Date Point: February 2, 2437

Long Kou System

Tian Gong Station

“Check the seals of the person to your right,” the instructor said, “Now check the seals of the person to your left.”

Li sighed as he scanned Zeng’s suit for leaks or high-pressure zones. Finding none he tapped him on the shoulder twice, “I don’t get why we’re still doing this. Our suits have scanners for a reason. This isn’t the 21st century.”

“It’s tradition, lots of people like tradition,” Zeng grunted shifting in his suit

“Lots of people are stupid.”

“Once you have been checked twice, you are prepared for ExtraVehicular Activity. Remember, there is next to no gravity in space and every action you make will have an equal and opposite one.”

“Holy shit does he think we’re stupid?” Li muttered to himself as the instructor droned on.

“Now, we are going to be opening the airlocks. Standard procedure is to lower the gravity and release the air before opening the airlock.”

Red alarms began flashing on the walls and the gravity slowly started to decrease. At the same time, the air was sucked out of the room dropping the pressure. He felt a slight tingling sensation as his suit squeezed against his skin maintaining the one atmosphere of pressure. Li felt a moment of instinctual panic as it disappeared completely, leaving him in perpetual freefall. It passed quickly and he followed Ren out of the now opened airlock.

“Stay close to your teammates, and only move once at least one of your numbers is fully in position. Remember to watch your air, cooling, and battery count.”

For the next three hours, the twenty students roamed along the hard skin of the station. They performed drills and attempted different stunts and maneuvers. Their tanks were still mostly full by the time they returned to the airlocks.

“Well, that was a waste of time,” Li said, Zeng grunted in return stripping the heavy suit from his body.

“That’s not true,” Ren pouted, “we got free EVA hours, I’m almost to my Diamond patch.”

Zeng snorted, “I think you're the only one who actually cares about that stuff.”

“You’re just jealous that I’m better than you.”

“You are not better than me.”

“The patches would like to differ.”

He was quiet for several seconds, “shut up.”

They sat in the lounge doing homework and talking as the other classes went through their training. After around an hour, Professor Gao stepped inside, “students.”

The class stood and faced the teacher, “good afternoon Professor Gao.”

“Good afternoon to you as well,” she cleared her throat, “as we are running slightly behind schedule, the teachers have decided to give everyone some time off. Go and explore the station, this might be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for some.”

The students grinned at each other and conversation broke out between them, “I heard that there’s a good restaurant in sector 44.”

“Hey, Guo you want to go to that arcade we saw earlier?’

“Li, why don’t we go shopping!” Ren said excitedly.

Zeng scoffed, “Fuck me I guess.”

“Oh…” she said slightly dejected, “I guess you can come too.”

“Wait I haven’t even agreed to this,” Li said, waving his hands in front of him. He really wanted to go to the arcade with Guo. He stopped once he noticed the pleading look on her face and the annoyed one on Zeng’s.

“N-not that I don’t want to,” he added hastily.

“Good!” she hooked an arm around his dragging him out of the lounge. Snorts of amusement and catcalls echoed down the corridor behind him.

“Hey Zeng, make sure she returns him in one piece.” he heard Guo shout, “I still want to go to the arcade with him.”

They walked to the mag-lev station and boarded one of the many trains headed towards the regional shopping center. At each doorway they passed through, soldiers in full battle gear stood at attention, rifles at their sides.

“Lot’s of marines here.” Zeng noted scanning one of them, “Type 35 powered armor. That’s brand new, I didn’t know they put them in active service.”

The marine’s helmet glowed, casting his face in blue light, “Officially they haven’t, but with the new threat they’ve started doing trial runs.”

Zeng’s face lit up, “That’s so cool, is it really as good as they say?”

“I’m afraid that’s classified, now run along, your friends are waiting for you.”

“So what do you think?” Ren asked twirling around, her red skirt and white button-up replaced by a form-fitting nano cloth. Li quickly turned around averting his gaze.

“I feel wrong just looking at you.”

“Oh? How so?” she tilted her head, “you don’t like it?”

Zeng snorted, “ha, he likes it alright.”

“Shut up, it’s just that I think you should try on something a little less… eye-catching.”

“Well eye-catching is exactly what I want.” she said, putting her hands on her hips, “unless you want me to put on the roaming suit again.”

This time they both shook their heads, the other ‘shirt’ she had tried on left very very little to the imagination. “No, that one's good.”

She huffed walking up to one of the checkouts and for the second time that week, it flashed red and the Coalition anthem began playing.

“Good afternoon citizens of Tian Gong station, will all citizens between the ages of 16 and 39 report to the nearest government station in a calm and orderly fashion. Failure to comply within the next 24-hour cycle will be considered an act of treason. If you are not of the ages listed above, please report to the nearest public gathering square. Thank you for your understanding.”

The three of them looked at each other for a moment, “what on Earth does that mean?”

“I don’t know, but if they’re talking about treason then it’s probably something we shouldn’t miss.”

Zeng remained silent as they walked out of the shop. Thousands of people streamed from the commercial districts and into the streets. Li’s holo buzzed, “students, please meet with your assigned professor before gathering at a station.”

They entered the hotel that they had been staying in, most of the student body was already in the lobby. They milled around nervously talking in hushed tones. Slowly, more students returned, until every single one of them had been accounted for. Then professors began calling for their groups and heading out. It looked eerily like soldiers shipping out to boot camp.

Professor Gao stomped all the way to the police station, hundreds of men and women packed inside like sardines. The life support systems barely keeping up with the extreme strain. Several dozen lines had formed with soldiers at the ends directing people into four different groups. “Spread out and pick a line, it doesn’t matter which one just pick one.”

Li, Zeng, and Ren were filed into one of the faster-moving lines. Less than ten minutes later Li found himself at the front, facing a seven-foot-tall armored giant. “Do you have EVA and 0g certification?”

“I’m sorry what?” I asked in surprise. The soldier repeated itself, “Do you have EVA and 0g certification?”

“Yes.”

“Do you have any previous combat experience?”

Li paused, “do simulations count?”

“No.”

“Then I do not.”

“Recruit, please follow the red line and prepare to be processed for emergency military training.”

The realization dawned on him, “Wait what!”

“Recruit please follow the red line and prepare to be processed for emergency military training.”

“You can’t do that!” he protested. The soldier’s helmet lit up with red light, the rifle held across its body snapped up.

“In accordance with Article 2, Section 7, Clause 1 of Pan Asian Coalition law. All citizens of the ages 16-39 are required to serve in the armed forces in a time of emergency. Failure to comply will result in punishment.”

Li’s eyes focused on the black hole that was the gun pointed at his face and gulped, hastily walking off, he gathered at one of the groups where a squad of soldiers lined people up in neat rows. He stopped when one of the soldiers noticed him, “Recruit, your new designation is B66, do not forget it. You will stand in line behind Recruit B65, you will not move or speak unless under order to do so. Failure to comply will result in punishment.”

The soldier gently moved him along and began to give the same speech to another civilian. The troops moved like robots, completely professional without a hint of humanity to them. Li found his place and let out a sigh of relief as both Zeng and Ren were herded into his group. They exchanged terrified looks of fear and bewilderment. The metal boots of a soldier clanked across the deck, stopping right in between the two of them.

“Recruits, keep your eyes in front at all times unless ordered to do so, failure to comply will result in punishment,” it said in the same deep robotic voice that every single one of them had. Li quickly averted his gaze and the soldier walked off.

Soon enough the entire deck was packed, several thousand men and women stood in ramrod-straight lines facing a line of soldiers in their angular black and red armor. Footsteps reverberated through the silent deck and a new soldier exited the corridor strolling through the middle. As one the soldiers saluted, holding their right hand in a closed fist over their heart and their left at a ninety-degree angle behind their back.

“Citizens I am Captain Sun and it is with a heavy heart that I bring you the news that our great nation is coming under attack. Four days ago, we received a transmission from Earth that Long Kou was to be the first to be attacked.” muttering broke out amongst the civilians before dying in an instant as the soldiers' helmets flashed. “That is why the 2nd Coalition fleet has been stationed here to safeguard our home. It is believed that the aliens will attempt to take Tian Gong station intact. And if the fleet is to fall, we will be forced to defend this station at all cost. For the next week, you will dedicate your every waking moment to preparing for the defense of our great nation. For if Long Kou falls without a fight, then the Xeno’s will only push further and further until all humanity is forced to bow its head to alien masters. But we will not go quietly into the night. From this day onwards each and every one of you will be remembered as a hero of humanity and one of the many brave souls who fought fearlessly to safeguard the Terran race.”

The captain let its last words ring out through the deck, Li clenched his fists and squeezed his eyes together, whispering, “what a fucked up day.”

______________________________________________________________________

Admiral Zhang Bao of the ‘Mighty’ 2nd’ Coalition fleet ran a cybernetic hand through his hair. A reminder that even onboard the most advanced ship in the Terran arsenal, he was not immune or invincible, “Intel, what is the status of the 7th fleet?”

The response was instant, “Sir, the 7th fleet entered warp space on January 23. Their expected arrival is between February 11th and February 20th.”

“Sir!” another man from intel shouted, “Reports from the FTL early warning system have picked up a signal!”

“What?!” he demanded, blood draining from his face, “they aren’t supposed to arrive for another two weeks” the Admiral gritted his teeth together, “So be it. Tactical, I want the composition of their forces on the main display. Coms, signal the fleet for Battlestations. Logistics, get me a sit-rep on the troop transports.”

“Aye sir!” the huge holodeck in the center of the command deck winked into existence. Red icons floated over several dozen crude, archaic warships. Zhang let out a small sigh of relief.

“It’s only a scouting force. Comms disregard that order, I want a direct line to Captain Yi Sun-Lin.”

“Aye sir, Captain Yi is on your com line.”

“Captain, a hostile vanguard force has entered the system. You are to deal with them at once. I am placing your ship and the PAC Shen Zhen under your command. Do not fail our great nation.”

The Korean captain’s eyes widened for a moment before he nodded and cut the connection off. Two ships, the battlecruisers PAC Shen Zhen and Hansan split off. Their acceleration vectors hitting speeds of 10G’s in less than a minute. Satisfied, Zhang Bao returned his attention to other matters.

“Sir,” a logistics officer piped up, “the troop transports have finished unloading supplies and are on their way back. Emergency training procedures are well underway.”

“Not that it’ll do us any real good.” The admiral thought bitterly. He did not approve of the mass forced conscription in the slightest but it was what the Council on Earth had ordered.

The officer continued, “overall, an additional six million bodies have been added to the 8th route army, boosting their strength to above eight million.”

“Very well, notify me when the troop transports return.”

/-/

Captain Yi Sun-Lin poured himself a shot of Maotai. The liquor's strong aroma filled his nose and he set the bottle down. “It’s a bit early to be drinking, no?”

Yi’s head shot up to the door where his 1st mate stood, Commander Haiyun Li, stood. She leaned back against the bulkhead with her arms crossed under her breast. “That’s no way for a subordinate to greet her commanding officer.”

She gave him a cheeky grin, “Isn’t it prohibited for officers to have alcohol outside of the mess hall?”

He opened his mouth to reply, then closed it, and opened it again. Haiyun waggled her eyebrows at him and he glared back. Finally, he picked up the glass and downed the whole thing. “You didn’t see a thing.”

“What did Haiyun not see?” a man in a white doctor's lab coat asked, walking into the room.

“Nothing,” he answered quickly, “it’s good that you can join us, Dr. Rosencrantz. I apologize if we are interrupting anything.”

The doctor waved a hand, “Oh don’t worry about it Captain, and what have I said about calling me doctor. You need to loosen up a little bit.” he said and looked intently at the bottle of liquor on his desks. “I see you do not need any help with that.”

“William.” Yi coughed into his hand meaningfully and the outgoing man paused, “as you are our premier xenobiologist, there are some questions I have for you.”

“Of course Captain, ask away.” Rosencrantz nodded and Haiyun pulled up a holo.

“As the database is rather lacking on alien ships and tactics, what can you tell us about this fleet?”

The doctor glanced at the display, “hmm interesting. Rather low tech, Tier four at the highest. Judging by those acceleration profiles, it looks like they don’t have inertial dampening.” he continued for several minutes poking and prodding at the holo. Yi placed the bottle of Mao Tai back into its hiding spot. Haiyun shot him an annoyed look and gestured towards William.

“William,” he said, the doctor ignored him.

“William,” he repeated the same effect.

“Dr. Rosencrantz!” the man looked up.

“Yes, Captain?”

“Well?”

“The enemy fleet seems to be composed mainly of Tier four civilizations from Class 13 deathworlds. Using the Methis method we can assume tha-”

“In English, doctor.” Yi said, “or at least something that the translators can comprehend.”

“Sorry, our opposition seems to be composed of what we would consider outdated and obsolete ships. Lacking in almost every way. They do not have inertial dampeners, meaning that either they do not have the technology for it. Or their reactors are not powerful enough to afford such a luxury. As you can tell from the exposed rail guns and open torpedo tubes. Their main armament will be missiles and kinetic energy weapons. Considering how they lack inertial dampeners and they are still accelerating at well over four Terran G’s it is safe to assume that they are of a Deathworld rating twelve to fourteen.”

“Will that have an effect on their combat abilities?” Haiyun asked. The doctor shrugged.

“Considering the combat will be entirely space-based, not much. Their G tolerance advantage will be negated by our superior tech. The only real edge they will have is the ability to jump away within seconds of coming into contact with us. I would assume that is why they sent those floating pieces of junk first.”

“Thank you, doctor, that will be all,” Yi said. The doctor gave a lazy salute and walked out. Haiyun pushed herself off the wall and sauntered over to his desk. She pressed herself against him and bent over.

“Commander Li?” the Captain asked red-faced, “I believe that there are quite a few regulations against this.”

He leaned as far away as he could, this was not a time to be receiving fraternization charges.

“Hmm, what was that?” she asked standing upright. In her hands was the bottle of Mao Tai that he had hidden.

“It seems we had a misunderstanding.”

She raised the bottle to her lips, “I bet.”

“What do you think of the doctor’s analysis?”

“I think that he hasn’t got a clue what he’s talking about. His only experience in the armed forces was a two-year stint as an engineer.”

“Then what should we do?”

A grin formed across her face, “Kill them all and let God sort ‘em out.”