Jackson's Revenge

The Deadman's Rock (or the Planet of the Dead) is a planet shrouded in gray fog. Its cold, gray atmosphere is like an airtight eggshell, and anyone who sees this planet for the first time would think it is a swampy world filled with poisonous miasma.

Severe pollution is the main reason why this planet has become what it is today. Metal foundries, crystal mining and processing plants, and gas refineries spew thick smoke from the surface, and gray clouds and industrial dust even block out the sun's rays.

Untreated sewage was indiscriminately discharged into the once beautiful, sapphire-blue lakes and rivers, leading to the death of several major water systems in the Deadman's Rock. People were forced to import clean water and non-synthetic natural food from other planets.

Compared to Tyrador IX, which has been repeatedly exposed for its illegal contract workers, the situation of the immigrants in Deadman's Rock is far worse. The distorted social structure and economic system here force them to work in the factories of monopolistic corporations for generations, living on meager wages.

Although the original colonists set foot on this unknown and mysterious land with high hopes, they never imagined that their descendants would become victims of entrepreneurs' pursuit of wealth.

The continuous rainy weather and the abnormally high rates of deformities and cancer compared to other colony planets are ravaging the health of the residents of Deadman's Rock. In contrast, the factory management and technology elites living in the largest city, Deadman's Port, lead lives quite different from the workers.

The capital city of the planet Deadman's Rock, Deadman's Port, which developed from a small piece of open port land, has gradually become one of the cities with the greatest wealth gap in the entire Terran Confederacy.

"But the Deadman's Rock is not a world of death; millions of people like you and me live here." These were the first words mercenary Glen Hill Augustus after boarding the wide bridge of the Norad II.

"Welcome to the Deadman's Rock. We always call this messy world God, or a boil in the ass of the Creator who made this universe. But, well, at least it's far from hopeless."

At this moment, in orbit about two hundred miles above the surface of the planet Deadman's Rock, Augustus's Fleets was cruising around the planet without power.

Officers and staff officers in brown military uniforms and ship's caps occasionally enter and exit the heavily guarded bridge, while maintenance workers and engineers wearing flat-topped hats and noise-canceling earmuffs are busy inspecting circuits, and unmanned robots use magnetic components to hang from the external portholes to repair damaged bridge armor.

Glenn Hill was unaware that most of the crew on the Norad II came from Warfield's Steel Justice and possessed the qualities of professional soldiers. He could only marvel at the Revolutionary Army's astonishing discipline and swift, efficient manner, unlike those noisy and opportunistic mercenaries.

"Hello, Mr. Hill. We last met on the Turaxis II," Augustus said, shaking hands with Hill.

Hill was still wearing his sunglasses, which Augustus remembered as he never taking them off.

"Back then, I never imagined you would go from a Marine to the Terran Confederacy's most wanted criminal," Hill grinned.

When Hill sensed the red-haired female soldier beside Augustus scrutinizing her, she simply smiled kindly, completely unaware that the woman was almost bringing up memories of her wetting her pants as a child.

Sixteen-year-old Sarah Kerrigan face. She wasn't always cold and aloof. On the contrary, a Psionics with a deep understanding of human nature knew exactly what expressions were most approachable.

The moment their Hill met, Kerrigan nodded, her fiery red ponytail bouncing with her movement. She chuckled softly, her bright eyes and white teeth gleaming.

"You're joking. I'm a law-abiding citizen," Augustus said with a smile. "And the certificate from the Tarsonis Police Force didn't cost me much."

"You have no idea how much you're worth." Hill withdrew his hand at the opportune moment. "Second only to your father, Angus Mengsk, whose head we all believe was made of diamonds and gold."

"The higher my value, the more it shows how much the Confederacy hates me, so all the sacrifices will not have been in vain," Augustus.

"So, you really want to save others through revolution?" Hill couldn't understand Korhal IV's revolutionary cause. Although he didn't think it made any sense, he welcomed any war that needed mercenaries. "After all, mercenaries will always be willing to go to great lengths for you."

"Yes, now is the time when I need you all." Augustus turned around and looked out of the bridge window at the Deadman's Port.

A massive space station and its surrounding ring port revolve around the Deadman's Port at the exact same speed as Norad II.

The Hyperion, adorned with blue armor paint, was heading towards the space station's docking port, surrounded by various spaceships and airships. On the port side of the Norad II, the greyish-white Steel Justice, escorted by a squadron of Wraith, slowly emerged and came into Augustus and Hill's view.

"When my Fleets is stationed at this space station, all defense work will be handled by my men." Augustus suddenly looked at Hill: "You won't need to pay their salaries, Mr. Hill, my friend."

"This space station is filled with the most trusted mercenaries of Harris and me; they are all Kel-Morian and Umojan." Suddenly, Hill realized that even though this was the mercenaries' headquarters, he no longer held the upper hand. If Augustus wanted to seize this space station, the mercenaries would definitely face a fierce battle.

Did he really understand Augustus? Was he truly the Heaven's Devils who brought war and death, as portrayed in UN news propaganda?

"Of course, I would be more than happy to." Hill knew that Augustus would never risk a bloody battle with the mercenaries to forcibly seize their space station; it all stemmed from their own distrust and Augustus's strong desire for control.

As the Hyperion entered the port, Hill was still seething with hatred, and he began to suspect that he had let a wolf into the house.

Regardless, Augustus paid a generous sum. Although Hill didn't know where Augustus got so much money, he figured even if it was from robbing the Terran Confederacy Bank, he was still going to make his own money.

For the sake of commissions, Hill didn't care about abandoning his principles or temporarily compromising himself.

"How long do you plan to rest here?" he asked Augustus as the Norad II followed the Steel Justice into the dock as the stern ship.

"Two days is enough time for my men to patch up the holes in the warship," Augustus. "We can leave at any time, and we may delay our stay here at any time."

"Besides recruiting a group of mercenaries, I also plan to establish several Recruitment Center on the planet of the Deadman's Rock. This will require the assistance of mercenaries who are familiar with the local situation. The Revolutionary Army's Recruitment Center will extend an olive branch to all those on this planet who are dissatisfied with the rule of the monopoly corporations and want to change the status quo. They will be our recruitment targets."

"With proper screening, the people here are quite reliable and hardworking." Hill nodded. "The people of the Deadman's Rock are much stronger and more resilient than those on the core planet."

In a sense, the Terrans who have survived the harsh environment of the Terran Confederacy's outer star systems possess strong and highly adaptable bodies. The excessively intense radiation from certain star systems is also subtly altering human genes—although obvious changes may not appear for thousands of years.

Augustus and Hill spoke, the Norad II, guided by a towing drone, entered the B-2 dock. Even though all the docked ships had been cleared, the dock was still too small for the Norad II.

At this moment, Augustus noticed that another battlecruiser, which did not belong to their own combat order, was moored close to another berth—a battlecruiser that looked much more dilapidated than the heavily damaged Steel Justice.

This battlecruiser is likely a Confederacy Leviathan -class battlecruiser. Its slender hull is not the hammer-shaped shape of the Behemoth-class Battlecruiser. It has several extremely thick multi-barreled railguns on the bow and port and starboard sides, making it look like a steel monster covered in giant cannons.

Its refitting history is likely as long as its age itself, making it quite different from the Leviathan- class as Augustus remembered it. But there is no doubt that this battlecruiser was smaller than the Behemoth-class.

"The battlecruiser Jackson's Revenge probably left the Terran Confederacy Fleets long before you were born. They're the most notorious space pirates besides the Kel-Morian Pirates," Hill told Augustus. "They paid a hefty berthing fee, and those pirates are notoriously bad-tempered; I wouldn't dare kick them out."

"After all, this space station isn't my property. If I destroy it, I'll be bankrupt."

"Oh, these pirates occasionally accept jobs from large corporations, it's just that not many people dare to hire them. They're absolutely capable of intercepting their employers' goods en route," Hill scoffed.

"Sarah, summon my Sterling Guard," Augustus said, turning to Kerrigan beside him.

"I'm going to meet those pirates."

A few seconds later, Augustus added, "Call Tychus over, damn it, where is he again?"

By this time, the Norad II had come to a stop, and about two companies of Marines in silver-gray Power Armor stood in a line on the cleared mooring platform.

Augustus, accompanied by a guard, headed toward the Jackson's Revenge, which was anchored in another port.

After the Norad II entered port, the pirates became noticeably more vigilant, with some standing hundreds of yards away, keeping a close eye on the rows of marines.

"They initially thought we were Fleets from the Terran Confederacy," Kerrigan explained to Augustus, walking beside him. "These men had a fierce battle with the Alpha Squadron; Edmond Duke beheaded several pirates."

"So what made these pirates abandon such concerns?" Augustus asked.

"Because if it were Duke, he would have already blown this space station, along with the pirates, into space debris," Kerrigan said.

As Augustus and his group approached the Jackson's Revenge, a pirate wearing the Kel-Morian Ripper Power Armor, accompanied by several pirates in Confederacy Navy uniforms, walked towards Augustus, showing no fear despite the fully armed Marines behind him.

"Why these people left the Terran Confederacy to go it alone is unknown, but at first they were all Confederacy soldiers, at least they still adhered to the bottom line," Hill whispered to Augustus as they got closer to the pirates.

"But what you see now are shameless and vicious criminals. During the long deep-space voyage of the warship, the moral values and beliefs of the crew of the Jackson's Revenge have become somewhat different from those of ordinary people."

"In that small shipboard society, the pirates began to follow a strict hierarchy based on the survival of the fittest. They would betray their brothers and kill each other for power and wealth."

"If I remember correctly, this is the ninth captain you can see now. There's a rumor that he shot the old captain in the back. So the current captain doesn't allow anyone with a gun to stand behind him."

"Every captain was named Jackson; the difference was that some were too despicable and some were too ruthless."

"Are you Augustus Mengsk?" The pirate lowered the matte visor on his helmet, revealing a crooked nose from multiple fractures and a bald head with a steel plate embedded in his forehead.

"I am First Mate Rat, Captain Jackson's right-hand man."

In addition, this rugged pirate was wearing a pair of glittering teardrop crystal earrings, similar to those Augustus had previously seen on the ears of a noblewoman from the Tarsonis Old Families.

"I am." Augustus not particularly surprised that the other party could recognize him. If he was previously revered as the leader of the Heaven's Devils and a great hero of the Confederacy, the slander he was now suffering was many times greater.

Overnight, the Heaven's Devils became synonymous with rebels, transforming from a group of heroes into a notorious organization of traitors. In the eyes of many Terrans, Augustus was even more infamous than his father.

Almost the instant Augustus finished answering, the pirate drew his electromagnetic pistol from his waist, and a moment later everyone raised their guns.

"I don't think we have any contradictions among ourselves." Augustus cold gray eyes.

"How would I know what you're up to?" The pirate stared at Augustus's face. "Rebels? You've got some nerve."

"Give him a lesson," Augustus.

Before she could finish speaking, as molten gold filled Kerrigan's eyes, the pirate painfully lowered his pistol, staggered backward, and finally collapsed to the ground. As his men tried to fire, Tychus, along with several Sterling Guard soldiers, had already knocked the pirates to the ground, delivering a crushing blow to these scoundrels.

Before any further conflict erupted, Augustus walked up to the pirate sitting on the ground and looked down at him. "Summon your Captain Jackson."

"I don't care which Jackson he is, just get him out here right now. I don't have time to listen to your babbling like a bug, you understand what I mean?"

This server is so laggy, it's really frustrating.