The Military Transport Mission

This thread traces Roland Horn’s long-range effort to locate a secret transport, rescue its survivor, and bring its experimental cargo back to Blackwater.

increasingBearing stren­gth in each eventdecreasing

A Mission Beyond Range

The Distant Signal A Hidden Opportunity Blackwater receives an encrypted signal from a military transport with unknown cargo. The ship needs supplies and equipment, but the destination lies too far away for Roland’s damaged Panzerter III without added fuel. A Risk Accepted Marcell sends Roland with drop tanks to investigate and look for survivors. The mission is deliberately limited in its orders, yet its importance grows because the defenders cannot afford to let sensitive cargo fall to the enemy.

A One-Way Choice

The Beacon’s Cost The Return Route Lost After Union pilots force Roland to use his drop tanks as a diversion, he can no longer safely return to Blackwater. He decides the transport’s beacon must be switched off so the enemy cannot locate the cargo through it. Continuing Without Rescue Rather than abandon the objective, Roland burns his remaining fuel to reach the ship and investigate. His choice leaves him stranded, but also preserves the possibility that the enemy will not discover what the transport carried.

The Ozelot Discovered

A Rescue Becomes a Test Charlotte’s Survival Roland finds Charlotte Huber, the transport’s only surviving crew member, and shuts down the signal. She reveals that the cargo includes an experimental Ozelot and that she is qualified to maintain it. A New Chance to Return Valentin Fulbright and Union forces discover them before they can leave. Roland launches the new machine under fire, changing a nearly fatal reconnaissance mission into an emergency combat test.

Night on 2 November 2135 aboard Blackwater

Before dawn on 3 November 2135 at the transport wreck

Before dawn on 3 November 2135 inside the transport