12-23-2006, 08:11 AM
<span style='font-size:12pt;line-height:100%'>The Color of Freedom</span>
An Armored Core Fan Fiction
© 2006 Grimlok
Note: The following events are fictional. Any resemblance to any person, entity or country, living or dead, is purely coincidence or just sprang from the author's fertile imagination. The author does not own Armored Core or Front Mission, obviously.
<hr>
<a href='http://ravenrepublic.net/index.php?showtopic=483' target='_blank'>Prologue</a>
Humans have never been made content by their own achievements. Even with the great scientific leaps made in the closing part of the 21st century, resulting in the creation of innumerable new machines designed to make their lives easier, there was no appeasement. Spouting out reasons of national security and safety, as well as advocating the age-old national policy of deterrence, humans focused this creative and scientific power into producing machines of war, greater and more destructive than those which the world had seen before. Nuclear warhead equipped tanks. Homing mines. Laser cannons mounted on satellites in orbit. It was a grand time for science, but it was the beginning of a dark age for humankind and the Earth, as both were groaning under the intense repercussions it had on them. And yet the worse was still to come.
July 7, 2142. This was a day that many would remember for all the years that would come after it, for two reasons. The first one stemmed from a very infamous conflict which began on this date.
The Thompson Incident.
An island known as the Thompson Cay was the spark of the conflict. Barely 20 miles long, it nevertheless had one very great reserve waiting underneath which the European Union and the Federation of American States both viewed as vital to their success. It comprised nearly 15% of the world�s stock of it: black gold, the kind which drove many men to war. Oil still was quite the commodity, after all. In addition to that, the island was also a very solid strategic point, making it very attractive to any military leader. To make matters worse, it was placed exactly in the middle of the Atlantic, at equal distances from the EU and the FAS. Ownership rights were muddled, and not one side was willing to share. In its history of existence, The Cay had been greatly disputed over, and it had good reason. But what came next was something no one had seen before.
The European Union, convinced that the American nation-states were collaborating with each other in order to incite chaos within the former through an armed and hostile takeover, and therefore weaken its advances towards gaining hold of the island, launched a preemptive strike at exactly the 0230th hour of that day. Bombarding the eastern coastline of the North American landmass with their long reaching ballistic stealth missiles, the Union hoped to end the war with the Americas before it had begun, as well as provide a long-lasting statement to their consciousness, one that would not be forgotten or erased so easily. Needless to say, the eastern cities were caught off-guard. The loss of life was unimaginable. Millions burned to their deaths, not able to evacuate in time. The environmental destruction was also unimaginable. Stretching from New York to Washington all the way down to Miami, the ground was a black and charred wasteland, barren of any signs of existence. Parts of the coast had sunk to below sea level. Other areas were simply gouged out by the bombardment, as if they had never existed at all. In a word, the east coast was obliterated.
It seemed as if the EU had in fact, won a war without so much as a casualty on its side.
But as history had dictated before, attacks of such a scale would not go unheeded. Within the first few minutes of the attack there was already movement on the western coast, but not to mobilize fighter jets. These were already proven to be ineffective with the advent of the Teller-class orbital cannons, which had the capacity to target and destroy planes flying in the atmosphere. No, instead the Federation of American States moved to use their weapon of choice, obtained by them in secret from the collaboration of Asian technology. It was on this day that the first prototype of a mechanical battle suit was deployed in real, live combat. And it resulted in the massacre of a couple of hundred thousand lives of soldiers.
An Armored Core.
The EU was not prepared to combat such a weapon. Standing well over 25 feet tall and equipped with weapons made all the more deadly because of its mobility, nothing could stop it. With its advanced missile defense systems, it could even swat down the ICBMs of the EU as if they were flies, whenever it was fired upon. That is, if the ballistic targeting systems then could even find out where it was at all. It was a mechanical wonder, moving at speeds of 350 kilometers per hour or more, capable of wiping out entire armies by its lonesome.
That's exactly what it did that day. Not one soldier or tank or chopper successfully stood up to it.
Mankind, like before, had taken a great leap and created something unprecedented. Only this time, it was in the power to kill, to give and control and take life as one saw fit.
Within three hours of its initial deployment, by 0530, the EU found its forces decimated. There was total and complete surrender among the collective leaders of the European nations. They knew that any more aggressive movement on their part would only lead to the further destruction of their now-frail lives. Smartly, on the evening of July 7, they signed the Surrender of the European Nations, a negative manifesto of their making. From this time onwards, they promised never to make a hostile action towards any American nation or ally thereof, ever again.
With the victory of the FAS, the Cay was recognized to be theirs, and they enjoyed the benefits of this arrangement immediately. Now wielding a great portion of the world's reserve of oil, as well as a weapon of truly legendary proportions, the Federation instantly became a force to be reckoned with, if it wasn't already. Instantly its economic life boomed, and its military forces were feared. After all, with one snap of its leaders' fingers, any nation in the world could be reduced to ashes immediately. The example amply provided by the EU proved that much, and if humans knew only one thing, it was self-preservation.
But not all external signs of peace mean total calmness. There was great anger afoot.
Embarrassed by its last foray into aggressive military tactics, the EU vowed in secret to take back what it considered rightly its possession. Spreading out propagandists and spies and promulgating them amongst the Southern Nations of the American Federation, the Union hoped to slowly plant a virus that would work its way up to the northern landmass. Suspicion. Doubt. Envy. Greed. Malice. Violence. It hoped to undo from within it what the American forces had won. It was quite the perfect arrangement as well, with the South historically having quite a lot of disputes with the Northern States over diplomacies and policies. The two never did see eye to eye, but at least they knew when banding together was required.
Slowly, care of the EU's insidious plans, the South began to see that it was the North that was hogging all the power, and this was definitely not the time to band together.
Mankind never learns.
An Armored Core Fan Fiction
© 2006 Grimlok
Note: The following events are fictional. Any resemblance to any person, entity or country, living or dead, is purely coincidence or just sprang from the author's fertile imagination. The author does not own Armored Core or Front Mission, obviously.
<hr>
<a href='http://ravenrepublic.net/index.php?showtopic=483' target='_blank'>Prologue</a>
Humans have never been made content by their own achievements. Even with the great scientific leaps made in the closing part of the 21st century, resulting in the creation of innumerable new machines designed to make their lives easier, there was no appeasement. Spouting out reasons of national security and safety, as well as advocating the age-old national policy of deterrence, humans focused this creative and scientific power into producing machines of war, greater and more destructive than those which the world had seen before. Nuclear warhead equipped tanks. Homing mines. Laser cannons mounted on satellites in orbit. It was a grand time for science, but it was the beginning of a dark age for humankind and the Earth, as both were groaning under the intense repercussions it had on them. And yet the worse was still to come.
July 7, 2142. This was a day that many would remember for all the years that would come after it, for two reasons. The first one stemmed from a very infamous conflict which began on this date.
The Thompson Incident.
An island known as the Thompson Cay was the spark of the conflict. Barely 20 miles long, it nevertheless had one very great reserve waiting underneath which the European Union and the Federation of American States both viewed as vital to their success. It comprised nearly 15% of the world�s stock of it: black gold, the kind which drove many men to war. Oil still was quite the commodity, after all. In addition to that, the island was also a very solid strategic point, making it very attractive to any military leader. To make matters worse, it was placed exactly in the middle of the Atlantic, at equal distances from the EU and the FAS. Ownership rights were muddled, and not one side was willing to share. In its history of existence, The Cay had been greatly disputed over, and it had good reason. But what came next was something no one had seen before.
The European Union, convinced that the American nation-states were collaborating with each other in order to incite chaos within the former through an armed and hostile takeover, and therefore weaken its advances towards gaining hold of the island, launched a preemptive strike at exactly the 0230th hour of that day. Bombarding the eastern coastline of the North American landmass with their long reaching ballistic stealth missiles, the Union hoped to end the war with the Americas before it had begun, as well as provide a long-lasting statement to their consciousness, one that would not be forgotten or erased so easily. Needless to say, the eastern cities were caught off-guard. The loss of life was unimaginable. Millions burned to their deaths, not able to evacuate in time. The environmental destruction was also unimaginable. Stretching from New York to Washington all the way down to Miami, the ground was a black and charred wasteland, barren of any signs of existence. Parts of the coast had sunk to below sea level. Other areas were simply gouged out by the bombardment, as if they had never existed at all. In a word, the east coast was obliterated.
It seemed as if the EU had in fact, won a war without so much as a casualty on its side.
But as history had dictated before, attacks of such a scale would not go unheeded. Within the first few minutes of the attack there was already movement on the western coast, but not to mobilize fighter jets. These were already proven to be ineffective with the advent of the Teller-class orbital cannons, which had the capacity to target and destroy planes flying in the atmosphere. No, instead the Federation of American States moved to use their weapon of choice, obtained by them in secret from the collaboration of Asian technology. It was on this day that the first prototype of a mechanical battle suit was deployed in real, live combat. And it resulted in the massacre of a couple of hundred thousand lives of soldiers.
An Armored Core.
The EU was not prepared to combat such a weapon. Standing well over 25 feet tall and equipped with weapons made all the more deadly because of its mobility, nothing could stop it. With its advanced missile defense systems, it could even swat down the ICBMs of the EU as if they were flies, whenever it was fired upon. That is, if the ballistic targeting systems then could even find out where it was at all. It was a mechanical wonder, moving at speeds of 350 kilometers per hour or more, capable of wiping out entire armies by its lonesome.
That's exactly what it did that day. Not one soldier or tank or chopper successfully stood up to it.
Mankind, like before, had taken a great leap and created something unprecedented. Only this time, it was in the power to kill, to give and control and take life as one saw fit.
Within three hours of its initial deployment, by 0530, the EU found its forces decimated. There was total and complete surrender among the collective leaders of the European nations. They knew that any more aggressive movement on their part would only lead to the further destruction of their now-frail lives. Smartly, on the evening of July 7, they signed the Surrender of the European Nations, a negative manifesto of their making. From this time onwards, they promised never to make a hostile action towards any American nation or ally thereof, ever again.
With the victory of the FAS, the Cay was recognized to be theirs, and they enjoyed the benefits of this arrangement immediately. Now wielding a great portion of the world's reserve of oil, as well as a weapon of truly legendary proportions, the Federation instantly became a force to be reckoned with, if it wasn't already. Instantly its economic life boomed, and its military forces were feared. After all, with one snap of its leaders' fingers, any nation in the world could be reduced to ashes immediately. The example amply provided by the EU proved that much, and if humans knew only one thing, it was self-preservation.
But not all external signs of peace mean total calmness. There was great anger afoot.
Embarrassed by its last foray into aggressive military tactics, the EU vowed in secret to take back what it considered rightly its possession. Spreading out propagandists and spies and promulgating them amongst the Southern Nations of the American Federation, the Union hoped to slowly plant a virus that would work its way up to the northern landmass. Suspicion. Doubt. Envy. Greed. Malice. Violence. It hoped to undo from within it what the American forces had won. It was quite the perfect arrangement as well, with the South historically having quite a lot of disputes with the Northern States over diplomacies and policies. The two never did see eye to eye, but at least they knew when banding together was required.
Slowly, care of the EU's insidious plans, the South began to see that it was the North that was hogging all the power, and this was definitely not the time to band together.
Mankind never learns.