Durgama Takeover

– Query Received: Mira Rivera
– Searching Recent Battle Reports…
– Searching Personnel Data…
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– Query returned 1 record: Rev. Mira Rivera
– Review contents?
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– Home Mothership: Bakunin
– Classification: Reverend Custodier of the Observance of Saint Mary of the Knife (Our Lady of Mercy)
– Titles and Rank: Special Envoy of Bakunin; Diplomatic Representative of Nomad High Command; Captain of The Amethyst Sky;
– Current Location: Concilium Prima Space; In transit to Raveneye Orbital Complex
– Assignment: Yate Asesino Class Ship - The Amethyst Sky
– Reports Issued During Durgama Crisis: (3)
– Report 1: “Hold the Line” - Firefight Located in Raveneye Port Battery: Ammunitions and Supplies Module
– Report 1: Report Information Address: https://durgamatakeover.warconsole.com/battles/mjgrey-vs-theashenone-1657660808
– Report 2: “Devious Alliance” - Countermeasures Located in Xiāndăo Neosteelworks, 3D Printing Labs
– Report 2: Report Information Address: https://durgamatakeover.warconsole.com/battles/mjgrey-vs-yue-fei-1657758202
– Report 3: "Tilting at Windmills"
– Displaying Report 3 Details…
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– Classification: Looting and Sabotaging
– Location: Cameliard, Reliquary
– Resource Value Allocated to Strike Team: 200
– Combatants:
Bakunian Forces assigned to the ship The Amethyst Sky led by Rev. Mira Rivera
Varuna Immediate Reaction Division - Cameliard Detachment led by Commander Mikkie Collins
– Loading Battle Report:
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– WARNING: Report Exceeds Maximum File Size
– WARNING: Review of Battle Report Estimated to Take Significant Time
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– Displaying Report Details…
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– (10) Logs Found:
Log 1: Phase 0.02 - Between the Battles - A Call from Al Bactra
Log 2: Phase 0.0 - Prologue
Log 3: Phase 0.5 - Deployment
Log 4: Phase 1.0 - Goliath Online
Log 5: Phase 1.5 - The Witches’ Webs
Log 6: Phase 2.0 - Honor Among Knights
Log 7: Phase 2.5 - An Explosion and A Defeat
Log 8: Phase 3.0 - The Fall of Cameliard
Log 9: Phase 3.5 - It All Goes Up in Smoke
Log 10: Phase 4.0 - Epilogue
– Playing Log 1:
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Administrator’s Note: This Log is pure character background and information. It bridges the gap between Mira’s last battle report, "Devious Alliance," and this current one. Those seeking only information on the current Report should skip to Log 2.

Mira sat by herself in her quarters on The Amethyst Sky, which was currently in orbit above Concilium Prima. The transmission she was waiting for had finally come through, but it had left her more unsure and unsettled than relieved. There was so much going on during this Crisis, and this was another thing to add to her list of worries.

She'd reviewed the recording of her conversation what must have been a dozen times now, but here she was, playing it again.

'Heya, Rev," The image of Stephanie on the vid screen said quietly.

The digital recreation of Mira smiled broadly at her. "Steph, I'm so, so glad to see you. Thank Saint Mary you're back. How are you recovering?"

Steph seemed distracted as she answered. "I'm ok. The doctors said that despite my damaged cube everything went fine. I guess I'm in one piece again. They've replaced the cube, replaced my body… I'm all good to go." The normal energy and sarcasm in her speech was gone. Mira instantly knew something was up.

"Steph, what's wrong?"

"Nothing. It's just that…" She hesitated and looked away. "I'm not going to be able to fight this one, Mira. I know how important this is, but… I don't feel right. I've been catching up with your reports, and it sounds like you're doing a lot of good in this campaign. I'm sorry I can't be part of that."

"What do you mean? I don't quite understand; didn't you say you were ok?"

"Mira, I died." She stopped, slightly taken aback at her own statement. A moment later she looked back to the screen.

"I was dead… Now, I'm alive, and this body is physically healthy and whole and perfect. But… It's not my body? I feel like I'm disconnected from who I was before." She stopped again and then didn't quite meet Mira's eyes. "I think I need to leave the NMF and head back home for a while; I can't function like this.

"I'm stuck here in Al Bactra for at least a week for monitoring and 'touch ups.' The medical team thinks they may be able to help me integrate better, but after that, I'll be looking for transport back to Bakunin."

Mira knew this would be hard on her. Getting used to a new body was really difficult for some people. After a lifetime of issues with her previous one, Steph's new Lhost was created exactly as she wanted it. There'd be a huge period of adjustment as she got used to the changes. Mira was ready to guide her and be there for her through it, both as a Reverend and a friend. Really, more as a friend. Then what Steph had said struck her.

"Wait… Looking for transport? You won't be joining us on The Amethyst Sky? The second this conflict is over we'll be heading back home. We could go together. Your bunk hasn't been touched, obviously, and I could be there to help."

"Yeah, maybe… Umm, I have to go; it's time for a check in with my doctor." Her eyes were sad, and she looked so far away. "It's nice to see you, Mira. Seriously. It's only been a few days I've been… awake, but I've missed you."

"I've missed you, too. Think about what I said, ok? Your bunk and I will be waiting." Stephanie's eyes opened wide in surprise, and Mira embarrassingly realized what she had said. "Wait! I mean, your bunk will be waiting, and, also, separately, I will be waiting."

Steph grinned a small grin. "Seeya, Rev." The transmission ended.

Mira sighed. She had expected Steph to have trouble with all of this, but she thought they'd get through it together, just like how Steph was there with her when she had struggled. Had she done something wrong? She was in charge of the mission that got her killed… Could Steph resent her for it?

Maybe she had missed something. "Gabrielle," she called to her geist. "Replay the message from the start."

A cold wind howled through Thokk, whipping Mira's robes around her. She hated it here. It wasn't the freezing weather or presence of every nation's military members; the diversity of people felt like home. But the agents of ALEPH, openly and ever present, worried her constantly. ALEPH was a manifestation of the devil, and it was incredibly difficult for her to tolerate them around, even if they were supposed to be on the same side.

She pulled her robes tighter for warmth as she made her way to the shuttle for her next mission. The Durgama Crisis was worsening. The Nomads had barely held onto the Port Battery of the Raveneye Orbital Complex, and they were struggling to maintain any footing on the station. Relationships with the International Concilium Assistance Force had chilled until they were about as cold as Thokk, and she was tasked to proceed directly into their territory.

Stepping onto the heated shuttle pad was a much needed change after trudging through the frigid city. Mira shook the last flakes of snow off of her shoulders and walked into the bay of The Amethyst Sky's shuttle. With all the time she'd been spending here recently it basically felt like home.

The first thing she noticed was the three large REMs sitting on the other side of the room. Mira had a complicated history with REMs. It wasn't that she didn't like them, it was just that her tactics tended to get them destroyed. She wasn't sure why Command would have given her three.

After making her way through the ship, she sat down in the small briefing room in the upper level of the shuttle. She'd receive her orders from Command soon, and hopefully some explanation for why they were wasting good battle bots on her. The room shifted as the shuttle took off, and it took a second for Mira to adjust.

As she settled in, the screen in front of her came to life. "Reverend Rivera, glad to have you on this mission. Your recent contributions to the Nomad Nation have been exemplary. Let's get you up to speed. How much information do you currently have on the situation?" It was the Interventor -WiseKensai-, a Tunguskan member of Nomad High Command.

"Hey, Kensai." Mira smiled. They'd known each other for a few years. "Straight to business? Usually you at least tell me how The Crypto Winter and her crew are doing. All good on the ship?"

"It's nice to see you, Mira, but really, we don't have the time. Things are not going well at the moment in this campaign. Raveneye is a mess, ICAF is threatening us and doubling down on their propaganda, and we're being forced to send strike teams across Durgama."

"Strike teams like us. From what I've been told, we're headed to Cameliard?"

"That's right. The 'Holy Reliquary' in its center houses all sorts of alien tech. In particular, we're looking for information on Combined hacking devices. Sending full details to you now."

"Got it. Get the info and get out. What kind–"

"That's not quite it," Kensai interrupted. "Your orders are to get in, download a backup of their entire server, and then destroy it. We can't trust PanO with the information; if ALEPH doesn't already have the data from them, they'll hand it over soon. We're sending additional support along with you to assist."

"The REMs?"

"That would be them. The Lunokhod in particular should be useful for demolition. It carries heavy explosives that should be able to take care of the server."

"How heavy will resistance be, sir?"

"Our allied Yu Jing forces have already secured the outer guard posts. We've provided coordinates to your pilot, and you should expect to meet with Xie Dayao, a Yu Jing officer. As for the 'Reliquary,' we expect it to be heavily fortified, but nothing your team can't handle. I'm sending you your full roster information now."

"Nice to see some familiar faces," Mira replied. "Alright, anything else I should know?"

"You're already on the clock, Captain. Ready your troops, and finish preparations. Command will connect with you as the operation proceeds. Good luck, Mira."

"Thanks, Kensai. Tell the wife I say, 'Hi.'" The screen blinked off.

Mira sighed. She didn't like this. Marching into a heavily fortified castle protected by an order of knights without knowing anything more than that was a bit foolhardy. This was the second mission in a row Command didn't provide full info for. She trusted them, but it really did feel like this campaign was slipping from their fingers.

She returned to the shuttle bay to check in with the crew. Dorina was growling at her pupniks, which responded by making a noise that sounded eerily like a child's laughter. Mira didn't want to interrupt whatever was going on. Pi-Well was accessing a console nearby, checking on supplies for the mission. Zoe was looking over the team if REMs she'd be controlling in the coming battle.

Lottie and Zinnie were chatting with Luna, who was almost bouncing with energy. "Did you meet Leo Jr. yet? He's sooooo cute." The elf Morlock pretended to swoon as she said it.

"Ohmygoddess we did!” said Lottie. “What a handsome fluff ball he is!” Leo Jr. was the newly grown Pupnik Dorina had requested. A lion type, he served to replace the one she unfortunately lost back on the Raveneye.

Despite the high morale, there were a few glaring absences. The team was moving out without a Zero. Neru was recovering after having been pierced by metal shards during their fight in Xiāndăo. They'd live, but it made sense for them to sit this one out and recover. Steph was still in Al Bactra.

Having completed her checks on the REMs, Zoe wandered over to Mira. "Hey!"

"Back with the best, I see?" Mira smiled at her.

"I can't even argue with that," grinned Zoe. "Isn't your track record perfect at this point?"

"Saint Mary blesses me," replied Mira. "I'm fortunate to have such a great team."

"Uh huh, just your team. You're definitely not just being humble."

"Blessed are the meek?" Mira laughed. "Let's not jinx things."

"Sure. What's the mission looking like?

"Looting and sabotage. We're going deep into PanO territory to download info and destroy the computers. How do you feel about knights, by the way?”

“Best time for a date, why, you asking?” Zoe smirked. “Seriously though, Sunset Boulevard under the Bakunian stars, a cute girl, and a strong drink? Can’t be beat.”

“Uh huh,” Mira smiled. “What about Knights of the Military Orders?”

“Oh… Not a big fan.”

“Well, we’re on our way to their version of Camelot now.”

“Does that make me Lancelot or Guinevere?” asked Zoe sarcastically. “Maybe Mordred?”

The rest of the journey passed quickly as the shuttle made its way to the Durgama Peninsula. Before long, they were passing over the Chāgala Pass and entering the heart of the jungle. The lush canopy below them had small openings where PanOceanian troops had cleared out the trees. Mira could see satellite dishes in some of them, though most were empty.

Finally, a large clearing appeared with a Military Orders fortress perched on the edges of it. Bright green Yu Jing banners flew from the parapets. The shuttle touched down on a landing pad outside the walls. A Yu Jing officer came running toward the team as they disembarked. "You're the Nomad force we've been expecting, I take it?"

"Reverend Mira Rivera of Bakunin and my crew on behalf of Nomad command. You must be Xie Dayao."

"That's me," he said. I'm to escort you to the perimeter of our zone of control and then basically point you at the Reliquary." He ushered them forward. "Our current intel suggests PanO may be preparing to retake this position, so we need to move quick."

Xie led them through the fortress as Yu Jing troopers moved around them. Despite recently being captured, the corridors inside were still pristine, though the PanOceanian logo had been covered with Yu Jing banners. Mira barely noticed, she was too amazed by the advanced network around her. All the tech inside the building was cutting edge.

"The Church's money at work, I guess…" muttered Mira.

"Hmm?" asked Xie. "Oh, Cameliard you mean? It's true, everything we've found here has been astonishing. Does the Church not fund your order as well?"

"Ha, if only. We were excommunicated by the Church long before I was born. There was little love lost there."

Commander Xie looked confused. "Don't you share the same religion?"

Mira was slightly offended. “Not at all! While they have a Popess at the moment, women are still secondary under the church’s yoke. I believe God herself is a woman; the Feminine Divine.

The ‘Feminine Divine,’ huh? I've heard about the warrior nuns of the Observance on Bakunin. I've also heard you're all women. What happened to the men in your order?

"Men are not holy, so they don’t serve as official members of the clergy. That being said, they are fit to serve and bear our sins as Sin-Eaters. We don't turn men away, but Saint Mary has different plans for them that are… more specific. Whether they're worthy to make it into heaven is hotly debated."

Xie thought about it for a second. "Sure sounds like a raw deal. Why would someone like me want to join?"

"It's about faith, Commander. Besides, you could always become a Reverend rather than a Sin-Eater."

"Didn’t you just say all your Reverends are women?"

"We also have non-binary femmes amongst the clergy. But regardless, it's just a gender. If you wanted to change yours, that's simple enough on Bakunin.

"Back to your original question, another difference is the Observance doesn’t charge indulgences for sins or resurrections or use that to conscript people to our faith.” Not only was Mira passionate about her faith, she despised PanOceania’s version of the Church. “The NeoVatican is corrupt and exerts their influence solely for their own ends. A religion solely about gathering power isn't a true religion. The Observance focuses on our own and eliminating the threat posed to us by ALEPH. We don’t recruit; we only accept those who come to us."

“Sure…” The Commander went quiet, considering all Mira had said. They continued walking until they came to a hangar that led outside. Beyond the doors and across a small field sat two large statues flanking a set of open gates.

"They're holed up in there." Xie pointed toward the multi-story grim figures. "We haven't been able to break them yet. Guess that's why you're here."

"We'll take care of it, Commander. Thank you for the escort." Mira nodded slightly at him. Xie stayed behind, and the crew began making their way across the field.

Zinnie gazed up at the monstrous, carved visages as the team passed by them. "Ugly things, aren't they?" She stuck her tongue out at them and made ridiculous faces until Mira interrupted her.

"Cut the chatter and focus. We don't know what we're in for; be ready for anything."

As they made it past the final wall protecting the inner courtyards, a voice called out to them.

"Halt, Nomad scum!" A group of ragged knights stood before them, gripping their weapons tightly. "We will not surrender the Grail to you! Turn back, lest you face our wrath."

Mira rolled her eyes. "Really? We don't have time to roleplay, here, 'Sir Knight.' Step aside, we can carry our orders out without killing you."

"We know your kind, witch! We will not step aside, our honor and duty demand it."

“Doesn’t sound like they’re much in the mood to negotiate, Mira.” Zoe glanced at the Custodier out of the side of her eye, trying to keep the knights in sight.

“Last chance, Knight. Let us pass, and you can freely go.” It wasn’t exactly a lie. The Nomads would leave them alone, but whatever the Yu Jing troops would do to them was out of Mira’s hands.

The lead soldier raised his sword at Mira. “How dare you trifl—” The knight stopped speaking, though his sword remained pointed.

Mira began walking confidently, ready to go forward with the mission. The knights stood still and silent, watching in their armor. “Come on, let’s go.”

“What happened?” asked Zoe nervously. She was still where she had stood before, and had her gun ready to fire.

“They made the mistake of all wearing heavy armor. I had immobilizing programs ready to launch. When they were giving their speech, I fired them off.” She ran her hand along the shoulder pad of the nearest knight as she passed. “They’re no longer a threat.”

Deeper in the facility, an alarm started sounding. “They may not be a threat, but whoever hit that alarm is going to be. I’d sure like a little more intel before waltzing right in. Gimme just a sec.” Zoe’s eyes lost focus of the world around her as she ran programs on her HUD.

Meanwhile, PanO forces were starting to take up positions on the other side of the courtyard. “Zoe, we’re going to need to move…” Mira was scanning for enemy troops when the outline of a large TAG appeared behind a building

“Almost got it...”

“No, we’re going to need to move, now!”

“There we go! Sending field data to the team!” Zoe sprinted to catch up with the rest of the crew as they started to take cover.

“Come in, Amethyst Sky. This is Command providing mission support. Be advised, a PanO troop transport is headed in your direction. Yu Jing defenses will slow them down, but you're about to be swarming with knights with itchy trigger fingers. Sending you additional orders: sabotage the landing platform to prevent reinforcements. Don't delay; if that shuttle makes it to you, you'll be overwhelmed.

"Alright everyone, we're going to have to hold against their charge before we can get to that landing pad. Take up defensive positions, but be ready to move!" At this point, watching her troops light up on her HUD was becoming rote.

“My bug got us a little more data,” said Zoe. “Sending you all enemy troop information and locations. Check your HUDs!”

The revving engine of a motorcycle could be heard across the field. A Knight of Montesa, sword pointed forward, began storming toward the Nomads. Suddenly, he lowered his sword and abruptly stopped. He nodded, clearly receiving revised orders.

He wasn't the threat Mira was thinking about, though. A two-story tall Squalo began to march across the field. Squalo's were fast and nimble, but this one walked slowly and purposely forward. The tech that was piloting it from some secure PanO location was trying to be intimidating with mixed results. It was a danger, but The Amethyst Sky had tools to deal with it.

"Zoe, I'm going to work on setting up a repeater network to be ready for that TAG. I need you on the Tsyklon covering us."

"Roger, Captain." The legs of the Tsyklon began to shuffle and bend at their odd angles until it was facing the PanO lines. "Firing a round!" The Feuerbach attached to the front of the REM fired, sending explosive shots directly into the Squalo's chest. It shuddered for a moment before shutting down.

"Ha! Is that all they got?" It was Luna over the comms.

"You can be sure they're working on repairing it right now. Don't take this lightly, that's how you get killed." Mira loved that the chemistry of her crew was so strong, but she didn't want to risk her friends.

"Fine, fine…” replied Luna. Let's do this!" she yelled a moment later, throwing smoke grenades to cover her advance. She was making a mad dash for the nearest pile of munitions and supplies. "I'm getting myself a machine gun!"

"I want things, too!" called Dorina. "Come on, pups!" She tossed eclipse grenades as her pets loped behind her. The cannisters hissed for a moment on the ground before popping into a brilliant strobe.

"It might not be a machine gun, but I'll definitely take this," said Luna, digging into the pile. She pulled out a flamethrower, and got a giant grin on her face as she sent a plume of fire into the air.

“Awwww,” Dorina whined. “All I got was grenades… I already have fun things to throw!"

“Repeaters are taking me a second to set up; standby, team.” Mira was preparing her pitcher, ready to burst from behind cover to send the wireless nodes across the battlefield.

“I’ve got your back, Mira.” Zoe activated the Tsyklon again, and this time two, bright blue pinpricks flew through the air until they rested on nearby buildings. They drilled into the roofs and began blinking to indicate they were set. “Part of the network’s up!”

“Thanks, Zoe. I’m going to link the REMs to give us a little more leeway…” Mira activated the Salyut Zond, digging through its executables until she found its supportware programs. She activated Assisted Fire and watched as a connection formed between the REMs. The Tsyklon was outsourcing its processing to the Salyut, which was using its massive computational power to do targeting calculations for the purple bot.

The Tsyklon trained its sensors on the Squalo, ready to fire if it activated again.

“Defenses are set,” Mira said. “I’ll work on moving up to see if I can clear a path to the launchpad.” She activated her Cybermask and dozens of false signals were scattered around her. The information being picked up by the PanO troopers on the Custodier was now completely useless.

Meanwhile, Dorina, not content to just play with her new grenades, dashed out from the flashing light and threw herself at the wall of a nearby infirmary. She moved quickly, but not fast enough. The Knight of Montesa’s motorcycle circled around, and a lucky shotgun blast caught her out of cover. She briefly blinked, stunned, as it registered that the shot had pierced her. She fell to the ground as her pupniks circled her, working to protect their fallen master.

“You’re not killing my friend, fucker!” Luna had already forgotten about her flamethrower, and instead charged forward with her sword drawn. “You wanna play as a knight? Let’s go!”

The Montesa’s face was inscrutable behind the dark visor of his helmet. He rounded his bike next to a wall and fired his shotgun into Luna. Metal shards went flying at him from Luna’s Chain Rifle, but it all bounced off his armor. Luna herself had been hit, and she crawled behind a shipping crate. “I’m… I’m down!” she called over the comms.

“Hold tight, Luna!” It was Zinnie. “I’ll work on getting to you!”

As The Amethyst Sky worked to regroup, a Machinist tucked behind the PanO lines began to direct her fusiliers forward. She pulled out a gizmokit, and while she missed several of her shots, one finally connected. The patching programs and nanobots surged through the Squalo. It rebooted, and stood up to its full height again, ready to fight. It began marching forward, carrying its large hammer menacingly.

“Oh no you don’t…” muttered Zoe. She dove into the Tsyklon’s systems and initiated the firing protocol. A loud BOOM rang out as more explosives knocked the Squalo back offline.

Undeterred by the setback, the Machinist rushed closer to the TAG. Another few rounds of fire from her gizmokit got it back into working shape.

Operational once again, the Squalo flexed its limbs. It started its advance again before the Tsyklon’s Feuerbach launched another series of shots, cracking its armor and disabling it.

Frustrated, the Machinist ran to the feet of the TAG. She was hidden from the Nomad’s view by a series of buildings and crates, so she took her time in properly repairing the large robot. Ready to smash Nomad troops, the Squalo marched forward again.

Unfortunately, over the past few minutes, the Tsyklon had already shown the PanO forces how this would play out. Zoe activated the REM again, and shot after shot poured into the chest of the TAG. Its arms flailed as it continued trying to move forward, but the outpouring of explosives from the Tsyklon were more than enough to stop it. It finally collapsed into a pile of metal chunks and scrap.

“That should be that,” said Zoe. Using her hacking to control the REM and take the Squalo down had drained her, but she was still ready to fight.

“I think we’re clear enough to take out that landing pad,” Mira called over the comms. “I’m going to assume control of the Lunokhod. Everyone else, be ready to move!”

The large Lunokhod REM activated at Mira’s prompting. It scuttled forward, legs leaving small circles in the dust under its feet. The Knight of Montesa heard it coming, and he sped on his motorcycle to intercept it. As he burst from around a corner, Mira fired off the Lunokhod’s heavy shotguns. Two loud blasts crashed into the Knight, and he was knocked from his mount.

“All clear on this end,” said Mira. “Planting the D-Charges now.”

It wasn’t a moment too soon. An obnoxiously bright blue shuttle came in low over the battlefield. It hovered over the landing pad for a moment before a group of small Yu Jing fighters came into view.

“Detonate now, Mira!” shouted Zoe.

“On it!” There was a quiet beep, almost inaudible under the roar of the troop transport’s engines. An extremely short timer counted down before the entire landing pad exploded into a mess of fire and metal. The force of the blast rippled through the shuttle, and it struggled not to be knocked out of the sky. With the fighters approaching rapidly, it jetted off over the tops of the nearby trees.

"Ok, Zoe. Now that reinforcements aren't coming in, it's our turn to get to that server. You head to the right, and I'll head up the left. We'll meet up on the other side." With the TAG down, Mira felt much more comfortable sending her troops forward.

"You got it!" Zoe slid down the ladder attached to the building she was on top of and began moving quickly up the field. She came around a corner and barely stopped in time to not walk in front of an auto turret.

“Well, that’s not good…” she muttered. She whipped out her pink hand console and quickly entered code into it. The turret spun away from Zoe and turned to face the PanO lines. “Ours now,” Zoe grinned.

Mira's advance was much less eventful. With her Cybermask active, the enemy could barely see her. On top of that, the PanO forces were still clustered around their downed TAG and were completely oblivious to the Nomad's movements.

“Nomad forces! This is PanO Commander Mikkie Collins.” The facility’s PA system had come to life and was broadcasting loudly for all to hear. “We’d like to parlay and engage in discussions to end this conflict.”

“Yeah, of course they would,” gasped Luna. Her face contorted in pain as she said it. Zinnie had dragged her back behind the Nomad lines, and the Morlock managed to be flippant even when being healed up.

“Think it’s a trap?” asked Zoe.

“Only one way to find out, I guess…” Mira replied. She hacked into the network of the base’s audio systems. “Reverend Mira Rivera of Bakunin, here. You seem to be on the ropes, Commander. What are the terms of your surrender?”

“You’re here for the xenodata, right? The ‘Grail’ and all that?” replied Collins. “Let my troops live, and it’s all yours.”

“I thought it offended your ‘honor and duty’ as Knights to surrender? Why should we trust you’ll back down?”

“We’re Varunans, Reverend! No honor to defend here, just lives.”

Mira considered it for a moment before stepping from cover. “We accept. Lead me to an interface, and your troops are free to retreat.”

“Careful, Mira… They’re still PanO.” Zoe cautioned over the comms.

A flare erupted next to a large computer terminal. “We’ve marked the closest access for you. Are we clear to move out?” Collins asked.

“Thank you, Commander. Hopefully, next time we meet we’ll find ourselves on the same side of the conflict.” By the time Mira had made her way to the console, the Varunans had already hastily left.

Mira reached out her hand and extended her infiltration protocols deep into Cameliard’s systems. The firewalls barely slowed her as she breached layer after layer of security. She easily made her way to the information on Combined tech that she sought.

“We have a problem,” Mira called over the comms. “This data is all useless. I don’t think they’ve sabotaged or scrambled it, though. If I’m looking at this right, the information wasn’t tampered with and has always just been junk.” She frowned deeply beneath her mask. Could Command’s intel really have been this bad?

“Figures–ow!” Zinnie was still stitching up Luna as she tried to make snide remarks. “Glad I got shot for this.”

“I’m carrying out the mission and downloading the server data,” said Mira, ignoring her. “Zoe, can you prep the Lunokhod to blow the hardware? Everyone else, get ready to move out of here once we’ve detonated the servers.” It didn’t take long for Mira to strip the systems and upload the data to Command.

“Command, looks like this mission’s a bust and the info’s fake. Can you confirm receipt of the PanO server data?”

“Data received, Amethyst Sky. Reviewing now…”

Mira walked away from the console and back toward her troops. Dorina’s pupniks made their way to her side, carrying an unconscious Dorina above them.

“Quite an unfortunate end result,” said Leo Jr. “The Combined tactical information that was supposed to be located here would have been invaluable in our fight.”

“Wait, what?” asked Mira. “You can talk?” She looked over at the fuzzy, gold lion, surprised that it had spoken, let alone in complete sentences. It looked back at her vacantly and made a noise somewhere between a purr and a growl. “Well, that’s something to ask Dorina about later.”

“Amethyst Sky, it looks like there’s a few pearls of wisdom in here despite the low quality of information. Consider this portion of your mission a success. Carry out the rest of your orders, and we’ll see you back in Thokk.”

“Zoe, bring in the REM, and let’s get out of here.”

The Lunokhod jittered to life, armed with all manner of explosives. Its small mandibles carefully placed D-Charges in intricate patterns around the server systems in a way that would destroy the whole infrastructure.

The crew of The Amethyst Sky regrouped and started walking toward the gates.Without anyone left to guard the outpost, they were simply able to leave. Their silhouettes showed clearly against the large explosions in the facility behind them.

“What the hell…?” asked Commander Xie as they approached. “You made it? Did you get the data?”

“Of course, Commander,” Mira smiled. “I told you we’d be able to handle it. Unfortunately, it looks like the threat of PanO at this facility was mostly imagined. The data they’ve been storing is fairly useless.”

“Leave it to the best and brightest of PanO to find only worthless pieces of alien tech. Thanks for your contributions, Reverend. Shall I escort you back to your shuttle?”

“Please do. I have a feeling Command is going to want us to explain our findings sooner rather than later.”

It was early evening, and Luna and Dorina were already recovering by the time the shuttle took off. Between Zinnie’s medic work and the ship’s equipment they would have no problem recovering. As Dorina faded in and out of consciousness because of heavy sedation, Mira tried to ask her about the speaking pupnik.

“Oh, they talk all the time, Captain. You don’t hear them?” She smiled, baring her fangs and laughing to herself.

Mira, confused, replied, “Ok, Dorina. You rest up now.”

Pi-Well was monitoring the REMs while Lottie and Zinnie were eagerly recapping the mission to each other. The Moderators had already shared sensory data of the battle, now they were just happily describing it.

“Kinda anti-climactic, huh, Mira? Not everyday that your opponent just gives up.” Zoe laughed. “Not even a scratch on me this time. I’m not sure it was even worth waking up for this one; feels like I wasted a whole day.”

“You were the one talking about how nice nights were,” teased Mira. “Though I’m guessing you probably don’t just sit there frozen on yours?”

“Not usually, Captain” Zoe winked, but the half of her face that was still skin blushed. “Seriously, though, we did well on this one. You even managed to keep all our REMs in one piece!”

“Command’ll be thrilled.” Mira’s smile faded from her lips. “Though speaking of Command…” Mira trailed off before continuing.

“Speaking of Command, what…?” asked Zoe.

“I don’t know. I’m a little worried about what they’ve been sending us into. First ALEPH presence in a supposedly allied base, now junk info in a highly guarded castle. I’m not saying they’re trying to get us killed, but if they’re not our intel is woefully inadequate.”

“I still trust in Command; this Campaign has taken turns no one saw coming. We’re supposed to be fighting Combined and instead the whole Sphere is at each other’s throats. Besides, I’m sure we’ll be enough to handle whatever comes next, Mira.”

“Yeah, but I’m not willing to lose anyone else, and as things get worse that’s going to get harder.”

“Haven’t lost anyone yet, Captain. Our Zeros are both recovering from what I hear, and Dorina and Luna are both used to getting banged up. We’ll be good.”

Mira looked away. “Yeah… You’re right.” She was clearly no longer in this conversation. Her mind wandered back to the Port Battery where Steph was murdered by Nourkias. The message she’d received from her before this mission still echoed in her head. This would be just another day of fighting before dealing with a thousand other things.

“Mira…?” Zoe called her back to reality. “You there? Don’t stress! Things will be ok. We’ll push the Combined back and retake the Station. The end of all this is coming soon, so just hang in there, ok?”

Mira nodded. She didn’t think things would be that easy. She stared at the nearest vid screen and lost herself in her thoughts.

– End Final Log
– Analyzing Battle Data…
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– Mission Status Classification: Bakunian Victory
– High Command Battle Score Rating of Combatants:
The Amethyst Sky - 5*
Varuna Forces - 0
– Resource Value Allocated to Remaining Nomad Forces: 174
– Resource Value Allocated to Remaining Varuna Forces: 91
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– ALERT: Incoming Transmission from Rev. Mira Rivera
– Additional Battle Report Data Being Loaded...
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Additional Report Data Available at: https://durgamatakeover.warconsole.com/battles/mjgrey-vs-gelato-1658377602
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