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Devastation Comes In Big Packages [Planetary Annihilation/Multicross SI]

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PoopyheadPiero said:
Yo are you gonna do the zerg and protoss campaign too?
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I wonder if he could still do the whole Merc route with them as well? Purifier for Protoss and Simulants for Zerg maybe?
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Purifier

The Purifiers are an ancient robotic race created by the protoss. The original Purifiers bear the same general protoss form, if not biology.[1] They operate more efficiently when in close proximity to each other, and a Purifier's personality can be uploaded into an empty shell. They possess a...
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Simulant

Simulants are a form of robotic zerg created by Project Simulant. A white, blood-like substance is located inside all simulants.[1] All of their structures are constructed from a polymeric alloy that mimics organic zerg structures.[2] The simulants were created using entirely terran technology...
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PA!Torr has learned the consequence of belly-flopping into a universe, and honestly I'm really enjoying the journey of recovery he's going through, as filtering it through a more mortal viewpoint makes it easier to parse.

StarCraft has featured Yuriko as the foremost mysterious guide, but hopefully the ability to properly make a difference without making shit worse for a second universe in a row will help Mann's psyche a bit.
 
This story was interesting on the first chapter but now... Its just boring. Your characters only defining trait is being a physcopath. Granted i've only read up to 7 chapters
 
That last part, I think Raynor just thinking, 'Where are my normal friend?' while watching Yuriko and Zaratul. Because even Matt was married with crazy merc so he wasn't normal now. :rofl:
 
Shirosaki345 said:
This story was interesting on the first chapter but now... Its just boring. Your characters only defining trait is being a physcopath. Granted i've only read up to 7 chapters
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I'm assuming you did not read the initial post on the front page, which denotes quite clearly why the first bit struggles, summarizes it, and provides links to a different point in the story after further development and criticisms were made, given, and worked upon and with that could be started on instead, reading said summarized information rather than reading precisely from post 1. That you failed to do so, or simply chose not to, is regrettable, seeing as how I acknowledge that leading up to update 52 is bad, but that I think that the latter sections are better - seeing as how some have literally said exactly that in this thread. But that's fine too, you've got no reason to stick around if you don't want to. No worries, and may you find a story you do like in the future. Maybe read the first post, just in case so that you don't waste your time next time around? Otherwise, your criticism is worthless, because you're talking about something already discussed, criticized, internalized, worked on, and made bypass-able with said first post, summaries, and links.
 
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Idk I've enjoyed this story start to current, more than once. Watching the MC try to be the "overwhelming out of context problem" and getting suplexed by both the restriction and reality ensuing, and learning to pull themselves back together, which is clearly something extremely difficult to deal with alone (and a therapist isn't going to understand the way a godlike machine with a man's psyche functions).

Maybe I just identified with the character because I was going through it as well at the time. That feeling of having to do everything for everyone, trying to do the right thing, only to have it blow up on your face and crash your entire world into a hole where you can't even force yourself to care about other people's problems.

Besides that, I need to re-read this. I don't recall what happened to Dude.
 
Shirosaki345 said:
This story was interesting on the first chapter but now... Its just boring. Your characters only defining trait is being a physcopath. Granted i've only read up to 7 chapters
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Shirosaki345 said:
So ya im stopping at ch 19 this story is just one big wank fest not interesting. Good luck
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If you have criticism to offer please at least be constructive about it and not overly rude, especially since you just admitted you haven't gotten very far into story.

@torroar just curious, at end of New Folsom breakout mission you see several battlecruisers alongside the Hyperion, is it safe to say that in context of story in potential future those ships were captured by Raiders during mission and staffed with members/newly-freed prisoners that wanted to join up?

I mainly ask since as mentioned in story a lot Raiders are lacking in overall fleet power since they only got the one capital ship, as heavily upgraded and full of gear as it is. I look forward to how you possibly expand upon this in story context as you have done with other missions from games.
 
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Tisaku said:
Mobius
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No. Moebius Foundation = Moebius. Mobius is incorrect for such purposes.

Massgamer said:
@torroar just curious, at end of New Folsom breakout mission you see several battlecruisers alongside the Hyperion, is it safe to say that in context of story in potential future those ships were captured by Raiders during mission and staffed with members/newly-freed prisoners that wanted to join up?

I mainly ask since as mentioned in story a lot Raiders are lacking in overall fleet power since they only got the one capital ship, as heavily upgraded and full of gear as it is. I look forward to how you possibly expand upon this in story context as you have done with other missions from games.
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See, the thing with that is you have to remember even that is not quite abstracted/possible, due to the nature of the game. The developers had to be prepared for the eventuality that you would steamroll the Agria colonist missions, and Doctor Hanson would dip out early. Or that you would do the same with New Folsom, or that you might pick the Nova side as well. Or that you would do the artifact missions primarily with only a few of the sides until Char pops up, then sweeping all the side missions up in one go. You only 'get' battlecruisers for the last artifact piece on the Xel'Naga ship, in terms of adding them to the arsenal of the Raiders, so does that mean you should do Tosh right after to have the cutscene make sense? Even in Heart of the Swarm, the Hyperion remains their main...thing, if they could have brought more battlecruisers, they probably would have against Mira (if there was ever a time to bring them all, it would be to help rescue James Raynor, their ostensible leader.) or when it became time to finally hit Mengsk.

I've mentioned before about crew issues, but also as is noted New Folsom has more than just the free-thinkers. It's got plenty of Tychus-adjacent and worse going on in there. So...probably not going to just let everyone in. More likely the ships are stolen and used to flee with or something. I honestly don't want to promise anything about anything, or have anything be 'safe to say' due to as I've mentioned before - me writing these one at a time with no buffer.
 
You should also consider that the raiders also have commitments, friends and allies that need help, their resources are spread thin so unless they are forced they will keep their assets like battlecruisers spread to give support where is needed and to avoid being crippled by an ambush by the dominion fleets, I always like to think that for every battle you fight in a campaign a dozen more are fought on the background.
 
You know, something I have been wondering here for awhile but with how big and vast MannCo as been in it's presence and effect on the setting, who do you think will make a move first on them to either try to take over or kill them off?

Since I could see there very presence being something to spiral canon events beyond repair for the simple fact of one of the Big forces just going after them instead of their canon plan. I mean the queen of blade is someone I could easily see doing that and that happens, well wouldn't things go kind of crazy?
 
Hmm, assuming that Wings of Liberty remains more or less the same even with the addition of MannCo, what happens after?

Widescale nothing is actually happening during Heart of the Swarm save Kerrigan starting to rebuild the Swarm. The Tal'darim remained mostly quiet, Moebius Foundation is not yet Moebius Corp, and the Protoss are just trying to build up the Golden Armada. So widescale changes are not really happening, everyone is rebuilding, so MannCo will be left to go through the motions. On the other hand aside from one plotline it might be able to just tweek certain events, like saving the Protoss on the Science Expedition from Niadra, or at least killing her once she kills the Protoss so that there isnt a Zerg Queen flying around whos sole purpose is "Kill Protoss."

That "one plotline" however could be significant, namely Raynor. If MannCo is around to protect the Umoja facility, then its possible that Raynor and Kerrigan can successfully escape. Even if they dont and Raynor is still captured Yuriko/MannCo could break into the prison and save him first. However even then the exact storyline might be different, as Nova is no longer a Dominion Ghost and so there might not be anyone available to capture Raynor. And I suppose MannCo might be able to save General Warfield, he is a Good Man. Plus if Kerrigan can get away with Jim, she need not leave the Hyperion to wait for him leading to no going on a roaring rampage of revenge against Mengsk that leads to her Re-Infesting herself.

The REAL meaty thing however is in Legacy of the Void. It might be out there/difficult, but if Mann can prevent the energy obtained by De-Infesting Kerrigan going to Amon to revive him, that is a MAJOR shake up right there. Honestly with no Revived Amon there is no Campaign. Plus you already have a much weakened/possibly nearly irrelevant Tal'Darim, so possibly no Alarak/Death Fleet for good or ill. MannCo could be a decent counter to Moebius Corp, so the Terrans are better able to help out the Protoss/resist the Golden Armada due to not getting so sucker-punched by them when they turn. Not to mention the other kinds of Aid that they might be able to offer the Protoss, evacuating Shakuras, keeping Infestations of Zerg down, and so on at key locations.
 
There is no need to engage with them further. They've posted 8 times since they joined the site, and they spent 2 of them telling me they didn't like the front part of the story despite clear warnings and summaries. I responded, they did not. I do appreciate the support, it means a lot.

If we could move on from that and remain away, I would be grateful.

Also, while I don't want to give spoilers on the future, I can note that MannCo simply does not have a 'main base' planet like Moebius does within the Korprulu Sector.
 
I just wanted to say: I like your story, have an internet hug.

I wonder if MannCo found the not!god tombs that are scattered across Starcraft. Because I think that some of them were in suspended animation and were not killed until later in the canon story, so it might be possible to study them and gently ask them if they could deal with their dark-sasuke brother.
 
Ereawin Eriel said:
I wonder if MannCo found the not!god tombs that are scattered across Starcraft. Because I think that some of them were in suspended animation and were not killed until later in the canon story, so it might be possible to study them and gently ask them if they could deal with their dark-sasuke brother.
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We don't know when they were killed. If it was Duran/Narud that killed them, then they were probably already dead before WoL. If Amon killed them personally, then they would still be alive at this time.
 
torroar said:
Also, while I don't want to give spoilers on the future, I can note that MannCo simply does not have a 'main base' planet like Moebius does within the Korprulu Sector.
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But does it have a 'fake main base' in the Korprulu Sector? Y'know possibly as a front?

Chaosbrain said:
Hmm, assuming that Wings of Liberty remains more or less the same even with the addition of MannCo, what happens after?
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I hope it stays more or less the same with MannCo offering 'help' to each faction.
 
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105 - Charity
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    • 105 – Charity​

    Repairs were still ongoing for the Hyperion, Swann having hastily corrected estimates by another day after seeing just how badly the drill had been damaged, and now Raynor found himself back in the lab. Watching the doors get melted through had been interesting, but after the fight that preceded it he'd just wanted to be done with the whole matter. Actually loading up the newest piece and shoving it into the Hyperion's innards had caused his anxiety about the things to spike more and more. Not that his most recent encounter had left him with an eased mind, either. Matt hadn't helped, and Yuriko had mostly disappeared since their last meeting, though her vulture was still on the ship. So now here he was, once again. Doctor Hanson had seemed plenty interested that he knew what it was, in awe of his experiences, but in truth her mentioning it just made him remember who he lost.

    "Protoss, Mengsk, the Zerg," Jimmy shook his head as he regarded the floating pieces of the artifact as they bobbed about, never quite touching one another. "A lot of people seem to want these things. You said you had some more info on them?"

    He very carefully did not say anything more about the Ihan crystal that was set up nearby, or even think much about Zeratul. Matt had thought he'd been just drunk, up and before Yuriko confirmed it. Then she'd disappeared again by the time it took him to turn around. One of these days, he was going to get a stealth module installed on his CMC armor, then he's see how she liked it. Of course, he'd need to be able to make the armor be silent and possibly wear a psi-screen and…well, that thought sort of trailed off while he was drinking in the cantina.

    "Ah, yes," Doctor Hanson pushed her glasses up her nose with a knuckle, the other hand holding her data pad. "I did some more tests, and like I said earlier, it is incredibly young for an alien artifact. Furthermore," she pointed at the newest addition, "The Xil piece is just a bit different. But I think that they all once constituted a single piece."

    Jimmy stared back at the artifact and felt a chill go down his spine.

    "You sayin' they make something bigger?"

    "It's just a theory," Doctor Hanson shook her head. "But there's an attraction between them that I've detected. A sort of harmonic resonance. Given the points of contiguous linear-,"

    "Uh," Jimmy held up a hand, making the doc blink in surprise, as her patter slowed. "Er, sorry, but, I think I've got a better idea."

    "Oh?"

    "We could just ask one of the people who knew about them before we did. You know, the experts."

    Doctor Hanson chuckled.

    "Well, Mr. Findlay isn't an expert on – oh!" She interrupted herself. "You mean Yuriko!"

    "Yeah," he rubbed at his chin, the scratchiness letting him know he'd need a bit of a shave soon, "She's the one who came to me first. Right before Tychus, admittedly, but still."

    Then he held up a finger, and glanced around the lab while the doc looked bemused.

    "Uh…Jim? What are you doing?"

    Jimmy's shoulders slumped as he looked around.

    "Sometimes she pops up right around now," he sighed.

    "Oh…well, maybe she's-,"

    Only then did the door to the lab open to reveal Yuriko with hauling a hovering pallet of glowing protoss bits and bobs. A data pad was in her free hand, one that she was currently engrossed in.

    "Hey, Stetmann! Rest of your protoss samples are here! You-," the psychic cut herself off as her mind no doubt scanned the local surface thoughts nearby. "Oh. Raynor. You look into the crystal yet?"

    "No," he grunted.

    "Then – ah, yeah," she blinked rapidly as she assessed the minds around her. "The artifact pieces. There's five, total."

    "Five," Jimmy parroted back flatly.

    "Five," she nodded.

    "Yuriko…," he pinched the bridge of his nose, "Did you know that the piece was on Xil? Before Moebius, I mean."

    "Sure, but wasn't like we were going to tell them that, not when we were competing for them. Or, at least, we'd planned on it," she said as she shrugged.

    Jimmy struggled to find words as Stetmann popped in, gave a whole heaping pile of technobabble to Yuriko, then strained to tug in the pallet into the research rooms outside of the main lab. Doctor Hanson, meanwhile, seemed fascinated to learn that there were a total of five, and was already typing up a storm on her datapad as she stared at the floating artifact pieces.

    "Then you know where the other two pieces are," he eventually managed to say.

    "Yeah," Yuriko sniffed, "But they're not easy to get to. Well, one might be, the other isn't. Either way, I doubt that Moebius would offer the same pay if you went and got them for them before even they figured it out, might be more, might be less," she waggled a hand. "I can say that until you get all five together and do some stuff to 'em they're pretty harmless," she smiled at him.

    Jimmy rubbed at his temple again before unscrewing his flask and taking a sip. Then when he lowered it, he found Yuriko just staring at him with a raised eyebrow next to the artifact pieces, and continued drinking from it. Only once it was finished did he stop and screw the top back on.

    "Happy now?" She said, hands on her hips.

    "No," he grunted. "Are you gonna tell me where the other pieces are?"

    "They're not going anywhere. And you made your choice, to work with Tychus and Moebius," she shook her head. "Relax, Raynor. There's other things to do than focus on the artifacts."

    "Oh yeah? Like what?"

    Yuriko's smile faded.

    "Have you heard about Meinhoff?"

    ====================================================​

    Jimmy sipped from his flask and stared at the star map while the alcohol burned its way down. The Hyperion was proudly represented, alongside its vikings and wraiths and munin, the group of supporting aircraft significantly more numerous and well-equipped than the Raiders had ever possessed up until this point. It was just a sad sight that for all that they were still a bit dwarfed by the MannCo fleet that waited just a short stellar distance away. Unlike the last few MannCo ships that they'd run into, these ones either didn't have their stealth fields on or weren't equipped with them. Four battlecruisers, each of them recognizably the outdated Leviathan-class. Still, battlecruisers were battlecruisers, with access to Yamato cannons. Even if nothing else on those ships was a threat, four Yamato blasts – outdated or not – could rock quite a few things. Then there was the enormous fleet of cargo ships they hovered protectively over. He, Matt, and Yuriko had been up early to see them arrive, along with Doctor Hanson some reason, while Tychus had shown up last.

    "Does anybody want to explain to me why we're even doin' this?" Tychus piped up right about then, puffing away at his cigar. "We ain't even getting' paid much beyond fuel costs for this one. What," he chortled, "Did MannCo finally start running a bit low on money?"

    "How can you even say that," Doc said, shaking her head at the larger man. "Not everything has to be about money."

    Tychus didn't even bother responding, just raising an eyebrow at her naiveté.

    "It is a fair question, Yuriko. MannCo's never shown issues with resources before. So…why now?" Matt asked, turning to look at the woman in question.

    Yuriko just glanced between the three men and rolled her eyes.

    "Don't any of you watch the news?" She tutted before bringing up a data stick and plugging it in.

    The intro jingle to UNN blared out from the speakers as various people on the snug confines of the bridge turned to look. As was expected, the face of UNN's main anchor, Donny Vermillion, appeared looking the same as ever. It didn't matter that the Swarm was invading the sector, or that dozens of planets had been abandoned to the zerg, or even that so-called austerity measure had been introduced by the Emperor. Donny's hair was perfectly combed and coiffed, and his mustache was equally well groomed, all without a single wrinkle in his clothing.

    "Hello again everyone, and thank you for joining us." He began promptly, swiveling slightly to face a different camera. "UNN's own Kate Lockwell is now reporting live from the ship Andross IV, a refugee ship in orbit around the planet Meinhoff."

    Immediately the camera switched, showing the eponymous reporter standing in what appeared to be some hallway or another on the ship, the windows outside behind her filled to the brim with all manner of ships that floated in an uneasy cloud. In the background of the hallway, more than one haggard looking terran passed by, some of them glaring at the camera, while others seemed too shell-shocked to care at all for anything except putting on foot in front of the other. Two Dominion marines were standing just barely in frame, though for some reason they were facing outwards rather than towards the camera.

    "Thanks, Donny," Kate said with a stern nod, the usual smiles and cheerful manner replaced with somberness. "The situation out here is on the verge of something gruesome. Absolutely enormous refugee fleets have been arriving at Meinhoff since the Swarm invaded, made up of an eclectic mix of ship types as people evacuated as quickly they could on just about anything that was capable of space travel," she turned and pointed out of one of the windows, where a small dropship shot past, the symbol on it undeniably MannCo. "In fact, there are millions of people here who wouldn't be otherwise, thanks to being evacuated by MannCo ships due to defense contracts held by fringe worlds. This very ship I'm on is MannCo chartered."

    The image of Kate shrunk to less than half the screen as Donny's disapproving face appeared once more.

    "MannCo? Disturbing news, Kate. MannCo is a notorious PMC with reckless disregard for their own lives, and the lives of others, knowingly combatting the Dominion in the name of disreputable pseudo-governments," he shook his head. "Worse, they knowingly associate with that monstrous terrorist Jim Raynor!"

    Yuriko snorted, but Jimmy and Matt found themselves focused on the report itself. Doctor Hanson had her hands in front of her mouth, horrified at what she was seeing and hearing.

    "Maybe so, but these fleets are struggling to reach the Core Worlds of the Dominion," Kate continued, eyes flicking away to something else before looking back to the cameras. "But most of them won't. Vital supplies are few, and the planet of Meinhoff simply isn't capable of sustaining them all. MannCo has taken significant casualties from the zerg while evacuating these people, heavily reducing what could have been billions in casualties to the invasion, but people are wondering if they might have completely exhausted themselves to do it."

    Jimmy started and glanced over to Yuriko, who looked almost completely indifferent to the supposed potential death knells that Lockwell was reporting. The sheer amount of money that had been given to the Raiders, the trading and selling of equipment, the insane tech…how much did MannCo really have left to give? It was a worrying thought, right when he'd started to get used to just a bit of power in his corner, even if he couldn't be sure if it wasn't completely clean.

    "Well Kate, that's because they're just a company of mercenaries," Donny gave a small amused laugh as he 'explained' the issue. "Much like the Combine, they just don't have the same grit, faith, and strength of the Emperor's forces. They've been retreating from the zerg since the invasion started, after all!"

    "Oh like you haven't been too?" Jimmy snorted under his breath.

    Lockwell, to her credit, didn't even engage in the obvious mudslinging in favor of doing her actual job as a reporter. Instead, she appeared to be looking rather more concerned than she was before, her eyes now solidly focused on something off camera.

    "As it is, Donny, these refugees, like others," she said after visibly swallowing at the sight of something off-screen, "Are running dangerously low on supplies. They're short on things like food, clean water, and hope-,"

    "Kate, we'll discuss how we'll rescue those worlds when we get there," Donny cut in, obviously exasperated with how he rolled his eyes.

    Kate shook her head.

    "There's a lot of talk about being rescued, Donny, but most of it seems to be pinning hopes on MannCo or even para-military and rebel groups such as Raynor's Rai-,"

    "Great report Kate," Donny cut in, but before Lockwell's face disappeared, everyone could see her duck and dodge a thrown bottle.

    "FUCK THE DOMINION!" An angry woman's slurring voice could be heard. "And FUCK MENGSK!"

    "Step back!" One of the red-armored Dominion marines barked. "I said step back!"

    Only then did the camera cut off, leaving Jimmy and Matt staring wide-eyed at the screen as Donny cleared his throat nervously and adjusted his already perfect tie a few times. He blinked a few times before looking ever so slightly below camera and began speaking once more.

    "Live from a refugee ship over Meinhoff, a great report from our own Kate Lockwell," he said with forced pride and cheerfulness. "Where everyone awaits the Dominion's generous aid over unreliable mercenaries such as MannCo." His relative calm restored, Donny's smile grew bright and toothy once more as the camera shifted slightly and zoomed in on his face. "Up next, an exclusive Vermillion commentary: refugees, are they really…our responsibility?"

    The clip then came to a halt, the recording finished. Matt's fists clenched and unclenched as he shook his head, while Jimmy felt his hand squeezing a little too hard on his flask, turning his knuckles white with the pressure. Doc just shook her head slowly, incredulous at the words that had just been spewed at them. Yuriko, as before, looked mostly impassive as she manipulated the controls to zoom in on the scrolling bar, muting the recording and reversing it slightly so that all of the stories at the time could be properly read.

    'Refugees flood into Umoja'.

    'Kel-Morian Combine forces indentured servitude on refugees in exchange for safety.'

    '1st​ Fleet engages zerg in Sara system.'

    "Hoo boy, that Donny boy's a real sweetheart, huh?" Tychus whistled after temporarily removing his cigar to speak. "Strictly speaking, I ain't got no compulsion to risk my neck or spend my time for them folks," he snorted and pointed at the screen with the cigar, "But at least I'm honest about it. That's just slimier'n snake snot," he chuckled as he popped the cigar back between his lips.

    "That," Yuriko said, making Jimmy blink and look over at her and find that she was looking right back at him. "Is why."

    Matt actually looked a bit worried.

    "Is MannCo actually-,"

    "We're fine," she shook her head, "For now. That's just UNN's spin on things."

    Well, Jimmy thought, that was the first time he'd been relieved about their lies.

    "MannCo is helping evacuate fleets to Umojan worlds willing to take them, as well as settle ones that are within Umojan territory and have recently been terraformed with the help of Doctor Hanson," she continued, gesturing towards the woman who actually blushed slightly.

    "Well, I just…thought that if some of those worlds could be settled, Umoja might-,"

    "No need to say anything else, Doc," Jimmy smiled at her with a bit of awe in him at her deed. "That's…incredible stuff, you know?"

    "Indeed," Yuriko nodded. "The terraforming research of Doctor Hanson has allowed the Umojan Protectorate to settle over a dozen worlds that have always nominally been within their territory yet remained too sparse and barren to have more than mining settlements. Now, that's changed."

    Jimmy didn't actually know much about the tech and process of terraforming, only that it was arduous, expensive, and potentially incredibly dangerous if even a little bit went wrong.

    "Doctor Hanson, that's…amazing!" Matt said honestly.

    "She's saved at least a billion lives," Yuriko added smugly, making Tychus drop his cigar out of his mouth, this time failing to catch it. "And I mean that factually and mathematically."

    "Holy hell, doc, and you didn't think that wasn't something to talk about?" Jimmy exclaimed, eyebrows nearly at his hairline.

    The doc just blushed harder, coughing slightly and tucking some hair behind her ear, almost cringing beneath the attention.

    "I…I mean, I didn't want to sound arrogant or anything…," she stammered. "I never want to…to boast about something like that."

    "MannCo ships provided the airlifting for those without refugee fleets and supplies to the ones that did, and in fact still is," Yuriko said, "But she helped, even if not immediately on-hand and directly, to get planets ready enough that Umoja was willing to help take in refugees, giving them the space and accessibility to resources to manage it."

    Jimmy was still shaken by the numbers being thrown out there. Billions had died on Tarsonis, but it had been one of the most densely populated planets in the entire Korprulu Sector. Billions more lived out there, amongst the stars, spread across a multitude of planets. The zerg consumed entire planets. He stared as Yuriko fiddled with the star map, miniaturizing the still image of Donny Vermillion's face, and started inputting the names of various Dominion worlds, one after another. Each one she left highlighted. Jimmy had to squint, then let his eyes widen like dinner plates at the numbers being placed next to each planet. Many of the planets he'd never even heard of, but some he had. Mostly the ones closest to Char, who had stubbornly remained there despite knowing that they would be first in line of the zerg ever spread outwards aggressively again from the zerg 'homeworld'.

    "We've run the numbers," Yuriko pointed at the glowing field of highlighted worlds. "If it weren't for MannCo's transporting and donating fuel and other vital supplies, and Doctor Hanson's sharing her work with us – that we subsequently used in Umoja, apologies Doctor-,"

    "No, no, it's…perfectly fine," Doc waved her hands vigorously, "I mean, copyright law and usage of proprietary research is one thing, but…if it saves those people from dying to the zerg or starvation, then I'd say it's worth it," she nodded firmly before a very small smile came to her lips. "One of my father's greatest joys was seeing life flourish in the stars, it just rarely happened because of the expenses and time it takes to make work well. Frankly, I'm astonished that Umoja had the money to terraform so many worlds."

    "They didn't," Yuriko snorted.

    That finally broke a bit of the spell that had unknowingly been cast as everyone stared at Yuriko.

    "But…," Doc said hesitantly. "But how could…the sheer amount of money for materials and adjustments…,"

    "We split the bill," Yuriko shrugged, her hands held up slightly as she looked down with her eyes just a bit wide before blinking and looking up at Matt.

    "You split the bill…with one of the three major governments in the Korprulu Sector," Jimmy said slowly.

    Matt cleared his throat.

    "That's all incredible, really, but…I'm just…how have we not heard of this?" He said, his voice not quite dubious. "Moving billions of people is-,"

    "Ah, Matt?" Yuriko interrupted and then pointed a thumb at Donny Vermillion's face, having blown the image up somehow without touching the console physically. "For one thing, MannCo is moving fleets of refugees at this very moment, yes, but for another over two thirds of the fleeing people are doing so under their own power – since we helped refuel their tanks at least. But the most widespread news service that you get in this area of space…," she trailed off.

    She manipulated the star map further and the one mention of MannCo in the scrolling bar became the centerpiece. One that Jimmy had somehow missed the first time around.

    'MannCo forces lose three battlecruiser squadrons in combat against the Zerg Swarm'.

    "As for Umoja not talking about it loudly, why would they? Quiet is practically the watch word for the entire Protectorate."

    That, at least, felt like completely unvarnished truth. Umoja was oddly notorious in that regard. Their Shadowguards were infamous infiltrators and information specialists, rather than the more open military bent of a Dominion ghost. They were both smaller and less wealthy than either the Combine or the Dominion, and had to rely on such measures to remain a peer to the other two major terran stellar powers. Everyone knew that.

    "Still…I feel like more people would have talked about this," Matt said, running a hand through his hair and stopping as Yuriko raised an eyebrow at him. "It's not that I don't believe it's true, of course."

    "It's just that seeing is believing," Yuriko finished then shrugged again. "The thing is, Matt, is that when people get desperate enough – usually because about a million zerg are bearing down on them and half the planet is covered in creep – they'll accept NDAs and the like and just accept being elsewhere. And, with MannCo ships and the highest speed of warp travel, you can stuff a lot of people into temporary standing room on all kinds of ships."

    Jimmy couldn't really argue with that. He knew better than most that desperation made for some strange times and stranger bedfellows.

    "Really? What kinds of ships?" Matt pressed.

    "Oh, you know, hollowed out battlecruisers, Hercules cargo ships stripped to their bare bones to make even more room, every ship with a warp drive that we could purchase…really, the fact of the matter is, MannCo converted over 90% of our fleet into temporary transports," she said calmly despite the insanity of that statement. "Which, of course, resulted in letting the zerg penetrate deep into the Dominion."

    Matt rocked back on his heels, looking both awed and horrified at the same time.

    "Even if it cost their planets, I'd say that saving their lives was worth it," he nodded curtly. "I just wish we could have helped…ah, right."

    "Anyways," Yuriko continued, gesturing out at the star map which she'd reduced to show the MannCo fleet again. "That is why we're doing this. MannCo is stretched thin across multiple planets, and we're getting pushed back by the zerg in too many places. So we're unable to make this delivery on our own. Frankly, those ships," she pointed at the aging battlecruisers, "Need to get on their way. And the people of Meinhoff need those supplies. So can we get this show on the road?"

    "That, at least, we can agree on," Jimmy nodded. "But, let me guess, MannCo also thinks that it could be a benefit for the Raiders to show up as big heroes?"

    Yuriko didn't even bother to look sheepish, she just gave a single jerk of her head and splayed her hands semi-wide.

    "Uh…yeah?" She said. "Besides, you saw that report. There are people there that might support the revolution.

    "Sir, it's a bit underhanded in mindset, but she could be right," Matt said.

    "Again, they could just warp in themselves," Tychus groused, "Ain't like they absolutely need escorts, partner. Couldn't this just paint a bigger target on us for making the Dominion look bad?"

    "What, Tychus, you scared of helping people out?" Jimmy couldn't help but poke.

    Tychus just made a noise of disgust and started walking out of the bridge.

    "This is for the birds, partner. If anyone needs me, I'll be in the cantina," he called out before the door shut.

    Jimmy just shook his head and looked over at Matt.

    "Punch in those confirmation codes. Let's get those people on Meinhoff some help."

    "Yes sir!"

    ======================================​

    The first thing that Jimmy had thought was that the reports had gravely understated just how bad things had gotten at Meinhoff. Because of course UNN wouldn't want to publicize just how badly the Dominion was failing its people. Of just how empty Mengsk's promises were. The atmosphere was completely clogged by ships that were hovering in place with as little usage of their preciously low fuel reserves. Some had actually bound themselves together with strange patchwork girders and the like with zero-g SCV work, to the point that they looked like mobile haphazard space stations. The signals from the planet were no better. Every square foot of land that could possibly be used and then some was filled up with refugee camps. The moment that they'd jumped into the system, dozens of scans led to dozens of communication requests, the signals and reports leaping around Meinhoff that the Hyperion – that Raynor's Raiders – had arrived at the head of a massive convoy of unmarked cargo ships.

    No one cared that the ships and their cargo could have been stolen from the Dominion for all they knew. In fact, some of them hoped for it. It had been the work of about half of a day to get things somewhat organized, to look and find the right local leaders that had risen up amongst the refugees. Some were former magistrates; some had been elected by their fellows for successfully guiding them to safety. That wasn't to say there wasn't friction, of course, it was impossible for there not to be amongst so many people, from so many worlds. Thankfully, Yuriko could help out with that. She scoured the minds of those they met with, to see just what was what with them. The spectres did too, though they were a lot quieter about it.

    Still.

    Something in his heart beat just that little bit easier with every crate unloaded from the MannCo cargo ships. People cheered, they cried, they hugged one another as the crates were popped open to reveal clean drinking water and high-calorie meal packs that didn't require heating. It wasn't the most sumptuous food ever, not like what was served on Korhal, but it was better than dying of dehydration or starvation. Other ships, high above the planet, were currently being resupplied in zero-g, containers for fuel or SCVs repairing damaged reactors and engines busy moving about. In this case, it was actually a really good thing to see whole bunches of lights in the sky disappear, because it meant that they were actually moving again to hopefully safer areas. That wasn't to say there wasn't pushing and shoving, but sickly refugees were hardly a match for a firm hand in CMC armor steering them off from stealing from one another or taking more than their allotment. It meant that a handful of Raiders could actually guard an entire cargo ship without too much issue. Vikings were able to do the same job on their lonesome.

    "…okay," Tychus sighed from next to him. "I'll admit it. This is…nice."

    It sounded like Tychus was really having to work to say it, like pulling a tooth with some rusty pliers, but for once Jimmy wasn't going to call him on it.

    "…yeah," Jimmy nodded. "I'm gonna go help pull some more crates off the ship. Wanna help?"

    Jimmy could see the rejection that formed on Tychus' lips, only to be pleasantly surprised as the words themselves never actually verbalized. The convict instead looked up and away from him to the absolutely teeming hordes of people who were laughing and crying, all of them waving their arms and giving thanks to the Hyperion. There were too many children out there, Jimmy noted solemnly. Some were carried on the shoulders of their parents, their older siblings, or others entirely. Some walked alone, some tugged their siblings along with no one else around showing any familial resemblance.

    "Yeah. Might as well let the world get to know Tychus the People's Hero," he said with a forced laugh.

    Then the two stepped down the ramp, and Jimmy realized he might have made a mistake when some of the refugees pointed him out.

    "RAYNOR!"

    "THAT'S JAME'S RAYNOR!"

    "MARSHAL!"

    There was a moment's hesitation in Tychus behind him at the wave of sound that hit them, but Jimmy couldn't help but smile when he heard the big man following behind him into the sea of onlookers.

    "I'm just here to help, folks!"

    ======================================​

    "-massive amount of supplies rendered freely unto the desperate refugees on Meinhoff," the reporter continued as he smoked.

    Behind him, the crowds around the Hyperion had only just begun to reduce slightly, the infamous flagship of Raynor's Raiders proudly sitting on the ground within Combine space. The blonde reporter paused to take a drag off his cigarette before he continued. Around him, two massive lines walked past, each going in opposite directions. One line was carrying meal packs, small packs of water, and bags with such things in them. The other was streaming right towards the massive cleared zone where the Hyperion had set down with the cargo ships. A trio of vikings soared past, their colors a familiar black, white, and blue.

    "For weeks now, the Dominion has sat and done nothing about hundreds of millions of their citizenry fleeing the zerg onslaught, despite the claims of near-divine mandate to guide and protect them," the man chuckled darkly. "Only now, for the third day in a row, the Hyperion, the personal craft of Raynor's Raiders, has landed upon Meinhoff's refugee zones, bringing with them cargo ships packed to the brim."

    The cigarette had been burnt to a nub by the aggressive drags on it, but the reporter simply shuffled his coat a bit and pulled out another. The quickly rotating day/night cycle of Mienhoff transitioned as he'd spoken, stark light fading into temporary darkness at remarkable rapidity. Luckily, the light of his floating camera and the glow of his cigarette kept the reporter illuminated enough. Bright floodlights turned on instantly, installed into patrolling goliaths and vikings in walking mode to ensure the paths remained bright enough to not risk injury.

    "Of course, the question on many people's mind is…where is the Dominion?" The reporter spread his arms wide. "If they had the money to reverse the near total destruction of Korhal, why couldn't they help their own citizens elsewhere? Dozens of worlds on the fringe abandoned, and now plenty more planets have found themselves becoming the new 'fringe'," he air-quoted with his fingers. "Meanwhile, the Dominion has proudly reported that they've successfully…pulled all of their fleets to the Core Worlds, even combining the 1st and 2nd Fleets."

    He turned and pretended to glance into the sky, paused, then turned back with a shrug.

    "Sorry, thought I heard the Dominion finally doing something for their people," he splayed his arms to the side as the light of the sun came back into being and lit the area properly. "My mistake. After all, UNN has just said that – despite the fact that zerg have now been sighted across all Dominion territory top to bottom – 'the Terran Dominion is holding firm under zerg aggression'," he paused to meaningfully glance at the refugees on both sides, even tilting the camera up to see the still enormous refugee fleets there, "And that their Industrial Complex is stepping up production on all fronts."

    He paused and took a drag off his cigarette and chuckled again while shaking his head.

    "You know, despite the total loss of a frankly enormous number of planets. And manpower panic leading to them once again dipping into the Confederacy's old bag of tricks – 'stepping up recruitment in the Penal System'," he paused and mouthed 'resoc' in silence, knowing that the subtitle would be present after only half a second of delay, "And, of course, my favorite part, 'The Marine Corps is ready to get into the fight'."

    The reporter snorted as he exhaled another cloud of smoke.

    "And it only took them the loss of the fringe, dozens of planetary losses, and billions of displaced refugees. I-,"

    "Holy shit," an infamous man's voice broke into the pirate broadcast. "Michael Liberty. I didn't believe it when they told me some reporter was out here."

    For the first time in a long time, Michael Liberty lost his on-camera composure, his cigarette dropping out of his suddenly gaping mouth. He turned slightly, the camera dutifully following his movements, to see none other than James Raynor himself, the man dressed in his own customized black CMC armor, two heavy supply crates in his armored hands. The man was also smoking, as it turned out, though due to his armor he stood a good bit above the reporter himself.

    "I…Jim," Michael stammered and trailed off. "Uh…,"

    "Oh, shit," Raynor said as he saw the camera. "My bad, man. I'll back off."

    "No no!" Michael half-shouted, arms waving. "It's fine! I…what are you doing?"

    Raynor glanced down at the crates. He was a good bit away from the main distribution site, after all, and only a few Raiders were with them, similarly carrying crates. The refugees stared at them in awe, some of them bumping right into one another before being shoved or chivvied along.

    "Some of the supplies weren't just food n'water, or fuel and the like. Some people donated, uh," he blushed slightly.

    James Raynor blushed on camera.

    "They're toys!" A woman shouted at Michael, this one dressed in medic armor.

    Her helmet's gray faceplate slid open to reveal a scarred and middle aged woman with dusky brown skin.

    "There's a lot of kids out here. Kids need more than just food and water, they ain't no damn fool plants," she continued, adjusting her grip on the crates. "So we're gonna deliver them."

    Michael blinked, slowly.

    "And…you are…?"

    "Benjamina Brown," she stated proudly before her expression grew murderous. "Late of Mar Sara, before the Dominion came in and started killing us for fun, and before Raynor came and saved us."

    Even bereft of a proper network, Michael was a consummate reporter.

    "Really?" He said with intensity. "Would you be willing to give me an interview on that?"

    Ms. Brown looked over at Raynor, who looked back at Michael.

    "I fought with Mr. Liberty once or twice," he eventually said. "He's a good man. It's your choice though, BB. But first," he tilted his head at the crates.

    BB, as Michael noted she'd been called, mulled it over before nodding.

    "Sure, Liberty. But first we gotta make like Santa."

    And so they did.

    Afterwards, despite Michael Liberty's broadcasts being underground at best, it was not long before images surfaced of James Raynor delivering toys to refugee children on Meinhoff.
     
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    • A delicious PR coup. Too good to be true though, it'd be like Mengsk visiting the border worlds and building orphanages... at least to the inner sphere of The Dominion.
     
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