"This is my chance." thought Greyson. He stood before the door of his quarters on the assault ship feeling electric. A month into his training, the prince was called on to quell an uprising in one of the outlying cities. Evidently, these people historically had more of a propensity for violence than the rest of the culture on this planet. Reports were, during the original invasion, these were the only ones that put up any kind of fight. That was just fine by Grayson. He had been given command of an entire company of Rednasi soldiers. He was confident they could handle whatever resistance a bunch of slaves could come up with.
He took a deep steadying breath and strode out to the hanger. Once there, he met his lieutenant on the command platform that stood high above the wide bay that was full of his troops standing at attention next to their hover bikes. The lieutenant saluted and handed him a data pad with a report pulled up on it. It was not what Greyson was expecting to see.
Envoys had been sent to the resistance with a simple message. They could surrender their leader, and the rest would be allowed to return to live and return to work without punishment, if not their entire city would be razed. Grayson figured giving them the choice between life or obliteration would make this an early day. According to this report, that had not been the case. Grayson was truly shocked and appalled by what he read, so much so he had to read it twice. Apparently, the envoys had not even had the chance to deliver the message. When their shuttle arrived at the city, they found the slaves had taken over and erected a makeshift wooden wall about ten feet tall. When they approached the gate to entreat entry, they were seized, pulled inside, stabbed several times, then hurled several feet back out the gate, dead. Their shuttle pilot, who had seen everything and made the report, had barely escaped under a barrage of weapon fire.
Greyson seethed. He gripped the data pad tightly as he turned to look out over his company, fire in his eyes. On the edge of pure rage, he addressed the crowd at the top of his lungs, voice echoing off the walls of the cavernous bay.
"Can you believe this?!" He shouted, raising the data pad high over his head. "These INGRATES have the audacity to not only assume they can rebel against the might of the REDNASI EMPIRE, but they murder our envoys without even a second thought! We came to give them a chance at peace, a chance at life! What do these SAVAGES do? They spit in our face! They thumb their noses at our Queen! They have chosen their fate. We offer a carrot; they choose the stick." He composed himself and stood up straight. With a sneer he continued. "Mighty soldiers of Rednas. Let us teach these fools a lesson. What happens here today will be an example to the rest of the slaves on this miserable rock, what happens when you bite the hand that feeds you. Show these worms that the only peace rebellion will bring is death."
A roar erupted from the crowd. The ship seemed to shake with the sound of a company of soldiers whipped into a frenzy by Greyson's speech. The bay doors began to open, and every man mounted his hover bike. The sound of engines starting was added to the feral sound of the soldier's war cry. The moment the city's gate came into view through the bay door it was obliterated. The assault ship had fired its nose cannon directly into the gate, reducing it to splinters to make way for the ground assault. This excited the soldiers even more as they tore out of the bay on their vehicles, screaming and shooting at everything that moved. Once they were underway Greyson handed off the data pad in exchange for his weapon. It was a long razor-sharp sword that doubled as an energy weapon. One edge was serrated like a saw, the other was a cutting edge that was curved so it was wider near the tip than it was at the base. He marched swiftly toward the city, determination in his eyes. Four elite special forces warriors joined him as he went. These were his hand-picked cabal, soldiers he trained with and got to know during that part of his training. Each one was fearsome and had their own specialty. Bash was massive brute, extremely tall and muscular with unmatched physical strength. He wasn't especially smart, but if something needed breaking, he could destroy it in spectacular fashion. He carried an enormous club on his back made from a shiny black wood with chrome spikes affixed to it. Song was a strong silent warrior. He never wore anything other than the traditional military uniform. He was usually quiet and composed but was brutal and fierce in combat. His weapon of choice was the double hook sword, and he wielded it with deadly accuracy. It was said he once battled an enemy wielding bladed nunchucks and was able to sever their weapons, hands, and throat before the enemy knew what was going on. Cleo was the smallest of them, but every member of the cabal gave her a wide berth. She spoke in a hushed gravel voice, never stood to her full height, and always wore her hair obstructing her face. She was vicious and sadistic, preferring to fight up close with knives and be face to face with her enemy's as she killed them. She was unnervingly quick and silent when she moved, earning her the nickname speed demon. Bane was a prodigious fighter but a complete savage. He cared for nothing except killing. In the military, he was often sent on missions alone after many reports of him killing his own teammates just for the chance to kill an enemy with his bare hands. They all shared Grayson's determined, blood-lusted look and were ready to kill and die for their prince.
One hour was all it took. Greyson and his company completely obliterated all life in the city. The men, the women, even down to the pets and livestock, everything that once lived in that city died. After it was confirmed, the entire company had returned to the ship, the order was given to start the aerial bombardment. The assault ship unleashed with all its cannons and leveled every single building. When all was said and done Greyson stood on the bridge of the ship looking out over the smoking lot that used to be the rebel city and laughed.