"Remember, brothers in arms! Discretion is for the weak!" Daniel shouted the Warmongers' motto as he charged into battle, battle axe in his right hand, assault rifle in his left. He let fly a barrage of suppressing fire as he sprinted accross the small stone courtyard with three additional Warmongers interspaced accross the field. The Legionnaires behind them continued firing from their entrenched positions, careful not to hit their allies.
Seeing the approach of the Warmongers, the rebels focused their fire in an attempt to bring them down before they closed in. One dropped to his knees from several bullet wounds, but miraculously stood again, only to be dropped by a lucky shot through his breathing vent and mouth. Another was so filled with adrenaline that he was not even aware of the fact that his arm had been severed by a Shredder blade, and merely kicked it aside as he roared and kept moving.
Once Daniel had emptied his rifle, he did not reload or drop his weapon. Instead, he threw the weapon as hard as he could at the rebels, striking one squarely in the face. She sprung back quickly, ignoring the broken nose, and aimed back at the approaching enemy, only to see that Daniel had removed another weapon from his back and held it in his offhand- an automatic shotgun. He unloaded all ten shells, loaded with corrosive pellets, severely wounding nearly every rebel in front of him. He then repeated the same process he had with the assault rifle, and threw the shotgun. in a bizarre turn of events, he hit the same rebel, and dislocated her shoulder with a sickening wrench.
With little effort, Daniel leapt over the 3 foot high wall, eager to live up to the namesake engraved on his shoulder. However, at this point every rebel would rather run for their lives than dying for ideals. No, their leader's ideals, he thought with a grin, otherwise they'd fight to the death. As he initiated pursuit, he decided it prudent to call in assistance, as at this point he was pursuing them alone. He retreived a small device from his belt- a metallic sphere with a red button, roughly the size of a grenade. As he reached a large, clear, sunken courtyard, he aimed it at the floor beneath the wall near him, threw it, and contacted the command ship Apeiron.
"Apeiron, this is Eviscerator. Command code A-712C, requesting 3 Stryker Pods at designated location." As the device hit the ground, it popped up so that the red button pointed skyward and claws sprang out from the underside, digging into the hard stone. Seconds later, an ultraviolet beam shot straight into the sky.
"Roger, Eviscerator. We see the beacon. Requisition accepted. Preparing for flyby drop of Stryker teams. Standby and give us a sitrep on what's down there."
"Roger that, Apeiron. Small entrenched rebel position. From the looks of it, they seem to be focusing manpower for a pushback at this location."
"Armor?"
"Minimal, sir, but it's there. A few Cerberus APCs."
"What about Triple-A?"
"A few AA guns and a small missile battery. Nothing Aperion's defense systems can't handle."
"Understood. Standby... High Knight, we've received an order to drop an additional Stryker pod on location, command code BP23-ARKELEMON. Not that it will affect the matter,but is this acceptable?"
That command code was well known by Daniel. He first heard it when he was ordered to retreat from a live fire situation to be transformed into a 23rd Legionnaire. He also met face to face with the Burning Phoenix himself. He was one of select few who was invited to a meal with the Royal Family, learning that underneath the sadistic, authorative side of their personae were good people who respected all walks of life. He was welcomed as a guest, and treated with the same respect as one would a new neighbor invited to dinner. Their ranks dissolved for that brief period. He even saw the Phoenix on a weekly basis during his training to become a 23rd for progress reports.
"Eviscerator confirms and welcomes the Emperor's decision. Out."
As the comm channel closed, Daniel saw the massive flying command ship, Apeiron, cresting the setting sun ahead of him. It moved silently accross the sky, undetectible until it was nearly overhead. Not only did the personnel at the AAA notice and begin to open fire, but the sound of four dull thumps made the fact clear all too late. A few shouts of warning, and the entire area was in a panic, scrambling for any suitable cover. Several dozen packed into the APCs despite them being dangerously close to the drop zone, and many others, noting the trajectory of the pods, saught safety at the far end of the courtyard.
The Pods fired several small salvos of miniature rockets as they reached 150 yards. The explosions devastated a good portion of the area. The pods landed on target moments later, everything beneath them already reduced to rubble. Doors hissed and burst open, revealing the lightly armored, fast moving Strykers. Daniel looked at each pod, searching for the one that had been added by the Emperor. His eyes widened as he saw familiar spiked burnt orange and grassy green armor-clad figures emerge from the Pod on the far left. He quickly descended the staircase to his left and saluted by slamming his left fist across his chest.
"My lord! High Knight Daniel Devons, "Eviscerator," Reporting!"
"You may speak as if I am your equal, Danny." The Emperor joked, waving away his stature as if it were a pest. "Speak as freely as you wish."
"Alright, very well sir. I can still call you sir, right?" He said with a laugh. It had taken him much practice, but the Emperor had never enjoyed discussing things with formality.
"Yes, that's fine. When I heard your command code, I felt it a good time to catch up on things."
"Yes, well, everything is as usual, sir, and Terra, might I say your armor only adds another aspect to your beauty."
As the Strykers went about their objectives, Daniel, the Emperor, and his daughter aided them, while at the same time conversing like old friends. As the battle drew to a close, they left it in the capable hands of the Strykers.
"So, Daniel, The real reason I came down was to make a personal request to you." The Emperor said as they examined the equipment the rebels had stolen and modified.
"I had suspected as much."
"The truth is, I'd like to enlist you as the first member of a completely new group of the 23rd Legion. This task force will personally accompany me in some of the more dangerous operations. Codenamed Phoenix Fire, I want it to consist of the absolute best, and those that I have a decent friendship with."
The word friendship filled Daniel with pride. "I'm your man, sir."