Cornucopia
Ascension Spire,
CorDefCom HQ,
2/08/1620 PD

It had been a week and a half or so since Grand Admiral Corvousier and the Cornucopia Defence Fleet were forced to retreat by the Venterran invasion forces. The planetary shield was raised as soon as the Venterran forces had arrived, effectively cutting the planet off. This was all part of the plan, though Stoinian command hadn't expected for all three space elevators to be destroyed. Cornucopia's shield were holding, but this was a game of waiting now. Would the shields hold for a week or a month or perhaps a year? These planetary shields were installed during Regent MacArthur's reign, but they had become slightly outdated and even the most sophisticated shields couldn't prevent a giant fleet from breaking it. Now the Venterrans were bombarding them with everything they had. Ever since they cleared out the space debris, Cornucopia and its citizens have plagued by an ever glittering sky as the Venterran weapons flared up the shields. Everyone was growing restless. When would the shield fall? And how long will it take the Venterrans? These thoughts passed through the mind of one person in particular: Marshal Valto Häkkinen.
The old Marshal woke up again after hearing his alarm. He was again greeted by the now familiar sound of the bombardment. His gut was telling him everyday the shields would fall anytime, but his engineers had reassured they would hold for at least a few more weeks. The Marshal underwent his morning routine and then headed to his command centre. There a giant hologram of the planet and the Venterran Fleet reiterated the predicament Häkkinen found himself in. The man had earned the nickname the "Wall" for his defence of Ignis, his own homeworld, during the Velutarian War. This time he couldn't figure out if the odds were with him or against him. Sure the Venterrans had a large fleet, but Cornucopia was the closest thing the Star Kingdom had to a true ecumenopolis like the Ryccian capital, Daonlathas. Spire cities cut through the skies and billions upon billions of people lived on this planet. Häkkinen knew that once the shields fell, the Venterrans would massacre billions from orbit. From what he had seen so far, the Venterrans wouldn't make any distinction between civilian and military personnel. Once again facing extinction, Häkkinen too was prepared as the civilians were relocated in shelter bunkers and the lower levels of the spires. The military however bunkered down every corner they could as the hundreds of firebases from the Support Dreadnoughts were now operating at full capacity. The Stoinians were going to make the Venterrans bleed for every single inch of the planet. That much was certain for it was their duty as Stoinians.
A wailing alarm echoed through the command centre as red lights flickered through the room. Something had gone wrong, but what?
- "Engineering, report!"
- "Sir... A shield reactor has gone in overload."
- "What? How?!"
- "Running diagnostics now."
- "Get me an answer now. Coms, planetwide alert. Mobilize all forces!"
Within a minute, Cornucopia had switched from its waiting stance to utter focus. The shields were slowly to lose their strengths, though the Stoinians still had about half an hour or so before the shields would fail due to the Venterran constant bombardment. Sirens echoed through the corridors of the spires as the grunt soldiers move to secure positions and the anti-aircraft guns tilted towards the sky. Readying themselves for the inevitable.
Häkkinen looked sternly around the Command Centre. Just what in God's name had gone wrong?! He paced around looking for an answer until the Chief Engineer came towards him.
- "Sergeant Major, just what happened to the reactors?"
- "Sir, the continued strain has eroded a pipe towards one of the geothermal reactors. Without that reactor, we won't be able to hold them much longer. An hour at best."
So the hours are numbered then. Häkkinen thought to himself. May God protect us all. Without a second thought he spoke the next words precise and clear.
- "Battle stations! Prepare for battle!"

Cornucopia,
Cornucan Bay

Ilie Morganu was a Stoinian Royal Air Force pilot. Still a little green behind the ears despite his new promotion to 1st Pilot. His skills however, would be recognized by his superiors and he gained a position in the prestigious Alekto Squadron. Alekto Squadron was one of the more elite and prestigious units within the vast Stoinian Air Force. An entire Squadron of Chimera-class interceptor aircraft specialized in dogfighting enemy fighters. The Squadron had earned its awards during the Velutarian War, but the pilots that wore the insignia of Alekto Squadron then were long retired and the legacy now fell upon the shoulders of new pilots such as Ilie Morganu. Though Cornucopia had a vast Planetary Air Force, Alekto Squadron was one of the many units detached during the days in preparation for the Venterran invasion. At its head was Squadron Leader Androu 'PAPA' Papadoulos a hardened pilot who flew during the First Mardakii Crusade and wore a sizeable moustache just like his distant relative, Gavras Papadoulos, the Governor of Hyperion. His baritone voice chattered over the private channel of Alekto Squadron.
- "All right lads, climbing to Angels 27. Let's greet the bandits."
- "Copy that, PAPA."
Alekto Squadron raised to about 27.000 feet just under Cornucopia's ozone layer. There the nimble interceptors would be the first to meet the incoming Venterran dropships. Stoinian military doctrine was to use specialized vehicles in most circumstances and while the Skyfury was a good all-rounder, the Chimera was a far better dogfighter, especially at the heights they were climbing right now.
- "Alekto-lead, sensors show incoming bandits 10 clicks above us."
- "Alekto, veer up. All bandits are hostiles. Repeat, all bandits are hostiles. Good hunting."