Hey everyone, something of a foreword here.

The idea for Remnants started back sometime around Chapter 3 of TBWF and I've been waiting to actually get to it. While Banners was focused on telling the story of Titanfall, Remnants is going focus on the DLC as well as experiment with different styles. That being said, I don't plan to post more after completing this story.

As always, thanks for reading and thoughts are always welcomed. Take care.

"Expedition"

Unnamed System

Designation: Athena – Site of new Fleet Operations Base

2212, May 14th

Jack Barnaby looked up from his surveyor tool as he looked over the vast swamplands before him. It was another hot muggy day as he wiped the sweat from his forehead. This was his third point to plot out today before he returned to base. Jack was a part of a small crew bringing this unnamed planet up to colonizing.

He peered back through the lens of his surveyor tool again, sighting between a couple of nodes to measure the distance between those points. Jack blinked as fresh sweat rolled down his face and into his eyes. The readout read 378 meters and Jack reached for his tablet to record the number.

Several loud cracks drew his attention from his tablet and Jack saw several IMC ship silhouettes break through the clouds. The cracks from their jumps sounded like thunder claps as the sound washed over the trees. Jack gripped his floppy brimmed hat as the gust they created. After a moment of watching the ships pull into a holding position, Jack ran over to his radio. If the IMC were here that wasn't a good sign.

"Michael, this is Jack over by sector thirteen! A whole heap of IMC ships just broke atmo!"

"Yeah Jack, we saw it on the scope. Hersh's been trying to raise them on the horn but they haven't responded on any channel." Michael replied in a grumpy tone.

"We filed this claim on the ISCM-507 a couple years ago didn't we?" Jack panicked, referring to the Interstellar Star Chart Module number 507, which was a plot of all known stars and planets within the Frontier.

"Yeah – we did. They're probably here for suspected Militia or some shit!"

"But there ain't been any Militia here!"

"Don't you think I know that!?" Michael snapped. "But a corporation of their size could make ours disappear. Cause or no."

"Ohh shite! There goes our finder's bonus!" Jack pulled off his hat.

"Shut up about the damn bonus, just stay on the line. Okay?"

"Yeah..." Jack trailed off as he clicked off the radio.

Quickly, Jack broke down a lot of the useful equipment and threw it into the back of the Samson truck, he wasn't about to stay around with the IMC up there. There was a chance that if he drove deep enough into the jungle, their sensors wouldn't pick him up. As Jack slammed the car door and turned over the engine, he remembered the interference in the swamp. That was as good a place as any to hide out. Jack put the car into gear and tore down the hill into the jungle below.

The field office of Landstrom Venture Incorporated was nestled near a run off some kilometers from a swamp. The planet, known only by it's id number: LV – 426, had just begun to have accurate surveys of the planet's dense jungle and the promising ruins they spotted from their seismographic scans deep under the swamps. It had been a good find and one that Michael was eager to claim for their flagging business.

In the last few weeks, they had theorized that the planet could be an treasure trove of jump fuel from the vast pockets of oil they found underneath the surface. The best part of all was that the whole planet wasn't inhabited by people. Landstrom could do as they please with the whole place without filing any red tape. Michael had already anticipated animal conservationists from Haven or Angel City making a protest to their offices but what he hadn't counted on was the IMC to take notice.

They needed the fuel for their ships but the IMC had several other planets they could just evacuate like Victor or Eden? Wasn't it too much work for a bloated corporation like themselves to even bother trying to start from scratch, wasn't it much easier to evacuate a populous instead? Michael slapped his face. They'd found the planet. They'd done the groundwork. The IMC were just going to force them out.

"Over my dead body." Michael muttered as he left the communications room.

"Where ya goin'?" Hersh whirled around in his chair.

Michael shrugged on his jacket with an emblazoned "LV" on the back and strode out the front door of the survey field office just as a Goblin dropship was touching down. It's silver and orange colors glistening in the afternoon light. Michael shielded his face as the dust of the Goblin made an impromptu landing. Michael was sure there was some corporate lawyer in there about to try and shut them down but Michael patted the Hammond pistol on his hip. Lawyers didn't wear body armor now did they?

The Goblin came to a rest but instead of a lawyer getting out, six heavily armed Colonial Marines piled out of the dropship followed by a woman in a red Pilot uniform and black hair shaved on one side. Michael cursed, if there were Marines then they were looking for Militia and soldiers were always harder to get rid of, plus this woman looked scary as hell.

"Hey! What's all this?" Michael shouted over the whirl of the Goblin's engines.

The Marines filed past him and stormed the field office. Michael turned around to shout at them but turned back as the woman came towards him. This must be the leader but she didn't look like any normal IMC jarhead.

"What the hell is this? There's no Militia here!" Michael shouted at the man.

"I know." The woman said in a sharp English accent looking around the burgeoning facility.

"Then what the hell are the IMC doing here! We filed this claim with the charter's office in Angel City two years ago! You're violating our corporate rights!"

The woman began to examine her fingers, clearly not giving a damn about corporate laws. Well, if she wanted to play tough, Michael would play tough too. He unclipped the strap to his pistol.

"I wouldn't try that if I was you." The woman said not looking up.

"Oh yeah?" Michael said hotly, his hand slowly reaching for his pistol. "Says who?"

The Pilot didn't even look at him. How could she even hear him over the sounds of the engines? Michael didn't need an answer, there weren't that many of them. He could take them.

He reached for his pistol and pulled it on the Pilot but she was faster. The Pilto grabbed Michael's wrist and twisted it, wrenching the pistol from his hands. Michael yelled in pain as the woman pulled his arm onto his back and forced him onto his knees.

"I told you not to try it." she said.

The Marines shoved Hersh through the front door and into the dirt. Hersh's face was beat up and bleeding. The IMC Grunts continued to kick him and shouted for him to get up.

"Was that everyone?" Their Commander asked.

"Yes, Lieutenant Slone." One of the Marines replied.

"Good." The Pilot pulled out a Wingman pistol and motioned for the two men brought together. "Now, where's the rest of the personnel?"

"I'm not telling you shit." Michael stated spat. "One transmission and my lawyers are gonna be up your ass."

The Commander scoffed. "Trying to be a hero, love? How 'bout you? Where's ya friends?"

Hersh looked at Michael and then at the Pilot. "I know your company's reputation. I hope you never find them."

"Cuff 'em." Slone ordered.

The Marines wrenched his arms up and slapped the metal cuffs onto their wrists. Hersh and him were brought towards the Goblin and up the drop ramp. Michael tried to shake himself loose from the Marine's grip.

"Just... where are you taking us!?" He demanded.

"Up." She said.

The dropship lifted off and soon Michael saw they were high above the facility.

The woman began pulling bullets out of her Wingman's chamber, "People like you always want to be the hero. The problem with being a hero is..."

Suddenly, the side drop door to the Goblin opened. Michael gritted his teeth in anger. Fucking bastards! Slone slapped the chamber shut as she stepped in front of door.

"You have to be willing to die for what you believe in and if I were you, I wouldn't try so hard!"

"What are you doing?" Hersh yelled.

"Good question." She answered. "Here's how it works. One of you tells me where your friends are and the other one gets thrown out. Simple as that."

"That's fucking insane!" Michael shouted.

"True," the Commander answered, "but it gets results. So one more time. Where are your friends?"

"Fuck you!" Michael said rushing towards the Commander, if he could push her out the door that'd be worth it.

The Commander easily stopped him and threw him onto the deck. Michael's head slammed against the metal.

"Toss him." The Commander said to the Marines.

"No, no, wait! Wait! They're on the ridge to the south!" Hersh screamed.

"Check it." The commander said.

After a moment someone reported into the Pilot's ear, "IR confirms there was vehicle on a ridge 20 kilometers from here."

"Good." Slone pulled her pistol on Hersh and fired.

Hersh's head snapped back from the large caliber round, spraying the hull with blood. Michael turned his head away from the scene. It was obvious to him now that the IMC didn't care about anything, they just did whatever the hell they wanted.

"You god damn bastards." Michael gritted his teeth.

"You can toss him now." Slone said and two IMC Marines grabbed Michael and threw him screaming from the dropship.