[From inside cover]
Deep in space, a beacon sends out a weak signal...a message from thousands of years ago. The message tells of a powerful artifact-The Gift3 Messiah- residing on the 3rd planet of the Gift system. It's tremendous power is unlike anything man has ever seen. Four distant races discover the beacon and follow it's signal to the planet. Above the planet, a massive battle ensues. Humans, Darkens, Mercs, and Scorps fight to prevent the others from reaching the planet. Only small drop ships with skeleton crews make it through the chaos. You are the leader of one of those crews...
It was just a little over a month ago that an Earth deep-space-probe [DSP] encountered a transmission from an orbitting beacon near the third planet of what has come to be called the "Gift system".
The transmitted message warned of a mysterious Messiah capable of wielding vast amounts of power. Though little is known of its origin, many believe such a device could very well bring peace to whichever race manages to find it and harness it's power.
The stakes couldn't be higher, and diplomats from four races have been in constant communications since word of the discovery of the beacon spread through the galexy. The Scorp, Merc, and the Darken are all vying for control with the Humans on Earth, over this mysterious Messiah.
Human ambassadors offered to create a coalition to oversee whatever new technology was discovered on the planet, but the plan was rejected. Talks degenerated from there and even though there is still a glimmer of hope that an armed conflict may be averted if negotiations can be resumed, troops on all fonts are poised for battle.
Military officials fear that the struggle for control of the device could ignite an intergalactic conflict of catastrophic porportions. Tensions are running high and details are sketchy at this point, but sources confirm that hostilities have broken out on the planet's surface. Any hopes for a peaceful solution have been dashed. The war has begun.
