Apocalypse
Apr 15, 2005, @ 05:04 PM
The Fall of Hiigara
Chapter 1: Strange things
He looked at the chronometer on the panel in front of him, 11:45pm it beamed at him in almost a taunting manner. All was quiet, Flo wasn't suprised, it was always quiet. Flo was on the late shift, aboard the communications platform out in the far reaches of the LSC borders. The platform's job was to monitor any kind of activity within it's radius but Flo knew there wouldn't be any activity, he knew there wouldn't be as much as a blip on the radar. In fact, there had been no activity of any note along the ever increasing line of the LSC borders since the last great war. Yet the Grand Admiral of the LSC forces insisted on round the clock surveillance. So Flo found himself moved from the fleet he served under to this little cushy number, or so it was promised to be. He looked at the chrono again 11:50, God this is dull, what I would give to be back in the fleet he thought to himself, not for the first time. Tank will be here soon, then I'll have a nice drink before getting my head down I think. Flo gave the instruments a last check, as he always did before the changeover, yet again nothing came up. All systems normal, no activity detected. He stood up and looked out the viewpoint into the vast space that surrounded him.
In another region of space, above a desolate planet, the LSC-Redemption sat in orbit, so peaceful were the surroundings that the huge Battlecruiser almost looked to be sleeping. All that could be seen on the planet below was grey and brown landscapes, the occasional flash of searing blue could be seen as the planet's storms raged across its surface in an uncontrollable fury. On the bridge of the Redemption stood Commander Harbison, ''Drunk'' to those close to him. He was standing towards the communication section idly looking out into space through the main view screen, Christ if I wait any longer I'm gonna go insane 'Comms, any news from the ground team?' he enquired struggling to hide the boredom that threatened to break his mind.
'Negative sir, they will be checking in within the hour' was the reply.
Drunk sighed, Why am I stuck out here in the middle of no-where trying to find a construction crew that's gone AWOL? they probably had too many drinks one night and got themselves lost on some damn late night expedition. I didn't train all my life to baby-sit every damn person who goes missing! He fumed to himself. Actually he knew it was a little more serious than that, seeing as the construction crew consisted of a little over 130 people. 130 people simply don't vanish after one drink too many, especially 130 people who were supposed to be working on a strategically important new sensors array, a sensor array that would fill a gap in the defensive perimeter of the LSC's borders.
The comm channel fizzled into life as the ground crew finally called in. The comm's officer strengthened the signal to try and reduce the static that was running riot through the speakers. 'Go ahead Ground team, the Commander is present' the comm's officer spoke into his headset.
'This is ground team alpha, we've inspected the site and it's a ghost town' the Ground leader went on ' Definite signs of small arms fire down here plus what looks likely to be orbital strikes. Whatever happened down here happened fast, we missed it'
Gunfire, orbital strikes? What the hell? 'Any survivors, Sergeant?' Drunk enquired.
'None found as yet, sir, permission to continue the search, sir?' The Sarge replied.
'Granted' Drunk turned to his 2nd in command 'What do you think, Black?'
'I think sir, we should prep the fighters for launch and move the ship's status to alert, If there is a ship out there then it would be wise to be ready to intercept it' Lieutenant Commander Blacksand replied.
'I think whatever happened has passed but it would be a wise move indeed to be prepared for the unexpected, Black, you have your orders' Drunk returned.
Lt.Co. Black saluted and went to his station to issue the orders across the ship. Drunk stood there for a moment, deep in thought. After a short time he turned around and headed for the Commander's chair. After another even shorter pause he spoke with all the authority deserving of him, 'Comms, as soon as is able, I want a message relayed to the ground team, Have them set up a base of operations about 5km from the site and monitor all activity, if any, until further orders'
'Yes sir' the comm's officer replied leaking just a hint of high respect for his commander.
'Also send a coded transmission to the Grand Admiral, send this message..........'.
It was the middle of the night on Hiigara, when the Grand Admiral was woken by the internal comm system Oh this better be good or someone's gonna be washing my briefs for the next 6 months!!
The Admiral stumbled out of bed and tried to fumble his way across the room to the comlink Stop that damn noise, I'm coming!!
He managed to find the comlink but stubbed his toe on some furniture he never knew was there God Damn It! I'm awake, stop cursing me like this! Who the hell put that there!
He flicked the switch on the small device and was about to launch into a titanic rant at whoever the poor soul was on the other end, when he was interrupted by a familiar voice. 'Sorry to wake you Admiral Brandt but you have received an urgent message from Commander Harbison'
'Uh, didn't I send him to investigate the loss of communicat-......' He trailed off, rubbing his eyes to try and force them open.
'Yes sir, Commander Harbison's initial report has come in and it requires your attention'
'Tom?' The Admiral was definitely getting his bearings now.
'Yes sir?' replied Admiral Fitzwater
'If this is a waste of my time, remind me to fire you!'
'Yes, will do, sir' came the reply with a touch of hidden sarcasm.
'On my way, Brandt out' he clicked off the comlink and trudged off to his wardrobe, One day I'll get a good night's sleep, one day!
Grand Admiral Brandt finished reading the report received from the LSC-Redemption, took a look at the star charts, pinpointed the system that Commander Harbison was currently situated, then sat down and thought for a moment. The Taidan, The Beast, The Vaygr? What is this? some new insurgent? 'Admiral Fitzwater?' He called out in a clear tone.
'Sir?'
'130 people are missing, presumed dead. Evidence so far suggests an attack, one by a superior force. Now...' he went on 'what are the possibilities of some remnants of the Vaygr being involved in this?'
'Highly doubtful sir, we have successfully maintained a campaign against the Vaygr and intelligence would have us believe that their forces are now seriously limited. We believe they have fled our boundaries, sir, they have nothing left, they are a broken race' Fitzwater replied.
'The Beast is no more and even if the Beast had survived against the odds, this simply isn't the same style of attack. The Taidan perished with the Vaygr fleets. Would it be safe to assume there is a new presence out there?' Brandt enquired.
'With all the evidence we have, it's certainly the likeliest explanation so far, sir' Fitzwater answered.
'Admiral, have Commander Ren take his destroyer fleet to support the Redemption, also, we may need more marines to set up a base of operations on the planet's surface, so have a carrier deployed too, which you send is your choice, you have your orders Admiral' Brandt ordered.
'Sir' Fitzwater saluted.
Intrigueing, Surely this can't be the Vagyr, not again.
Tank stepped into the observation lounge to find Flo staring out into space, a rather blank look on his face. 'What ya staring at buddy? You look ........'
'Say anything about me being old and I'll flush your remains out there' Flo interrupted 'Tank take a look here, tell me what you see?' Flo pointed out the viewport to what looked to be a normal cluster of stars. Tank couldn't see anything but the cold blackness of space.
'What am I looking at old man?' Tank said after a brief pause,
'Out there .... kinda looks like glass, I think, very faint but it's there' Flo replied, seemingly missing the ''old man'' remark. Tank looked again, various stars glittered against the black backdrop of nothingness, here and there a shooting star could be seen. Tank continued to stare, noticing the nebula in the far distance, a vast purple cloud of radioactive gases and dust. 'Sorry Flo, no idea what your talking about?'
'I'm telling you it's there, right there!' Flo said anxiously. Tank tried to follow where Flo was pointing. He could feel the uncomfortable feeling of his eyes straining ' Wait, what is that? I think I see it' Tank tried to make out the outline of what he was seeing but couldn't find one, He strained even more.
'It's small, like a stretched bubble' Flo described for him, ' But it's definitely there, you see?
'Yea, I see it' Tank answered, wondering what to do. 6 months they have been out here, 6 months and nothing, no activity or any kind. 'Have you tried to get a reading on it?' Tank asked, trying to run through the options of what to do.
'Every reading I can use, nothing. It's like it's not there but it is.' Flo replied, albeit confused.
'Wake the crew, we going out to take a closer look!' Tank broke away from the viewport and went to prep the stations only corvette.
Flo did as Tank requested and woke up the other 4 crew members. When the first walked in looking like he was just dug up, Flo followed the route Tank took. Finally we get to see something out here Flo mused to himself excitedly.
Commander Harbison was standing at the front of the bridge when Lt.Co Blacksand joined him. Drunk seemed to be deep in thought. He turned to face his friend and trusted ally ' I may be going insane with boredom here but I have this unshakeable feeling that we are being watched' He said with a trace of anxiety.
'Sir, Nothing is showing up on the read outs. Apart from the ground team, we're alone here.' Black replied.
'Commander?' The comm's officer interupted.
'Yes?'
'Incoming message from Admiral Brandt, He requests that you hold position and secure the site until further reinforcements arrive' the comms continued.
"Reinforcements? what kind of reinforcements did the Admiral have in mind, that could compare with the fully complimented Redemption?' Drunk mused out loud. At that moment several hyperspace signatures appeared on the main scanner. 'Sir, we have incoming ships, exiting hyperspace now'
'ID those ships' the Commander ordered.
'It's the Justice fleet, sir. Receiving a transmission from Commander Ren' The comm's replied.
'Put it through' A whole destroyer fleet? 130 people going missing is serious enough but is there really a need for a fleet to safeguard a dead planet?
The Justice fleet consisted of 8 frontline class destroyers headed up by the LSC-Justice, Commandeered by the Veteran, Commander Ren, the fleet has earned it's reputation through dedication over the years and it's role through the Vagyr Wars. Although the Frontline class is getting old in terms of design and firepower, they more than make up for their versatility in combat and their use in support roles. The Justice fleet was reknowned through the galaxy for it's ongoing endurance and the ability of the fleets crew to get the job done. Commander Ren himself was reknowned for being tactically sound and cool under pressure and had infact turned down many offer's of promotion to command Battlecruisers, in favour of staying aboard the LSC-Justice and her crew.
'Commander Harbison, Commander Ren here, I have orders from the Admiral to assist in securing the system. The LSC-Crossfire will arrive in a few hours to provide the materials needed to set up a long term base of operations on the planet. Any idea whats going on here? It's unusual for the Admiral to assign so many ships to one planet?'
'It is unusual but I'm sure the Admiral knows what he's doing, best not to question his motives, Commander. As for whats going on, we haven't had a report from the ground team in some hours, however the analysis so far is, 130 people go missing. Signs of a firefight and looks like they were attacked fast and hard. We can't rule out the possibilty of orbital strikes too' Drunk explained.
'Orbital strikes? The only ships we know of to have the power to use orbital strikes were the Vagyr, the remnants of which fled the galaxy on the other side of the star charts, they should be no-where near here!' Commander Ren replied.
'That we know of, but to coin a phrase, there's always the possibilty of a new player in town, Commander. Have 6 of your destroyers create a sentry perimeter around the planet, Bring the Justice and your remaining ship into formation with the Redemption. We will wait to safeguard the arrival of the LSC-Crossfire, in the meantime please feel free to come on board, I'm sure there will be a few things to discuss'
'Look forward to it, Commander' Ren answered before terminating the transmission.
Drunk turned to Black. 'Correct if i'm wrong but isn't the Crossfire the carrier that houses the Elite marine force?' He asked.
'Yes, sir, Sergeant Elysium and his men are considered the best of the best, although maybe this mission would be a little overkill to bring them here' Black replied.
'My thought's exactly, maybe the Admiral's getting paranoid in his old age. Come lets prepare for Commander Ren's arrival'
'I tell you something Flo, this corvette is in serious need of a tune up!' Tank said. Tank and Flo were heading towards the mysterious glass-like object in the station's only corvette. ' You would have thought they could have sent us some more uptodate ships, i mean this thing is a deathtrap, It's barely running' Tank went on.
'Well if only you would stop tinkering with the poor ship it would probably be in better shape!' Flo responded, getting a little weary from Tank's ongoing complaints about the ship's state of health. 'Look we're coming up on the ....' Flo stopped himself short, he realised he didn't actually know what it was they were flying to. 'the... ah....'
'Lets just call it a thing for now, eh, old man?'
Chapter 1: Strange things
He looked at the chronometer on the panel in front of him, 11:45pm it beamed at him in almost a taunting manner. All was quiet, Flo wasn't suprised, it was always quiet. Flo was on the late shift, aboard the communications platform out in the far reaches of the LSC borders. The platform's job was to monitor any kind of activity within it's radius but Flo knew there wouldn't be any activity, he knew there wouldn't be as much as a blip on the radar. In fact, there had been no activity of any note along the ever increasing line of the LSC borders since the last great war. Yet the Grand Admiral of the LSC forces insisted on round the clock surveillance. So Flo found himself moved from the fleet he served under to this little cushy number, or so it was promised to be. He looked at the chrono again 11:50, God this is dull, what I would give to be back in the fleet he thought to himself, not for the first time. Tank will be here soon, then I'll have a nice drink before getting my head down I think. Flo gave the instruments a last check, as he always did before the changeover, yet again nothing came up. All systems normal, no activity detected. He stood up and looked out the viewpoint into the vast space that surrounded him.
In another region of space, above a desolate planet, the LSC-Redemption sat in orbit, so peaceful were the surroundings that the huge Battlecruiser almost looked to be sleeping. All that could be seen on the planet below was grey and brown landscapes, the occasional flash of searing blue could be seen as the planet's storms raged across its surface in an uncontrollable fury. On the bridge of the Redemption stood Commander Harbison, ''Drunk'' to those close to him. He was standing towards the communication section idly looking out into space through the main view screen, Christ if I wait any longer I'm gonna go insane 'Comms, any news from the ground team?' he enquired struggling to hide the boredom that threatened to break his mind.
'Negative sir, they will be checking in within the hour' was the reply.
Drunk sighed, Why am I stuck out here in the middle of no-where trying to find a construction crew that's gone AWOL? they probably had too many drinks one night and got themselves lost on some damn late night expedition. I didn't train all my life to baby-sit every damn person who goes missing! He fumed to himself. Actually he knew it was a little more serious than that, seeing as the construction crew consisted of a little over 130 people. 130 people simply don't vanish after one drink too many, especially 130 people who were supposed to be working on a strategically important new sensors array, a sensor array that would fill a gap in the defensive perimeter of the LSC's borders.
The comm channel fizzled into life as the ground crew finally called in. The comm's officer strengthened the signal to try and reduce the static that was running riot through the speakers. 'Go ahead Ground team, the Commander is present' the comm's officer spoke into his headset.
'This is ground team alpha, we've inspected the site and it's a ghost town' the Ground leader went on ' Definite signs of small arms fire down here plus what looks likely to be orbital strikes. Whatever happened down here happened fast, we missed it'
Gunfire, orbital strikes? What the hell? 'Any survivors, Sergeant?' Drunk enquired.
'None found as yet, sir, permission to continue the search, sir?' The Sarge replied.
'Granted' Drunk turned to his 2nd in command 'What do you think, Black?'
'I think sir, we should prep the fighters for launch and move the ship's status to alert, If there is a ship out there then it would be wise to be ready to intercept it' Lieutenant Commander Blacksand replied.
'I think whatever happened has passed but it would be a wise move indeed to be prepared for the unexpected, Black, you have your orders' Drunk returned.
Lt.Co. Black saluted and went to his station to issue the orders across the ship. Drunk stood there for a moment, deep in thought. After a short time he turned around and headed for the Commander's chair. After another even shorter pause he spoke with all the authority deserving of him, 'Comms, as soon as is able, I want a message relayed to the ground team, Have them set up a base of operations about 5km from the site and monitor all activity, if any, until further orders'
'Yes sir' the comm's officer replied leaking just a hint of high respect for his commander.
'Also send a coded transmission to the Grand Admiral, send this message..........'.
It was the middle of the night on Hiigara, when the Grand Admiral was woken by the internal comm system Oh this better be good or someone's gonna be washing my briefs for the next 6 months!!
The Admiral stumbled out of bed and tried to fumble his way across the room to the comlink Stop that damn noise, I'm coming!!
He managed to find the comlink but stubbed his toe on some furniture he never knew was there God Damn It! I'm awake, stop cursing me like this! Who the hell put that there!
He flicked the switch on the small device and was about to launch into a titanic rant at whoever the poor soul was on the other end, when he was interrupted by a familiar voice. 'Sorry to wake you Admiral Brandt but you have received an urgent message from Commander Harbison'
'Uh, didn't I send him to investigate the loss of communicat-......' He trailed off, rubbing his eyes to try and force them open.
'Yes sir, Commander Harbison's initial report has come in and it requires your attention'
'Tom?' The Admiral was definitely getting his bearings now.
'Yes sir?' replied Admiral Fitzwater
'If this is a waste of my time, remind me to fire you!'
'Yes, will do, sir' came the reply with a touch of hidden sarcasm.
'On my way, Brandt out' he clicked off the comlink and trudged off to his wardrobe, One day I'll get a good night's sleep, one day!
Grand Admiral Brandt finished reading the report received from the LSC-Redemption, took a look at the star charts, pinpointed the system that Commander Harbison was currently situated, then sat down and thought for a moment. The Taidan, The Beast, The Vaygr? What is this? some new insurgent? 'Admiral Fitzwater?' He called out in a clear tone.
'Sir?'
'130 people are missing, presumed dead. Evidence so far suggests an attack, one by a superior force. Now...' he went on 'what are the possibilities of some remnants of the Vaygr being involved in this?'
'Highly doubtful sir, we have successfully maintained a campaign against the Vaygr and intelligence would have us believe that their forces are now seriously limited. We believe they have fled our boundaries, sir, they have nothing left, they are a broken race' Fitzwater replied.
'The Beast is no more and even if the Beast had survived against the odds, this simply isn't the same style of attack. The Taidan perished with the Vaygr fleets. Would it be safe to assume there is a new presence out there?' Brandt enquired.
'With all the evidence we have, it's certainly the likeliest explanation so far, sir' Fitzwater answered.
'Admiral, have Commander Ren take his destroyer fleet to support the Redemption, also, we may need more marines to set up a base of operations on the planet's surface, so have a carrier deployed too, which you send is your choice, you have your orders Admiral' Brandt ordered.
'Sir' Fitzwater saluted.
Intrigueing, Surely this can't be the Vagyr, not again.
Tank stepped into the observation lounge to find Flo staring out into space, a rather blank look on his face. 'What ya staring at buddy? You look ........'
'Say anything about me being old and I'll flush your remains out there' Flo interrupted 'Tank take a look here, tell me what you see?' Flo pointed out the viewport to what looked to be a normal cluster of stars. Tank couldn't see anything but the cold blackness of space.
'What am I looking at old man?' Tank said after a brief pause,
'Out there .... kinda looks like glass, I think, very faint but it's there' Flo replied, seemingly missing the ''old man'' remark. Tank looked again, various stars glittered against the black backdrop of nothingness, here and there a shooting star could be seen. Tank continued to stare, noticing the nebula in the far distance, a vast purple cloud of radioactive gases and dust. 'Sorry Flo, no idea what your talking about?'
'I'm telling you it's there, right there!' Flo said anxiously. Tank tried to follow where Flo was pointing. He could feel the uncomfortable feeling of his eyes straining ' Wait, what is that? I think I see it' Tank tried to make out the outline of what he was seeing but couldn't find one, He strained even more.
'It's small, like a stretched bubble' Flo described for him, ' But it's definitely there, you see?
'Yea, I see it' Tank answered, wondering what to do. 6 months they have been out here, 6 months and nothing, no activity or any kind. 'Have you tried to get a reading on it?' Tank asked, trying to run through the options of what to do.
'Every reading I can use, nothing. It's like it's not there but it is.' Flo replied, albeit confused.
'Wake the crew, we going out to take a closer look!' Tank broke away from the viewport and went to prep the stations only corvette.
Flo did as Tank requested and woke up the other 4 crew members. When the first walked in looking like he was just dug up, Flo followed the route Tank took. Finally we get to see something out here Flo mused to himself excitedly.
Commander Harbison was standing at the front of the bridge when Lt.Co Blacksand joined him. Drunk seemed to be deep in thought. He turned to face his friend and trusted ally ' I may be going insane with boredom here but I have this unshakeable feeling that we are being watched' He said with a trace of anxiety.
'Sir, Nothing is showing up on the read outs. Apart from the ground team, we're alone here.' Black replied.
'Commander?' The comm's officer interupted.
'Yes?'
'Incoming message from Admiral Brandt, He requests that you hold position and secure the site until further reinforcements arrive' the comms continued.
"Reinforcements? what kind of reinforcements did the Admiral have in mind, that could compare with the fully complimented Redemption?' Drunk mused out loud. At that moment several hyperspace signatures appeared on the main scanner. 'Sir, we have incoming ships, exiting hyperspace now'
'ID those ships' the Commander ordered.
'It's the Justice fleet, sir. Receiving a transmission from Commander Ren' The comm's replied.
'Put it through' A whole destroyer fleet? 130 people going missing is serious enough but is there really a need for a fleet to safeguard a dead planet?
The Justice fleet consisted of 8 frontline class destroyers headed up by the LSC-Justice, Commandeered by the Veteran, Commander Ren, the fleet has earned it's reputation through dedication over the years and it's role through the Vagyr Wars. Although the Frontline class is getting old in terms of design and firepower, they more than make up for their versatility in combat and their use in support roles. The Justice fleet was reknowned through the galaxy for it's ongoing endurance and the ability of the fleets crew to get the job done. Commander Ren himself was reknowned for being tactically sound and cool under pressure and had infact turned down many offer's of promotion to command Battlecruisers, in favour of staying aboard the LSC-Justice and her crew.
'Commander Harbison, Commander Ren here, I have orders from the Admiral to assist in securing the system. The LSC-Crossfire will arrive in a few hours to provide the materials needed to set up a long term base of operations on the planet. Any idea whats going on here? It's unusual for the Admiral to assign so many ships to one planet?'
'It is unusual but I'm sure the Admiral knows what he's doing, best not to question his motives, Commander. As for whats going on, we haven't had a report from the ground team in some hours, however the analysis so far is, 130 people go missing. Signs of a firefight and looks like they were attacked fast and hard. We can't rule out the possibilty of orbital strikes too' Drunk explained.
'Orbital strikes? The only ships we know of to have the power to use orbital strikes were the Vagyr, the remnants of which fled the galaxy on the other side of the star charts, they should be no-where near here!' Commander Ren replied.
'That we know of, but to coin a phrase, there's always the possibilty of a new player in town, Commander. Have 6 of your destroyers create a sentry perimeter around the planet, Bring the Justice and your remaining ship into formation with the Redemption. We will wait to safeguard the arrival of the LSC-Crossfire, in the meantime please feel free to come on board, I'm sure there will be a few things to discuss'
'Look forward to it, Commander' Ren answered before terminating the transmission.
Drunk turned to Black. 'Correct if i'm wrong but isn't the Crossfire the carrier that houses the Elite marine force?' He asked.
'Yes, sir, Sergeant Elysium and his men are considered the best of the best, although maybe this mission would be a little overkill to bring them here' Black replied.
'My thought's exactly, maybe the Admiral's getting paranoid in his old age. Come lets prepare for Commander Ren's arrival'
'I tell you something Flo, this corvette is in serious need of a tune up!' Tank said. Tank and Flo were heading towards the mysterious glass-like object in the station's only corvette. ' You would have thought they could have sent us some more uptodate ships, i mean this thing is a deathtrap, It's barely running' Tank went on.
'Well if only you would stop tinkering with the poor ship it would probably be in better shape!' Flo responded, getting a little weary from Tank's ongoing complaints about the ship's state of health. 'Look we're coming up on the ....' Flo stopped himself short, he realised he didn't actually know what it was they were flying to. 'the... ah....'
'Lets just call it a thing for now, eh, old man?'