[h2]Kuran Central Administrative Center, Kabo Prime[/h2]

Harman Kuran was in a state of absolute panic and had no idea what to do or perceive of the situation. Contact had turned up red and stagnant on all communication networks with the Almata Office and his security force was on high alert as he feared for the worst. He carried a digital clipboard, nestled in his arm, showing many red numbers and percentages as the past few weeks have shown a steady hemorrhage of funds regarding the Arcturan Miltary Authority. He looked out of his office; massive floor-to-ceiling windows that showed the twilight gleaming over a massive technological city. The setting was serene, almost deliberately juxtaposed with the fear and panic that was consuming the young business leader. A bead of sweat trickled from his temple, down his tanned skin to a bearded chin. He heard a [i]hiss[/i] from the autosliding door to his office.

"Mr. Kuran, Sir." a voice called out. It was meek and feminine. Harman pivoted on his feet almost instantly. He was relieved yet at the same time even more panicked that his director of heavy armament sales was there. Her expression was solemn, and her skin was nearly pale.

"Yes, Ms. Mantin, how may I help you?" he asked, trying to hide the haste in his voice.

"The...shipment of two Vision-Class Frigates to Almata we sent a month ago. They've disappeared."

"Disappeared?!" The word rang in his head like a massive bell. "Hijacked? Destroyed?!"

"N-no, sir...we're not sure, we just know that they're not being picked up on any broadband signal, and their identifiers have been removed completely."

Harman began to pace around the office again. Director Mantin stared at him with a look of concern as he breathed heavily and started looking around his office; almost as if he were trying to find a way to escape. Finally, he stopped, swiveled again to lock eyes with her, and asked, "Ms. Mantin, do you have any word on the news of the Almata Transition Office?"

If there were a way for the slender woman to lose any color to her complexion, it was how she looked at that moment. Her jaw began to quake, and she began frantically cycling through tabs on her digital clipboard. "S-sir?! You haven't heard? I cannot believe-"

"Haven't heard [i]what[/i], Sina?" Harman's eyes widened. He really was fearing for the worst.

"Sir, Almata has been completely sacked...who or why, but-" she inhaled sharply, "the fate of the office and those who crewed it are completely unknown." She strode over to Premier Kuran VII and nearly shoved the clipboard in his face. The screen displayed a large headline in bold, block lettering:

[center][h3]Almata in Ruin. Casualties High. Evacuations Ordered.[/h3][/center]

Without saying a word, the man nearly sprinted towards his desk. He tapped onto a holo-transceiver and primed to send a message to Military Services and Fleet Command. Nearly screaming, he barked, "I need a fleet and a capable ground force en route to Almata as soon as possible! This is on a need-to-know basis and I need to be informed as frequently as possible on progress!"

Harman stepped back from the transceiver, his anxiety almost taking full swing. He slumped into his chair and let his head fall into his hands, weakly waving off Director Mantin.


[h2]Kuran Defense Enterprises, Inc. Sales Transition Office - Almata Branch, Almata[/h2] 

Sales Director Marn Kan slowly began dusting himself off after regaining consciousness. The normally sturdy wall in the west part of his office was completely blown apart. In its place was a gaping hole, and what little of the cityscape he could see was accompanied by a hazy sky, black plumes of smoke rising in the sky, and fire. He turned away from the sight and looked around the remnants of his office. Everything was blown in and smoking. Soot flew in with he wind. KD-S5, his service droid, was in pieces all over the ground. Marn looked looked around and thought that it was a miracle that [i]he[/i] didn't suffer a fate like the machine. 

He stepped through the office door and walked down the crumbling stairs and outside of the complex. Some KDE reserve soldiers were around him. The heavy boots of their power armor stomping through ash and dirt. A KA-1 hover-APC drifted passed and stopped in front of him, a soldier on the side bay extended a metallic glove to pull him up and he did so quickly. Still trying to get his bearings, he looked at the soldier through the yellow, narrow visor on his helmet and asked, "W-what happened? What's going on?"

The soldier looked above the sky for what seemed to be minutes. Scanning the horizon around him. Hearing chatter through his helmet of plasma, laser, and artillery fire. He raised his arms and pulled off his helmet with a small "hiss" and looked at Director Kan with a solemn thousand-yard stare.

"Sir...Almata is gone." he said coldly. Not because of the apathy, but because he wasn't sure how to process the carnage that had unfolded.

"G-gone? I, I-"

"We've been ordered to evacuate the complex and stand our ground until we can receive aid from a better fighting force. Until then we have orders that--now knowing you're alive--involve protecting you. Get into the main bay of this vehicle, we'll be leaving shortly."

At a complete loss for words, Marn nodded his head and and climbed over the soldier, the large carbosteel hatch peeled open, and he slid in.