Cassandra's Tears: A Cal Mason Adventure

*Cassandra's Tears: A Cal Mason Adventure*

 Issue #1
Issue #2
Issue #3
Issue #4
Issue #5
Issue #6
Issue #7
Issue #8
Issue #9

   ***Cassandra's Tears: A Cal Mason Adventure*** is a ten part in-universe serial story following United Empire of Earth pilot Cal Mason and his cohorts aboard the UEES Gemini. It isn't entirely clear whether the story is a dramatization of actual in-universe events or an example of in-universe fiction.

## Summary

Issue #1
Cal, aboard the carrier *UEES Gemini* patrolling the Centauri systems, is grounded as he awaits review and finishes recovering from injuries sustained in a previous adventure. Antsy, he begs Admiral Showalter to clear him for flight, but his request is denied. When the *Gemini* picks up a distress call from a nearby planet known as Yar under attack from a Vanduul raiding party, Cal disobeys orders and joins the sortie of starfighters sent out to intercept. Shortly after launch, a Vanduul flagship is detected entering the system.
Issue #2
The *Gemini* sortie enters the atmosphere of Yar to find a melee already ongoing. They join the fray, but even with their help, it isn't clear which side is winning. Meanwhile, the *Gemini* enters the upper atmosphere to position itself between the enemy flagship and the settlement on the surface. While this means the *Gemini* takes the hits meant for the settlement, it leaves the carrier in the precarious position of enduring assault from both the planer's gravity and the enemy flagship's firepower. Cal sights Vanduul reinforcements entering Yar's atmosphere and is surprised land at the settlement rather than join the ongoing fight, but he is soon distracted by a Vanduul ace known as the Black Talon. He and his fellow pilot Penny become embroiled in a struggle with this skilled adversary.
Issue #3
Penny is forced to engage other members of the Vanduul raiding party, leaving Cal tangling solo with the Black Talon with a damaged fighter. Above, Admiral Showalter daringly cuts most of the *Gemini's* thrusters, letting the carrier fall into a position to unleash a full salvo against the weak underbelly of the Vanduul flagship. The tactic causes heavy damage to the enemy ship, and it begins to retreat. Below, Penny rejoins the battle against the Black Talon, but the two pilots are unable to take him down. The Vanduul ace joins the rest of the raiding party in a retreat. While the *Gemini* sortie gives chase, Cal lands at the settlement to see what the Vanduul were doing and finds several unknown pieces of equipment are missing. After leaving Yar's atmosphere, the rest of the *Gemini* sortie is forced to break off pursuit of the fleeing Vanduul due to cover fire from the flagship. Cal asks Penny to cover for him with the admiral, and then after getting back in his ship and taking off, he pursues the fleeing flagship by himself.
Issue #4
Cal follows the Vanduul through a nearby jump-point, and then shuts off unnecessary systems to reduce his energy signature. For a time, undetected by the enemy, he collects data on the assembled ships of this Vanduul clan. Eventually, however, he is noticed, and the Vanduul launch a wave of fighters after him, including the Black Talon. Cal leaves his fighter before it is destroyed and ends up on the hull of the flagship. He enters through one of the breaches caused by the *Gemini's* attack and eventually makes his way to the landing bay without being noticed. He is surprised to see a Constellation land aboard the flagship, where two suited humanoids emerge the accept the equipment stolen from Yar. At this point, Cal hears a plasma rifle being charged behind him.
Issue #5
The Vanduul question Cal as one threatens to cut his oxygen hose; the two unknown humanoids provide translation both ways. The Vanduul begins to strangle Cal as an argument breaks out between the Vanduul and the humanoids, but Cal passes out before seeing the resolution. He awakens aboard the Constellation as it leaves the flagship's landing bay. Soon, one of his captors removes her helment, revealing herself to be a human woman and informs Cal that he is now their hostage. Meanwhile, Admiral Showalter takes out a starfighter to follow Cal. After emerging from the jump-point to find the remains of Cal's ship, he assumes Cal was killed and reverses course.
Issue #6
A funeral for Cal is held aboard the *Gemini*, but the still living Cal is learning what he can from his captors despite their attempts to conceal information from him. He learns the Constellation is named the *Phoenix*, and he overhears the name Cassandra, believing it to be the name of the leader and only woman aboard the ship. The rest of the crew includes a large man going by the nickname Trunk, a talkative gunner and copilot named Nesser Yahro with an obvious drinking problem, and a mechanic who Nesser called Mahony. During a conservation with the woman a few days later, Cal risks calling her Cassandra. He can tell by the reaction that it isn't her name, which he doesn't know is Sasha. His knowledge of the name Cassandra concerns Sasha however, and she discusses the matter with Trunk. They decide it isn't a problem since he doesn't know what Cassandra is and they have the option of killing him at any time. Penny, meanwhile, begins investigating the information Cal had sent back from his brief visit to the Yar settlement, and eventually learns that Cassandra was a classified project to develop a nanovirus to break down and rebuild a planet according to new specifications. Soon enough, the SysBook she was using for her investigation shuts down without warning.
Issue #7
Penny is taken into custody for accessing classified files. Cal, meanwhile, in cuffs, observes as Nesser is caught by the rest of the crew sleeping in the cockpit while he is supposed to be flying the ship. They tell Nesser he will be paid off and left behind after they land, and then they take Cal to the hangar bay. Sasha stows Cal in a scan-proof shipping container as the *Phoenix* passes through customs near a jump-point. As they successfully make it through customs without raising suspicion, Sasha offers Cal the chance to join them, warning Cal that they're likely to dispose of him if he doesn't agree. Despite this, Cal refuses her offer. After traversing the jump-point, Trunk joins them in the hangar bay, and Sasha orders Trunk to kill Cal.
Issue #8
Penny is questioned by a man named Darrow, and she quickly explains everything she's learned, leaving Darrow at a loss for words. As this happens, Cal manages to provoke Trunk, who decides to kill Cal with a knife rather than simply spacing him. Cal manages to reverse the situation with some deft moves, managing to take the knife and puts it at Trunk's throat. He manages to make his way to the P52 snub fighter in the hangar bay, and releasing Trunk, he quickly boards the fighter, opens the hangar doors, and takes off before Sasha can reach the cockpit and close the doors. For a while, Cal is able to outmaneuver the *Phoenix's* attempts to shoot him down, but they eventually score a hit on one of his engines. Cal gets in close behind a Caterpillar about to enter the nearby jump-point and follows it in, despite the P52's lack of a jump drive. The crew of the *Phoenix* believe he couldn't possibly survive this and resume their intended course.
Issue #9
But the P52 manages the survive the trip through interspace, through barely. Cal is rescued by police and medical teams at the nearby customs station. He wakes an hour later after being tended to by the medics, but ignores their requests that he stay for further treatment. Instead, he heads to the bay where his stolen P52 was placed and removes its homing beacon to use to allow him to track the *Phoenix*. He then manages to talk the police into allowing him to use a confiscated Cutlass and takes it back through the jump-point to pursue the *Phoenix* back into Banu Protectorate territory. Cal finds they've landed on the planet Queeg and lands nearby. He eventually sees Trunk leave the ship and enter a nearby building, which he finds a way to sneak inside. He observes Mahony test Cassandra, which broke down soil and green grass inside a canister and reformed it into a violet grass, and then watches as they load Cassandra into what could only be a bomb.
Issue #10
Admiral Showalter tries to intercede on Penny's behalf, and Darrow reveals that the grandson of the leader of the Cassandra Project had been attempting to access the project's files. Meanwhile, on Queeg, Cal decides against trying to ambush the *Phoenix's* crew when he sees they hired six more hands to help load the Cassandra canisters. After they finish and the *Phoenix* takes off, Cal returns to his Cutlass and takes off to follow. He decides to warn the customs station on the other side of the jump-point ahead about the *Phoenix's* cargo and asks them to forward the message to Penny. He then follows the *Phoenix* through to find out someone set off an EMP bomb, leaving chaos as ships raced to take advantage of the compromised security around the jump-point. He lines up to attack the *Phoenix*, but barely dodges an attack by another ship, which he realizes is allied with the *Phoenix*. Sasha contacts him, requesting an identification, and is surprised to learn Cal is still alive. He urges her to reconsider her plans, but she and her ally try to shoot him down instead. Cal takes out the other ship, but the *Phoenix* escapes through the jump-point to the Croshaw system. He follows.
Cal's message is delivered to Penny while she is still in custody and while the admiral is still present. The admiral, hearing the message, realizes that Earth is the target. Cal, meanwhile, detects the *Phoenix* on course to the jump-point heading to the Nul system, where a Vanduul fleet emerges. Cal tries to coordinate the local police to help them defend the system against the Vanduul invaders. The *Gemini* soon arrives to join the battle, and Cal and Penny work together to help fight off the attackers, but in the chaos, the Phoenix manages to deliver its cargo to the Vanduul flagship and take off. Black Talon joins the fight, and Cal and Penny engage him. Seeing the flagship make a run for the Sol jump-point, Cal asks Penny to cover him as he gives pursuit. Aboard the *Phoenix*, Sasha and Trunk's consciences begin to bother them, and they aid Cal by engaging the Vanduul fighters and forcing Black Talon to break off pursuit briefly. Cal follows the flagship into the jump-point, closely followed by Black Talon. He manages to overtake and pass the flagship and comes about to enter the launch bay, where he locates and destroys the bomb with his ship's guns. The resulting explosion destroys most of the flagship and disables Cal's Cutlass, and he is forced to eject upon entering the Sol system. He is rescued and is once again grounded due to a broken leg.