CHAPTER ONE : VIOLA
TWENTY MINUTES BEFORE THE RAID
outside antilia colony, near-jupiter orbit
There were dozens of them. All destroyed.
The Orbital Frame known as Neith slowly moved through the debris caused either by Colonel Nohman's Selkis or Axe's Tyrant. Viola Gyune had to admit―they were very thorough. But, then again, she wouldn't expect Colonel Nohman to be anything but thorough. The man was very much obsessed with leaving the enemy so dead that the corpse couldn't be identified.
She shivered thinking about some of the things he'd done.
The squad of Raptors, Mummyheads and Cyclops behind her all moved with mechanical precision―each was four meters away from the next, while all were moving at exactly the same rate of speed. The unmanned Orbital Frame linking system that NUT Ltd had come up with was nothing short of the best. Of course, NUT Ltd was the best when it came to Orbital Frame technology. The UNSF had conducted tests with OF tech shortly after the Deimos incident, but most of that had fallen through. She knew of only one successful test of UNSF OFs, and that was when a BAHRAM LEV team had brought Metatron to this very colony―Antilia―and then had stopped at the satalite Callisto for rest, when a UNSF team surrounded them. No survivors had been reported.
But, of course, that LEV team may have been very incompetent. A group of a dozen LEVs can destroy an Orbital Frame, and there had only been six OFs that had destroyed the Callisto team. Perhaps, the UNSF had found a way to surpass Idolo's faults and create the truly perfect OF.
Impossible. Earth is as imcompetent as that LEV team probably was. They couldn't understand OF tech if it bit them in the ass. The Ryan Corporation also can't mine Metatron that quickly―they only just began to see its potential.
Maybe once Earth was under the control of BAHRAM, then would they share Orbital Frame technology. Doubtful, however, as Mars would do to Earth what Earth had been doing all along―Mars would start treating the blue-green sphere as if it were some backwater third-world country. That would be a fitting fate for those racist fools.
Viola almost wished she could see it happen.
But, no. Antilia would be her last mission. She could feel it. Something about the colony itself was telling her that her days were coming to an end. And, finally, she would see him again―Radium Lavans. A man she'd loved since she was fifteen years old. His death, five years ago, had been her last straw. It had been, from that point on, her mission to die.
To see him again.
"Calling all Orbital Frames," Nohman's voice came through the comm channel. It was about time. "Our mission, this time, is to secure these two new Frames, or to destroy them."
Viola smiled. "Even if it costs us the colony?"
"What was that, Viola?"
"This is BAHRAM territory, Colonel."
"Your point?"
"These are our citizens. These people live for us."
"These people are neutral in the war between Earth and Mars. And for their neutrality, they shall suffer their lives. Antilia has served its purpose in the future my father foresaw."
"So your aim is Anubis?"
"Of course. Target Alpha. And Target Bravo will belong to you. If the Earth Runner is not aboard, take it. If he is aboard, destroy it. Neith should be more than enough. And don't go out of your way to die, Viola. Don't lose sight of what needs to be accomplished in order to liberate Mars from the Terrans."
"You think I'd willingly sacrifice myself for our cause? I know how valuable you think I am to Mars' liberation."
"Good. I've entered through the colony shaft with Axe and Nightraid. From what I've gleened off the local server, Target Alpha is still under construction in a factory on the north side of the colony. Target Bravo is complete, and resides in a southern factory."
"Why split them up?"
"For this very occasion. To split our attention between two targets, opening way for a counterattack, either by LEVs or Terran OFs."
"You think they have any?"
"It's a possibility. Since Zero-Three Squadron was taken out, I'm sure Earth has found a reason to continue manufacturing their own Orbital Frames."
"I'm anxious to meet one."
"I'm sure you will, Viola. You and Slash should be more than enough of a force to take back Target Bravo. I'll contact you again in a half an hour."
"Good." She shut down the comm channel. "It's time to play."
Viola smiled again. Hopefully, there would be Terran OFs awaiting her, and not just pisspoor LEVs. She wanted a challenge, not just a warm up.
This magic will take me out of this world with no light. Radium is waiting...