[ROLEPLAY] Perhaps We Need Another Shot
29 Feb 2024CrazyGolm
Perhaps We Need Another Shot - February 3310The Thargoid occupation of the Bubble had raged for over one year. Entire swathes of space had been devastated, with many millions of lives lost in the alien invasion, and many more affected. No one knew quite what the Thargoids' goals were, but everyone in their way was a target.
Pilots from all walks of life had answered the call for help - to evacuate refugees, to push back the invaders, or to run reconnaissance behind enemy lines.
Now, the tide was turning. Anti-xeno pilots had pushed the Thargoids back so far, but now Aegis had a plan to strike directly at the Titans. And they had a weapon that could disrupt them: Guardian nanites.
The tension was palpable. The three superpowers were marshalling forces for a concerted attack, and the Anti-Xeno Initiative had already launched a vanguard to Taranis.
On board Golm's Kitchen, Commander CrazyGolm felt the tension in the (recycled) air. He was overseeing a pre-flight inspection of the [IDA] Dawn Treader. This mission would be critical, so it was vital that the ship was in prime condition. Given the size of the Clipper, it was too big a task for him to do single-handedly, so he had the carrier crew assist him in the exhaustive checks.
Golm's mission was to attack Taranis, in an attempt to cripple the Thargoid Titan.
He personally checked over the Guardian Nanite Torpedo Launcher that Aegis had supplied. It and the Extraction Missile Launcher were the latest adaptations to the [IDA] Dawn Treader's loadout. Hearing that there were still captives trapped on board the Titans, he had refused to rule out hope for them.
As he inspected the torpedo launcher, he carefully searched for any anomalous components. Golm trusted Aegis, however this attack on a Thargoid Mothership had reminded him of another tale involving a torpedo and a Thargoid Mothership: John Jameson, tricked into xenocide by INRA, and then betrayed to his demise. Suffice to say, he didn't want to risk sabotage.
The carrier crew had finished checking the internals, so Golm ventured on board the [IDA] Dawn Treader. He was no Imperial, so the Clipper's interior felt disconcertingly opulent as he made his way to the cockpit. It was elegant to the point of perfectionism. He couldn't get used to that.
Golm entered the cockpit and took his place in the [IDA] Dawn Treader's command chair. The Clipper's array of holo-displays thrummed to life around him, and the COVAS piped up, welcoming him aboard. This was it.
He thought about why he was doing this. He thought of the alien onslaught, brought here by Azimuth's thoughtless xenocide. He thought of the Thargoids' indiscriminate attacks on civilians, equally as thoughtless. He thought to Yan Zangata: it had fallen now, despite his best efforts. He hoped the group of friends he'd rescued were OK.
It wasn't about who had started this war any more. It was about who would stop it. He didn't want to wipe out the Thargoids, but he had to stop their invasion.
In the hangar, the lead mechanic gave Golm the thumbs up - the "all clear" for flight. The [IDA] Dawn Treader had been prepared meticulously for this mission, its shiny blue paint gleaming under the hangar lights with an almost iridescent quality.
It was ready. And so was he.
Golm checked the seal on his helmet one last time, prayed a short prayer, and prepared for takeoff.