Superior
Sarna News
| Superior | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Short story by Steven Mohan, Jr. | |||
| First Publication | |||
| Published | 31 December 2005 | ||
| Publisher | BattleCorps | ||
| Illustrator(s) | Robert Atkinson | ||
| Pages | 24 | ||
| Chronology | |||
| Era | Clan Invasion era | ||
| Timeline | 19 June 3050 — 21 June 3050 | ||
| Series | |||
| |||
Superior is a short story by Steven Mohan, Jr. that was first published online on BattleCorps in December 2005. It was republished in EPUB format in the anthology Onslaught: Tales from the Clan Invasion! in 2013.
[edit]
| “ | Bred to be the best in every way, Point Commander Kenneth of the Moon bloodline knows who is truly superior... or does he? Story by Steve Mohan. | ” |
Plot Summary[edit]
On 19 June 3050, on Kabah in the Clan Smoke Jaguar Occupation Zone, Elemental Point Commander Kenneth leads Epsilon Point of the 214th Jaguar Dragoons Cluster in an operation to eliminate local resistance fighters. Though Kenneth yearns for honorable combat, the mission is a clandestine operation against insurgents, denying him glory. His team infiltrates the town of Sayil, where they identify a suspicious ForestryMech near a warehouse. Believing it to be resistance-controlled, Kenneth orders an attack. The IndustrialMech proves to be a decoy; the true threat comes from rigged logging trucks. In the following ambush, Elementals Hector and Anja are struck down, Anja gravely wounded and Hector killed. Kenneth exacts brutal revenge on one of the young insurgent drivers before the skirmish ends.
Later, at Sayil Medical Center, Kenneth watches over the critically injured Anja, treated by Dr. Elizabeth Ngarambé, a local doctor. Their exchanges are tense, Kenneth enforces Clan customs, berates her for Freeborn practices, and asserts his superiority. Despite some injuries sustained as a result of his aggression, she tends to Anja. Kenneth later learns Anja has unexpectedly died, and another of his warriors, Martin, is found dead under mysterious circumstances. Suspecting poisoning, Kenneth grows increasingly unstable, lashing out at Dr. Ngarambé. Only Rachel remains from his Point.
Seeking vengeance, Kenneth extracts information from Dr. Ngarambé, under duress, about a supposed insurgent hideout. He and Rachel advance toward the site, but a prepared demolition trap triggers a landslide, that buries Kenneth and Rachel under tons of rock.
On 21 June 3050, Kenneth, grievously injured but alive, awakens in the medical center in the care of Dr. Ngarambé. She reveals the truth: his warriors did not fall to poison or betrayal, but to disease. The "hemorrhagic fever", native to Kabah and once deadly to settlers but now endemic and mild to the native population, proved fatal to the genetically engineered Smoke Jaguars, whose breeding had left them vulnerable. The local resistance had not needed to defeat them in battle, the environment had done it for them. Dr. Ngarambé treats Kenneth with antivirals, saving his life, but warns that his superiors will see his survival as proof of weakness. For Kenneth, the revelation is devastating: robbing him of any chance of winning a Bloodname in the future. As Dr. Ngarambé leaves, he realizes bitterly that the woman he had scorned as inferior has proven herself truly superior.
Featured Characters[edit]
Featured Units[edit]
- 214th Jaguar Dragoons Cluster
- Kabah Guards (mentioned)
Featured Places[edit]
- Kabah
- Londerholm (mentioned)
- Terra (mentioned)