked close enough she could see every piece of articulation, not a rivet out of place despite the well-worn look. Her eyes drifted from the trifold feet to the massive calf actuators and then further up. To the upper legs, the sleek torso and the arm actuators ending in dual hardpoints.

She couldn’t see the missile banks, but she knew them. She could see every familiar component, every single caption from her posters on Utrecht.

It didn’t just live up to her expectations, this machine exceeded it.

Blink. Work to do.

Sigrid synced her tablet with the docket and looked over her assigned tasks.

MechTech: Sigrid Guntran Initial assignment: Timber Wolf ‘Death Knell’ Bay: 8 Work order: right torso; replace armor plating right torso; general maintenance Full systems check Notes: Sigrid, sorry to put this on ya last minute, but I know you can do it! I’m trying to keep low so the MedTechs don’t get me. -Karrie

She looked down at her tablet, and then up at her dream. Part of her wondered if this was real, and another part supplied that she was currently working on an SLDF DropShip, deep in the Rimward periphery, on a hostile planet, under the command of a beautiful avian woman so old that the show she was on with the other Clan totem warriors – who were also here – was considered a historical record.

Working on an actual Timber Wolf didn’t seem so odd anymore.

She climbed up to the catwalk and found the Bay controls. From up here she could see the majesty that was the Timber Wolf from its rear angles, a dark void contrasted against the bright industrial lighting of the MechLab. She knew every angle, every single curve of the machine’s panelling by heart.

As the platform on the ‘Mech’s right side was lowering into position, she moved around to follow it. Panning down from the side she could see where the torso armor had taken the hits. Large chunks were warped or missing, open wounds showing the delicate internals that thankfully seemed to be in good shape. How good a shape she would have to find out later. Right now, the armor needed to come off.

She knew the automated arms could be more efficient, but they weren’t as accurate as handheld power tools. A machine of this caliber deserved those. She let the winch above her come down. Before connecting the straps onto the armor she placed a hand on the wounded ‘Mech.

“We’ll get you fixed up, don’t you worry.”

She hooked the straps to the attachment points in the armor and tensioned the lines. Bit by bit she carefully detached the panel until only the tension from above held them in place. Then it was just a light pull until it started moving.

She slowly guided the crane to move the panel out of the way and safely to the floor level of the Bay, out of the way of the walkway. A tap or two on her tablet flagged it for repairs. A forklift would be along soon.

With the panel out of the way she could see the underlying internals, sleek steel pipes contrasting harshly and beautifully against the black of the surrounding panels. And she knew them.

She knew the coolant from the lubricant from the hydraulics from the electronics at a glance, the labels only confirming what she already knew. Every conduit flowed like a symphony around the frame.

Around the places the armour had been gauged, she looked a little closer. Signs of damage would be hard to spot among the labyrinth of angles, but a visual inspection was part of the troubleshooting process. Her eyes danced over each line, following them from one end of the panel gap to where they snaked back into the ‘Mech’s interior.

All looked clear and secure, Clan engineering ensuring that even in the event of armor breach, the primary systems would not be easy to take out. Let alone the secondary and tertiary.

The systems looked undamaged, so she let the platform carry her down, just in time to see the panel being driven to the manufacturing wing. She followed along, not minding that she couldn’t keep up with the forklift. It’d give them some time to offload before she showed up. The difference in time between walking and driving was significant when dealing with this much space. Sigrid enjoyed the walks though, the Bay in operation was a soothing cacophony of all the different tools interacting with every material under the sun.

The armor repair itself was repetition more than anything. Identify a damaged subpanel. Remove the damaged subpanel. Find a suitable sized replacement. Shape the replacement. Attach the replacement. Repeat.

The capstone was the painting. It needed to match the existing color scheme, and match it well. Fresh paint also looked different from worn paint, but that was nothing they couldn’t handle. In the brochure it had never said that being an artist was part of being a MechTech, but the surprise had been a pleasant one.

The paint fresh but no longer wet, she followed the forklift back to Bay 8. It was already hoisted up and ready to be placed. She considered the automated tools, but for installation the accuracy was even more important than for removal, and handheld tools were king.

The work was honestly calming to Sigrid, alone up on the platform, grafting new skin onto the wounded ‘Mech in front of her. Bit by bit she circled around the edge of the panel until everything looked like she never touched it at all.

She climbed back onto the catwalk where her equipment was stored. She took out her neurohelmet and opened the compartment on her toolkit where she kept her soft tools. She knew them by heart, but looking through them helped remind her which ones she had available should the need arise.

The hop from the catwalk to the top of the Timber Wolf was not a big one. The matte black paint on the armor made it a little harder to judge. What made it really hard to make the jump though, was that Sigrid knew what she was about to do.

She was about to hop on top of a Timber Wolf. She was about to open the latch and lower herself inside. She already knew what it would look like, she knew the view from the cockpit, she knew the exact dimensions of the enclosure.

And that made it all the more daunting.

Gathering her will in her mind and her grip on her neurohelmet, she took the hop.

She was standing on top of a Timber Wolf. She was working on it, it was her work. It was her dream. She unlocked the hatch and allowed herself to slip inside.

Inside the ‘Mech it was quiet. No hum from the reactor, no sound arrived from the outside. There was just Sigrid, trying to calm her breathing, and the terrifying, loving embrace of a dream.

Her mind knew the startup sequence of a ‘Mech. Her fingers danced this dance before. And yet she couldn’t stop trembling as she toggled the first switch.

Bay power to auxiliary generator.

The high-pitched whine of the generator filled the cockpit. It was reassuring, it was terrifying, it was exhilarating.

Flick.

Auxiliary power to emergency lighting.

The lights around her came online. Dim compared to the view through the cockpit, but plenty bright enough to see by.

Auxiliary power to diagnostic systems.

Screens flickered to life. White text flew over a black background as the ‘Mech rose from slumber. Not awake yet, but no longer asleep. Sigrid listened to the whine and the soft clicks performing a symphony of self-tests. The ‘Mech checked its pressures, checked every single one of its connections in a lightning-fast choreography of every system it could access.

The text scrolled by faster than she could read, but she wasn’t looking for text. She was looking for colors. She was looking for the orange that signified a warning, the angry red that signified a fault. Her heartbeat punctuated the soundscape as seconds ticked past.

And then nothing.

No more text flying by, nothing more to focus her attention on. Just a single phrase that was both the best thing she could have read and the most disappointing.

Self-test: 100% Warnings: 0 Errors: 0 System status: OK

No need to diagnose further, it would not be time well spent. It would be time spent with her dream, but that didn’t matter.

She powered down the ‘Mech, returning it to cold and dark status. Ready for when it would be needed again. She picked her neurohelmet from where she set it down and held it in her hands. She stared at the visor.

Reflected in it she could see a woman with red hair in a tight bun, sitting inside the cockpit of a Timber Wolf. Her dream.

She sighed and rotated the helmet around. With trembling hands she placed it on her head.

She wasn’t plugged in.

The ‘Mech was powered down.

She had better things to do.

Siggy closed her eyes. It didn’t matter.

She had her helmet on

Made from an old football helmet, Utrecht Kodiaks logo covered with silver tape

She could see the canopy in front of her

Made from a laundry basket, tipped on its side

She knew exactly where the missile pods were

Two cardboard boxes, placed on the sofa behind her

She was in the cockpit of a Timber Wolf.

The beat of her heart and the sound of her breath were the only things accompanying her for this moment in time, etching itself into her memory as her visor slowly fogged up without the air circulation connected.

She took off her helmet and held it in her hands, staring into the condensed visor one last time. There was work to be done.

She extracted herself from the cockpit and closed the hatch beneath her.

The hop from the ‘Mech onto the catwalk was both easier and harder than the other way. She landed with a soft impact of her work boots.

She placed her helmet with her toolkit and sat down on the upper catwalk, out of sight of anyone working, staring at her dream.

She raised her tablet. Four taps was all it took.

Work order complete

@jaded-falcon

#battletech #mechwarrior #story event

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navcommrelay · 7 months ago

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JUNO 1-1

Operation: TOUCHDOWN LZ JUNO Battle Report

First Deployment: 0600 Hours

Drop Pod Near Objective 1st Wave (0600 hrs)

SWMC Alpha Lance

SWMC Bravo Lance

2nd Wave (0630 hrs)

SWMC Bravo Lance Auxiliary (Fire Moth, Elementals)

Objectives: Alpha Lance: Deploy directly to target zone “MADELEINE,” eliminate any local garrison elements and await support. Bravo Lance: Deploy behind and support Alpha Lance, assist with cleanup on any remaining garrison elements, then coordinate fire with Alpha to disable or destroy all non-capital-class AA targets.

DropShip Deployment at Primary LZ

CFRI 1C Beta Lance

CFRI 2C Alpha Lance

CFRI Angel-4, Angel-5, Angel-6

Objectives:

Alpha Lance: Make landfall at LZ JUNO. Secure drop site. Disperse into surrounding forest / highlands and sweep for contacts utilizing reconnaissance equipment.

Beta Lance: Make landfall at LZ JUNO. Hold position within 100 meters of clear drop point and ensure no hostile forces threaten LZ.

Angel Element: Mid-flight deployment during reentry. Break away from DropShip wing and proceed north towards SWMC Alpha / Bravo. Neutralize any active enemy air elements en route, conduct bombing run against primary capital-class AA targets to secure near-orbital space.

After-Action Report:

SWMC Alpha and SWMC Bravo lances made planetfall on schedule into a curtain of enemy anti-aircraft fire. No casualties on descent. One Drop Pod struck by LRM surface artillery, but damage minimal. OpFor presence at installations limited to a single Level II armored formation at the target. Armor engaged and Anti-Air defense infrastructure targeted at distance. SWMC Forces continued to engage for several hours following the initial drop. Both lances suffered moderate damage, leaving Alpha 2 and 3, and Bravo 3, 4 and 5 below standard performance. Anti-Aircraft Missile batteries targeted with ARAD LRM fire, opening nearby airspace for CFRI Angel Squadron. Objectives complete, awaiting reinforcement and resupply to push to target “HERA.” Engaged and Destroyed: 1x Prowler IFV (3140) 1x Black Blizzard IFV 1x Fury III MBT 1x Burke C3i (Heavy PPC) 2x Zephyr C3i 6x Heavy Air Defense Turret Damage and Losses: All Units - Armor and external damage Alpha 2 - 2 Jump Jets (RT), Lower Leg Actuator (LL), significant internal damage (RT, LL) Alpha 3 - Shoulder (LA), Lower Arm Actuator (LA), significant internal damage (LA) Bravo 3 - ER Medium Laser (LA), ER Micro Laser (LT), significant internal damage (LA, LT) Bravo 4 - ER Medium Laser (HD), moderate internal damage (HD, RT), Pilot injury (Treated) Bravo 5 - minor internal damage (RL)

CFRI 2nd Company Alpha Lance Swept a one-klick radius of LZ for enemy contacts. Two targets neutralized, returned to secure the site for the second drop wave. Surveillance equipment noted a significant increase in encrypted traffic over local networks and a concerningly large heat signature originating ~200 klicks southwest- request OPSCOM pass this along to CENTCOM and relay any available intelligence. Engaged and Destroyed: 2x Hi-Scout Cunningham

CFRI Angel Element deployed during drop and made for targets at full afterburners. Contacts en route did not delay element arrival to the AO. Successful operations by SWMC Alpha and SWMC Bravo resulted in minimal close AA support. Angel-4 and Angel-5 scored hits against enemy command and control structures. Arrow-IV Anti-Ship Missiles launched from Angel-6 achieved confirmed kills on target “MADELEINE” for primary objective success. Engaged and Destroyed: 2x Ripper (ERML) 3x Command Bunker 1x Heavy Anti-Ship PPC “MADELEINE” Damage and Losses: Angel-4 Meteor Inseki II successfully deployed ordinance against auxiliary targets before AC-2 anti-aircraft fire caused catastrophic ammunition detonation. Deceased with Honors.

SWMC Combat Comms Log Excerpt:

SB1: “Kerensky’s cock sheath! Alpha three are you ok?” SA3: “Right as rain, Commander. Just barely- Fuck!” SA2: “LRM impact on your drop pod, Alpha three.” SB4: “Think he’s going to shit?” SA4: “Oh, for sure.” SB2: “One hundred percent.” SA3: “Yeah…” (Severe ‘mech damage aural warning audible)

CFRI Combat Comms Log Excerpt:

NL: “Angel Actual, this is OPSCOM. You have incoming, weapons hot.” A4: “Roger, OPSCOM, Angel 4 taking wing lead. Angels, go hot.” A5: “Angel 5 copies. Sensors show two VTOL craft inbound, we- Fuck! A5: “SPIKE, SPIKE! GO DEFENSIVE!” A6: “Breaking formation! Watch clearance!” A4: “Angel 4 defending! Fox-2 on the first target!” A5: “Hell yeah, you got him! Eat HE you Blakist son of a bitch!” A6: “Coming about, high. Cover me, this boat doesn’t turn that fast!” A4: “Copy, copy! I’m on your low 5-o’clock, pulling with- A5: “FOUR, WATCH BELOW! TRIPLE-A!” A4: “What? I- Fuck! Incoming, incoming! Dropping payload!” A4: “Bombs away! Bombs away! Evading, someone check effect on target-” (A4 FEED ENDS. A5 / A6 FEEDS RECORD DETONATION.) A5: “ANGEL-FOUR, PUNCH OUT! PUNCH OUT!” A6: “He’s gone, Lieutenant!” A6: “OPSCOM, Angel-4 is down. Angel-6 assuming command. On target.” NL: “Copy, Angel-6. Finish the mission and get your ass home.” A6: “Roger, OPSCOM. Ordinance away.” (EXCERPT ENDS)

@is-the-battlemech-cool-or-not @the-tired-merc @the-clawtake @lt-chari @frogblast-the-ventcore

#battletech #story event #tactical information #operation touchdown #narrative #SoundCloud

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msn-04iinightingale · 6 months ago

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Back in the Saddle

Anya stood, staring up at the angular form of the Deva in front of her and had...mixed emotions...

It was, as of several hours ago, her new mech.

The call, and Commander Owen, had come back to the Barghest Company camp at FOB HAWK and had called a "Family Meeting".

New orders, get ready to move in 3 hours, we were going to reinforce FOB Kinship, in anticipation of heavy attack by superheavy drone mechs. Scarlet had practically shit herself when he told her she needed to get five of the Celestials up and running by then. She was doing it mind, but still.

The techs scurried about, mostly swapping Omni pods on the five mechs, tailoring them to their new owners preferences. Victoria had the Archangel, Billy the other Deva, Kei the Seraph and Elenor the Petra.

She remembered how Owen had taken the five of them aside after the big meeting.

Owen waited for all the others to leave and attend their duties loading up the mechs into the Union Dropship.

"...I'm going to open this by saying that I am in no way ordering you to do what I am about to say." He begins, looking each of the five remaining mechwarriors in the face as he does.

"As you know, we move out in three hours, and we're not going to have your mechs ready by then...as such, we're gonna have to use some of those salvaged mechs from before. Scarlet can get them fixed by then, and equipped how you like, we have an Archangel, a Seraph, two Devas and a Perta."

Scarlet can be heard swearing a blue streak in the background as she directs her techs to work triple time.

She feels...not great about that.

"...and the next part is what I'm only asking you to do instead of tell you. We believe that the superheavy drone's will have difficulty, if not be unable to target other Celestial's for at least some of the battle. To that end..."

...no...please don't...

"...I'm asking you all if you are able to do as much damage as possible to these things during that window of time."

Anya remembers is quite clearly...just as she remembers the fear, and the pain from two days ago.

She looks back up at her new mech, fingers running along the bracelet around her wrist.

"...I hate you..." she whispers up at the machine.

The mech remains silent.

She wonders about Savannah, and where she'll be going, and that woman, Eliza, and the General- Melissa. To go from all that love and caring to...

...this...

...but the worst part is...the part she know's deep down...

...she wants to do this.

They killed Vance, and Maria, and...almost her...they need to pay for that. Or, she needs to make sure that doesn't happen again. She honestly isn't sure anymore.

"...will you help me?" she asks the mech.

The mech remains silent.

#battletech #mechwarrior #story event #operation touchdown

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baelpenrose · 1 month ago

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Project Praetorian 50: Bleeding Edge Part II

Jared has an emotional breakthrough. The Praetorians claim a staggering victory. And a praetorian pays the price for the secrets Imperator has been keeping. TW: Gore, major character death, slur in Jared's internal monologue. beta read by @canyouhearthelight

Jared

Damn, this was good. They were flanking their target, trying to get into one of the dropships, and get a chip into Echo’s hands to spy on it. Forgotten, for a moment, was that he was taking orders from a Jew. Who gave a fuck now? He was decked out in combat armor and fighting aliens, weapons in his hands that his parents would have turned green to look at.

Their first contact was with a Spike, and Mark did some weird shit - dropped to one knee on sight. The alien’s weapon jerked skyward as Mark dropped, even as Mark’s weapon snapped up to the alien’s torso and let out a simple burst, killing the Spike and blowing bits of organ out its back.

“How?”

“Magnet aimbot. Push its weapon against mine as I drop, then magnetize them together to recover faster while it’s still pointing at the sky. It’s dead before the help I give it matters.”

Jared let out a low whistle. Mark was fucking smart, and he could admire that - even as he moved forward. Echo kept her rifle low, so did Molly. The two of them were silent, eerily so, though as they saw another group of aliens, a handful of Spikes and a dozen or so Croaks. They fanned out, and when Mark nodded, everyone threw one grenade, before all of them fired a quick burst and dropped the surviving Ascendency troops - Mark continuing to rely on the aimbot.

On an impulse, Jared grabbed a Croak’s blaster and clipped it to his belt.

Their luck ran out then, falling under heavy fire, Mark scrambling to deflect the shots, and pushing them off to the side as he threw himself behind cover. Jared sighted, but found himself ducking again, as a tree exploded into flaming woodchips next to him. He managed to drop a target, but goddamn.

Molly screamed, and Jared was pretty sure that his ears were bleeding, but for a moment the enemy could not fire while the note was still ringing in the air - and then the team popped up and rained hell on them. The last Spike finally got a shot off as it fell, and even that went wide - courtesy of Mark’s efforts to push against the magnetic sheath.

“Come on! There’s more up ahead! I want to clear off whatever they’re setting up next, before they start shooting down our ticket out of here.”

They stayed behind cover, Echo signaling. “If we can figure out where they all are, and what they’re trying to do - are they even trying to get to the village?”

“We’ll figure that out in a minute.” Mark growled. “Right now I want to cut off the pods that Amaryllis keeps spotting.”

Jared would have had feelings about trusting a crossdresser but fuck it. Everything else he’d thought was wrong. Mark was a badass instead of a conniving coward and his battle plan was good. Echo was hot and tough instead of ugly. Xavier was a beast. Fuck it. Hell, Casey could have kicked his ass and she still dressed like that. Sky could be green but aliens were dropping out of it and he had a job to do.

Jared pushed forward through the muck, and he waved forward to Molly, then held up a hand, and Mark saw it. “Alright, see something?”

“Yeah, platoon’s worth of Spikes. Like a hundred of the Croaks.”

“Oof. Hate that for us. Okay. Toss two grenades each, don’t bother with the pins, trust me. Once they’re out, just duck.”

Jared nodded and pulled out the grenades, everyone getting closer, then threw the grenades as hard as they could into the middle.

Then Mark gestured and he heard eight simultaneous clicks.

Simultaneously eight pins flew towards Mark and a second later eight massive booms followed. Jared popped up as Molly started singing, and Mark joined in. Echo and Molly followed again, shooting into the survivors, some of them staggering around, trying to shoot.

Molly took a breath and the squad dropped down, Mark shoving a bolt away from them as they dove down, the trees ablaze from the plasma blasts, and then Molly started singing again as they reloaded, a humming filling the air and underlying her song.

Mark, Jared and Echo popped back up and kept shooting, aiming carefully, their bursts dropping Spikes. The alien weapons were pointed at them but the weapons’ telltale hiss and thrum was nowhere to be heard, and none of the plasma bolts were forthcoming. Jared panted, then looked at Molly as Mark stared.

“New trick?”

“Couldn’t get the the guns to explode consistently, but keeping them from firing is easier. Interruption is easier than total failure.”

“If it works it works.” Mark panted. “How’re we doing on ammo?”

Echo checked. “I could be doing better. You guys?”

“Enough to push up. Vote we take this dropship and artillery pit. Jared and I brought C4.”

“Got it.”

The running was fast. Snap your rifle up, shoot at anything not-human and moving at human height or greater. Eventually they came to the point where the alien ship had been set up, and over a hundred aliens surrounded the place. They did the grenade trick again, Molly singing louder this time, and then rained destruction on the survivors. Jared found one of his arms horribly burned, not even by a plasma blast but by the fact that he’d slammed himself into a trunk in order to duck. He’d chilled the arm to stop it burning, but he knew he’d need Shiloh when the fighting was done.

Carefully, they picked their way into the open, Jared curb stomping a crawling Croak as it tried to reach a weapon. He set the C4 into what looked like a massive weapon aimed skyward, and then stepped way, way back as Mark glanced in that direction and snapped his fingers.

The C4 detonated and Jared turned aside his face as streaks of liquid fire blew out of the cannon. “Unfortunately, detonator got fried in the firefight. With my powers we don’t really need it but…”

Jared nodded. “Dropship’s buttoned up, I may have an idea…”

He shoved everyone back, then pulled the alien pistol from his hip and fired several times directly at the door. As predicted, the door didn’t melt, but it did heat up after he’d exhausted the battery - and then, he put a hand near it and hauled the heat out, pushing it into another part of the door. Not only the heat he’d pumped in, but the rest of it - then he pushed the heat back in, and hauled it back out and belted it out into the hinges.

Then he drew his pistol and emptied the clip at the now horrifically brittle lock, which shattered, sending shards everywhere.

He pulled the door open and Echo threw her last grenade open before ducking away from it, then the group sprayed bullets down the corridor. They walked down the ship’s small corridor - this ship was much smaller than the last one - carefully checking each room. Here and there, they spotted a few aliens, but most were the enigmatic Fliers or the massive Hulks, the former of which Jared and Mark began killing with rifle butts or combat knives to avoid wasting their now horribly low ammunition.

Once they got to the bridge of the ship, they realized that the soldiers had more or less abandoned the ship to prepare the attack, and secured the area. Echo stepped forward to capture the computer and hack the net.

Jared watched as she did so, arm still burning.

“There’s another, bigger group coming - and apparently there’s…a special force? Something with cloaking tech. They’re coming up on the main line. Casey and Xavier apparently engaged a huge force and are pushing it back. The Ridge Runners are moving up on another…One sec…”

Mark paused. “Echo, are they coordinating?”

Echo nodded.

“Get into their comms, then cut them. Keep yourself patched in. Cut it as often as possible, just to fuck with them, so we can keep attacking. I’m calling Amaryllis back, we need resupply of our ammo at this point…”

Jared grinned. Echo was already on it.

Casey

“COME AND GET IT YOU ALIEN FREAKS!” It was painfully obvious to her that the alien force wasn’t really even trying to get through this point - or at the very least, if they were, they were mainly doing it by pushing the majority of the Croaks through here and hoping that she and Xavier would run out of ammunition. So she waited for big groups to come close and then blasted them with a fireball load, enhanced by her powers, and burned entire companies at a time down to bones. Xavier waited for clumps to form and prepared to rush while firing, and then blasted them away, his grenades toppling trees and spraying bits of gore and viscera everywhere, tearing craters in the ground that made it harder for the enemy to approach. Against Spikes it would have made the fight worse, but Croaks didn’t bother with cover.

Every so often a few Croaks would try to swim across the small pools of rainwater that formed in the canyon, thinking it would protect them from the fire, and that might have��Except that Xavier was getting good at dropping launcher grenades at those squads. While the water limited the shrapnel, it was actually better at transmitting the shockwave of the grenades. The thing his powers amplified. Whenever they tried that, they were rapidly, quite literally, liquidated.

She’d had to fire maybe twelve times and she’d already killed probably hundreds of Croaks. She had another 36 fireball shells, and as many buckshot.

“Casey, Xavier, how are you holding?”

“So far, so good. Enemy failing to make impact. All Croaks so far. They mostly just seem to want to keep pressure on this point, try to force passage here or keep defenders pinned. What about you?”

“We already wiped out an artillery pit. How’s it holding on the other end?”

It was Dante that replied. “Jonathan’s nuts with that MG. Thank God he can carry all that ammo. We’d be fucked if he couldn’t. There’s a lot of tanks coming this way, though. If someone could come this way and give us a hand, once you guys mop up over where you are?”

“Amaryllis will fly over to support you, we’re dropping in at another site where the enemy got dropped. We just got resupplied. Ridge Runners?”

“We got our own resupply, we’re trying to flank the force that are pressing the main line from the other side…”

“10-4.”

Casey blasted away another massive wave of Croaks, sending another score of frogmen flailing around and screaming, feeling sick at the stench - and even worse at the sight of the place she was burning. Xavier’s grenade launcher gave a soft thump and then with a massive boom, limbs, teeth, and mist flew everywhere.

A rock exploded as the enemy were finally getting closer, and she blasted away, firing twice more, blowing away more of the Ascendancy’s cannon fodder.

“Casey, how’re you feeling about the position?” Another thump, and a second later, another big boom.

“Pretty good.” She called, over the explosion of a plasma bolt, the rush of more flames. “I think we can stand them off. I’ll change my mind if we start seeing Spikes. You?”

“Same, though if they don’t start running out I’m gonna want to fall back a little.”

“Fair enough. That cluster?”

“Got it.” Another grenade, another dozen Croaks blown apart. She torched another dozen, and between the fire and the explosions there was now an open area with uneven ground they’d stumble over that served as the perfect killing field. Even if they had to switch to simpler weaponry, they’d have an edge.

Dante

“Two o’clock!” He was already charging his railgun, noting how much easier it was getting now that the air was practically ablaze with static he could pull in. “Stand clear!” As the rails thrummed, he shouted, “Firing and on the way!” and pulled the trigger.

Another bolt of actinic lightning, another tungsten slug traveling at mach 12, and another tank exploding as a hypervelocity piece of metal ripped through it. “Jonathan, redirect fire, force advancing!” He wasn’t certain how he had wound up in command of this section, but Vergil seemed quiet and nervous even if he was extremely dangerous, and Jonathan steadfastly refused to lead, even if he was about as lethal as it got.

Vergil grunted into the comms. “Enemy command squad. Light vehicle, Dante, take it out, I have the officer.”

Dante saw the vehicle, and was already charging the railgun, even as the enemy weapon flailed the area around them. The weapon cracked, and then Vergil’s rifle boomed. The absolute hell of Jonathan’s MG ripped across the enemy, and at this point the explosions of tanks and fire of plasma was beginning to increase visibility as the trees were getting blown away.

Dante counted the slugs he had left. Only six of a loadout of thirty. Hell, though, scattered across the canyon in front of him were the ruins of twenty three enemy vehicles, so clearly he’d put them to good use.

The Imperator dropship swooped down for a moment and let loose a brutal rocket barrage at something on a ridge, then turned back around and raked the opposite ridge with chaingun fire.

Vergil fired six rapid shots, and Dante had no idea what he was shooting at but he heard Micah panting with relief through the comms. Jonathan was still blazing at the enemy trying to hop over the burning trees. Another tank was coming up, so Dante charged the railgun yet again, and blew out the engines of the tank, blasting it open again.

A trio of enemy gunships began swooping down, clearly attempting to deal with the stubborn human defense, and Dante sighted at them. He got one shot off, missing. Then he reloaded, frantically, even as they all had to dive around, Jonathan getting singed but fortunately it was Jonathan.

Dante sighted again, and as the enemy gunships came back around, he fired again - and blew one of them apart completely. He reloaded, but this time the enemy ships were more wary. Jonathan was refocusing on the advancing infantry, and before Dante could focus, Vergil cursed. “Another light armored vehicle!”

A boom from on the ridge, and then Vergil began swearing. “And at least Kimmy’s team has them flanked, finally. Uh…Shit. Micah might be able to do something about the light armor. Give me a sec….”

Vergil began firing, frantically. Dante took a sight on the gunships again, knocked one down, and reloaded. He was now down to his last two shots. He had to make them count. Vergil shouted. “Okay. Flankers got in there and fucked them up with fire support, I can keep the enemy off their backs. Take out that last gunship.”

Dante sighted, waiting for it to come around - and then realized it was going straight past them. He sighted at it anyway. If it was going straight past, and wasn’t going mach 12…

He pulled the trigger and blew it apart - lightning struck the gunship and pieces flew to both sides of the canyon.

Last slug in the rails. He took a breath. He needed to make sure whatever he fired at it, it was worth it. Then he realized something. Jonathan’s machinegun had finally gone silent. “Jonathan?”

“Finally ran dry. Your girlfriend might be able to bring in a resupply, but we’re over four thousand rounds into this. Switched to pistol, heading over.”

Vergil whistled. “Keeping it off them. Oh…shit shit. There is something moving over there.”

Vergil pulled the trigger again. Dante saw something dangerously close go down, something vaguely outlined against the trees, and it hit the ground hard, too-dark blood sprayed against the wood.

Then he saw a dropship coming toward them and took aim. It wasn’t one of the bigger ones, more an aerial transport, maybe to try to get troops from off the side of the canyon, but he didn’t want troops dropped behind them, and…

“Dante!”

He fired, the round ripping through the dropship’s cockpit and sending blue-white fire out of the side of the ship, even as it listed to the side and exploded against the wall of the canyon. He wheeled as something splattered the side of his face, and Vergil screamed for him to move. He tossed the now-empty railgun aside, pistol in hand, and ducked on instinct. Something grabbed him and he emptied his weapon into it, but felt a blow that staggered him come from the other direction - then Vergil’s rifle boomed again.

“Invisible Spikes! What the fuck! Dante, move towards my tree, I gotta cover you and Shiloh both.”

Dante was running now, fleeing from the attackers, and shouting for Jonathan to come back. He’d ripped the P90 off his belt and was shooting at the things surrounding them, relying on Vergil to tell him where they were. Jonathan and Mia were supposedly sprinting back, quickly, but even then, something hit the dirt, hard, just in front of him, and he heard the telltale hiss of a plasma weapon firing just behind him.

He hit the ground, burned, and sprayed desperately at the now half-visible target. It hadn’t hit him directly, he’d gotten lucky, he’d dived - but he could feel his back.

“HELP!”

Another target died when Vergil fired.

The one in front of him went down, and he felt his hands numbly fumble to get another magazine in. Shiloh was rushing up, their own rifle upraised, and healing him. He forced himself to his feet, and realized that if Shiloh hadn’t been sharing their position, he’d be dead. Fuck, he already felt it. Whatever these things were…

“Three o’clock.” Vergil’s voice was grim. “I’m out of ammunition.”

They both started shooting at whatever it was, and Vergil nodded. “Got it. Another one…eight…Little left…got him. Shiloh, to your right, Dante, pivot left. Okay, there’s only three more.”

Dante was aware he was almost out of ammunition. “Okay, all of them rushing you. 3, twelve, and eight o clock. Take them down.”

Dante took out the three, Shiloh took the twelve, and then Dante pivoted to make sure he took the hit for Shiloh.

He figured they’d be able to fix him once they took the last one down, something he couldn’t do if it was the other way around.

When he saw where the plasma bolt was going to hit he realized he’d never see Amaryllis again and for a moment he regretted that choice.

Shiloh

Shiloh felt a wave of heat across their back, and something wet, but before they could finish turning around, they heard a fast rush, and then someone else was in the clearing. Jonathan had hit the now bloodstained target. He whipped the thing around, so hard that even the long neck of a Spike must have gotten whiplash, and then slammed his armored forearm into the crocodilian mouth, splitting the skull open along the jaw.

Shiloh abruptly realized what had happened as they looked at Dante’s weapon. He’d been out. He’d used the last of his ammunition and then gambled on taking the shot for…them. Getting healed after.

But…they looked at his body. What was left of it. Bits of teeth were embedded in a tree, charred, and smoking, charbroiled flesh was strewn around. Most of the body was vapor, and here and there they saw charred bone. Certainly, most of his organs were gone, and his flesh was…

They found a piece of his leg, his pants, where he’d kept the punk chains he wore as part of a personal statement, and ripped them free, healing the burns on their own hands.

Mark’s voice came through. “Last target down. Echo, anything left on enemy battlenet?”

“All quiet. If there’s anything left it’s panicking Croaks running for their lives. Everyone, sound off.”

“Ridge runners, here. No dead, light wounds.”

“Mobile force, here, no dead, one severe wound - Jared’s arm is bad.”

“Pilot here - ship clocked out on ammo, but ready for pickup.”

“Devastator team here - Me and Casey are both alive. Croak swarm wiped. We’ve both got some minor burns.”

Shiloh couldn’t speak. Couldn’t…couldn’t tell Amaryllis…Vergil did. “Center gunline here. No wounded. One dead. Dante KIA. Enemy special forces ambush. Invisible Spikes, cloaking, maybe. Got him.” His voice was dead, emotionless. “Body not recoverable. I’m sorry, Amaryllis.”

Amaryllis was dead quiet. “That…he can’t be. There’s no way. He was always…You sure he didn’t just get hurt and fall in somewhere, maybe have an arm blown off and fall into a ditch?”

Shiloh felt a sense of numb dread. Shook their head. Forced themself to speak. “Certain. Was a direct hit. I’m sorry. I have his chain for you. I’m…”

Amaryllis started sobbing, and Mark gave a quiet order. “Recover as much of Dante’s body as we can. Also recover one of the bodies of the invisible unit. I want as much information about that as possible so this never happens again.”

Shiloh looked around. Jonathan began scooping pieces of Dante as he could. Vergil picked up the railgun, and someone found Dante’s dogtags.

Amaryllis cried when she saw what was left of Dante - and took the chains.

Shiloh was ready to tell, if she asked. To be attacked.

Amaryllis never asked.

Amaryllis

Dante was gone. They’d laughed. They’d promised each other. They hadn’t even gone over death benefits beforehand because…because no one would die on their first battle? How could that happen?

Now he was gone. Now…all she had left of him was his chain.

Mark was apologizing but she couldn’t hear. She was quietly flying back. Echo was telling their backup that it was over - but that they’d lost a Praetorian.

Mark said something she remembered.

“Tell base. We won. Decisively. We lost a brother. And I need answers. A lot of answers. And if I don’t get them, there’s going to be hell to pay.”

She barely noticed. Later, she’d ask. Right now, everything just felt cold.

After Action Report

Operation: Crystal Jungle

Deployed: 14 Praetorians, one Aquilla-Class modified VTOL Gunship and Troop Transport

Lost: 1 Praetorian

Enemy Encountered: Unclear total tally. In excess of 2000, at least 400 Spikes and eight special forces cloaked units. At least twenty armored vehicles and artillery analogs.

Enemy Casualties: Estimated total loss. Confirmed 1800 killed. 200 unaccounted for, approx 150 of which are reasonably suspected dead.

No civilian Casualties.

Enemy Additional loss: Six Landing craft.

Operation Successful!

#writeblr #writers on tumblr #original fiction #Project Praetorian #traumatized characters #found family #science fiction #sci fi #my writing

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ariesgamesandminis · 6 months ago

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Just in time for Payday! Iron Wind Metals restocks are up for BattleTech!

20-206 Huitzilopochtli Assault Tank "Huey" (Standard) 20-267 Sentry SNT-04 20-318 Pilum Wheeled Tank 20-398 Shrike SHK-VP-A 20-458 Cattlemaster RA-4 Hunter / Herder 20-5134 Juliano JLN-5A 20-5167 Raven II RVN-5X 20-5174 Ursus II (Standard) 20-5185 Commando COM-2D 20-5194 Sojourner Prime 20-5200 Carrion Crow Prime 20-610 Black Hawk "Nova" Prime (Old Sculpt) 20-634 Epona Pursuit Tank Prime (2) 20-642 Berserker BRZ-A3 20-648 Venom SDR-9K 20-674 Falconer FLC-8R 20-722 Anhur Transport 20-757 Strider SR1-O Prime 20-800 Hex Bases (4) 20-904 O-Bakemono OBK-M10 20-958 Vanquisher VQR-2A 20-9122 Battleforce Hex Base 99-201 Large Flat Top Hex Base #1 BT-001 Orc Protomech BT-006 Phalanx Battle Armor BT-023 Overlord BT-026 Union (2708) BT-027 Union C BT-028 Cavalier Battle Armor BT-029 Sloth Battle Armor BT-035 Overlord C BT-057 Gazelle BT-058 Fury BT-067 Golem Battle Armor BT-087 Scout / Quetzalcoatl Jumpship BT-169 Behemoth Micro Dropship BT-170 Buccaneer BT-178 Jade Hawk JHK-03 BT-183 Aurora Micro Dropship BT-188 Nighthawk Battle Armor BT-189 Kobold Battle Armor BT-202 Rogue Bear Heavy Battle Armor BT-226 Fast Recon BT-232 Warg Battle Armor BT-260 Sprint Scout VTOL BT-284 Svartalfa Ultra ProtoMech 2 BT-285 Sprite Ultra Protomech BT-287 Zephyros Infantry Support Vehicle BT-312 Gun Trailers (2) BT-316 Chimera CMA-2K BT-353 Mad Cat MK II 4 BT-373 Centaur Protomech BT-376 Minotaur Protomech BT-393 Kage Battle Armor Squad (4) BT-404 Wusun Prime Micro Fighter BT-405 Ostrogoth Prime Micro Fighter BT-430 Wulfen H BT-436 Buraq (Standard) Battle Armor FT-019 Kirghiz Mech Scale Fighter FT-022 Xerxes Mech Scale Fighter FT-024 Shiva Mech Scale Fighter FT-035 Tatsu Mech Scale Fighter FT-036 Defiance Mech Scale Fighter OP-013 Thor E ATM Pod OP-021 Loki A LRM 20 (from 20-603R)

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printchester · 6 months ago

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Discover 10 essential dropshipping tips for 2024! Learn how to excel in inventory management and order fulfillment to dominate the e-commerce market. In today’s digital age, online business is booming, and dropshipping has emerged as a popular option for aspiring entrepreneurs. But with so much information swirling around, you might wonder: is dropshipping worth it in 2024?

#is dropshipping worth it #dropshipping #pod dropshipping #printchester

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printyet · 2 years ago

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#printondemand #print #art #design #dropshipping #pod #business

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jpitha · 2 years ago

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We need A Ride 4

Part 3 Part 2 Part 1

Sophie looked up a Chloe, who in her mind's eye was standing next to her, even taller and more imposing than in person, with a faint blue glow around her, as if she was emitting particles going faster than the speed of light. She sighed.

"I trust you Chloe. I'll do it, but after we're going to have some words about consent and explaining things."

"I look forward to it." Sophie said. For Cereni's benefit, Chloe spoke out loud. "Abyssal, are we ready to go?"

"I've got the reactors at 225% and the capacitors and batteries charged. I can link three times in quick succession, but I'll need a few to recover after that. I can get us down, but I won't be able to link to safety until we're up in orbit. Sophie, that's your time to shine."

"Got it." Sophie was getting the hang of the interface. Chloe was right, it was just like the ones she was used to, just easier to operate. She just had to think, and it would obey.

"Okay then. As the acting captain of the Abyssal Plains, and current commander of this mission..." Chloe paused for a moment to see if anyone said anything. "I authorize War Emergency Power for the duration of the mission, and should I become incapacitated I authorize you, Abyssal Plains, to complete the mission, protect the cargo and save the crew in that order."

Abyssal replied. "Acknowledged, but you do realize you don't have to do that anymore Chloe? I own myself as a private craft, I'm not technically crewed. Also, don't you mean 'complete the mission, save the crew and protect the cargo'?"

"I said what I said." Chloe replied coolly. "You'll see why when it's aboard."

"Hrmph. War Emergency Power authorized. Thing are going to get hot and noisy from here on out."

Aboard the small command deck, Cereni noticed the change immediately. The lights darkened and shutters came down over the windows, leaving only a small front facing window open. The ship's thrumming hum became a roar and the pads of her feet felt the ship vibrating.

"Oh! I nearly forgot!" Abyssal said. "I'm sorry Cereni, let me patch your headset in, you must think we're ignoring you!" Cereni heard a click in her headset and she heard Sophie mid sentence "--you have so many flares, and chaff pods. Were things really that hot when-- Oh Cereni! Hi! I probably look weird right now, but I'm okay. Abyssal and Chloe are showing me how to work my rig."

Cereni looked over at Sophie. She was sitting upright in her chair, belted securely, but her eyes were closed and her mouth wasn't moving as she spoke. The bunny ear antennas were moving gently.

"You don't look okay, but I'll take your word for it" Cereni said, unsure.

"Okay everyone, we're linking in 3, 2...now"

****

From a distance, with a powerful telescope, one could watch what happened next. The Abyssal Plains disappeared in that blinding flash of white light that accompanies the human's wormhole generators and in very short succession appeared off to the left then linked again and was in the atmosphere of Spruces.

****

The Abyssal Plain was in the atmosphere and falling.

They were a dropship though, they were doing what they were designed to do. The stubby wings and flight controls that looked useless in space came to life and helped orient the ship belly first as it screamed through the stratosphere. The speed of the decent was such that the air around them rebelled at being pushed aside so violently and was imbued with energy and became a glowing plasma.

When Abyssal was enveloped in plasma, and most vulnerable, the attack started.

"Missiles incoming!" Sophie yelled as she felt the lock. "Beginning countermeasures."

Hundreds and hundreds of white hot flares poured out of two mounts in the rear as the huge dropship rolled away. Chaff canisters popped out the top and exploded, all trying to confuse the missile's tracking radar and make the Abyssal seem both smaller and not where it really was.

Sophie began scanning for the launchers and jamming their signals.

"Those missiles were from the ground!" she yelled, surprised. "They weren't from orbit! Who is shooting at us on the ground?"

Chloe replied "It is as I had feared. Someone has landed on Spruces and captured it and is trying to keep it. I've sent a signal to our contact, they're getting things ready as fast as they can. Cereni, be ready to begin loading the moment we touch down."

The K'laxi nodded nervously, and glanced towards the door outside on the command deck where she'd be directing an unknown number of vehicles of an unknown weight into the large loading area of Abyssal.

Abyssal spoke up "Touchdown in 10 seconds. We're going to do it the old fashioned way, with rockets. It's rough, but fast. See why I told you to buckle up?"

5 seconds before the announced touchdown time Cereni heard the loudest sound she has ever heard in her life. It sounded like someone was ripping cloth, but the sound was so loud she looked down and saw her fur vibrating from the pressure waves. She clamped her hands over her ears and pressed down on them with the headset in place.

It didn't help.

Mercifully it was only for a few seconds, and with a very rough thump and double bounce they were down.

As soon as they were down, the doors opened and Cereni ran out to the balcony and was dumbstruck with what she saw.

There were at least one hundred wheeled trucks sitting about 100 meters away, all slightly different shapes and sizes and colors. On the roofs of all of them, painted quickly were numbers and scanner codes.

"Oh ancestors." She whispered. "What are we doing?"

"Saving my people" Chloe said. Cereni didn't realize she spoke out loud.

Quickly, she surveyed the vehicles. "Okay Chloe! I need.." She squinted "13, 45, 77 and 38 in first. They'll go along the back wall"

Without a word from Chloe, the 4 trucks wheeled forward and irresponsible speeds, electric motors yelling their protests.

"Next! 22, 89, 12 and.....40"

Again the trucks moved into place.

Suddenly, there was another ripping cloth screaming sound overhead as atmosphere craft shrieked overhead

"We've been found!" Sophie said. "We need to leave!"

"Not until the trucks are loaded." Chloe replied calmly. "This is why we are here."

Abyssal replied "Sophie, I've granted you access to weapons. Use the point defense arrays to keep them off us while we load."

At that, panels slid to the side on the back of Abyssal, large maser arrays, massive slug throwers and missile batteries swung into position. The thundering thumps of their firing added to the din.

"Thank you Abyssal." Chloe said. "Cereni, continue loading. We are in a rush."

Cereni turned back to the trucks outside waiting. "Okay, next: 3, 6, 80 and 15..."

Part 5

#worldbuilding #humans are deathworlders #humans are space oddities #humans are space orcs #humans are space capybaras #writing #scifi writing #humans and ai

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