Editing A Fall of Ashes

{{InfoBoxProduct
| image               = 
| name                = 
| type                = Short story
| author              = [[Christian Grainger]]
| development         = 
| primarywriting      = 
| pages               = 7
| cover               = 
| interiorart         = 
| illustrations       = 
| publisher           = [[BattleCorps]]
| productioncode      = 
| year                = 08 June 2014
| ISBN10              = 
| ISBN13              = 
| MSRP                = 
| content             = 
| era                 = [[Jihad era]]
| timeline            = 28 August - 1 September [[3078]]
| series              = 
| precededby          = 
| followedby          = 
}}
'''''A Fall of Ashes''''' is a story by [[Christian Grainger]] that was published online on [[BattleCorps]] on 8 June 2014.

==Teaser text==
{{quote|''During Devlin Stone's liberation of Terra, a squad of Word of Blake operatives set out to destroy the fighters at a Coalition spaceport in Athens, Greece. But one of the members begins to wonder whether this mission is worth the cost.''}}

==Plot summary==
A four-operative [[Light of Mankind]] team quietly advances through the blackened night of Athens on 28 August [[3078]], on the ninth day since [[Stone's Coalition]] has taken the city's spaceport and adjoining base. The squad is comprised of the commanding officer, [[Adept]] [[Owl]], [[Alan Rend]] as the second-in-command, demolitions expert [[Dart (character)|Dart]], and security chief [[Rice]], all dressed covertly as civilian repairman. Their objective is an auxiliary support shaft on the spaceport's perimeter, though Rend is troubled by the nature of the mission's impact on the historic symbolism of the ancient city and the threatening and contemptuous leadership of Owl, who clearly does not trust him.

Following a surreptitious but violent outcome with an unarmed civilian couple, the team crosses the recently devastated neighborhood adjacent to the spaceport, finding a hastily repaired breach in the wall. Rend privately reflects on how the team was fortunate, as he does not underestimate the enemy's capabilities (in contrast to the adept's opinion). A number of [['Mech]]s are spotted patrolling in the interior, with the closest being a ''[[Venom]]'', a 35-ton [[Striker (unit role)|striker]]. However, their objective—a three-story red brick building hosting the shaft—has the immediate environmental protection of being in an open area 100 meters in width, bathed completely in shadow-less white light from static spotlights, with no cover other than various piles of rubble and small demolished vehicles. Owl condemns Rice for not being aware of the progressive nature of the Coalition's repairs. Forcefully disregarding Rend's suggestion to progress between rubble piles to approach the building as a team, Owl directs Rice to instead create an explosive diversion for the ''Venom'' and lead it away from the others, plainly writing the security chief off. 

When the anti-BattleMech attack goes awry, the alarm is sounded and Rice is grounded under the 'Mech's foot. The ''Venom'' stumbles into the building, collapsing an entire wall around it. Rend furiously accuses Owl of sacrificing the entire mission with his illogical decision, preventing them from reaching their goal of an underground hanger. As he moves to strike his commanding officer, he is instead battered away by Dart and knocked to the ground. Rend and Dart argue about the adept's ability to successfully command the mission, with Owl demanding the immediate execution of Rend. At that moment, the ''Venom'' rises and begins to bring its [[machine gun]] to bear, killing Dart immediately. Laser fire results in the two remaining members being cast aside, with serious injuries, as the 'Mech falls with the collapsing building into the exposed basement, incapacitating the Coalition combat asset.

Owl and Rend trade accusations as the former collects Dart's remaining explosive charges. Rend is adamant that the destruction of the target—fighters in the underground hanger—is now unattainable, as the base's other security BattleMechs are now inbound. Owl, however, is as committed to the destruction of those fighters via the now-exposed fuel storage facility, even though it's annihilation may cause extensive damage to not only the spaceport but also Athens itself. In his attempt to save the city, Rend fires upon Owl, dropping him just before the satchel containing the explosives drops into the shaft and detonate.

Three days later, Adept [[Salis]] and a medic are observing the unconscious Rend on a cot in a medical tent. The adept comments on how the operative is the one survivor from multiple teams deployed to Athens and how the mission was far more successful than anticipated. Salis mistakenly presumes that Rend was personally responsible for the victory, though [[ROM]] had been suspicious of his loyalties. The destruction of a majority of the city, as well as that of Mars Hill and the centuries-old Parthenon, are incorrectly but fully attributed to Rend's action, a native of Athens. As Rend descends into deeper levels of medicated unconsciousness, his mind anguishes over memories of the ancient monument aflame.

==Featured characters==
* [[Alan Rend]]
* [[Dart (character)|Dart]]
* [[Owl]]
* [[Rice]]
* [[Salis]]

==Featured BattleTech==
===BattleMechs===
* ''[[Venom]]''

==Featured places==
* [[Terra]]


[[Category:BattleCorps publications|Fall of Ashes, A]]
[[Category:Short Stories|Fall of Ashes, A]]
[[Category:Works by Christian Grainger|Fall of Ashes, A]]