CH07: S [D03|1745] Hidden Raptor

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CH07: S [D03|1745] Hidden Raptor

May 03, 2021, 03:44:10 PM

HIDDEN RAPTOR

The podium of the Fighter Assault Bay's briefing room was usually frequented by the Wolf Leader, the Chief of the Deck or someone from the Senior Staff, but in that brief time after arriving at Qo'noS, a series of events had led to there being someone entirely unexpected standing there instead.

In his threadbare robe and scarred hands flexing at his sides, Drauc T'Laus stared at these warp fighter pilots in their seats, seeing how few they were compared to when he first came aboard the Theurgy. Be that as it may, given what he was about to tell them - on behalf of Mission Ops and with the approval of the Senior Staff - whatever numbers were available had to do. Next to him stood Thea, serving as some kind of unspoken verification that what was about to be said was true, and regardless whom Drauc would be, the urgency dictated that he spoke with the Lone Wolves directly. They had all been summoned by Thea three minutes ago, and the only reason they were present so quickly was that the Theurgy was in Yellow Alert, and the Lone Wolves had been mission ready to begin with. And a mission they now had on heir hands, sufficed to say.

"I am Drauc T'Laus," he rasped quietly to the wolves before him, staring at them through the tresses of his burgundy hair, "formerly of Starfleet Security, and I am currently working with the Intelligence Department aboard. This, in regard to the threat of Romulus. Commander Fisher is currently a captive of Martok's rival, so he cannot be here to speak for me, and there was no time to send anyone else and also brief them of the circumstances. The Senior Staff has already approved of this mission, and I am merely here to give you the intel you need rather than giving orders. That is for your Squadron Commanding Officer to do. Time is of the essence, so I ask that you listen. Twenty minutes ago, I got a message from an acquaintance of mine in the Star Navy."

Drauc looked towards Thea, who in turn interacted with the screen behind Drauc, showing a Romulan face. [Show/Hide]

"This is Situka, a Donatra sympathiser working in the Star Navy, and whom I know from my years beyond the RNZ. After Praetor Tal'Aura declared war on the Federation, Situka have assisted Commander Fisher by giving his contacts in the Empire intel about Thalaron weaponry development, but the message I just received revealed her current commissioning, it being on an D'viret-class incursion cruiser belonging to the Tal Shiar... and it is heading for Qo'noS as we speak. It will be in orbit over the First City in twenty minutes, and Situka claims it may carry a thalaron bomb akin to the one detonated in Paris."

"Bloody hell," said Lieutenant Rawley, seated with her exosuit's boots resting on the back of the chair in front of her.

Needless to say, time was short, so Drauc immediately gave the last information the Lone Wolves needed before they addressed the threat to the mission and to the Klingon Empire as a whole, since should all other contingencies of the Infested fail, then the Romulan cruiser might be the final solution of theirs. "Situka is defecting, having given us the cruiser's coordinates and heading, and she will sabotage the cruiser's cloak if you approach it. She will try to leave on a shuttle, carrying Tal Shiar secrets, so try to recruit a House K'Tal captain to take her aboard a Klingon ship, unless she managed to leave on a Romulan shuttle. In which case, she needs an escort back here. This Ship A.I. has sent her station's encrypted subspace frequency to your warp fighters, but since she is undercover, she will have to contact you first, lest you may compromise her."

Thea spoke up next, arms folded behind her back and shoulders square. "I am is still locked here in my standoff with House Mo'Kai, and with the threat on Praxis, I am afraid you are on your own for the time being. You are free to launch immediately. On behalf of the Senior Staff, I cannot stress enough the urgency and the required haste in this matter.... Good luck, Lone Wolves."

Rawley leapt on her feet, ready to launch her Valkyrie, and looked towards Thomas with a grin. "Commander Ravon, I fancy me some Romulan arse. Let's blow her up, aye? Your orders?"

On the podium, Drauc merely stared at the fighter pilots, knowing that they were the sole means of survival for Situka, hoping she would outlive her defection and the sabotage she was prepared to commit on the incursion cruiser.

OOC: This is the starter for the Story Objective Hidden Raptor. If the Oneida makes it of its battle with House Mo'Kai in the thread New Renegade, this Objective may be an option for where they might arrive in the sector around Qo'noS. It is too early to introduce the Oneida yet, however, but it's a potential option to bear in mind, given opportunity. @Nolan , @Havenborn and @SummerDawn , have fun! You have 7 days to reply.

Re: CH07: S [D03|1745] Hidden Raptor

Reply #1 – May 10, 2021, 11:02:08 AM

[ LT Daniel Havenborn, Callsign: Salvo & ENS K’Ren, Callsign: Neko | Cockpit | AC-307 Mark-II Valkyrie, Gryphon-class “Hellcat” ] ] Attn: @Nolan, @SummerDawn, @Auctor Lucan

Daniel sat next to K’Ren in the briefing room as he listened to the mercenary speak. It seemed like a fairly simple mission, extract the defector and destroy the cruiser. As long as they could convince a Klingon ship to help out, which admittedly shouldn’t be that hard considering that Klingons and Romulans don’t get along well. A pair of Mark-IIIs and Daniel’s Gryphon plus a Klingon ship, preferably a cruiser of some kind but they’d have to take what they could get, even if it was just a Bird-of-Prey. He had decided that K’Ren needed something to occupy her time at the moment, the short rest that they had had during the Theurgy’s transit to Kronos had been good for her but if Theurgy needed a pilot for whatever reason back here he decided that Knight would be a more stable option, his friend was rated on the Mark-IIIs after all. It would be interesting to have K’Ren as his RIO, he was more used to her flying as his wingmate after all.

He also wanted to make sure that K’Ren had something to focus on other than Deacon right now. He listened to Thea explain the urgency of the mission and the blessing of the Senior Staff and that was good enough for him. If they could prevent more innocent lives from being targeted then that’s all that would matter. He looked over at K’Ren as he heard Lieutenant Rawley jump up excited to get the mission started. He stood up and waited for Commander Ravon to issue their orders to begin the mission. “Salvo and Neko ready for the mission Commander.” Daniel said as he again looked back at K’Ren. Once they were underway he’d check in with her and see how she was doing, he knew that it had been quite some time since she had sat in the RIO position and even had a second person in a fighter with her since she had taken up piloting a Mark-III.

Re: CH07: S [D03|1745] Hidden Raptor

Reply #2 – May 15, 2021, 09:55:43 AM

[ Lt Cmdr thomas 'Razor' Ravon | Briefing Room | Fighter Assault Bay | Deck 16 | Vector 02 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @Auctor Lucan @Havenborn @SummerDawn

The wolves had been licking their wounds after the last major battle with Klingon forces. Their forces spread thin to say the least, Ravon had been present during the senior staff meeting that opted for the wolves to be used on a quick response mission. A time critical mission and it didn't take long before he and Drauc had moved over to the fighter assault bay. Seated at the front row, Thomas had one leg crossed over the other while he watched the Romulan operative speak. He only glanced once or twice over his shoulders to look at the present pilots. Those that were combat ready and had been called in to attend the briefing.

The goal of the mission was rather simple. Get to Qo'nos, find the defector, destroy the ship if it had the Thalaron equipment on board. When Drauc was done, Thomas stood up, Rawley eager to get into a new fight and Daniel spoke up as well to volunteer for the mission with K'Ren. Ravon looked at the both of them and he had a slight worry about the Caitain crewmate. Heh ad hears about her loss, yet hadn't gotten the chance to speak to her in person about it. Daniel however seemed to be looking out for his wing mate and if they deemed themselves ready for the mission to come, he wouldn't deny any more help.

"You heard the man, this is a time sensitive mission. Get in your flightsuits. I want us on route to Qo'nos in five minutes." he stated decisively and gave a nod for them to get changed before turning to Drauc "We'll do our best to get your contact out, though I can't promise we'll succeed. The prevention of that ship hitting Qo'nos is adamant, it'll be our main focus."

Without further ado, Thomas turned on his heels to march out of the briefing room. Leaving Drauc in there whilst he entered the locker room to change gear. It didn't take long, under a minute really since they were drilled for these kinds of situations "I hope your ships were re armed after the battle. We won't have time to switch load outs." Picking up his helmet, he left the locker room headed over to the fighter that was his and fired up the systems. He started to look for any Klingon vessel that was close enough to help them out. When he saw K'Ren enter her craft he called out to her "Neko! Try and find us some support ship for the mission while we fire our birds up and head on out."

Looking at Rawley whilst she boarded her ship, he waited till she got her helmet on before contacting her as well "No heroics this time. Surgical precision is what I'm aiming for today."

Re: CH07: S [D03|1745] Hidden Raptor

Reply #3 – May 22, 2021, 07:32:55 AM

[ Ens. K'Ren | Fighter Assault Bay | Deck 16 | Vector 02 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @Nolan, @Havenborn and @Auctor Lucan
[Show/Hide]

K'Ren listened to the briefing from the Romulan agent (or whatever he was) brief them on the mission. The mission sounded straight forward enough, though almost any mission given by intel rarely ran to plan, so they'd most likely have to adapt to rapidly changing mission parameters, in many ways like a furball of a battlefield, just less chaos. She glanced over at Daniel, who'd asked her to fly as his RIO for the mission. It'd been a long time since she'd been in the back seat, she'd always been the front seater in her old craft, and now solo in her latest fighter.

She'd understood Daniel's logic in bringing her along. He needed a RIO, and with her pulled from flight status, there was nobody to man her fighter, but by placing her in the back seat, he freed up his RIO to man her fighter, keeping the number of available birds higher. She followed the other pilots into the squad locker room and began to suit up. It felt good to put her flight suit on, even if she wasn't going to have the controls of a bird, at least she'd have something to distract her, hopefully enough of a distraction that she'd be okay till they got back and she could properly grieve Deacon's passing.

She nodded when Ravon gave her an order to find a friendly klingon vessel to follow them, "Understood Commander." she answered back as they headed out onto the flight deck, force of habit she walked around the craft checking it's surfaces before she went over to the ladder for the back seat. She settled into the seat as a crew chief finished some last minute items, and she connected her suit into the fighters life support and comms systems. Felt a bit weird to not have a stick in front of her, but she had enough comms & sensor gear to keep her busy once things got crazy.

Re: CH07: S [D03|1745] Hidden Raptor

Reply #4 – May 25, 2021, 11:04:11 AM

[ LT Daniel Havenborn, Callsign: Salvo | Cockpit | AC-307 Mark-II Valkyrie, Gryphon-class “Hellcat” ] ] Attn: @Nolan, @SummerDawn, @Auctor Lucan

Daniel nodded as Commander Ravon gave his orders and followed the other pilots out into the hangar. He walked over to his fighter and nodded to the techs who had finished reloading his quantum torpedoes, luckily he was still loaded for anti-ship warfare so he would at least have that edge against the Romulan vessel. He did wonder what it was going to be like having K’Ren as his RIO. He and Knight had a good rapport and a lot of times Knight was able to predict what Daniel needed in order to complete their missions.

He climbed the ladder to the cockpit and sat down running through the pre-flight checklist and activating systems. “All set back there Neko?” Daniel asked as he closed the canopy of his fighter and activated the thrusters preparing to launch his fighter back into the vacuum of space. He always looked forward flying, even during combat sorties. “Good, let me know if you feel a madness fit.” Daniel said, if something happened and she had a fit he was working on a shortcut that could cut her console just in case. He hoped that this mission would keep her focused but he was going to make sure he had options available.

He began to taxi his fighter into position, lining up behind Commander Ravon, a moment after he launched Daniel would engage his thrusters. “Salvo to Razor, ready to launch on your mark.” Daniel said.

Re: CH07: S [D03|1745] Hidden Raptor

Reply #5 – June 09, 2021, 01:14:04 PM

[ Lt. JG Evelyn Rawley, callsign "Ghost" | Mk III Valkyrie Cockpit ]
Attn: @Nolan @SummerDawn @Havenborn
[Show/Hide]

No heroics this time. Surgical precision is what I'm aiming for today."

"Fine," had Rawley said whilst rolling her eyes, not keen on playing doctor with her Valkyrie. She preferred 'playing doctor' off duty, for sure, but when taking on a Romulan spy-ship that could potentially bomb the fuck out of Qo'noS? She'd rather have the delicate touch of a sledge hammer if it got the job done. Still, orders were orders she supposed, so when it was time to launch, she was ready.

The Chief of the Deck and his crew had patched up her Valkyrie as well as they could on such short notice. Luckily, the damage sustained over Andor had been largely superficial, with a majority of the hull plating being freshly replicated, and a lot of the computer components had been replaced to ensure smooth handling and reliability. The pre-flight checks showed some niggles and minor errors, some power fluctuations, but still within tolerable levels. Having made her armament request before the briefing, her Valkyrie now packed four torpedo launchers, all of them stacked with quantum torpedoes, and she would rely on the standard amount of microtorpedoes housed inside the fuselage. She tended to run dry of those rather quickly, so she'd simply have to be a bit more conservative with those.

"Thanks!" she called to the weapon technicians when they'd finished with her launchers, and she idly wondered where Sithick was at. She had gotten so used to seeing the Gorn on the flight deck that she actually missed him when he wasn't there. Dismissing the thought, Rawley donned her helmet and closed the canopy, ready for launch, and soon enough, the order came, and she throttled up her thrusters - bringing her into the cue out of the bay. Once it was her turn, she was off, switching to impulse once she cleared the launch strip. "This is Ghost. Setting me course according to the intel. Thea gave us some encrypted subspace frequency to that Romulan defector's duty station, aye?" she asked over the squad channel. "I suppose she doesn't want to have our voices heard all over that bridge, right? Have you already asked your computer to send a text message to her, Razor? She might wanna know we're coming to collect her arse, so it be time to fuck up the cloak, innit?"

They shot past the destroyed moon of Praxis on their course towards the inbound Romulan ship, and little did they know that the Allegiant was there on a mission of its own, addressing another contingency of the Infested should their plans on Qo'noS be foiled.

[ Ensign Liam Herrold | Fighter Assault Bay | Deck 16 | Vector 02 | USS Theurgy ]
Attn: @Eden @P.C. Haring @Lathaniel @Nero
[Show/Hide]

Not long after the Valkyries had appeared, rumours began to spread on the flight deck that the bridge had received an unexpected hail, and that the 'Freedom Sentinel' was about to reach Qo'noS. Allegedly, this was an ally that the insider that supported the Theurgy from inside Starfleet Headquarters had found, and apparently, it wasn't just some shuttle... but a whole starship filled with Starfleet officers that had learned the truth about Statfleet Command. It was the USS Oneida, an Iroquois-class ship under the command of a Captain Jackson, and they had helped Captain Ives and Martok on their voyage to Qo'noS.

So, when their new ally had dropped out of warp, Liam had learned that they were about to receive new pilots, and that they needed fighters immediately for launch. With a thalaron-armed Romulan warbird inbound for Qo'noS, there was no time for flight tests or extended theory sessions. The new fighter pilots needed to know how to fly MK III Valkyries and Valravns, and they needed to launch immediately. Unique circumstances to say the least, but Liam had a plan.

"You, you and you," he said pointing out three of the deck crew, "You are the best test pilots I have here, and I need you on standby on the flights stairs to the cockpits so that you can show them the differences between our birds and the Mk II Valkyries, which would be the birds these new wolves flew before. I need you to configure the flight control HUDs to have the Mk II interface, which should go a long way to make them understand the controls. I know, the actual differences are nominal, but the new layouts may throw them. Go on, hop to it. Weapon technicians, arm the birds for capital ship engagement. Torpedo launchers, hellbores and cluster bombs, two of each, and while they will have the twin-mount turrets, I don't know if they have learned to use them yet. For those who pick a Mk III, caution them about the tetryon pulse phase cannon. They will not know how it affects handling, and if they are unprepared and deploy it, they might shear something on their Valkyrie. Understood? Get going then."

The Romulan in the threadbare clothes approached, having learned from Thea that he'd had to brief a new group of fighter pilots, and Liam was a little bit intimidated by the brooding alien with scarred hands and unkempt hair. He seemed like he could explode into action any second, the intensity of his stare not the least softened by the impression that he was able to sense people behind him as well. He said naught, and Liam had little to offer. As if saved from having to talk to the Romulan, a few shimmering figures appeared before them, materialising into Tactical CONN officers, already in exosuits and ready for the mission.

"Welcome to the Theurgy, I'm Chief Herrold," said Liam with a quick smile, his eyes not staying on the newcomers for long since he had to make sure his deck crew was on point with the readiness of the fighters.

"These are the mission parameters," rasped Drauc in a deep voice, flexing his scarred hands by his sides. He didn't seem to bother with an introduction. "A Donatra sympathiser is working in the Star Navy, serving aboard a D'viret-class incursion cruiser belonging to the Tal Shiar, and it is heading for Qo'noS as we speak. It will be in orbit over the First City in fifteen minutes, and the sympathiser - named Situka - claims it may carry a thalaron bomb. Just like the the one that detonated in Paris. No doubt you learned about this on the Oneida. Situka is defecting to the Theurgy, having given us the cruiser's coordinates and heading, and she will sabotage the cruiser's cloak as you approach it. The Lone Wolves have launched ahead of you, and is arranging for her extraction, but knowing my people, and the Tal Shiar, I suspect the Romulan ship will not so easily be deterred. In summary, extract Situka if you are able, but save Qo'noS. If Martok remains in power, the Infested will likely try to decimate the First City. That is all."

"Okay," said Liam, clearing his throat to get attention from the new wolves on the deck. "If you have a RIO with you, I suggest you pick either of the Valravn fighters on the far end of the bay, but if you are okay with flying solo, the Mk III Valkyries have substituted the role of a RIO with an upgraded computer interface. Take your pick, do it now, and my crew will help you sort things out in the cockpits. Time is of the essence, to listen well, listen quick, and launch as soon as you possibly can. Flight Ops is standing by to give you clearance. I hear Logan Hale, callsign Wraith, is waiting for you outside the bay in his Valravn, so follow his lead until you rendezvous with the other Lone Wolves. Unless you have any questions... good luck out there."

What a way to be transfer to a new ship...

OOC: Welcome to the thread, @Nero , @Eden , @Lathaniel and @P.C. Haring !

Re: CH07: S [D03|1745] Hidden Raptor

Reply #6 – June 11, 2021, 05:28:45 PM

"What a clusterfuck!” Max thought to herself as she watched the four fighters exit the Theurgy’s Fighter Assault Bay. By some vein of providence, she had been assigned to remain behind aboard the Theurgy in case they had some need of additional defence. “Like a single warp fighter is going to be able to do much out there. I’d be better off just making a run for it.”

That was something that she had considered while she had been showering. Entering the den, it was quickly demonstrated to Max why she was so uncomfortable wearing the exosuit. Unlike herself, who was still wearing the Starfleet uniform provided to her from when she was discharged from the Savi hospital, the other pilots wore very little, if anything, underneath their suits. Something she had taken to heart even as she considered how to get off the ship.

Qo’noS was the capital of the Klingon Empire which meant that ships were coming and going all the time. At least, that would have been the norm if it wasn’t for the current political differences. Now, she’d be lucky if she could find a place to lay low and hide without the Theurgy being able to track her down. There were too many unknowns to risk going to the planet at the moment. She had considered simply flying away at the first opportunity but had quickly realised that that was a foolhardy notion. She was in a fighter and while it might have had the size of a runabout, it certainly wasn’t one. It just wasn’t designed for the kind of long duration flight that Max needed to be able to get somewhere useful. No, for now she was suck playing the part of her creator. The role of a wolf.

Shimmering light from outside the cockpit drew her attention and Max looked up to see three newcomers materialise, all of them in exosuits. The deck chief appeared to have been expecting them and Max was soon informed by Flight Ops that they were replacement pilots from another ship and that she wouldn't be launching with them.

“Terrific,” she noted after acknowledging the transmission. She watched the pilots separate and make for their assigned craft before looking back to her controls. She had used her free time well after her shower, familiarising herself with as much of the fighter as she could. Now, she waited for the arrivals to activate their comms.

“Alright pups,” she called out through a local channel, looking out of her cockpit. “My name is Chance but I won't be flying with you today. Try not to die,” Max quipped, trying to replicate some of the banter she had watched Donna use over the years. “If you have any questions, please direct them at Wraith. Otherwise, feel free to introduce yourselves,” she directed as she settled back into her seat. Her orders were to wait. It was something neither she, nor Donna hadn't been good at.

OOC: Post Edited as I was reminded that Max hasn't been allowed to launch as yet. Apologies for the confusion.

Re: CH07: S [D03|1745] Hidden Raptor

Reply #7 – June 21, 2021, 04:49:06 AM

[Lt. Reggie Suder, Callsign: Gemini | Fighter Assault Bay | Deck 16 | Vector 02 | USS Theurgy ] attn: @Nolan @Havenborn @Auctor Lucan @Stegro88

Reggie’s breath escaped her as the Oneida’s transporter beam released her. The last time she had stood an a launch deck this large she’d been aboard a Spacedock. Even the Omega training center didn’t have a launch deck this large. She’d heard about the Theurgy class hull, knew it was sizable. Even so nothing could prepare her for actually being aboard ship.

She turned at the sound of a man’s voice, likely that of the chief of the deck welcoming them to the ship. Another voice started explaining the mission parameters and did a double take at the sight of a Romulan, clad in threadbare clothing. She was no politician but she understood that relations with the Romulans were…complicated, that despite the Star Empire claiming credit for the attack on Earth, some were working against the empire…. A classic civil war scenario. She bore the individual no ill will or hostility and was not one to shoot first. Still she had to stop herself from drawing her phaser. The thoughts of the rest came to her and she sensed no hostility towards the Romulan. Between that and the lack of security presence guarding the man, she eased up.

The mission seemed simple enough, find the cruiser, extract the spy, and eliminate the thread the cruiser posed. Preferably in that order.

The officer of the deck started talking again, explaining the locations of their two fighter options. She did not care all that much for a computer as her RIO so she turned to the far end of the bay where the Valravns had been parked. She clapped Kalil on his shoulder.

“Lets go to work.”

Together they made their way for the nearest Valravn.

She scrambled up the ladder and plopped herself down in the cockpit, much to the surprise of the deckhand who had been prepping the ship. She slipped on her helmet, but did not secure it as she brought up the flight controls. Something wasn’t right. They were too familiar to her, unlike what she had seen while she was learning the ropes with Wraith. After a moment, she recognized it as the configuration for the Vakyrie Mk II.

That wouldn’t do. If she was going to master the Valravn, she needed to immerse herself in it. Perhaps not the most strategically sound if things went pear shaped, but she could always re-reconfigure the controls on the fly.

“Computer, reset flight controls to original configuration.”

The console blacked out and lit back up, this time in the configuration she had expected to see.

She snapped the helmet closed and began preflight. She switched her commlink online, tying into both the squadron and the the Theurgy flight control comm circuits.

“Alright pups. My name is Chance but I won't be flying with you today. Try not to die. If you have any questions, please direct them at Wraith. Otherwise, feel free to introduce yourselves."

The sound of that voice, a pilot climbing into the cockpit. There was something about her, a vibe,…
She shrugged it off. Probably nothing more than pre-engagement adrenaline combined with the opportunity to haze the new kids. Someone like Chance… had to be her call sign… would not show respect until it was earned in battle. Too bad that day would not be today.

“This is Lieutenant Regiene Suder, call sign Gemini, logging on. In my back seat,” she turned and gave him a playful wink. The entendre not withstanding, their relationship had never gone down that route. “I have Petty Officer First Class Kalil Daik, call sign Athen. We are running pre-flight and requesting departure instructions.”

She stopped talking to give the Theurgy flight ops team a chance to do their job.

“Ya hear that, Chance? Shame you won't be with us today. Would be nice to get a proper introduction, don't you think?"

Earning her respect would have to wait another day, but Reggie enjoyed a challenge.

Re: CH07: S [D03|1745] Hidden Raptor

Reply #8 – June 25, 2021, 06:33:00 PM

[

Lt. JG Logan Hale, callsign "Wraith"| AC-477 MK I Valravn | Wolf-02 | Orbit over Qo’noS] Attn: @Auctor Lucan @Havenborn @Nolan @Stegro88 @SummerDawn
[Show/Hide]

Somehow it was good to see the Theurgy again. The impressive barge hung over the greenish-gray planet Qo'noS and seemed to have taken quite a beating. Across from it, some distance away, Logan could make out the Klingon battlecruiser IKS Ta'Rom. It was an imposing ship, radiating a certain menace. Logan could still remember his time aboard an Imperial battleship. Back then, he had been aboard the K'tang, an older bird-of-prey class ship. Despite the ship's age, it had been impressively strong and, more importantly, maneuverable. The pilot wondered what had become of the ship. After all, several years had passed since then.

Logan steered his freshly rearmed Valravn toward the USS Theurgy's warp nacelles and tapped into his comrades' radio traffic.
"This is Wolf-02, Wraith and Hunter. Reporting back with good and bad news."
Logan shifted the control stick to the left to lay into a long sweeping turn.
"Good news: We've brought reinforcements with us. They are currently beaming up to the Theurgy and will man the free fighters. As soon as they are all launched, we will rally to you."
What came next was hard for him. Saying it out loud still hurt, and Logan was aware that it would for a very long time.
"The bad news is that we lost Angel and Blizzard. They didn't make it, unfortunately."

An uncomfortable silence fell. Such news was never easy to deal with. It was no different when he learned that Miles Renard hadn't made it either. Logan had met the Vulpinian with the call sign Iron-Fox only once, briefly. That had been when he said goodbye to Meerkat and Dragon. Somehow, death seemed to follow Logan. Since this whole thing started, he had had to pay his respects to many friends. Logan looked out the cockpit window. The reinforcements he brought with him were by now leaving the dreadnought's hangar and closing in on him. There would be plenty of time for mourning later.

Re: CH07: S [D03|1745] Hidden Raptor

Reply #9 – June 28, 2021, 10:09:26 AM

[ Lt Cmdr thomas 'Razor' Ravon | Mk III Valkyrie Cockpit ] Attn: @Auctor Lucan @Havenborn @SummerDawn

Whilst shooting past the destroyed moon of Praxis, Razor was just finishing up on the message for the defector aboard the Romulan ship when Rawley called out to him. He chuckled lightly, shaking his head and sent the message before answering Rawley "I did just that. Lets hope that ship'll be in sight the moment we get there." Looking to his left and right, he could see the small contingency of fighters form up while they made their way to Qo'nos. Unaware of the new reinforcements that would be joining them.

Whilst the rest of his systems lit up green on their way to their target, Thomas couldn't help but hope that their contact was at her station. That nobody was looking over her shoulder when his message got sent to her and that the intel they had gotten from Drauc would be accurate. A nasty surprise would greet them otherwise and it might be one of those surprises where they wouldn't be around to tell the tale any longer.

"When we get on target, we split up. All taking a different angle at the ship to disable or destroy it. Supposedly we'll be more successful if we aren't going to bunch up together. Let them spread their fire and work for their money. Good luck wolves."

Before he could focus on flying altogether, Wraith's message came through and Razor turned his head to look behind him as the Theurgy was getting further and further away from them. Whilst the pilot brought good and bad news, Thomas was happy with any reinforcements he could take.

"Roger that Wraith, you'll be the second attack squadron. I take it you can lead them into battle. We won't be hard to find, just follow the big explosions. Let me know when you've arrived and make sure the new guys are stocked up on weapons and ammo. Good to have you back."

Re: CH07: S [D03|1745] Hidden Raptor

Reply #10 – July 06, 2021, 11:50:08 AM

[ LT Daniel Havenborn, Callsign: Salvo & ENS K’Ren, Callsign: Neko | Cockpit | AC-307 Mark-II Valkyrie, Gryphon-class “Hellcat” ] ] Attn: @Nolan, @SummerDawn, @Auctor Lucan

Hearing Commander Ravon’s orders Daniel gave a simple acknowledgement. “Understood Razor.” Was all that he said. “Neko, give me an passive scan of the area, is there any debris or hazards we need to be aware of?” Daniel asked her, he knew that the madness could set in at any moment but if he could keep her distracted and busy maybe he could stall it. Daniel began to plot a vector for their attack run, once the ship was found and identified he’d follow attack vector as much as possible. He knew that most of the time battle plans didn’t live past the first minute of combat, at least aerospace combat that was, but he too needed to keep focused and making sure that he at least had a battle plan was good enough.

Daniel did kind of wonder what Knight was up to, probably hanging out in a Mark-III readying himself, or more likely he was hanging out the in briefing room, either way he was going to miss his RIO. Not that he didn’t mind having K’Ren sitting behind him, hearing her voice from behind him was a welcome change.

Daniel refocused himself, he needed to be in the here and now. “Also Neko, be prepared to switch power, both auxiliary and primary to shields, engines or weapons; whichever one I call out.” He said, trying to help her get settled a little.

Re: CH07: S [D03|1745] Hidden Raptor

Reply #11 – July 14, 2021, 11:21:04 PM

Lt JG Sorek Morgan, Callsign “Chaos” Fighter Assault Bay | Deck 16 | Vector 02 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @Auctor Lucan @Nolan @Stegro88 @Nero @P.C. Haring @Havenborn @SummerDawn @Eden

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With the blur of the transporter beam fading around Lieutenant Morgan, the young, handsome hybrid took a moment to orient himself. This very brief moment he had to glance around the Fighter Assault Bay of the USS Theurgy was enough to make his jaw drop in disbelief. This place was magnificent, a dream for everyone invested in the Tactical CONN business. "Wow..." The expression of awe escaped his lips before he had the chance to prevent it, but trying to make a good first impression, he did not continue with the words that were on his mind. Questions over questions, remarks and praise in abundance, which all had to wait. Sorek was certain that they would not have the time for many words.

When the Romulan started to talk, Sorek immediately turned his attention towards him. He did not have to see someone in order to identify a Romulan, though. Soreks first impulse was to ask the Ensign next to the Romulan why this person was on a Starfleet vessel, but this particular specimen seemed to have been outfitted with enough authority to order Starfleet personnel to action. And since Morgan was new on this ship, he no other option but to trust that this was okay. But even though he was willing to play along, while mustering the man, Sorek could not help but wonder: Who was this guy? And who on earth trusted him enough to grant him this much power? More questions to ask, once this battle was fought. Sorek was happy to get into a fighter cockpit again. The origin of the person who briefed him in advance of that was not his concern at the moment.

When the unknown Romulan ended his elaborations, Sorek nodded. Not out of respect, but merely to signal that he had understood his orders. With a swift motion he turned his attention to one of the Mk III fighters. He had no RIO and had no other option, but this did not bother him. The most important task was to get to his fighter and learn the differences between a Mk II and this fabulous piece of warfighting equipment.

Lieutenant Morgan listened closely to the test pilot giving him the quick and dirty introduction, asked all necessary questions and jumped into the seat right after the high speed tutorial was over. Connecting himself to his new fighter, he wondered for how long they would let him fly this thing. The urgency of the current mission demanded quick and easy solutions, but would this mean that Suder, Callax and him would have a shortcut into the Squad itself? Sorek doubted that.

He initiated the routine systems check with dancing fingertips. Had the crew not exchanged the original setup for the Mk II config, Sorek would have had way more guesswork to do. He made a mental note to thank them properly upon their return and just a second later realized that said return might not be as probable as he would hope, regarding the whole thalaron situation. But he would be damned if he allowed that to ruin his first flight in a Mk III.

"Alright pups. My name is Chance but I won't be flying with you today. Try not to die. If you have any questions, please direct them at Wraith. Otherwise, feel free to introduce yourselves."

Sorek heard the unknown voice, knew that Gemini would react swiftly and waited for her to finish.

"This is Lieutenant Junior Grade Sorek Morgan, callsign Chaos. Systems check completed, ready on your mark, Ops."

Re: CH07: S [D03|1745] Hidden Raptor

Reply #12 – July 15, 2021, 05:12:41 AM

Lt. JG Callax Valin | Fighter Assault Bay | Deck 16 | Vector 02 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @Auctor Lucan @Nolan @Stegro88 @Nero @P.C. Haring @Havenborn @SummerDawn @Lathaniel
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Bidding the Oneida farewell was a bittersweet moment. The ship had been his salvation but it had not become his home. Despite earnest attempts otherwise he was treated as something of an outsider. A guest by necessity rather than invitation with little need for cocky fighter pilots. Save for a few acquaintances he made he would not be leaving anybody behind. Stepping onto the transporter pad alongside the others he realized with a final thought that he would not be missed by the Oneida--nor would he much miss it.

It took only a moment for the young fighter pilot to rematerialize in the Fighter Assault Bay of the USS Theurgy, a cavernous space he could scarcely believe was connected to a ship. The scale of it all elicited a silently mouthed ‘damn’ as he took in his immediate surroundings and counted the number of vessels within sight. All of it put the USS Jadestone, the Akira-class he had first served on, to shame. However, there was no time for sightseeing for as soon as Callax began to get his bearings, an ensign and a Romulan began to address them.

That was a surprise. Though, after learning the truth about the Infested and fighting off Klingon birds of prey this was hardly the most out of the ordinary event to befall the young pilot of late. Noting that none of the other crewmembers were finding the Romulan’s presence out of place, Callax’ archived the myriad of questions he had and paid close attention to the mission briefing.

Donatra sympathizer. D’viret-class cruiser. Thalaron bomb. Extraction. Straightforward enough.

Of course, things rarely went according to plan.

Finally the ensign spoke up. “Okay. If you have a RIO with you, I suggest you pick either of the Valravn fighters on the far end of the bay; but, if you are okay with flying solo, the Mk III Valyries have substituted the role of a RIO with an upgraded computer interface. Take your pick, do it now, and my crew will help you sort things out in the cockpits. Time is of the essence, to listen well, listen quick, and launch as soon as you possibly can. Flight Ops is standing by to give you clearance. I hear Logan Hale, callsign Wraith, is waiting for you outside the bay in his Valravn, so follow his lead until you rendezvous with the other Lone Wolves. Unless you have any questions... good luck out there.”

Callax eyed the Valravns with a covetous gaze made all the more difficult by the sight of ‘Gemini’ and her RIO approaching one of the fighters. He had not been assigned a RIO since his rescue by the Oneida and hoped that might be something remedied soon; though, he was just as confident in his ability to fly solo.

And solo he would fly as he approached one of the Mk III Valyrie fighters and climbed the ladder into the cockpit. He wasted little time getting himself situated, immediately appreciating the more familiar Mk II interface as he gave the affirmative hand gestures to the flight deck crew.

"Alright pups. My name is Chance but I won't be flying with you today. Try not to die. If you have any questions, please direct them at Wraith. Otherwise, feel free to introduce yourselves."

Callax allowed himself a grin. It took barely a minute for the banter to begin and he was already enjoying it. Easing the Valkyrie to a hover he got a feel for the controls, or at least as well as he could from there on the launch pad. Even from those little interactions he could tell there were improvements over the Mk II. While he knew he was flying into danger, a part of him began to get excited for the thrill of discovering a new fighter.

With a mischievous grin he switched on the comms system. “Lieutenant Junior Grade Cal Valin here, callsign Archon. Let’s fly.”

Re: CH07: S [D03|1745] Hidden Raptor

Reply #13 – July 15, 2021, 10:52:11 AM

Lt Sabrina Lail | Main Bridge | Deck 1 | USS Oneida ] Attn: @Auctor Lucan @Nolan @Nero @P.C. Haring @Havenborn @SummerDawn @Lathaniel @Eden
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Following the agreed-upon course of action between Lieutenant Commander Natalie Stark, acting captain of the Theurgy, and Captain Jackson, Sabrina tapped buttons on the display in front of her and the Oneida started to move; breaking away from the parallel formation with the larger ship and backing off towards the launching warp fighters rallying around Lieutenant Logan “Wraith” Hale. Lieutenant Commander Ikthan tuned the Oneida’s subspace transceiver array to listen in on the Lone Wolves audio channel, they were likely completely unaware of why the Oneida was maneuvering into the flight path of the warp fighters.

As the ship rose on the z-axis to meet the same plane Hale was on, Sabrina looked out the wide viewscreen and noted, “that ship is immense.” She didn’t realize she said it aloud at first as her inner dialog ran through how close the Oneida was to the Theurgy’s upper starboard nacelle and how the launching warp fighters could be seen departing from the massive ship’s fighter assault bay. Fortunately, no one had said anything about the comment.

“We’re in position and clear of the Theurgy,” Lail stated. “We should have enough clearance between the launching warp fighters and ourselves for warp,” she continued.

“Very well,” Captain Jackson acknowledged as he stood from his command chair. “Open a channel to the Lone Wolves,” he ordered the Oneida’s Ops officer to do. A sound signifying an open hail played through the bridge. [“This is Captain Jesse Jackson of the USS Oneida. If you have been briefed you will know us as the “Freedom Sentinel.” I have spoken with your acting captain, Lieutenant Commander Stark and we have reached an agreement on how best to handle the situation at hand.

To surmise our discussion, the Oneida will accompany the Lone Wolves in search of the Romulan warbird posing a threat to Qo’noS. Make no mistake, this is still a Lone Wolves mission - we are here to provide support and back up to you brave men and women.

We have received the believed coordinates of the Romulan warbird from the Theurgy and will depart with the launching warp fighters. The Oneida may not be the Theurgy when it comes to firepower but she can put up one hell of a fight. Jackson out.”]

“Ready for warp,” Sabrina stated with confidence in her voice.

OOC: Continued from Praxis Crucible

Re: CH07: S [D03|1745] Hidden Raptor

Reply #14 – July 19, 2021, 04:49:32 AM

[Lt. Reggie Suder, Callsign: Gemini | AC-477 MK I Valravn | Wolf-?? | U.S.S. Theurgy Exit Vector]
attn: @Stegro88 @Hope @Eden @Lathaniel @Havenborn @Nolan @Nero @Auctor Lucan @SummerDawn

Having received departure clearance from Theurgy Flight Ops, Reggie eased the Valravn out of the bay and into the black of space. At once, both a comforting and overwhelming feeling took her. She was back behind the cockpit, flying into combat, not training nor simulation nor routine flight patrol This was why she had signed on all those years ago. She was back.

Yet so much had happened since then. A war, far too many friends and colleagues lost, a teaching assignment that had forced her to shoot down one of her own students, the catastrophic damage she had inadvertently caused. She flew a ship she had only just trained on and the fate of the Klingon home world depended on her success in finding a hidden Romulan cruiser potentially carrying another Thaloron bomb, like the one that had decimated the Federation capital city, Paris.

No. It wasn’t all on her. Not this time. There were almost a dozen pilots out here with her. Wraith was here too. At least someone she knew and someone she had already worked with. And the Oneida was now joining the hunt as well.

That brought her comfort. If one Valravn, an Aerowing, a Type-9 and the Oneida could take on four Klingon birds of prey, then the Oneida and almost a dozen Wolves could handle a single Romulan vessel.

Easy there, Reg. We got this.

Kalil’s voice in her mind soothed her.

No one expects us to break out any heroics.

As he spoke to her, the familiarity of his presence within her mind pulled her back to the familiar and she opened up, letting him in and she slid into their battle link.

It’s just a basic search and destroy. Fall in, follow orders, and we’ll be just fine.

They cleared the exit lane and Reggie brought the ship up to flight speeds.

We have Wolf-02 on sensors. Setting course to rendezvous and engaging at full impulse.

She switched over to the squadron’s active comm channel.

“Wolf-02, this is Gemini. I’m on approach to form up, eta 45 seconds. Do you by chance have a flight designation for us?”

Re: CH07: S [D03|1745] Hidden Raptor

Reply #15 – July 22, 2021, 02:21:16 AM

[ Lt. JG Evelyn Rawley, callsign "Ghost" | Mk III Valkyrie Cockpit ]
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Being on an approach trajectory to the coordinates they'd been given, Rawley had keyed in the warp factor given by Razor, and the Lone Wolves were off. Apparently, Razor had delivered the message to the Romulan defector, so they were simply waiting for a reply, or some kind of reaction. They really needed this woman to compromise the cloak of the warbird so that they could do their part to stop it from bombing Qo'noS, but regardless her reply... there were bad news coming in from House K'Tal after Neko raised them. The hail came to the squad channel.

[This is Captain Grech of the IKS veS targh, and whatever is happening on Qo'noS, it has House Mo'Kai making its move. Of the ships we have in the sector, they are all locked in formations to challenge their ships. We have no ships to spare for long range deployment. Grech out.]

"Fuck, does that mean our Romulan friend is toast?" she asked, thinking that she may not be able to escape and frowning behind her helmet's visor - the streaming stars of warp flight caressing her exosuit. "Let's bloody hope she can commandeer some damn shuttle or something and bolt out before we fuck that bird up. It's not like we can choose her over saving Qo'noS."

Whatever the reactions may be from the other Lone Wolves, Rawley didn't really notice, because they'd reached the coordinates, and it was time to drop out of warp. Whomever commanded the warbird had to be suspicious about Federation warp fighters intercepting it so close to the Klingon homeworld, Rawley thought, so if the defector was about to make her move, it had to be soon, for they were completely blind, not picking up anything around them on sensors.

"Did we overshoot it?" Rawley asked on comms, concerned about the warbird already being at Qo'noS while they were just enjoying the view of Klingon space...

Then, there was a flicker on sensors, and ahead of them... a large silhouette materialised against the light of a nearby star. Sweeping wings and a beak decloaking. Moreover, a series of silent explosions running along the fuselage. Internal sabotage, undoubtedly, caused by this Romulan hero that would not side with her people in obeying the Praetor. There was a chirp from Rawley's LCARS screens, and a text message appeared on it.

CLOAKING DEVICE OFFLINE AND WARP VIABILITY COMPROMISED. NEED IMMEDIATE EXTRACTION.

Shit, she really pulled through for us... Rawley thought about it and spoke. "Even if we have somewhere to beam her to, that warbird just raised shields and armed its disruptors. We'll have to cut through those shields if we're to save her. Razor, how do we do this?"

Little did they know that there were more Wolves on the way, not to mention the Freedom Sentinel...

OOC: Suggested posting order! 1) @Nolan 2) @SummerDawn & @Havenborn first, and in these two posts, we need to illustrate a 5 minute engagement with the Romulan ship. NPC the warbird in the battle in your posts, and have fun! Make the most of this and don't make it too easy. This is a Tal Shiar ship and ought to have some aces up its sleeve, be it via jamming or whatever you guys come up with. Next, after these two posts, the Oneida arrives together with the rest of the Lone Wolves. I suggest the next sequence of posts come from 3) @Nero , identifying himself to the Lone Wolves as the new group drop out of warp and introducing them somehow? 4) @Hope , illustrating the Oneida's actions forllowed by 5) @P.C. Haring 6) @Lathaniel and 7) @Eden ! Same deal here, continue the battle and NPC the warbird's actions and opposition. Do not wait for me to write what it does. Make the most of the battle, and make it hard. Needless to day, y'all need to figure out how to save the defector too, if that is an option. Your call if efforts are made to save her! Looking forward to your posts!

Re: CH07: S [D03|1745] Hidden Raptor

Reply #16 – July 29, 2021, 07:01:53 AM

[ Ens. K'Ren | Cockpit | AC-307 Mark-II Valkyrie, Gryphon-class "Hellcat" ]
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"Weird riding backseat again but I'll manage Salvo," K'Ren remarked as she finished configuring her screens. Without having to focus on flying, many of the navigation displays she'd have called up she pushed off to one side, focusing instead on the quasi holographic view of the 360 degree space around the craft. Between the console in from of her and the augmented reality of the helmet, she just had to keep her head on a swivel and her mind on the situation, and with a little luck she'd make this mission without incident. She also knew she had to remain in the present, not let the fog of the madness take hold, a fit in a bad moment could cost her the life of not only herself, but Salvo, the Wolves, Theurgy, and countless others she couldn't fathom. It seemed the fate of the galaxy rode on her shoulders and her sanity, the blood on her paws would be unbalanceable if she failed. "You'll be the first to know, trust me, you'll be the first to know."

---

Neko nodded, "Running Scans Salvo. Nothing we can't see, a few items tagged on the sensors, feeding to your display." She softly purred through the work, glad for the distraction, and in the relative peace before the storm, she could focus on her sensors, looking around, keeping their tail, and their nose clear until the combat began. "I have power controls on automatic, override close at hand." She grinned, "Forgot how much the back seat micromanages the fighter." Micromanage, and for now as they moved into position, wait for the fight to start. Not that she jad long as they were quickly in the target area, and once the warbird began to decloak, it would all change, most likely for the worse. And most warbirds carried the Stalker fighters, which in good hands were a match for the Wolves. She wondered how many would fall, before pushing the thought away from mind. She needed to focus on the now.

Re: CH07: S [D03|1745] Hidden Raptor

Reply #17 – August 02, 2021, 08:54:42 AM

[ Lt Cmdr Thomas 'Razor' Ravon | Mk III Valkyrie Cockpit ] Attn: @Auctor Lucan @Havenborn @SummerDawn @Nero @P.C. Haring @Lathaniel @Eden

The Klingon message didn't bode well, in fact it pretty much torpedoed their chances of getting out of this endeavor alive. Thomas didn't answer to the comms as they had gone into warp. He used the time to focus and to think of what he left behind. The love of his life and his probable only chance to something that resembled a family. It didn't take that long for them to drop out warp. There was no sign of the Romulan ship, neither on visual nor on the sensors.

Ravon was about to answer Rawley's question if they overshot their target before the Romulan ship began to decloak while the explosions made it apparent that their defector had kept her part of the deal. The chirp and message that came on their screens said enough and Thomas exhaled slowly before he handed out his orders.

"Neko, get a message to our friend inside the ship that she should find a shuttle to commandeer."

In the meantime he throttled up his fighter and began to race towards the Romulan ship.

"Rawley, on my tail. We're going to say hello to that bird and try and take out whatever we can to ensure our on board friend has a chance to escape."

Whilst still closing the distance, the Romulan ship began to deploy their own fighter contingency. A group of six Stalker fighters poured out of the ship and converged onto the leading Wolves. Thomas narrowed his eyes, not underestimating the fighters as the Romulan ship began to open fire on them. Evasive flying had to be incorporated.

"Salvo! Get these stalkers of our tail!"

Re: CH07: S [D03|1745] Hidden Raptor

Reply #18 – August 03, 2021, 01:34:49 AM

[ Ens. K'Ren | Cockpit | AC-307 Mark-II Valkyrie, Gryphon-class "Hellcat" ]
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"Roger," K'Ren remarked into comms. She'd been monitoring the frequencies so when the text came in, she was already readying a reply, and very quickly retransmitted the reply towards the vessel, hoping their contact aboard got the message and got aboard a shuttle. She then turned her attention to the tactical board as the Wolves accelerated to do battle with the now crippled, but hardly toothless warbird. And her guess about the stalker fighters had been correct as almost as she began to run targeting scans on the mighty warbird, a squadron of stalker fighters launched from the vessels main flight deck.

"Looks like this just got exciting Salvo," she remarked through the fighter's internal comms. "I'll paint them, you nail them. Stalk and Pounce." Even as she said it she knew the odds were against them, and for the briefest second she worried she might die, but she quickly pushed the thought aside, if it was her day, it was her day, and she'd be with Deacon in the afterlife, that much she knew. But she would be damned if she was going to roll over and let death have her without a fight.

As they began to maneuver, Razor calling out several bandits, K'Ren fed Salvo targeting data, trying to be the eyes and ears, and keep situational awareness for the squadron. She was the backseater of the only two seat bird in the flight so she was the eyes and ears of the squadron at this moment. She had an open comms to the other fighters, and a secured datalink letting her pass the targeting and threat data on to the other fighters. "Two bandits vectoring in on Razor. Two more on Ghost, and two vectoring onto our six. Looks like a proper furball," she remarked, doing her best to keep her eyes focused on her screen as Salvo began manouvering with the others to fend off the fighters. six on three wasn't a fair fight, but the Wolves were used to being outnumbered.

She noticed as Ghost maneuvered, one of the pair was maneuvering into a position for a clean shot. "Salvo, Target Charlie 2." she called out. "Ghost, Second bandit, Break right."

Re: CH07: S [D03|1745] Hidden Raptor

Reply #19 – August 17, 2021, 11:36:11 AM

[ LT Daniel Havenborn, Callsign: Salvo & ENS K’Ren, Callsign: Neko | Cockpit | AC-307 Mark-II Valkyrie, Gryphon-class “Hellcat” ] ] Attn: @Nolan, @SummerDawn, @Auctor Lucan

As the items that she tagged appeared on his display he made note of them. They were nearing the location of the warbird and he wanted to make sure that their attack vectors were more or less clear. Although knowing the locations of some of the larger items, such as debris or asteroid remnants could be useful when the dogfighting began against the warbird’s fighter complement. Hearing her confirm that she was all set in the backseat brought some comfort to Daniel, it meant that she was focused on the job at hand and not focused on the loss of her mate, at least for now. He'd definitely need to keep an eye on her.

As they neared the supposed location of the warbird there wasn’t any sign of it, then suddenly a series of explosions light up the emptiness of the area and the decloaking warbird appeared. Daniel watched as a moment later six Stalker-class fighters were launched from the warbird and felt a smile form and an adrenaline rush. He enjoyed this feeling and his hands reacted across the control panels automatically. Hearing Ravon over the communications channel he acknowledged him. “Aye sir, targeting Stalkers.” He said as he maneuvered his fighter in formation with the others as he watched the Stalkers attempt to break their formation, he returned fire while performing evasive maneuvers.

Daniel watched as a moment later Neko painted one of the Stalkers the computer had named as Charlie-2. He maneuvered into position and a moment later his targeting computer locked and the the locked tone sounded letting him he had a good target lock. “Target locked, torpedo away.” He said as he pressed the trigger stud and watched as one of the six quantum torpedoes he carried launched towards the Stalker, he also fired several pulses of phaser fire, watching as it hit against the Stalker’s shields and a moment later the torpedo found its target and struck true destroying it. “Target destroyed, one down five to go.” He said over the fighter communications channel.

Re: CH07: S [D03|1745] Hidden Raptor

Reply #20 – August 21, 2021, 07:28:28 PM

[

Lt. JG Logan Hale, callsign "Wraith"| AC-477 MK I Valravn | Wolf-02 | Near Qo'noS] Attn: @Auctor Lucan @Havenborn @Nolan @Stegro88 @SummerDawn @P.C. Haring @Eden @Lathaniel @Hope
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Lead them into battle...
Logan swallowed hard when he heard the words. Yes, he would now lead the new ones directly into battle. However, they were not so new anymore. After all, he had already joined them in taking care of four Klingon Bird of Prey. Logan knew they were capable. Still, now he was in command of them and that was unexpected. Briefly, he acknowledged the order and then gathered "his" people to follow the others. One by one in short intervals the pups left the hangar of the Theurgy and caught up with him. He peered through the transparent aluminum of his cockpit canopy and surveyed the motley crew.

"Take a breath, Wraith." it was Alith, speaking to him in her usual Vulcan manner. "You can do this."
"If you say so, Hunter." Logan sounded anything but convinced, imagining all the things that could happen. Every detail that could go wrong would go wrong; he was sure. His thoughts turned to Alessia. She had been a damn good pilot. They both flew at the same level knowing what the other would do even before the other knew it himself. In flight and on the ground, there was no better wingman for Logan and yet she had died under his command. Gone forever and Logan blamed himself for it. Now this change, being directly responsible for more lives than just his own and the one in his back seat was a special challenge. He imagined the death of everyone who accompanied him on this mission.

Logan imagined a hand rest on his shoulder. He knew there wasn't enough room for such thing inside the cockpit, so Alith must had to contort herself quite a bit to make it happen, but the pilot appreciated the gesture. Even if it was just his imagination. He thought of Alith, that her ass was on his flyingskills, too. Logan tore away from his dark thoughts. He released the controls and held his hands in front of him. He spread his gloved fingers and clenched his hands into fists several times. Logan imagined his knuckles standing out white.

"Just be a good pilot, don't ask anything of your people that they wouldn't do themselves without hesitation and they will follow."
He squeezed her hand and thanked her for the warm words. "You actually seem to believe in me, don't you Hunter?"
"Don't be ridiculous, Lieutenant. It's only logical that I encourage you. Otherwise, I'd have to report you, and the Theurgy can't afford to be without a reasonably competent pilot momentarily."
Her imaginary grip slackened and some relief spread through him. Logan showed a smile on his features. He took a deep breath, as he had been advised to do by Alith. He managed to focus and concentrate on what was in front of him. Alith was right. If he sets a good example, others will follow him.

["Wolf-02, this is Gemini. I'm on approach to form up, eta 45 seconds. Do you by chance have a flight designation for us?"]

Logan briefly consulted with Alith, then quickly agreed with her on a response. "Hey, Gemini, fancy vehicle. As for your designation, are you okay with Wolf-10? Archon, Wolf-11, Chaos, Wolf-12."
Logan gave the newcomers a moment to feed their designation into the computers, then began explaining in short bursts what they were about to do. "We're going to catch up to our people at warp speed. When we get there, we'll get right down to business. Split up and find your targets, which our RIOs will give you. Focus on flying and fighting, let the RIOs survey the battlefield. Listen, I know you can do this, but these aren't brutal Klingons, they're shifty Romulans. Watch out for each other and we'll get through this in one piece."

A quick glance at his scanner showed him that the Oneida was changing course and joining them as well. "And as before, the same applies here: Keep enemy fighters away from the Oneida, understand?" While the answers were coming in, Alith had already contacted the Iroquois-class ship and coordinated the intercept course with them. It was time for them to get going. Logan grabbed the thrust control and pushed it.

A few minutes later
The warp jump did not last long. The elongated stars came to a stop and gave the view ahead again. A familiar image appeared before him, and the scanner quickly showed who was friend and who was foe. Logan dove right into the action and attacked the first target Hunter gave him. On his displays, he could see the others also scattering and throwing themselves into the action. The Romulan stalker came into his field of fire and Logan reacted immediately. The red-orange beams of phaser energy cut through the black lit by pulse fire. One of his attacks hit, sending the enemy fighter reeling, and it took evasive action in response. Those things were agile, Logan had to hand it to the Romulans, but so was his Valravn as Logan yanked on the controls to lay down a quick change of direction. He opened the comm to his comrades, who were also already in the midst of the fighting. "Hunter, coordinate with Hellcat and Gemini, get an overview. Good hunting, Wolves!"

He then opened the channel to Razor, Salvo, and Ghost, "This is Wolf-02, I've invited some new friends to the party. I hope you don't mind. They’re all hungry."
Only seconds after this radio message, the Oneida dropped out of warp.
"Incredibly hungry."

Re: CH07: S [D03|1745] Hidden Raptor

Reply #21 – August 22, 2021, 11:54:46 AM

Lt Sabrina Lail | Main Bridge | Deck 1 | USS Oneida | Near Qo'noS ] Attn: @Auctor Lucan @Nero @Havenborn @Nolan @P.C. Haring @Stegro88 @SummerDawn @Eden @Lathaniel
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As Sabrina maneuvered the Oneida which was ready for warp, Alith transmitted the interception coordinates which were immediately routed to Lail’s station. The brunette keyed in the coordinates into the Oneida’s navigational computer and set the warp factor to seven. While not as fast as the warp fighters, the short jump based on the coordinates would negate any disadvantages of not pushing the battle-damaged warp engines and ensure Sabrina had the ability to take the ship to warp eight if needed.

Looking at the ultra-wide viewscreen, she could see as the Lone Wolves that had launched from the Theurgy jumped to warp nearly simultaneously. “Engage,” commanded Captain Jackson as he ordered the Oneida to warp.

“Engaging warp engines,” Lail announced as she keyed the final command into the CONN. Following the warp fighters, the Oneida flew above and clear of the Theurgy as its three working nacelles illuminated a hotter turquoise from the energizing warp coils and the ship jumped to superluminal speeds.

A FEW MINUTES LATER

“Captain,” Sabrina said as she turned slightly. “We’re approaching the designated coordinates.”

“Take us out of warp,” Captain Jackson ordered.

With several keypresses entered into the CONN by Sabrina, the Oneida dropped out of warp into the midst of a battlefield. “The Lone Wolves have already engaged the Romulan Stalkers,” Lieutenant Commander Ikthan noted.

“Leave the Stalkers to the Wolves. Our target is the Romulan warbird. Lieutenant Lail, coordinate our attack pattern with the squadron leaders; don’t get us caught in the crossfire,” Captain Jackson stated. “Commander Ikthan, target weapons systems and shields.”

The positioning of all the ships reflected in Sabrina’s eyes as she tried to determine a maneuver for Lieutenant Commander Ikthan that would not put the Oneida in the crossfire of fighters. She had finally decided. “Attack pattern, Lambda sequence,” she informed Ikthan who stood ready to fire the Oneida’s weapons.

Distance between the Iroquois-class and the D’viret-class closed as the Oneida fired its yellow-orange phasers from its forward arrays followed by a series of six photon torpedos as the ship came about, firing another volley of torpedos from the aft launchers. Four green disruptor pulses fired from the warbird hitting the Oneida’s aft shields.

The inertia dampers couldn’t compensate for the sudden impact which threw everyone off balance. “Aft shields down to eighty-five percent,” informed Ikthan. “Minimal damage to the warbird.”

“What the hell did the Tal Shiar do to that ship?” Lail asked rhetorically. “Switching to evasive pattern Epsilon five.”

Re: CH07: S [D03|1745] Hidden Raptor

Reply #22 – August 23, 2021, 02:12:22 AM

[ Major Ael Situka | Tal Shiar D'viret-class Incursion Cruiser | IRC Aliqui ]
[Show/Hide]

Having set a brisk pace down the corridor, Major Ael Situka kept her disruptor next to her thigh - hidden by the folds of her uniform - since she had no interest in announcing her defection to anyone catching a glimpse of her whilst she made her way off the Tal Shiar ship.

The incursion cruiser shook from the assailment it got from the Theurgy warp fighters, and she had to catch her balance. The klaxons seemed louder to her, knowing she was responsible for the loss of the crew she'd served with up until that hour. She also knew it was only a matter of time before they could narrow down the sabotage of the cloaking device software to her duty station. In fact, they'd already run that diagnostic, but she'd broken the neck of the sub-lieutenant that ran it the first time, and she'd deleted the logs before set off towards the aft of the cruiser. Ael knew, keenly so, that the distance to the shuttle bay still mattered little, because the chances of her escape were still equidistant to the nigh moment where they would find the body.

At the next intersection, she pushed herself up against the wall, knowing where the internal sensors nodes were at. She holstered her weapon and pulled out a small data tablet, which she used to access the shipboard systems. With a couple of taps, she disabled any surveillance left between herself and the shuttle bay. She knew that the small crafts awaiting her there were far slower than the Stalker-class fighters that had been launched against the Theurgy fighters, but it was better than remaining at the mercy of the crew she'd betrayed.

Not for the first time, she wondered if she would be remembered as a traitor of her people, or a hero who stood up against a common enemy. A darkness that might either unite the Galaxy against it or devour it. She closed her eyes, took a breath, and decided it was time.

Resolutely, she activated the weak subspace transponder in the data tablet. She kept her voice low, even as the battle hid her words from any passing crew. "This is Major Ael Situka to any present Federation or Klingon ship," she said on the frequency she'd used at the duty station she'd abandoned, hoping that the transponder was weak enough to remain undetected. "I am heading to the shuttle bay... though I prefer if you manage to lock on to this signal and transport me off the ship. This, as soon as you manage to make a breach in the shield envelope."

A text above the intersection fell into her view, the letters in Rihannsu. She took a breath, and regretted the idea immediately, even though she knew she had to do it. "I will make a small detour to lend you a hand. Situka, out."

With the faces of the crew she served with at the forefront of her mind, knowing them ignorant lackeys of the real enemy, she walked down the corridor with the text ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROLS.

OOC: Looking forward to the upcoming posts depicting the battle! Situka's hail could possibly reach the Oneida, of course. I will be posting with Rawley and Situka at the end of the earlier suggested posting order. Have fun!

Re: CH07: S [D03|1745] Hidden Raptor

Reply #23 – August 24, 2021, 01:27:11 AM

[Lt. Reggie Suder, Callsign: Gemini | AC-477 MK I Valravn | Wolf-10 | Near Qo’nos] attn: @Stegro88 @Hope @Eden @Lathaniel @Havenborn @Nolan @Auctor Lucan @SummerDawn @Nero

[Hey, Gemini, fancy vehicle. As for your designation, are you okay with Wolf-10? Archon, Wolf-11, Chaos, Wolf-12.]

Reggie smiled at the sound of Wrath’s voice over the comm. Damn how she had missed this and damn how good it felt to be back in the seat. She keyed ‘Wolf-10’ into her IFF designator and refocused her attention on her controls.

“Wolf-10 acknowledged. Thank you Wolf-02. Glad you appreciate the bird. She’s a beauty ain’t she,” Reggie said with a tease in her voice knowing full well it had been Wraith who had introduced her to the Valravn. She formed up on Wraith’s wing and followed him into warp.

You good back there? Yes. You up front? Yes. Begin long range scans and prepare to mark targets as they come into range. Already on it. How is the ship handling? As well as can be expected given we haven't flown this thing in test flights much less combat. You’ll do just fine. Just relax and remember no one is expecting you to save the world today. Funny, though, that is our mission after all.

The stream of thought between Reggie and Kalil ebbed and flowed like the tide on the beach. While not unified in the way a borg collective might be. ( Why are you thinking about the Borg? Old memories. I’ve missed this. I have too), the two betazoids communicated in a stream of thought conversation where neither pilot nor RIO stood out individually from one another. Their battle sense, they called it. Thinking and communicating as one… or at least two parts to the same whole, they could act and react faster than most. It had saved their lives more than once during the War and they knew it would save their lives yet again.

Minutes later they dropped out of warp.

[This is Wolf-02, I've invited some new friends to the party. I hope you don't mind. They're all hungry. Incredibly hungry.]

They did not need sensors to tell them what their eyes, at least her cybernetic eyes, could see. The battle had already been met. The Oneida had just entered the arena and was already turning towards the Romulan Warbird which itself had already launched a half dozen fighters to engage the veteran Wolves, callsigns Razor, Ghost, and Salvo. Salvo responded in kind and sent a Stalker to it’s fiery demise.

[Target destroyed, one down five to go.]

The Warbird and Oneida exchanged greetings by way of photon and plasma torpedo volleys.

Oneida took the worst of that exchange. Her shields are holding but they barely scratched the Warbird’s defenses. We should rally and take a run at the target.

Before they could react, two of the remaining five stalkers peeled off from their allies and turned to bear down on the the four of them led by Wraith. The lead stalker fired a plasma torpedo at the formation.

Reggie reacted before the call came in to break, and she peeled Wolf-10 off the formation. But she had over compensated. What was supposed to have been a fifty degree pitch and roll away turned into a nearly 90 degree roll.

Easy there. Controls are sensitive. Still locking in. I understand. Just don’t overdo it.

She needed to remember just how touchy the Valravn’s systems were. She would get it locked in eventually, she knew.. She just needed time. Behind her, Kalil was hard at work coordinating and calling targets with the other three RIOs on the field.

Tally on bogey fifteen degrees off starboard. Come about and engage. Coming about and accelerating. Call it in to the squadron.

“Wolf-10 engaging target at bearing 183 mark 044.”

Reggie settled them into attack position. The Romulan was good as he maneuvered trying to lose her, but he had no idea who he was trying to evade.

Target lock established. Firing.

The orange red beam lanced from the starboard emitter a single column of destructive energy. The Romulan evaded the weapons fire with ease, but as Reggie maneuvered to match, the phaser beam pivoted away, still firing at the target coordinates before cutting out.

“Fuck!”

She had forgotten the Valravn had beam phasers as opposed to pulse phasers. Pulse weapons dealt less damage per blast but their rapid fire sequence allowed the computer to re-target every burst. Beam weapons had a slower firing sequence but tended to pack a harder punch once they connected.

Re-target. Free float the lock so it stays on the target, not the coordinates.

She leveled off again, and another volley of phaser fire lanced forward. This time the Romulan evaded too late and she hit home, penetrating his shields and scoring a hit. It wasn’t enough to destroy the Stalker, but her sensors registered a severe drop in the target’s impulse output.

She closed in, intent on delivering a pair of micro torpedo up it’s ass and finishing it off, but as she did, the readings on her console went haywire.

Without warning, the sensors on her ship went dead, leaving her all but blinded. Were it not for her optical implants she would have lost her visual on the target. Even so, with sensors down, she lost weapons lock.

Fifteen seconds later, her systems were back online, but the Stalker was no where to be found.

Subspace wave defense. Something that the warbird did. Sensors back online. Notify the squadron of the countermeasure.

"Wolf-10 to the Wolfpack," Kalil started. Reggie winced at the reference to the squadron as the "Wolfpack". It made sense, but as a newcomer to the unit she wasn't sure how appropriate it was. "Be advised the Romulan ship is equipped with sensor jamming tech. If you're caught in an unexpected subspace wave, expect to lose your systems for 15 seconds."

Having been a pilot for longer than most of the Wolves were in Starfleet to begin with she hated the idea that she was now considered a ‘pup’ within the squadron. But as she turned back to find a new target, she felt as though the Romulan had schooled her quite well.

You’re limping on an damaged impulse engine. Round two is just around the corner.

OOC - After consultation with @Auctor Lucan , the sensor dampening attack is a countermeasure of the Tal Shiar warbird. It is loosely based on the sensor jammer weapon of the griffon class Romulan vessel in Star Trek: Armada and is designed to blind sensors of enemy ships in range for about 15 seconds.. Reference link here: Griffon Class from Star Trek: Armada

Re: CH07: S [D03|1745] Hidden Raptor

Reply #24 – September 06, 2021, 08:12:28 PM

[Lt JG Sorek Morgan, Callsign “Chaos” Wolf-12 AC-409 Mk III Valkyrie | Near Qo'nos] Attn: @Auctor Lucan @Nolan @Stegro88 @Nero @P.C. Haring @Havenborn @SummerDawn @Eden

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Sorek was thrilled. The launch of this motley pack was a bit more bumpy than he had hoped since he was not yet used to the fighters response to his inputs, but he quickly figured out how to handle the Valkyrie he had been entrusted with. Although his ability to adapt quickly played into his cards, he was relieved that the battle they had to fight was not waiting right outside the Fighter Bay. Being thrown right into it would probably have meant trouble.

Having received his designation, he quickly encoded the IFF algorithm.

"Wolf-02, this is Chaos. Designator Wolf-12 confirmed."

A few minutes later.

"Holy crap!" Sorek swore and bit his lower lip, a bad habit he never really understood. Before them, the battle was already raging and Sorek was able to identify not only the Romulan Warbird but a handful of Stalker fighters as well. Those little bastards were volatile foes.

With everybody breaking formation almost simultaneously, Sorek sped up Wolf-12 and perfomed a diagonal starboard dive in order to evade the first incoming torpedo. A quick glance on his screen confirmed his suspicion; the Stalkers were onto them, utilizing the disadvantageuos position of the new arrivals to the battlefield. "Not gonna happen, folks!" He growled with determination, finally letting his lip slip out of the grasp of his teeth.

Sorek looked around and within seconds had visuals on a target. One of the Stalkers was passing the pack, already starting to maneuvre into an upward arch which would allow it to come down onto Archon eventually. At least that was what Sorek predicted.

With a fierce maneuvre, Sorek managed to steer Wolf-12 behind the enemy fighter. Locking on to the Stalker, he aimed a bit low to make sure the pilot understood that diving and attacking the Starfleet fighters below him would be a bad idea. Sorek sent a salve of pulsed phaser beams out and prepared the micro torpedos for launch while trying to keep up with the now rapidly accelerating enemy.

"This is Chaos, got a lock on one of the..." Sorek's attempt of providing an update to the pack was abruptly cancelled as he observed the target vessel launching something from it's aft. He needed two seconds to realize what happened and another to send Wolf-12 into a chillingly steep climb. Below, the pod that the Stalker had dropped launched a cloud of smaller spheres, and a couple of them were triggered by the wake of his Valkyrie. It caused a cascade of explosions, spreading out below him. Mines!

His fighter evaded certain destruction by mere meters. Had he needed only a fraction of a second longer, he would have been dead. His heart pounded in his chest and he had to force himself to get his head back into the game. While analyzing the enemy's trajectory and marking the location of the mines for the others, he opened the channel to the pack again.

"This is Chaos. Be advised, those fuckers are playing with mine pods." Ending his calculations, Sorek forced Wolf-12's nose down in order to get back behind his Tango.

"Let's play, my friends." He said to himself with gritted teeth and finally readied the micro torpedos.