Volume
1
13th Colony : In The Beginning
By Jin Park
Chapter 1
In the midst of space, a twisted blue spiral stood out. No noise was to be heard. A sudden boom, followed by a gigantic ship with the initials U.E.S.C. and the word ALPHA under it came out of the worm hole. The carrier, three times the size of an aircraft carrier, made a surprise entrance with several battle cruisers and countless destroyers and frigates following it. The ships gradually slowed down and headed towards a bright, orbiting yellow planet. As the fleet got closer and closer, they hit many floating debris from their fellow allies' ships. Bodies gently stayed afloat, as if searching for peace, but sadly most of the bodies were torn apart limb from limb and the organs were crawling out of the stomachs.
A green glowing beam of light with a diameter the length of a bus came blasting from the planet, pierced through one of the frigates, and hit a destroyer. The frigate without hindering evaporated leaving no remains. The destroyer's main shield broke down and the ship caught on fire. Just a few minutes later, it was on the verge of exploding. The crew were running back and forth, desperately searching for an exit, but many faced a horrific blast of flames as they opened emergency doors. Some in the other ships could see tiny little escape pods launch out and head toward another ship and others saw crews scratching the window as they burnt to death. Just when the marines thought it was over, dozens more of the anti-spacecraft artillery came at them without any mercy and began obliterating the fleet.
A man stood in the center of the Ares' bridge. An admiral's insignia was on his shoulder. He barely budged as the ship shook from heavy fire. He stared ominously at the planet with his hands behind his back. When he saw the planet Saal' Juan, he closed his eyes and remembered all the battles he'd been through. He could still hear the atrocious screams of innocent people being maimed. He opened his eyes, and from space, he could see the explosions taking place on the planet's surface. Then a tall, thin man strolled over to the admiral's right side.
"Enjoying the view Admiral?" the man asked.
"Every man faces a difficult choice at some point in their life." The fleet admiral replied.
"What are you saying William?" the man questioned, lowering his voice.
"Tell the convoy to cease fire Johnson." He answered firmly. "We're going back."
"But our men, they asked for support. They called for reinforcements!" Johnson shouted as his face burned like the fires of hell.
"You are an admiral. You must know what is right and what is wrong. This war is pointless. There is no victory in this war, only losses."
"But we spent months going through the toughest physical training possible. The government spent fortunes supplying our force with food and weapons!"
"I understand that this was costly, but this war isn't worth it. We've been through enough Johnson. We've made history. Trust me. This will be the greatest history of mankind."
"Yes William, this will be the greatest history of mankind…. It's tragic that you won't live to tell it."
"What are you saying Johnson?"
"Did you know that the hardest goodbye is death?" said Johnson as he slowly pulled his right hand back to his holster.
"Johnson?"
"I'll treasure the memories we shared." Johnson opened his holster and pulled out a SIU pistol and aimed at William's head. "Goodbye… Admiral."
"Johnson No…" As William tried to stop him, a deafening noise broke out. Two deadly fifteen millimetre rounds departed and blew apart the admiral's head. A dark cloud of blood discharged around the area, as brain matter flung from place to place. The headless admiral stood still before he crumpled forward, spewing blood from his artery like a fountain. Some officers in the bridge took a step back while others reached for their weapon. Johnson aimed his pistol at a vice admiral as a reply.
"Set course to Saal' Juan," Johnson shouted, "I'm not going to lose this war."