LitShark
Predator
- Joined
- Nov 8, 2002
- Posts
- 3,515
In 2055 Transit Corp’s flagship Hyperspace Gate 01 exploded when multiple crafts tried to exit hyperspace at the same time. The instant disaster claimed over three-hundred-thousand lives, but the fallout was much greater. The Gate Disaster, as it came to be known, broke Earth’s moon into fragments and disrupted tides and even Earth’s orbit—forcing sudden and disastrous change on a planet already at war over dwindling resources and partisan politics.
In the years following the Gate Disaster, Earth was bombarded with an average of 25 meteor strikes a day. Satellite networks were devastated and there were fewer and fewer habitable areas for humanity intensifying pre-existing hostilities.
By 2100, two major factions emerged from the chaos. The Earth Surface Loyalists and the Voyagers. ESL was determined to reestablish a functional Earth, despite the ongoing chaos. The Voyagers intended to move humanity in a mobile space station into deep space, until other habitable worlds could be found.
The lead scientists of the time sided with the Voyagers, and by 2114, Eden II was launched through hyperspace, outside of the Milky Way Galaxy. 35% of humanity exited Earth on that vessel. Those who willfully stayed or were not considered important enough to be taken, banded together in support of the ESL.
Over time, what began as a minor advantage in numbers exponentially grew, to the point that the Voyagers were outnumbered 3 to 1 among humans. The search for a new world was proving difficult and reproduction away from Earth was stunted for unknown reasons. Just as the Voyagers came to require more resources from Earth, the ESL was able to reliably navigate hyperspace to attack Eden II.
By 2121, total war was declared between the ESL and the Voyagers. Propaganda was nearly constant and each side boldly called for the demise of the other.
March 1, 2121 – S.S. Smoking Gun – Jupiter’s Orbit
Torrey Grant was an Earth Surface Loyalist to his core, and he felt like his moment had finally arrived. It was difficult to leave his wife behind on Earth, but he knew that the future of the planet depended on destroying the Voyagers.
How destroying Earth’s enemies would restore the orbit or abate the meteor showers was unclear—but Torrey knew it with every fiber of his being. He touched the digital photo of his wife that he’d uploaded to the Fighter Ship’s HUD. The image flickered like it was sizzling as his gloved fingers touched it.
“Ghostrider, status check.” the radio called within his helmet.
“Ghostrider green across the board.”
The checks continued clockwise around the circular bundle of fighter ships, all connected to the outside ring of a massive turbine, designed specifically to deliver fighters through hyperspace. It was not, however, designed to bring them back.
The S.S. Smoking Gun’s launch port slowly crept open, yellow lights rotating as the barrel opened up to space.
“Cradle One, fire!” blue lights extended down the launch barrel and fired the turbine ahead of them into a slingshot around Jupiter and into hyperspace, “Cradle Two, fire!” Torrey didn’t have time to marvel at the launch of Cradle One, because his own turbine was spouting blue flame and dragging the ring of fighter ships into hyperspace.
Torrey must have passed out, because when he came to, his respirator was filled with throw-up. He was choking.
“Ghostrider, come back! You’re loose!”
Torrey’s intense training overran his conscious mind, accelerating away from the cradle, just moments before Eden II’s deck guns tore the cradle to pieces. Cradle Three was destroyed before they fired a single ship.
Torrey was still choking on his own puke with his respirator hanging off his face when he fired his first shots, they were unaimed and easily absorbed by Eden II’s cyber shield. The sick mess was still floating around the cockpit in zero gravity by the time the magnetic nanobots began latching to the exterior of Torrey’s ship.
He screamed out, firing blindly.
The cockpit cracked. Pressure spiked.
Torrey went unconscious immediately.
*-*-*
When he awoke, Torrey was stripped naked and bound to a steel chair. The room was totally dark.
Was he dead?
No, this was worse. Much worse.
Torrey was a captive aboard the Eden II.
In the years following the Gate Disaster, Earth was bombarded with an average of 25 meteor strikes a day. Satellite networks were devastated and there were fewer and fewer habitable areas for humanity intensifying pre-existing hostilities.
By 2100, two major factions emerged from the chaos. The Earth Surface Loyalists and the Voyagers. ESL was determined to reestablish a functional Earth, despite the ongoing chaos. The Voyagers intended to move humanity in a mobile space station into deep space, until other habitable worlds could be found.
The lead scientists of the time sided with the Voyagers, and by 2114, Eden II was launched through hyperspace, outside of the Milky Way Galaxy. 35% of humanity exited Earth on that vessel. Those who willfully stayed or were not considered important enough to be taken, banded together in support of the ESL.
Over time, what began as a minor advantage in numbers exponentially grew, to the point that the Voyagers were outnumbered 3 to 1 among humans. The search for a new world was proving difficult and reproduction away from Earth was stunted for unknown reasons. Just as the Voyagers came to require more resources from Earth, the ESL was able to reliably navigate hyperspace to attack Eden II.
By 2121, total war was declared between the ESL and the Voyagers. Propaganda was nearly constant and each side boldly called for the demise of the other.
March 1, 2121 – S.S. Smoking Gun – Jupiter’s Orbit
Torrey Grant was an Earth Surface Loyalist to his core, and he felt like his moment had finally arrived. It was difficult to leave his wife behind on Earth, but he knew that the future of the planet depended on destroying the Voyagers.
How destroying Earth’s enemies would restore the orbit or abate the meteor showers was unclear—but Torrey knew it with every fiber of his being. He touched the digital photo of his wife that he’d uploaded to the Fighter Ship’s HUD. The image flickered like it was sizzling as his gloved fingers touched it.
“Ghostrider, status check.” the radio called within his helmet.
“Ghostrider green across the board.”
The checks continued clockwise around the circular bundle of fighter ships, all connected to the outside ring of a massive turbine, designed specifically to deliver fighters through hyperspace. It was not, however, designed to bring them back.
The S.S. Smoking Gun’s launch port slowly crept open, yellow lights rotating as the barrel opened up to space.
“Cradle One, fire!” blue lights extended down the launch barrel and fired the turbine ahead of them into a slingshot around Jupiter and into hyperspace, “Cradle Two, fire!” Torrey didn’t have time to marvel at the launch of Cradle One, because his own turbine was spouting blue flame and dragging the ring of fighter ships into hyperspace.
Torrey must have passed out, because when he came to, his respirator was filled with throw-up. He was choking.
“Ghostrider, come back! You’re loose!”
Torrey’s intense training overran his conscious mind, accelerating away from the cradle, just moments before Eden II’s deck guns tore the cradle to pieces. Cradle Three was destroyed before they fired a single ship.
Torrey was still choking on his own puke with his respirator hanging off his face when he fired his first shots, they were unaimed and easily absorbed by Eden II’s cyber shield. The sick mess was still floating around the cockpit in zero gravity by the time the magnetic nanobots began latching to the exterior of Torrey’s ship.
He screamed out, firing blindly.
The cockpit cracked. Pressure spiked.
Torrey went unconscious immediately.
*-*-*
When he awoke, Torrey was stripped naked and bound to a steel chair. The room was totally dark.
Was he dead?
No, this was worse. Much worse.
Torrey was a captive aboard the Eden II.
