For Posterity - Indra - First Log
09 Jul 2024Ethan Cenick
Just woke up from the ICU after sticking it to Indra a few days ago and am now safely aboard the Author's Collective (X4G-44K). By some miracle my escape pod was recovered from the bowels of the maelstrom and transferred back to Rescue Ship Hutner where the good folks there tended to my wounds until I was stable. Foehammer was completely destroyed but not before dealing the hurt to Indra's core more than a few times. Seeing a Thargoid Titan up close and personal like that really makes you think on your life. Nearly dying in combat with one only exponentially increases that. In all my years of flying, combat, and exploration, nothing has struck fear into my heart like entering the combat zone of Indra. Narrowly dying in that fight made me realize it was time I took these logs seriously in case someone cares enough to know my story, to know how I left my mark on the galaxy and what I stand for, what I fight for; who I am and what I do. Something about that experience really brought things into perspective. Life is so fragile, but it's worth fighting for. It's worth defending and protecting.
I was inderdicted and hyperdicted a collective 12+ times just getting to Indra, my sensors were a mess, and the sounds....the awful, gut twisting sounds those terrible creatures made. It'll turn the bravest man's blood to ice the first time you hear it. Horrors beyond human comprehension.
While I was equipped to handle the scouts for sure, and at least the lower ranked interceptors, I stayed focused on Indra. I've fought dozens upon dozens of pirates in my day, which to most people would be about as malicious as anyone you'd ever face in the bubble....but these aliens? Absolutely nothing in this galaxy has ever shown me the utter and complete malice they hold for us. It is a darkness and primal hatred we cannot comprehend. Not even the most violent pirates I've faced off against had the total and complete disregard for life like these 'goids do.
And it is because of that I knew I had to do something. I had to join the fight.
With the help of the Anti Xeno Initiative, I outfitted my Chieftan, Foehammer, as best I could to stick it to Indra as best I could. I knew my ship wasn't the best, and that it may in fact be a one way ticket, but for the first time in my life I felt the desire to be a part of something bigger. Something more than myself. Most of my career I've been a humble miner, though my skills in combat are not too shabby either and I often find myself hired to take on pirates in the systems I mine in. While mining is my true passion at the helm of a starship, I can't stand idly by when innocents are being taken advantage of. This is why I founded the Shugoshin Aces, a collective band of misfit pilots united under the ethos of being guardians and defenders of the defenseless. We all do our own thing, but when duty calls, we answer. Whether it's escort missions for fellow miners, clearing a system of pirate raiders, or putting down terrorists, the Aces are here to help.
I was away for a while, though, and when I returned to the bubble to find that we were at war with the Thargoids, well....I just knew I had to do something.
I knew I needed to show the boys the way, I knew I needed to take a stand, even if it was just a chip in the armor of Indra. Filled with bravado and a fire in my heart I set out for Indra this last weekend. Part of me did it for my men, part of me did it for humanity. Nothing could have prepared me for the horrors that awaited me.
Upon surviving the dozen or so inter and hyperdictions on the way to Indra, I found myself diving headfirst into the malestrom cloud. Local commanders welcomed my arrival on the comms and wished me luck getting through the storm and the energy pulse. It was all so overwhelming. AXI had done their best to prepare me but as best as you can memorize the phases, nothing truly prepares you for the overwhelming amount of information you're dealing with.
The storm.
The sounds.
The intensity of everything tested my mettle more than anything else in this galaxy ever has. After barely activating my pulse neutralizer in time, I began to see lasers from my fellow commanders shining through the clouds. AXI told me the hardest part of the maelstrom was not getting lost, so I'll admit I was grateful to see a cadre of brave commanders already there, so I followed the lasers in full confidence.
As I neared the lasers, the most terrifying thing I've ever seen in my life began to materialize.
Indra.
As I came out of the maelstrom clouds, I saw a gargantuan beast, a supermassive Interceptor, for lack of a better term, but at least 20-30 times larger. Maybe more. It is difficult to describe just how large this creature/ship/thing was. We were but ants to this abomination to nature. As I exited the cloud, Indra ignited a massive magnetic field around itself, lighting up the entire combat zone with a blinding blue light.
I was speechless. Something in me knew I might not make it back, but I pressed forward regardless. I didn't come this far to leave with my tail between my legs.
I neared Indra and began firing my beam laser. The thermal vent quickly brought my temperatures below 20% so it was difficult to be detected. I helped my commanders disable the vents to force the core open and we dumped as many AX missiles into that core as we could. Every single thing I've learned up to this point was tested in piloting, ship management, and situational awareness.
I let my pride get the better of me, though, and it nearly cost me my life. In the heat of the battle, and in my thirst for blood against Indra and all this titan and its wicked ships it spawned had done against the local system, I neglected to notice I had run out of caustic sinks, and had been taking caustic damage for who knows how long. During I think my 6th run at the core, Foehammer only had 15% hull left and it was steadily declining. Knowing the end was nigh, I took one last stab at the core, let my hull overheat to try and get the caustics to stop (which it did), and get away as fast as I could and hope for a repair. However, because my thermal vent had nothing to target, my heat signature went above 20% as I boosted away and an interceptor found me and began firing at me. The last thing I remember doing was telling my fellow commanders it was an honor before blacking out and waking up on Hutner.
My body aches and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little shook up from the experience. While feeling foolish I let my head get away from me in such a situation (I'm well aware I'm extremely lucky to have been rescued and returned back to Hutner, our ships can barely make it through the maelstrom, let alone an escape pod), I was glad to find out that Indra had been defeated and will detonate in the next 12 hours or so. I will enjoy watching Indra go up in flames. I will relish every moment of it.
I will also make sure my men are more prepared than I was. Fighting a Titan is no easy feat. It takes grit and focus unlike any other combat scenario in the galaxy. It will test you at every level. Everyone has a plan until you have 3 interceptors on your tail while trying to dodge caustic missiles and turrets from a titan while disabling heat vents and avoiding magnetic repulsor fields.
I'm still breathing, though, and soon I'll be ready to take the fight to Thor with my men.
Like I said, I've never really taken these logs seriously, but having such a close brush with death really makes a man think a bit harder about his life and how he'll be remembered, so here I am. This is me. Commander Ethan Cenick. Should anything ever befall me, know I loved my men, my family, and humanity. I'm just a simple man making his way in a complicated universe, hoping I can be a light against the encroaching darkness.
Stay safe and fly dangerously.
Until next time, commanders.
-Ethan Cenick