I use a lot of brackets rather than a lot of parentheses. I also use the comparison symbols a bit.


"Return to Urtraghus"

"Assault on the Transit System"

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[HC]_ADVISORY

TO: ALL UNITS

GALACTIC FEDERATION INVASION UNDERWAY

INVASION FORCE LAST SEEN AT SKYWAY ACCESS

INTENT TO BREACH LEVIATHAN CORE

THE HUNTER IS CONFIRMED TO BE PART OF THE ATTACK

MUST NOT ALLOW FEDERATION BREAK DEEP INTO TRANSIT SYSTEM

DIVERT ALL MILITARY PERSONNEL TO TRANSIT STATION 0203-0205

/

The attack was launched in complete surprise to everyone on Urtraghus. That the GFS-Olympus was a part of it even more so, as it had been attacked only a month ago. That skirmish should have crippled the ship.

But the Space Pirates didn't let these thoughts trouble them as their home world was being attacked and their way of life threatened, even if that way of life was led entirely in service to an individual whose goal was to see the galaxy consumed by the corruption of Phazon. Why could it be that the Federation was attacking them in full force here, when the Metroid breeding projects on Zebes had only incited a solo infiltration, by a woman clearly out for revenge?

Whatever the reason, the Federation army pushed into the Pirates' transit system. There, the two armies collided, and the Pirate militia line was overrun by the marines. As the marines then set up defenses, a transit train arrived, full of Pirate reinforcements.

This second defense group was superior to the militia line in two important ways. First, it was composed of real troopers. Second, it included a berserker knight, a throwback to the moderate success of Project Helix. The Pirate troopers and the gargantuan berserker stilled the Federation army until the arrival of the Hunter. With the stolen Nova beam, she quickly killed the troopers, and she tactically dispatched the berserker with its own Phazon projectiles.

In this station, the Pirates' defenders consisted of the powerful advanced troops, whose armor was designed to minimize the effect of energy weapons, at the expense of being easily destroyed by explosives. The troopers fired on the incoming marines, suppressing their ability to return fire until they found cover. Several marines were killed, hampering the mobility of all the others. A long firefight ensued.

High Command was busy trying to figure out the strategic advantages of the Federation attack. When the defense reported the Federation army composition, the Pirate leaders determined that the Demolition troopers of the Federation army were the most vital part to the success of the invasion. Therefore, the yellow-armored humans were announced to be the highest priority targets, in this case even surpassing the importance of the Hunter.

By the time the Hunter appeared in the second transit station, three Demolition troopers had already been killed. But her arrival meant that the second station's defense line would soon be broken. The commander ordered all forces that were not immediately in battle to fall back to the third station.

In the final transit station, a Pirate commander and his squad of commandos waited for the assault. Last time, the hunter surprised the defenders by entering through a side tunnel rather than the main transit shaft. This time, no entrance was left unchecked.

The Federation took its time. They didn't appear through the tunnels or on the rails for a while trying to secure the locations they had already taken no doubt. Some impatient troopers ran on ahead, shot down from beyond the rest of the army's visual range. It was all just as well. As the army fell back further into the transit system, it became increasingly clear, even to the conscripted troopers, that the Federation had to advance, or else that their invasion would fail.

And the inevitable came.

The marines charged over the rails, simply spraying gunfire to break the line; it held.

The Pirates still had the order to focus fire on any of the enemy troopers in yellow armor, but still shot at every marine they saw. Something about this wave was different: the marines weren't dying as they should have. Instead, many Pirates' corpses littered the station floor, all marred by severe burns.

Phazon burns.

All the PED marines were pressing the charge at its front, just as High Command should have guessed, but none of the critical Demolition troopers were spotted in the main transit line. For that matter, the commandos hadn't yet joined the station fight either. As at the previous lines, the Hunter went to the tunnels, and the demolishers followed her. However, since most of the fighting was right in front of them, most of the Pirates could not focus on anything else.

In short time, it was clear that the Galactic Federation was winning, that the attack was succeeding. Some more attentive Pirate troopers could even see the dead bodies of the commandos thrown out of the transit tunnel.

And then all the marines turned back. The invasion was over. The home world held.

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[Belgav-2.01.02716]_MESSAGE

TO: HIGH COMMAND

NO FEDERATION FORCES SEEN EN ROUTE TO TRANSIT SYSTEM

CRISIS AVERTED

RECOGNIZE CMDR [Valdar-1.09.81140] AS DEFENSE COORDINATOR

/

Still, the Federation's attack caused significant damage to the various systems of the home world. Transit line 02 and all its branches had to be inspected, no matter how obvious its crippled state was. Another army group raided the main ordinance foundry, so High Command would have to take inventory on that to see how far behind production was set. A few saboteurs snuck around the barracks, severing communication lines as they went, which would have to be individually checked and repaired due to internal receptor issues.

All things considered, there were a lot of repairs to be made and fortifications to be built, but while these were getting done, the Federation should not have the power to mount a second offensive.


This style will not persist through the rest of the story.