EVATI
MINMATAR INSTALLATION

“Four minutes left.” Roc said over the fleet channel. Jedziah and Hallan Turrek, both pirates of the Bastards alliance, the main operating force in Evati, were covering the entry beacon to this factional complex. Being outlaws, if they came within range of the defending Republic Militia Battleships, they would be fired upon. Roc, being a Colonel, could do his job, securing the complex against the Amarr. He had docked with the installation sixteen minutes prior, his engineers debarking into the facility to perform their task.  So far, it had been a quiet excursion.

“Got incoming on scan.” Hallan said over the comm. “Rupture class. Is it a war target Roc?” A war target is what any militia pilot called a pilot of the opposing faction. In the case of the Minmatar, war targets would be the cursed Amarr, and their allies the Caldari.

“Negative, it’s a neut.” replied Roc. Neutrals, pirates, scavengers, whatever you wanted to call them, they were all the same; trouble. The Rupture immediately engaged the two on the beacon, which was over eighty kilometres from the military installation.

“Taking heavy fire.” Hallan blared into fleet comms. “Pull to range, Hal. I can tank this a bit.” That would be Jedziah, one of the Directors of the Bastards. Having convinced her to come on this little test flight was a stroke of pure luck. If she enjoyed the adrenaline rush of warfare, perhaps her voice would be influential to the rest of the Bastards. That was Roc’s motive afterall. Why let loyal Minmatar die on a regular basis to these very same pirates, when instead he could convince them  to fight in the war, killing Amarr or perhaps themselves dying. Either way, it was a win for the Republic.

“Could use some help here, Roc. ” Hallan said anxiously into the fleet channel. Two minutes left for the engineers in the installation. Roc did a quick scan of his fleet overview. They wouldn’t last another two minutes. His duty came first and foremost; secure the complex for the Republic. At the same time, he needed the longterm support of the pirates in this region. If they couldn’t trust him to be there in a fight, what support and confidence was he likely to get?

Roc sighed, and disengaged the docking tube, aligning his Jaguar rapidly to the engagment eighty kilometers away. The Jaguar was a bit unresponsive as he had no crew. It was just him and the machine.

“I’m done.” Hallan cursed into comms, moments before his ship exploded. It was impossible to determine in the bright flash if his pod had managed to escape. Jedziah was fading fast as well, and Roc was still forty kilometres away.

“You coming today, Roc?” she screamed.

“Almost there, Jed.” Roc said casually. He knew he wouldn’t make it in time. He wasn’t even sure if he should engage at this point. He didn’t have much chance against a Rupture class cruiser, obviously armour tanked. He sighed again. He needed the help of the Bastards. There was no two ways about it.

“I’m not gonna be able …” Jedziah screamed into fleet channel before exploding in a brilliant display of metal and fire. Roc was in range, and locked onto the enemy cruiser, opening up with his autocannons and rockets. The Rupture returned fire, as well as webbing and scramming the Jaguar.

It was immediately obvious what the outcome of this engagement would be, and they both knew it.

Roc turned his ship, and tried to get out of range of the Rupture. If he could get out of webbing range, he could probably hold the Rupture at distance long enough for reinforcements to arrive, IF reinforcements were coming.

He quickly found out what the Bastards were like in this regard. “Sunuvafuck!” That was Hallan. “I’m omw back now. Hold him tight.” Jedziah also made her intention clear that she would be coming back to seek vengeance upon this cruiser.

Unfortunately, Roc couldn’t keep distance. His armour was peeled away, then the very structure of his ship. He gave a quick thought to the engineers stranded on the installation, knowing their air supply wouldn’t last more than an hour, and then everything went white.

Immediately, he commanded his pod to warp, and it responded smoothly. Within minutes his pod was being inserted into his backup ship, the Republic fleet Firetail known as Renegade. It wasn’t much, but it was all he had brought with him.

Opening the fleet channel once again, Roc heard that the pirate in the Rupture had remained at the scene, and that this time Jedziah and Hallan were tearing him apart. Revenge was bittersweet.

Roc warped to the Minmatar installation, which was now secured for the Republic, and picked up the engineers. It was a tight squeeze in this ship, but it would at least get them all home.

From the followup conversation between the three of them, Roc, Jedziah, and Hallan, it was apparent that more than a simple victory had been accomplished that day. Colonel Roc Wieler of the Tribal Liberation Force, had begun to earn the trust of the Bastards.