Rebel Down

Yelling like fiends the rebels crossed the lines and began routing out the Federal troops with laser fire and with bayonives. Freddy sprinted toward the nearest blackcoat he saw, a big fellow with a plasgun propped on his right shoulder. Freddy shot from the hip. Most trainers say that's the surest way to miss your target, and sure enough, Fred did miss. But not by much, and the beam rattled the enemy enough to make him miss too. The man never got a second chance for a second shot; Freddy Freex's bayonife punched upwards into his throat while the Fed was still working the recharge tick on his gun. Blood sprayed into Freddy's face. The Fed made a horrible gurgling noise and clutched both hands to his neck. He swayed, tottered, and fell. In dozens of little fights like that one, the rebels were clearing the front line of the Federal troops. But they still weren't close enough for the plasma grenades, and they were dropping as well.

Oddly enough, even as Freex continued his run closer to the main biobattery, a lecture from HQ popped into his brain: "If we lose half our guys every time we attack, how long till there's nobody left?"

A grotesque scream jarred the lewtenant from his thoughts. And then blackness engulfed Freex as well as a heretofor undetected spydernet.

Freddy Freex awoke midst the smell of decay. He opened his eyes begrudgingly and sat himself up. He was on a mattress on the ground. There were other mattreses with other soldiers, all wearing the tattered remains of rebel colors. Freex counted some twenty men. Instinctively he reached down for his gun. No gun was to be found. Even as he wondered where he was, three men built like refrigerators marched through a flap in the large tent and into the "room."

"ATTENSHUN!" they yelled in unison. "You &^%$$#!!! traitors are now &*(^% @!! prisoners of war. As such, the rules of the Kashmir Convention apply. You shall have food, shelter, and clothing. However,/i> you no- good &^%!!@!, you shall work for your food, you shall work for your shelter, and you shall work for your clothing!" And then they marched out.

This was not good, not good at all. Freddy had heard about Federal camps before. He had heard how the prisoners were made to work themselves to the bone. Then Freex heard a familiar voice: "Hey, cuz, is that you?"

Freex turned to his left and saw the bloodied face of none other than Charles Lath! "Bloody hell, Jar! I thought you went down!"

"I did indeed, bro. Maybe that's what kept me alive. Hell, its easy to live without a knee, but it's not much fun if they burn your lungs out from within yuh."

"Amen to that," said Freddy to his cousin. "The meds fix yuh up, Jar?"

"Just barely. I'm not bleeding, but the salve they put on burns like the % $#@@! dickens!"

Within another compound a very large man in jet black body armour stood beside a thin-framed man in a grey uniform. "So you see, my dear Garth," said the thin man. "We not only took care of sections 71-78, but the rebel stronghold in quadrant 9 is closer to being squashed."

"Tarkin," said the large man in his deep voice. "I will not be content until all the rebel scum are dead, dying, or melting in the biotanks. Do not forget that while we fight these foolish rebels, the troubles with the Han Guild and the Ala Protectorate build. They are watching us with baited eyes, just like the vultures they are!"

"Yes, Garth. I have not forgotten. The 2nd Delta-Orion is far from secure. Our power base fluctuates with these damnable rebel raids. But fear not, soon our weapon shall be complete. Even now the Engineers are in the second shift of the fourth phase. Patience my dear Garth, patience. These new 'prisoners' shall serve as useful guinea pigs for our plans."

1. The Federal Guard, led by the Controller Garth and his trusted aide Grand Tarkin, continue the terrestrial onslought of the rebel strongholds, outposts, and bases.
2. The rebel leaders on the planet realize their losing position and take drastic measures.
3. Freddy Freex finds that his 'work' detail has something to do with the trash-compacting and sewage system at Federal Base 05, affectionately known as 'Purgatory.'