The skyline of Manhattan was somewhat startled earlier yesterday when the form of what appeared to be a BDR-804, commonly called the 'Guardian', Navy strike fighter crashed into an apartment condominium on the northern hemisphere in the city center of Lower Albany. The strikecraft was reported to be encased in a smokey blue and purple glow, as reported by bystanders. The vessel, as well as the pilot, appeared to have survived the crash with marginal damage, and the vessel appeared to extract itself from both the building and the area, flying off to parts unknown.
The pilot of the craft, whose identity has been kept concealed for security reasons, was left with minor pressure wounds from the crash, as well as what was reported to be crushing from slabs of the building's frame.
Local law enforcement arrived quickly on the scene, with several Liberator-class fighters keeping guard on the area in the event of extra contact. Thankfully there were no such records.
One of the first ground-based units to arrive on the scene, Officer Pete MacDonald of the Liberty Police had this to comment :-
"It was crazy. I was at a don-- er.. eh.. a coffee shop down the road from the building, and I hear this whizzing come out of nowhere. Some of the people in the shop looked out the window and pointed out the ship slamming into the side of the Marianette Building, and I bolted out. God.. Ya ever seen anything like that? I mean.. this kind of thing's gotta happen in New London all the time, 'cause thems Brets can't drive.. er.. well, still."
After being asked what happened after he arrived on scene, Officer MacDonald had this to say :-
"Well, logically I called for backup. Things like this don't exactly warrant a calm response. Next, I ran inside, tryin' tah find the poor guy who flew the ship. Once backup got here, and we got tah the floor, there was just this real cold breeze. We pulled the slabs of concrete off the poor guy.. This was after his ship bolted off.. an' we dragged him off tah Wright-Patterson on Denver."
We also asked several people who witnessed the crash to comment, and this is what they had to say :-
"God.. I was walkin' my dog, and I just hear this loud screaming sound.. Then.. this horrible crumbling and the sound of glass shattering. That officer got here first and called for backup, but the hole in the side of the building.. I didn't think anyone could survive that.."
The space above Planet Erie was in shock this morning. The sailor and pilots aboard the battleship L.N.S. Gettysburg awoke to the sounds of their automatic defenses lighting up, and when they looked our their windows, they were struck in awe by the sight of combat. The entire defensive grid was awoken abruptly by two Xeno terrorist fighters engaging lone Liberty Police Officer Joseph Kimla. The two pilots, while woefully outnumbered, appeared determined to complete their objective, and brutally tore down Kimla before retreating back to the western end of the system under cover of gunfire.
The two pilots, whose names remain unknown, struck with such ferocity that several wings of craft from the Gettysburg and nearby Harrisburg Station refused to launch, some out of fear of ending up like Officer Kimla. The Xenos, sporting the marks of the relatively unknown 'Crimson Fangs' unit of the movement, engaged Kimla, who put up a fight in opposition to the two fighter's audacious attack against the defensive grid.
"I woke up to the sound of gunfire, looked out my window and saw red flashes go past. Scared the hell out of me, and probably out of Officer Kimla too.. I tried to suit up, but by the time I got down to the hangar deck, they'd already shot him down. If only I'd been faster, I might've made a difference."
This was the response given by Liberty Navy Lieutenant Andrea Kolner. Lieutenant Kolner, part of Gettysburg's quick reaction force, was unfortunately not quick enough to save Officer Kimla's ship, but did make it out in time to tractor in the pilot's pod before it was lost to the voids of space.
Several trade vessels nearby were also witness to this attack, and one particular captain had this to comment :-
"Damn terrorists. The lot of them. Firing on our best and brightest like they're just common criminals, and they expect us to just sit by and just watch. I'm almost seething that I left the Navy, but I couldn't risk it. Now we've got these guys coming back, and they're shooting practically anything that's not bolted down. Next time I see them, I'm gonna light them up like any red-blooded Liberty man should."
Officer Joseph Kimla is expected to make a full recovery and return to service shortly.