posted 11-17-98 04:49 PM ET        

It was on the 28th decurn of the year. Three days following the "Earth Day" festivities that the 1st Cohort of the 10th Spartan Legion received orders to deploy to Camp Corazon. Camp Corazon was located 200 miles deep in the "Flats". It was the largest base of the Federation. Outside of the Federation itself. No one nation claimed the Uranium Flats. Each nation, or "Faction" claimed a certain amount of territory surrounding its outpost or base within the Flats. CC as we legionaires fondly called Camp Corazon was the forge from where the multitude of recruits graduated or were "tempered to perfection". It was also the home of the 5th Legion and the temporary quarters for whichever units happened to be stationed there for training.

In was the first deakarch of the 1st platoon of the 5th company of Cohort 1 Legion 10. This was my second time to CC in my six years in the Legions. Every cohort came back every two years for training in the Flats. Many times we didn't train we might find ourselves hunting insurgents or skirmishing with the Hive or Gaians or "dwellers". The "dwellers" was slang for those who made the Flats their home. What there numbers were no one knew. They are a tight and clannish folk. They trust no one just themselves.

On the seventh day of the 28th decurn we arrived in CC. It was an 18 hour flight, or one full day, from Camp Leonidas our Legion headquarters. Little did I know I would never come back. The following decurn was spent in acclimatizing to CC and getting our gear. Our second decurn there we got our first mission. Boarding the helos we took off to out launch point. From there we'd be hoofing it to our destination. Mt Skala was our first way-point, although not a true mountain in the sense of the word, it was 500 hundred feet high and steep, but flat at the top.

Upon arrival we dug in. Everything went by the book. The centurios got there orders from the tribuno and they dessiminated it down the chain of command. My job was to make sure my pentarch and tetrarch did their jobs right. The fox-holes had to be properly dug. Lines of fire properly delineated and dead space covered. That night patrols went out. They were the luckiest ones. Deep in the night an earthquake hit our position. We were shocked and astounded. Who had ever heard of earthquakes out here. Half of Mt. Skala was sheared away. Two companies were decimated and there were countless injuries. My company was on the north side of the rim. We were unscathed. Just a little bruised and shaken.

posted 11-18-98 02:57 PM ET            

The knowledge was soon acquired by all the other nations through various means. It even brought the world close to another war. With the knowledge of opening the 'Liths, came a multitude of surprises. Some divulged an advanced technology. This knowledge was quickly exploited and it has led to remarkable advances in many fields. Some kept their secrets to themselves revealing nothing. Others couldn't be opened using the Namean Sequence.

Thus the 'Liths were hunted and exploited. They brought many, untold riches and others, nothing. They all had several things in common. They were of a black material. So black they absorbed all light. What this material is, is unknown. No deposit has been found on Chiron whatsoever. To date it has not been properly classified either. They've also been of uniform dimension.

All the 'Liths are five miles wide at the base. Nothing grows around them for a three mile radius. They all rise to a height of about three miles. The top flares out into a flat-top. These "flat-tops" have a mile wide circumference and they are crowned with a multitude of mini-Liths. They are all ten in number.