The liberation of Antiga prime
After liberating the fringe colonies. The combined fleet of Sons of Korhal and The Imperium, slowly moved towards the heartland of the Confederacy, the bleeding beating heart of the Capital of Tarsonis.
With Alexander Speech given prior and the Sons of Korhal guerrilla tactics of sabotaging, logistics.
The Confederacy had thrown into chaos.
Planets gave their sons and daughters to the movement, Mercenaries flocked under their banner as they are more well paid and taken cared off, compared to the confederacy.
The Confederacy is surrounded by all side, with the consequences of their arrogance.
The Protoss scorched their way into the heartlands, the Zerg consumed everything and two major rebel factions, amongst plenty of rebel cells propped across Terran space, and the mass resignations of low level office worker and staff that fled the planet, have made the government in a paralyzed state.
And the other two major players in humanity, be the Umojan Federation and the Kel-Morian Combine is gleefully hungered for their downfall.
They clash for several years now, and seeing the recording of Alexander speech, their minds was pointed to a single thought.
"They fuckin deserved it."
They heard about Alexander neutral aligned planet and occasionally it was also a place to negotiate without the hassles of red tape.
And the news of the Treasury being looted and subjected to population to a weapon testing ground.
Many of the normal people that lived across the other major dominant players condemned the actions, but those were the small people, as the major factions is deliberating on the course of action.
Especially the Sons of Korhal managed to hijacked a third of the Confederacy Fleet in a repair dockyards have crippled the response time of the fleet.
And the Imperium slow grind of firepower to break the wills of the Confederacy.
One such planet have fractured the fragile alliance.
Antiga Prime.
A former ocean planet now turned into a colony prospect as they supply the confederation with wood and beef.
One of many planet that had its population on the brink of revolt. And the soldiers that was station there knew it as well.
The city on the planet was in a martial law.
Families huddle as the shadows of the Confederacy power armor loomed past their homes.
A child peeked out from the blindfold of her home as she could hear the faint of the message in the PA system.
"This City is now under Martial Law! Anyone out at this time is deemed a traitor and will be Shot on site! I repeat, We will shoot you on sight!"
Gunfire of the firing squad echoed throughout the city and the screams that followed behind it.
Fear is the method of controlling them. And death is a deterrence.
The rumbling of the skies of the local air force rumble across the cityscape.
Two Confederate Wraith patrolled the gloomy landscape. Uncaring of the situation below.
"++ Ground control, This is Hog 1, we finished our patrols.... No signs of the rebels. Rotb asap.++"
"++This is Ground Control, We estimated the rebels is making their way to this planet... Keep your birds on the air as soon as possible, over."
"++Ground Control, This is Hog 2, we are running out of fuel, and we can be on the air for about... 10 minutes, give or take due to cruising speed.++"
"++I will make note of that. Resume your task at hand.++"
There was a brief silence between the two pilots...
"++So... You weren't kidding about the fuel?++"
"++I read the fuckin manual, how on tarsonis did you even pass military academy?++"
"++Luck and bootlicking?++" Hog 1 sheepishly spoke.
"++Yeah...I just want to end my tour, and crack a beer and watch crappy shows... What did the people done to deserve this?++
"++They were rebel sympathizers! They deserve to be punished!++"
"++Whoa, dude... Just because they heard that So-called Broadcast they are already out targets...++"
"++What the traitors videos is just purely misinformation! The Confederacy would never do this to the humanity! And he is just a liar! Are you saying that you are a traitor as well!++"
"++Cool down! You're going to make the paperwork after I am dead!++"
Hog 1 felt his plane warning system was beeping like crazy as he was being locked on slowly faded away.
Hog 1 shrugged as his wingman's is already lost it. While he lost most of his humanity in boot camp... Some still lingered in his mind.
"Where... did we go wrong?" He thought to himself.
He was just one of many that was hidden in the darkness of society, born from a mundane family, living a mundane life, until his dad dragged him to a military academy. Because their finances were not doing well.
"Do your best son, and make us proud..." Was his dad last words...
Six years of training... Six brutal years of training to be a pilot, to meet his dad expectations... What society demanded of him.
Crawling from the battle of the talented and untalented, barely clinging on to the academy to not be a dropout.
Only to be assigned to a planet far from home.
And all he get was a 15 minute talk a month to his family. And no overtime pay.
He gripped his control stick...
When was the last time he talked to his father...
He glanced at the gloomy planet below him.
Wondering what happened next...
Was that Tarsonis was under anarchy and his uncle convinced him to escape to the Imperium held planets...
He was stuck between loyalty and family.
He noticed a glare in the distance, what seemed to be like a meteor shower raining down near the city... But something is off, he felt it in his stomach that meteor is not what it seemed...
And he alerted the base.
"++This is Hog 1, we detected a... What seems to be a meteor trails at 5 clicks eastward of Andasa City... Permission to scout and egaging the enemy.++
"++Confirmed, You are to engage this unknown threat.++
"++Alright, Hog 2, on me, weapons hot and prepare to engage!++"
"++About time! Let's waste this fuckers!++"
Both of the Confederate wraith release their afterburners...
Never realizing that they were already been stalked from the shadows.
Far beyond the orbit of Antiga Prime, a fleet is preparing for landfall.
This fleet was already been cloaked by stealth technology beyond Terran understanding and they managed to evade most of the Confederacy sensor fleets.
They managed to send in the first wave of orbital drop shock troops by disguising their drop pods as meteor shower. Some of the bigger meteorites are vehicle pools that held tanks to mechas that is needed for heavy armor support.
They were the first to soften the defenses on the ground and prepare the landing zones for the prefabricated bases and teleportation beacons to be dropped behind them.
To ensure the landing was covered with air support.
Thunderbolt fighters that is equipped with stealth technology was sent and secure the airspace around the vicinity of the landing sites.
They could not be detected by heat signature or radar. As being in a certain radius have made electronics unable to lock onto them.
Hog 1 watched in horor as what he saw before him was beyond his paygrade.
His suspicious was confirmed.
It was not a rebel army...
But a full on invasion.
He could only gaze at the large amount of troops swiftly spread out the drop site and secured the perimeter.
"++This is Hog 1, to Ground control! We found the enemy! I repeat the we found the enemy, the rebels are here!++" He shouted in his comms...
But all he heard was just static.
"++Hog 2, can you hear me!? Your six is looking hot!++" He gaze to his wingman that was engaging the ground forces. Not noticing the buzzards gathering behind him.
"++*Bzzt* what *bzzt*++
He watched as several trails of light and he could see that the planes that was chasing his wingman were like transparent banshees of the dead.
He tried to engage them to shake them off but they were able to dodge what he tossed at them. His missiles were unable to lock on to the targets. Like he was fighting ghost unable, to kill them, but they could kill.
He watched helplessly as he saw his wingman burst into flames.
As he tried to escape, his plane was unable to move forward, more like it was like it was held in place by a invincible hand.
He looked above him.
A triangular shaped ship was orbiting above him. And he saw something in the belly of that ship that was shining at his location.
As he tried to put the afterburners to the maximum, it was useless.
He felt his craft was slowly lifted up and into the underbelly of the ship.
He could close his eyes as he saw his aircraft weapons hardpoints were destroyed.
"Captain, we managed to capture the remaining pilot to prevent the information leak, what shall we do with the pilot sir?
"Have the Voidsmen enter the hangar and Tossed him to the brig, and keep him there till the operations succeed." The captain ordered
What hog 1 never realized, was that his communication was intercepted long beforehand. And was given false orders by the imperium hours before hand.
Even if he did engage the enemy, his plane already ran out of fuel. Unaware that the base was unable to raise the alarm as it was in the middle of the night and what they just saw was just meteor shower in their end.
The soldiers of the imperium worked like clockwork. Giving false information to lulled the enemy to be at ease.
After killing the town guards in the nearby habitats, they have no reason to keep them alive. As one crazed lieutenant order Thousands of citizens to be slaughtered to keep the rebellious thought at bay.
But it grew bright and burning.
Many of the rebel cells heard of the Imperium and rejoice as the double headed Aquila rushed into their towns silently.
Children peeked once more from their windows as the constant shooting and screaming was silenced.
"Get away from the window!" One such mother grabbed her child as she closed it with a curtain.
Fearing that the Confederacy would dragged them out for a lottery sweepstakes.
Their family hearts froze as there was a brief knocking at the door.
They knew how the confederacy acted and they simply break the door outright.
"Who is it?" The father called out the visitor.
"I am Private Baggins and I am here to inform you that you are to be evacuate from this place, as this world would be in a warzone. And I am here to escort your family out of this place "
Many stood silent with bated breath...
"Can you assured us that you are not the confederacy?"
"You mean the corrupt asshole that killed your neighbor and friend? We are giving you a chance to escape before you are in a casualty of war?"
"Hon...let us leave..." The mother looked tired, she heard the scream of her friends and family echoed the night.
And she wanted a way to escape this place.
"Alright, we are coming out.
"Good, you are allowed one bag and your legal document, we have fifteen minutes before the bullets starts dropping." The words outside seemed soft but telling the family to escape.
The family hurriedly placed their important belongings and rushed out of their homes.
They saw the remaining people, also like them, hurriedly follow their benefactors who were dressed in olive green.
Tanks were rushing past their neighborhood and soldiers that was not dressed in Confederacy colors walked by them.
In the distance were sounds of gunfire and explosion at the distance.
The family was escorted to the evacuation point.
Which was busy escorting the people off the planet.
Alexander had given them orders.
Evacuate the remaining people of Antiga Prime.
He doesn't need the rebels to give their lives to follow their movement. They were order to follow their families after them.
He see them as a valuable asset. They would provide for the effort by producing services and goods, that they were alive than being a martyr that would be forgotten in a textbook.
And each of them have talents that the Imperium desperately needed.
Sure, he could summoned the bureaucracy of the Imperium of mankind, but the people will have no connection or appreciation..
He glanced at the progress of the capturing.
The planet would be soon overrun by the Zerg, after Mengsk used the Psi Emitters to attract them to this planet and using them to kill the Confederacy garrison. And the Protoss that would glass the planet after them.
He didn't trust Mengsk.
He was a wild dog on a leash. And Alexander knew his leash upon this Ambitious Rebel is slowly weakening.
So he gathered as much goodwill that even if the Dominion of Man were to opposed him
The Imperium will have a more moral high ground and have plenty of agents embedded in the sons of Korhal.
He would get all the population, if possible, but if they refused...
That's their problem.
Soon, the battlelines have been drawn.
The Confederate base was shocked that there was a sheer numbers of soldiers at their base and the Andasa City was under control by this rebel group..
The base was large and had a sizable garrison, but the sheer numbers that is arriving is already numbing.
They attempted to radio in for reinforcements, like a hog 1 all they hear was static. Making a effective blackout.
"Damnit! We are locked and cornered like rats!" The commander leading this base grumbled. He glanced at the adjutant that was place beside him.
"Adjutant, what are our chances of success?"
The machine came to life as to predict the possibility.
"++Adding the factors that we are unable to connect to High Command of Tarsonis and the the nearest fleets are weeks away and the forces that were sent to scoured the rebels are unable to be contacted... We estimate approximately 99.999% of certain defeat.++"
"Shit!"
He suddenly felt tired as a smoke popped from the dark corner of the room.
He slumped down as a bullet hole was found on his skull.
A rifle popped out and Sarah Kerrigan walked from the shadows and puffed her smoking gun.
"This is Sarah, the Confederacy Commander is confirmed Kia. Now Planting the Psi Emitters... I hope we don't do this again." She grumbled as she produced a device that was in a briefcase. At the same time, she held out a dataslate to allow the imperium to get what records was located into the base database. It began to humm to life as the data was uploaded.
"Rest assured, Kerrigan, We... Will not do it again."
"Well that's reassuring..." She spoke as she unlocked the briefcase. Revealing a cylindrical like structure. And she heard the data link was completed, she shut off the device and awaited with bated breath.
"We need to know what this Imperium is doing while we aren't looking. This is a opportunity to see how they function."
Sarah raised her eyebrow.
"Aren't you two... Allies?" She just can't believe the words coming from his mouth.
"Merely Acquaintances that used each other for our ends. If they survive, we know how to deal with them... If they fail... It seemed our alliance is just that... Benefits trump all else." Acturus spoke with no tone.
The device began to activate. Electrical currents swept across the room as Sarah escaped the base.
The Psi Emitter was like a bait to the Zerg, as it copied the mind of the powerful Psionic of the confederacy and amplified it multiple times to make the Zerg compelled to be attracted by the artificial Psionic waves.
The closest brood have been lured by the psychic waves emitted by the device and made planetfall. The rain of flesh have descended upon the planet.
Causing the planet to be engulfed to a three way war.
The Celestial Imperium that is focused on getting the people of Antiga prime to be evacuated from the now increasingly dangerous planet.
The Sons of Korhal that is inflicting pain on the garrison, too bloodthirsty to see the consequences.
And the Zerg that seeked out the chosen psionic to be devoured by the swarm.
(Command Deck )
Alexander watched at the Tactical simulacrum and the situation was not good.
In fact this Zerg Brood is focused on attacking the convoys that is escorting the civilians out of the now bleak hellscape and the Evacuation centers he propped up.
He already written off the confederacy base as doomed as now Zerg Hive Clusters now propped up within the base walls. And making the containment of the confederacy a moot option.
It was a matter of time till the bootleg Tyranids come bursting out the walls in full force. And the one thing Alexander was grateful was that they don't release spores or make tendrils outside this sector.
He managed to hidden his psyker emanation from the Zerg and it focused on Kerrigan.
But now, the situation gotten worse.
He trust in his men and watched from the screen as the tide is ever-changing.
The confederacy iff signal within the base have been deceased. And those outside were taken care off.
So it was a conventional warfare of the Imperium.
Imbedded within the regiments he tossed into the planet, is Tyranids specialists and anti-tunneling brigades.
Bootleg or not, they do have some similar semblance. Only problem was that they need to hear the ground shaking. As the Zerg prefer tunneling.
He gaze upon the report of the casualties.
Almost a third of the civilians were butchered in the madness of the Confederacy.
And five thousand guardsmen were killed in the first line of engagement.
It was not much but he is aware that the gauss rifles of the confederacy was enough to pierce human.
When the day Mengsk use the Psi Emitter.
He already lost faith in the man.
But, never waste a good disaster.
He would use it to fan the flames.
After all, being the good image is easy.
Especially he could potray the Confederacy using this device to kill the dissidents.
His fleet already detected the Protoss fleet warp signatures arrived.
It was the golden Armada... Or at least a portion of it.
"Adjutant, what is the estimation of the Protoss fleet that is in orbit and estimate the evacuation ?" Alexander gaze upon the machine next to him.
It was the upgraded version of what the confederacy had to offer and had more processing power. Like a bunch of quantum computer stuffed into it.
The machine flared to life as its eyes emitted golden glow.
"++High Lord, we have estimated that the Protoss is beginning their glassing procedure in 16 minutes, and the Evacuation is within the time limit as well. Shall we commence with the teleportation?++"
"Delay that order." Alexander spoke.
He shown some cards to Acturus, but he would never let him see all his cards. Not while the Sons of Korhal Fleet is still station there.
The planes that carried the civilians flew out of the darkened skies as it was envelope by the Zerg swarm fliers.
Even in space was contested by the Zerg fleet.
The imperial guard stood their ground.
The Hydras flak turret fired wildly into the skies with flak shells that splattered the darkness, with their own that is filled with shrapnel and plasma balls.
The Evacuation centers were quick to verify the ones that is infested or not as they move the last of the few survivors remaining into the Valkyrie transport to reach orbit.
A child watched as the fires and ashes rained upon his home.
Soldiers bore the dual headed eagle yelled as they fired their lasers into the neverending horde.
His mother and father dragged him to the nearest evacuation center.
Monsters beyond his imagination is barreling towards the convoy he was on and by sheer luck he managed to escape with the survivors.
He had memories of this place before it turned into a nightmare.
A life with friends, days of what was peace to the child have been scarred by the embers of war.
His mother looked tired as they passed the check and managed to arrived to the last plane to get them away from this place.
"It would be alright..." She comforted him.
The plane jitter a bit as the turbulence shalem the plane, he was scared as gunfire and explosion occured around him and he didn't know a thing. He gaze beyond the passenger bay and into the pilot seat.
"++Pelican 2 is almost at orbit, situation is confirm, this is the last cargo from this place.++" The pilot spoke as she escape the atmosphere of the planet and found herself in a void battle with the Zerg.
Swarms of mutalisk flooded the sector of the location she is in. And Navis Imperialis fighters is holding the tide at bay.
Micro lancers and explosive rained across the orbit of the planet and remains of the defenders that gave their lives to preserve humanity linger as hollow husk of debris.
"++Head to ship XC-184 there is still space.++"
"++Affirmative, heading there now.++"
She engage the afterburners and managed to reached a heavily fortified fleet that is swatting the Zergs before they arrive in their line of sight.
She was grateful as there was fighter escorts that flew beside her.
And the moment she landed, she heard news from their supposed allies.
"The Sons of Korhal is retreating!"
Many heard the news and were grim at the fact that their allies just bailed out and they were just getting started.
"This is High Lord Alexander Solair, we are now engaging the teleporter and prepare the base to self destruct! The planet will be cleansed with flames!"
Orders was carried out in the midst of the fire fight and below each of the bases that were constructed were Exterminatus grade bombs.
Alexander don't trust the Protoss to do their work and any human left of this planet is already dead.
Each commander of the respective bases nodded to themselves as they activated the bombs.
Lights began to appear around the soldiers and they immediately vanished into thin air.
The active base defenses that fired back the horde gave the illusion of their presence.
But it only bought time for so long until the Zerg flooded into the now empty base, unable to gather biomass, they screech to the stars. Furious that they were unable to get a kill.
But this time.
The clock beneath their feet struck at Zero.
A psyker firestorm erupted and engulfed the planet. Killing everything on sight.
It was based on the Golden throne and imbued with a psyker blood as its core and of activated.
It boil with intensified pressure as it engulf the planet with the madness of a galaxy that knew war.
This was the first time Alexander order a Exterminatus at this planet. But it would not be the last.
The Protoss that arrive to cleanse the planet watched in awe of the decisiveness of his actions.
Burning the plague with flames.