Surviving HIP 22460
29 Sep 2022Streya Jormagdnir
The concourse deck of the Bright Sentinel was dimmed for quiet hours, but the recycled air was stale with booze and pub food. Independent AX pilots had gathered to rally under Salvation's Banner, and there was a nervous-yet-optimistic energy on the faces and in the words of excited bar patrons talking about their narrow victories over the angry Thargoids all over the system.
I've been in many a war-torn station on the eve of battle. That night on the Bright Sentinel may have faded into the anonymity of a thousand wars for this seasoned fighter, but Salvation's device and promises placed an almost biblical importance on this time and place. If pilots could just hold out long enough, maybe we could really nip the Thargoids in the bud, many thought. In spite of the unease in the atmosphere I accidentally fell asleep back on board my combat Orca within the megaship's docks, missing the firing of the Proteus Wave. I would not remain asleep for what followed.
I woke up to my ship floating in the darkness of the void, a deafening roar echoing through the internal structure and modules. Clambering to the controls, the ship's automatic reboot sequence kicked in. Outside the canopy, the Bright Sentinel was visibly on fire and venting atmosphere, debris strewn everywhere. It quickly dawned on me that I was a surviving example of such debris, but a quick systems check showed all Guardian technology to be thoroughly fried. Despite kneecapped defenses, I reassured myself of my ship's good speed for a quick escape, so pressed on to investigate what happened.
My InSight Hub pulled up Salvation's last broadcast in the system before firing the Proteus Wave, and between that and my ship's security cameras, a timeline of events began to form. The Proteus Wave had ostensibly fired as expected, shining brightly on the moon below, but something had happened. Instead of the Thargoid ships being shut down, now all human-Guardian hybrid tech was under duress. The Thargoids were also incredibly aggressive, attacking on sight and tracking any ship in normal space down within mere minutes. Massive numbers of ship losses were being reported in the system, and even seasoned CMDRs fell victim to either Thargoids or opportunistic pirates.
There were reports of pilots stranded at Fort Asch, including one of Black Widow's own, and knowing my ship had an extra seat and could outrun the Thargoids, I ventured down to the abandoned settlement to attempt a rescue. I had already reviewed GalNet reports of pilots losing their ships while they were landed, so I had already developed a safety procedure before landing. Not wanting to end up stranded myself, I deployed the ship's SRV Scorpion, a rugged two-seater, and immediately dismissed the speedy Orca to the safety of a supercruise orbit.
The drive to Fort Asch was eerie; never before had I seen Thargoid Interceptors this close to a planetary body, let alone a human structure. The stranded pilots on local wavebands reported having adequate cover in the ruins of the research facility, but ammunition and battery charge were becoming scarce. The Interceptors were laying down suppressive fire with continuous beam weapons, but were also fortunately distracted from my presence.
This cover would only last for about two minutes before a Thargoid Interceptor, seemingly dedicated to my personal destruction, dropped out of a hyperspace portal and popped off one of the signature Shutdown Fields. At the same time, some smaller Scouts also appeared with the Interceptor and began firing on my disabled SRV. The armor buckled with each pelting hit, and I knew there were precious few seconds to escape before the SRV would explode. The Shutdown Field had disabled the hydraulic pumps for the hatch on the Scorpion, but systems rebooted just in time for me to escape.
I jumped out of the exploding SRV and activated my Artemis suit's shields and night vision immediately. The shields saved my life and absorbed the explosion's force, leaving me relatively unscathed on the slope down to Fort Asch. Above me half a dozen Thargoid Scouts floated like a swarm of angry insects, though they ignored me. Perhaps I posed too little threat with just a spacesuit and some guns, but I knew at this point I wouldn't be rescuing anyone today. Now it was a matter of not needing rescue myself.
I took advantage of the Thargoids ignoring me and dropped my shields to conserve power. Running many kilometers to retreat to the other side of some nearby mountains, I recalled my ship and broke for orbit, then for Witch Space out of system. The other Black Widow CMDR in HIP 22460 also managed to make it out in the end, but there were thousands of others who didn't. Having that cursed roar leaked by the Far God cultists has encouraged me to speak up about my experiences, but I still haven't fully processed it all. It was certainly a demoralizing event for anyone keen on fighting the Thargoids.
After HIP 22460, Black Widow went back to business as normal, not wanting to tie up precious resources on Anti-Xeno activities when the threats still lay hundreds of light-years away. I fear there will come a time when the Thargoid threat is much closer to home, but hopefully when that day comes we'll be more prepared. To fight, to run, whatever it takes to survive.