The beginning of a new life

[ROCK CORPORATION]

This flight will never end. I am so tired of endless flights. Something is troubling my father. The situation with Dargo, the clash with saboteurs on Tangier, and the battle in Thuringia worry him the most. Then the Rheinland strike fleet defeated the breakaway Coalition group. I remember how proudly my father looked at the light battleship "Landsknecht", commanded by my brother Rashid. He loved us all, but he worried about him the most. He and Rashid didn't always get along, but a son must not disobey his father — that's how we were raised. We honoured the old traditions.
Rashid didn't want to be his father's shadow. His desire to study at the New Berlin School of Space Pilots was a kind of rebellion. My father could have forbidden him, but he didn't. I remember how we saw my brother off. My father didn't come, but he always knew. Now Rashid is captain of the Rhineland Space Force, entrusted with command of a battleship. He is like his father: proud, headstrong, fearless, but kind and responsive. He is now on the new Rock. I will see him soon. How I have missed him.
‘Mrs Patimat, we have just jumped into the Omega 11 system. There are several jump pits here...’
[Autonomous Control System] Attention, a group of unknown ships has been detected in the sector. They are heading for interception and are not responding to requests. Defence protocol activated.
Commander Magomedova here. Have you established who these ships belong to?
Unable to establish ownership. Diagnostics ongoing. Awaiting your orders, milady.
— Better safe than sorry. Activate combat systems. Veer slightly to the right by three per cent. Let's see how they react.
— The ships have changed course to intercept. Milady, they are requesting communication.
— Transfer to the main switchboard.
Five bombers and two frigates. Too many for my cruiser. They look like Hessian ships. I'd like to avoid conflict with them. We still have to fly here. Let's see what they say.
‘Mrs Magomedova, you were sought. Rashid sent us to meet you. It is not safe in this system. Disable your weapons, there is no need for them.’
Strange. Rashid sends Hessians to meet me? If they know the password response...
‘Captain, I am glad to see you. Has Red arrived at the base?’
‘We don't know, but we can check...?’
No, whoever it is, it's definitely not from my brother. We agreed to use our own personal password. He was supposed to reply, ‘Should arrive in the morning, or maybe in the evening.’ Enemies! They know us...
‘Lieutenant, destroy everyone. All positions, activate turrets.’

[ROCK CORPORATION]

— The perimeter has been breached! They're on the upper deck. They'll be here soon. Ms. Patimat, this is your last chance to get to the escape pods!

— Lieutenant, what are the chances? Will the capsule break through?

— Practically zero... Madam, it has been an honor to serve with you! Prepare your weapons, we're attacking! Alif, lead the way, Shamil, bring up the rear! ACS, open the airlock!

[A little earlier]
The attack began. First came the bombers. We repelled wave after wave, then a gunboat appeared. The main guns took aim at it. The first volley disabled its engines. Our joy was short-lived—an enemy torpedo damaged the stern gun. They attacked our weapon systems, trying to disable us, not destroy us. Something was jamming our signals. Such ships cannot have such equipment, they are too small. So there must be another ship here. It is hiding, waiting... Three bombers destroyed, the corvette left behind. The last gun falls silent. Now they're hitting the engines. We're stuck.

It appeared — huge, terrifying. It moved slowly but surely. Gravity beams captured us. They're preparing to land troops. It looks like they plan to take us prisoner. It will be a glorious battle. The last battle...

[ROCK CORPORATION]

The operation was completed quickly. The enemy did not take into account the presence of two units of elite space marines on board the cruiser. As a result of the boarding, which was a strategic mistake on the part of the attackers, the GHOSTS, who had considerable combat experience, successfully neutralized the invaders and captured their ships.
Remaining on the immobilized cruiser without weapons would pose a serious threat to the personnel, as the enemy could carry out targeted fire from a safe distance, realizing the impossibility of continuing the capture.
In this regard, a decision was made to suppress communications and capture the enemy battleship. However, the captain expressed doubt about the possibility of approaching the target due to its high combat readiness and uncertainty about its tactical intentions. As a result, it was decided to limit the operation to capturing the boarding corvettes.
After the successful capture of the corvettes and return to base, it became known that the enemy had made a hyperspace jump immediately after docking, which indicates its high degree of operational mobility and possible haste.
Given the situation, it can be assumed that the enemy does not expect an attack and considers the return of its crews a fait accompli. This circumstance provides an opportunity for an unexpected tactical initiative.
The information presented is contained in a report by the commander of the PRIZRAK unit, Patimat Magomedova.

[ROCK CORPORATION]

We have been on this planet for far too long. Toledo is a scorched battlefield between the Order and the Nomads. The captured cruiser reached orbit already doomed. The radar showed no emptiness—every sector was crowded with signatures: capital ships, cruisers, strike craft of the Nomads. And more were arriving.

Our only option was to destroy the engine. We detonated the reactor and forced the ship into uncontrolled descent, driving it toward a crash landing. Moments before atmospheric entry, we launched an emergency probe—our final message to humanity. We knew we would not survive. But the enemy fleet could not remain unknown.

Days passed. Or an eternity—time fractures here. We were fortunate: part of the group managed to evacuate the hull before their landing. The mine we left behind functioned perfectly. Within several kilometers, sand fused into glass. We moved across cooling plains of black rock and ash, searching for old stations or anything that might offer a chance to endure.

Toward evening, orbit ignited. Massive flashes tore across the sky, and soon debris began to fall—dozens, hundreds of fragments. They burned through the atmosphere and rained down like metal fire. Fate favored us again; the main “fallout” passed at a distance. Among the wreckage, silhouettes were visible—human ships tangled with those of the Nomads.

Then, with a deep metallic roar, a corvette of the Order emerged from the dust haze. It descended hard and precise. Androids deployed first, followed by infantry, sealing the perimeter with disciplined efficiency. And then I saw the Analyst, stepping down the ramp in a light cloak, composed as if this were not the edge of annihilation.



We are saved.

But there is no time. The human fleet is losing the battle. Ships concealed within the asteroid belts struck the Confederation’s rear, yet it is not enough. We must withdraw. Regroup. Deliver what we have learned to our home worlds. The war is only beginning.