Mission: Celestial Calamity
Location: Sian, Capellan Confederation
Optional Bonuses: Hurricane (+800 WP)
Outcome: Total Victory
Payment: 164,000,000 C-bills
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AFTERMATHPissed doesn’t begin to describe it. Bad intel? How about the fact that a crystal eight ball would have given more reliable intel than those damn Feddies? Not to mention that the only forces the Dancers saw hitting Sian were unmarked, which meant their “allies” could’ve been anyone out there. FedSuns, League, Taurians—hell, even the Blakists!
All the Dancers know is that when they landed, nothing was where it was supposed to be and the place was crawling with Canopian and Death Commando troops. Yeah, the Dancers kept them from reinforcing wherever they were going, but the Dragon’s Breath bought it. So much for favors. At least they shielded some of Graves' boys and girls from getting smeared all over the planet’s surface.
Mr. Askai offered an apology for the poor intelligence. Not much solace there, though that big fat bonus he gave the Dancers helped ease just a bit the anger Colonel Graves felt like venting on him. Okay, so he took care of the Dancers, but the Colonel can’t help feeling something’s not right. It’s almost like he’s got a chip on his shoulder against mercs. Or maybe he just doesn’t like the way Graves looks.
Well, at least with the gigantic wad he dropped into the unit's account, they can rest a bit before tearing back into their next target.
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WORD OF BLAKE RETURNS TO SIAN!*** Breaking News! ***
“This is Kim Soo Li reporting live from an underground location. Six days ago, a massive invasion force comprised of three Blakist Militia divisions and supported by two WarShips launched a surprise assault against Sian at the peak of celebrations marking the return of our valiant troops from the war against Duke Hasek. Indeed, their arrival was so sudden that, had it not been for the efforts of our own naval forces, the situation here in the capital would surely have spun out of control within hours of the first volleys.
“Instead, the newly modified
Feng Huang-class heavy cruisers,
Ilsa Hyung and
Aleisha Kris, together with two
Impavido-class destroyers, engaged both Blakist WarShips while a massive fighter screen deployed by the
Feng Huangs dealt with the enemy’s inbound DropShips. As of this report, at least one Blakist heavy cruiser was reportedly destroyed, with the other either crippled or driven off. No word on the damage done to our own vessels has yet been released.
“Elements from two Blakist divisions—tentatively designated as the Seventeenth and Twenty-fourth—survived to land on Sian. Both initiated a massive attack on the Forbidden City and its outlying areas, but the gallant efforts of the Red Lancers and Warrior House Imarra kept Sian from falling.
“According to field reports, one of the Blakist divisions surrounded the capital in an attempt to crush the Lancers, while the other cut a swath of destruction through every city and town within a hundred kilometers of the capital, and the battle became a bloody stalemate for a time.
“Twenty-four hours ago, the surprise arrival of the Blackwind Lancers turned the tide against the Blakists. Apparently returning to their Capellan roots, the renegade Lancers executed a combat drop directly atop the Blakists’ southern front and drove for the heart of the capital, where Blackwind commander Warner Doles reportedly led his command directly to the main government building to personally rescue the Chancellor.
“With the arrival of the Free Capellan forces, the Red Lancers and House Imarra appear to have finally shattered the Blakists’ siege. Two hours ago, I’m told, the last of the surviving Blakist units lifted, leaving a devastated but free Sian in their wake.
“For CBS news, I’m Kim Soo Li.”
—CBS News special report, Sian, 21 September 3070
