For a time, the humans of Sera knew the illusion of peace… until Emergence Day.
At that moment, our people broke free from our subterranean world, erupting into the domain of these groundwalkers, and wiping out whole cities. We fought and killed the humans on their fine boulevards, in their homes, on their battlefields.
And they fought back.
In time, their valiant was crushed. With billions dead, humans denied their enemy control by destroying their own territory-sacrificing their own citizen-so that we could not possess it. Such is their loathing and fear of us.
Understand what a world must do to survive-what humans must do, and what we must do. But survive we must.
Now the humans’ long struggle against overwhelming odds approaches the final, desperate stand…
(Queen Myrrah of the Locust Horde, addressing new locust troops waiting to go into battle for the first time.)
You may think they’re the government’s troops, Chairman, but on the battlefield, they are mine. They are my responsibility, my comrades, and my conscience.
(Major Helena Stroud, 26th Royal Tyran Infantry.)
It’s important to know how the enemy plans to attack you. But it’s more important to know why. What do the Locust want? Why are they trying to wipe us out? Why did they choose that particular day to emerge? If we can answer that, Chairman Prescott, we might stand a chance.
(Colonel Victor Hoffman, in casual conversation.)
Guns and bombs don’t kill people. Clever scientists who want to build a better method of destruction kill people-lots of them. Most of my Gears couldn’t make anything more lethal than a blade or a bow. So you’ll forgive me if I think it stinks that my Gears get your “baby-killer” crap and your educated colleagues get research grants. And that’s before you start inventing other shit that you can’t control.
(Major Victor Hoffman, during a frank exchange with student at Lacroix University Careers Day, four years before E-Day.)
Make it up with your old man, Marcus, because we’re all a long time dead. Forgive him. Forgive yourself. When he’s gone, you’ll be ready to give everything for one more minute with him.
(Carlos Santiago, still trying to broker peace between the Fenixes)
I couldn’t just sit there and watch them die.
(Private Dom Santiago, commando detachment, 26 RTI, from the official report on Operation Leveler.)
Sir, don’t you think we got enough corporals and sergeants? I’m real happy with my buddies, and am I gonna kill grubs better with a few stripes on my arm? Everyone’s job’s pretty straightforward these days-kill grubs, kill more grubs, and then kill some more. You don’t need no more NCOs to do that. But thank you all the same, sir. It’s the thought that counts.
(Private Augustus Cole to Colonel Victor Hoffman-turning down promotion again.)
What do you mean, Pesang troops aren’t eligible for the Embry Star? What kind of xenophobic bullshit is that? You mean you’ve got to be defeated by the COG before you get recognition? Pesang volunteered to fight with us, as a free country. That makes them twice the men of any of our damn vassal territories.
(Major Victor Hoffman, talking to the General’s adjutant, 26 RTI HQ, while completing his report on the assault on Aspho Point and making recommendations for awards.)
I don’t know his name. I don’t know anything about him, other than that he was a guard at Aspho Point, his name wasn’t Natan, and if he had been one of my men, I’d have been proud of him. Make sure he isn’t forgotten.
(A heavily redacted official report of the Aspho Point raid from Major Victor Hoffman, found in the vaults of the Ostri Embassy, Jacinto; stamped Uncirculated.)
We could have cooperated with the groundwalkers for our mutual salvation, but they are humans, and they only understand dominance and ownership. All that we have left is a war to the death. For all their so-called intelligence, humans are blind to the threat right before their eyes. We never stood a chance of enlisting their aid, so now we fight alone. And we will stand on their corpses to do so.
(Myrrah, the Locust Queen)
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