More than a number, originally uploaded by Thorsten Becker.

“It’s been a grueling three standard months for Evren Groal and his squad, three months of endless patrols on the frozen tundra on planet Eobosh, a world full of extremes, of scorching deserts on one side and near eternal night and constant sub-zero temperatures on the other. So far his team has lasted the longest. Four squads before had gone missing in this area, no one knows what happened as each one was sent to investigate the priors disappearance. Evren’s Theta Squad was the unlucky number five. The moral of the garrison had already hit rock bottom at that point. There were bets on how quickly they’d lose contact once they get out there. Dread was hanging in the air like a toxic cloud.

This wasn’t what Evren had imagined when he signed up to defend the Empire against its enemies. It was supposed to be honorable, he wanted to be a defender of order and law, a good citizen who performed his duty, willing to give his life for what is righteous. And then he simply became a number. ‘They call your number, you step up to the task, you get lucky and come back to fight another day. And if not, they’ll just write you off, literally, and slap the next higher number on a fresh recruit. This isn’t honorable, this is questionable at best, revolting at worst,’ he thought to himself while slowly wading through hip deep snow. They’d beaten every bet against them, day after day. And each day they’d returned with nothing, no clues as to what had happened to the other squads. In the beginning, for a while, they received looks and comments of disbelieve and relieve when they came in but by now nobody could care less. ‘Numbers 356, 359, 412 and 423 reporting in. No, sorry sir, we didn’t find any of the other numbers. But you can keep counting on us,’ that’s how Evren felt he should respond at their next debriefing.

A minute later this endless sea of snow and ice began vibrating, shaking and rattling. About twenty meters in front a gap appeared, widening in a circular motion. He signaled his squad to fall back while keeping their blasters trained on whatever might spring from the rapidly growing hole. “Let’s make this one count, mates.” And as quickly as the rumbling and rattling and shaking had started it now ceased and Evren found himself barely a meter away from the edge of a gaping chasm. A few seconds passed, a minute, two minutes but nothing else seemed to happen. He took half a step forward, peeked over the edge into the darkness, his blaster firmly aimed. But nothing jumped, nothing screamed, nothing tried to grab him. Nothing but a deep, black pit. “Alright boys, let’s give ‘em back at base something to bet on. Ready grappling hooks, let’s see how deep this rabbit-hole goes. We’ll do this by the numbers but make sure you don’t act like ones.”

© Thorsten Becker

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1. Star Wars Republic Commando – Vode An, Brothers All

Star Wars Republic Commando – Vode An, Brothers All, originally uploaded by Thorsten Becker.

“Some time after the crucial mission on Geonosis during which Delta Squad member Sev went MIA word came that an undetermined number of clones were held in concealed research facilities somewhere on the planet. Inexplicably these reports were quickly dismissed as unsubstantiated, supposedly created to cause divisions and divert crucial forces to what was referred to as “a hunt for phantoms”. However, several clones, mostly republic commandos, were determined to investigate such rumors hoping to find their long lost pod brothers. One such clone was Delta Squad’s Scorch who quickly took matters in his own hands. Planning to intentionally separate from his squad during their next mission to be declared MIA he confided in his squad’s leader, Boss, who agreed to provide support for his mission, knowing that Scorch could not be convinced otherwise.

Upon being left on his own Scorch began modifying his armor to specifications he had worked out over the past few months. As a demolitions expert his main concern was protection from heavy blasts, not only saving himself but also those in close vicinity in case of misfires or accidents. He reinforced crucial areas, rebalanced the weight and also added a layer of ablative alloy he developed. Initial tests suggested such modified armor could withstand a direct hit from a heavy projectile cannon, though these tests had been rather conceptual in nature. The new armor, while retaining its original cast, was sleeker and sported a blue metallic finish with a slight iridescent reflection inherent to the applied alloy.

After receiving an encrypted message from Boss that he had been reported MIA Scorch joined forces with a special ops squad. This particular squad played a vital role in unearthing initial evidence concerning the secret research facilities. After learning that their findings were widely dismissed they agreed to operate under his command. While shadow troopers generally worked alone or in pairs this specific squad was created for large scale infiltration, consisting of three shadow troopers and one covert ops clone. Similar to commandos these clones were highly individual due to the nature of their tasks but were capable of working in perfect unity to achieve their goals. In addition this particular squad used different armament geared towards rapid suppression, incapacitation and sabotage. Scorch also traded his trusty DC-17m for a WESTAR-M5 and a still unidentified sidearm.”

© Thorsten Becker

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Some of my creative spare time projects involve customizing action figures and putting them on display in a story like context. This particular scene is the result of playing the Star Wars video game “Republic Commando” which centers around a special forces squad (during the clone wars era) in the popular science fiction universe. At the conclusion of the game one of the squad’s members, Sev, is left behind and declared MIA. Currently no follow-up title has been announced therefore Sev’s fate is unknown.

I decided to take another character of the game, Scorch, and continue the story from his perspective given that he was close friends with Sev. I first created a new paint scheme that would convey a prototype armor design. The figure was then cleaned and prepped and two thin layers of black paint applied. Afterwards the metallic blue paint was added and silver and black detailing done. Finally a dull acrylic sealer was sprayed on to give it the right sheen.

For those interested I use Testors and Elmers acrylic paint markers as well as the occasional enamel fine tip markers by Nissen (though I find that acrylic works best on this type of plastic as enamel paint does not adhere well and stays taffy afterwards). Once done customizing I selected a new squad to assist Scorch in his mission.

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The Creed, originally uploaded by Thorsten Becker.

For as they sow
So shall they reap
A hundredfold
Wind they have sown
Storm wind they will reap
Contempt they have sown
Vengeance they will reap
For every despicable utterance
One of them shall fall
Until the assessor has fulfilled his deed
And the reaper descends on eagle’s wings
To gather all the harvest

© Thorsten Becker

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"Strike from behind like the wolf", originally uploaded by Thorsten Becker.

“Be brave like the wolf, be cunning like the wolf, be swift like the wolf but most of all strike from behind like the wolf, drive your prey in front of you”. These words, uttered by his former mentor Wolf Guard Ulv Lurig, once again echoed through Jarn Tassarna’s mind.

It was on a stormy night like this, about twenty years ago, that Ulv fell, betrayed by one of his own pack brothers who had made a terrible packt with the very heretics they were fighting. The traitor, whose name has been erased from all records to deny him any remembrance, then offered the remaining squad to join him and his masters. Jarn’s answer was quick and unmistakable as he squeezed the trigger of his assault cannon, executing the traitor on the spot. Swearing revenge for his mentor’s death he has been relentlessly hunting for the ominous masters the traitor spoke of.

Tonight, his hunt is over. They have come, together with their brethren of the Thousand Sons, to strike at the very heart of Fenris. But in their arrogance and haughtiness they have ignored the howls that have echoed in the distance ever since they’ve taken up camp in the Valley of Lornis. For they are not the cries of the Fenris Wolves, as they so surely thought. No, it is another breed of wolves altogether, a cunning and swift pack that has been tracking them ever since they’ve landed. Now the pack is ready to attack. Ulv has taken up position high above the camp and signals his brothers on the slopes.

“Strike from behind like the wolf, drive your prey in front of you. On this night, Ulv Lurig, your death will be avenged.” And as the Space Wolves descend upon their prey, guns howling, an icy storm sings the song of a glorious battle.

© Thorsten Becker

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Aliens – One of us, originally uploaded by Thorsten Becker.

“Fear. Such a powerful emotion. It can completely paralyze you, immobilize you and make you an easy target for whatever is after you’re hide. Or it can pump an overdose of adrenaline into your bloodstream making you perform superhuman feats. It can also cause acid reflux, especially when your predisposed. And that, strangely so, can save someone’s life.

When the nightmares overran our little farming town on a fairly new but remote outpost we got all swept up in their ruthless flood. No one escaped, including me. I remember cowering in fear in a corner of my shed, like a little boy afraid of the night. I was scared, scared to death, literally. My stomach was turning and I constantly felt acid spraying into my mouth. My throat closed up, I choked, coughed. I don’t think they actually heard me, they simply saw my fear. And so they found me, stung me and dragged my limp body back to their hive.

I woke up surrounded by familiar faces, some of them in the grip of horrible hand-like things. All of us had been spun into some odd cocoon made of strong, dark fibers that I was unable to break. As I glanced down I saw one of those ‘hands’ laying at my feet. Looking at it for a moment I came to the conclusion that it must’ve been attached to my face earlier. That nauseating fear rose up again and I passed out. I came to again when the screaming started and horrific worms emerged from the chests of my fellow captives. I felt my heart beating in my throat, quickly coming to terms with the awful fate that was awaiting me.

Stuck and unable to escape I simply waited. And waited. And waited. Hours passed. A day. Two days. While I was waiting to die I saw what these ‘worms’ turned into, biped creatures straight from a really bad nightmare. They occasionally checked up on their hosts – and feeding on the deceased. One of them made it’s way over to me, ‘smelling’ me, hissing at me, it’s thick saliva dripping all over my cocoon. Then it disappeared again. And I kept on waiting. At this point I just wanted it to be over with; I was the only one still alive. I was hungry, thirsty, miserable. I began to curse the creature I believed was living inside me for not releasing me from my misery. Then I passed out again.

I awoke with a jolt. I was sure this was it, the end. I was wrong, again. I began convulsing, unable to control my muscles. One jolt was so powerful I shattered my cocoon and I fell flat on the floor. My tongue was tingling, my ears felt like someone had stuffed them with cotton. My eyes burned like fire. My nose began to pick up strange odors. Aside from blood and decay I began to smell – ‘them’. I didn’t know how at first but I knew instinctively what the smell was. I slowly stood up and opened my eyes. I noticed strange glows around me, above me. I saw them even through walls. It was them, again, those creatures. I found it odd, as odd as someone finds white elephants dancing ballet when they come off a trip. I examined my chest but could not see anything unusual. I cleared my throat and felt a strange acidic taste in my mouth. It was different then what I was used from the acid reflux. It tasted – sweeter, more metallic. At first it stung but then it felt slightly anesthetic.

While I slowly familiarized myself with the strange sensations I was feeling I began to move towards the exit of this hell hole. I felt fear creeping up again, my blood rushing, adrenalin pumping. I decided to keep going, but didn’t give myself much of a chance of actually making it out. But hey, there really wasn’t much to lose at this point now was there?

While I was running down several hallways, all covered in that same strange material the breeding chamber was plastered with, it dawned on me that I was in one of the larger underground greenhouses. I remembered my way around, I just recently worked here performing some studies on rapid growth. I clung to the walls and almost reached the exit when one of these – aliens – showed up right in front of me. I weighed my options – run past it, run back, or run at it screaming. I chose none of them, I simply froze. It looked over in my direction, though I couldn’t make out any eyes. And then, then it simply walked passed me, as if I wasn’t there. I smelled it and something in my brain identified it as ‘one of us’. One of us. One of them. I was becoming one of them.

Through a strange twist of fate, a medical disorder, I was now changing chemically into something resembling them. That hand, that facehugger, must have been met with a full-on dose of stomach acid and dropped its deadly delivery in my stomach instead of my lungs. I don’t know which thought conjures up the grosser image but having digested it apparently saved my life, and altered it forever. I will have to contemplate my next steps but I feel a strong urge to stay with them, right amongst them, and study their behavior. I don’t think there really is anything else left for me to fear now.”

From the notes of Dr. Benjamin Holden, Biophysicist, Outpost Gamma 423.

© Thorsten Becker

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