How I Got Here: "Children Of The Twin Suns"
09 Aug 2022Columbuss
Commander Justin Estok. Stardate 9-AUG-3308."That guy had blue eyes!"
Rebellion is an identity issue. It comes about when there's a distinct difference between yourself and those in positions of power. When the oppressor finds common ground with the oppressed, that's when things get tricky. When it comes to conquest, it's often not enough to kick in the front door of your neighbors house to tell them that you live there now. The trick is to convince them that you've lived there all along. The trick is to blur the lines of identity until your oppressor doesn't know they're being oppressed. Is a slave a "slave" if a slave doesn't know it's a "slave"?
It's when these lines aren't blurred, and there's a strong sense of individuality in the oppressed, that rebellion starts to gain traction. The Dynasty never blurred these lines. They never instilled their ideals onto the next generation of AL Minaans. Instead, they allowed the Al Minaans to maintain their identity, happy to sit on the metaphorical throne, getting fat on Al Minaan labor. Without this identity, John and The Children Of The Twin Suns might never have happened.
The Crimson Life Network was a civilian militia, formed by John as an offshoot of the People's of Al Mina Revolutionary Party, a minority subsect of the ruling council arguing with The Dynasty for a "seat at the table". No longer content with bickering for whatever scraps might fall, John started Crimson Life. They called themselves The Children Of The Twin Suns after the two suns that make up the Al Mina system. As a response The Dynasty labelled this group as terrorists and enemies of the state. Then the bombings started.
Capua and Enders Bay were small cities on the coast of the continent John called home. The people there were solid Al Minaans who were rightfully outspoken with their disdain for The Dynasty, until high level bombers dispatched from the Dynasty fleet orbiting Al Mina B1 (the only terraformed planet orbiting the B star) dropped incendiary ordinance on the city centers.
Fast forward to John's voice coming over the comm of my Asp Explorer, The Chelsie Grinn II, as Ragina listened in from the copilots seat. Flashes of light fill the space around Al Mina A2 as more ships in our rag tag fleet frame shift in. In front of us is The Dynasty fleet, in orbit around The Al Mina A star's second planet and the capital of the system.
"Children of The Twin Suns," John says. "weapons hot. Weapons free. For our people."
The Dynasty fleet began firing volleys from their point defense canons while scrambling their smaller craft to engage us. With our first pass, significant damage was done to their larger ships as our missiles and rail canons hit their hulls before they could power up their shields. As we came around for our second attack, the point defense weapons stopped and their smaller ships arrived. I pulled the stick hard to the port side as an Eagle ripped through our lines, cutting across our hull. The whole cockpit lit up as the shield radiated with each beam strike.
"That guy had blue eyes!" Ragina yelled.
Everywhere, beams fired and cut through the space between the ships dancing in the dark. Thousands of yellow tracers ripped through the lines of exhaust caused by the ships engines as they darted here and there, jostling for position. The Al Mina War had begun.