The Swamp Fox
Sarna News
| The Swamp Fox | |
|---|---|
| Short story by Ben Klinefelter | |
 | |
| Publication | |
| Published | 14 June 2023 |
| Published in | Shrapnel Issue 13 |
| Publisher | Catalyst Game Labs |
| Illustrator(s) | Jared Blando |
| Pages | 13 |
| Chronology | |
| Era | Succession Wars era |
| Timeline | 31 December 3016 — 3 January 3017 |
The Swamp Fox is a short story by Ben Klinefelter that was published in the thirteenth issue of Shrapnel.
Plot Summary[edit]
Captain Frances Marrion has a nightmare of her husband's execution by Draconis Combine soldiers. This is when she suddenly awakes in her bunk on board the brown water Monitor Naval Vessel Swamp Fox, that the resistance group had captured from the Combine's occupation forces. Since then they are fighting a guerrilla war, raiding Combine garrisons and depots on their own initiative. Marrion is obsessed with vengeance and determined to force the entire resistance of Verthandi to follow her path.
During their next attack on a Combine depot, the jump infantry detachment finds it deserted. Instead, the vessel is surrounded by a full lance of BattleMechs that emerge from hiding underwater. In the following fight the ship is able to destroy two 'Mech while crippling a third, but sustains massive damage in the process. This is when Francis Marrion loses consciousness after being injured.
Some days later she awakes in a rebel base, having been rescued by the Jump infantry commander of the Swamp Fox. From him she learns that her ship has been destroyed, and that she is the only survivor. After hearing this grim news she falls to sleep again, knowing that the fight against Verthandi's occupiers would never end for her.
Featured Characters[edit]
- Frances Marrion
- Darren
- Jerry
- Shaw