Gifts of the Khala
By Tr3adst0ne
DISCLAIMER: I do not own StarCraft or The Antioch Chronicles. The former belongs solely to Blizzard Entertainment while the latter belongs to Auspex Turmalis and Zeus Legion.
Rated T for language and violence
Synopsis: Raynor plots on making a big steal from the Dominion, putting a dent to their reign and help the people of Aegis III. He would soon find he got more than what he bargained for.
Introductory Author's Note: The story takes place two years prior to the events in Wings of Liberty. Several of the characters present in this story are from a custom campaign for the first StarCraft called The Antioch Chronicles. Although not necessary to play, it is highly recommended to play the two episodes that actually made production in order to get the references that may occasionally appear throughout.
In the meantime, enjoy the story.
Chapter 1: Deals
Raider Flagship
Kirfal System
Commander James Raynor sat alone amidst a group of varied crewmembers on the mess decks. He was wanted across the Koprulu Sector for crimes of larceny, terrorism, murder and theft. When he served in the Sons of Korhal, they were right. But there was a flip side to every story; his being that he believed that under Arcturus Mengsk, he was serving a good cause. The Confederacy was nothing more than a corrupt regime hell-bent on stealing resources and depriving the people of their livelihoods, and they needed to be taken down. Their inaction during the Protoss invasion of the Sara system gave the opening Mengek needed in order to fight the Confederates. For a while the odds stacked in the rebel faction's favor.
When the SOK forces reached Tarsonis, Mengsk's true face was revealed: he abandoned Kerrigan when she called him out on the use of psi-emitters on unarmed civilians. Vengeance and power was all that mattered to him. The self-proclaimed 'Emperor' obtained that with ease, wiping out more than two billion people with the use of these devices, luring hundreds upon thousands of Zerg and thereby ending the Confederacy as a galactic power within the Koprulu Sector. Raynor and many sympathizers became disgusted at the lengths their former leader was willing to go in order to achieve his goals. By then they left the Sons of Korhal, leading to the formation of Raynor's Raiders.
Not long after the destruction of the Confederates, the Dominion came to power. Raynor remembered in disdain every single word uttered by Mengsk through Universal News during the proclamation. Words such as unity and strength echoed through his mind. The problem that stood out to him was that Mengsk knew how to sell to people ideas, and he had done so many times before through oratory and political finesse.
It is these skills that led media sources to portray Raynor as nothing more than what Mengsk was, a thug that employed terrorist tactics and murdered civilians in order to secure a bid for power. While the news far from the truth, the Raiders were slowly being demoralized due to this marginalization effect. Those who served and knew him personally believed that he was a hero, someone to be respected and feared. The lack of food, ammunition and other necessary materials to continue the war effort was needed. He needed to do something drastic.
Looking down on the table, he picked up the data pad in front of him and sifted through the details. The governor of Aegis III issued a call for help in the form of medical supplies and food. They didn't have much in the form of credits, so it wasn't a very lucrative option for the Raiders to pursue. His heart on the other hand, told him that he shouldn't be in it for the money. He tossed the metal plate and leaned his head back slightly, bitter thoughts clouding his mind: Funny how reality spits right on your face.
Annoyed, Raynor took a swig of his whiskey before his contact stepped through the doors of the cantina. Sporting a pair of shades and an attitude to match, Graven Hill was a contractor of different mercenaries that provided services to the highest bidder. While his moral standing was questionable, the quality of the information and connections that he gave Raynor over the months during his campaign against the Dominion proved invaluable.
In spite of all that, his shady demeanor still kept the ex-marshal on the defensive. If he became too reliant on Hill's services then he would've been on the deep end. Raynor slipped his right index finger on the trigger of his revolver hidden under the table. The rebel commander prayed he would never need to use it. Money was a good motivator, but there were times when getting a person to help a cause become too greedy, leading the helper to be put out like a dog.
"Mr. Hill," the ex-marshal greeted.
"Ah, Mr. Raynor. Good to see you again. To what do I owe the pleasure of this meeting?"
"You got something for me?"
"As a matter of fact, I do," Hill answered, fishing out a small disc inside his vest before placing it on the table and sliding it in the commander's direction. "This is all of the intel that's been recently acquired from a contact of mine."
Raynor took the disc and inserted it into his laptop, sifting through bits and pieces of information. He noticed the fleet deployments had gradually increased inside the neighboring Tornod system. What was once a lightly guarded system turned out to be a region of well-kept secrets and chaos. Raynor suspected that there must be something valuable on the colony worth taking and giving to the people of Aegis III. He needed to know what exactly Mengsk's forces were hiding.
"Is it true that the Dominion's digging up Xel'Naga artifacts hidden in the Aegis system?"
The contractor shook his head, hearing the mysterious race that created both Protoss and Zerg in his business circles. "Yeah. Whatever they are, it looks like they don't want anybody else to get their hands on those relics except their own."
"What would be the reaction if we managed to steal the relics from them?"
"Typical Dominion response in anticipation to any sort of intrusion would be to keep troops in close proximity to escort the convoys carrying the artifacts. There are also a large number of warships that regularly patrol the system to keep the Zerg and the Protoss from invading, as well as keep any thieves from escaping should they even attempt to take the artifacts."
Raynor leaned his head in and studied the sensor maps. "It looks like they got Explorers and Behemoths scattered at different entry points. Many of the routes are blocked by debris or the Dominion's own ships. I gotta say, they do have the system locked up tight."
"Whatever you intend to do, it's going to be risky. To make things worse, there's a battlecruiser called the Imperius commanding the fleet," Hill added.
"Who's her captain?"
Hill shifted the pictures on the laptop to another image of a finely-groomed yet tough-looking Dominion officer. "This guy's name is Morrison. Served as commander of one of the assault groups that defeated Delta and Omega Squadron troops stationed near one of the primary platforms before Tarsonis was overrun."
The ex-marshal took a good look and recognized the face of his enemy. "I remember him. He's good in ship combat."
"Then you got yourself a big problem. How do you intend to steal the artifacts?" Hill asked.
"Just leave that to me, I'll figure something out." Raynor grinned. He wanted to conduct an operation and take whatever relics the Dominion kept out of their hands and sell them to their original owners. The Raiders were on the market for some jobs and he wanted in. If all went well, then they would be paid handsomely for their services. He just prayed that he wasn't making a big mistake in doing the robbery.
End of Chapter 1