started 11/22/2006

last updated: 12/21/2006

<RP>

Rain and snow descended upon the Siberian countryside, accompanied by a small craft inserting five Earthcom marines into a rebel hotzone.  Onboard, Private Richard Garrison checked his gun's sights and chambered a projectile round.  Noting this, Corporal Jacob Forbes addressed his Marine Crew.  "Pack surplus ammo clips for your weapons' projectile mode.  Do NOT waste them.  And don't deplete your energy charges either."  The standard issue assault rifle facilitated both firing modes and excelled in close quarters - ideal for the coming raid.  "ETA twenty seconds, sir.  No hostiles on the scope." said the pilot.  "Alright let's DO this boys.  Pilot, drop us in that clearing there" said Lance Corporal Jimmy Peirce, pointing out the window.  "Then get out of here as soon as you can.  We'll tell when and where to retrieve us."

The group disembarked and the craft was soon gone.

</RP>



started 08/22/2006

notes:

08/25/2006 - new media network: TAF News (Terran Armed Forces Press Corps; pronounced letter T, letter A, letter F, News)

Terran/Journalest (Alliance?)

Galcom News Network (GNN)

The Independent Network (TIN)

Terran Armed Forces Press Corps (TAF News)


09/20/2006 - currently reading -->Operation Snowball's Chance<-- at post #53
http://www.3000ad.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=6;t=000024;p=2#000053

09/19/2006 - new story idea: Defaction, inspired here: http://www.3000ad.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=6;t=000024;p=1#000006

Alun Tringad infiltrates the Insurgents for 3 months.  He is found out and returned to Galcom just before Gam War One (stop writing before the war; if necessary make a new thread for it.).

The title is a play on the words defection, defacto and faction - refering to various facets of the story's plot.


I N T R O D U C I N G   R I C H A R D   G A R R I S O N
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =

09/20/2006 - this is a working title only.  I should probably ask Ben Zwycky for permission to copy his idea for a thread title.

09/22/2006 - ECV-Accretion is a Galleon-class Cruiser, a supremely fast and agile capital spacecraft at impulse.  Standard cruiser crew complement and support craft.



lower-level timeline:

academy completion

assigned to work at either:
  EHQ
or
  Genesis
or
  VanguardHQ
or
  Starpath

recruited to either:
  replace a current ship's dead crew member
or
  join a newly commissioned ship's crew






My writing style might not be perfect.  But I want to get as much material written as I can and gain experience as I go.  So, once I have something written, I might not edit it for quite sometime.

Primary Character: Richard Garrison
Born: March 1, 2901

[rp]

[i]
0700, March 15, 2920
Earth, Sol
[/i][b]
EarthCom Central Starbase (EHQ)
Academic Advising Center
[/b]

[img]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/9e/Gb1508_illustration.jpg/250px-Gb1508_illustration.jpg[/img]

The inscription below the image read:

[i]A [b]quasar[/b] (contraction of QUASi-stellAR radio source) is an astronomical source of electromagnetic energy, including light, that dwarfs the energy output of the brightest stars. A quasar may readily release energy in levels equal to the output of hundreds of average galaxies combined. In optical telescopes, a quasar looks like a very faint star (i.e. it is a point source), and has a very high redshift. The general consensus is that this high redshift is cosmological, the result of Hubble's law, which implies that quasars must be very distant and hence very luminous.[/i]

The young man marveled at the newest artist's impression on the wall opposite him amid the myriad of celestial images he had seen here before.  After two years of grueling physical and mental training at the Earthcom Enlisted Adademy, Richard Garrison was now a full fledged Earth Command Marine and awarded the rank of Private.  Over the course of his instruction, he had come here, to the Advising Center, many times to discuss his transcript and future courses with his advisor, Lieutenant Troy Jennings, who had managed to steer Rick clear of some common pit-falls, like taking Arial Jetpack Combat before Basic Sniping.   Rick sat in front of Troy's smooth, wide desk, clear of any clutter save for one datatab he had set there just minutes before as ordered.  The Earthcom Academic Advising Center otherwise resembeled a clean, quiet bank lobby, with other Cadets and graduates, at various stages of their training, quietly conversing with their own advisors.

Rick now awaited [ship assignment, needs to go to Genesis Starstation first and wait to be picked up by a ship in need of new Marines]The turbolift at the end of the room behind him chimed and slid open.  A grough Brigadier walked in as the Private stood to address him.  "As you were, son."  Both took their seats before the other man examined the 'tab on his desk and briefly checked it against his own memory.  "Private Richard Thomas Garrison.I read up on you a bit more than the others last night."  He slowly began.  "You struggled through writing and math at the Earthcom Academy much like you did on your community college transcript.  Several of your instructors at both institutions attribute your mediocre performance in your Military Doctrine electives to the amount of extra-curricular material you turned in, almost to the exclusion of most of your assigned coursework.  And yet you excel at programming, fitness and lower-level military tactics theory.  Then why does your faculty cite 'cognitive dissidence' as one of your strong points?  You think you know how the military should work?  What am I supposed to make of that?"

"Well, Rick, I did some checking and I've found"

"No, sir;.  I do not know better than my instructors.  I tried my best to reproduce what I read and heard in lectures of military doctrine.  Though I misunderstood several key aspects at first, Mr. Strong, in particular, worked especially hard with me to correct my work."

"Yes, he did.  He also said that some of the un-assigned work you turned in challenged his own thinking on the subject.  Your ideas almost made sence.  You think you know how the military should work?"

"No, sir.  Granted, we do live in an exciting time, what with the development of the UFN's interstellar space program.  And military structure must adapt to keep our nation secure.  But that's not for me to decide."

"No it's not."  The Brigadier nodded and sighed before continuing.  "Well, Garrison, I'll tell you this.  Your effort to respect your instructors and follow their directions demonstrated a lot of spunk and creativity.  Earthcom doesn't see this combination too often.  That's why you're getting your assignment from me instead of from some secretary upstairs at the drop-off windows.  And so here it is."  He returned Garrison's datatab to him.  "I've uploaded all the info you need so that I don't have to explain it myself.  You're special, Garrison; but not that special."  He chuckled, stood and extended his hand across the desk.

Richard Garrison stood, matched the Brigadier's smile and grasped his hand in a firm handshake.  "Congratulations, Private.  You'll enjoy this one."

"Thank you, sir."  They exchanged formalities and Garrison left the spacious office.

[/rp]

I took that inscription from Wikipedia: [url]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quasar[/url]


[rp]

[i]
0811, March 15, 2920
Earthz, Sol
[/i][b]
Starstation Genesis in Earth orbit
Tradecom
Personnel Requisitions
[/b]



[/rp]