Location: Mayasura System
Date: 82.10.22

Many cycles ago, the Mayasura System was among the greatest and richest independent polities of the Sector. A center of culture and wealth, it stood as a wall against the spread of Hegemony influence both in the fact of its mighty fleets and as symbol of an independent path for future history to follow.

The crown of the Mayasura system was the triad of vast arcology-stations hanging above the world of Mairaath. Combined they housed tens of millions and formed the keystone of the terraforming project which transformed Mairaath into a paradise-world of fantastical transgenic re-imaginings of old-Earth biomes amidst bountiful fractal plains of robot-tended agriculture.

A fanatical sect of the Luddic Path pledged itself to destroy this great false idol. They organized a decades-long operation of subtle infiltration and sabotage.

On the chosen day, at the chosen hour, one station was rammed by an enormous Prometheus-class fuel carrier while, at the same, every safety system simultaneously engaged itself in an infinite reboot cycle. This station was cast from orbit on a bleeding tail of fusion fire crackling with radioactive dust.

One station was pushed by its own thrusters, slowly at first, but faster and faster and with gravity's dread inevitability it crashed to the surface of Mairaath. Lines of great destruction were scored upon the face of the world, mushrooming into cloud-banks of ash as firestorms raged and the carefully nurtured weather systems spasmed into extreme failure states from terraformers' nightmares.

The destruction attempt carried out upon the final station was a victim of its own chaos. This station remained in orbit, wounded and bleeding air, debris, and bodies out among the sparkling shredded membranes of solar mirrors.

Impotent, the bulk of the Mayasurian fleet stood vigil in orbit around the planet able to offer only token help to the dying population but unwilling to leave. When the Hegemony task force appears on the outskirts of the system, the fleet commander knows what they came to do and moves to block their path, determined to fight to the last. The experienced Commodore Jensulte in command of the Hegemony detachment is not about to take any chances and begins a methodical advance to erase the symbol of Mayasura alongside the fact.

* * * 

Your captains know what it is to lose everything and can be trusted to carry out your orders in the face of overwhelming odds.