On August 29th, 1997...Skynet, an advanced military defense A.I. became self-aware, and perceived all of humanity as a threat to it's existence. And thus, hijacked the nuclear arsenal of the United States Armed Forces, and launched a genocidal nuclear war, killing three billion people outright. The survivors of the nuclear holocaust, had called the war, Judgement Day. However, they live only to face a new nightmare...a war against the Machines.
For decades, the war dragged on, with both sides barely gaining an edge. Then, Skynet had decided that to win the war, they needed to destroy the Overall Commander of the Human Resistance, John Connor...before said person was ever born.
However, there are things that not even Skynet could predict.
2 ABY
Rishi Maze dwarf Galaxy
The Rishi Maze was a very… curious region of space. Technically one could call it part of the unknown regions of the galaxy, however this was not really the case. Sure the region was largely unknown, but this was less due to the hyperspace barrier, and more simply to it being unexplored for the better part of recorded galactic history. Which is odd, since why would one not wish to explore an entire dwarf galaxy?
However after the debacle with the Outbound Flight project, further attempts to explore these deep space regions were discouraged at the time - however in more private circles, the Chancellor wanted to ensure that - with the growing Separatist Crisis - that efforts could be made to ensure their soon-to-be enemies would not use this region of space as some sort of staging ground that may tip the scale a power in their favor.
Hence, why years before the war began, a Republic Admiral - Sutura Takeo - lead a private group of Judicial Forces, Defense Forces, and mercenaries into this region to make contact with new races, establish outposts and establish a firm Republic presence in the unexplored region. Through raw ingenuity she was able to establish a 'beachhead' within the Rishi Maze for the Republic. And then, continued pushing policies in her ever-expanding sphere of influense in this galaxy.
When the Clone Wars began, she saw her power grow immensely - now armed with the tools of the Grand Army of the Republic. However while the rest of the galaxy fought the droids of the CIS, her forces continued to 'liberate' the worlds of the Rishi Maze, securing it sector by sector. By the time the Clone Wars ended, Sutura had succeeded in exploring, charting and dominating the entire dwarf galaxy - as it was subsequently brought into the newly formed 'Galactic Empire'.
The newly appointed Emperor was very pleased with Sutura's actions, and as such granted her the title of Grand Moff - placing the entire Rishi Maze under her dominion. This, obviously, drew the ire of many other Imperial officials in the New Order - but few would dare question the Emperor's decisions, and even fewer would question Sutura's own competence in navigating the political landscape.
And thus, Sutura was the de facto ruler of the Rishi Maze - much like how Grand Moff Tarkin ruled the outer rim. And for over a decade, she ruled effectively from her region of space. Even as rebellion struck the Empire, she maintained vigil in these times, assuring the people that they would be safe. It has been two years since the Battle of Yavin, where the Death Star was destroyed - and the Rebels were back on the run. So the Empire now combs the galaxy looking for where these renegades had fled off to.
While Sutura - and even the Emperor - did not believe the Rebels fled to the Rishi Maze given how closely guarded the hyperspace routes between the galaxies were, it did not stop them from committing to routine patrols over the borders of the Rishi Maze. Such was being lead by a massive, kilometer long dagger-shaped vessel conducting its patrol.
For most, the Imperial-class Star Destroyer was the mainstay vessel of the Galactic Empire after the Clone Wars ended, and embodied the late Tarkin's Doctrine to enforce fear. However Sutura, while she does indeed approve of the general ISD… felt more nostalgic towards the older and arguably more battle-tested Venator-class Star Destroyer. Hence why the Rishi Maze was one of the few places where you could still find so many of these old warships still in active service.
The HIMS Venom was among the oldest of the class in service, a veteran of the Clone Wars. Even with its countless refits over the years, it still bore many of its old battle scars from the last war with pride. The various men and women aboard went about their general duties on the bridge of the vessel, as the Captain looked over some older scout reports.
"Hmmm, so far, no sign of Rebel activity," he hummed, as he scratched his clean shaven chin, his dark hair covered by his Imperial officer's cap.
"You think they could really come out here, sir?" said the female Commander to his right, a woman with fair skin, strawberry blonde hair, tied into a bun behind her head, which was covered by her own cap. The Captain shook his head in the negative at his XO's question.
"I doubt it, the Rebels could never get a foothold here… it actually pays when your Grand Moff isn't a corrupt egotistical moron…" he said, shaking his head. "They're doing half of the Rebel's propaganda campaign for them...but, despite that they're not here, it doesn't mean we should let our guard down. After all, despite it being a good thing, peace breeds complacency - and there are still plenty of things to worry about here in the Maze."
"Like remnants of the Separatist Droid Army?" The Commander queried, and the Captain nodded with a chuckle.
"Yes, among other things." He said, "Pirates, Slavers… not to mention more local resistance groups from the Alfari, Valkuran, and other races from here, who still like to cause trouble… we're lucky they haven't started working with the Rebels yet."
The Commander rolled her eyes at the mention of the said species.
"You'd think after we helped their people they would be thanking us instead of fighting us," she said, "Just like every rebel cell, tribe, or Partisan militia, they're too stubborn to listen."
"Don't forget their pride, Commander," reminded the Captain, "Pride, is the bane of any civilization, military, or business... unless properly controlled."
The Commander blinked as she looked at her superior.
"When and why did you become a philosopher, sir?" she asked, and the Captain grinned.
"The Clone Wars, my dear Commander." he answered simply, "The Clone Wars."
"What the Sith…?" A sensor operator muttered, narrowing his eyes at the screen he was monitoring.
"Something you'd like to share, ensign?" The Commander asked, raising his brow.
The ensign was silent for a few moments "Uh sir… detecting something… strange…"
"That is?"
"A star system, roughly… two light years from our current position."
"And this is strange… how?"
"Because it wasn't there when we patrolled this sector last month."
The Captain's eyes narrowed at that, as he stood up and went to the Ensign's station. "Have you checked the log data?" he questioned and the ensign nodded.
"Yes sir," he said, and brought out the said data, "The day when we left port, and just yesterday. Aside from a few asteroid fields, There should only be deep space out here, sir,"
The captain looked at the logs and the screen, and immediately alarm bells sounded in his head.
"Have you checked the scanners for a glitch?" he questioned and the ensign nodded affirmatively.
"Everything is working normally, sir. No malfunctions."
The Commander hummed in thought, scratching his chin. "Well then… this deserves some investigation…" he nodded, "Launch a squadron of probe droids - target each planet in the system, and prepare to adjust course. Send word to High Command of the incident and that we will report our findings once new data comes in."
"Aye sir."
Unknown Location
Unknown Time
TDE Experiment complete - progress unknown.
Warning: Temporal anomaly detected during experiment.
Warning: Resonance Cascade alert.
Warning: Orbital Astronomy data inconclusive.
T-800 Series Models Functionality: 99.1%
HK-Series Models Functionality: 89.9%
Terminator Forces status: Operational, minimal damage sustained.
Annihilation Line Status: Operational.
Skynet Core Processor Status: Undamaged.
Warning: Unidentified Flying Object entering Atmosphere.
Identifying, please wait…
…
…
…
Warning: Target U.F.O not applicable to known human design configurations.
Target Designation: UNKNOWN-1 identified.
ETA: 2 Hours. 34 Minutes. Thirteen Seconds.
Destination: North America, West Coast - Los Angeles.
Distance from Annihilation Line: 82.99km
Deploying closest Terminator forces.
Primary Objective: Secure unknown UFO.
Secondary Objective: If UFO cannot be acquired, destroy before Resistance forces can aquire.
Earth, Sol System - North American Western Coast, Los Angeles
April 8th, 2027 AD
The city of Los Angeles, once the cultural, financial, and commercial center of Southern California, perhaps of the whole state itself, was now a charred, desolate shadow of it's former self. It's famous skyline, fallen to the ground, it's landmarks and monuments, nothing more than melted heaps of slag, or burnt dead grass that would possibly never grow again. And now...it was a battlefield.
The endoskeletons of T-800 Model 101 Terminators, along with their older brethren, alongside larger HK-Tanks, the flight capable HK-Aerials, and other HK models, combated with the Human guerilla fighters of the Resistance, led by one John Connor, a mysterious man who always knew how to best fight the machine hordes, and turn into useless piles of scrap metal. Shots from plasma weaponry on both sides flew through the night sky as the two sides slugged it out, the Resistance determined to win and survive the genocidal machines controlled by the Defense A.I. meant to protect them.
The Pacific Division was once the vanguard against the Terminators and the Annihilation Line - but now they had been routed, forced back and fleeing.
"Rivers! RIVERS GET YOUR ASS MOVING!" Private First Class Jacob Rivers didn't need to be told twice, as he got to his feet - running as fast as he could away from the advancing Terminators - firing over his shoulder with his M16 at the machines with what was left of the Pacific Division.
"Take Cover!" The sound of mortar fire sounded in the air, as Rivers barely had enough time to duck beneath a ruined bus as it felt like the whole world around them seemed to explode.
"Fuck, FUCK!" Cursed another fighter, crawling out of cover beside Jacob. "If I ever see that fucking robot, I'll kill it myself!"
"It took a fucking RPG to the face, and it just scorched its skin off!" Jacob shouted back, "What the fuck do we got that could stop THAT?!"
``if only we had some of those Plasma Rifles that Tech-Com uses!" A second fighter said, "All we got are these old M16s and AKs! We're fucked!"
"What the hell are we gonna do, Rivers," The first fighter queried, "We lost contact with Division HQ, and now the Cap and Sarge are missing!"
"I wish I knew, Burke! I really-," he began to say only to be cut by the sound of jet engines that signaled the arrival of the second worst nightmare of the Resistance.
"AERIAL! GET DOWN!" Rivers shouted, as the infamous gunship came soaring it - letting loose its plasma weaponry down upon them, shredding apart what little cover they could find.
"I! FUCKING! HATE! ROBOTS!" Burke shouted, as he decided that if he was gonna die, it would be in a blaze of glory as he rose from his cover, firing his M16 at the HK-VTOL-
-and suddenly a rocket soared from behind them, crashing into the VTOL's port engine, blasting it to pieces as it began slipping out of the skies, before crashing into the dirt.
The three fighters all blinked, before a voice behind them shouted "The fuck are you waiting for? An engraved invitation! MOVE IT!"
Not ones to deny such good common sense, the three soldiers started running the way they were going - heading towards the source of the anti-air rocket that saved their bacon. They ran towards a building, where an older man was waving them towards him - which they quickly followed as they ran inside.
"Whoever you are, we owe you one buddy!" Rivers exclaimed, panting. "PFC Jacob Rivers, Pacific Division."
"Lance Corporal Richard Burke, Pacific." Burke said.
"PFC Amy Wong, same." The third and final member of their group sighed.
"First Lieutenant Derek Reese, 132nd SOC, Tech-Com." THe man introduced - and suddenly the three soldiers all stood a bit more at attention. "Relax, no need for that right now."
"What's Tech-Com doing here?" Amy asked, "I thought you guys were further east…"
"We use to be further north, but the damn bastards took Seranno Point," Derek informed, "Couldn't hold the position anymore, some of us evac'd east… I got stuck down here."
"Shit!" cursed Jacob.
"It's as bad up there as it is here!?" said Amy, horrified at the info.
"First that fucking robot with the damn skin job, and now this!?" Burke exclaimed, "How the fuck are we supposed to kill Skynet like this!?"
"Skinjob?" Derek asked, raising a brow. "The hell are you talking about?"
"Sir, a machine infiltrated pacific division - it, the damn thing looked like one of us! Real skin, blood, everything!" Rivers exclaimed, "It just snuck right on in and slaughtered half of our forces before the rest showed up!"
"Son of a…" Derek cursed as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "Fuck this isn't good… we need to talk to Commander Barron or General Perry if he's still alive…"
Before Rivers could speak again, there was a loud 'boom' sound from the sky, and everyone instinctively took cover, expecting mortar fire… but there was none. "Hey, Hey! Look!" Amy shouted, pointing to the sky.
The others followed her gaze, and piercing from the cloud cover was a streaking star, almost like a meteorite, leaving behind a trail of vapor in its wake. In the distance it fell from the sky, before it crashed to the ground into a building - which collapsed upon impact.
"...was that a meteorite?" Burke muttered.
"Maybe it was a satellite?" Amy shrugged, "I dunno, but its not something you see everyday…"
"Sir?" Rivers asked, glancing at Derek. "Orders?"
Derek's eyes narrowed, as he looked at the distance. "...it looks like it made landfall around Pasadena," he said, "If anyone's left from this mess, that'll be where we regroup, so we're heading that way anyways." He glanced at the others. "Come on, let's move it troopers! We ain't getting paid by the hour!"
"Yes sir!" The three shouted together, as they followed the lieutenant out of the ruined building, and towards Pasadena.
The Hyperdrive pod of a Viper-series Probe Droid is astonishingly durable, more so than even the most resilient escape pods. This was to be expected, given how it was designed to handle a droid, and not a weaker humanoid upon landing. This meant the probe droid was largely undamaged from the impact - as the pod opened up, and the strange, spider-like droid floated up out from the rubble.
The droid's head spun around slowly, its visual and infrared sensors scanning everything it could see around it. The devastated city, the long-decayed bodies, ruined vehicles, and the trace elements of radiation equal to that of a nuclear weapon. It was quick to activate its long range communications to begin reporting its finding thus-far to its mothership as it continued forward.
For several minutes, the probe went on unharassed, however its sensors detected weapons fire - similar to that of slugthrowers or blasters, and moved to find the source. Indeed after searching, it came across what was clearly a battlefield of some kind. Humanoid beings were fighting a number of walking, humanoid droids, accompanied by various vehicles. Remaining low to cover, the droid watched, recorded, and transmitted everything it witnessed.
Its sensors detected an approaching force, and acting with its programming it primed its self-destruct feature as it turned to face the contact. One of the humanoid machines approached. With a closer look, it appeared very similar to a human skeletal structure, complete with eyes, and teeth. Wielding a large, blaster-like weapon.
It looked at the Viper-series probe, weapon raised but not aggressively. What the droid didn't know was that the T-800 Terminator was scanning it, just as it was scanning him. It did not detect a Skynet IFF, but it did not detect organic materials either, so it was not a device of the resistance - and its configuration did not match anything built by them either, and its materials were also unknown.
In this moment of silence however, the T-800 didn't notice the arrival of several new targets - but the Viper droid did, as four humans arrived. Upon coming into visual range, they immediately opened fire upon the machine - which reacted in surprise as it returned fire, but their combined firepower destroyed it quickly. But then their aim adjusted towards the probe droid. Detecting their weapons, it followed its programming as it unleashed a shrill warning alarm - activating its self-destruct feature as it fired several warning shots at the oncomers.
They returned fire, but were only able to do minimal damage - but it was of no consequence. The droid completed its report, transmitting its final images before it initiated its self-destruct sequence, detonating in a large, fiery explosion as the program knew no more.
"Did I get it?" Amy called out, poking her head from around the corner.
"...I don't think so," said Jacob, "We didn't hit it that hard where it would explode like that,"
The Resistance fighters approached what was left of the downed machine, though unfortunately there wasn't that much left of the thing, except for half it's head.
"What the hell is it?" Burke questioned as he gave a cautionary tap to the destroyed probe, "A prototype spy drone built by Skynet?"
"I don't think so," Derek said as he knelt down to take a closer look, "It doesn't look like it was designed by Skynet...that T-800 didn't fire on it, but I bet it was definitely scanning it,"
"So… what was it then?" Jacob asked.
"I don't know…" Derek muttered, picking up a piece of the destroyed machine. "...but it's dead now, so nothing we can do. Come on - we gotta get to Pasadena, see if there are any survivors in this mess."
"Yes sir!" Burke nodded, as did the others as they left the ruined building, working their way further into the city to find anyone left from the devastation… but none of them couldn't diminish the sense of unease from what they had witnessed.
VSD Venom
"It certainly isn't the prettiest sight I've ever seen…"
The captain couldn't help but nod a bit in agreement, looking at the images sent back by the probe droid. While the others all had various reports on the other lifeless planetoids in the system, the one that was habitable clearly had seen better days - with blasted ruins scattered across its surface, and massive craters of nuclear detonations littering the land. The captain had fought at war-torn worlds like Mygeeto - he knew a battlefield when he saw one.
And then there were the locals.
Humans, and some sort of droid race - which looked exceptionally eerie given its skeletal structure.
"Its not CIS-built," The Captain mused, "Or it is, but they've radically changed their designs…"
"The droid reported it was made out of some sort of metallic alloy similar to Durasteel, but not quite." The operations officer reported. "And the design configuration didn't match anything from the Rebellion or the CIS in the warbooks."
"Hmmm…" The Captain tapped his chin in though."ETA to the system?"
"We should be dropping out of hyperspace within the next five minutes,"
"Get me a platoon of Scout Troopers prepared to deploy, full recon outfit." The Captain ordered, "Have them make planetfall, see if we can get a grasp of what the hell's going on down there."
"Aye sir,"
Meanwhile, Sol System
Pasadena, California
PFC Jacob Rivers was well aware that his luck wasn't exactly… stellar. But he dared to hope that after meeting up with a legit member of Tech-Com he could finally catch a break.
He should've known better not to hope.
Not too long after arriving, they had thought they could've gotten a breather - managing to find a few survivors. But then the Terminators struck them hard, and Jacob was separated from the others - and he was barely conscious as one of the survivors tried to wake him up. "Come on, wake up! Wake up! Where's the rest of the Resistance?!"
"I… I don't…" Jacob began to said, but heard the oh-so familiar and foreboding sound of a T-800 Terminator, and sure enough approaching behind the man was one such machine. "Look out-!"
The man barely had a chance to react before the Terminator grabbed him by the back of his shirt, yanking him up. He couldn't even let out a scream before the monstrosity fired his plasma rifle right into his gut before tossing his lifeless corpse away.
Jacob tried to crawl away, but the Terminator grabbed him by the scruff of his own uniform, tossing him against the side of a destroyed bus. 'Oh shit I'm fucked…' he thought…
"Listen to me if you wanna live!" A voice called out on a radio, as Jacob looked and found a small hand radio under the bus. "Get under that bus! Now!"
Before he reacted, the Terminator began to approach to finish the job - but suddenly plasma fire hit the metal monster in its torso, distracting it as it was hit a few more times. Not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, Jacob rolled under the bus, grabbing the radio on the way. "I-I'm through!" He said, "This if PFC Jacob-"
"I know who you are, you need to listen." The voice said. "If you want to live, you head to the evacuation point on the other side of town. As soon as you get down to the street, turn right and run as fast as you can!"
'As if I have no other choice!' Jacob thought before doing what the voice told him and proceeded to run, 'Shit! And I lost my damn rifle!"
He continued on running as he crouched under or jumped over obstacles. In thirty seconds he arrived at the street before jumping down. But then he heard one of the civlians shout in horror.
"Terminators! Run!"
True to the man's word, a death squad of other T-800s appeared and were making their way towards them.
"Now! Go right!"
Jacob obeyed and turned right, running with the fleeing civilians, who screamed as plasma shots began to mow them down one by one.
'Shit! Damn Metal Heads!' he thought angrily as he continued on - running into an open building, before a mortar shell struck the structure - causing the entrance to collapse behind him, knocking him to his knees on the other side.
"Are you alright?"
"I am…" Jacob nodded, "But… who are you?"
"Doesn't matter, because right now you need to find a way out of this hellhole!" The Stranger replied. "Go deeper in the building, you should find a medkit, a gun, ammo and a way out hidden behind a picture."
"How the hell do you-"
"Now is not the time, timing is kinda important here - so move it!"
Jacob scowled slightly, but in truth he didn't have an argument against him. He did save his ass, so he wasn't about to start questioning the guy looking after him. "Fine, fine…" he said, as he busted through a wooden-up door with a lead pipe, making his way through the building.
Sure enough, everything the man said was true - he found a medkit, the gun, and the hidden vent behind a painting. It was starting to get a bit… uncanny how this 'guardian angel' of his seemed to know exactly where everything was. Even when he came across a pack of Spider Scouts, thanks to him he was able to work around them without getting killed.
"Through that garage… it's important." The voice called out again.
"What is?" Jacob asked, however this time he didn't get a reply. "Hello?... goddamnit…"
Deciding to see what it was all about, Jacob proceeded towards the said building. As he entered, he began to hear voices, before turning toward the door where they were coming from.
"Patrick, come over here!" one, a young woman's said.
"N-No, I can't," the, he recognized as a child's, replied.
"Oh for God's sake Patrick, we don't have time for this." the female said again.
Slowly approaching the source, Jacob opened the door slightly to peak inside - on the other side, he spotted two individuals, a younger woman in civilian attire, and a young boy - no younger than 9 maybe. "We can't do this right now kiddo!" The woman pleaded.
"I don't wanna go with you!"
"I know you don't, but we can't stay here!"
He sighed a bit, relieved to see another human as he opened the door fully - letting out a loud creak which caused both of them to jump, the woman immediately standing between him and the child. "Whose there?!"
"Friendly," Jacob assured, holding his hands up non-aggressively. "Not a tin-can."
The woman let out a huge sigh of relief "Oh than god, you're with the resistance…" she sighed. "See Patrick? He's going to help us!"
"No!" Patrick exclaimed, stepping away from them "They're going to get us!"
The woman let out a tired sigh "Please, you need to help me," She said, "My little brother… he just won't listen."
"I'm not going!" Patrick said, louder. "Just leave me alone!"
Jacob let out an internal sigh, but did not express his mild annoyance as he smiled - kneeling down. "Hey, I know your scared," He said, "Believe me, I am too, worrying about the rest of my team… but staying here isn't an option, so I'll stick with you and your sister - and keep you safe, alright?"
"You… promise?" Patrick asked.
"Promise," He nodded, smiling.
"Okay… Jacob…" The boy nodded, still looking a bit unsure as his sister sighed.
"Thank you… my name's Jennifer by the way,"
"Jacob Rivers, PFC Pacific-Division," The soldier nodded, "I heard there's an evacuation point near here, that true?"
"Yeah, I know." She nodded, "My people are organizing it - we were heading there right now,"
"Lead the way, I got you covered."
Jennifer nodded, as the three began their trek through the town ruins, while dodging a HK-Aerial that flew overhead, it's searchlight looking for survivors.
"I really hate those things," Jennifer groaned.
"Join the club. Everybody hates those flying tin-chickens," Jacob pointed out.
"Noted...so, you're with a team? Where are they?" Jeniifer asked.
"Not sure to be perfectly honest," Jacob answered, "We were on our way here, before an Aerial separated us,"
"So its just you…" Jennifer sighed, as the HK-Aerial flew off - queuing them to move forward.
"I thought Pasadena was safe…"
"It was until the soldiers were all pulled out," She retorted, as they continued forward - passing through a crater in the ground, coming across some burnt-up wrecked cars. However Jennifer's eyes narrowed, looking forward, before they widened "Shit, Terminators!"
"Get down, Get down!" Jacob hissed, as he ducked behind one of the wrecked cars, while Jennifer and Patrick hid behind another. Soon after they ducked, he heard the click clack of the approaching T-800s, until he saw four of them marching by. The first three passed him and the civilians, but then the fourth one stopped, and looked toward Jennifer and Patrick's vehicle.
'No no no nonononono, not there! Keep going! Keep going!' Jacob thought frantically, as he watched as the Terminator moved toward the truck and place it's hand on hood, raising itself up to get a better look. Jennifer and Patrick ducked lower in order to make themselves smaller and not be seen.
The death machine then proceeded to move in front of the truck, and Jacob signaled for the two to move around it, while he got his pistol ready. It wouldn't do much damage against something like a 800 Series Terminator, but dammit he wasn't going to let these two die like the rest. If he can give them enough time to get away then he'll do it.
Fortunately...he didn't have to.
BLAPBLAP!
Two bolts of red hot plasma slammed into the back of the Terminator, causing it to stagger and turn around to meet the threat.
Jacob blinked in surprise. 'What the...?'
"Hey! Tin-man!" A familiar voice shouted, as Jacob turned to see Derek Reese standing up ahead, his plasma rifle pulled out. "You missed a spot!" He then fired the weapon on full-auto, chipping away the Machine's armor plating bit by bit - blasting off its arm holding its own weapon, before hitting it right where its head was - as the Terminator collapsed to the ground in a heap.
"Jacob!" The Resistance fighter let out a huge sigh of relief, as soon following Derek was Amy and Burke behind him.
"Oi," He nodded, getting back to his feet. "Boy are you a sight for sore eyes…"
"Same to you, man." Burke sighed, "Thought you were dead,"
"Damn near was, someone saved my ass." He said
"Looks like you lost your rifle, though," Derek pointed out, pointing to the pistol in Jacob's hand.
"Yeah, unfortunately," the Private sighed, before Derek walked over to the dismembered arm of the T-800, before bending down. He proceeded to pull the limb off the R95 plasma phase rifle out of it's grip, before test firing it to see if it see it still worked, and, thankfully, not encrypted. He then stood back and handed the gun to Jacob, who blinked before accepting the offered weapon.
"Don't lose that, alright," Derek told him, "We can barely produce enough of these for Tech-Com.
Jacob, snapping himself out of his daze, nodded in confirmation.
"Y-Yes sir." he said before glancing back. "C'mon out, they're friendly!"
Jennifer and Patrick came out from behind cover, looking at the three newcomers warily "More of you?"
"Civies?" Amy asked, "Damn, I didn't think anyone else was left…"
"They're some of the lucky ones," Jacob said, "We were heading to an evac point not far from here,"
"It's just down this path," Jennifer added, "We have a bus ready to go,"
"Then that's where we're going," Derek said, "Lead the way,"
Jennifer nodded, before the group of humans proceeded towards their destination.
Sol System, Earth
Orbit
The HIMS Venom dropped out of hyperspace and maneuvered itself behind the singular moon of the habitable planet - hiding itself from the view of anyone on the planet itself.
Emerging from the VSD's ventral hangar bay was a CR25 Troop Carrier, with two MAAT/i's attached to its undercarriage. The MAAT was very similar to its Old Republic LAAT counterpart, in fact one could argue they were one in the same. However the MAAT was an all-round upgrade from the LAAT, since unlike its predecessor it could easily handle spaceflight, and high orbital operations. While it still wasn't hyperspace capable and needed ships like the CR25 or a full-fledged carrier to move between celestial bodies, it was still more versatile, and well armed and armored - making them a favorite to the Imperial Forces in the Rishi Maze. So much so they even created variants similar to their older counterparts.
As the CR25 moved towards the planet, within its internalized troop bay an entire platoon of men and women clad in Scout Trooper armor were gearing up for their mission - and loading up supplies into the under hanging gunships.
There was one trooper who stood at attention before a holographic display of the Captain - this trooper had different armor, almost reminiscent of Old Republic ARC Trooper armor, with a shoulder pauldron, and a kama skirt. His helmet's visor was raised, revealing his face as he listened to his orders.
"We have little intelligence on the ground, Lieutenant." The Captain said. "So you and your team need to fix that problem - find out whatever information you can about this planet and its inhabitants, but do not engage unless fired upon. But do your best to avoid combat when at all possible, probe droids have confirmed the presence of heavy armor and air assets near your drop zone, so be careful."
"Copy that, sir," The Lieutenant confirmed, "And if we're engaged by those droids?'
"If you manage to deactivate one, bring it, and any weapons it may wield, back for analysis," The Captain said, "The techs would drool at the mouth for a chance to study something new."
"Affirmative, we'll get it done - we've packed enough Ion grenades to take down a droid army," He nodded, "We'll handle it." With a final salute, the hologram dissipated.
"ETA to planet orbit five minutes," The pilot of the CR25 announced. "Get ready to head out boys and girls!"
"You heard the lady! Mount up!" The Lieutenant barked out, as the Scout Troopers lowered themselves down into their designated MAAT - or "Marty" as they were being called. While they had two, they kept the second one in-reserve on the off-chance their first ride gets shot down, and need a back-up evac plan. Already loaded within were four 74-Z Speeder Bikes, set and ready to go.
"We're gonna try to aim for a landing in a nice, forested mountain." The Lieutenant reported. "Probe Droids didn't pick up many contacts there, so we'll set up a base camp there. I want ST-4414, ST-7898, ST-6645 and ST-1178 on recon duty with the speeders, keep fast and don't get into any trouble - and for force's sake watch where you're going!"
"Who do you take us for?" said one of the mentioned Troopers, ST-1178 "Those chumps stationed on Endor?"
"...Yes,"
He could feel the deadpanned glares directed at him from the troopers.
"Glad to see you have SO much confidence in us," sarcastically commented ST-6645.
The CR25 slowly came to a stop in orbit over the planet, and moments later the first MAAT detached from the carrier, dropping for a few seconds before it flew off into the atmosphere, easily passing through as they broke into the lower atmosphere as the sun was just beginning to rise.
The transport flew in nice, slow and steady - as they got low enough, the side hatches opened up to the fresh air, as the scout troopers caught a good glimpse of the desolate land below - filled with ruined cities.
"Firefek…" One of the scouts muttered. "Just look at this…"
"It almost looks like Mygeeto during the Clone Wars…" another mused, "Hell, I'd argue its worse…"
"Keep your eyes on your helmet's radiometers," The Lieutenant warned, "Probes indicated nuclear fallout, so watch out for radiation."
"Got it, Lieutenant." said one of the other Scout Troopers, and the others confirmed as they tapped a button on the back of their helmets to do exactly that.
"What do you think could've happened here? An invasion?" asked the same Trooper, his pauldron identifying him as a sergeant.
"I'm not certain Sergeant," the Lieutenant said, "If it was an invasion, where are their capital ships? The only things we see in the skies are those atmospheric drone ships. The only way we can understand what happened is to find a local who knows, or go through the databanks of those skeleton clankers,"
"Neither option is gonna be easy…" The Sergeant muttered, "There's gotta be one hell of a language barrier, unless we're lucky enough for this to be a galactic basic world…"
"We have droids for that thankfully," He nodded, as the MAAT came upon a large range of hills. He could also spot another one of their Viper-series Probe Droids waiting for them at the landing site. The Gunship hovered a good few meters off the ground, as ropes were lowered - allowing the Troopers to descend to the ground - all thirty of them.
"Echo One-Two, drop complete." The pilot said, "Take care of yourselves down there Foxtrot."
"Wilco Echo One-Two, we'll call in twelve hours from now for our first check-up," The Lieutenant replied. "Foxtrot Actual out." He watched as the MAAT rose back up into the air and out of sight.
"Recon team, you're up!" The Lieutenant shouted, looking to the four Scout Troopers already mounted on their bikes. "Travel in pairs of two - scout the area, make sure we're nice and alone here, report back in two hours. Everyone else fan out, secure this perimeter! I don't want any surprises!"
"Sir! Yes Sir!"
With that acknowledgment, the Imperial troops fanned out, while the four speeder bike mounted troopers proceeded to head away, the whine of their speeder bikes echoing in the distance. He then turned to the Viper Droid, and gave a sigh.
"Well, as for you, proceed with scouting up further North, and report to the ship anything of importance that you find there. Understood?" he said, and the probe gave it's acknowledging response in it's language, before it began floating away. The Lieutenant then proceeded to turn to observe the distance, spotting the occasional explosions in what used to be a thriving city.
"What a waste,"
Patriot-112: Yup, I know what you're all thinking. But please, you all know I wanted to do this after the debacle that was Dark Fate. And not to mention there are only two, I repeat: TWO, Star Wars/Terminator crossovers on this site. And thankfully, I'm not alone...
117Jorn: DU-DUN DUN DU-DUN! DU-DUN DUN DU-DUN! DU-DUN DUN DU-DUN!
Patriot-112: ...well, you're happy.
117Jorn: I've been wanting to do a Terminator fic for a LONG while, and now I get to simultaneously scratch my SW-itch with the Mandalorian in full-force!
Patriot-112: ...fair enough. Care to elaborate the continuity of the story?
117Jorn: Sure enough. Now, as ya'll know, the 'canon' to Terminator is rather… weird. With all these attempts to make 'sequels' or whatever to T2: Judgement Day, people have either tried to continue where T3: Rise of the Machines like T:Salvation tried to do, or make new timelines with Terminator: Genysis, my personal favorite in the Sarah Connor Chronicles (love that show), the various other games - including the recently released Terminator: Resistance (which, while it has bad voice acting, isn't too shabby and I totally recommend) and of course… *glances at poster to Dark Fates that has bullet holes in it* ...other lesser-forms of storytelling… so ya'll are probably wondering: which continuity are we following? The answer is… yes.
Patriot-112: Obviously we can't just merge them all together - that would be one giant mess that no one could ever hope to follow. HOWEVER what we are doing is surgically going through all Terminator games, movies and comics of the past - the good, bad and the ugly - and picking out the good parts, taking them and blending them together into a singular, cohesive storyline.
117Jorn: So, expect to see Terminators and Characters from other games, movies and such if we can figure out a way to include them - like we did with Derek Reese. However to the core, you can consider Terminator, Terminator 2, Terminator: the Sarah Connor Chronicles and Terminator: Resistance to be undeniably canon.
Patriot-112: That is correct. Of course you're probably wondering what content from Star Wars we're using. Well, it's the original EU/Legends canon, with some snippets from the Disney Canon. I.e. ships, planets, etc. Don't worry, not all of it. So, to all of you Terminator Time Travel nerds and Star Wars space monkeys...
117Jorn: Have no fear! We are not Jar Jar Abrams or Ruin Johnson, nor are we Tim Miller. We are ACTUAL fans of the properties we write about - so we know what we are doing! Why else are we doing things from an IMPERIAL POV? You know, something a little different from what Disney's been shoveling into our faces the last few years?
Patriot-112: Yup, Rebels have been done so much, it's gotten old and stale. Of course, I'm more of a Mandalorian fan, but hey, I can deal with Imperials if they're done right, like Jorn has done. And so, with all of that out of the way...
117Jorn: Adieu for now!