The Second Dark Age

[Monk]

part xxiii
Allies and Enemies

ORDER battleship, Upper Earth Orbit
01:32, first encounter +8

Nathaniel sighed as his back flattened against the worn down seat inside the cockpit of his mech. The green monitor before him was the only light within the confined space; he watched as line upon line of text displayed technical information. His right eye twitched as he blinked quickly, his only source of light was irritating his sight. As his eyes opened he looked up, the many switches around him were like home he’d been there so many times. Yet pushed between the metal panels, sitting beside the main power switch there resided a photo; a simple piece of paper upon which an image of great importance resided.

Yet it wasn’t of tactical information; some sort of military importance or anything. It was important to Nathaniel alone. Upon the paper a little girl smiled up toward the camera; her blond hair reflecting a ray of sunlight as she held a ball in her hands. It was his little girl; Nathaniel’s one and only child. His eyes slowly closed again as a smile etched across his weary face. He could almost hear her sweet voice when he was silent, calling out to her father. Only another three months and he’d be home for good.

The radio suddenly burst with activity as a voice came flooding through the speakers. “10 minutes to drop. Begin Equipment Checks” Nathaniel’s vision of his daughter was cut short at that moment; he watched her image flutter away and fade into the metal hull around him. Her voice was gone from his hearing; being driven back into his memories to reside. The soldier looked about him as he flipped a number of switches; the onboard computer reacted as it began the start up sequence. A near unnoticeable vibration began moving through the cockpit, one that is only felt by someone who has spent years inside it. It was subtle, but Nathaniel felt it. All too often he had known it. However, for the first time in his many years, he was uncertain about the day ahead of him. His fate seemed elusive, as did this new enemy.

A red window appeared upon his monitor as the onboard sensors came online. It was a message from his commander to all the mech units. The message displayed itself quickly on the screen and was simple. “Solician battle Net Intercepted, Battle progress available”. Following the sentence, a frequency was displayed. The message suggested that they tune in and give a listen. Nathaniel was not one to listen to fighting when he himself was not doing it; but something compelled him. The creatures were, after all, supposed to be ever changing. He needed all the information he could get. “Alright” he spoke in a whisper to himself. “Let’s see what we have here.” His arm slowly extended to the frequency tuner, but strangely he hesitated. A strange feeling traced through his body before residing in the pit of his stomach. He almost didn’t want to hear what may lie behind a simple button push. With a quick sigh he put his mind at ease and pressed the button, adjusting the frequency to that the ORDER was playing the Intercepted messages on.

Static came over the speakers at first; there was no sound that came to him but a slight crackle and a buzzing noise from interference. Yet soon enough sound exploded forth, filling Nathaniel’s mech as well as many others who listened at that moment. A sudden blast lasgun fire echoed out as a voice screamed into the radio “Contact lost: Squad nine!” the radio cut out with a sharp electrical noise as another voice came through “726 is down!” a thunderous boom followed his voice as an explosion sounded nearby. A sudden cry of pain came over the radio as another soldier pleaded for reinforcements on the right flank. Voices cluttered the air waves as many were cut down and their radios stopped receiving; screams of the dying filled every moment before a voice came through. “I’m hit! Losing Containment…Rea-” a high pitched screech cut off his voice and sent a cold chill down Nathaniel’s spine. Someone’s reactor core on their mech just went critical. “I don’t know how long we can last sir” a pain filled voice breathed into the frequency as a lasgun echoed in the background. “They’re everywhere!”

Nathaniel smashed the button on the radio and turned it off. He couldn’t stand to listen any longer. He knew well the battle was going against the Solicians. His eyes slowly moved to the picture of his daughter as he reached out, a single finger moving over her face. “I guess…I won’t be taking you on that trip after all.” He sighed sadly. A tear began to form in his eye as a voice sounded loudly in his mech. “Prepare to drop. Activate mechs… The Emperor protects…” The soldier’s eyes closed slowly as the tear escaped, running down his cheek. He weakly flipped the switch and all systems came online. “And may you’re mother protect you.” he spoke softly as he looked upon the picture of his daughter. A red light began to flash on the side panel, it was time. Nathaniel’s heart slowly began to beat faster as his hands rested on the controls; the tear upon his cheek fell from his face as he guided his mech into the drop pod.

5 kilometers south of Solace
01:55 hours, First encounter +8

The creatures charged again as a wave of purple energy shot forth from the human lines to meet them. Their hides cracking and breaking under the fire as blood spilled into the air, another orchestra of their deep screams calling out into the sky. Yet this time they did not stop their charge. Their red eyes glowing with their growing hate, their teeth covered in a thin layer of red from the kills they had already made. It was time to end the battle. The already overheating lasguns of the Solicians now refused to fire. Their eyes became wide with their fear as the creatures charged ever closer. Yet one by one a smile came across their faces. For just as the creatures were about to fall upon them, out from behind the Solicians came charging the berserkers; led by their Odin mechs.

The weapons of the berserker mechs opened fire into the creatures, ripping into their frontal charge and spraying their life force about as the counter attack burst from all around them. The berserkers holding high their poweraxes and driving them home. The already exhausted Solicians rose and drew their knives, charging in behind the berserkers. Yet even so these new creatures were a breed apart from the old. As the rallying forces of Humanity charged forward, they were met with heavy resistance. Countless creatures wre hemmed down by the close quarter skills of the berserkers, yet even so, against such odds even the best fall. Claws found their home in the chest cavities of many as they tried to hold back the time. Poweraxes dropped from hands and their light faded as their masters passed.

Toradir swung his axe around as hard as he could, breaking through the thick hide of a creature and sending it to the ground. He jerked his axe from its torn flesh as a trail of blood followed his axe’s movement. He turned around in place, bringing his axe around and slicing through many creatures as he created a three hundred and sixty degree range of attack, yet for all his efforts the berserker felt himself tiring. A berserker nearest to him slammed an axe through a creature’s chest, yet even as he did so a limb soared through the air toward him. As the berserker turned a hand of sharpened fingers sliced through his neck, releasing the scarlet liquid within him. Toradir turned just in time to see a creature driving its arm through his comrade.

Anger filled his face as he forsook his exhaustion; he slowly raised his power axe as its blade glowed brightly. Yet even before he could take the first step to charge he felt a sharp pain jab its way through him. The pain took to his veins as he screamed in agony. As he looked down his eyes caught sight of a jagged, scythe-like piece of rusted metal sticking through him; covered in blood that now made its way down his body. Slowly the blade withdrew as he heard a voice close to his ear. It was so full of hate and rage, like he’d never heard before.

“You’re turn to die” the words seethed through mashed teeth as Uriel Took his weapon from the berserkers body and let him fall to the earth. He smiled as he saw his legions advancing. Soon it’d all be his. He’d repay the suffering done to him ten fold, he and his brothers would make Humanity pay for their sins! Yet suddenly the creature attack slowed as a strange sound filled the air. It had gone unnoticed until it was practically upon them due to the battle. Their eyes looked to the heavens and to their horror they saw them coming. More black dots than they could count filled the air; it was the ORDER.

The drop pods came screaming through the atmosphere and smashed into the earth, causing impact craters wherever they hit. Countless pods hit all along the battleground, their smooth metal surfaces still steaming from the heat of re-entry. The creatures smiled sickly, they knew what to expect thanks to their brothers at Arcadia. Or at least, so they thought.

One by one the ramps came down, and to their shock what stepped forward were not members of the Deathwing or an infantry force, but mechs twice as tall as they. Their arms and shoulders covered with weapons and their armor appearing thicker than the mightiest rocks. Nathaniel surveyed the battlefield; it was as if time had stopped with their arrival. Yet that feeling did not last long; the creatures in a fit of rage threw themselves upon the ORDER mechs, yet they only received the full force of the guns of the ORDER as they opened up. Countless streams of energy and projectiles fired all at once at the creatures, ripping their bodies into pieces. However Uriel would not have defeat, he gripped his scythe and charged at the mechs even through they towered over him. His so called brothers rallied behind him, their screams of death filling the air as one by one they were killed following his charge. The bloodied berserkers and Solicians watched as the creatures threw themselves without thought against these mechs. They were ready to die to serve their one and only Lord.

Uriel brought his scythe up as he charged as hard as he could toward the closest mech, piloted by Nathaniel. His anger consumed him as he was ready to rip it apart with his now ungodly strength. Nathaniel was in a state of panic, he had to stop him. He pointed his weapons at him and got a lock, the screen flashed with the words “Target Acquired” and no sooner did he read that then he fire. A beam of blue energy streaked from his mech’s cannon and impacted the earth just in front of Uriel, throwing a veil of dust around the fallen guardian.

“Did I get him!?” Nathaniel asked out loud, a silence befell him and his mech as he listened for a moment and watched the monitor that displayed what was in front of him. All he saw was dust. That changed as suddenly out from the cloud of dirt came flying an object, thrown with such speed and force he had not the time to react. Nathaniel’s eyes opened wide as he watched a scythe slice through the center of his mech and into his cockpit, stopping only inches from his face. Fear took him fully as His systems failed and power began to drain from the controls. His hands moved to activate the auxiliary systems when a huge crash took his mech. Something just had slammed into the legs of his fighting machine and there was not a thing he could do. The mech could not withstand the force without main power and tipped back, falling like a tower and crashing into the ground. Nathaniel’s body was thrown about in the cockpit and his head smashed into a consol, his blood exited from a cut on his forehead and a little smeared on the picture of his daughter.

Nathaniel’s vision blurred as he looked over to a switch he never though he’d use in his life time. Under a plastic cover a red button labeled “self destruct” sat humbly. He reached out to it weakly as he heard footsteps upon the hull of his mech. He could hardly breath his fear was so thick, he knew who it was; he had to reach the button! He forced his battered body to react as the scythe was withdrawn and a pair of hands grasped onto the sliced metal.

Uriel grinned As he grunted, calling to him all his might and ripping the cockpit open. Tearing the metal with ease thanks to his strength. Yet as he did he could not believe what he saw; he swallowed hard as his eyes looked upon the ORDER soldier within whos finger was on the self destruct button and ready to push it. It was as if all his anger faded and became forgotten, being replaced by the highest level of fear a man can know. The fear of Death.

Nathaniel’s eyes looked up to the picture of his daughter one last time as Uriel in desperation clenched a fist and threw a punch toward him. Nathaniel closed his eyes tightly as he pushed the button. In an instant the mech induced a core breach on the mech’s nuclear reactor; and at that instant all sound was sucked from the world. Time itself stood still for a one thousandth of a second before a ball of fire erupted from the downed mech, consuming all in its path.

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*salute* brave men of the battle I salute thee...