[u][b]Calth Solaria The Parade grounds and Solar Palace [/b][/u] [img]https://cdnb.artstation.com/p/assets/images/images/000/056/557/large/floatingpalace.jpg?1399376716[/img] The parade square outside of the Solar Palace on Calth was truly a massive structure. Cobbled in immaculate white stone, the entire avenue was nearly a mile wide. Gigantic multi tiered fountains adorned either side, topped with martyrs, people who have fought and given their life for the solar cult. A large garden surrounded the avenue, with viewing pergolas and pavilions interspaced throughout. The large cobbled street led directly to the massive steps of the Solar Palace, the structure itself dwarfing the surrounding structures. The palace was equally as massive as the base of stairs featuring three large plateaus adorned with panoramic open top amphitheaters. On this day, the entire square and adjoining garden was full of spectators and soldiers. Large red and yellow streamers flew from the tops of the massive fountains and massive banners were erected around the cobbled avenue, representing different regiments of the church’s military. The soldiers marched down the avenue in perfect formation to the cheering of an ever growing crowd. It was victory day and an end to the rebellion on Calth. It had been nearly a century of continuous rebellion against the Solar Church with varying intensity throughout the years. The Ecclesia had firmly solidified its grasp on Calth and was the only power on the planet but now faced no one to fight. Six months past the end of hostilities and the cracks in the foundation of the Ecclesia as a state were becoming obvious. The rebellion allowed for the church to maintain a large and brutal secret police that will be hard to justify now. A large expensive military, paid for and incentivized by the conquest of new land and plunder, now lost its only source of income, the state was already struggling to pay. This new society only knew war, what will they do in peace? What new freedoms will they demand for their service? All of these questions were present in the high priest’s mind as he rose his hands to address the crowd. “ VICTORY!” he yelled, his small wireless microphone amplifying his voice to the many speakers around the square. The crowd cheered in response, erupting into a deafening roar before the man held his hands up again. “ These men before you, are the finest of this nation. They have bled and fought across countless continents, leaving their friends and family behind to continue this holy legacy!” he finished again, prompting more cheering from the crowd. “ We honor these men here today, we honor their sacrifice and those of the dead who return to the stars as ash” the man finished again, turning to another religious official next to him with a slight nod. The other official began to break into a prayer, prompting the crowd to bow their heads as the high priest walked inside the entrance of the palace, immediately being confronted by another man in religious garb. “ Yes….Rylanor…” the high priest said with a slight nod as he waved him closer with an elderly hand. “ Sir, they are back and they have the support of more districts this time” Rylanor said in a semi worried tone. “ They insist on discussing the reform of the local tithe of men and material from all districts” he finished eyeing the high priest. The high priest was an elderly man, even his pale leathery skin could not hide his wrinkles. “ Yes…” the high priest said nodding slowly “ As we knew they would, I will speak with them” the high priest spoke in a slow methodical tone. “ Speak with Kayvaan…..I have spoken with him about a possible solution, I want you to discuss its…… feasibility.” the elderly priest finished with a nod, patting Rylanor on the shoulder before continuing into the palace. Rylanor let out a sigh as he walked back towards the entrance of the palace, immediately being hit by the wave of sound by the entrance to the palace. The hot dry air making him blink as he crossed the threshold and made his way outside, walking towards a collection of vehicles by an adjacent entrance to the palace. The guards were lax, wearing dark green working uniforms and low slung weapons, quickly snapping to attention as Rylanor walked up. “ where to sir?” a guard said as he jumped into the drivers seat of an open top truck. “ The Ecclesiarch’s palace…” Rylanor said flatly as he stepped into the open top vehicle and closed the door. The Truck sped off down a neatly cobbled street before the road changed to well maintained pavement, considerably smoothing the ride. The Ecclesiarch’s palace was the administrative center of the solar priesthood and the headquarters for the secret police. Rylanor held a ceremonial religious office as keeper of holy artifacts, however his real position was intelligence chief and head of the secret police. Rylanor needed to find a new mission for his secret police and intelligence wing. Giving agents and office time to think and grow used to peacetime would be detrimental to morale and their willingness to carry out his dirty work. Skeletons in your closet also have a tendency to fall into the open during times of peace, when people have nothing else to do but reminisce. Rylanor wanted neither and needed a solution relatively quickly. Luckily, one just may have dropped into his lap. In a bittersweet moment of respite, a decorated spy attempted to steal a Terran artifact. An old navigation core for use with the old, and long unused, gateway junction. The Ecclesia had self isolated themselves, due to their struggle to survive and long war for supremacy of the planet. Technology and knowledge was retained however, leaving the option open for future travel into the gateway. What this spy wanted to do with it was unclear, but both the nature of his crime and the suspect were of great interest to Rylanor. The spy, Horus, was a personal friend of Rylanor and a veteran of multiple campaigns. Horus was a master spy chief, thought to be extremely loyal and maybe even a candidate for religious office. This saddened Rylanor, but he now had a scapegoat and future mission for his secret police and intelligence officers. The pavement turned to gravel as the truck pulled up to the front of another large palace, adorned with large spires, sporting red and yellow star banners. Rylanor nodded at the driver and made his way inside, nodding towards the guards as they opened the doors in his path. He was on a mission and quickly made his way back towards the secure elevator to go down to the prison and torture cells. Opulent and pristine surroundings quickly turned into dark concrete as he arrived at the prison level, loud screams greeting him as the the elevator doors opened. “ where is he…” Rylanor almost growled at the first intelligence officer he saw, his anger growing in the short journey down to the dungeon. “ Second door on the right sir” the man said, standing and nodding his head to the right as he moved to the side of the corridor. Rylanor nearly walked through the man as he received the instructions, angrily thumbing the touchpad before the door slid open. A man sat inside, seated with his back towards the door in a small steel chair. He was stripped naked except for a bag over his head and his body was clearly beaten and bloody. Despite this, the man sat tall, turning his head to the side like he was expecting Rylanor as he opened the door. “ I know that gait…….Rylanor” the man growled through broken teeth, his jaw too swollen to open it fully. “ Why Horus…..after all this, Monarchia, Balhut, THE PROTEAN EBB!” Rylanor yelled uncharacteristically before quickly calming himself again. “ You had the opportunity, why now”, he finished, abruptly pulling the bag from his head to reveal his swollen and bloodied face. “ Dont you think there is more, to all this…..” Horus spat, drolling a mixture of blood and saliva “ Do you remember how they begged, the xenos….they begged like us” he finished, he left eye twitching as he met Rylanor’s gaze. “ I hate it, the stars, the church, all of it…..and I wanted to leave” he paused before managing the best smile he could “ and I will….” Rylanor took a step back, his eyebrow raised in concern and confusion, had his friend snapped? Man handles death and destruction in odd ways, this could be his breaking point. Rylanor sighed heavily, looking sad as he met Horus’s gaze again. He couldn't bring himself to say anything as he walked behind the chair again, before turning towards the door. As he opened his mouth to yell for the guards, what felt like an explosion rocked the building. It was big enough to shake the foundation of the building and the prison level as the lights flickered off. Suddenly Rylanor stood in the pitch black, looking towards what he once thought was the door. An animalistic sense took over, an ingrained sense of survival quickly brought itself to the front of his mind and forced action. With the sound of squeaking rubber, Rylanor quickly turned toward around to face the chair and Horus before the lights suddenly flickered on as the emergency batteries activated, illuminating the room once again. Rylanor had estimated wrong, and was facing toward the far corner of the room. Either blunted by his new comfortable position or age, Rylanor was exposed. Horus was already moving, seemingly before the lights turned on, and was already in the air over Rylanor’s left shoulder. The speed at which Horus released a cufflink surprised Rylanor, slowing his reaction to the punch that Horus threw. The blow connected right under Rylanors left ear staggering him a moment before he felt the cold metal of the handcuff chain around his neck, quickly tightening as Horus took him down. Rylanor’s hands instinctively shot to his neck as the pair fell, unable to brace his fall as his face bounced off the dirty concrete floor. Rylanor felt Horus sit back on his lower back as he increased tension on the makeshift garrote, the chains of the handcuffs cutting into his neck. Despite the blow to his face Rylanor clawed at his neck viciously as he struggled to free himself, attempting to turn violently and get to his knees. Despite his efforts, Horus remained on his back, ever increasing the pressure of the handcuffs around his neck. Rylanor’s face was slammed into the ground again, heavily lacerating his left eyebrow and lip. A warm, almost soothing feeling crept across Rylanor’s face as a large puddle of blood immediately began to form. His good eye shot to the door, wondering why no one had heard the struggle inside and came to his aid. Rylanor could barely hear Horus’s own expletives over the sounds of his own retching and choking. Suddenly an unfamiliar feeling began to creep into Rylanor’s mind, panic, something he had not felt since his early days as a soldier. This sudden mortal realization made Rylanor thrash wildly in an attempt to free himself, grasping out towards anything that may give him leverage to lift himself. Rylanor’s thrashes became less and less spirited as Horus continued to choke him. His vision slowly narrowing as he lost consciousness and his thrashing stopped. Panic left his mind as a warm realization of death crept over Rylanor, his panicked gaze toward the door replaced by an almost serene yet emotionless stare. Horus felt the resistance wane and immediately increased the pressure, lifting Rylanor’s unconscious body up off the floor a little as he stood over him. “ This is only the beginning, we will fix our people, with or without the church” he said angrily before his attenion shot to the door, causing him to drop Rylanor’s body once again. The sound of armored boots could be heard behind the heavy metal door quickly fading as they ran past but the message was clear, Horus needed to go. He looked down at Rylanor who was sprawled out face down on the floor, small bubbles dripped from his mouth as his blood slightly frothed in their struggle. ‘ was he dead?” Horus thought before his attention shot back to noises behind the door. Unlike the heavy security controlled terminal on the outside of the torture cell, the inside just featured a button for ease of escape in the event of this exact situation, a prisoner escape. From the commotion behind the door, it was clear that it was not just his cell that was affection but others as well. Human and alien could be heard screaming and fighting in the distance. The chaos alone was not enough cover however as Horus was still completely naked, he needed to find some clothes. Looking down towards Rylanor again, Horus dragged his body away from the blood puddle and began to strip his clothes off, removing anything personal to Rylanor. The ceremonial robes were simple, a white or red toga with a gold and white shawl usually worn across the shoulder or over one arm and shoulder. Different patterns on the shaw denoted family ties and military honors. Rylanor’s shawl was too well known and would be noticed, but the toga could be worn alone, particularly during a time of chaos. Quickly donning Rylanor’s bloody toga, Horus handcuffed his body and placed it in the chair before stuffing the shawl down the industrial drain in the floor. Horus walked back to the door and listened for a moment, hearing a another collection of boots run past before hitting the door control and entering the corridor. It was chaos outside of the cell, a large collection of soldiers could be seen down the corridor with their backs turned to Horus. The way towards the lone elevator was clear and the elevator was still operational. “ good” Horus said under his breath as he feigned a heavy limp towards the elevator door, hurriedly smacking the control panel for the elevator. Taking a look behind him, Horus could see a group of soldiers fighting behind him as the elevator stopped on the floor. Quickly stepping on, Horus smacked the door control before the elevator ascended. Horus sighed deeply, the solitary elevator ride granting him a moment of reprieve. Despite his demeanor, his body was broken. He had spent the past week undergoing the worst torture that could be imagined. He took another deep breath, pausing slightly as he felt his broken rib. The right side of his jaw was swollen shut and he could feel his left eye floating in the broken socket. Horus was not some grunt or simple soldier, he was a member of the elite naval infantry, shock troopers of the Ecclesia. All true believers in the solar truth, blindly loyal and willing to do anything to accomplish their means. Born out of the need for a quick raiding force, the naval infantry turned into Eccleissa's premier SOF force. Proficient in a variety of missions, its bread and butter are hard target assaults. Using heavy weapons, naval support and ground, air or orbital deployed troops, they ensure absolute shock. This coupled with their religious zealotry, makes them a formidable opponent, unafraid to close with the enemy. The naval infantry held a near mythical status amongst the populace as incorruptible, making Horus’s betrayal that much more surprising. Horus had not acted alone and many of the officers that served under him also joined his small rebellion, disaffected with what they were forced to do. As the elevator reached the ground floor Horus could hear the commotion behind the door before it opened, revealing a ruined palatial atrium. It looked like a bomb had gone off inside the palace. The floor was heavily cratered and the sky was exposed behind a broken ceiling. Large chandeliers lay broken on the ground, accompanied by multicolored stained glass scattered everywhere. Horus dipped his head low and began walking through the crowd of military and religious officials before he felt an armored gloved hand wrap around his shoulder. Too weak to put up a fight after his engagement with Rylanor, Horus allowed himself to be led outside by a waiting military truck. Horus continued to feign his limp and hold his head low, he did not know who grabbed him or where he was going. The soldier was in full battle dress, a kevlar weave environment suit with modular armor plates and carrying an assault weapon. Looking up ahead, Horus could see another collection of boots before the door opened and he was lightly pushed inside. “ All going to plan sir….” a female voice spoke once the door was closed, prompting a small smirk from Horus. “ Good, how many of us are left…” Horus spoke in a raspy tone, finally able to look up. The truck pulled away, slow at first before hitting the main road and speeding off with the towering space elevator in the distance. The damage in the city could be seen clearly now, over a dozen thick, black plumes of smoke could be seen in the distance with sporadic tracer fire. “ Just us so far,maybe those that will meet us at the elevator. Getting you out was costly” She finished flatly as the truck continued to speed off. The rest of the ride was silent, and after a short moment the small group of trucks was at the space elevator and quickly greeted by other rebels. The entire group barely numbered more than 40 fighters, a large fraction of the elite naval infantry had sided with Horus but that was about it. Many in the other branches were extremely loyal and many administrators did not have the heart for rebelion. He had nearly 300 fighters, and he was now down to 40 as the small force sat on the oversized elevator platform. Designed to be a mass conveyance, the platform could accommodate twelve large shipping containers laid end to end. Entire battalions and their gear could take the 12 minute ride into the spaceport. From this vantage point, the smoke and the cities could be seen clearly, large craters could be seen by the papal palace and intelligence building. Close to the space elevator, a large dust bloom could be seen, marking the movement of a large military force. ‘ It did not take them long to react to this…’ Horus thought, as the feeling of panic began to creep into his mind. More fighters met them at the top of the space port, bringing their small group to 60 fighters. The space port itself looked like it was taken peacefully, with most of the staff being detained instead of killed. Destroying orbital weapons would be detrimental to the station itself, so the crews were also killed or detained the the weapons jammed electronically from the station. By the time anyone got up there to fix the weapons, they would be long gone. This space sport was special, housing vessels involved in relic research. Most of these ships had special navigation drives and the ability to interface with the local gateway. The Ecclesia had planned to travel back to former human worlds but the purpose was unknown to Horus. He gained enough exposure with the relics to understand how to use them with the vessel interface, but their technology was foreign to him. The group wasted little time and boarded an experimental frigate, barely filling out the minimum crew needed to go underway. The rebellion was prepared, and used smuggled manuals to learn the very basics of moving and maintaining a ship underway. The makeshift crew could secure the ship for the vacuum and move the vessel, but little else could even be attempted. The ships weapons, radar, navigation and damage control were completely useless and inoperable by the crew. With the large gateway completely insight of the spaceport, navigation was not needed and the ship could simply be pointed towards the large ring structure. The vessel had authentic IFF tags and their only ally in the administration approved launch orders for the vessel, standing down the automatic gateway defenses. This rebellion took years to plan and prepare and it was looking like they may just escape with their lives. —------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [img]https://rare-gallery.com/thumbnail/422194-artwork-fantasy-art-portal-Portals-space-spaceship.jpg[/img] Despite their elite training, years of subjugating rebels and combat, they were not sailors and did not know their way around a ship. Many holds and maintenance compartments went un-searched and unknown. Despite their inexperience, they were lucky as the ship was mostly empty, save a single electricians apprentice that just happened to be napping in the fuse hub of the ship. It was a popular place to nap by the crew and this crewman just happened to fall asleep during a scheduled fuse check. The sound of boots and shooting immediately woke the crewman who locked himself in the hidden compartment. Illuminated by the pale blue glow of status lights the crewman quickly figured out what was going on and began planning. The crewman was young, a basically trained electrician's mate but he was loyal. This was his chance for glory, maybe even a promotion and an increase in standing for his family name. His plan was simple, cut the power and wait for the navy to rescue them. Simple in its execution but naive in the belief that it was a good plan. As the frigate neared the gateway the crewman unscrewed panels exposing the wiring for a specific section of the fuse compartment. With his training, he knew that he was looking at the propulsion and power bus for the vessel, cutting these would cut power and engines without suffocating them. Back on the bridge of the frigate, Horus went through the interface steps just as he had seen rehearsed before. A cold shiver shot down his spine as he reached the relic interface, greeted by an alien looking list of stellar coordinates. The other names were unknown to Horus, but one stood out, [b]Terra[/b]. The affirmative selection sent another chill down his spine as the gateway reacted, energy buzzing between the extremities of the ring complex. A deep purple orb grew towards the center of the ring, emitting a deep purple UV glow. From the vantage point of an outside observer, the vessel would appear to move toward the orb before reaching its edge and suddenly disappearing. Quickly being followed by the rapid dissipation of the ring’s orb. Inside the vessel, the events were much less peaceful. The crewman, finally finished exposing what he thought was the propulsion and power cables, wasted no time in starting the cutting process. Unfortunately for the crewman, his inadequate tools led to difficulty when cutting the thick high voltage wires. White hot electricity arced inside the small space, frying both the crewman and the small enclosure in an instant. The sudden jolt and loss of power first scrambled the navigation interface, unknowingly setting a random destination as the ship crossed the gateway threshold and jumped. To the crew, the journey took nearly an instant, but the wonder of their first interstellar travel was cut short by the shrill siren of warning tones and flashing lights. The makeshift crew could do little else but stare at view-screens as errors blinked by before the entire ship suddenly went dark. The crewman’s plan had worked, he did indeed cut power and propulsion to the ship, along with everything else. The fuse bus compartment was ablaze, further fueled by the crewman’s melting body. Molten metal quickly spread to other parts of the compartment and started a small fire at first before igniting the entire compartment. Before any of Horus’s rebels could find the source of the fire, it had consumed the entirety of the electrical room. Horus had also accomplished his mission, he had left Calth and stolen a holy relic. Horus would never figure out that did not make it to Terra, his makeshift crew was too busy attempting to fight the oxygen consuming fire that threatened to destroy them. The would continue to fight the fire, inspired by reaching Holy Terra and full of hope for survival. No one had noticed that the large Brown Dwarf in the distance was indifferent to their suffering and hope. As the Solis frigate slowly creeped closer towards Hellas and her moons, their fight would turn to desperation, and then panic as the fire consumed their oxygen. No one was coming to save them, as no one knew they arrived. The Gateway in Hellas was not maintained and not monitored and Its existence was forgotten by the majority of the populace. It would be a long time before anyone would find the ship and the remains of Horus’s rebels.