RIS Cruiser Wendor, Flagship WEF

1814 Hours 10.2.2551

Before dinner, Admiral Wantillese took one more stroll to the bridge. He looked out at his fleet now that they had stopped to take a fix on their position, the Curacaoand the Victory had multiple blackened spots, plasma burns, and most of the frigates had a little wear, the Wantillese was missing.

"Sir," Custard sighed. "I regret to inform you the Wantillese was lost. Six plasma torpedoes ripped through the bridge, about a hundred or so of her crew made it off.

"I never really liked the name anyway," was all Dirt could say.

After eating, Dirt bumped into a termite in a navy uniform he had never met before.

"Sir! Lieutenant Mudd, Jack Mudd."

"Who are you?" Dirt asked.

"RIS Special Ops." Dirt gave a look of confusion and shock. He had never heard of RIS Special Ops."

"The Shocktrooper program was re-started, sir. Termite Special Forces." Dirt had heard of the Shocktroopers, their exploits with the Termite Empire were legendary, a dozen battalions took Merc with few casualties. Apparently it was decided they were needed again. Bad form."

"I was at Merc sir. Admiral Perry asked if I would be willing to re-form the unit; Our armor and gear arrived during the battle." After a brief chat, the two headed for the hangar. Fourteen Termites in pristine white armor stood at attention.

"This is the Centurion battle armor system. The Helmet has a full Heads-Up-Display showing armor integrity, biomonitors, ammo counter, and a motion tracker. It's vacuum capable, so we can fight in space. The armor is made up of a light-weight alloy capable of withstanding most small-arms fire, it lets us take enormous amounts of punishment, but this is the best." Mudd picked up a black gun, it looked similar to the standard EAR, only with what looked like a grenade launcher below the main barrel.

"This," Mudd continued. "Is the new EAR-2 with built-in grenade launcher, it's a derivative of the AR-31GL we used on Merc twelve years ago. It carries a hundred laser shots and three grenades. Very devastating." Dirt nodded. This would help in the next engagement against the Covenant.

"How long ago was your unit er-reformed."

"About two months ago, remember the Spartakus?"

The Spartakus was an old warship, an Atropos-class patrol vessel, commonly known as a "Star Sloop." It served with the Independent Mining Guild in the Sigma-5 system until it was stolen by pirates three months after Sigma-19; it was the scourge of the trade lanes until it was successfully boarded five days before Dirt left Walderann.

"What about it Lieutenant?" Dirt had no clue where this was going.

Mudd smiled, "That was us." Dirt's jaw dropped.

"What? The fifteen of you, captured a Star Sloop?"

"Yep, a few minor injuries around, I took some shrapnel in the thigh, but us fifteen, killed over a hundred pirates."

Dirt was amazed. "Damn, your good."

FLEETCOM, Planet Reach

711 Hours 11.2.2551

Vice Admiral Whitcomb strolled down a deserted corridor deep under the surface of Reach; he had news that needed to get to Fleet Admiral Hood fast.

The war was not going well, despite the occasional victories, the Covenant had captured or glassed all of the Outer Colonies and were now taking the Inner Colonies one by one. No planet's defenses could stop a determined Covenant assault; it was of utmost importance that the Covenant not find Earth, or all would be lost.

Whitcomb took a right, had his iris scanned, and opened the door to Fleet Admiral Sir Terence Hood's office. He was sitting at a small wood desk, accessing a few files on his computer. He looked up.

"This better be important Admiral," he growled.

"They got New Ireland."

"What was that you said?" Hood asked tensely

Whitecomb took a deep breath. "The Covenant glassed every planet in the system, they were undefended. We're stretched too thin."

"I am aware of that," Hood snapped. "When did you get this information?"

"My office received a report from Admiral Stanforth this morning."

"Very well then," Hood replied. He pushed a few buttons and a holographic map of the known galaxy appeared over the table. Hood zoomed in on the Inner Colonies and Earth. Several of the systems were red, indicating that they had been lost to the Covenant. The New Irelandsystem turned red as Hood marked off the latest victim.

"That leaves Epsilon Eridani, Tantalus, Sigma Octanus, New California, New Raleigh, parts of Jericho, Atlas, Magellan, and Sol. Two hundred systems glassed, and billions nurdered," Hood murmured as he focused his gaze at the Tantalus system.

"There," he jabbed his finger at the system. "Is Taskforce 58, two cruisers, five destroyers, and ten frigates under Cole." Hood pointed to the space between New Raleigh and Reach. "There is the WEF under Rear Admiral Wantillese." Hood stared at Whitcomb for the first time since the Vice Admiral entered the room. "Admiral, take the WEF and attach them to Task Force 58, take the combined fleet," he paused. "And send them to here." Hood gestured to a spot nine thousand lightyears from Tantalus. "ONI says a damaged Covie ship has been tracked to this area, I want them to investigate and destroy anything there, that should buy us some time."

"Sir, that's almost ten percent of our entire fleet, is it worth the risk?"

"You know the answer to that as much as I do!" Hood snapped. "No! Cole knows whats at stake here, it has to be done, or humanity will be gone in less than a year!"