[b]Erandra System May 14, 2789 A.D[/b] ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Over a period of seven years an epic war had been fought against spammers. After a long and grueling struggle, the war was drawing to a close. And the spammers were winning. A lone moderator paced amongst the front line of soldiers in the docking bay of the first class battle cruiser, [i]Reiginko[/i]. After a moderate pause, Recon, the pacing moderator, began to speak. "The actions and decisions you soldiers will make on this day will determine the fate of this war. We have been graced with but one window of opportunity, one chance to turn the tide of this war. In several minutes we will emerge from hyper space and, if intelligence is correct, be confronted by two alpha class warships operated by spammers." There was an uneasy shuffle from a number of the pilots and marines. "In the one of the ships, which will be designated by a beacon, is a crystal. Our objective is to retrieve this crystal and bring it back to our own ship. I am sorry, but the purpose of this is strictly classified." He paused. "Each of the two ships have shields that will need to be disabled. We have assembled one team of ten 3-08 Zuru bombers to disable them. Eight fighters will escort the key to this victory, the dropships. We have only two dropships to spare, and if they are destroyed" he paused, "This war is over." "Banshee Barron, you will command the first dropship, consisting of Halifax, Whoop Ass 101, Lord Crotch Pants, and Steel Bulletproof. MCs Brother, you will command the other dropship, consisting of Casey, Buffalo Wing, Douglas Brown, and Texas Ben. Banshee Barron and MCs Brother nodded in acknowledgement. "The rest of you will engage the enemy fighters in combat. Do any of you have questions?" No one responded. "This is your day of glory. I have fought along side you for seven years, and there is no doubt in my mind that this is the finest group of soldiers I have ever had the priviledge to command. You will emerge victorious from this battle." "Get your things together, men. You are dismissed." The soldiers in the docking bay broke attention and dispersed. Recon walked to the elevator and pressed the "up" button once he was inside. [i]"God help them"[/i], he thought. And the elevator doors closed. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ As the [i]Reiginko[/i] broke from hyper space, Fleet Commander Shishka observed what lay ahead. Intelligence had been correct; there, at 12 o' clock, were two Alpha class warships. [i]"Here we go"[/i], he thought to himself. "Captain Psyched, give the order." In the docking bay, the voice of Psyched broke over the intercom. Its message was clearly heard by every soldier. [i]"All troops, prepare for liftoff. Repeat, all troops, prepare for liftoff."[/i] [b]To Be Continued[/b] [Edited on 12/10/2005]