A man backtracked onto the shuttle as the last of his marines had boarded the transport. His leg was bloody, the result of an attack on a Zerg sunken colony. "Time to go," he thought, as he surveyed the battlefield. It was one of terrifying gore: body parts, blood, smoke, and fire all on a desert backdrop. He could hear munitions 'cooking off' as they exploded less then one klick away. The acrid odor of death had penetrated his slightly cracked visor.
He pressed the COM button on the doorway and shouted so as to overcome the noise of the turbine engine, "Tackle, this is Safety. We're on board. No need to stick around, let's go." As the rear door to the transport closed, the platform steadily withdrew inside the ship, and the shuttle started to hover higher above ground. As the transport's engines revved up to break into orbit, the man took a deep breath and exhaled, and it finally had dawned on Captain Robert White: the mission was over.
As he tried to put the safety on the gauss rifle, he tumbled into the hard metal chair as the shuttle had started to accelerate and change vectors. The foam-restraining bar clamped on his shoulders as he closed his eyes, but not before another check on the safety on the rifle. He took another deep breath, betraying a relief. Usually, his troops would be joking or talking, but the only sound from them was silence, and as White lifted his cracked visor he inhaled stench of body odor, sweat and burned flesh. Captain White settled into his chair and then brought the transmitter to his mouth. He began to speak slowly, but quietly into the transmitter.
"Voice journal transmission:Captain Robert White. UEDIN 5995-9398-8412
13th Marines, Light Mech Infantry, 3rd Battalion, Charlie Company, United Earth Directorate.
Dated: April 10, 2556.
Time: 2219 GMT Earth
Subject: Overview and final SITREP of Operation Safe Horizon
Location: Uramon18.
This is my first journal entry in 4 days. In our evacuation of Uramon 18, we rescued over 11,000 colonists from the Zerg. The operation took 4 days, 16 hours. My company of 186 has suffered heavy casualties, 101 killed, 9 wounded, (2 severely), and 2 missing in action.
"Note to self: send letters of condolences to the families. Am enclosing identification badges of most of our dead. Will transfer these to admin team to scan. Will also add personal notes to these families at earliest opportunity…."
He closed his eyes as exhaustion finally overtook him as the transport headed for the heavy battle cruiser Einstein.
April 10, 2556. 2308 GMT Earth - Planet CharNews now reached Kerrigan, the self-styled Queen of Blades. The magnitude of the defeat that Battlegroup Cornerback had inflicted on her forces soon became evident as her favored cerebrate Ganach could only re-establish one way sight with the forces near Uramon. Through Ganach, Kerrigan could see a small flotilla of UED forces heading straight for the warp gate, blasting away numerous Overlords, teaming with Brood ground forces. Kerrigan seethed as she witnessed the carnage. They merely floated haplessly, because no cerebrate could direct them; this particular Overlord was struggling. It desperately wanted to flee, but it was dreadfully slow, weighted down by its cargo of numerous Zergling. Three Wraith squadrons unleashed havoc on the Overlord providing the vision for Ganach and her Queen. Ganach winced in pain, as her only means of contact to the Zerg at Uramon, along with its cargo, became a bloody flotsam in space.
Kerrigan realized it had been her arrogance that led to this. A simple error and miscalculation of logistics had enabled this tiny UED force, one that by all means should have been eradicated with ease, to inflict substantial casualties with impunity. Rage overcame her.
"Ganach, I want you to focus and concentrate on the person responsible for this…I want the image…."
Ganach started to pulsate intensely. She brought forth the last image of cerebrate Hanoe, the beacon of control for Zerg forces on and around Uramon. The image started to gain clarity: a man clearly in command of a group of marines. The man had an additional insignia stripe on his battle helmet. It was obvious this was the ranking officer. Ganach magnified the image as she focused on a specific point on the uniform of the soldier, a photographic ID badge. The last image of cerebrate Hanoe was one of violent quaking as the soldier fired one grenade after another into the cerebrate's body.
"GANACH…MAGNIFY NOW…" Kerrigan screamed. Ganach complied immediately.
The image was of Captain Robert White. Kerrigan read the name on the helmet. "Robert White, you will rue this day. Transmit this image to all of our broods, Ganach. I want this insolent retch of a human infested or dead." With those words, the entire Zerg Swarm understood the depth of defeat that they had suffered, and every one of them understood who was to be held responsible.
Kerrigan wanted vengeance but she also knew she had to remain in control of her emotion. She could not appear incompetent or unintelligent or weak. She used her psionic powers to broadcast her message to all cerebrates who would then transmit her will to the rest of the Swarm. "From this day forward, we shall never make mistakes, we shall be perfect in our execution and we shall extract our vengeance. Failure by any of you will be punished and you shall be consumed for the good of the swarm." She stared at Ganach.
Her cerebrates replied in unison, "FOR THE SWARM…."
Kerrigan regained her composure. "No cerebrate, I will not hold you accountable. This was not of your doing, this was Hanoe's failure and those of his forces. They were not perfect in their execution of this mission. Now their corpses litter the Uramon system. The perpetrators of this crime against us will escape our wrath today, but this is temporary. We shall find them and when we do, we shall feast on their flesh."
UED Battle Group Cornerback, UED Einstein, in WarpThe Einstein had just secured the last of the Rogue wraiths. It was powering up for warp along with the four freighters. Captain White and his Light infantry company began 's-cubed' (Shit, Shower, Shave) and while the relief was evident in their faces, there was no celebration. They stepped out of their light armor, shelved their gauss rifles, stripped down, and headed for the showers. The showers lasted eight minutes per individual, but they were hot and invigorating. The nude soldiers then exited, put on their jump suits, and then headed to the commissary for their first decent meal in a week.
Commodore Park sat in his quarters. Battle Group Cornerback had exited orbit from Uramon and the flotilla had made warp. Park had made sure that the Lights were isolated and undisturbed in the commissary. They merely ate their ramen with carrots quietly, as the effects of participating in combat were starting to sink into their psyche. If this was a victory, it did not feel like one. Park had sensed this and wanted the Lights, especially, White's company, isolated, because of their recent experiences. Park insisted on an extra ration of synthetic rum and whiskey for the Lights, as part compensation for the pay that was now years in arrears. Pay, even combat pay, for the UED was most definitely in arrears after Kerrigan had crushed Dugalle's forces. But today had been a deliciously wicked payback.
For three months, Cornerback had to live with the news that they were alone. They avoided detection and hid themselves in asteroid belts, behind moons and suns, until they decided to embark on a carefully construed plan, Operation Safe Horizon. The Commodore and his closest advisers had calculated that BG Cornerback would have to fend for itself for at least a year, if not more, before they were to see any UED support. The operation was merely a chance to better the odds of survival. "This victory cost us, but at least we survive," Park thought. The commodore sat down and started to contemplate the operation. It was time for such reflection as he tapped his consul.
Safe Horizon – Classified material – Retina Scan required. Colonel Richard Chalmers, DSC UED Intel, author
The following is considered classified material, clearance Veil 3 is necessary to view.
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Date of Conception: January 9, 2456, based on decisions regarding information from Document QR BG CB 39, Quartermaster James T. Kelly, author. Executive summary is as follows:
The recent defeat and destruction of Task Force Dagger (DuGalle's Fleet) by the creatures known as the Zerg, places Battle Group Cornerback in a perilous position. We have a limited amount of forces at our disposal. Our ORBAT (Order of Battle) in any major confrontation with the Zerg would include:
The 13th Marines, Light Mechanized Infantry Division, Colonel Mason, commanding.
UED Heavy Battle Cruiser Einstein carrying three squadrons of Wraith fighters and two squadrons of heavy shuttle transports.
Supply ships Noah, Puller, and Gemini and Taurus.
Our source of supply is one that is manageable over the next 160 days. We have enough food and water until that time. By mid April, we will need to begin rationing if there is no relief. By mid July, we will be on emergency status.
In regards to ammunition and burn rates for our weaponry, I strongly recommend avoiding any major confrontation with the Zerg. As of the writing of this report, we only have 4.5 million rounds of gauss for our marines. At the basic burn rate of 700 rounds per marine, we could expect to last against an Zerg force of 750K units, only a moderate force. We could manufacture another 1 million rounds in the next month, but that is in the best case scenario. For the remaining MBT Siege tanks that we actually have in the Lights, there are only 4 thousand artillery rounds. Based on this information, I strongly recommend that we proceed with the implementation of Project Razor. The prototype looks good and uses only rechargeable beam weaponry. We can look into decreasing the cool down time for this unique addition as we conduct trials. It would definitely alleviate any major ammunition concerns that we have regarding our armor units and the prototype fits the need of Colonel Mason's doctrine for light infantry….
Project Razor: The following is considered classified material, clearance Veil 3 is necessary to view.
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Date of Conception: January 9, 2456, based on decisions regarding information from Document QR BG CB 39, Commander Quentin Q. O' Callahan, UEDIN 5412-5489-7496, author. Executive summary is as follows:
As we have seen in our numerous engagements with the Zerg, we are coming to a point where we must be more adept when we engage an enemy that has no remorse in throwing away the lives of thousands of units in order to achieve a minor objective. We have noticed a weakness in our own reponse regarding our MBT Siege Tank. To this end, I propose the development of the Razor, a prototype light armored hover tank with beam weaponry. By using gravity magnets, it can reach up to speeds of 85 mph. This I think would complement the Lights quite well. It will be able to engage and disengage almost at will. The primary weaponry is 162 mm hi grade Ion cannon, producing a beam that can saw a hydralisk in half at 3 kilometers range and bring down a mutalisk or Guardian as well at a similar vertical range. It has a secondary weapon similar to the MBT Siege Tank, namely the glass canister shrapnel cannon. This ammunition is cheap and easy to produce and relies only on magnets and gravity to deliver a lethal punch against a massive array of ground targets. Magnets accelerate a metallic cartridge containing shards out of a tube. When the canister reaches a certain altitude, it breaks, raining glass and aluminum shards on an enemy ground force. After extensive testing, the shards have been designed to release in a manner that would allow them to penetrate Chitin armor plating that the Zerg carapace now exhibits. We are also incorporating the blades of hydras and ultras into the shrapnel, in order to further our already limited resource pool…..
Background URAMON 18 Classified information, requires Veil 2 Clearance to view
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Uramon 18 is a Dominion settlement that had been rich in minerals. Mengsk and the Dominion raped the planet of its resources for over two years, ruthlessly exploiting it, simply bringing in empty transports and loading them with minerals and vespene.
After the Zerg's stunning victory at Char, Mengsk had his fleet stop by the outpost. Uramon's leaders originally thought that Mengsk was going to evacuate the planet, since it was so close to the Zerg onslaught. Soon they realized that Mengsk was not interested in helping them, but in seizing the gas and minerals. Arcturus Mengsk, always the brilliant manipulator and propagandist, lived up to this aspect of his personae.
Mengsk, however, did try to allay their fear with a speech he gave prior to leaving the planet. He began his address with his well-known luxurious voice transcribed as follows:
"Ladies and gentleman of the esteemed leadership council of Uramon…Your efforts have greatly aided the Dominion and its allies in the Koprulu sector. Rest assured, that you will be evacuated soon. In the meantime, know that you have done great service to insure the survival of our race against the nightmarish Zerg and the insidious calculating Protoss. We shall prevail. Prepare for your evacuation soon, for we will be back to bring you home where you belong, for you are the Sons and Daughters of Korhal...Long Live the Dominion and its glorious leadership, the hope of the Terrans."
Mengsk's Fleet left within two days after taking over 100 thousand metric tons of gas and minerals. A week after this departure, Uramon 18's governor and council repeatedly contacted the Dominion and only received evasive answers. Based on intelligence and our interviews with Governor Tabin and the leadership council of Uramon 18, with the natural resources, once over four billion metric tons of vespene alone, gone, there is nothing strategic about Uramon 18 anymore. Mengsk, true to historical form, left the colony to fend for itself, similar to the way in which he had left Kerrigan to the Zerg.
After 58 days, UED Battle Group Cornerback arrived and offered to evacuate all the citizens. The council was grateful for our assistance and did everything they could to salvage all necessary items from the outpost, including tons of vespene and minerals. They hastily put together a rather clever timetable for the evacuation as well, trimming off at least 36 hours of normal procedures. They had even encapsulated their hydroponic farms, a technology that these colonists had perfected in their 30 months of existence on the harsh desert landscape. The evacuation was going well until, on April 6th 2456, the Zerg had arrived in the sector, 72 hours ahead of any anticipated contingency. (See Colonel Terrance Mason's Notes: dated 4/1/2456 Security Council Meeting, Veil 4 necessary to view)
By the next day, the ravenous Zerg had landed a very large reconnaissance force at the equator of Uramon. It was only a matter of time before these vicious creatures would infest the planet. A horrific battle at the black tar River Janji ensued, and the Zerg had come dangerously close to breaking through the defensive perimeter numerous times. Other Zerg movements occurred on the planet, but those were not of great concern, only the River Janji and the outpost were of any value. The 'Lights' were deployed to assist the evacuation and act as rearguard. The evacuation is overall successful. No command center, no vespene, no minerals, and no civilian casualties were left to the Zerg: only a trace of where the once great bonanza of resources was."
Synopsis for Operation Safe Horizon Ended: Security Clearance Veil 4 necessary to edit
Commodore Jin-Sho Park, finished the reading the executive summary of Safe horizon. He decided it was time to add onto Chalmers' classified document as he made his own mental calculations regarding the success of the covert action.. Although Sarah Kerrigan, the infamous Queen of Blades, had suffered a serious blow, it was definitely a time to gauge the success of Operation Safe Horizon. "Was it worth it?" Park contemplated.
Accomplishments:
11,249 colonists safely aboard the Gemini, Taurus, and Noah. Some could join UED forces. This community had survived in an inhospitable desert climate. Surely, they could fight, if trained, the Commodore thought. They would also have experience and competency in setting up a new base.
6,025 metric tons of adamantine crystal minerals. Adamantine was 15 times stronger then steel but only a quarter the weight. It had been found at the core of the planet, and was much different then the normal crystal granite minerals found on other planets. This was equivalent to finding platinum, instead of lowly nickel. It was unlike any other elemental resource scientists had ever seen. With this new metallic element, the armor could be recoated, and additional ammunition could be made.
Major Conroy's heavy gunships had made their debut, inflicting devastating casualties on Zerg. They provided live video feed reconnaissance as the 'flying bunkers' spat out artillery shells and thousands of bullets per minute and dropped napalm and spider mines with devastating accuracy. They were heavily damaged, though, and would require a lot of time to repair. Ammunition was also a major matter of concern. However, there were additional weaknesses. The gunships had little mobility and they had no offensive capability against enemy air units, and the Zerg soon discovered this. They also needed to re-arm after every engagement, and this took time away from crucial air support operations. The flight and ground crews of Linebacker and Fullback were to be commended though as, "Death from above…" had a new flare, obliterating over 6,000 Zerg.
The Lights also unveiled another new weapon: the ANGEL rocket turret. Their volleys of grenades and missiles were responsible for the deaths of many a Zerg. Indeed, video showed a spectacular downing of several Mutalisks, Scourges, and a Guardian at a maximum range. The extended range of the HALO air-to-air missile negated even the long-range attack of the dreaded Zerg Gaurdian. The ANGEL rocket turret was an impressive support weapon. A firebase, complete with Angels, siege tanks and bunkers, would prove extremely difficult to overrun. With every yard taken at the battle of the Tar River Janji, the Zerg paid for it dearly.
2,612 metric tons of liquid blue vespene gas, which the Einstein and the support ships so desperately needed, a 200-day supply for the small battle group. This particular vespene was much denser and more pure then ordinary vespene.
12,263 metric tons of raw food products, which would last six weeks from the hydroponic farms of Uramon 18. The quartermasters and the commissary teams were starting to worry. This would alleviate the situation. Clearly, the colonists had done well to make agriculture possible on the desert planet.
The complete destruction of a vast array of Zerg forces. The death of a cerebrate had caused all of the Zerg forces in the system to fall into a dormant state. It was the stunning result of a complete reversal of tactics, fortune and bravery of Captain White and his men. The end result: the vast number of Zerg Overminds, full of ravenous broods, and Zerg flight units were riddled to death with little or no resistance. It was a turkey shoot and these losses were calculated at least a half million. This setback was by no means minor for the Queen of Blades.
Concerns:
Morale. Despite this incredible victory, once again, UED forces were retreating from the Zerg. Of course, there was no choice, but it underscored the fact that Park and his small flotilla were in no position to take the offensive. The loss of Colonel Terrance Mason and his wife, Major Janet Conroy, was also demoralizing, as they had died in a shuttle accident. Mason had wanted to go down to the planet and oversee the evacuation. He boarded Conroy's shuttlecraft, which later crashed after it lost flight control in one of Uramon's bizarre electromagnetic storms. Park unwisely allowed those two to be on the same ship and the price for his foolishness: a morose sadness for all in the battle group.
The loss of Colonel Terrance Mason. Mason had a smile that radiated warmth, and according to one commander, "…was worth two Marine divisions." He could get his men to do the impossible by sheer determination. He had trained his commanders carefully and they showed not only tenacity, as a Marine should, but actions and tactics that reflected Mason's trademark resourcefulness. He also had vision in developing the 'Lights.' The Major had honed them into a fine division of intelligent and un-orthodox soldiers, as others once viewed them as a mere upgrade of civilian militia. They were not yokels who were militia upgrades, but a ruthless, lightly armrored and highly mobile group of cunning soldiers who adapted to the environment and terrain. The men and women of the Lights wept when they heard the news of his death and that of his wife.
Major Janet Conroy, Mason's wife, was also KIA. It was Conroy who could poke holes into Mason's plans and forced him to rethink his orders of battle and force deployments. It was Conroy who had a brilliant analytical mind and encouraged creativity. And it was Conroy who fell in love with the Colonel, knowing that the formidable soldier respected and valued her. While she could never match his incredible ability to communicate and inspire others, she was more then a match for Mason and he enjoyed her companionship. The two leaders had complementary strengths that made them a great tandem. Even with the tragic news of Dugalle's demise, they were able to keep an atmosphere of continuity and hope. Nevertheless, there existed no contingency for the loss of these two warriors.
Overall Isolation and Vulnerability. Uramon was the only outpost that was livable and had resources. Nothing else in this sector was rich in mineral wealth, let alone habitable. It would take a couple of months to get to the nearest sector, and even then, Protoss, Dominion, and Zerg forces could easily kill them off in an interstellar attack.
The commodore of the UED Battle Group Cornerback sat in his quarters looking at his computer screen. "Einstein Computer, Inquiry, Status of Report: Safe Horizon, Author: Captain Robert White?"
In response to the Commodore's inquiry, the computer flashed on screen:
Capt. Robert White. UEDIN 5995-9398-8412
13th Marines, Light Mech Infantry, 3rd BAT. Charlie Company, UED.
Current Location: Officer's Deck, Bay 303
Voice Transmission Data Entry Journal: IN PROGRESS.
RE: Overview and final SITREP of Operation Safe Horizon
Park had seen the other reports from the two other captains on Safe Horizon and was not impressed. They offered little insight and lacked clarity, proving a waste of time. However, the other two captains had encountered very little. They merely evacuated the civilians and resources from the planet and, only in the end, did they engage in some minor skirmishes against Zerg forces. Park decided now had to make a few notes of his own. "Einstein Computer: voice journal transmission…Format: journal template:
"Item 1. Make sure to reproduce digitally and print out 3 copies of Col. Mason's and Maj. Conroy's journals and reports. I want these studied by Captains White, Winn, and Konyetsnoy. These men need to know how to write a report."
"Item 2. This goes without saying, but needs to be stated anyway: the deaths of Col. Mason and Maj. Conroy are my responsibility and the morale of the Lights is low, despite their excellent performance. The confidence of the soldiers needs to be restored." He would wait for White's report to see if the soldier could handle the responsibility.
"Item 3. Schedule a conference with Uramon's Council and Governor Tabin…see what else we can glean from them. I also want to see any and all of their logs immediately for star maps of this sector and the Pak Sector. Further, I want to examine any intelligence reports for troop movements by Zerg, Protoss, and Dominion. They must have documents regarding Dominion star routes…and Dominion deployments."
"Item 4. It is clear we have a need that we can no longer ignore if we are to survive, namely, that of intelligence reports. Months ago, the Zerg knew of our movements, our abilities, and our codes, thanks to Kerrigan and the treacherous Duran. We, unfortunately, know little of theirs. We need information and better yet, an infiltrator or continual surveillance. We have no ghost units. After Duran, though, even if we did, I would not want to use them. Just look at what Hell one infested ghost leader has unleashed."
"Item 5. Find Jim Raynor, if he is alive. He is key to our intelligence on Duran and this Kerrigan creature and probably more. Did he survive the annihilation at Korhal and Char? We must investigate this. According to the files, this man was once a colleague of General Duke and Arcturus Mengsk, and then fled them. He built a relationship with the Protoss, and then made an unholy alliance with Kerrigan. Why? I want to know the answer. As of now, we are blind. If he is as treacherous as all of those mentioned, we should dispatch him after an interrogation. This man has proven resourceful. I want him alive and questioned."
"Item 6. We have an opportunity to use our inconsequential size to advantage. It is my hope and prayer that the Dominion, Zerg and the Protoss take little notice of us. With the colonists that we have rescued from Uramon 18, I think we have a chance of rebuilding…but we need a suitable base."
"Item 7. There are numerous other concerns to ponder. While some of the colonists might join up, especially after the rescue from the Zerg infestation, we have little equipment or ammunition …" Park continued, thinking aloud, knowing that he alone was the sole commander, and the situation was desperate. Command was lonely…