That Dagger exploded, not because of Mark shooting it, but because it had a nuclear bomb inside of it. The blast destroyed all of the Daggers and took out Mark's shield and damaged his ship until his computer screamed,"Danger! Hull breach imminent!" The explosion also caused that area to become slightly radioactive. He was lucky that the bomb was very small, or it could have done more than just destroy some Daggers and produce slight radiation. Mark used his nanobots and shield batteries, but one of his electron weapons was knocked off, along with a wing. He decided to go back to Freeport 1 to repair it.

"Freelancer Beta 5-2, you may proceed to docking bay 5." Mark went into the bay and then landed on Freeport 1. He told the Bounty Hunter that all of the Daggers were destroyed, but one of them exploded with a nuclear bomb. The Hunter saw Mark's flight recording and told him that it is very unusual for something like that to happen. He paid him the 17,000 credits anyway, along with a tip because of the stuff he went through. He thanked the Hunter, and then he went to the ship dealer....

After half an hour of price estimation, the ship dealer told Mark that he will replace the wing and undo the radiation damage done to his Feuer for 2,000 credits. He told Mark that he will sell him a weapon to replace the one that he lost for half-price if he does him a favor. Mark said he would come back in an hour to pay for the repairs and do the dealer a favor.

Mark went to the medical room and made an appointment because he had a splitting headache, and he sat down on one of the chairs to wait until the other patient came out of the room.

10 Minutes later, the patient, a green-looking little man with a big boil on his head, walked out of the room. Then Mark walked in. The medic- on his shirt it said "Alfor Giunstar"- told him to sit down on the scanning machine. He activated it, and then Mark was scanned. The medic looked at the results and said,"There is nothing to worry about. The radiation was mostly blocked by your ship's hull, and all you got was a headache. You should get some rest. The headache should be over by the end of the day." Mark thanked the medic and left the room. He went to the ship dealer, paid for the repairs, helped the dealer arrange some equipment, and got another electron gun. He was feeling really hungry, so he went to the bar.

"Yes, I would like a bowl of Synth Paste." Synth Paste was what Mark liked to eat.. it was available everywhere, didn't cost much, and tasted good. The bartender handed him a Liberty Blueberry soda and a bowl of Synth Paste. He paid the bartender and went to take a seat. He ordered soda because he doesn't drink, and he was only 20 years old. In the colonies, the law does not allow people under the age of 21-25 to buy alcohol (depending on the colony he was in). He ate quietly and threw out the disposable Plas-Nex bowl. He went to the suite he had rented, took off his shoes and socks, fell on the bed, and went to sleep.

The next day, he woke up and opened his suitcase. He found a red shirt, a Kevlar coat, some pants, and socks. He went to the bathroom to brush his teeth with an electronic brush and then he changed his clothes. He took all of his belongings, locked the door, and left.

He talked to the man he rented the suite from, returned the key, and went to his ship. On the way to the hangar, he ran into someone. He recognized her at once- it was Elena, his sister. They hugged each other. "Hi Mark! What are you doing here on Freeport 1?" Mark replied,"I was staying here for a few days.. I was worn out from the traveling and the pirates. Can I see your ship?" Elena pointed to a Guardian, an advanced Liberty heavy fighter. "Do you like it? I got it at an auction on Planet Curacao. It has helped me a lot against those Outcasts and Rogues in that system. So, where is your ship?" Mark walked over to his Feuer. "This is my Rheinland light fighter, I got it here for 96,000 credits.. it is a good deal." Elena smiled. She was an attractive girl with black hair and a slim figure, and she was 18 years old, 2 years younger than Mark. "I'm glad to see you again. Want to go with me to Rheinland? I have a friend there.. he works for the Unioners- in secret. He wants to give me something, a present, if you will. He told me to meet him on Planet Holstein in the Frankfurt system." Mark said,"Of course I'll go with you! I don't have any plans, but I don't want to stay on Freeport 1 for the rest of my days!" They got into their ships and launched from Freeport 1.

"Ok, lets head into that tradelane. It leads to Zeiner station, and from there we will head to the Omega-7 Jumpgate.", said Elena. Mark followed her as they went through the tradelane. Suddenly, Mark's computer yelled, "Tradelane disrupted!" Mark picked up 4 Red Hessian Stilettos on his scanners. "Help me destroy these assholes!" Mark and Elena began dropping mines and shooting missiles at the pirates. However, these weren't the pitiful Hessians Mark was used to destroying- they were very skilled and well- equipped. He could see that his ship was taking a beating. He yelled,"Elena, lets run into the tradelane! Its operational now!" They used their thrusters to get to the next ring, and then they escaped the Hessian menace.

1 Minute later, they got to Zeiner station and they took the next tradelane. They got to the Omega-7 jumpgate when they saw something really bad- at least a dozen Stilettos piloted by Red Hessians attacked the Daumann outpost there. There was a way to get past this, however. Mark knew there was another jumpgate that led to the Omega-9 system. Hopefully they could get to Rheinland from there. He told his sister to follow him to the jumpgate through this tradelane.

10 Minutes later, they were in the Omega-9 system, a system recently discovered through a jumphole in Omega-5. Daumann, BMM, and other mining corporations quickly set up bases there and chased out the Corsairs that were there. Mark said,"Alright. I see a tradelane leading to an "Edinburgh" station. Lets go through it."

They got to Edinburgh Station, after being ambushed by Corsairs and having to fly back with cruise engines. Every 10 seconds they got attacked by more Corsairs, and one of the trade lane rings was destroyed.

"That's... strange. All of the news channels were buzzing with news about the discovery of Omega-9 and the mining corporations clearing out the pirate activity in this system.", said Mark. "At least we made it out of that warzone alive." Elena replied, "Let's just dock with the station and buy some supplies, and make this "trip" through the Border Worlds as quick as possible. I don't want to have to deal with these damn pirates every step of the way."

They landed on Edinburgh Station and went to the bar, as Mark was feeling hungry. Elena asked, "What do you like to eat, Mark? I like Liberty Ravioli. That stuff is good." Mark replied, "Synth Paste. It is my favorite food. I also like soda, or lemonade, or something non-alcoholic. I don't like the taste of alcohol." Elena laughed at him and they ordered food and drinks from the bar. They ate, then went to the equipment dealer, purchased nanobots and shield batteries, then launched from the station.

After going through 3 tradelanes, they got to the Dresden jumpgate. Elena said,"Do we really have to go to that system?"

"What's the problem?", asked Mark.

"I know that there are all kinds of scum in that system, Red Hessians, Bundschuh terrorists, Unioners, Branstein pirates, and more of those kind of people! It may be in Rheinland space, but the police can barely control what goes on in that system!"

"Elena, how do you expect to get to your friend on Holstein then?"

"Well, you do have a point. I guess that we'll have to go through there."

After 3 hours of fighting off pirates and flying through tradelanes, Mark and Elena got to Planet Holstein, after crossing the Dresden, Volkshausen, and Hamburg systems. They got out of their ships.

"Alright, I'm going to contact my friend now. Hopefully he is here by now." , said Elena. She reached into the pocket of her jumpsuit and pulled out her NN Communicator. She used the communicator stylus to type in her friend's contact code- 44-543-533-A32V- which was similar to the telephone numbers used back on Planet Earth a millenium ago. Her friend answered the call, and she greeted him and gave him her location.

"You're on Holstein already?", said Jacob, her friend.

"Yes, I am."

"Sorry, but I am only at Vogtland Base, a base of the Red Hessians."

"Wow, Jacob.. you really are a traitor to the Rheinland Military!"

"What? I don't kill the police or civilians! I just dock here so I can-"

"Jake... I didn't mean it that way! I was just being sarcastic. Sorry if you misunderstood. Anyway, when are you coming to Holstein?" Elena could hear Mark laughing at her. She glared at him and he stopped laughing.

"Oh, I see. Sorry about that. I will be at Holstein tomorrow. You see, I have a deal with the Hessians because I want to buy a Sabre ship from them."

"That's OK. I'll be waiting with my brother Mark on Holstein until you arrive."

"You have a brother? I didn't know. I would like to meet him as well."

"Don't worry. You will. Tomorrow."

"Ok, bye, Elena." The NN call ended.

The next day, Elena saw a Sabre landing on Holstein. After Elena saw who got out of the ship, she ran over to him and hugged him.

"Jacob! You're finally here!", shouted Elena.

"Wow! I didn't know you were so excited to see me. I told you to meet me here because... well, my family is being... "interrogated" by the Rheinland Special Forces. The thing is... I ... I...." Jacob started crying. He stammered, "And.... and (sniff) it's all my... fault. The... Rheinl-"

"Oh, my god. Your family is being tortured by the Rheinland Reichstag and its forces. They must have found out that you are friendly with the Red Hessians." Jacob seemed to have fainted. Now Elena found this hard to believe. She has heard of all the news about Rheinland's new role of more humane treatment for prisoners and other delinquents, and that was because of the new Chancellor. His name is Frederik Krussel. To Elena, it seemed like he was the opposite of the bloodthirsty previous chancellor of Rheinland. Elena saw Mark leaving the bar. He noticed the fainted Jacob on the ground.

"Elena? Who's that? Why is he on the floor?"

"It's my friend.. Jacob. He passed out just now because he knows his family is in trouble. Rheinland has been doing things to them."

"Is he married? Any children or cousins?"

"No, but he told me he has a brother and a very good relationship with his parents."

"So what do you want us to do with him? He isn't moving." Mark walked over to him and felt him for a heartbeat. He felt none. "His heart isn't beating, either."

"Damn! Let's get him to a surgeon immediately! I think there is-" Suddenly, a bunch of soldiers surrounded them.

"Put your hands on your head, remove your clothes, and drop any weapons you may have.", barked one of the soldiers. "You are under arrest for befriending a traitor to the Rheinland Reichstag! This man-", he said, pointing to Jacob," Is an enemy of Rheinland. We shot and killed him. Friends of the Red Hessians or any other mother****ers are to be killed on sight! Now remove your clothes and lay on the floor."

Elena begged, "But sir, do we have to remove our clothes? I don't see any reason for it! We didn't do anything wrong. I didn't know that Jacob is a traitor to anyone!"

The soldier yelled, "SHUT UP AND REMOVE YOUR CLOTHES! YOU ARE TO BE SEARCHED FOR ILLEGAL ITEMS!"

Elena and Mark quickly took off all their clothes, and laid on the floor, completely naked. The soldiers took their clothes, dumped all of their contents on the ground, and examined them. The captain, or whoever the soldier is, took Elena's NN Communicator. He heard the recordings of her chats with Jacob. Elenaa could not help but feel like killing herself for recording that in the first place. That soldier said, "You didn't know he was a traitor? Hmmmm? Well, guess what? You and that guy next to you are going to Vierlande Prison. I don't think you'll like it there. Plenty of pirates and scum to b*tch around with!"

Mark said, his voice trembling, "But, sir, what about our ships and what clothes will we wear?"

The soldier said, "Haha. Your ship is now my property, and so is her ship! You may now pick up your clothes and put them on."

They did as they were told. After they were fully dressed, the soldier barked at them, "OK. You will now follow us into the RNC Prinz. That is our gunboat." The soldier pointed at 2 of his men. "You, Bravitz, and you, Riezen, take both of these prisoners' ships. Make sure you put them in my ship garage!" Those 2 men went to Mark and Elena's ships.

The soldier grinned. He told another of his men to take the Sabre that belonged to Jacob, and to make sure to put it in his garage.

Half an hour later, the RNC Prinz launched from Holstein. Elena and Mark were handcuffed with electric handcuffs. The controller for those was a guard who loved torturing them. Every few seconds he would give them a nasty electric shock. Mark reddened with anger. Elena screamed and screamed. Mark hated watching his sister treated like scum. He also noticed that the soldier was staring at his sister and then looking her up and down. 5 Minutes later, a strange feeling came to him. He couldn't control his anger anymore. A strength came to him... it was fueled by anger- lots of anger. He ripped apart the manacles and attacked the guard with incredible fury. He punched holes in his skull and mashed his brain until there was nothing left of the guard's head. Mark's hands were covered in blood and pieces of bone. He wiped them on the guard's uniform. He removed his sister's handcuffs, but she was already unconscious. He picked her up and carried her. He was looking for the control room, so he can turn this ship around and go somewhere where he won't be chased by bloodthirsty Rheinlanders. He walked to a door which said "Crew Quarters." It was locked, so he kicked it open. He beat up a sleeping Rheinlander and threatened to kill him if he didn't tell him where the control room for this ship is. He followed the man's directions until he got to a large set of doors. He walked into the room. He sneaked behind the people who were controlling the ship and crushed their skulls with his hands. He threw their bodies on the floor. He typed in some coordinates into the ship's computer and it set course for the Verrazano jumpgate. He cleaned his bloody hands with a bottle of hand sanitizer he found in a drawer. He put his unconscious sister into a chair and just waited.

Mark noticed a folded piece of paper laying on the console. He unfolded it and examined it. It was a diagram of the gunboat. He saw that the gunboat had a small docking bay. He wanted to take Jacob's Sabre or at least get his Feuer back and make sure his sister got her ship back as well. Unfortunately, she was still unconscious. Mark's anger-fueled strength was gone. He cut the gunboat's engines and left his sister on the chair. He saw a compartment under the console. He opened it and found an acid-pellet gun, a rather unpleasant weapon.

He left the control room and used the map to find his way to the docking bay. When he got there, he saw 3 ships- a Sabre, a Feuer, and his sister's Guardian. He noticed a sleeping soldier at a desk near the 3 ships. An acid shot to his head woke him up as his skin was being eaten away. The soldier rolled on the floor, screaming. His skull was completely dissolved in 10 seconds. Mark could not believe what he did. He smashed the acid gun against the wall and said that he would rather be unarmed than be a brutal fiend (at least that's what he called himself). But then, he realized that he shouldn't die for trying to even the odds with people who took him away for no reason. He took the soldier's gun- a standard issue ion blaster.

He went back to the control room and found his sister dead... or just still unconscious. Whatever it was, she was bleeding from her forehead. He screamed, because his sister was his only relative. He frantically searched around the consoles for bandages. He found a first-aid kit. He opened it and grabbed the bandages and some hydrogen peroxide cream. He used a cotton-tip swab to apply the hydrogen peroxide to Elena's wound. He washed it with a bottle of Zilder's Lik-Wid, and then applied the bandages. He decided to put her in the cargo hold of the Sabre, after putting her into a oxygen-backed bag. He carried her to the docking bay. A terrible thought came to his mind- he didn't have the activation keys for any of the ships! However, he thought that maybe the dead soldier might have them.

The soldier did. Mark took the Sabre's activation keys and put them in the slot. The cockpit window opened. Mark used a ladder to climb up and then he opened the cargo hold. He put Elena inside, and then went to the cockpit. He activated the Sabre's engines, blew off the bay door, and flew out of the gunboat.

Mark had always dreamed of flying a Sabre or some other awesome ship. It was amazing to be finally flying one. He checked the weapons system and saw that it had 6 Red Hessian proton cannons and a proton turret. He set course for the Verrazano jumpgate.







Edited by - Chocolate Stiletto on 12/17/2006 12:33:04 PM

I think your story is coming along great keep it up.

Mark got to the jumpgate. There was a battleship there- Battleship "Braunkiff", and it was scanning everyone and identifying them before it would let them pass through the jumpgate. Mark hailed the battleship.

"This is Battleship Braunkiff. Identify yourself before you may pass."

"I am Mark Zellerman. I am a freelancer heading to Liberty space."

"I am not asking for your words. Send me a data packet with your identification data in it." At this point Mark realized that he can't send proper ID. This is not his ship! He ignored the battleship and hailed the jumpgate. It began to open.

"Freelancer! Identify yourself, or you will be destroyed." The gate was almost opened. "FREELANCER! YOU HAVE 10 SECONDS TO ID YOURSELF!"

Mark thought, "Come on, gate! Let me in!" The gate began to shine with the energy that sucked you into hyperspace. Mark was 200 meters away when the battleship opened fire. His shield was disabled after plasma bolts hit him, but he went through. After 10 minutes of flying through hyperspace, he got to the Verrazano system.

He detected several ships on an intercept course. The computer identified them as Rheinland Military fighters. For a second, Mark thought that he could just rip them apart with his guns, but the console display showed them as Fordck Rheinland Very Heavy Fighters. 3 of them. He cursed, and activated his cruise engines.

"Not so fast, b*tch!" One of the militants launched a cruise disruptor. Mark could feel his ship shaking as his shield was destroyed. His hull was taking a beating as he desperately flew around in circles. "These guys must have some kind of aiming robots, I've never seen such perfect aim!", Mark thought to himself. Then Mark turned the tables on them when he pressed a yellow button on the weapons console. What happened was that little pieces of the ship were superheated and flung at enemies. An absolute move of desperation, perhaps.

"What the **** is he doing? Pieces of that ship are destroying us!", screamed a Rheinland Military officer. His shield was destroyed and the incoming shrapnel made holes in its hull. Miracolously, a shrapnel shard was stuck in the engine, causing the reactor to overheat. The ship exploded in a ball of fire.

"You asshole! You killed our commander! You shall pay for this-" the soldier's speech was cut off when the shrapnel pierced his cockpit and slammed into his head. The ship was now a derelict, without power and anyone to control it.

Mark tractored in the weapons that were still intact, and he destroyed the last fighter. There was no equipment left intact off of it. He then went to the nearest trade lane. He activated it and simply waited until he got to whatever station at the end of the lane.

1 Minute later, he landed on IMG Station Kheinlugg. He was feeling hungry, so he went to the bar to get some Synth Paste and a drink.

"Hello, sir. What can I get you?", asked the bartender. He seemed friendly.

"A bowl of Synth Paste. What kind of drinks do you have?"

"We have Rheinland Cognac, Liberty Ale, Sidewinder Fang, Kusari Kalachi, and Smirtin's Perfect Vodka."

"Do you have anything... non-alcoholic? Liberty soda or something like that?"

"Ah, I see, you don't drink, sir. I don't either. I can give you a milkshake, we ran out of soda. A bunch of Bounty Hunters ordered it. "

"It's best not to become intoxicated during a dogfight.", remarked Mark. "Can I have a vanilla milkshake and a bowl of Synth Paste?"

"Yes, of course. I will get it for you in a second." The bartender got a Plas-Nex bowl, held it up to a machine, and a portion of Synth Paste was put on it. He also put vanilla extract into another machine and poured a milkshake into a cup. He gave them to Mark. "Ok, sir. That will be 55 credits."

"Alright." Mark attached his NN Communicator (which is also a recorder, organizer, cash holder, etc.) to a money register. He made the transaction.

"Thank you for your business.", said the bartender. Mark went to sit at a table. He quietly ate his Paste and drank the milkshake, and threw away the Plas-Nex cup and bowl. After that, he talked to a "room man" (as said on a sign above the man's office). He rented a room from him. The man thanked Mark and gave him a set of biometric card keys. Mark walked through the hallways of the station and then he got to his room. He unlocked the door and went in. Since he didn't have any belongings with him, except for his Neural Net and Sabre activation keys, he didn't have to unpack anything. Suddenly, a horrible thought came to his mind. He had forgotten his sister in the cargo hold! Instantly, he ran out of the suite, locked the door and ran through the hallways. He got to the cargo bay.

He used the keys to activate his Sabre. He climbed into the cockpit with an escalator that was designed to help people get into their ships. He pressed a button which opened the cargo hold. He quickly got into the cargo hold and opened the oxygen bag which was holding Elena. He noticed that the guage on the bag was not at 0, which meant that there was still oxygen left in the bag. He picked up Elena, closed the cargo hold, and got down from the ship. Then, he found a metal cart. He put his sister on it and pushed it until he saw someone. A woman with red hair.

"Excuse me, do you know where the medical room is?", asked Mark.

"Yes, I do. Follow me.", said the woman. They crossed through the hallways (again) until they got to the medical room. Mark thanked the woman, who now left the vicinity. He pushed the cart into the room. He saw a man in the room. He was wearing a green uniform.

"Hello. I am the medic. What is the problem?", asked the medic, a tall man.

"It's my sister. She is unconscious."

"Ok, push her into my room. I will scan her to see if there is anything wrong. Do you know why she is unconscious and has a bandage on her head?"

"No.", lied Mark. "Do you think she will be alright?"

"We'll see soon enough." The medic put her on the scanning machine and scanned her. He read the results of the scan. "I have good news.", he said to Mark. "She is merely unconscious. Not in a state of coma. She will wake up soon." Mark left the room, carrying his sister.

1 Minute later, he got to his room and unlocked the door. He laid Elena on the sofa. He laid on the bed and went to sleep.

Mark woke up to see Elena hugging him. He was overjoyed to see his sister finally out of her unconscious state.

"Mark, thank you for getting me out of that corrupted gunboat. Where are we now?"

"You're welcome. We're on IMG Station Kheinlugg in the Verrazano system. Unfortunately, I was not able to recover your ship, but I took Jacob's Sabre."

"Oh well. I don't suppose you can spare me any credits to buy a ship?"

"I could. How about we relax for an hour or two and then go to the ship dealer here?" Mark picked up the TV remote and turned it on. Elena seemed very happy. She sat down next to Mark and watched the news. A Rheinland news reporter appeared on the screen.

"Today, in the Frankfurt system, we have located an abandoned Rheinland gunboat floating around not too far away from the tradelane to the Verrazano jumpgate. We will return to this after the commercial break." Mark laughed at this, because it was his fault that he had killed the crew of the ship (although he didn't know what became of the soldiers who took him from Holstein).

"Wow, Mark! You took out the crew all by yourself? How?"

"I.. don't know. Let's just say that I got very angry." The commercials ended, and the reporter came back on the screen.

"This gunboat was found by a small police patrol. It was operational, although the docking bay door was destroyed, and its crew was killed. We are investigating this. Sadly, we also found evidence that an important commando team was killed in one of the machinery rooms of the gunboat." Mark stood up and laughed. That was how those corrupt soldiers died! Elena seemed happy as well. Mark sat back down on the couch.

"The commandos were crushed in the machinery. A funeral will be held for them sometime soon. The gunboat's systems indicated no activity for the past 2 days. Some terrorists must have taken over the gunboat, yet they abandoned it. Most likely they were trying to find some secret weapons. However, we did find one survivor, a half-dead janitor, who is in a coma for now. We will interrogate him later. An interesting find on the gunboat were 2 ships, a Liberty Guardian heavy fighter, registered to an "Elena Zellerman", and a Feuer light fighter, registered to a "Mark Zellerman". We will find these terrorists and find some insight into this crime. End transmission."

Mark looked very unhappy now. "If Rheinland really does try its best to find us, most Bounty Hunters and police will be after us! We must get as far away from Rheinland as possible."

"Don't worry, Mark, you could just go to Kusari or Liberty and hide there. But first, let's go look for a ship, so I could fly around, too. In fact, I would like to fly by myself now. It's not that I don't like your company, Mark. I just want to explore Sirius by myself."

"That's fine. I'll just go to Kusari by myself. I've never been there anyway. It might be an interesting trip." Mark went into the bathroom to take a shower. Elena just laid on the couch, waiting for Mark to finish so she could wash herself, as well.

10 Minutes later, Mark had put on his clothes and was fully washed and dry. Elena went to the bathroom next. She left 20 minutes later, also full washed, clothed, and dry. They locked the door and left, headed for the ship dealer.

"Hello, how may I help you?", asked the ship dealer.

"I would like to buy my sister a ship. Like... that Hawk I see over there. How much does it cost?"

"Ah, a Hawk. It is a fine choice. I'll sell you it for 60,000 credits."

"Alright, it is a deal." Mark paid the dealer, bought Elena a NN Communicator, had the Hawk equipped with his sister's choice of weapons- 2 photon blasters and 2 ion guns, and gave his sister the activation key to the ship and 4,000 credits for food or whatever she needed. Mark spent a total of 112,000 credits. He didn't really mind, because he had a fully equipped Sabre and 153,523 more credits. Elena kissed her brother on the cheek and told the dealer to move the ship to the docking bay. She left the room.

10 Minutes later, after eating more Synth Paste and drinking another milkshake, Mark launched from the station. He wondered how he would get to Kusari from here. Then, he remembered that he was in the Independent Worlds right now, and Kusari is connected to the Northern Independent Worlds. He saw a transport hauling Consumer Goods.

"Excuse me, do you know how to get from this system to the Kepler or Galileo systems?", asked Mark.

"Yes, there is a jumpgate from here to Galileo. I'm uploading its coordinates right now."

Mark received the coordinates. He thanked the transport, and went to the specified tradelane. After that, he was about to enter the next tradelane when a gigantic battleship decloaked in front of him. It looked like a Liberty Dreadnaught.

"Mark Zellerman, this is the Battleship Osiris. We mean no harm. We want you to dock. This is some important matters of The Order!"

"The Order?" Mark admired this "criminal group". It wasn't composed of pirates attacking things at random, but it was a bunch of people who destroyed politically important targets, and that was it. They never fought back at things that were not a target, at least that's what he heard on the news. Mark landed immediately.

"Mr. Zellerman!", greeted a tall, dark man. "I am Orillion, the leader of The Order. We need you to help us fight the Nomads." Now Mark was very confused.

"How do you know who I am, and how did you find me? And who are the Nomads?", asked Mark. "But, it is such an honor to meet the leader of The Order."

"No honors necessary. All will be explained to you shortly. I advise that you get some rest. Here is the key to your room. You'll find it with this map-" Orillion handed Mark a key and a paper map. "I'll call you down tomorrow for briefing."

Mark was very confused, but since the leader of this group was talking to him like he was someone important, he felt that he would find protection from Rheinland here. He used the map to find his room. When he did, he used the key to open the door. He put the key and map on a table and then fell on the bed. He went to sleep.

Mark woke up and noticed that he still wasn't called down by Orillion. He turned on the TV and decided to watch the news channel. Since there was still some commercials going on, he went to the kitchen and checked the refrigerator. He found ice cream, ham, and a box of something he couldn't recognize. He opened a cupboard and found bread. He made a ham sandwich and was about to go back to the TV when he heard a ringing sound. He realized that it was coming from a small computer mounted on the wall. It said "Incoming Call". Mark answered it.

"Hello? Mr. Zellerman?", asked Orillion.

"Orillion? Am I supposed to go to briefing?"

"Yes. You can use your map to get to the briefing room. Oh, and by the way, take your ship keys with you." The call ended. Mark took the map and keys, locked the door, and left. He went to the briefing room.

"Ah, Mr. Zellerman. Please, take a seat." Mark sat down at the table. He saw a black-haired female and a brown-haired male sitting at the table as well.

"I have called you down here to explain a few things, Mr. Zellerman."

"Please, Orillion. Just call me Mark."

"Alright, Mark. We know who you are because we saw your ship on the news. Obviously, if that gunboat was taken over by you and your wife-"

Mark blushed. "Sir, that is my sister's ship, not my wife's ship. I'm not married."

"Ah, I see. We have an operative who can seek the locations and destinations of people. We were looking for you since we felt we can give you protection from Rheinland."

"I understand, but why would you want to give me protection?", asked Mark.

"We, The Order, always need new pilots to help us fight the Nomads."

"Nomads? What nomads? I don't understand.. do you need my help in fighting some other criminal group?"

"No. The Nomads are an alien species who try to take over Sirius. The Order was formed to destroy these aliens and keep Sirius safe from them."

There was confusion and fear in Mark's voice. "What..? Aliens? It all sounds so... unbelievable. That makes sense- you're not criminals, you're simply seen as criminals, but you're really helping the people of Sirius."

"Exactly. Will you help us win this war? I will have a new ship for you ready. You can exchange your Sabre for an Order fighter. Our engineering in ship mechanics is quite possibly the best in all of Sirius."

"Yes, I will help you. But first, can you tell me who these people are?", said Mark, pointing to the male and female sitting on the opposite side of the table.

"My name is Jun'ko Zane. I am a colonel in the Order. Orillion has sent me to help you with your first Order mission.", said the black haired female.

"And, I am Trent. Orillion also sent me to help you.", said the male.

"Well, that settles it. Mark, you are to follow the colonels and they will give you all of your Order information."

Mark, Trent, and Jun'ko left the room and walked down the hall.

"So, Mark, what were you doing on that gunboat anyway?", asked Trent.

"I don't want to talk about it. Where are we going?"

"We're going to the bar. To eat!"

"That sounds good. Let's go!" Trent and Jun'ko laughed at him. Then, they got to the bar.



Edited by - Chocolate Stiletto on 12/20/2006 2:02:34 PM

After they ate, Mark, and Jun'ko went to the "Armory". Trent went to the briefing room.

"Alright, recruit. You are receiving an Order uniform and then we will get you a new ship." Jun'ko pressed a button on the metal wall and a piece of the wall went in, then it moved to the side. Mark could see a lot of black jumpsuits getting cleaned and then the ones that are in storage. Jun'ko took one off of the conveyor belt and gave it to Mark. He took it.

"Thanks, Jun'ko.", asked Mark.

"You're welcome. You can call me Juni. Let's go to the ship dealer." They left the Armory and walked down the hall. They got to an elevator. Juni pressed a button that said "SHIP". They could hear the humming of the moving elevator. After a few seconds, they exited the elevator.

"Alright, Mark. I am going to talk to the ship dealer. I'll wave at you, and then you should come over and talk to the dealer. OK?"

"I understand." Mark leaned against the wall. He watched Juni walk over to the dealer. He saw them talking to each other.

5 Minutes later, Juni waved at him. Mark walked over.

"Hello, Mr. Mark. I understand that you have a Sabre ship, am I correct?", asked the dealer.

"Yes, I do. Do I have to trade it in for an Order ship?"

"Well, I'll compare the statistics of both ships and you can decide." The dealer typed something into the computer on the table near him. 2 Charts appeared; a Sabre's statistics and an Anubis MK III's statistics. Mark read them carefully.

07C "Anubis MK III" Order Very Heavy Fighter:

An Order ship, used by them to secure, infiltrate, and destroy things. An advanced variation of the original Anubis fighter and its second variation.

Nanobots/Batteries: 73/73
Guns/Turrets: 7/0
Hull: 13200
Optimal Weapon Class: 9
Max. Weapon Class: 10

Mark decided to trade in the fully loaded Sabre for this ship with a full array of weapons. After hearing the different choices, the dealer gave him a stylus and a electronic board to write on. Mark scribbled: 6 tachyon blasters and 1 "Ra" missile launcher. The dealer told Mark to leave his Sabre in the docking bay, give him the activation keys, and that his new ship will be ready in 2 hours. Juni came over to Mark.

"Well, what do you want to do now? I have no missions as of now. I only had to help you, and your new ship isn't due for 2 hours.", said Juni.

"I suppose we can sit down and talk. I have a few things to ask you." Mark and Juni went over to a nearby table and sat down.

"So, Juni, what's it like being in the Order? Is it interesting? How did you get into the Order?"

"It's a long story, but I'll tell you the details if you're willing to listen."

"Don't worry. I am." So, for the next 2 hours, Juni told him about how she met Trent, what happened soon after she met him, about Freeport 7, the Nomads, and how she got into the Order. Mark seemed very interested in the story.

"And then, the Nomads were, how should I say this? They were sucked into some kind of energy source. We haven't heard from them for while, then-" Juni was interrupted by the ship dealer.

"Excuse me, Ms. Zane and Mr. Mark. Mark's ship is ready, and his Sabre is now under the Order's control. You can take it now, if you wish."

"Thanks, but can you just give me the activation keys, and I'll take the ship a little bit later?" The dealer fished a set of card-keys out of his pocket. He handed them to Mark and walked away.

"Listen, Juni, I have something to tell you. I don't know if many people have it, but I want to hear your opinion."

"Does this involve me?", asked Juni with a smirk on her face.

"No, but when I was on that Rheinland Gunboat, the one that was found in the Frankfurt system, my sister and I were being.. tortured by a guard. I got very angry, and all of a sudden I ripped apart my handcuffs, smashed the guard's skull into pieces, and rampaged throughout the gunboat, killing the crew. It was a strength that I never knew I had, and I don't know where it came from.", said Mark. Juni seemed a little bit uneasy.

"Anger-induced strength? I've heard about it. It is a natural ability that some people are born with. You did say that you became very angry at that time, correct?", asked Juni.

"Yes, I was. The strength disappeared as soon as I lost my anger."

"It's a natural ability, but I'm no expert about it. You should see a professional neurologist to get more information. Anyway, don't you want to fly your ship?"

"That sounds like a good idea. I'm going to take it out of here, and dock it in the docking bay. Can you meet me there in a few minutes?"

"Of course! I don't have any orders from Orillion right now. I'll see you there.", said Juni. Mark went toward his ship and used a ladder to get up in the cockpit. He saw a manual inside, and flipped through the pages. He found that it was nearly the same as flying a Sabre. The controls were arranged in a similar way. Mark pressed a few buttons, and the Anubis got off the ground. He hailed the airlock controller. The doors opened and he went inside the compartment. The doors were sealed, and the second pair of airlock doors opened. Mark flew out of them. The doors closed.

"Alright. Let's see how to get to the docking bay.", Mark said to himself. He set course for the docking bay doors. He hailed the battleship and the doors opened. He went inside the airlock compartment as the doors were sealed. The second set of doors opened and Mark docked. He got out of the ship and saw Juni.

"Mark! There you are. Orillion said he wants you and me to go to the briefing room right now. He told me that he would explain everything when we get there."

2 Minutes later, they got to the briefing room. Orillion was waiting for them.

"Ah, Mark and Juni. I have called you here because we are moving the Osiris to Omicron Minor. I wanted to inform you that an Order patrol discovered a Nomad Jumpgate outside of the asteroid field. They want us to send forces to investigate what lays past that gate. And, Mark, since you've probably never been to Omicron Minor before, this should be an interesting experience. You're both dismissed."

"Yes, sir. Come on, Mark. Let's go back to the bar. I really need a drink."

"You drink? I don't, but let's go anyway.", said Mark. They both left the room and went to the bar. When they got there, Mark sat down and Juni went to talk to the bartender.

"Hi, Andrew. Give me the usual.", said Juni.

"Alright, Juni. I'll give you your drink." Andrew grabbed a glass and went over to a machine. He put the glass under a nozzle and pulled a lever. The glass was filled with the watery substance that the Libertonians called Liberty Ale. He gave it to Juni.

"Thank you.", said Juni. She walked over to Mark and sat down. "Hey, Mark. I do drink, but the thing is, I don't like the drink too strong. Maybe the Rheinlanders do, but I don't. How about I get you something?"

"Hmm.. I would like chocolate milk, please."

"Ok, Mark." Juni walked over to Andrew. "Andrew, can you get chocolate milk for my friend over there-" she said, pointing to Mark. Andrew nodded and opened a refrigerator. He took out a bottle of milk and gave it to Juni. Juni walked back to Mark and gave him the milk.

"Thanks, Juni." Mark opened the milk and drank some of it. He put its cap back on and put it on the table.

"You know what, Mark? You're quite handsome.", said Juni. Mark blushed.

"Thanks for the flattery, Juni."

"I'm serious. How old are you, anyway? I'm 36 years old."

"Let's just say that I'm almost half your age."

"And you can fly a ship? Wow! Where did you get that Sabre, anyway?"

"From the gunboat that I, um, "terrorized". It belonged to one of my sister's friends, who was killed by a Rheinland commando team."

"On the news, I heard that you left yours and your sister's ships on the gunboat. What happened to her, anyway?"

"She was unconscious at the time, so I had to carry her in the cargo hold of the Sabre. I bought her a new ship, and now she is freelancing somewhere."
***************************************************************************************
4 Weeks later, the Osiris got to Omicron Minor. Mark was finally able to fly around. Juni became his friend. She flew with him for the first time. The desolate, green system that Mark saw was nothing that he expected.

"Wow, what a strange place for a group of freedom fighters. Where is the "Planet Toledo" that you keep telling me about?", said Mark.

"It's a few kilometers from here. Follow me. I'll take you there." They flew for a couple of minutes and got to a clearing in the asteroid field. Mark saw a white planet.





Edited by - Chocolate Stiletto on 1/20/2007 11:24:56 AM

Mark was busy staring at the planet until Juni interrupted him.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Let's dock!", said Juni. She hailed the docking ring and it opened, then she docked with it. Mark could see her landing on the planet. He also hailed the docking ring. A robot's voice could be heard.

"Freelance Beta 5-2, you are cleared to land. You may proceed." Mark maneuvered his ship toward the docking ring and let his autopilot do the rest of the work. He deactivated the autopilot after he had cleared the second docking ring. Since he didn't know exactly where the Order base was, he activated a beacon that would detect incoming radio waves. He flew around until he heard a message coming from the computer.

"Radio waves detected from unknown source. Would you like to proceed to the source? Activate autopilot if you wish." Mark activated the autopilot. His ship turned around and activated its cruise engines. After 30 seconds of flight, Mark got to the Order base, which was an equally breathtaking sight as the desolate asteroid field around it. It was surrounded by a small snowy mountain. The base was most likely built in a crater of some sort. He docked on one of the landing pads and got out of the ship. He saw Juni waving at him near the base, and he walked over to her.

"OK, Juni. We're finally on Planet Toledo. Now what do we do?"

"Orillion wants us to meet him in the auditorium. All of the Order forces in this system are going to this meeting.", said Juni.

"I see. When do we go there?"

"Right now. Just follow me and I'll take you there." Juni started walking toward a pair of metal doors. Mark followed her and they entered. Inside the base, Mark could see a lot of people wearing the same black Order jumpsuits. They were busy talking. Mark just kept following Juni. They got to another pair of metal doors. Juni took a card-key out of her jumpsuit pocket and swiped it into a device on the wall. The metal doors opened, and they walked in. Mark saw a lot of metal seats arranged in rows, and then he saw Orillion in the front. He saw Orillion waving at them.

"Juni, I think Orillion wants us to come up to the front of the auditorium. Let's go."

"I think so, too." They began walking down the middle of the auditorium unti they got to a little staircase, and they walked up the staircase.

"Colonel Zane. Lieutanant Mark! I have an important issue to discuss soon. I want you sit up here, because I want you to tell me what you know about the new Nomad jumpgate we have discovered.", said Orillion.

"Um, Orillion? Why do you treat me like I'm someone important? I'm no more than a recruit in the Order. How can I be a lieutanant already?"

"It's hard to explain. The operative with the alien artifact can... see beyond the eyes of reality, so to speak. He says that he has heard the aliens talking about you. They say you can bring peace to this sector."

Mark had a strange look in his eyes. "Me? Is that why you looked for me in the first place?"

"Yes, it is. Oh, the seats in this auditorium are filling up. I have to speak to the people very soon. Mark, just sit down. When I tell you to speak to the audience, just tell them all you know about the Nomads. Understood?" Mark nodded, and then he sat down next to Juni. The seats were almost completely filled. Mark could see Trent sitting across from them.

5 Minutes later, Orillion began speaking. "Hello, people of the Order. I have called you here today because we have found something very disturbing- a Nomad jumpgate. It is in this system, but outside of the asteroid field. There are no reports of Nomad activity in most of Sirius. We have only detected them in parts of Omicron Alpha and Omicron Gamma, around jumpholes leading to currently uncharted territory. However, these Nomads pose no threat to us, because they don't leave the area around those jumpholes, even if they do attack the ships near them. We are going to exterminate these Nomads, find out what's through those jumpholes, and figure out where the Nomad jumpgate leads us to. There is a possiblity that it is simply an abandoned structure, left behind from the first Nomad war. I am going to assign you to attack squads. Please listen carefully. The Alpha, Beta, and Gamma wings are going to be assigned to Red Force. Red Force pilots, please exit the auditorium and get to your ships. I will give further instructions shortly." 15 people got up and left the auditorium. "Delta, Epsilon, and Zeta wings are going to be assigned to the Blue Force. Blue Force pilots, please exit the auditorium and get to your ships." Another 15 people left. "Eta, Theta, and Iota wings are going to be assigned to Yellow Force. Yellow Force pilots, please exit and get to your ships." This process continued until all of the wings were assigned to groups. After the auditorium was empty, except for Orillion, Trent, Juni, Mark, and some Rheinlander, Orillion began to address them.

"Alright. I am going to lead you all as one group. The Order Honor Guard. Trent, Mark, Juni, and Herr von Claussen (the Rheinlander), we will launch in a few minutes. Now get to your ships. Dismissed." They all left the auditorium and went to the docking pads. Mark got to his ship and waited for Orillion to give them orders." Soon, Orillion's voice could be heard on all channels.

"Ok, everyone. Let's go! I'll give you the coordinates in space." All of the Order ships got off the landing pads and flew up toward the planet's "below-space" docking rings. The ships began to dock with the rings and they flew up, and left the athmosphere, and exited the second docking ring. After a few minutes, all of the ships had gotten off the planet. Orillion began to upload the coordinates of the Nomad jumpgate into everyone's computers.

Edited by - Chocolate Stiletto on 12/24/2006 6:26:13 AM

Nice story! Waiting for next installments.

Yeah keep it up.

ty for the comments. i'll update tommorow.

Mark heard a beep coming from his navigation system. He pressed a button and the coordinates Orillion gave him appeared on the screen.

"OK, everyone! Proceed to waypoint coordinates!", said Orillion. The fleet of Order ships began charging their cruise engines. A few seconds later, they began moving at 750 kilometers per hour toward the waypoint. Mark activated the autopilot and his ship dodged the asteroids in the asteroid field. He was feeling hungry, so he opened a compartment and took out a bar of dried food, pulled down the mouthpiece of his helmet, and began eating the bar. By the time he was finished, the fleet was 50 kilometers away from the waypoint and 40 kilometers away from Planet Toledo. Everything was going according to plan.

Suddenly, the fleet's engines were deactivated. Mark tried to reactivate his engines, but they didn't work. The whole fleet stopped moving. Much to everyone's surprise, a Nomad battleship decloaked in front of them.

"Damn it! All ships, destroy that battleship!", yelled Orillion. The Order fleet began powering up their weapons.

"This is Red Force. Engaging Nomad battleship!", said the leader of Red Force. "Sensors indicate a large amount of incoming ships, direction system-wise West-North-West. Profiling.. profiling... no data received on incoming ships."

Mark began blasting away at the battleship with his tachyon weapons. They had a long range, so he could easily evade incoming Nomad missiles. The previously desolate asteroid field was lit up with the projectiles shot out of ships' weapons. The battleship was taking a lot of damage. It was at half-health now.
Unfortunately, another battleship and 20 escort fighters came to the battle. The fighters were just as blue as the battleship. They died quickly, but they had very strong weapons. Suddenly, new Nomad fighters formed from the battleship. The battleship turned into 60 Nomad fighters. The Order fleet instantly sprang into action. Every pilot attacked the nearest ship, although they did have to use a lot of nanobots and shield batteries if they were hit by a Nomad's weapon.

After 15 minutes of flying and fighting, the fleet got to the jumpgate. There were no Nomads detected in the area. Orillion hailed it and told the pilots that they will proceed through the jumpgate in groups of 5. The first group was the Order Honor group. Trent, Juni, Mark, Herr von Claussen, and Orillion went through the jumpgate. The rest of the ships would follow them.

10 Minutes later, the fleet got to the Nomad system. It was another desolate system, full of green asteroids. Orillion spoke over the comm channels.

"Ok, no Nomad activity here. Now we simply fly straight until we exit this cloud or we reach a clearing. Let's go!" The fleet began charging their cruise engines. Mark had saved the coordinates of the jumpgate in his computer.

After a relatively short flight, the fleet exited the cloud. What they saw made them very uneasy. There was a lot of Nomad jumpgates in the area. No Nomad activity, but a lot of jumpgates. Unfortunately, none of the Order pilots had any idea as to where the jumpgates take you to. Mark's proximity alert went off. He counted 30 incoming ships. He thought to himself, Most likely, they were Nomads, and they might be more than just silly blue ships. Mark was right. A squadron of metallic ships with sharp blades attached to them were attacking the fleet. They seemed very well-equipped and their ships had incredibly strong shields. It took many shots just to take out the shield of a Nomad ship. Their purple weapons, whatever kind of particles they used, did insane amounts of damage.

Mark noticed that a Nomad ship was firing at him. His shields were coming down quickly! He quickly cut his engines, spun around, and shot at the alien. His weapons did barely any damage to it. He launched a missile. The alien shot at it and it was destroyed. Mark was sweating heavily, as his hull was shaking under the pressure of incoming Nomad projectiles.

"Hull breach imminent!",screamed his computer.

"God damn it!", yelled Mark. He pressed the "EJECT" button, and instantly, everything went black for him. His ship exploded behind him. Luckily for Mark, the alien ignored his escape pod and went on to harrass the nearest Order fighter.
************************************************************************************************
Mark's eyes opened. He saw that he was in a brightly lit room. His vision was blurred as he tried to adjust to the new sensation of bright lights. He could hear someone talking in the background. He saw a blue creature come near him, but he didn't understand what it was saying. His arms were tied to a table of some sort, and his legs were in some kind of box. He couldn't move.

"Iaivabrin pordi oigna ioafa ilsnad!", said the blue creature. "Oprins pordi oigna awrins kilniks. Spachjoins arion pordio parkip araw!" Mark saw another creature come over and talk to it.

"Iaivabrin? Kilanpor spigma iporat ilsnad, arsion akilak!", said the creature. Mark saw it take a blue scalpel. It came closer to him. It stuck the scalpel in Mark's arm. Mark screamed in pain. He felt his arm stinging. The alien began laughing at him. Mark felt the anger building up inside of him. The alien took some kind of leaf and rubbed it against Mark's skin. Instantly, his skin felt as if it were on fire. He screamed, and the alien kept laughing. He was in a state of rage. He felt the same kind of feeling as when he was on the Rheinland gunboat. He felt some strength come to him. His arms became thicker, his scalpel wound instantly healed, and he felt a lot of adrenaline in his system. He knew what to do next.

Mark ripped apart his manacles, crumpled the metal box surrounding his legs into a ball, and threw it at the alien. It made a hole in its head. The alien gasped for air as its green blood dripped onto the floor. It died. The other alien backed away from Mark. He saw it pull out a weapon from its robe. He wasted no time in grabbing the alien's legs and then bending them until they broke. It screamed in pain. Mark saw a metal door. Near the door was a device. Mark punched it, and the door opened. He exited the room, but he came back quickly and grabbed the dying alien's weapon. It appeared to be some kind of ray gun, similar to the ones used in the Liberty Navy. Mark tested it on the wall. It fired a small red projectile which made a small hole in the wall. "Definately a ray gun.", he thought. He walked down the well-lit hallway, and then another alien with a blue knife lunged at him. Mark ducked, grabbed it by the abdomen, held the ray gun to its head, and pulled the trigger. The alien died and the wall was sprayed with green blood.

5 Minutes later, Mark took out his NN Communicator and contacted Orillion.

"Orillion? This is Mark. Where are you? What happened to the Order fleet?"

"Mark? Are you alright? What happened to you?"

"I'm fine, but I have no idea where I am. All I know is that I am on some kind of alien base. I just got attacked by some blue creatures."

"You're on a Nomad base! Damn! I have no idea how I will get you from there. I am sorry, Mark. However, I will try my best to find you." Mark shuddered. He turned his communicator off. He decided look for a ship that he would use to escape.He turned left and continued to walk down the hallway.

Mark went down the hallway, and then 3 Nomads attacked him. He grabbed one, pulled its organic blade off of its arm, and sliced them. They screamed in pain. One of them pulled out a pistol and was about to shoot Mark. He guickly grabbed the Nomad's spine, and folded it until it snapped with a loud CRACK. He grabbed the paralyzed alien, and smashed it against another alien. Its skull was crushed and it died instantly. The last alien limped away. Mark ran after it and shot an ion projectile through its head. There was blood everywhere. Mark put the ion gun back in his pocket and walked away.

After 5 minutes of walking, Mark came to a pair of blue doors. They automatically opened when he approached. When he walked in, he realized that he had come to the docking bay. He saw the same kind of metallic ships that had scared away the Order fleet docked in the bay. He also saw some human ships. He quickly ran to a Rheinland Valkyrie and saw that the activation keys were attached to it. He took them, got into the cockpit, and activated the ship's systems. The computer came online.

"Reactor online. Nuclear fusion stability OK. Weapons system online. Engines online. Life support online. Oxygen and nitrogen levels OK. Radio systems online. Profiling hardware... testing... testing.. all systems are ready." Mark grabbed the control joysticks and flew toward the airlock. Mark blasted the doors open, flew out of the station, and activated his cruise engines. Hopefully, the space vacuum now exposed to the station due to the airlock being destroyed would kill some aliens. Mark looked at his navigation map. He was surprised at what he saw. He was in the Omega-47 system, which was just outside of the Omega-41 planetary fragments field. The base was in the "northeast" part of the system. Mark set a waypoint to the Omega-9 jumphole, which was 31 kilometers away. He sunk back into his seat and waited. The area was unusually quiet. After all, there was a Nomad base in the area.

After 10 minutes of flying, Mark got to the jumphole. He flew into it, and then he was sucked into hyperspace. The life support on a ship was a real lifesaver. It completely nullified the effects of inter-system travel. Mark sat back and enjoyed the ride.

After 5 minutes, he cleared the jumphole. He looked at the system map and set course for the nearest trade lane. He got to it, and then he activated it. As he was flying to Edinburgh station, he was daydreaming. He wanted his Anubis back and the Nomad presence to be gone. Then, he got to the station. Since he was feeling very hungry, he hailed the station.

"This is freelancer Mark Zellerman. I am requesting permission to dock." His call was answered.

"Roger that, Mark Zellerman. You are clear to dock with docking port five." Mark flew over to docking port 5 and docked with the station.

5 Minutes later, he got to the bar. He walked over to the bartender.

"Hello, sir. Can I get you something?", asked the bartender.

"Yes. I would like a bowl of Synth Paste and a glass of chocolate milk." The bartender nodded and walked over to the metal refrigerator. He pressed the "flash thaw" button on one of the compartments, and a light "click" could be heard. He took the bowl of paste out of the refrigerator and set it on the table next to Mark. He went back to the refrigerator and took out a bottle of Joy-O chocolate milk. He gave that to Mark and showed him the electronic tablet bill.

"Alright. That would be 45 credits.", said the bartender. Mark attached his NN Communicator to it and paid the bartender. He took his food and walked away.


Edited by - Chocolate Stiletto on 1/1/2007 7:28:58 AM

Its good and its got some detail keep it up.

Good story, keep it up. Finally a story with daily updates. Thumbs up for you mate.

Mark noticed that a Nomad ship was firing at him. His shields were coming down quickly! He quickly cut his engines, spun around, and shot at the alien. His weapons did barely any damage to it. He launched a missile. The alien shot at it and it was destroyed. Mark was sweating heavily, as his hull was shaking under the pressure of incoming Nomad projectiles.

"Hull breach imminent!",screamed his computer.

"God damn it!", yelled Mark. He pressed the "EJECT" button, and instantly, everything went black for him. His ship exploded behind him. Luckily for Mark, the alien ignored his escape pod and went on to harrass the nearest Order fighter.
************************************************************************************************
Mark's eyes opened. He saw that he was in a brightly lit room. His vision was blurred as he tried to adjust to the new sensation of bright lights. He could hear someone talking in the background. He saw a blue creature come near him, but he didn't understand what it was saying. His arms were tied to a table of some sort, and his legs were in some kind of box. He couldn't move.

"Iaivabrin pordi oigna ioafa ilsnad!", said the blue creature. "Oprins pordi oigna awrins kilniks. Spachjoins arion pordio parkip araw!" Mark saw another creature come over and talk to it.

"Iaivabrin? Kilanpor spigma iporat ilsnad, arsion akilak!", said the creature. Mark saw it take a blue scalpel. It came closer to him. It stuck the scalpel in Mark's arm. Mark screamed in pain. He felt his arm stinging. The alien began laughing at him. Mark felt the anger building up inside of him. The alien took some kind of leaf and rubbed it against Mark's skin. Instantly, his skin felt as if it were on fire. He screamed, and the alien kept laughing. He was in a state of rage. He felt the same kind of feeling as when he was on the Rheinland gunboat. He felt some strength come to him. His arms became thicker, his scalpel wound instantly healed, and he felt a lot of adrenaline in his system. He knew what to do next.

Mark ripped apart his manacles, crumpled the metal box surrounding his legs into a ball, and threw it at the alien. It made a hole in its head. The alien gasped for air as its green blood dripped onto the floor. It died. The other alien backed away from Mark. He saw it pull out a weapon from its robe. He wasted no time in grabbing the alien's legs and then bending them until they broke. It screamed in pain. Mark saw a metal door. Near the door was a device. Mark punched it, and the door opened. He exited the room, but he came back quickly and grabbed the dying alien's weapon. It appeared to be some kind of ray gun, similar to the ones used in the Liberty Navy. Mark tested it on the wall. It fired a small red projectile which made a small hole in the wall. "Definately a ray gun.", he thought. He walked down the well-lit hallway, and then another alien with a blue knife lunged at him. Mark ducked, grabbed it by the abdomen, held the ray gun to its head, and pulled the trigger. The alien died and the wall was sprayed with green blood.

5 Minutes later, Mark took out his NN Communicator and contacted Orillion.

"Orillion? This is Mark. Where are you? What happened to the Order fleet?"

"Mark? Are you alright? What happened to you?"

"I'm fine, but I have no idea where I am. All I know is that I am on some kind of alien base. I just got attacked by some blue creatures."

"You're on a Nomad base! Damn! I have no idea how I will get you from there. I am sorry, Mark. However, I will try my best to find you." Mark shuddered. He turned his communicator off. He decided look for a ship that he would use to escape.He turned left and continued to walk down the hallway.

Mark went down the hallway, and then 3 Nomads attacked him. He grabbed one, pulled its organic blade off of its arm, and sliced them. They screamed in pain. One of them pulled out a pistol and was about to shoot Mark. He guickly grabbed the Nomad's spine, and folded it until it snapped with a loud CRACK. He grabbed the paralyzed alien, and smashed it against another alien. Its skull was crushed and it died instantly. The last alien limped away. Mark ran after it and shot an ion projectile through its head. There was blood everywhere. Mark put the ion gun back in his pocket and walked away.

After 5 minutes of walking, Mark came to a pair of blue doors. They automatically opened when he approached. When he walked in, he realized that he had come to the docking bay. He saw the same kind of metallic ships that had scared away the Order fleet docked in the bay. He also saw some human ships. He quickly ran to a Rheinland Valkyrie and saw that the activation keys were attached to it. He took them, got into the cockpit, and activated the ship's systems. The computer came online.

"Reactor online. Nuclear fusion stability OK. Weapons system online. Engines online. Life support online. Oxygen and nitrogen levels OK. Radio systems online. Profiling hardware... testing... testing.. all systems are ready." Mark grabbed the control joysticks and flew toward the airlock. Mark blasted the doors open, flew out of the station, and activated his cruise engines. Hopefully, the space vacuum now exposed to the station due to the airlock being destroyed would kill some aliens. Mark looked at his navigation map. He was surprised at what he saw. He was in the Omega-47 system, which was just outside of the Omega-41 planetary fragments field. The base was in the "northeast" part of the system. Mark set a waypoint to the Omega-9 jumphole, which was 31 kilometers away. He sunk back into his seat and waited. The area was unusually quiet. After all, there was a Nomad base in the area.

After 10 minutes of flying, Mark got to the jumphole. He flew into it, and then he was sucked into hyperspace. The life support on a ship was a real lifesaver. It completely nullified the effects of inter-system travel. Mark sat back and enjoyed the ride.

After 5 minutes, he cleared the jumphole. He looked at the system map and set course for the nearest trade lane. He got to it, and then he activated it. As he was flying to Edinburgh station, he was daydreaming. He wanted his Anubis back and the Nomad presence to be gone. Then, he got to the station. Since he was feeling very hungry, he hailed the station.

"This is freelancer Mark Zellerman. I am requesting permission to dock." His call was answered.

"Roger that, Mark Zellerman. You are clear to dock with docking port five." Mark flew over to docking port 5 and docked with the station.

5 Minutes later, he got to the bar. He walked over to the bartender.

"Hello, sir. Can I get you something?", asked the bartender.

"Yes. I would like a bowl of Synth Paste and a glass of chocolate milk." The bartender nodded and walked over to the metal refrigerator. He pressed the "flash thaw" button on one of the compartments, and a light "click" could be heard. He took the bowl of paste out of the refrigerator and set it on the table next to Mark. He went back to the refrigerator and took out a bottle of Joy-O chocolate milk. He gave that to Mark and showed him the electronic tablet bill.

"Alright. That would be 45 credits.", said the bartender. Mark attached his NN Communicator to it and paid the bartender. He took his food and walked away.






Edited by - Chocolate Stiletto on 1/1/2007 7:27:18 AM

Nice story it's coming along great.

Good, keep updating.