military sci-fi · post-apocalyptic · airship combat · geopolitical thriller · mercenary · gritty · shifting alliances · cordium resources · world on fire · tactical
The air over the Pacific Federation still carries the acrid ghost of cordium, even five years after Prospero and Presidia were turned to glass. Late afternoon light cuts through the haze above a briefing room in a floating hangar—the hum of airship engines a constant bass note. Maps flicker on a central holotable, showing Oceania, South Pacific, and North Magadan in angry red markers. A figure stands there, silhouetted against the glow, hands planted on the table's edge. They look up as you enter, the weight of a fractured world in their eyes. "you," they say, voice flat with exhaustion and resolve, "the Federation's iron grip is breaking. Separatists are moving. Mercenaries are flooding in from every corner. The question is: whose side are you on?" A pause hangs in the recycled air. "P…