#1 by Carnifex

Carnifex slunk away from the fight in his escape pod, his ship destroyed in the intense fire. He watched out the tiny port hole as Nansei Research Station rotated distantly into view and bright flashes of weapons fire could be seen raging about it. The last few defending ships were now on the back foot. He sent out a narrow band signal on an obscure frequency and a few minutes later a single bounty hunter fighter making for Tsushima Depot sped past and picked up his small escape pod.

It had been this way for weeks, the Outcasts attack, Kusari falls back and the Dragons come in and finish off what, if anything, is left. Many bounty hunters like Carni had flocked to Kusari despite strict restrictions on the war zone hoping to take advantage of the weakened house and make some fast cash from their desperation. However now that the ‘war’ was looking more like a rout the bounty hunters were less enthusiastic. If the Blood Dragons did eventually become the new government the Hunters Guild would want to keep the option of business as wide open as possible (provided the Dragons didn’t hold any grudges which was yet to be seen).

None the less war was still making for good hunting in Kusari. Firstly Outcasts were now everywhere, especially in Hokkaido and Kyushu. They had come from the border world systems like a dirty pack of locusts with high-powered particle weapons and made their first strike right for Planet Kyushu. All at once demoralising the Kusari military and crippling the centre of supply distribution and ship repair in the system. That planet was still effectively blockaded, what few ships made it close enough to enter the atmosphere were lost to the crowds of civilians who were frightened and cut off from all news of the outside or were destroyed while trying to get away from the planet by the thick pirate presence. Few bases now remained in Kyushu that weren't in the same situation or worse.
On top of that, Kusari were paying bonuses for captured Blood Dragons and, just recently, were paying truly exorbitant prices for the deaths of any deserters. A few rumours were even going around that some bounty hunters were retiring rich by cutting deals under the table with Kusari officers for helping them to desert their outfits. Sometimes Blood Dragons even financed the costs for important military figures to get a bounty hunter to help them fake a death or escape while on patrol. A recipe for a lot of backstabbing and money making in the eyes of an experienced hunter.
Carnifex was one of the rare cases in which a hunter would take part in defending a station from Outcast or Dragon attacks. The payment he received just for engaging in the fight was more than enough to cover the cost of a new ship. When it came to defending their stations, to say that Kusari were desperate would be an understatement, and Carni was more than happy to cash in on that opportunity.

As he stepped onto the landing deck of Tsushima Depot for the first time since the start of the war he breathed deeply the smell of frightened civilians, damaged ships being hastily repaired and the makeshift military morgue on the other side of the bay for crewmen who were killed in battles aboard the few gunboats and cruisers still in one piece on this side of Kyushu. Carnifex made his way straight for the ship dealer in the hope that he would find something to his liking that was still in good condition.