Location: Microsoft System, Silicon Galaxy Date: July 31st, 3594 Subject: U.E.B.S.C. [b]============[/b] Casey's Starkiller was in bad shape. Another raid on the [i]7th Column[/i] had seen to that. He was leaking coolant, fuel and just about everything else that a Yomaw X-39 Starkiller could leak. It was a decent ship in it's time, but countless battles and hasty repairs had worn down the once magnificent fighter. But what baffled Casey was why his Starkiller was always breaking down and getting shot up. It seemed to him that his ship was a laser magnet. Out of all the ships in Blue Squadron, his was the gnarliest. The [i]7th Column[/i] was now coming into view, out of it's hiding spot in the nearby plasma cloud which had hidden it from the raiding Roksyar fighters. She was a glorious ship, sleek and fast. The flagship of the United Empires of Bungie Space Corps fleet. She was circular in shape, with six fighter bays on the outer ring. A rectangular flight deck and command bridge jutted out from the inside of the ring. She was quite a grand sight, even more so to Casey, who barely had enough fuel left to make it into Blue Squadron's fighter bay, number 2. "Blue 1 to Blue Fighters. Status check. Tell me who's still here people." MCs Brother's voice said over the radio in Casey's flight helmet. "Blue 2, I'm shot up and leaking fluid." Casey reported. "Blue 3, all green." reported SteelBulletProof. "Blue 4, all good, Commander." informed Halifax. "Will someone tell me what the hell just happened? Because I think they just got [b]thunderstruck[/b]! Blue 5, all good, baby!" That was madcoconut, Blue Squadron's newest member. He was quite the hotshot. Or at least, he thought he was. A good pilot, for sure, but he lacked skill, experience, and patience. MCs turned his mic on to broadcast to the whole fighter fleet. He wanted them to hear this. "Blue Squadron, good run out there. Another 56 kills, most in the fleet. Good hunting. Prepare for docking." Just another day in the UEBSC... ********************************************** Admiral Shishka was a powerful man. And not just in terms of his rank. He carried around him a sense of authority, and he deserved every bit of it. He began his career aboard the [i]Jones[/i], a light frigate. He was just barely out of the academy when he encountered the enemy for the first time. The Roksyar had been merciless on the poor ship. But Adm. Shishka hadn't faultered like all the other greenhorns. After the battle was over, he was promoted to Captain and recieved the Marathon Medal of Exceptional Service for rescuing 27 crewmembers. It was the fastest an ensign had ever been promoted, and he was quite a legend in the fleet. Which was exactly why Commander MCs Brother was nervous about meeting him. After his squad had docked, he had recieved a message from the Admiral, requesting his presence on the Command Bridge ASAP. Whatever this was, it was big. In his 5 years serving in the [i]7th Column[/i], this was the first time the Adm. had even acknowledged his existence. "Sir, you requested my presence?" MCs said while saluting. "At ease Commander. Now, you are commander of Blue Squadron, correct?" "Yes sir." "34 fleet records, and not a single member killed in action in 2 years. Impressive. Which make you ideal for this mission." "What mission, sir?" "A mission to destroy a strategic Roksyar shipyard. If we manage to cripple their ship production, it may shorten this war by years. Problem is, there are 350 Roksyar fighters and frigates guarding the shipyard. Not an easy task, at all." "Sir, Blue Squad is ready and willing." "Good. Meet up with Banshee Barron and the rest of Red Squadron for a full briefing. Good luck Commander." [Edited on 7/24/2005]