Void Siege
The Coalition and the people of the Asylum cities enjoyed a long and prosperous friendship. The Coalition offered protection from the various scavenger groups and access to their facilities. At the same time, the Asylum cities industrial prowess supplied the Coalition with a near-endless supply of weapons, vehicles, and equipment. The governing system implemented aeons before was permitted to remain autonomous from the Primarshals in exchange for unhindered access to the pre-apocalypse factories and ruins. Both civilisations mingled, and the borders between the two almost completely disappeared. For a long time, the Asylum cities became a second home to the Coalition and a good spot for soldiers to rest far from the turmoil raging with the tribes of the Dark Blade. The peace lasted generations, but then a series of attacks against Coalition convoys and settlements by the violent Rakal clan pushed the Primarshals into declaring full-scale war against the whole of the Dark Blade.
The Asylum cities now found themselves caught in the middle of the conflict. For decades before the Coalition had arrived, they had set up trade with some of the more peaceful Dark Blade tribes, and many of the inhabitants of the cities held a deep respect for them in their fight for survival on this planet. However, the Primarshals demanded nothing short of full cooperation with the war. When there was a moment of hesitation from the Asylum cities, the demands increased to first include control over the industry assigned to weapons and vehicles, then to the abolition of the governing parties of the cities and unification into the Coalition. The Asylum cities refused, and in their anger, the Primarshals ordered all Coalition personnel in the cities to lock down entire areas. Violence erupted against those who attempted to impose the Primarshal's will, and many Coalition populous who had lived within the cities, even starting families within the walls, refused to follow the orders. Finally, the Primarshals ordered all loyal personnel out of the cities. With swift and brutal action, they would seize the cities by force and put down any opposition to the unification.
The leaders of the Asylum Cities gathered. There were no talks of surrender or retreat. All focus was on any strategy that could provide a glimmer of hope. For all its industrial power and weapons stockpiles, the Asylum cities never had a standing army, and now they were faced with an imminent threat from the most powerful on the planet. Long after the event known as the "Awakening" the Asylum cities had built up around three massive ancient machines that now lay deep beneath the surface. Under suitable supervision, these machines could copy materials introduced to them and provide the cities with the materials to become the industrial powerhouses they eventually became. Since the great evacuation after the Ziron blast, these machines had been left untouched, but now an idea to give the Asylum cities a fighting chance formed. These machines could make the army needed.
Deep within the cities, beneath the catacombs of tunnels and underground sectors, the governors witnessed engineers running back and forth, making final adjustments inside the main chambers of the machines. The plan set into motion as the lights illuminated the darkness again, and the hum of invisible mechanisms filled the space. Within the main chamber, an array of doorways lined up and stacked high like a stepped pyramid began to glow with an ominous light. It was a desperate act made by desperate people, but with the machines now ready for instruction, a sample of D.N.A. was administered to be copied and reproduced with all the information needed to program a perfect soldier. Then, the machine turned on. Simultaneously, the machines came to life across all three cities. The Gateways shuddered, and the noise of thumping machinery built. Should anything go wrong, the governors gathered several armed guards by one of the doors. The first gate flashed, and out of the light, a figure emerged. The machine had worked. The governors congratulated themselves in a frenzy of glee, but slowly, the grins lowered.
The figure stepped out of the gate and stood motionless. The figure appeared to be to specification; it was humanoid, but it glared at its surroundings with pitch-black eyes. Its head adorned strange, long spines which protruded from punctured skin, and its mouth opened and closed with long, jagged teeth. Its body was lean and muscular, covered in an embryonic suit, a pale grey almost like the deceased's. From its fingertips hung menacing talons, and as it scouted the machine with its eyes, its sight fixed on those in front of it. The governors were horrified and ordered the machines shut down before any more abominations emerged. The creature watched as one of them approached the machine to end its activity and send it to silence again. Suddenly, there was a flash of red, and the governor stood in shock, blood spattered across his face and body. Looking down, he saw his still-twitching arm on the floor. Before he could scream, he was torn in half, his body flung across the room, landing at either side of the creature from the gate. The governors barely had time to realise what had happened before the creature lunged at them, tearing them to pieces in a violent frenzy. By the time more guards came to investigate the screaming, the main chamber was littered with pieces of the governors.
The machines shook and churned, and in the darkness below the cities, every door opened.