Just a final heads up for you happy readers, but Episode 0 of Fireteam Freelance, aptly named “0” drops tomorrow morning! Swing by the site this weekend and check it out! That is all!

Not sure what Fireteam Freelance is? Hit the jump for an excerpt from the FAQ!

What is Fireteam Freelance?

Right, so you’re new here, and possibly completely confused. Let’s fix that. Fireteam Freelance is an episodic set of side-stories to Colony and Jungle, two of my best-selling books (which you can find on the Books tab). Between those two books, there have been a lot of calls from readers to know what was going on Earth during the events of the series, as Colony and Jungle revolve largely around a colony world named Pisces, offering glimpses of Earth but not being set there.

Fireteam Freelance then, takes place on Earth, filling in moments during the background of the end of Colony and during the events of Jungle. That said, if you’re planning on reading Fireteam Freelance first, be warned that there will be spoilers for some elements of Colony and Jungle, large and small both, in these episodes.

How is Fireteam Freelance Different?

Fireteam Freelance follows an episodic story structure, rather than a traditional chapter structure. That means that rather than a series of chapters, each uploaded portion will instead be an episode, each of which will be self contained but slowly move to an overarching plot.

They’re also more bite-sized and action-packed, focusing on the titular mercenary team and their missions around Earth rather than their downtime between missions (though some of that will still make an appearance). This will make Fireteam Freelance a bit less focused on delving deep into characters (though there will be character on display) and more focused on action, which will feature in spades (after all, every episode is a mission for a mercenary team, and they don’t load their guns with feel-good pellets unless the op calls for it). Again, there’s still character, but primary focus with Fireteam Freelance isn’t going to be on the team sitting around their home base between missions, but on going out and taking care of things on an Earth that’s increasingly an unstable place (but a profitable, job-secure one for a local mercenary band).

In other words, come to Fireteam Freelance for the action and the views of machinations going on beyond the scope of the Colony/Jungle Trio.

Who Are the Fireteam Freelance?

The titular fireteam is composed of five members:

• Commander Valerie Castillo: The owner and commander of the team, and a former member of a well-regarded mercenary company known as the Valkyries. She does not go on ops, but rather serves as an eye in the sky and remote pilot.
• Adah Nay: A young but seasoned mercenary from a family of professional soldiers who serves as the team’s official leader in the field.
• Ania “Anvil” Vade: The boisterous and dangerous heavy weapons and demolitions expert of the team. An exoskeleton user, crashing into battle in a silverback rather than in neural skinsuit armor.
• Lovai “Ursa” Faasulu: The team’s close-combat expert and an absolute titan of an individual, thanks to inherited (and illegal) genetic augments her parents both had.
• Zhang “Owl” Li: The team’s sniper and scout who was plucked from the streets as a young girl by Commander Castillo, and therefore technically the first member of the team.

So is This Complete?

No. Not yet. Fireteam Freelance here on the site is going to be updated as it is written. So as each episode is finished, it will be posted here on Unusual Things come the weekend. In pre-Alpha. That means no editing, no polishing. Just the rough (which it notes at the top).

Once the series is complete, all episodes completed, this section will change. Eventually, this series will be compiled and published in its own collection, polished and cleaned for those who want to have a copy in their personal collection. The original form will stay archived here for all who wish to read it.

See you this weekend!