Omake: Deus Ex Machina
Given that the most famous battle of their ancient namesakes had been the siege of the final Jewish stronghold of Masada, the young acting centurion of Legio X Fretensis considered it a bitter irony that what was left of his legion would perish today as the final Roman stronghold against Pugnus Deorum. With the better part of four traitor Legions -- including their own sister units Legio X Equestris and Legio X Gemina -- surrounding their minimally fortified encampment, it was only a matter of time before his men and the handful of civilians they had managed to gather were overwhelmed and butchered.
The honor of the Legio, he reflected grimly, would have to be satisfied with the knowledge that they were the last faithful Legio whose Eagle still stood, and it would not fall while any man and woman here still drew breath. Weeks had dragged into months and all prospect of relief had faded to bitter ashes, but they would stand and fight to the very end.
The endless, infernal repetition of that damned chant abruptly cut into static, and an unencrypted voice transmission in English blasted through in its place. "FIRE SUPPORT, DANGER CLOSE. FIRE SUPPORT, DANGER CLOSE."
The sky exploded with the very wrath of the Gods.
For all that the subcapital weapons on board Task Force Blue Cougar's heavy DropShips were merely little sisters to full-fledged WarShip guns, they were still orders of magnitude beyond anything that conventional artillery could lay down. Descending from orbit but still far beyond the range of any anti-aircraft weapons, the freshly arrived Task Force laid down final protective fire patterns all around the encampment, wiping away the circumvallation with grimly methodical scourges of laser, cannon, and artillery missile fire.
Edit: MUSIC!
Given that the most famous battle of their ancient namesakes had been the siege of the final Jewish stronghold of Masada, the young acting centurion of Legio X Fretensis considered it a bitter irony that what was left of his legion would perish today as the final Roman stronghold against Pugnus Deorum. With the better part of four traitor Legions -- including their own sister units Legio X Equestris and Legio X Gemina -- surrounding their minimally fortified encampment, it was only a matter of time before his men and the handful of civilians they had managed to gather were overwhelmed and butchered.
The honor of the Legio, he reflected grimly, would have to be satisfied with the knowledge that they were the last faithful Legio whose Eagle still stood, and it would not fall while any man and woman here still drew breath. Weeks had dragged into months and all prospect of relief had faded to bitter ashes, but they would stand and fight to the very end.
The endless, infernal repetition of that damned chant abruptly cut into static, and an unencrypted voice transmission in English blasted through in its place. "FIRE SUPPORT, DANGER CLOSE. FIRE SUPPORT, DANGER CLOSE."
The sky exploded with the very wrath of the Gods.
For all that the subcapital weapons on board Task Force Blue Cougar's heavy DropShips were merely little sisters to full-fledged WarShip guns, they were still orders of magnitude beyond anything that conventional artillery could lay down. Descending from orbit but still far beyond the range of any anti-aircraft weapons, the freshly arrived Task Force laid down final protective fire patterns all around the encampment, wiping away the circumvallation with grimly methodical scourges of laser, cannon, and artillery missile fire.
Edit: MUSIC!
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