This is the Starsiege Compendium: History of the Conflict, a manual that was shipped with Starsiege.
When the dark intellect escaped the fire, man stood in the ashes of Mother Earth.
For two hundred years, the immortal Emperor built Earth's armies... but only Earth's.
Then the colonies of Mars and Venus revolted against unjust Imperial Law.
Harabec, the greatest imperial knight, joined the rebellion.
His brother, Caanon, led the knights to Mars to suppress it.
When Prometheus attacked again, human blood already stained the ground.
Mother Earth lay helpless; the time of terror had indeed returned...
This is the story of the third and final coming of Prometheus
Characters
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Solomon Petresun, Emperor of the Great Human Empire. The man behind the creation of Prometheus, he would rise to rule humanity and stand as the Cybrids' greatest foe.
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Caanon Weathers, Grand Master of the Imperial Knights. Utterly devoted to duty, this supreme soldier would take a holy oath to destroy his younger brother in the name of the Empire.
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Harabec Weathers, Renegade Imperial Knight turned rebel general. Once the greatest Knight of the Empire, this wild card in the games of the Emperor would galvanize the Martian rebels into challenging the power of Earth.
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Prometheus, The Dark Intellect, leader of the Cybrids. Mankind's greatest, most brilliant creation, it would become the most implacable and terrible enemy humanity would ever face.
Introduction
Teddy kicks some dusty Cybrids are all rusty Mommy's burning! Mommy's burning! All fall down! Little old Peter Missing his liter While Herky plays in the red Down came the glitches And burned us in ditches And we slept after eating our dead. One laser Two laser Red laser Blue laser When Toaster smokes our Mom all smelly And stomps our Dad to bloody jelly Save one Save two Save red Save blue For me For you. --Schoolyard chants, circa 2800
As a society we are deeply scarred
Micro-turbulence rattled Caanon through the antikinetic foam cocooning his Herc. His bones ached. Martian terrain blurred red across the holowindow on his HUD, the red of dried blood and old sins. It was fitting, he thought, to confront his traitor brother in a place named for the god of war.
Are you there, Harabec? Can you feel my presence?
Harabec shifted uneasily. Something felt wrong.
The ambush had been easy to plan, thanks to TDF broadcasts announcing the landing site. Arrogant bastards, the Knights. Dared you to face them. Well, that crap didn't help 'em in Turkhazakistan.
Didn't help you there, either, Harabec reminded himself. Not a bit.
The HUD winked off and left Caanon waiting in darkness. The only saving grace to a ten-gee orbit-to-ground insertion was that if anything glitched, he'd die instantly.
Aerobrakes deployed and the dropship shuddered into final descent. Caanon slammed into his wombchair like a stone block hitting a gel-bag. He couldn't breathe; agony consumed him. Harabec's face burned in his brain like a nova all the way down.
The sense of doom nagged at Harabec. He'd retracted the spythread to save it the shock of the Imperial landing, so he was blind for the moment, which didn't help.
His instincts told him he'd missed something. Think, for Hunter's sake! The ground rumbled, buffeting his Herc even under its protective camouflage. The Imperials had arrived.
Caanon realized he was clenching his fists, waiting for the shockharness to blast him with adenojolt. It wasn't supposed to hit conscious pilots, but it'd malfunctioned last time. The price had been two days of migraines and nausea. Not this time, thank Hunter.
He ignored his aching body and ran a post-drop check. The hatch blew and the foam around his Herc began to boil away on contact with atmosphere. Caanon popped the vehicle restraints and moved Icemistress out, her weapons on-line.
I'm here Harabec. Come to me.
Harabec tried to stretch in the cramped confines and considered the situation. Knights didn't rattle easy, but the new rebel weapons ought to knock the dustin' starch out of 'em. The rebs had all seen combat now, but most were still pretty green, like Verity. She was an innocent kid, not like that BioDerm psycho.
Father, I'm going to kick your precious Knights in the teeth. Remember Turkhazakistan? They can be taken.
So can you, a voice whispered in the back of his head. So can you. He snaked the spythread up slowly.
The canopy cleared suddenly as the last foam vaporized. Dust from the landing still hazed the air. A rugged landscape rose around Caanon as Icemistress clanged down the ramp. Anticipation filled him.
Scans showed nothing but TDF forces and the ruins of the base. His Hercs moved through the rusty haze, forming squads. Caanon thumbed his comm. "CC to all Swords. Report by squad ..."
The menacing, brightly painted Hercs filled Harabec with dread. He'd worried for one heartstopping moment that the sonic boom of their landing would blow off some camo, but the foam that turned the Imperial radar probes also killed most of the sonics. As he'd hoped. Everything looked jake. The Knights just needed to step into the killzone.
So what was wrong?
Harabec! Caanon remained impassive even in the privacy of his Herc cockpit, but freezing anger filled his chest. Harabec had betrayed everything he'd been given, everything he was - everything! He'd shamed the family name.
Harabec. I'll lay your poisonous head at His Majesty's feet or lie in a Martian grave. I swear it.
Whoa. That's Caanon! What was he doing here? The Grand Master on the first wave was like a general hitting the beach with the marines. That's what he'd missed; he hadn't expected to face his brother so soon. Why hadn't he seen this? No matter. Now it was personal. Okay, Caanon, if this is how you want it...
Hunter's bones, Harabec thought bitterly. When you betray family, go all the way. He signaled his troops to select targets as Caanon's Herc filled his sights.
Caanon keyed his command channel. "Saber, on Falchion's right flank! Broadsword, you're two ticks behind! Tighten up!"
Are you watching brother? Harabec had something planned. He was smart, cagey. Something would happen soon. Well, here I am. Let's see your cards.
"Tighten up, all squads," Caanon ordered. "Status is red and hot. Anything moves, vape it."
The Teddies were in the killzone. Harabec shot a last bleak look at Caanon in the Knights, directing traffic. His hand hesitated over the signal switch.
Caanon, why did you have to be first? Damn you! He slapped the switch. His Herc erupted from the sand, weapons blazing. "Nail 'em!" he shouted. "FREE MARS!"
Chooser
The Fire
Todo
Story: "The Defection of Harabec"
Todo
The Rebels
Concerning the roots of the colonial rebellion and the outcome of The Brothers' War
The Cybrids
Concerning the rebuilding of Cybrid might and the plan of Prometheus for the next invasion of Earth.
Technical Manual
Concerning the Machinery of War