TheMakerOfStarsTheDestroyerOfWorlds-Volume 1

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds The Maker of Stars, the Destroyer of Worlds
is a complete novel but it still has problems with the actual writing because it is unedited/proof read. The Novel is a side novel to the Making of Nibs. It is set in 2072 four years after the start of the Making of Nibs. Please read and I hope enjoy as it is the first of a lot of novels based on the same planet. Many thanks must be given to Palladium Books for their superb table roleplaying source books on Rifts Earth and the Megaverse which I have used as a base for a lot of the concepts. A very basic glossary so readers have an idea of mainly the figures I am using. Billion 1,000,000,000,000 (this is the English billion not the American billion) Please when you have finished please leave comments and I hope you enjoy my Novels.
The Maker of Stars, the Destroyer of Worlds.
Chapter 1
Captain Danny Curtdoza, ex member of Sec Com Intelligence department, brought the CF07G Hornet Attack Fighter into a perfect landing on the flight deck of CS002 Intreped. Alice his older sister and Chief Engineer on board followed him down and landed just behind him. She had also been a member of Sec Com this time in the Technology Department and through their younger brother, now, free people, free from Security Commands control. The Flight Deck crew ran to allow the two people out of the Hornets. He popped the canopy and hit the release button on the buckle releasing all the straps holding him into the seat. These retracted back into the seat back. He removed his helmet as the first tech reached the cockpit and took it from him. He stood up and saw Alice also standing and about to step onto the stairs going down. The Intrepeds first officer stood at the bottom of the stairs waiting to greet him, Commander Heinrich Danes, a street ghost and attendee at the Academy of the Street from about 25 years ago. He stepped onto the stairs and looked around the Flight Deck; a few shuttles flew in and out of the main opening at the front of the Flight Deck carrying supplies for the vessel. First Officer, permission to come aboard? he asked as he walked down the stairs and waited on the bottom step. Permission granted Captain Curtdoza, welcome aboard. Thank you, he said and stepped onto the deck of this the second FTL Drive equipped vessel of the Conspiracy Fleet. The crew of this vessel some of the best minds in the Conspiracy and they all had volunteered to serve under him and his sister; once upon a time the sworn enemy of the Conspiracy and the Street. Alice ducked under the nose of his Hornet and said, Good day, Commander Danes. Good day to you Chief Engineer Curtdoza, he replied. How long before we can leave? Danny asked, and please it is Danny unless needed. Thank you Danny, I am Heinrich. He turned and led the pair across the flight deck to a door onto a corridor running down the side of the flight deck. How long before we can leave Explorer Base? he inquired. In a couple of hours Danny, they are still loading on supplies into Cargo bays 8 through 10. The crews estimate it will be a couple more hours before they are ready. Danny watched the Heinrich and saw someone not too happy at being here. He did wonder why as they
Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds
had spoken numerous times concerning the crew make-up and the fact they would be picking up a further 250 combat troops from the Star Elf Federation. They were also picking up 50 technical and science people at the same time. Heinrich stood before one of the lifts and the door opened. He led the pair into the lift and said, Deck One please Marcha. The lift began to move and seven seconds later the doors opened and showed a corridor. The group stepped out and Heinrich moved towards the front of the Top Wing Tip Pod. Your cabin Danny and yours Alice, he said and indicated the two doors. Thank you Heinrich. I want a briefing of all department heads in an hour and an update on the loading of cargo. Heinrich nodded that he had heard Dannys instructions and said, Ok, I will get right on it. Good. He turned and moved towards the door in as Heinrich headed off back towards the lift already taking his PDU out of his pouch. He noticed Alice watched him go. What do you think then bro? she asked. Do not know sis, he was nervous when we came up here. I want to know why, he knew we were Security Command and had the option of leaving for the next CS vessel to be ready. Take a look in the minute, she said and a scuff sounded from behind them in the Observation Area caused the pair to turn around. His cyber-eyes noticed the small heat blobs to the left hand side of the area. He stepped into the area and said, Boo, to the seven children hidden in a den like area. Some of them jumped as he said it. He smiled his hello and they all came out and looked at him and Alice. YG Edward said, Are you the Captain and Chief Engineer? We are and you must by the Gangrel Units YGs, said Alice and she picked one of the youngest up and placed her on her hip. She turned and walked to where some comfortable seats sat. She sat down as the rest of the YGs followed Danny as he joined Alice on the sofas. All the YGs moved to sit on the ground and YG Paula asked, Why are you here, you not like other people? Danny looked at YG Paula and replied, We are here thanks to our younger brother Alex Curtdoza, a scientist and member of the ship security force on the CS001 Warhound. He showed us a way out of being members of Security Command; we took it after completing a long mission to expose a mole. He was working out of the prison population at a prison in Syamtranna. Alex is also a Gangrel and member of the Rams GYPS unit. Alex sound like good person, YG Paula said as one of the other Gangrels walked into the Observation Area.
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Sorry for that, I told them not to come in here until we had launched, Doris M said. Alice put YG Paula down and stood up. She said, Not to worry it was nice to meet the YGs and tell them how come me and Danny are here now. Do not worry, my younger brother is a Gangrel and serves on the CS001, said Danny. The Warhound, he must be an elite Gangrel to serve on the Warhound. I am Gangrel Unit Commander Doris Metz. He was asked and volunteered from what I was told during mine and Alices debriefings, said Danny and he stood up. How many YGs on board and what are the ages? he asked. 25 YGs and they vary from 4 which is how old YG Paula is, to YG Quintina who is just this side of 13, we have planned a bday party for a few weeks time, replied Doris M. Danny looked at them and he knew the perfect place and role on the vessel. After the briefing I have with the command crew I want to have a chat with all the YGs on board in the main conference room. They will be there, replied Doris M. The pair walked to the entrance and as they entered their separate cabins they both smiled at the YGs as they headed down the corridor. Danny walked into his cabin and looked around at the living area. Located on the corridor wall sat small kitchenette area and close to the opposite wall sat a work zone with a desk a couple of chairs and a LPD, keyboard and mozilla. He walked through one of the two doors on the wall furthest from the cabin front and found a small washroom with a second door. He opened that and looked in on his bedroom. He liked what he saw, it was spacious and nicely laid out. He walked back and poured himself a drink of Bar-kam and headed for the work area. He quickly brought up the ships roster and he scrolled to the section on the Gangrels and Young Gangrels on board. He found that they had been on board the longest, almost six months. The buzzer went off at the door and he called, It is open Alice. Alice walked in and said, I am impressed by the cabin. Yes same here, he said. Alice walked towards him and sat on the edge of the desk. What you reading? The ships roster especially the Gangrel Unit on board; they have been on the longest just under six months, he said. Including the YGs? inquired Alice. Yes including the YGs. Alice looked out of the window and asked, What are your plans for them? Making them a nuisance squad and also a moral unit, he said. Whilst we were shadowing the command crew on Triton Base I took a look through the conspiracy stores and found a small laser pistol designed by Anti-Char for the YGs to use. The reports from the YGs on the Warhound are that it is really good and even for its small size it packs a nasty punch. I had 50 shipped up and from the armoury it should be stored
in Cargo Bay 8 along with a few other items for them. Alice looked very impressed by what he had done. You still think of the children first, just like the old days. He looked up and he looked embarrassed by that comment. Yes just like Alex and his friends. You know I killed the Security Command Agent who killed Old Mucker. Alice looked at him in a way that said, What are you talking about?. Security Command Agent Eart, Security Department broke Old Muckers neck and he had done nothing to him or to stop the investigation we were on. A couple of days later we were making a drug deal when ET Security busted down the door. The dealer was wanted for a murder on a Gratish Flight Production Centre, I tipped them off and as we were making our escape he ran up the alleyway as two ET Security Officers started to shoot at him. I put an APHV bullet between his 2nd and 3rd vertebrae killing him instantly. I was right by a door to a next door apartment block. I had also prepped that location too. Alice smiled as he told the story. Good, I always used to put a couple of dcks in his cap whenever I went past and I scared away a couple of local heavies. Danny laughed and said, I did the same and once in a while I would leave a 20dck note in his pocket. He always went and had a good meal with those and he also bought a few bags of sweets for the street kids. He looked back at the screen and said, Back to this. He continued reading the file. Alice joined him and at the end she said, Ok not very much experience, but with the right training a good ship board policing unit I think. Danny thought about Alices suggestion and she was right it would. The ship did have over 1800 men and women, partners of all types; friction would be caused at points, things would disappear. The crew had been screened, but anything could happen. Yes you are right, similar to the GYPS? he inquired. Yes, but it says they are also members of the ship board security force and also ground forces. Perfect, he said. What is your Engineering Team like? Alice sat and thought about the Engineering Team. They all look very capable, we are picking up three Hyperdrive Engineers and a further five Engineers when we get to Trashan. My first officer is some one I know I am going to be able to work with. He and I are from similar moulds, very hands on and not scared to push the boundaries a bit. His file says he worked very closely with Ren and Anti-Char in the design and construction of the Warhound and the Warhound class vessels. From what Jane told me he was more than happy to have me as chief when he heard my background. I still have yet to meet him and I know I have a meeting of all the Engineering crew after your briefing. He nodded his understanding and said, When we have a confirmed launch time, I will go and check the cargo bay to make sure the stuff is on board. He sent by their internal communications, We have a pair of ears listening in to us; air vent on the floor sis. Inventive, she sent back.
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And it shows they know the ship, he said out loud. ***** He and Alice walked into the Conference Room on Deck One and found all the heads and their first officers present. He headed for the map table in the front and sat on the edge. He looked across all the people present and saw everyone was pleased to be leaving soon. Some he noticed looked happy, but the other signals he had been trained to pick up on said otherwise. Time to calm their fears, he thought and said, Thank you all for coming, I will not keep you long as I know you all have jobs that need doing. This is more an introduction to you all more than anything. I know you all know mine and Alices origins and where we came from before quitting and joining the Conspiracy and being honest, which is they way of the street, I do not know this vessel. I will be correcting that in the coming days, but for the foreseeable future I will be relying on you all to fill in the gaps in my knowledge. It was my younger brother who showed us the other path which has led Jane C and the Council to put me as Captain and Alice as Chief Engineer. My door is never shut so if you have problems please come and talk to me about them. He looked over the group and saw a couple of the people who he thought had problems looked a lot more relaxed now. Good, he thought. Thank you gentlemen, ladies, now get this vessel ready to leave. The room broke up and Heinrich headed towards him. Danny, you said you wanted an update on the loading of the Cargo Bays, the loadmaster estimates it will be no longer than an hour more. Okay, thanks Heinrich, he said. He watched as Alice walked out chatting to her first officer. As the last of the people left YG Matadius led the 25 YGs into the conference room where they all sat on the nearest chairs and looked at him. Good, I said I wanted to see you to tell you I am making you an official unit on board the Intreped. You will be called the Nuisance Squad and also the moral of the ship. This ship is our home now and I want you to make it a home, so pictures, art work, things like that I want up on the walls of the corridors, not so they stop us doing our jobs on board. Before that though, when we have jumped to light speed I have a few things I want to give you to help you became the bane of any and all people who board to attack the vessel. The entire group looked at each other and after back to him. Does that include the very young members? I am YG Matadius. Yes, everyone on board has a job to play and I can not think of a better job. The YGs on the Warhound do the exact same job and from the reports they have notched up quite a few wins against the crew in mock boarding actions. They have members from 5 on as well, he said. Thank you Captain, said YG Matadius. We will become exactly what you want. Good, as I will also teach you a few skills like listening into conversations and not being discovered, he said with mirth in his voice. He watched as three of the YGs looked unhappy at being discovered. Do not worry, both me and Alice found it inventive. How many of you know what I did before joining the crew? None of the YGs I met earlier
can answer. All the rest of the YGs shook their heads in reply. Ok, I worked for Security Command in their Intelligence Division, both me and Alice who worked for the Technology Division spent over four years trying to find a leak of information. Listening into conversations and similar are all skills I have and I am willing to teach you all them. May I come and see your area of the vessel please. You may, replied YG Paula. I like you, you nice. He looked at YG Paula and said, Thank you, and so are you and the rest of you. YG Matadius led the group out and down the corridor to a large cabin about 60 metres from the observation deck. He led the group into the vessels YG Centre. Danny looked around the room and saw the pictures; and other things on the walls. One of the pictures caught his eye as it was of the Intreped from Explorer Base. Who drew this picture? he asked and looked closely at it. I did Captain, replied YG Fred. He stepped from the group and Danny estimated his age to be around 8 maybe 9. This is very good. You have a good eye for detail. Thank you, responded YG Fred. He looked around the room and said, I am impressed with the look of your Centre. You all have a very creative streak I think, and I think it will be good to have some of this work up on the walls. One other thing, I know you all work with the self-study system used at the ET Academies and so I have a project for you. They moved to a more comfortable area of the room and they all sat down. Using all the available data, I want you to write about Security Command. I will authorise you accessing the restricted files on Security Command as well as me and Alice. I have an open door to any of the crew and that includes you all. I want to learn what it is that makes YGs the way you are. So we both have projects. I must away as I have a couple of jobs to do before we leave Explorer Base. He stood up and headed out of the YG Centre and across the corridor to the lift. The doors opened and he walked in and said, Cargo Bay 8 please Marcha. With pleasure Captain, replied the husky voice of the secondary computer. He thought, A very nice, sexy voice. Fifteen seconds later the doors opened and a man walked past the doors heading down the pod he thought. Hang on, is the Load Master around? he asked and stepped from the lift. I am Captain, Roger Leims replied and stopped. How can I be of help captain? he inquired. I was down here wondering if a pallet I requested had been loaded and why was you not at the briefing?
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Sorry captain, I wanted this stuff loaded before you came on board so I sent my number one and stayed to lend them a hand. Danny nodded his understanding to what the Load Master had said. The pallet you asked about is in Cargo Bay 8, I took a look at the contents; YG laser pistols and vibro daggers captain? The YGs are now an official unit on board as a ship board security unit, he replied. Roger L looked very impressed by the captains actions. You are not the Captain I expected. I thought having someone like you would mean a lot more authoritarian and not want the YGs on board. Danny laughed at what Roger L said. No, I have to thank my years looking after my younger brother Alex and all his friends for that, both me and Alice are the same. Someone all the street kids liked was killed by a member of a two man team which I was the other member of. Let me just say the killer died before the end of the operation. Roger L looked at him with a face of, I do not want to know more. That is nice to hear. Thanks, he added. Right, Cargo Bay 8. He turned and looked down the corridor. Cargo Bay 8 is down by the AP cannons bay. Behind us. Danny nodded his thanks to Roger L and added, Who do I see about having the extra weapons booked into the Armoury? Me, I work in the Armoury as well. I have the Level 7 Armoury Qualifications. Right I will likely see you in a couple of days then, he said and walked down the corridor towards the nose of the pod. He approached the cargo bay doors and they slid open. He looked at the screen and typed in his authorisation code. The screen changed to show the location of the pallet. He walked to the location and checked the contents against his requests and found everything he had requested was present, plus a few extra boxes. He tore the manifest from its housing and read the contents. The last five boxes had been signed by Nicole. He took out his PDU and rang Nicole. Hi Danny, I take it you found the items I added? she inquired. I have, I was wondering why? Let me just say the YGs will likely need the stuff in the boxes. Danny laughed at Nicoles comments. Well I was planning on issuing the YGs with the equipment when we have jumped I will wait and see what you packed. He turned and started back to the doors and the lift. So what do you think? inquired Nicole. I am impressed this is one hell of a star ship. If Security Command had anything like this then they would use it to likely conquer and not support the galaxy, he replied. The cargo bay doors opened and he turned down the corridor and headed for the lift. We know, that is the reason why their new base orbiting Plutz is being monitored very closely. The
doors to the lift opened and he stepped in and covered the microphone. Command Deck please Marcha. The doors closed and he said, I shall chat to you in the near future Nicole. Yes we will. The line went dead and a few seconds later he walked out of the lift on the Command Deck. Heinrich said, Captain on Deck. All the people stood at attention if they could. At ease people, he said and turned for his cabin. Commander Danes can I see you please. Certainly captain, replied Heinrich and indicated for one to the crew to take his position in the command seat. He watched as the woman moved from the port gunnery console to the command seat. Heinrich walked around the barrier and approached him as he stood looking out at the crew as they prepared to depart Explorer Base. Danny walked in ahead of Heinrich and as he walked to the desk he asked, Heinrich what are you opinions of the crew and I am talking about the stuff not listed in the personnel files. Heinrich took one of the seats in front of the desk and he looked deep in thought. Are you talking about specific people, or generally? General, he replied. Heinrich again thought about the question and replied, General they are all good hard working people who want to be here. A few might have a problem with you being ex-Security Command, but no one has brought it to my attention as yet. Danny nodded and said, I did not see our combat force commander or his first officer at the briefing. I noticed that and have already asked him why he was not there; he said it was due to a problem with the accommodation. I checked with Tishun and she had no knowledge of a problem. Danny nodded his head in understanding and asked, What unit has been assigned to us? Heinrich took out his PDU and found the units listing. The 6th Mechanised Air Assault Merc Regiment, I know they are newly wise, well in the last couple of years new. He typed in the name to the computer and brought up the entire history of the unit from its inception to this contract. Well I can see one problem already; they signed on to support Wacker Inc in 2068. How come, and why do you say that? He looked back at Heinrich and replied, All the five Merc Commands Security Command employed to support Wacker Inc were pretty much destroyed during the fighting. They all dropped at least six ratings after the contract ended and three disbanded due to the destruction the street forces caused them. From what I can see here, they went from an A rated unit to a C+ unit, they lost all of their vehicle and air support and over 3000 men killed or injured. From what I know the contracts signed stated Wacker Inc and Security Command would pay for any and all damaged and destroyed vehicles and also an amount for each dead member. Wacker
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Inc went for Section 12 Protection and Security Command never pays if they hire mercs. Heinrich looked very concerned at this information. This could be a problem then. It might, but I will deal with it when we have departed Explorer Base. ***** Alice walked out of the briefing room following her first officer, James Kaz. He walked to the lift and joined a group of four waiting for the next lift to arrive. The doors opened and the group walked in. A few seconds later the doors opened and the first two walked off. A couple more seconds the next two exited and James K said, Main Engineering thanks Marcha. Seven seconds later the door opened directly onto Main Engineering. Stood on the ground were all the engineering and maintenance crews. She moved to the railing over looking the floor area and said, Thank you all for being here. To start I will say this, I am not even close to being ready to command you, so I will be relaying on you all to know your jobs. I am getting up to speed but I estimate it is going to take a little while as the vessel is very advanced and has a lot of very advanced equipment on board. With that said, unless you are on duty now you are dismissed. The rest of you get the Intreped ready to depart Explorer Base. She turned and headed for the nearest ramp down to the ground floor of main engineering. James K followed her down and she stood on the ground floor beside him. She looked up at the anti-matter reactors and the main engines. She turned to James K and asked, Where is my office? This way Alice, he said and walked between the secondary and main reactor vessel. He stood in the door way and said your office. She looked in and said, The wall is going to have to go. I like to see my engineers working. That might not be possible as I do not know if it is a structural wall or not, replied James K. She moved and looked at the office and the position of the wall. The office is far bigger than it should be. Yes, your and my office stretches across both the Main Engineering Pods. The design of the Main Engineering Pods was that they are mirror images with certain areas open to both pods, The offices, vehicle hanger, flight deck, and the main hanger stretch across both pods. She looked as she understood. Who would know if the walls are structural? Tishun would, replied James K. How much do you know about the computers on board? Not much other than the vessel has four Tishun, Marcha and two others, she replied. Right, I think that should be our next stop then. He turned and walked to the lift that stood on the far side of his office. The doors slid open and allowed the pair in. Main Computer Centre thanks Marcha. The lift moved and a few seconds later it arrived and the doors opened opposite the doors into the main
computer centre. James K walked over the corridor and scanned his ID card through the slot on the door frame. The door opened and he allowed Alice in first. Alice walked in and stopped just inside the room and stared at the glass panel as behind it in a liquid sat a grey mass with a mouth and two eyes. The mass turned slowly and looked right at her. From the speakers came Tishun voice, Good Tea to you Chief Engineer Alice Curtdoza. After a couple of seconds to get over her shock she said, Hello, are you Tishun? I am, she replied. I am one of fifty AI computers the Space Elf Federation loaned to Darra Von; the difference is I do not plan on going home. The crew of the Warhound rescued me and I owe Darra Von a debt that I intend to replay and this is my payment. She looked at Tishun and knew if Security Command had this technology then they would be very much more powerful. I have a question, the walls dividing my office in Main Engineering from each bay, is it a structural wall? No it is not. May I ask as to what you are going to do? Yes remove it and place a complete Engineering work stations for each bay in the hole. I like to be able to see people work and it would allow me that chance to be open with people, she replied. How much memory storage do you have? I have a complete copy of the intelligence database as edited by Yarosh, along with all the books on the Academy Library server; Marcha has 400,000 quad gigs of active storage. The last two both have 300,000 quad gigs of storage. Off-Line storage we have more than 40 times that. Alice nodded her understanding and said to James K, When we make the jump as I have a lot of reading to do can you get rid of the walls and start the tech boys on constructing the two work stations. I will need access to all the systems in each bay as well as the other power systems and engines. I will get on it when we get back. Good, she said.
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Chapter 2
Danny sat in his office on the Command Deck when the buzzer went off. Come in, he called and the door opened and in walked Major Donald Batts. Major please take a seat. You wished to see me Captain, he said and moved to sit down. Yes I did, I was wondering why you did not make the briefing earlier? Major Batts looked him in the eyes and then looked at his facial structure. Who are you? he asked. Who do you think I am Major? Danny asked. From the facial structure and your eyes I would say you are from Security Command, but your skin is not grey and from what I know people do not quit Security Command. Danny looked at him and noticed Major Batts was still trying to work out who he was. Major on behalf of my ex-colleagues I am sorry that Security Command did not up-hold their end of the contract. He watched as the Majors face changed to one of complete surprise. He stopped the Major from saying something by saying, I am from Security Command and when mine and my sisters last mission finished we quit. Dr Nuriegummie and her team of cyber specialists removed the tracker and the self destruct control system. Danny watched as the Majors face changed to one of wonderment. How come the skin though? inquired Major Batts. Synthetic skin made by Wong Fu-Ma and Anti-Char. The communication system buzzed and the voice of Roger L said, The loading of the cargo is now finished and all the cargo doors are sealed Captain. Danny pressed the speak button and said, Thank you Load Master. He looked up at Major Batts and said, My door is always open Major Batts so do not hesitate to come and see me. Major Batts stood up and said, I will Captain. Danny walked around the desk and said, Thank you Major. The pair walked out of the office and Danny said, Make final preparations to depart people. He moved to take his seat which Heinrich vacated and sat on his seat to the right hand side of the command seat. As he took his seat he said, Mr Tivz please take us out thank you. With pleasure Captain, replied Antony T He watched as Antony Tivz and Simon Carbuncle both started to make preparations to leave. Explorer Base, CS002 Intreped request clearance to depart? requested Antony T. CS002 Intreped you have clearance to depart. Antony T brought the vectored engines to power and after his panel indicated all the clamps had been released he pushed the throttle forward slightly and the wind screen showed Explorer Base beginning to move
away from them as the reversed out of the bay. As the Intreped reversed the rest of Explorer base came into view and on both sides of the vessel showed the various stages of construction of the CS003 and the CS004 as well as the next Colony vessel. Antony T turned the Intreped as it cleared the two booms and to the right hand side a little distance away Danny could see the construction cradle holding the DV001 Vonter. He looked at the vessel and tapped the screen of the LPD sat in the arm of his chair. He looked at the ship and the specification. The vessel was a Warhound II Class Heavy Cruiser. He knew the specifications of the DV vessels were slightly less than the CS vessels, only really in speed and the fact they did not carry the AP Cannons; they had heavy neutral particle cannons instead. Antony T stopped the turn and switched the vectoring off and pushed the throttle forward and he banked the Intreped away from Explorer Base heading for the Asteroid Belt in the next orbital track. After a minute of flying Danny said, Let us see what the Intreped can do, take us to full speed Antony T. It would be my pleasure captain, he said and looked back at him smiling an evil smile. ***** Alice stood in main engineering looking at displays on the main reactors as they pulled out of Explorer base. James K stood with her as the power indicators for the secondary engines moved up as did a further four secondary reactors. She turned to James K and asked, How much experience do have you with the systems here? Considerable on the reactors and power systems, I worked as an Engineer on both Triton and Grande Alpha. I was Chief Engineer on Triton before transferring here. She looked at him very surprised and asked, How do you feel about me being Chief Engineer then? I have no problem with it. From what I have read on your Conspiracy File and my understanding of what is needed then you are much better qualified for the position than I am. The vessel needs some one used to working on technology. I know power systems inside and out, I can clean the inside of an AM Reactor, but I know very little about the engines or the weapon systems. You on the other hand being from Security Command Technology Division have worked on high tech stuff and have a good knowledge of reactionless drives and weapon systems. The load master and a couple more people hold all the Armourer Qualifications. She smiled and asked, Right then, so you are the person to come to about issues with the power systems then? Yes, he replied and looked back at the power levels and at the power distribution plans on the wall. We are beginning to reverse out of the bay. We are only using the secondary engines at the moment. I expect when we head into the deep system more power will come from the main engines. She nodded her comprehension of the situation displayed on the power plans. What about the
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secondary reactors. They are supplying the power to the systems on board, replied James K. He stepped towards the plans and pointed to one of the secondary reactors and said, This one is powering the Sensor Masking System and the rest are powering all the other ship board systems. She looked at the plans and asked, What about these two? She pointed to the two main reactors beside the Hyperdrive and massive banks of power cells. Those two power the Hyperdrive. We only ever take power from them when it is vital to do so. It is so the Captain has almost immediate hyperspace capabilities. It takes about twenty hours to recharge the Hyperdrive power bank and we recharge it during Hyperspace travel. From what Tishun has said no Space Elf ship has the same ability to jump in and pretty much have the capability to almost jump again. All our weapons have 180seconds worth of firing before we need to look at recharging the power banks. She looked at James K and nodded her understanding of the situation. James K looked back and she also looked at where he was looking and she could see a light coming from a piece of transparent material in the wall of the reactor vessel. They are about to bring the main engines up to power. They walked down the bay and watched as the Engineers working on the engines monitored the power up sequence. This is very interesting to watch, said James K as he walked to a transparent plate into one of the ignition chambers. From what I understand the power from the reactors super heat an area and that is what pushes us forward. The greater the area the faster we go. That is a pretty good explanation James K, said woman who like James carried a Tablet computer. Hello Chief Engineer. I am Dancetina Ducean the Head of Propulsion Systems. The heat actually hits a force field holding a super condensed bubble of air and the bigger the bubble the more heat and the greater number of air particles hit the end of the chamber. The main engines have fifty such chambers; the secondaries have 30. All the waste heat goes out he back. The engines on the Warhound are one of a kind, Grav-Engines, those babies are advanced, they use a similar bubble of gravity instead of air. Alice stood there thinking about the situation. What is the air made from? Dancetina looked at her and replied, What do you mean? What atoms make up the air and what is the pressure the bubble is under? Dancetina stood and looked at the data from her tablet, 70 atmospheres and normal air. The plates at the end of the engine draw in normal air. The entire system works off the pressure of the air inside the bubble as greater the pressure the more atoms inside. Under zero speed it is thirty atmospheres. Thanks for that, I think I am going to look at something concerning the engines and how to make then better, Alice said. These are my babies so I am always happy to see people improve them. Alice smiled and she took out her PDU and viewed the camera view from the front of the ship. She
looked at the rear view and Explorer Base was moving away from them fast. She checked the speed and it read 0.8 Light Mach and was not moving up wards. How much experience have you got with them? she asked. I worked at SPI in their propulsion department. I designed the Acceleration Chambers, which is what they are called officially. She nodded her understanding and realised she had a very skilled team under her and she guessed her role would be more to do with gelling the people and improving the various systems on board. Ok, can I ask that you two specifically or your deputies give me a quick verbal report on how the power and propulsion systems are fairing every day. Yes not a problem, I will get the rest of the Engineering Departments to write a brief report for you, unless it is a big problem, suggested James K. Yes, that would be excellent thank you James K. Anyway I need to have a wander for a while. I have my PDU on me so if I need to ask any questions I will contact you. The pair smiled their thanks and they turned back to their respective areas. She watched them go and knew this was going to be a very good Engineering Crew. She asked via her internal communication system, Tishun, where would I go to get a Tablet? A couple of seconds passed and Tishun replied, Good thank you Alice, I have now locked yours and Dannys communication system into the main grid. Tech Support behind the main Hydroponics bay on Deck Fifteen. Thank you, she replied and headed for a lift. A few seconds the doors opened and she walked out on Deck Fifteen, she looked left and right and saw the entrance into the Hydroponics bay. She walked down the corridor and entered the room on the left hand wall. One of the two Technicians stood behind the counter smiled as she approached. What can we do in Tech Support for the Chief Engineer? I would like a tablet configured for Engineering Operations. I intend to know what is happening and control when needed rather than be over controlling. He looked at the terminal and found what she had requested. He walked into the aisles and quickly returned with one. A tablet configured for Engineering Operations. He handed it to her. Thank you, she replied and took the tablet. She quickly powered it up and headed out of the room and into the Hydroponics bay. As she entered she saw a number of YGs playing on the outdoor toys and the various constructions in the trees. She walked to one of the tables and sat down. She placed the tablet on the table and asked, Tishun, what is the CCC system like on board? Pretty much every section has CCC coverage, only the private offices and quarters do not have automatic CCC. An incident will bring the CCC system in that area into effect.
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She nodded her understanding and said, Thanks, can you show me the ones in main engineering please and divide the screen for display of all cameras. Not a problem. The screen changed to one of displaying all the 12 CCC system units. She ran the Power Distribution Plans and the monitoring systems for both the engines and power. YG Paula ran over and sat opposite her. YG Paula just smiled at her. She looked up and said, Hello again YG Paula. Hello friend. What you doing? she asked. YG Paula do you realise you are demanding an answer speaking like that? Sorting out my control of the various departments under me. She asked, Tishun, how do I get a carrying strap for the tablet? Go to one of the creation modules and enter what you want, the system creates it with magick. She went to say thanks when Dannys voice said, Where are you? I am in the Main Hydroponics Bay, she replied. Good, do not move I am coming to you. Thanks Tishun, she finished with. She turned back to YG Paula. YG Paula looked at her in a puzzled way. You have two ways of asking for things, one a very formal demanding and one polite and nice. You should think about the words and how to make nice things. YG Paula nodded. Would you mind going and getting one of the Gangrels please YG Paula, she asked. Now was that a nice way of asking for something? Yes it was, YG Paula replied. A couple of minutes later Danny appeared and joined her. What are you doing? he asked as he sat down. Sorting out my control of Main Engineering, she said and showed him the screen with all 12 CCC system units on. She then brought the other screens to the front. I am going to need to work on the layout, but I can see everything I need to know about the engines, and the power distribution and what the reactors are doing, how about you? Nothing at the moment, Heinrich knows what he is doing and he has my orders which are to give the engines a good work out and then jump to light speed when we are at the edge of the system. I did wonder if you were up to taking a tour of the ship. I would like to know some of the key people on board. The pair stood up and YG Paula joined them. May I come? she asked. Of course you can YG Paula, replied Danny. You can give us a tour of the vessel. She smiled at the pair and quickly ran off towards the others and returned after telling one of the Gangrels present where she was going. Alice nodded her liking to the way the YGs acted.
YG Paula returned and over the next few hours she showed the pair the Intreped. They finished on the Command Deck as the Intreped passed the last planet in the system. Heinrich said, Engage the Hyperdrive. The vessel accelerated to light speed and the stars became streaks of light and a pale purple bubble formed surrounding the ship. Heinrich turned and said, Captain. He began to stand up. Stay put Commander, I am not staying. We were on a tour of the Intreped and we are heading on now. YG Paula led the pair across the Command Deck to the door on the other side of the lift and they walked into C&C. Major Batts and one of his officers stood with Daniel Himes whilst he was explaining the systems used. Major Batts looked up and said around a smile, Captain, Chief Engineer. Allow me to introduce Captain Debbie Waters, my Adjunct. Good evening to you Captain Waters, said Danny, As we are on a tour we will leave you chatting. How many more places to go YG Paula? he inquired. Only one more the Main Armoury which is through that door, replied YG Paula. Okay, well then I am rather tired and so thank you for the tour and shall we say I shall give all the YGs their presents from me at 09:00 Ship Time, said Danny. Yes, I shall tell the rest of the YGs, responded YG Paula as they headed for the lift and Deck 1. ***** Danny sat in his cabin on the comfortable chairs, on the small table sat a drink and in his hand was his PDU. He was reading up on the various offensive and defensive systems the Intreped had. The buzzer indicating someone wanted to come in went off and he stood up and unlocked the door. The door opened and stood on the far side was Major Batts. Come in, he said and moved away from the door. Major Batts walked in and asked, I am not disturbing you am I? No, as I said earlier my door is always open. Would you like a drink? he inquired. Major Batts thought about the request and replied, Yes, thanks. Danny sorted out the drink and the pair walked back to the living area of his cabin and sat down. Major Batts sat opposite him and took a sip from his glass. How can I help you Major Batts? I just wanted to chat to you. I said after the Wacker War was over that I would never work for Security Command again and yet here I am working for Security Command. Danny laughed and said, Let me put that to rest right now, I am not Security Command, I quit that organisation a few months ago thanks to the skill of Dr Nuriegummie and her Cybernetic Team. They removed the position locator and control system for the self-destruct. I have been reading up on your unit Donald. May I
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call you Donald? You may. Oh what have you been reading? Just the reports from Merc Halls computers on your unit before and after, what actually happened to your Unit, it dropped from an A to a C+ rated unit that is some drop in ratings. Donald nodded his head in agreement. It was. My regiment the 6th was assigned to the northern areas, working along-side the 60th Light, a reinforced Light Regiment. For the first few days we had complete control of the area. Then we started to hit problems, we started to face well trained, experienced people, we thought initially Street Ghosts, one of my teams recognized a patch one of the people wore. It was the patch of the 12 th Gangrel Raiders. They took control of the streets around the edge of the controlled zone by the end of the first week they had pushed us and the 60th back to our prepared bases. We knew when the final battle hit it would be a slaughter, we never realised it would be as bad as it was, I lost over 3000 troops during the war most during the last battle. The Gangrels have a rep for being very fair, but do not piss them off and Wacker Inc did, they got them real mad. I know that too well, said Danny. Have you heard of the Vixens Street Ghost Team? Donald sat and thought about the situation and replied, No I have not. Ever heard of the Academy Merc Command? The door opened and in walked Alice. Hello sis, Danny said and the pair gave each other a kiss hello. Yes I have, The Academy Merc Command is a surgical strike force, that is the only operations they do, ones where the target is limited or an organisation needs removing with minimum of damage to the surrounding things. Yes, that is them. The Vixens as they are known are one of the sub units. The last operation they did, they worked alongside the Storm Makers. They as are the Hunters both Gangrel units, more specifically GYPS units, replied Danny. The first time Security Commands Elite forces came across members of the Vixens and Hunters after the Wacker War was when they rescued Trianna and her friends. Two fifth Wingers were tailing the group making sure nothing happened to them. They watched Nibs, Sandra, Grimes and Prothax both from the body guards of Ju-Dong and Qu Darth, Wong and the Twins slaughter a twelve man squad of the elite and the two carriers. They had no answer to the five members from the Vixens. Fifth Wings Tech people analysed the recording and they came to the conclusion that Nibs, Sandra, Wong and the Twins were something more than normal people. Subsequent investigations have shown Nibs, Sandra and Wong are Physical Adepts, they call themselves True Adepts. The Twins are something else entirely; they are first ones, a Fallen Angel Risen Daemon. They are powerful alone, but add them to the mix and they are lethal, added Alice. I was in Security Command Technology Division and a member of the Fifth Wing; I did the initial analysing of the footage. Donald sat in shock. I know all about the Prophecy and the Conspiracy, I was told along with my unit a couple of years following the Wacker War. Are they the force spoken about?
Danny took a mouthful of his drink and said, No idea, but I think they are something to do with it though. They have been the bane of Security Command for a good few years. The Academy Merc Command destroyed Alpha Prison, a secret prison run by the White Skins, the elite. It housed people they took. Most of the people rescued where nothing to do with the Conspiracy which is the reason they used to justify the actions. I think only Thomas and Clare Gratham were directly linked to the Conspiracy in that they attended The Academy of the Street. Anyway what happened after the Wacker War? Major Batts took a mouthful of his drink and said, The remains of my command and the 60th joined forces under the banner of the 6th. None of the new command hold any grudges against the Gangrels, it is just Security Command and the board of Wacker Inc we dislike. The 12th Gangrel Raiders trained us in surgical and anti-terrorist operations, with the emphasis on intelligence gathering. Before this came up I had a couple of operations in the planning stages, one doing an anti-terrorist gig for a few months in Mongalum and a surgical removal of a drug organisation in Gab-baria. Alice stood up and asked as she headed for the kitchen, What changed those plans? Donald looked around at her and replied, The CS001 Warhound and the documentaries on the construction and the programs John L did sent back reporting on the flight tests. Nicole offering the 6 th the position of the armed forces on board the Intreped, with Captain Waters Company also being crew. The entire command jumped at the chance. Richard C and Kev briefed us just before Richard C left; he is on board the Warhound as one of the crew along with Paul Atrun. We know who is on the crew, replied Alice as she walked back carrying a glass. The 3 rd HAC, the 4th Jump Assault Squad and one of the CSMR pilots all from the Storm Makers are also on board as crew, the entire ships crew is the combat force. She re-took her seat and continued, Bro did you shadow the same commander as Nibs and Sandra? she asked looking at her brother. I did and he commented on how damn professional the pair were; but they enjoyed them selves off duty. All of the Vixens and Hunters shadowed members of the Triton Station crew, he replied. I took that one lesson to heart, and one concerning involving everyone, including the YGs. When we initially broke out of the prison after our last operation was finished the local Gangrel Youth Feeder Unit helped us escape and it involved everyone in the unit and YGs. They proved themselves very adept at throwing the local security forces off our tail, a week later we landed in Echo City and the following weekend had the Position Lock and Self Destruct Initiator removed. We both have nanytes hunting and destroying the actual self-destruct acid vials. The docs said it would take about five months and then they would die off and come out as waste material. I think four members of the Warhound crew had it done first. It worked perfectly bar feeling sick for a few weeks. We have had no side effects and we have a couple of months to go before they are finished. Major Batts looked at him and asked after a few seconds of thinking about a question, So what are the YGs going to be doing? A specialist ship security team and also the morale squad of the ship. I have already told them I want
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this ship to feel lived in, it is our home for the next few years so we might as well decorate it with pictures and things. Nothing will effect ship operations mind you. Tomorrow I am going to be giving each and every YG on board a YG Laser pistol, a vibro dagger and some specifically designed black light armour and HUUs. The YGs on the Warhound actually designed the armour specifically for ship board security operations. He turned towards Alice and asked, Sis does the vessel have a radio station? Major Batts did look mightily impressed by that. I wonder if the YGs would let the 23 younger members of my command join their ranks? I would have thought so, and the same goes for the older ones and the Gangrel Unit we have on board, replied Alice, I saw a couple of Gangrels chatting to one of your units younger members and a number of the older YGs were playing with the older young, before I came back from checking on something and yes we do, well it is not exactly a radio station. The rest of the evening was spent getting to know and understand each other. At the end of the evening as Danny lay down on his bed he knew this would be one big and important operation for the Conspiracy and for Darra Von. He was planning on sending regular reports back for the news channels to broadcast. They were the flag ship for Darra Von as a whole.
Chapter 3
Danny woke and lay looking at the ceiling. After a few minutes he rolled out of bed and headed for the bathroom. After finishing in the bathroom he headed for his desk as it was only just after 06:00 Ship Time. He sat down and continued to go through the details and resumes of the crew. He stopped as he read a couple of the Security Officers details. As he read he found that they had helped in the Wacker War as members of ET Special Security, the elite of ET Security. As he read the resumes of the pair he thought about something, he made a note that he would look at making them members of any initial ground teams. He now had twelve people whom he would assign to Initial Ground Teams, one of the members was him and a couple of professional body guards from the Street Scene. His experience told him the best body guards came from the Street Scene. You up bro? inquired Alice over their internal communicator. Yes I am, just reading the resumes on the crew. I am selecting people for initial ground operations. A couple of seconds later the door opened and in walked Alice she headed for the desk and sat in the chair on the other side. As she sat down she took off her tablet and stood it against the front of the desk. I meant to ask you yesterday, what is the tablet? he asked. It has a full link to the engineering stations and allows me off site control of Main Engineering as well as the Hyperdrive Control, power centres and the Secondary Engineering Bays. It also allows me to see the distribution of power across the vessel and which AM reactors are powering what.
He looked impressed by that. I want ultra-limited hands on, the guys working the systems know what they are doing and I as of yet do not. I understand the principles behind the engines and the AM-Reactors, but I have no idea on how they work. You know you are giving the YGs their laser pistols and having a tour of the back areas, you mind if I tag along. No sis, you want to know this vessel as much as I do and from the full specification and the components this is one very impressive vessel; over 50kms of high voltage cables, almost 600 of high speed fibre optic lines and a full secured wireless system. Alice nodded her knowledge of the information. I know, I will be looking for power boxes, transformers and all the other systems that we need but keep hidden. He looked at her and asked, You got the current speed? She nodded and replied, Light Mach 6 is our current speed. Why? I asked Heinrich to slow us to the optimal speed, which must be Light Mach 6. It gives me and idea on the journey times between star systems; I know have the speed factor and the distance is not hard to get. She thought and replied, True. Found anything interesting in the Engineering Crew? Yes I have selected two for inclusion in the Initial Ground Teams, which will also include both me and you. I have twelve names currently without us. Ok, it would be the best place for me, being in one of those teams. A couple of hours later Danny says, Let us head for breakfast and then give the YGs their presents. Good idea. I do enjoy working with you, she said. They stood up and the buzzer sounded indicating someone trying to contact him. He sat back down and hit the button to activate the transmission. On the screen appeared a woman, wearing the uniform of Deletron Moon Mining Centre. Captain Curtdoza? she inquired. Yes that is me, how can I help? We have someone on a line saying he is your younger brother Alex. Oh creator, put him through, he said and called as Alice reached the door, sis, Alex is on the line. She turned and walked back to the desk as Alex, Brei, another man and five younger Gangrels and YGs appeared. Bro, Brei, where are you? Danny, Alice, said Alex. We are at the moment in a small office next door to the permanent D-door to the Mining Centre on the small moon. Nicole just told us you were Captain and Chief Engineer on the Intreped, yes you both. Thank you Alex, introduce us, said Alice. You already know Brei, Breis father Raymond Handsworth, Abiba, Breis half-sister and Kami, both
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full Gangrels and Cassie, James and Pettra all YGs. So where are you Alex? asked Danny On Phase World we are beginning the search for information and also the hunt for Rose, replied Brei, how about you? At the moment we are on route to Rugthz to pick up the rest of our aerospace forces and then on to Trashan to collect the last of the crew. Where after that? asked Raymond. Where ever they send us or we go, we are exploring and helping around the Federation. All of the adults nodded their liking and understanding of the plan. Well when Ren has set up the system we will be able to transmit reports and messages back and forth. We are expecting the first team from Echo Tech here in a couple of hours; they are here to look for some sites to open the first official Echo Tech Store. I think Richard C said, If Naruni wants to set up store on Darra Von, then we will set up stores where they are big. Danny nodded and smiled his understanding of the idea and plan. Anyway we have things to do here, so we will say bye for now, but I will tell the YGs that we have chatted to you. Are the YGs with you on Phase World or are they on the Warhound. They are here with us. Whilst we are here we can communicate like this, said Brei. Both he and Alice nodded and the picture vanished. They both now headed for the door and breakfast. Danny headed into the main Hydroponics bay and saw all the YGs sat around a couple of the tables. He walked to the next free one and sat down. Alice followed him after collecting her breakfast with James K and Dancetina. James K looked like he was giving her a report on something. She sat down and placed her breakfast on the table and that was joined by her tablet which she powered up. He looked over and watched as she viewed various pieces of information. Dancetina said, One of the main engines went off line last night, it is back up and running now. One of the main pressure balls lost its integrity and failed. The sensors should have warned us, but it looks like someone forgot to close a programming block, which caused a crash and took the sensor off line. The control system kept the power output the same. The chambers have a 20% output over the official maximum for this very reason. It failed and the others maintained the output, only a blip in the readings to indicate a problem. Alice nodded and said, Thanks for those reports. The engine back now? Yes, all it took was the reforming of the force bubble, said Dancetina. He lent in to look at Dancetina and asked, How long? A couple of minutes, she replied. He nodded his understanding of the systems and the length of time. Just to warn you when we reach Rugthz I am going to be running some drills so warn everyone. I am
not looking at catching people out, just how they work under stress. It is from these drills I will decide which shift will have what crew, with the heads of department outside that, ready to step in and help if things get out of hand, said Alice. Both James K and Dancetina thought about Alices idea. Even he thought the idea was a very good one, simple but effective. James K replied first, Now that is a very good idea, it would mean we can work on some of our ideas. Yes like perfecting Anti-Chars Grav Engine idea and theories, said Dancetina. Alice looked at her and said, Now that is a good idea. I will have to have a chat to Anti-Char. Is she serving on the Warhound? She is, as the ships joint Chief Engineer with Ren Macarb being the other one, replied James K. I had them both shadowing me and creator are they close on technology, Anti-Char designed the FCSUs when she was at the South Polar Exploration Base. Ren made it happen with the improvements in the coding of the various programs used. The larger Space FCSUs are modelled off the smaller ones; they have small reactionless engines and a small NPU. Danny nodded his thanks at being told that, I wonder how many more things like that exist on the vessel. Probably lots, said Dancetina. We have not been introduced yet. I am Dancetina, Head of Propulsion Systems. Captain Danny Curtdoza, Alices slightly younger brother. Dancetina stopped in surprise. Good morning Captain. She studied him especially his face. Are you the same as Alice? I am if you mean do I come from Security Command, yes. We are both native Darra Vonians under the technology and sub-dermal armour which is what you can see. So you are also a cyborg? inquired James K. Yes I am, I am 75% cyborg, only the combat department and security has more. Both me and Alice have the light versions of the armour, Combat uses the medium versions and Security the Heavy. They are pretty much 90% cyborg, Combat is 80 to 85% depending on the specialisation. Tameria specialised in heavy weapons and assault support operations and had 85% of her body as a cyborg. When we have finished having the acid vials destroyed will we get an upgrade of our armour, the medical staff here has four more nanyte treatments and they all improve the current systems. James K nodded his understanding and appreciation of something. Captain, Chief Engineer, I have had a real fascination of power systems, but having you both here means so much more. I am on a sabbatical/netmail correspondence course with the ET Medical Centre in Echo City. I am training to became a cyborg technician in addition to being the Power Systems Head. Us two, and he indicated he meant him and Dancetina, are equal in rank and I won a toss of a coin and went to the briefing.
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Well if you want to know more then call past when I am in my cabin, I know both of us are interested in knowing more about our systems. It was always Alices pet project to improve the Fifth Wingers. Both me and Alice have a tour to take with the YGs. True we do, said Alice as she finished her breakfast. The bird song, that real or just sounds? he asked. It is real, there is one, Dancetina said as one landed on the ground a few metres away. All the Hydroponics Bays are self contained Eco Systems. We have had a few birds flying down the corridors, but they have their own runs between them all. As he stood up carrying his tray a couple of the younger YGs took all the breakfast items back to the kitchen. Two of the kitchen staff collected the dirty items and headed for the two sinks. He stood up and all the YGs followed with Alice. Right first stop on our tour, Cargo Bay 8 on Deck 34, he said. He led the group to the lift and the first lot walked in. Cargo Bay 8 please Marcha. Certainly Captain, responded Marcha. The lift moved and a few seconds later it stopped and the doors opened. The group moved off and the doors closed and a second later the second lift arrived and dropped the rest of the YGs and Alice with them. This way, he said and headed down the corridor towards the nose of the pod. The doors to Cargo Bay 8 opened and he led the group into the bay and over towards one of the pallets. He cut the surrounding plastic and opened the first box. He said as he picked it up and showed the YGs, Your laser pistols, they are the same ones as the YGs on the Warhound use. Both me and Alice saw three of them before we came down to breakfast. If you would like I can organise you having a chat with some of them at least. All the YGs opened their eyes in surprise. You would do that for us Captain? inquired YG Harry. Yes, I would do it for any member of the crew. So take one and wait I have other gifts as well. Alice brought around a utility belt with a holster and scabbard already attached. She handed one to each YG. He took the second box and allowed the rest of the YGs to take one. He closed the top and placed it on the ground. He took the next case and opened that. He offered each YG one. These are vibro daggers; they are quite capable of slicing limbs off, so no playing around with them. Tishun has overall control of the blades vibro functions. The rest of the cases contain your armour. It is a smaller version of ours except you do not carry the same amount of armour. YG Quintina asked, Would that include the rest of the Gangrels? Yes it would. Let me know when you want to speak to them and I will contact them and get the people together their end. You do have netmail contact from what I have been told.
All the YGs smiled at that. Right where do we start our tour of the back areas? he inquired. YG Edward turned and orientated himself with something and said, This way. He led the group to a door that he tapped a few keys on the keypad and the door opened. Tishun helped us override the security card scanners and passcodes; we can get through pretty much any door that does not lead to danger. Inside was a largish room some of the YGs headed up the ladder and sat looking at the group from the next floor up. A few more moved into two of the tunnels. One ran along the corridor wall to the very front of the ship. The second ran along the wall of the cargo bay. YG Edward said as the door closed, Dotted throughout the ship are these rooms, Tishun calls them control nexuses in that they are a main control points of the local networks. Alice looked at the schematics of the vessel and found the room they were stood in and noticed the cable paths and the fact a lot of them from this deck and the two above ended in the various boxes and terminal. He looked at the tablet and asked, What are you looking at? The schematics and cable layout for this nexus point and it is just that a nexus. He nodded and said, Lead on, take us around the ship via each area. The older YGs nodded. YG Francina said, AP cannon then back to the engineering section at the rear of the pod. The YGs on the next floor disappeared. Where are they going to? inquired Alice. The AP Cannon, YG Edward said. Each floor is four metres high, under each floor are the cables, air vents and utility runs in addition to the back areas. He led the way towards the AP Cannon. ***** After seven hours of exploring the back areas all the YGs, Danny and Alice appeared from a nexus control room next to the environmental centre on Deck Fifteen. As the group walked through the room Danny asked, How much of the vessel have we seen? I would say about a third of it. It is a right maze, Alice replied as they crossed the corridor into the main hydroponics bay. Danny turned to the YGs and said, Thank you for that, shall we say same time tomorrow to continue the tour? YG Francina replied, We will be here. They all turned and headed off in the direction of the kitchen. He and Alice both headed to one of the tables so they could both look at the findings and how all the systems linked together. Alice placed the tablet on the table and powered it up from standby. The screen displayed the same information as it had the last power down. She used the virtual representation and rotated the ship and showed
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the areas they had been through. This is one impressive ship, he said as he looked at the schematics. Everything is designed for its purpose, no space is wasted really. No it is not, replied Alice as she looked at the various drills Tishun had run through the two shifts that had been on duty during the tour. I will have to review all the recordings and find out who is good under pressure. He looked at Alice with a face that said, Are you sure. You know even those good under pressure can freeze. Yes I do and that is the reason I said all section heads should be contacted at the same time as the alarms go, said Alice. Dancetina walked in carrying a tray and headed for the table the pair sat at. Good evening, did you have an interesting tour? Danny looked at her and replied, I think so. We still have a lot to go though. Alice asked, How did you find the drills? Interesting, they proved my hunches right about some people and wrong about others. One person from second shift really surprised me. Yelena found the problem and fixed it with no fuss or problems and she is one of the youngest on board. I made a mental note of it and have added to her file that she is very professional and skilled. Yelena walked into the Hydroponics Bay carrying a mug of drink. Yelena, called Dancetina. The Yelena walked to the table and took the seat beside Dancetina. Good evening Chief Engineer, Captain. Good evening to you, said Alice. Dancetina has just told me that you proved yourself to be very professional today. It was nothing, just doing my job, she said. That maybe the case, Danny said, but you have come to our attention and you never know you might get the chance to join the Initial Ground Teams. Or become an Area Chief, said Alice. I am going to need people like you for a while yet. You are now on the fast track now Yelena and I do not forget people who go beyond the call of duty. Yelenas PDU buzzed in her pocket. She took it out and placed the receiver against her head. The volume the caller used meant the entire conversation could be heard and from what Danny heard, he was not very impressed by it. The call finished and Yelena put the PDU away. Dancetina turned to Yelena and asked, What was that all about? Mr Leddow, the Section Head for the Top Pod Secondary Engines. He wanted to know why I was not on station. You heard my answer and I told him just before I left the Engine Bay.
Danny still looked concerned by what he had heard. Yelena stood up and said, It has been nice meeting you Captain. She headed out of the Hydroponics bay muttering, I am supposed to have 30 minutes for this break. Alice looked at Dancetina and said, I was also not very happy with what I heard. That was excessive. It was, responded Dancetina. Mr Leddow was one of my proven wrong hunches. He came to us straight from SPI Engines Manufacturing Division with glowing references pertaining to his skill and performance. I made him Section Chief when we first came on board. Danny nodded his head and said, I think it is time I made an unannounced visit. He stood up and began to walk towards the exit. Alice also stood and said, Hang on bro. I think I will join you. She looked back at the table and said, You coming Dancetina. She stood up and joined them as they headed out of the door way in the back of the bay. A few seconds later they arrived at the door leading to the Engineering Bay in the Top Pod. The door opened as they approached and they stood in the door way as Mr Leddow byraited three members of his team; Yelena was one of the three. As the three watched the scene Danny noticed Yelena looking around and she smiled as she spotted them stood in the doorway. At the end Mr Leddow turned away from them and headed back to his office. As the door to the office slid closed Dancetina walked in slightly and called the three over. The all headed towards Dancetina. Can I have a chat with you all in the corridor please, she asked and led the three into the corridor where both he and Alice stood waiting. In the corridor Alice asked, What was that all about? He went off on one about us taking our breaks out of the engineering bay, replied Traza. I went back to my cabin to add a bit to my final project for my Engine Systems Unit. All of us are straight out of Echo Star City Apprentice Scheme. All three of us know more about the engines, then he does and he came from SPI Engine Manufacturing Division. His understanding is a joke. All of us have heard and seen him break basic safety procedures. He covered the air intakes, I saw him doing it, replied Ashard. I have had a few rows with him over basic safety and proven him wrong with the operators manual straight from SPI. Danny listened to what the three said and made up his mind. Do any of you wish to file formal complaints against him? This is my vessel, my rules apply and if you do make a complaint then it will be investigated and if enough evidence is found then it will come before a board if inquiry. Only then will he be able to argue the points and try and persuade us that they are wrong. Yelena could be seen to be thinking about it. What would happen at the board on inquiry?
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A group of ranking officers would sit and hear all the evidence gathered by the investigators and then we would hear from the accused and if he can argue each and every point then he would be acquitted, if not then the sentence would vary from an official reprimand on his file to being dismissed at the first available port of call. Yelena looked at the other two and replied, Yes I do want to make a formal complaint not only about that, but other incidents. One he made a pass at me and basically said, It would go a long way in my promotion stakes to sleep with him. I would never sleep with him. I wonder why he is even here. James K walked in up the corridor and replied, The only reason he is here is because of me. I have just been told what happened by the Power Systems Shift Boss. Danny looked at him and said, Not to worry, we will likely have a few people like him on board. Ashard replied, Same here. I spent six months working at the SPI Engines Centre in North Suraban and heard a few stories about him from his co-workers; none of them were good or very nice. He spends most of the day in his office only to come out to sneer and try his luck with the female members of staff. Same here, replied Traza. Danny nodded his understanding and said, I need to go and do some reading up on the judicial procedures on ships but I will get a few investigators looking into the situation. ***** A little later Danny sat at his desk and looked at the various procedures used on ships from Darra Von and the Space Elf Federation. Of the six different systems, the one from the Space Elf Federation seemed to be the best of them. Three ranking officers, people looking into the allegation and that was it. He planned to make a few changes to the procedures to better fit the Intreped and its crew. He said, Tishun can you run a search through the personal files and find me a couple of officers who are independent of the person being investigated? Not a problem, I have already got a short list and with your final instructions I have been able to narrow it down to five middle ranking offices; two from Technical Support, one from the Damage and Ship Maintenance Crew and two from the Medical Centre. Danny sat and thought about the people Tishun had said. He lent forward and said, Tishun can you open a secure channel to one of the pair from Technical Support and one from the Medical Centre and the one from Damage Control. A couple of seconds passed and Tishun said, Channel open to all three Danny. Thanks, he said. Good evening this is Captain Curtdoza here, would you mind reporting to my cabin as soon as you are able. All three reported that they would be there as soon as they were able. A few minutes later the door buzzed and opened. Captain you wished to see me. I am Junior Doctor Wendy Fishburn. Yes I did Doctor Fishburn, please come and take a seat and do not worry you are not in trouble. I just
need you and a couple more people to investigate some incidents of bullying and possible sexual harassment on the Intreped. I will not say any more until the other two are here. Fifteen minutes later the door buzzed and opened. Stood on the outside were the remaining two people. Come in Leftentant Doors and Chief Technician Woods. The pair walked in and came over to the comfortable seating. Please take a seat as I have something to ask of all three of you. Earlier today I was witness to an incident of an Area Head berating three members of his crew for not having their break on the Engineering deck. All three have filed complaints against the Mr Leddow as they came and explained what had transpired. Dr Fishburn lent forward and asked, Why pick us for this task? Because you are not in the friendship circles or Mr Leddow and so should be able to keep an independent mind during the investigation, he replied. The procedure I have selected is the one from the Space Elf Federation. It involves three command rank officers sitting in judgement over a board of inquiry where investigators bring evidence against the person. I will be making modifications but I do want to see it in action first. Leftentant Doors looked at both the people and said, Ok. This is something I have never done, other than in college. Where do you want us to start? He took a sip of his coffee and said, Start at the beginning, get some background in to Leddow. You will need to interview me, the Chief Engineer and the Head of Propulsion Systems; we were all watching the incident that brought on the complaints. Dr Fishburn nodded her head and took out her PDU and started to make notes. She asked, You do not mind being interviewed now Captain? No I could not think of a better time as I am busy all tomorrow with my tour of the back areas of the vessel. A while later after the three had finished interviewing him he called, Major Batts, Captain Curtdoza here, any chance I can see you in my cabin. I am also contacting the Chief Medical Officer Andrea White and Commander Potter of the Weapons Department. Not a problem Captain, I will be with you shortly, replied Major Batts. A few minutes later the door buzzed and opened. The three walked in and over to where he sat on the comfortable chairs. He looked up and smiled as the three approached. Please, thank you for coming on such short notice. Not a problem, replied Commander Potter. What did you want to see us about? It is about you three sitting as a three man board of inquiry over some complaints against Mr Leddow Head of the Engineering Bay in the Top Pod, replied Danny. I already have a team of three middle officers investigating the incident and Mr Leddows background. Andrea White asked the question he knew the other two were thinking, Why are you not leading the
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board and whose system are we using? The reason I am not sitting as head of the board is I am one of the witnesses to the incident that led the three to make the complaints. Myself, the Chief Engineer and head of Engine Systems all saw the incident as it took place. Arh, okay, said Major Batts. He looked at Andrea and said, I bow to your rank on board Chief Medical Officer. Thank you Major. What about the system we are using? Up to this point I have based the procedures on the ones used in the Space Elf Federation. None of the others fitted the situation here very well. All three nodded their heads in understanding. Ok I think we all will take a look at the procedures. Do you mind if we alter them? inquired Commander Potter. Danny shook his head in reply. No, make what changes you need to; I will likely make changes as well post this Board of Inquiry. Anyway, if none of you need to get back, can I get you a drink? he asked the three. Well I know they will contact me if they need me, replied Commander Potter. Same here, Andrea added. He stood up and headed for the small drinks cabinet.
Chapter 4
Danny sat in the command seat as the Intreped dropped to sub light on the edge of the Rugthz Star System. To his right sat Heinrich and Alice; to his left sat Andrea and the burley presence of Richmond Titovith, Head of Ship Board Security stood on the upper level behind them. Magnify Rugthz III, focus in on the vessels in orbit and Identify please. Mr Pauls set a course for the orbital facilities 0.6 Light Mach, Danny said and looked at the LPD on the arm of his chair. Course laid in, 0.6 Light Mach Captain. A couple of seconds later as the Intreped started to move toward the facilities Mr Pauls said, Autopilot engaged. He sat back and relaxed looking at the flight of the ship in the virtual bubble around his piloting couch. He watched as he viewed the ship from up and behind. From what he understood 13 of the crew possessed a level 3 VCS and all the pilot seats had the other half of the system effectively making them one with the piloting system. He looked as on the screen appeared the orbital facilities around Rugthz III, one of Darra Vons six colonies. The small LPD displayed each large vessel along with all the relevant data on the vessels. He watched as one of the Nuteash Warmonger Class Battleships slowed to a stop as if parked up waiting for something. From the flight deck appeared a number of shuttles. He realised they were workers or crew having some shore leave. How long would it take to load the fighters on board? It will likely take a couple of days as we are also picking spare parts and delivering 700tons worth of cargo. We have been asked to prove transport for a team of five Federation Council Members, replied Heinrich. How many coming back with them? he inquired. Heinrich looked at the request and replied, Just them and 7 support staff. The Gangrel Security force provided the bodyguards. Danny nodded how impressed he was at that. It is good to hear the Gangrels are out here as well. They played a major part in the Battle for Rugthz III, said Richmond. When the pirates first attacked the Gangrels fled with a sizeable portion of the colonies population and all the children and young adults. Over the following years until the Warhound and a Space Elf Federation fleet arrived they had been fighting the pirates and the Star Port Security Forces in guerrilla operations. They controlled the entire area around the colony, which is likely where the shuttles are going to, the Security Forces could not move from the perimeter without being attacked or the patrols ambushed. Danny looked back over his shoulder. Okay, so I guess the arrival of the Warhound plus fleet forced the pirates to flee.
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No the assault forces seized the Class Three Orbital Facility whilst the Warhound headed for the planet and took the colony by force. I think 18 civilians were injured due to the Security Forces shooting them. I think the last time I looked 41 of the 345 survivors and supporters had been charged with multiple acts of rape, torture and a whole host of other crimes. Danny looked back at the screen and said, I think I will take a couple of days and visit the colony. Alice you up for a visit? Yes, I would like to take Yelena as well. Danny looked back at Richmond and asked, Can you organise a small security detail and make sure it includes at least one Gangrel. I have just the team and I am one of them. I served for fifteen years in the 15th Gangrel Heavy Assault Regiment. The Gangrels did exactly what the council had hoped they would do. They went to ground and caused a lot of problems for the occupiers. CS002 Intreped, this is Rugthz Deep Space control, welcome to the Rugthz System. Thank you Rugthz Deep Space Control, our ETA with the orbital facilities is 3 days, he replied. Confirmed Intreped, enjoy your visit, responded the controller. He nodded his liking of the greetings and the manner in which they came across. The Council hope Rugthz turns into a major trading centre, said Andrea. When the CS003 launches she is planning a visit to all the colonies to see the medical facilities and also look at how they can be improved. I know she is ready planning a boost to them all, but she is not sure how much of a boost. B&T bought one of the licences to install Hyperdrives and are twelve months from completion of the first Cargo Transporter and fifteen months from Darra Vons first Star Liner. It is impressive, 10,000 passengers in first class luxury. I think B&T Space Tours sold the first 10,000 tickets in seven days. Quite a few are on one way tickets to the various stops, they are emigrating. My creator! That is some feat, he said. Andrea nodded her agreement and said, I think the cheapest ticket return was 50,000dcks and the one ways 30,000dcks. Danny looked at her in surprise. He said, That is some cash out lay there. Well most of the people emigrating have sold up. ***** A short while later Danny was walking to the Conference Room on Deck Seventeen and the board of inquiry. Captain, we have Fleet Admiral Rodorshav on the line, said one of the controllers. Put the Fleet Admiral through, he replied and took out his PDU. The screen changed to show a small office and a female Nuteash sat on the far side of the desk. Good eve to you Captain, she said. Good eve to you Fleet Admiral. How can I be of assistance?
No assistance is required, I was wondering how you were. I read in your file this is your first command. He smiled at this as it showed that the Fleet Admiral had done her homework. Yes, this is a Conspiracy Force vessel and they pick on other traits then the more normal commands. Arh, I see, I was wondering if you and your command crew would not mind attending a small reception I am holding. He thought about the plans for a trip to the planet. Yes I think we will be attending, thank you for your invite. He continued his walk to Conference Room on Deck Seventeen and the Board of Inquiry. The doors slid open and he heard Andrea say, I was about to send the search teams out Captain. Sorry, Doctor. I was just chatting to the Fleet Admiral of the War Mont V. She nodded and said, Would you mind taking the witness chair please. He nodded and walked to the witness chair; set up to the right of the table behind which sat the three person board in inquiry. After he sat down Commander Potter asked, Is your name Daniel Curtdoza, your rank is Captain of the CS002 Intreped? Yes to both questions, he replied. To the left of the three sat Mr Leddow and a small stack of papers. Major Batts asked, Would you please confirm for the board the reason for you not sitting as the chair? Yes I am a witness in this inquiry and so I decided not to sit as chair. Thank you. Would you please tell the Inquiry what you saw during an unannounced visit to the Top Pod Engineering? He described the events leading up to and during the incident. He then told the inquiry of his acts in concerning the dealing with the complaints. At the end of his testimony Major Batts said, Thank you Captain. Do you have any questions Commander Potter, Doctor? Commander Potter shook his head in reply as did Andrea. Mr Leddow have you any questions for the Captain? Not at this time Major, he replied. Thank you Captain, you may step down. He stood up and nodded his head to the three and moved to sit beside Alice in the front row of the public area. Most of the other seats contained members of the Top Pod Engine and Power Systems Crew. At the end of the session, five hours later, the three retired to consider their verdict and after thirty minutes they all walked back and Andrea stood. She said, By a verdict of three votes to nil, you Engineer 2nd Class Thomas Leddow are hereby ordered to disembark at the next port of call. A letter concerning this Board of Inquiry has been added to your History Guild Page. Guards please escort Mr Leddow to his quarters and
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place him under close arrest; he is not to leave his cabin for the remainder of the flight to Rugthz III. The two security guards moved and removed a shocked Mr Leddow from the room. Thank you all for your help in this Board of Inquiry, room dismissed. The room broke apart as the people moved out pretty much cheering the fact Mr Leddow was now gone from the vessel. Andrea stepped down from behind the table and headed to where he sat with Alice. As Andrea moved he stood up and Alice joined him. Danny, said Andrea. He turned and replied, Yes Andrea. I am now happy that he has gone as I know from reading his History Guild Page we would have had him up before us sooner rather than later. He looked at Andrea as if to ask, What are you talking about. I had someone from The Hub crack his sealed Juvie record and let me just say what I read was not very nice. He spent eight years inside a Juvie Detention Centre for raping an 8 year old girl, she was very good friends with her local YG group and that is the reason he was convicted. Other sealed files indicate he was the leading suspect in at least eight further rapes of young girls. Creator, I am now happy he is gone, said Alice and she did look disgusted at what Andrea had said. I never told Commander Potter and Major Batts. Told us what Andrea? asked Major Batts. She turned to face the pair and replied, Information I dug up on Thomas Leddow. He has a criminal record from his Juvie years and is a suspect in eight rapes of young girls between 8 and 11 years old. Commander Potter also looked disgusted. Good, thank you for not telling us before otherwise I would have been biased from the start. I have a real passion for finding and convicting people like that and I know if any of the YGs on board were touched I would be joining the hunting party. The group walked out of the room and turned towards the nearest ramp up to Deck Fifteen. This is not the first time I have been around YGs but I have found all to be unique, helpful, polite and I know quite a few of my command are very happy to see them wandering around the ship, said Major Batts. As they walked up the two decks Danny said from the front, I have organised a chat between the YGs here and the ones on the Warhound. I have already had a lengthy chat with both Ren and Anti-Char about the engines and the AM reactors, said Alice as she walked in to the Hydroponics bay. They all headed for the drinks making area and very quickly they all sat around one of the tables. I wonder if the YGs would mind having me sit in during the chat, Major Batts said around a mouthful of a yellow berry juice. I would not have thought they would have a problem, I know I am going to be there as three YGs on the Warhound are members of mine and Alices extended family. Alex, our younger brother and his partner
adopted them back just after the Wacker War, Danny said. We had hoped to be finished and free before he left with the Warhound, but it took longer than we had anticipated and only escaped four months before we joined the ship. It was about two weeks to late; they had already left for Phase World. Commander Potter looked at him in surprise. Your younger brother is serving on the Warhound? he inquired Danny laughed and replied, Yes, it was during the Wacker War that he, Brei and the five YGs were rescued from the war zone. Two are now full Gangrels From what Nicole said during our debriefing he was asked and volunteered along with the rest of his unit the Rams GYPS. All the YGs came as a part of the unit, said Alice. We have already chatted to them briefly on the first morning. There is a transmitter in the arrival office on Phase World that is sending the signal back to the Mining Outpost and from there to the Net. Do you know who is Head of the Weapons on board? Commander Potter inquired. We do and it is Brei, she is a gifted person when it comes to ranged weapons. She controls all the energy weapons except the AP Cannons from a seat in the front of the Command Deck. It lives in a contra grav bubble that allows her to control the weapons and become one with all the weapon systems. ***** A while later Danny and Alice sat with the YGs in their area of Deck One when the buzzer to the door went. YG Paula stood up and asked at the communication panel, Who is it please? Major Batts, I was hoping to join you. She pressed the unlock button and the door slid open. Of course you can Major, she said and walked back to her seat. Danny watched as he walked in and looked around the room. The Majors face changed to one of being very impressed by what he was looking at. He headed for where Danny and Alice sat with some of the younger members of his command. I am impressed, this is an. He stopped and thought about what the room was like. Interesting, yes, very interesting. The large LPD changed to show a large room someplace; sat around the screen were a lot of YGs and amongst them sat a few adults and Gangrels. They all wore similar clothing, the clothing of the Gith Culture. Hello Intreped YGs, said YG Pettra. Hello Warhound YGs, responded YG Edward. How are you lot? he asked. We are great. I am YG Cassie, sister to YG Pettra. Hi, I am YG Edward. Danny watched as Alex took out his PDU and a few seconds later his PDU buzzed. He took it out and saw it was Alex requesting a video Chat. He activated the camera and on the screen appeared Alex. Breis
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head appeared and disappeared. `Hello brother and sister. At last we can have a good chat,` typed Alex. `Yes we can, hello you and Brei, who are the rest of the adults?` `Gavin, Lucinda and Maurian, we all look after the YGs along with Nibs and Sandra. I heard Alice had a chat with Ren and Anti-char and they hope it answered some of the questions she asked.` He looked at Alice as she sat with YG Kat on her lap. I think it did, all of the Engineering Crew understand the situation and are being really helpful in teaching her what she needs to know. I know she is reading a hell of a lot about the science behind the engines and AM reactors. The other person here is Major Batts the commander of the 6th Infantry Merc Command, our armed forces. `Brei says hello. Where are you at the moment?` he asked. `Heading for the orbital facilities around Rugthz III,` he replied, ànd a reception on the War Mont V, I am also going to be heading down to the colony as we are picking up a group of five members from the Federation Council.` Ì think you will find one of the five is a fairy called Ittitan, she is the mother of a fairy on the Warhound.` He thought about some of the stories Old Mucker use to tell about the little friends. `You saying the stories Old Mucker use to tell about the little friends are true?` Alex smiled and nodded. `They are true. It looks like all of his stories were true.` He stared at the screen in real surprise. `My creator!` he exclaimed. Alex smiled as YG Pettras head appeared. She took the stylus from Alex and typed, `Hello uncle.` `Hello YG Pettra,` he replied. He looked up and saw two more people had entered as James ran to them and gave them both a hug. He typed, `Who are those two?` `Lei and Edward, they were looking after Kami, James, Cassie and Pettra until they vanished and we took over. They were rescued from the secret Alpha Wing Prison under the northern polar cap. They joined the crew when we got back after the flight test.` YG Pettra said something to Alex and he typed, `YG Pettra says, when they came back they became family.` He laughed at what YG Pettra said. Ànd everyone from there is my family now.` He watched as YG Pettra smiled. `That was a beautiful smile,` he typed. Òh man you want to see some beautiful smiles, go and take a look at the Rams Gallery pages. Over 20,000 pictures of the YGs having fun some of their smiles were as lovely.` He typed `Be right back, I am going to take a look.` He activated the netbrowser and went looking for the Rams GYPS page on GangrelNet. He found it and brought the Gallery Page to the front. He looked down the list and found the pages on the YGs. He looked at the pop-up box and read 24,677 photos. Fecking hell
that is a lot of photos. He tapped the link and the next page popped up, it displayed a list of categories, he tapped the one labelled Group Activities. This screen showed yet another list of various activities. He picked one at random. The first page of 190 photos displayed. The activity looked like a walk in some mountainous terrain. He looked at the dates and location and typed to Alex, `What was the activity on the 5th, 6th and 7th Malbrooth 2070, it says walking in the Low Back Mountains?` Alex thought about the activity and loaded the photos page for that activity. Òh yes, I remember that trip, the entire unit went to a house owned by another Gangrel and we spent the weekend walking, camping and mountaineering. One of the photos is of YG Pettra on her first solo abseil.` He searched for all photos with YG Pettra in the title. The search brought 27 photos and he scrolled through them and opened the one Alex was talking about. The smile YG Pettra had was beautiful. The next file was a video file, he ran the file and on the screen appeared YG Pettra from the bottom of the face looking up. The video jumped to one of looking down and the smile was the same as in the photo. `That is a beautiful smile YG Pettra. I bet you had a lot of fun?` Ì did,` she replied and got off Alexs lap. `She is heavy,` he said. Cassie appeared over Alexs shoulder and she mouthed Hello uncle. `Hello YG Cassie,` he replied. `What is happening with you?` `For the next few months we are helping Echo Tech Stores set up a shop front and also some office space as well as getting on the nerves of one of the residents here in the Manors, level 1 of Centre on Phase world. Nibs is playing the person at his own games and beating him, it is so much fun to watch, Nibs has been attacked three times on the orders of the person. All of them were dropped on the guys stairs bound up in a small package. From information Louise has found out he is not use to loosing face so many times to the same person.` He laughed at that comment. `From what I know of Nibs, she is very good.` ***** Danny sat in the Observation Area on Deck One as the Intreped arrived in orbit. He looked at the War Mont V and his improved vision picked out the bumps on the surface where the vessels weapons and sensors were located. He looked at his PDU and found he had a couple of hours before the reception was due to start. He knew the Gangrels would be on the first transport planet side as they along with the initial medical staff including the Chief Medical Officer. He stood up and headed for his cabin to get changed into something more suitable for a reception. He switched the LPD in his bedroom on and he selected the command crew from the War Mont along with the command crew from the colony. He looked at the screen and started to down load the information to his internal memory. As he downloaded the data he started to review the information stored. He picked up his Number Ones and looked at them.
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They were simple in design, smart and very elegant in looks. He quickly changed and as he did he worked his way through the crews. He walked out at the same time as Alice walked out of her cabin also wearing her Number Ones. Very smart bro, she said. The same to you sis, he said and the pair turned towards the lift. So who are you taking with you? Other than Dancetina and James K, Yelena and Raj from the Computer Assistance Department, she replied. The lift door opened and they stepped into the lift. Danny said, Hanger Deck please Marcha. The lift moved and a few seconds later it arrived on the hanger deck. The doors opened and they walked out and headed to one of the standard transport shuttles. Already stood around it were a number of the people attending. Yelena walked out of the lift behind them wearing a set of Number Ones. She approached the group and said, This is going to be interesting. Even when I attended the balls I always hired my dress. This was laying on my bed when I walked in to start getting ready. This is really nice. A few minutes later the last of the command crew appeared and they all boarded the shuttle. He headed for the commanders seat whilst Alice made the final inspection of the shuttle. She boarded and closed the rear door with a hiss, she moved up the aisle and took the pilots seat. She brought the internal reactor online and lifted the shuttle off its feet. She manoeuvred the shuttle to the lift and as she stopped the shuttle moving it started to drop to the flight deck. A couple of minutes later C&C cleared the shuttle for launch and Alice took her out of the front of the flight deck. Outside the Intreped she headed for the landing deck of the War Mont V. As she brought the shuttle down onto the flight deck he could see someone waiting for them to disembark. He stood up and opened the rear door. He headed down the shuttle and out of the back. The rest of the passengers joined him as he walked up the side of the shuttle to the Nuteash waiting for them. Good eve Command Crew of the Intreped, I am Fleet Admiral Rodorshav. Good eve Fleet Admiral, he replied and as Alice joined the back of the group he introduced everyone to her. Welcome all to the War Mont V, please would you follow me. She slithered towards the door out and as the group moved though they picked up two more officers. A couple of minutes later the lift door opened to reveal a large room with numerous officers and other people present; some looked like they were serving drinks and food from a large table. Danny looked around the room and saw at least a couple of examples of all the races of the Space Elf Federation. One of the Space Elves walked over and said to him, Good eve Captain, may I say you look a little
different to the rest of your crew? He smiled at the officer and went searching for the persons file, Good even Commander zDova. I am as much a native Darra Vonian as they rest of the crew, what you are seeing is the sub-dermal armour Security Command install as a part of their modifications to agents. Both myself and Alice were once members. Oh, I do remember seeing other members of Security Command when I led the assault forces that took the colony here. I think two of them were called Louise and Anti-char, very strange name that. He smiled and chuckled. It is, Anti-char full name is a bit of a mouthful and so she shortened it to Antichar. From what I remember your ship is far bigger than the Warhound and yet both ships have the same classification? Again he chuckled and replied, The CS002 Intreped is the production version, where the Warhound is an experimental version. It has a lot of technology that we on the Intreped do not have, Grav Engines for one are used on the Warhound and we have standard Reactionless drive units. One of my hopes is that the crew can perfect the Grav Engines for use on Star ships and fighters. zDova looked impressed by the plans. Now that does sound like an excellent project. It should be an excellent addition to the equipment available to the producers. The work the Hyperdrive engineers that are joining the Intreped do will also be of a massive help in the production of smaller more efficient units. Alice and Yelena walked over to them from chatting to a couple of the officers present. Arh madam, I see you are like the Captain, said zDova. I am like my brother an ex member of Security Command.
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Chapter 5
The following morning Danny walked out of the corridor and onto the flight deck. Stood leaning against the side of one of the transport shuttles were the rest of the group heading to the planet with him. The reports from the Gangrels and YGs were that they were enjoying being down on the planet and would return that evening. The mission had two goals one was the return flight would also include a number of members of the Federation Council and their aides. The second was to do a basic recon of the main areas, check the bars and other establishments for their activities. The cargo unloading was going according to schedule and would mean they would be able to leave in four to five days. He carried his basic equipment; Black Light body armour, a CLP30 Pulse Laser Pistol, his utility belt and a small portable scanner. Alice walked to the open back door and grabbed the top of the door frame. She looked at his approach and smiled. When he stood close enough she said, I see you still carry the scanner tech developed. He looked at Andrea and inquired, I am surprised to see you here Doc? Do not be, Isobel asked for reports on the medical facilities on the colony worlds and as we are here I give her my observations, replied Andrea. Yes, he replied and walked up the ramp. Yelena was already sitting looking at something on her PDU. As he walked through the back doorway the rest of the team followed. Richmond said as he took his seat, I personally escorted Mr Leddow off the ship this morning and have told the security teams to keep their eyes open should he try and sneak back on board. Danny turned in the commanders seat and said, Good, I hope he is not stupid enough to try. The plan for this trip is to check out the various bars and other establishments on the surface along with the discovery of information concerning activities off planet. He overheard Yelena say to Richmond, This is going to be interesting. I never thought I would be included in activities like this. Richmond laughed at Yelenas comments. Do not; you my dear are on the inside track. I think both the Captain and Chief Engineer look for skill and the ability to get on with people rather than resume and references. Danny turned around as Alice lifted the shuttle from the Flight Deck. He said, Richmond is not wrong Yelena. We need people who think on their feet, involve the people around them and understand what is acceptable behaviour and what is not. Mr Leddow did not know what was acceptable and as a consequence he
has found himself no longer a member of the crew. She nodded her understanding to what he had said. I just wonder how my friends will react to this. With support I think, said Alice. Twenty five minutes later Alice said, Rugthz III Spaceport control this is shuttle CT0022 on an inbound course to you, requesting clearance to land? Shuttle CT0022 you are cleared to Landing Pad 12. Danny looked at the plans for the Landing Pads and found 12 to be one of the closer ones to the main Colony Administration Buildings. Landing Bay 12 is that one, he said to Alice and pointed at it out of the windshield. Alice nodded and said, Thanks, got it. She piloted the shuttle down and stood under an overhang was the Colony Leader, Administrator Reds. Alice powered down the NPU and opened the door to the shuttle. Danny stood first and headed down the aisle and off the shuttle towards Administrator Reds as he walked towards the shuttle. Good morning Administrator Reds, he said as he offered his hand. Administrator Reds took it and gave it a firm shake. Good morning to you Captain Curtdoza and welcome to Rugthz III Spaceport. Thank you Administrator. Andrea, Yelena, Richmond and Alice arrived at Dannys side. My colleagues, Chief Engineer Alice Curtdoza, Chief Medical Officer Andrea White, Head of Ship Board Security Richmond Titovoth and Yelena Jims one of the Engineering Crew. Welcome all. I guess you have things to do so I will not keep you. Just enjoy the Spaceport. Oh the Gangrel Security Unit and the Moon Dwarves Planetary Security Forces raided a number of buildings across the Spaceport, three of them in downtown. From the reports all of them partook in activities none conducive to the betterment of people generally. Thank you for that information Administrator, Danny said. I think we have our first stop. The group walked out of the entrance to the landing pad and looked both ways up and down the street. Alice already had her PDU out and was looking for the sites. Found them, she said. She turned left and led the group to the closest site. Stood at a cordon were two Gangrels both wearing environmental armour and carrying MA60 Assault Rifles. The group walked down the street and stopped at the cordon. One of the pair asked, Can we help you? Yes, I am Captain Danny Curtdoza of the CS002 Intreped, Chief Engineer Alice Curtdoza, Head of Ship Board Security Richmond Titovoth, Chief Medical Officer Andrea White and Engineer 3rd class Yelena. I am also a member of the 15th Gangrel Heavy Assault Regiment, added Richmond T.
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The person who spoke lifted the barrier and allowed them into the cordoned area. C&C is the black van. Our Unit Commander should be there if not they will know where she is. Danny looked back and said, Thanks. The group walked towards the C&C van as a tall woman stepped from the open side door and walked towards the group. Hello Captain, Monica D said. She nodded her welcome to the rest of the group. What happened here, Administrator Reds said something about some raids? he asked as she led the group back to the C&C. Yes, we received some reports about children being used as sex slaves along with blood sports going on in the slums. This building is being rented by Trans-Darra Toral Broadcasting. From reports from the Space Elf Federation they have been investigated on numerous occasions for various illegal activities and nothing sticks or the person involved just disappears never to be seen again. They set up the offices a couple of months after the pirates arrived and in the most part they do produce some damn good broadcasts, very fair news coverage. But some departments are a little more dirty. A couple of Moon Dwarves walked out carrying a couple of computers and boxes of paperwork wrapped in evidence bags. They turned and headed to a second van and loaded the items into the cargo area. One of the Moon Dwarves walked to where Monica D stood and said, A couple of the local employees say they have information. From the front door appeared four Gangrels and two civilians. The Gangrels wore the same body armour and carried the same weapons. A shot rang out from behind them and one of the two went down. Danny span on the spot as a second shot rang out taking the second person down. From the entrance to an alley-way a man rang from the scene. Alice pointed to the roof of a three storey building and the fact someone was doing something up there. Two Jumping Jacks took off and landed on the roof of the building. Danny and Alice both took off after the person on the ground. Their cyber legs easily closing the gap between them and the perp. Danny launched himself at the prep and brought him to a halt in a heap, Danny continued and rolled forward and stood up at the end. As he turned the prep was just about back on his feet, knife in hand. He looked at both Alice and him and he looked as if he was working out who he should attack first. The perp lunged at Danny hoping to force him to move and so allowing his escape. The attack registered and Dannys improved reflexes batted away the attack as Alice grabbed him around the neck. Danny moved and grabbed his knife hand and applied a wrist lock forcing the perp to drop the knife. Danny could feel the perp was fighting him and had quite a bit of strength but not enough to overcome Dannys cybernetic strength. Alice applied more pressure to the sleeper hold and he slowly dropped off to sleep. After a good thirty seconds she released and grabbed his arm. The pair carried the sleeping form from the alley-way to the C&C
as the two who had been walking from the building walked around the van and smiled a good smile. Andrea followed the pair around and said, I am now impressed by the forethought of the Gangrels here. It is not forethought; it is preparing for the worst and hoping for the best. The worse was the pair being killed and so we equipped them with a light ceramic body armour which worked and stopped the rounds from killing them both. What happened to the shooter? Danny asked as a couple of Gangrels took charge of the sleeping body. He killed himself; he slit his own throat, said Monica D. He looked very unhappy by this turn of events. We have become use to it. A few of the criminals when captured decided to kill themselves either by forcing us to kill them or committing suicide. One of the two Gangrels who took the prep from him and Alice walked back and added to the conversation, That prep was a Juicer. I am surprised you caught him so easily. We are both 75% cyborg, he replied. I could feel him fighting my wrist lock. He was very much fighting my sleeper hold and I have put Juicers in the land of sleep before, said Alice. I use to work as one of the technicians when creating Juicers on Darra Von. Yelena stepped out of C&C and said, That was one impressive display, sorry for disappearing like that. Do not be sorry, Danny said, it is important for people not experienced in this type of activity to make sure they are safe. Mind you if you did not feel safe Yelena, I wonder how many more crew would feel the same way when guns start shooting, said Richmond. Alice looked at Richmond and said, Probably quite a few and it needs to be corrected, everyone must know what to do to protect themselves when the bullets start flying and also up close and personal. Danny knew Alice was right; everyone on the crew needed a basic understanding of combat. Richmond can I leave that in your hands along with creating a certification system for all crew in both ranged and close quarters fighting. Not a problem, I will look at that when we get back and I will include the Gangrels in the training. My question is do we have a room long enough to house a range. Danny thought about the situation and said, That is something to look at. Thanks again for you help in capturing him, said Monica D. Danny smiled at her and said, Not a problem, we are here to help, can you keep me posted on how the interrogation goes. Yes we will. Danny took out his PDU and loaded the Spaceports map and looked at it. Monica D any good places to
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go and any areas to stay away from? Monica D thought about his request and replied, Yes, Bazaar Square is a good place to go and the slums are not exactly a bad place, but try and stay away from the area. He nodded his understanding and said, Thanks, we will keep that in mind. The group turned and headed out of the opposite road to the one they had arrived on. A few minutes later the group arrived at Bazaar Square and looked out across a sea of colourful awnings and fixed structures. Around the edge of the square sat other shops, stalls and various bars and cafs. They walked down the steps leading into the square and at the bottom they bumped into a small group of YGs, most of whom came from the Intreped, a few did not. YG Paula looked up as the group descended the steps and said, Hello Captain. All the YGs stopped and waited for the group to reach the bottom. Hello YGs, he said as he looked at the group. I was wondering if the local YGs would mind giving us a tour of Bazaar Square? The three non Intreped YGs nodded that they would be happy to do that. YG Paula moved to stand beside him and slid her hand into his. He closed his hand around hers and looked down at YG Paula. If I could adopt you I would, he thought and the group headed around the edge. They spent a good couple of hours browsing the stalls in Bazaar Square and they all approached one of the cafs that surrounded the edge. Sat outside the caf was a pair of Space Elves and a small fairy. He went searching for the pictures of the people they were transporting back to Trashan. The fairy and both the Space Elves were council members. He smiled as they approached the cafe. YG Binh ordered the drinks and they rest headed back outside to the tables in the front. He released YG Paulas hand and walked to the table where Ittitan, hGrosh, and uTun sat and said, Good morning Council Members. All three looked at him and Ittitan said, Are you Captain Curtdoza? I am, he replied. Ittitan took to the air as she saw the YGs sat with the rest of the group. Do you think you have room for a few more people to join your tables Captain? I would have thought we could make more room, he replied and moved back towards the tables where the rest of the party sat. Make some room for the new arrivals YGs, he said. Very quickly the YGs had made room and found two extra chairs for the new arrivals. hGrosh asked, What is the current timetable for departure Captain? He thought about the current situation and replied, The current situation is we are returning to the Intreped this evening but we are not leaving orbit for at least another three to four days Council Member. hGrosh nodded his understanding to the situation.
We are rotating some of the longer serving crew down to the planet for couple of days shore leave, he replied, Plus I think some of the cargo we are carrying is heading for here, so there is always a way of getting up to the Intreped. hGrosh nodded his understanding and took a sip from his mug of drink. After a while the Space Elves stood up and uTun said, I shall be seeing you later Captain. The pair left the group and headed back into the square and disappeared. Ittitan smiled as the pair left, she said, Well I can tell you the YGs here have really opened their eyes to the treatment of people in the Federation which should mean good things will come to pass. In what way Council Member? asked Andrea. She sat and thought about her reply. In the way the non parented are treated, most are locked away in homes that sometimes house hundreds of children and other people. The better treatment of them is something I am going to be pushing for as it is in the YGs and Gangrels. I have direct access to Gangrel Command and will be talking to them about the setting up of Gangrel Units in the homes. Now that sounds like an excellent idea, responded Richmond. Without chatting to Sarah C personally I think she will be all for the idea, it would mean the people gain something special, very special. I know I travelled with the Warhound after it left Trashan and learnt so much from the YGs on board it was quite simply amazing to watch. They all were as much members of the crew as the adults and Gangrels were. They learnt a great deal about the Space Elf Federation as after Rugthz III was freed, Second Admiral hHillfifer led a diplomatic team to Darra Von. Since she has been offered the position of Ambassador to Darra Von, she accepted and has now opened the first Federation Embassy. What orders are you under Captain? No specific orders other than to help where we can and expand the understanding of the galaxy and ship related technologies. The Intreped is the first production version of the Warhound class vessel, Danny replied. I know, Nibs and the Warhound crew were brilliant hosts for the journey to Darra Von. We have increased our protection of Darra Von in that we have ten combat vessels in orbit around Arzana as well as a fleet of system patrol vessels in the deep system. It is more a deterrent to stop the pirates from attacking more than anything else. He nodded his understanding of the situation. He looked over at Yelena as she sat with YG Thomas on her lap. They seemed to be having a conversation about something that was getting her thinking. He listened in to the conversation. Yelena said, In what way do you mean that? I mean in the way of allowing the YGs to come and learn, we all work under the self study system and a big part of that is understanding the project. Our tutor gave us the project of writing about the ship and its basic vital systems. He watched as Yelena thought about what YG Thomas had said. Ok, I can see where you are coming
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from as the apprenticeship scheme I was on did the same thing, teaching by you studying and understanding the project. I would have to clear it with the Chief Engineer and the Section Heads, but I do see the principle working. I think it would be a great idea, he said. He turned to look at Alice and said, What do you think about the idea of having the YGs watching the crew of various sections working? Alice took a mouthful of her drink and replied after a couple of seconds of thinking about the idea. Yes I agree it would be a very good idea. I was planning on giving the YGs the project of understanding the back areas and how the systems linked to the main systems. Some of the older YGs looked at her in surprise. You know the back areas probably better than most of the Technical crew do; so rather than have some of them train up on the routes and the nexus rooms it is better to use you, she said. The captain did give you the jobs of being the Nuisance and Morale squad, so add this to your tasks; they from what I see should not need much maintenance as they are well built. Thank you Chief Engineer, responded YG Greggory. The rest of the day the group spent it touring the Spaceport finding the better pubs and places for the crew to go. As they walked back to the shuttle uTun walked up the road from their hotel carrying a bag. Walking beside him came a younger Elf, he also carried and pulled a bag. uTun said, Good eve to you Captain. Good eve to you Council Member, he responded and turned into the short tunnel that led from the street to the landing bay. Alice walked to the side of the rear door and opened the seal and the door dropped to the ground. All the people had at least one bag containing souvenirs of their visit. As he stowed his two bags Danny thought about the day and the photos he had taken of the YGs and the Spaceport itself. Richmond do you want to command the shuttle as I need to write a message to all the crew on shore leave about the best places to visit. Not a problem Captain, Richmond replied and took the commanders seat as Alice strapped herself into the pilots chair. Over the speakers came the voice of Danz Freeburg asking, Shuttle CT0022 what is your current status as we are awaiting your departure so we can join you? Just making final checks before launching, replied Alice. Danny looked down at his PDU and began to write the message for the crew having shore leave here. He felt the contra-grav units start and the shuttle lift of the ground. The next thing he noticed other than writing the message was the hiss of the door opening on the Intreped. He looked around as everyone stood to move off the shuttle. He unbuckled himself and also stood waiting for everyone to move off the shuttle. He followed Alice down the ramp carrying his two bags.
Sat beside the shuttle were the two combat transports that had carried the YGs and Gangrels back from the planet. All of them carried something off the shuttle. Captain has quarters been organised? inquired uTun. Yes you are all staying on Deck Five, he replied and followed the rest of the group out of the flight deck towards one of the lifts. A short while later after showing uTun and his assistant to their cabins he headed up for his where he would dump the bags. After dropping the bags off he headed for the Hydroponics bay at the back of the pod as he need to be alone for a while whilst he finished the message. He walked in to the Hydroponics bay and found a few Gangrels and other crew also relaxing and some looked like they were working. He walked to a small clearing where a log lay flat, he propped himself up against the log and brought the message he had been writing up and finished it. After sending it to all the crew on shore leave here he typed in Nibs name in to the messenger and tapped the send button. He lay the PDU down and looked up through the canopy into space. To the left of his field of vision sat the War Mont V and beyond that Rugthz III. Ittitan landed and asked, Am I disturbing you Captain? No, I was just relaxing and seeing if Nibs was online. She smiled and said, I would not mind seeing Nibs and Blackie again. She sighed a happy sigh. Who is Blackie? he inquired. Blackie is my son; I use to live on Darra Von as a part of a small community of fairies and pixies just south of where Suraban is now. I left due to a yarning on my part to being a member of the Space Elf Federation. I have, since leaving 1700 years ago, become the Fairy reprensitive for the population support services. When the Warhound visited Trashan was the time I met Blackie again. He has grown up in to a very responsible adventurous fairy. The PDU bleeped quietly as Nibs replied. He picked it up and connected to the cam invite Nibs had sent. He also activated his and Ittitan took off and landed just behind his left shoulder. Good evening Nibs, he said as on the screen appeared an all black fairy who landed on Nibs shoulder. Hi mum, he said. Hello to you Blackie, responded Ittitan. Hello Danny, said Nibs. What do I owe the pleasure of the call? Just wondering if you were free to chat? he inquired and had a head appear over the log. YG Paula said, Hello friends. He looked at YG Paula and said, Have you met Nibs and Blackie? YG Paula moved to sit beside him and replied, Yes, we met before I came on board. I was a late addition to the YGs in that my mum died when a rupture happened. Dad did not want me and I had made a few
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friends in the YGs on Explorer Base. YG Gina asked me if I wanted to join. When we returned after the flight test the Intreped was fully capable of supporting life on board; The Fraker was a couple of months further behind, they were just installing the Environmental systems. The YGs held a massive party for all the YGs with us when we left for Phase World, it included all the crew and it was great fun. A set of arms appearing carrying a baby. Nibs moved and took YG Hart-Fire. She turned YG Hart-Fire so he could look at the camera and screen. Sandra appeared over Nibs other shoulder and she smiled at the three. Hello Danny? she inquired. Yes Sandra I am Alexs brother. Good, welcome to freedom then. She stood up and disappeared from the screen. YG Hart-Fire said, Hello. Friends. He wore a big beaming semi toothed smile. Hello to you YG, Danny said and also smiled at the group. Another YG appeared on the screen and waved at the group. Hello, said YG Pettra. Hello YG Pettra. Nibs said after YG Pettra had gone, This YG is Hart-Fire, mine and Sandras second child. How are things on the Intreped? she inquired. Pretty good, he replied. The vessel is quite simply amazing, everything from the main computers down. I have spent the time since leaving Explorer Base exploring the vessel with the YGs and reading up on the crew. I have not yet started to look at the ship systems or how they all go together. My plan is to start on the Command systems, then weapons, propulsion and power and the rest following those. Nibs smiled an understanding smile at the same time as nodding her head. Good idea. 1800 people is a lot of people to go through especially as some are coming from the Federation and are going to be teaching us the finer points of Hyperspace Physics. Nibs chuckled at this and said, Very true. Relay on the Federation Council to select the best people for the jobs. We understand what is required in a situation like this, people who are patient and knowledgeable about the subjects. I took a verbal report back to the Federation Defence Department on the weapons Darra Von has offered us. I know it will shift the people in the right direction so we can purchase and close the gaps in that type of technology. I know the medical sciences are so looking forward to working with Darra Von on improving and modifying the Nanyte technology and cybernetics, said Ittitan. He nodded his appreciation to what Ittitan had said. I would say try and work with Security Command, but they would not allow anyone near the cybernetics. From what I know and the work Anti-Char, Ren and Wong, alongside the Fifth Wing, have done has massively close the gap between the Conspiracy and Security Command. Now the Cybernetic technology the Conspiracy is producing is a match for similar tech from Security Command. Nanyte technology is an area Security Command wants to get into; the Conspiracy and Echo Tech far outstrips Security Command with the usage of Nanytes.
Chapter 6
Who are those two? Dashary asked. No idea boss, replied Facarn. They are new to me, mind you so are a lot of Darra Vonians. I have been watching footage of fights which have been recorded and some of the fighters are very, very good easily a match for some of the current stars. A small box appeared on the screen beside the main view. On it appeared a pair of fighters as they fought. The woman is called Nibola Calton and the man is Metzza, I have very little information on either. This guy is also very good and his name is Richard Chancer. Dashary looked at Facarn and asked, You did just say Richard Chancer. She looked at him and replied, Yes I did, why, do you know Richard Chancer? Yes I faced a Richard Chancer over 200 years ago in the final of a Martial Combat championship; he kicked my arse around the ring that day. The main screen changed to one showing rTuth being restrained inside a transport vehicle. A short while later the screen changed to another Flyeye operating as a free agent and the same pair with three more people and a lot of young people appeared. Interesting, Dashary said and smiled as he thought about the amount of money he could make from the younger people he was looking at. I think we need to look at getting more information on them and the younger people. That might not be such a good idea boss as they all look like Giths and all the Giths on Rugthz III are members of the Gangrels. Oh, he said and remembered the reports from his people on Rugthz III concerning the Gangrels. I see your point maybe not such a good idea. He sat forward and engaged the engines on the light transport the company owned. The ship pulled out of the parking orbit on the far side of the star and he jumped to light speed. He stood up after engaging the autopilot and headed back into the main section of the ship and collapsed on to one of the comfortable seats he had installed for private off the record meetings. No record was ever off the record with him, he smiled as he remembered how he had made Auzt squirm and agree to sign the contract selling him all the copyrights for his next ten albums and films. All because he decided to make a pass at one of the waitresses he employed for those meetings. He remembered fondly as he watched the fun Auzt had gotten up to with her. What made it even worse
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were the laws in the area of the galaxy they had been in at the time. Boss, how do you want to go about things now, what with the security forces closing down pretty much all our operations. I do not know. I would love to make them pay for the loss in earnings, but I think we both know the outcome of that. Facarn nodded that she fully well knew the outcomes, them loosing even more money and also reputation which in the business of producing shows for the masses was king. Yes I do know. I did not mean that, I meant getting information on Nibola Calton-Patterson and the two from earlier? That he was working on but had come up empty handed on all counts. I wonder if they are serving on the Intreped? Possibly very likely. She moved only wearing her regulation revealing halter neck cut off, mini skirt, stockings and five inch heels. She walked very sultry towards him and sat on his lap her mini-skirt riding up her legs and sitting around her backside. ***** The light transport dropped out of hyperspace at the edge of a star system where Trans-Darra Toral Broadcasting had its headquarters. It was based on one of five Orbital Habitats orbiting the fourth planet. The planet and two of the habitats were also main centres for the Black Market and a few slave markets. He sat in the commanders seat and basked in the infra-red radiation the star pumped out. The star itself was a very strange star as it produced infra-red radiation and had been called by the scientific community a Black Sun. None of the planets orbiting the star had any form of atmosphere and the local people had built their communities under the surface with airlocks and sealed landing pads the only way in. He took control of the ship and piloted it towards the headquarters and his private landing bay. He brought the ship to a halt and both he and Facarn stood up and headed for the off ramp. Stood at the bottom of the ramp was Hazz, Head of Show Production. Good trip? he asked as the pair stepped from the ramp to the hanger. Yes and no, Dashary replied, We have lost all our production centres on DR1554-3. Hazz stopped and looked very concerned by this turn of events. How come? The new Planetary Security forces raided ten Dark Worlds Production Sites. The good news is, we might have found a few new people whom would make excellent stars in the fighting rings and some more people for the Adventures of Raz and Tobial. Where are they? inquired Hazz. That is the other problem from the information we have the young are members of the Security Forces and the two are unknown to us. They are Darra Vonians though. Mm, said Hazz, I will put the scout teams on finding information on these people. Can I assume you have something for the teams to work with? Yes we do, it is all on the computer, Dashary replied and he started to walk back to his cabin.
***** As the group approached Dasharys apartment Hazz said, Our scout teams have managed to get some new cast members for The Young Bloods. I had a sample of four brought to your apartment when our sensors picked up you ship boss. He smiled and winked at Facarn who was now wearing a black tight miniskirt, stockings, 5 heels knee high leather boots and a black blouse with the top few buttons undone. I hope they were made comfortable, he said. They were, I left one of their minders in the apartment to make sure they stayed comfortable, replied Hazz. He smiled a knowing smile and unlocked the door to his apartment. Both he and Facarn walked into the reception room. Kneeling on the floor in front of the door out of the reception room was his personal slave. She was wearing her very revealing maids uniform. He knew inserted inside her would be his custom made sex toys that would keep her on the edge. Stand slave, he said as the door closed. She did and smiled down at his shoes. Come and give me a kiss slave. She moved as he bent down and she planted a very loving kiss right on his mouth, her tongue brushing across his lips. He caressed her back and firm bottom.
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Chapter 7
Danny walked down the corridor from the Space Sciences Lab and right into Drass who was walking in the opposite direction. Good morn Captain, said Drass. Good morn Council Member Drass. I hope the accommodations are up to your standards? Drass smiled at him and replied, They are, they are actually better than I am use to. Better than you are used to Council Member? he asked. Yes, I in addition to being a Council Member I am a member of the Trashan Science Academy. I specialise in what happens to stars from when they are formed to when they die out. Danny looked highly impressed at this information. I know when you pick up the last of your crew from Trashan one of the crew members is one of the six Post Higher Scientists to be held by the pirates the Federation fleet destroyed. His mother was being forced to reveal information to the pirates. After she was released from her duties on the Fratten Five the Science Academy offered her a position as a researcher. She turned it down in favour of joining her youngest son. She is very experienced in Particle Physics. At this Danny smiled his understanding. Drass looked at him and asked, Any chance I can use your Space Sciences Lab. I need to check some data I discovered on the central computer of the colony. Yes certainly. You do not mind if I tag along? he asked and turned around heading back to the Laboratory. Inside the lab Drass walked to one of the terminals and slotted in a data store. After a couple of minutes of the labs computers reading the information stored the display system displayed a 3d representation of the local star map. Danny turned from looking at the map and asked, What am I looking at? I am very green when it comes to science generally. Being a member of Security Commands Intelligence Division meant science was not very important to us. Drass walked from behind the terminal and moved to stand beside him and replied, What you are looking at is a local area star map. I am looking for a very rare star, namely a Black Sun. It only produces Infra-red radiation and is very difficult to detect, but the data I took from the colonys computers indicates the possibility of one existing in this area of space. It is what hGun is researching; he is looking for a Black Sun to study it and determine how it came about. Danny nodded his appreciation of the information. There must be other reasons for the looking for this specific sun?
Drass looked at him and to him he made a judgement call. Yes the Federation Council thinks the Pirates have a major base in the area, they like places off the beaten tracks and sites that are very hard to discover, a Black Suns system would make a perfect place for a base. That I can see, Danny replied and looked back at the star map. With out sounding completely ignorant what is that group of suns called? That is a Sun Cluster and that one especially is very hard to navigate in hyperspace as the various gravitational wells cause a considerable problem to the safe usage of Hyperdrives. Danny knew from the reports of the ships Intelligence Department that Trans Darra Toral Broadcasting had its Headquarters someplace nearby. The reports said a few names of Sun Systems and three were in the sun cluster. His PDU buzzed as it received a message from someone. He took it out and pressed the connect button. On the screen appeared Monica D. She said, Captain I thought you might want to see this, it is a video transmission that is being broadcast to the entire spaceport and it is not coming from the Administration Building. The screen changed again and showed a music video. He looked at the music video and the female singing he recognized from somewhere. He started to go through the female singers he knew and came to one he remembered from before his time in Security Command. You still there Monica D? Yes I am, she said. Good I swear I remember her from before my time in Security Command. He moved to another terminal and started a search for female singers from 2036 to 2047. This might take a while as I am searching all female singers from between 2036 and 2047. Drass looked at the music video and said, I know who she is, that is Shakka, a singer Trans Darra Toral made into a mega-star. Communications, Captain Curtdoza. Are we picking up any external communications containing a music video? Yes we are, we have been picking Trans Darra Toral Productions LPD broadcast for the last few hours. We have been trying to locate the source of the transmission. He nodded his understanding and said, Ok, keep me informed of the results. He turned to Drass and asked, Do you remember when she first hit stardom in the Federation? Drass thought about the question and said, No, but I bet the Federation Databases will know. Can I? He indicated he wanted to use the terminal. Yes, go ahead, he replied and stepped back from the terminal. Drass moved to stand in front and brought a second copy of Netbrowser up and started a search for all references to Shakka starting with the earliest reports. How do you know her?
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If she is the same person then when I remember her she was just starting out as a singer-songwriter. I use to love one of her first songs. Drass database search finished first. The top link was the report on Shakkas first song to be released by Trans Darra Toral. Tishun can you convert the dates on the search of the Federation databases into our yearage? Not a problem Captain. The screen changed to display Darra Vons year system. The year was 2050. He brought up his search and clicked a news link concerning the disappearance of Shakka in 2048. He looked at the article and found she had released the single Where and What in 2045. Also displayed in the page were a few more of her songs. This is the singer I remember. He clicked the link to one of her music videos. He compared the two music videos and she was the same person. Oh hell, he said when he saw the two singers. The music video changed to another song by her. At the start of the chorus Danny stared at his PDU in utter surprise; it was the same song Where and What. He read the article which said she had been kidnapped by an unknown group. He sent the system doing another search through all the recorded security files held on the History Guilds Server. What are you searching for now? asked Drass. All cases over 10 years old and not out of time are sent to the History Guilds Security Servers, what I am searching for is the file on her disappearance, he replied. What do you know about Trans Darra Toral Broadcasting? Enough to know they are very powerful and reach across the galaxy. Unconfirmed reports are that the actual company has numerous branches and sub divisions covering all aspects of broadcast and net media. One division is a cause for great concern, it is called the Dark Line Division and it broadcasts combat sports where death is the usual outcome; violent porn where rape and torture is common and also underage porn where children as young as we think five or six are sexually abused. This made Danny sick. He hated paedophilia and child abuse but to broadcast it was something he absolutely detested. Can I ask do you know where they get the children from? No, replied Drass and he too looked disgusted at what the company did. We try and block The Dark Line channels but they still get through especially on net transmissions. We need to warn the Council of Twelve and the Planetary Government about Dark Line Division and also about Trans Darra Toral Productions. They hopefully will be able to block the transmissions, Danny said. They can try, but it is very hard they have some very powerful transmission stations and also some really good people working the net side of the business, replied Drass. Danny thought about the situation and also what was the best method of dealing with it. Monica D you still online? he asked. A couple of seconds passed and no answer came. Communications, Captain Curtdoza
can you open a channel to Monica D please. Not a problem, doing so now, replied Andrew W. A few seconds passed and Monica D said, Captain Curtdoza, how can I be of help? Have you still got the guy we captured in your custody? he inquired. We have, we were about to start interrogating him, why? I want in on the interrogations and will be planet side in about half an hour. Not a problem we will wait for your arrival and organise a landing pad at our homebase, replied Monica D. Thanks, chat to you in a short while, he replied and said to Drass, Thanks for the information concerning Trans Darra Toral Productions, but if the guy myself and Alice captured is connected to them then he is a good place to start looking for them. Drass nodded his understanding and said, You are very right Captain. He left the science lab and a few seconds later he walked out of the lift and into the hanger deck. He walked to where one of the technicians stood working on a Hornet. Any chance I can take one of the Hornets to the planet? The technician stood and thought about the request and replied, Yes, that one is flight ready Captain. Thank you, he replied and headed to get changed into his flight suit. Five minutes later he flew out of the flight deck and confirmed an entrance corridor to the planet. Twenty minutes later he piloted the Hornet down to the landing pad out the back of the local homebase. Monica D stood waiting for him to land and as he popped the canopy she walked to the nose of the Hornet and waited for him to climb down. He stood up after releasing the straps and from the top foot pegs he jumped to the ground and said, Hi again Monica D, where is the prisoner? Still in lock-up, she replied and handed him a thin file. All the information we have been able to get on him. It looks like he was been an Elven Juicer for a couple of years. Danny thought about what he knew about Juicers and the effects of the chemicals on their bodies. So he has at least three more years to live then? I do not know, being here is the first time I or the unit has come across Juicers, Monica D replied as she led him across the pad and into the main building. Danny undid the top half of his jumpsuit and tied the arms around his waist. Where is he? In there, replied Monica D and pointed at the monitor on the wall. Sat in a small cell was the man he and Alice had captured. Why the covers on his hands and feet? he asked. What with the other members killing themselves we thought it better to make sure he could not kill himself so we covered his hands and shackled his feet to the bars.
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Danny watched the monitor and noticed he looked scared. What do we know about him? He came off a light transport about two weeks before the Warhound arrived and he has been working as a doorman at one of the pirate run sex clubs. Other than that he has kept himself to himself. Some of the security teams have seen him hanging around the odd bar and caf and it does look like he has been trying to get himself a job. Danny looked back at the monitor. He looks scared of something. Monica D looked at the monitor and it looked like she was studying it. What makes you say that he is scared? He laughed at this comment and said, Years of experience Monica D, years of experience working as a member of Security Command Intelligence Division. You learn how to read a persons body language and how the subtle movements tell a story. He took out his PDU and contacted the Intreped. Gill Q, Captain Curtdoza here, can you ask one of the council members to access any and all information on. He looked at Monica D. rTuth Quezar-Mel, she replied. rTuth Quezar-Mel, I am going to need any and all information on him. Will do, replied Gill Q. He turned to Monica D and said, Take me to where you are holding him. Monica D nodded and led him to the cells and she stayed at the door as he walked in and stood in front of the cell. rTuth Quezar-Mel, he said. He looked up at Danny and looked very scared now. Who are you? he inquired. Possibly a friend, maybe your enemy but right now I am here to talk to you. He looked at Monica D and asked, Can you open the cell please. Ok, she replied and lent back and pressed something on the wall outside the room. The cell door slid open and he stepped into the cell and knelt down. At this level he could see into rTuths eyes and he saw eyes of someone he knew was frightened of what would happen to him. You are scared of something, he said. You scared of us or something else. Do not worry about saying things, everything you say to me and Monica D is said in the strictest confidence. We will never tell anyone. Monica D walked to the door and she too knelt down to look him right in the face. My bosses will know I have talked and they will kill me, replied rTuth. No they will not know, if you mean Trans Darra Toral Productions they will not know, Danny said. They will, they know everything about you, said rTuth. He stood up and Monica D joined him in standing. Monica D is this building bugged? he inquired. No, the pirates were not able to plant bugs in here. I know as I lived here throughout their occupation and the building is equipped with a state of the art surveillance system, she replied. He looked back at rTuth and said, If it makes you feel better then I can transfer you to the Intreped in
orbit and I know for a fact there are no bugs on the vessel from the pirates or Trans Darra. He took out his PDU and contacted Alice, Alice any chance you, Richmond and a couple of security officers come to the Gangrel Homebase and pick up the guy we captured yesterday? Yes not a problem, we will leave in the next few minutes. No I cannot leave with you they will see me and know I am talking. Danny shook his head and said, No we are transferring you to the CS002 Intreped one of the vessels belonging to the Conspiracy Forces from Darra Von for transport to a better more secure facility. I will be back in a few minutes, he said and the pair left the cell and as they left the room Monica D closed the cell doors. You are very right, he is scared, not of us, of Trans Darra Toral, she said after he had closed the door. Dannys PDU buzzed as it received communications from the Intreped. He took it out and said, Captain Curtdoza here, what is up? Nothing Captain, uTun here, I have the information you requested on rTuth. Ok, he replied. rTuth was born on a small colony on the edge of the Federation to rTak Quezar-Mel, his father is not listed but that is no surprise as birth information from the outer colonies is sketchy at best and he could have been a crewman from any of the ships that stopped there. He is 173 years old and disappeared some 30 years ago after a pirate raid. Does he have a barcode tattooed on the back of his neck? Monica D nodded that he did. He does, why is that significant? he asked. Yes it means he was sold into slavery, does he also have a small tattoo just beneath the barcode of a star system and the Letters TDTP? He does, replied Monica D. What does that indicate? He was purchased by Trans Darra Toral Productions, replied uTun. Danny nodded his head in understanding of the situation. One question to ask him is does he know what department purchased him, said uTun. Ok we will ask him that. What happened to his mother? From the information she is still alive and has spent the last thirty years looking for him. Danny smiled and inquired, Any chance you can try and locate her as he is very scared of the company. I will certainly try and locate her. What are your plans concerning him? I want to bring him to a place where he feels safe as he is paranoid about the company finding out he has talked. A couple of seconds passed and uTun replied, Ok, you thinking of bringing him to the vessel then? Yes, I have already asked Alice and a security detail to come and collect him for transport back to the
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ship. Hopefully there he will feel safer and more ready to open up to us; he has information I want concerning the company and their methods. Ok, I will see what I can do concerning his mother, said uTun and the channel went dead. Danny turned and opened the door again as he looked at rTuth he noticed something very small cross the strip light. What the hell was that? he thought. Monica D does the planet have any flying insects? he asked. Monica D thought about the natural life on the planet and replied, No, it does have insects but none to my knowledge fly, why the question? I saw something very small pass the light and with what rTuth said about the company knowing things I think they might be using some form of surveillance system. Can you turn the lights off in the room? Monica switched the lights off. Danny activated his Infra-red vision system but made sure his own infra-red light was switched off. He looked into the room and saw a very, very small red dot. He zoomed in on the dot and found a very small fly like object. Can you get me a glass or something, I can see a fly in the room and it is using an infra-red system. Monica left him and a few minutes later she returned carrying a glass and a small sheet of ceramic. She handed it to him and stood in the door way. He moved into the room and approached the fly from behind it. He moved very quickly and trapped the fly inside the glass. It took off and hit the glass wall and it flew across the glass and hit the opposite side. He slid the ceramic plate between the ceiling and the glass and brought the whole thing down placing his hand over the top to make sure the plate did not move. Got you, he said. Now it is time to find out more about Trans Darra Toral Productions. rTuth I think I might have the surveillance system you are scared off in the glass. Monica D switched the lights back on and opened the cell door. Danny stepped into the cell and held the glass with the fly in so rTuth could see it for himself. After he had looked at the fly he relaxed a little. But if I leave here they will still see me. See what, we can take you to the outside of the spaceport and load you there. They will not be able to find you then. Monica D said. You do not understand, they will be able to see me. Danny shook his head and said, No they will not and just to prove it to you. He took out his PDU and contacted the vessel, Gill Q, Captain Curtdoza can you scan all the communication frequencies for a transmission coming from my location and find if there are any receiver stations in the area? A couple of seconds went by and Gill Q replied, On it now Captain. What are you going to do if you do find a receiver station? inquired rTuth. We are going to shut it down, replied Monica D. We do not like people we do not know watching us.
When the frequency is found the Intreped will jam it and then do a trace back to find the station, so you see they will not know you have chatted to us, Danny replied. Have you got a black sack so we can cover the glass? Monica D thought about the request and she walked into the main building and quickly returned carrying a large paper bag and some cord so they could fix the plate to the top of the glass. She tied the cord around the glass and ceramic plate tight. Danny placed the glass on the table and studied the fly. It was very advanced and used microscopic components. Alice is going to love this. He picked up the glass placing it inside the paper bag and turned to look at rTuth. See you should not worry, we keep our promises for it is what makes us better than the rest of the people in the galaxy. I do see that, rTuth replied and he smiled at the pair. Monica D can you inform the shuttle to meet you outside the spaceport. Monica D nodded that she would and walked out of the cell block. rTuth looked at him and asked after a couple of seconds of studying him, Who are you? You and the other person moved far faster than I expected a normal person would? Who am I and Alice, who is my older sister, we are members of an organisation that changes people by modifying our bodies by the addition of state of the art cybernetics and bionics. Both of us are equipped with the light versions of the technology. Monica D walked back in to the room and said, It is sorted they are going to meet us on the plain twenty miles south of the Spaceport in about thirty minutes. I think we had better get moving as it will take about that time to get to the site. She moved in to the cell and unshackled rTuth from the bars and he stood up. Harm her of have cause to harm Monica D and there is not a place I will not find you, Danny said to rTuth. Do not worry I will not. Monica D led him from the cells with Danny following just behind. She headed down a set of steps into a basement and she opened the side door of a vehicle. She moved around the front and opened the drivers side door; she climbed in and started the engine. Danny closed the door after rTuth climbed in he said, I will follow you in the Hornet. Ok, Monica D responded as the garage doors opened. Danny walked back up the stairs and he picked up the package. He headed out to the landing pad where he slipped his arms into his flight suit and climbed the boarding ladder and very quickly had the reactor running and he floated up off the ground and said, Spaceport Control CF0027, I am airborne and about to fly shotgun for a vehicle heading south. Confirmed CF0027, Monica D told us of the plans and we are currently tracking the shuttle heading for
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the pick-up. Thanks Spaceport control, CF0027 out. He turned and looked at the position lock map the Hornet possessed and found Monica D heading out of the Spaceport towards the mountains to the south. Monica D, Danny, I have you on the map and I am about to follow you. Ok Danny. He flew slowly and quickly found the vehicle as it drove out of the Spaceport. Twenty five minutes later Monica D arrived at the plain and as she climbed out he spotted the shuttle heading towards them. Shuttle CT0024, CF0027, I have you on visual and when you land I have a package for you to take back to the Intreped. Alice I think you are going to like the package, but I would not open it until you are in a lab. I will explain when you have landed. Ok Danny, we are about three minutes out and I have visual on you. He landed the Hornet and climbed out to wait for the shuttle to arrive. Alice piloted the shuttle down and Richmond along with the two security guards walked out of the open back. Monica D handed Richmond the security card for the shackles and covers for the hands. Alice walked out and headed for where he stood holding the paper bag. Is that the package bro? she inquired. It is, I would not unwrap it as it is a surveillance system we think used by Trans Darra Toral and rTuth is scared of them finding out he is talking to us. Alice nodded her understanding and took it from him. I will give it to Richmond to hold for the flight back. Are you going to shadow us? Yes, I have nothing else to do down here now. Monica D walked over to where the pair stood and asked, Any chance a few of the unit can have a tour, we never got the chance to when the Warhound was here? Yes, it would be our pleasure to give the whole unit a tour. The work you guys do here is incredible. How many of you work the Orbital Facilities? Danny inquired. We rotate a team of ten through the facility every couple of weeks. I have put a request in to Sarah C to have a unit permanently assigned to the station, she replied. Richmond walked back to the group and said, rTuth is secured and we are ready to leave. Ok, replied Alice and she turned to head back to the shuttle. We will contact you later concerning the tour, how many in the unit? 57 members and 39 YGs. Danny nodded his understanding and said, let them know about the tour and we will contact you later today, but expect it to happen either tomorrow or the next day as we have an appointment at Trashan in a few days.
I will do and thank you, Monica D replied and she walked back to the vehicle. Danny climbed into the Hornet and lifted off the ground and waited for the shuttle to lift off. Alice piloted the shuttle off the ground and Danny followed it up towards the Intreped.
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Chapter 8
On the flight up Gill Q contacted Danny and said, We have found the receiving station. It is located on a satellite of the fourth planet. Ok, have we got any images of the facility? he asked. No. Commander Danes has deployed a couple of Hornets to conduct some recon of the facility and the War Mont V has volunteered a couple of squads of their assault troops to help. Danny nodded his head in understanding. Tell Major Batts that I want a meeting with him and Commander Titovoth when I return to the Intreped. Will do Captain. The communications ended and Danny contacted the shuttle. Alice is Richmond available? Yes he is sitting in the Commanders seat holding the package why? The Intreped has found the receiver station on a satellite of the fourth planet, he replied. Captain, what is up? inquired Richmond. Gill Q has located the receiver base for the surveillance system you are carrying; I have already asked Major Batts to come and have a meeting with me concerning the taking of it from who-ever is controlling it. Danny watched as Richmond nodded his understanding. Ok, I will prepare a security detail for the assault. Danny nodded as they approached the flight deck. He accelerated the Hornet and flew in ahead of the shuttle and landed. He opened the canopy and jumped down to the deck and waited for the shuttle to arrive. Already stood on the flight deck were four more security officers waiting to escort rTuth to holding. Also stood on the flight deck was uTun and he looked rather happy at something. Council Member uTun, he said as uTun walked towards him. Welcome back, I have been able to locate rTuths mother and she is waiting on an FTL communications station at the Colony. Danny nodded as Alice landed and opened the back hatch. rTuth walked down the ramp bracketed by the two security officers. uTun turned and followed the group as they headed off for holding. Alice walked off carrying the package and she also turned for the exit. He knew she would be heading for one of the labs so she could get a good look at the device. He and Richmond turned and headed off to the changing rooms so he could get changed. Ten minutes later the pair exited the lift on Deck One and headed for his cabin. Major Batts sat in the Observation Deck with a couple of the YGs as they listened to something he was saying. Major Batts, Danny said.
Major Batts looked over his shoulder and said something to the YGs as he stood up. He walked to where they pair waited and followed them into Dannys cabin. Danny walked to the comfortable seats and sat down. Major Batts and Richmond joined him in sitting. You wanted to see me Captain, said Major Batts. I did. Gill Q has been able to locate a receiver station for a surveillance system Alice is looking at now. I want to assault the base and your unit is the ships assault force. The War Mont V has also volunteered a couple of squads for the assault. Major Batts nodded his head in understanding and said, I have the perfect unit for the task. Who will be leading the assault? he asked. I will, Danny replied. We have a member of Trans Darra Toral Productions on board and I told him he would be safe and this is a part of making sure he is along with the planet. The pair nodded their heads in agreement to the plan. Commander Danes has sent a couple of Hornets to conduct some recon so the assault will happen post us getting the results of the reconnaissance. Ok, replied Richmond. I too have the force going. You going to be leading it from the front Captain? Of course I will be, even though I may have only been in Intelligence I still have experience of assault missions. You have both probably already guessed I am very hands on when it comes to commanding the vessel and its operations. He activated the LPD and said, Commander Danes, what is the status of the recon mission? Heinrich appeared and replied, The Hornets are a still a few hours out, but I can tell you the satellite is a vacuum and the facility looks like a small outpost likely having only 30 maybe 40 personal. Danny nodded and said to Major Batts and Richmond, Make sure your troops have experience of combat in a vacuum and are ready for a tough assault as I think they are not going to be giving it up without a fight. Major Batts sat back and thought about something. Ok, I think I shall add a half squad of PAs to the assault force. Danny nodded his understanding and said, Ok get the force ready and make sure the War Mont V is also involved in the planning. They might have information about what we might be facing. Ok, replied Richmond T. I will organise the briefing when we have some updated intelligence of the facility. The pair stood up and turned to leave the cabin. Oh before you go, I have said we would give the Gangrels and YGs from the Spaceport a tour of the vessel so if possible would you both be up for acting as guides for the tour? he asked. Richmond stopped, turned to face him and replied, I will be happy to give a group a tour. How many
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Gangrels and YGs? 57 Gangrels and 39 YGs, he replied. Richmond T nodded and said, I will organise the tours for them. Danny smiled at the pair as they both turned towards the door and headed out. Drass walked in as the left. Captain I hope I am not disturbing you? No Council Member, please come in, he said and stood up. Can I offer you a drink? No thanks I have just had one. I thought you might want to hear what I have been able to discover concerning the Black Suns. Danny walked to the kitchenette and made himself a coffee and returned to the comfortable seats. Please, he replied. Drass joined him and asked, Have you got a LPD I could use to show you the information? Yes, is your information on Tishun or a data store? he inquired. It is on Tishun, who I might add has been quite a bit of help with the research. Tishun display the information please. The LPD changed and displayed the data. I think I might have been able to find a Black Sun which is located in the Sun Cluster we looked at earlier. Danny looked at the screen and displayed was a close up of the Sun Cluster. He studied it and saw a gap in the locations of the nine suns in the cluster. I can see you are studying the cluster and you are right in guessing the Black Sun is located in the gap between SU7754 and AH5433. From the information I was able to discover on the memory core of Tishun and also other research carried out by some of my colleagues the Suns name was PQ875. A science vessel for the Nuteash mapped the Sun Cluster about 4 million years ago before they joined the Federation. They spent a good fifty years studying the cluster and how each sun interacted with the others. They went back after a hundred thousand years and found one of the suns had disappeared. They found it again exactly where it had been but it had undergone a dramatic alteration in its properties and had become a Black Sun. The first war against one of the more powerful Evils started a few years later before we could send a science vessel to study it and the effects on the planets in the system. Danny nodded his basic understanding to what had happened. He knew this was a place he would be heading after picking up the rest of the crew from Trashan. He took a mouthful of his coffee and continued to listen to Drass explanation. Since then no science vessel has returned to the cluster as it became a staging post for a second Evil and its attacks on the Federation. I know the science vessel that had been looking at the Rugthz system had plans to go back and see what had happened to the various sun systems since the previous exploration. Ok, so what makes you think Trans Darra Toral has set up there? he asked. Information from the colonys computers. The pirates controlling the colony tried to delete the files on
the computers but the fleets own computers and Tech Teams broke the defences and stopped the deletion. What with the situation surrounding the spaceport and the fact the facility needed to be working as soon as possible no one took the time to look through the data files stored. I did and I did not piece the information together until Tishun made the connection between the reported heat coming from the cluster and the scientific results of other Sun Clusters. The heat is a magnitude greater than it should be indicating one of the suns is producing far more heat than it should. I also found trip logs listed to known light transports of Trans Darra Toral and the fact the destination was the cluster. Danny smiled an evil smile. Well that is damn good news. We might be in a place to check the information as a receiver station is on one of the satellites of Rugthz Four. Drass looked very impressed by the information. Now that is excellent news, what is plan concerning it? he inquired. The situation is a couple of Hornets are headed to conduct some recon of the facility before we go and launch and assault of it, he said. rTuth, the person I brought back from the spaceport was being watched by a surveillance system that was the key to finding the facility. I hope after we have taken the base he is willing to talk as then he can see they are not going to know he is talking to us. He took another mouthful of his coffee and continued. Alice has the item and is currently looking at it. The technology is very advanced. Drass sat and thought about what he had said. That brings up another question where did they get the technology from? My thoughts exactly, Danny replied and finished his coffee off. Anyway I am going to see what Alice has been able to discover about the item. You mind if I come as well, this is technology the Federation needs to know about as it would mean the possibility of being watched by outside forces and the consequences of that, said Drass. Not a problem. It would answer the question of how the company got what it has, he finished and stood up. He walked and placed his cup in the washing sink and quickly gave it a clean. He joined Drass as they walked out of the door. A few minutes later the door opened to the technology lab where Alice was working on the item. What had you got Alice? Danny asked as he walked in. A bit, it is very advanced and very small. It seems to use nanyte technology and is powered by taking power from the EM fields electrical items produce, she replied. We are jamming its transmissions at the moment. She placed a tray with the item on inside the electron microscope and switched the system on. On the screen appeared the item at a zoom factor of 400 times. Danny looked at the screen and saw it was now three pieces; a head, middle section and rear. Coming from the middle section were six legs and also a pair of wings. Alice moved the targeting system to focus in on the head and zoomed in a further 200 factors. The screen showed coming from both eyes were a couple of tube items.
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One of the tubes I think is a camera and the other is an infra-red system, said Alice as Ittitan flew over from looking at the computer on the desk. I can add a bit to the discussion, she said and landed on the top of the unit. It incorporates a two way transceiver in that an external person can control it or it has its own programming. Danny nodded and said over his internal communications, Tishun, Gill Q, Captain Curtdoza, I want a full watch be done of the frequencies the surveillance system used as well as a full scan of all items brought on board from both the station and planet side. Tishun answered, Not a problem Captain I was doing exactly that. If Trans Darra wants information then they are going to have to get it the hard way. Certainly captain, I will inform the rest of the communications crew and C&C about your orders. Danny took out his PDU and tried to look at the pair of Hornets heading for the outpost. Both had nothing on the video page other than the words Flying Sensor Masked, No Data being received. He subtly smiled and nodded his head. He went back to watching the screen as Alice moved the targeting system to the middle section and the joins of the wings to it. Ittitan said, Now that looks very advanced. It does look like it is, Alice said. One thing we need to do is tell the council of this and inform them of the frequencies so they can check and jam any coming from Darra Von. Danny nodded is head in agreement. I will send that communication out now. He activated his internal communication system and said, Communications can you open a channel to Explorer Base please? Certainly Captain. A few seconds later a voice said, Captain Curtdoza, Explorer Base, how can we help? We are going to be sending you some information on a surveillance system used by Trans-Darra Toral Productions. I advise scanning the frequencies and jamming any signals. The transmission will include all the information concerning the company from our own research and information held on the Space Elf Federations own databases. Thanks for the heads up, Tishun is sending the files now. Explorer Base out. Explorer Base knows and is down loading the files from Tishun now, he said. Alice turned and asked, What is the status of the recon mission? Do not know as they are running on communications blackout, he replied. Alice nodded her head in understanding. The raid, I realise I also want in on it. He smiled and said, I thought you would. Drass asked, Can you zoom in on the legs Alice? Sorry, she said and did that. ***** A while later Alice was looking at a schematic Tishun had been able to put together from the various
tests and visual observations carried out. Tishun, have you been able to de-code the programming? she inquired. Some of it, it looks like each piece has its own specific coding, only the coding connecting all the various pieces together and the power system is the same across the unit. Any idea what the programming was written with? A few seconds passed and Tishun replied, No, but I am looking at that now. Alice nodded and said, Ok, I am going to take a break as there is not much more I can do without knowing what the receiver station gets in the way of a data stream. She picked up her tablet and checked the various systems and also her message box. She found one from the Oliver Potter. She opened it and read the message. At the end she sent back to him that she was going to the main hydroponics bay and she would love to chat to him about his plans. She left the laboratory and quickly boarded the lift. Main Hydroponics bay thanks Marcha. The lift moved and a few seconds later it arrived at the lift door opposite the bay and she crossed it and saw Oliver P sat at a table with James K and it looked like they were involved in a discussion as they both had their PDUs out and were looking at something and talking at the same time. She made herself a coffee and headed for the table. She asked, Can I join you both? James K looked up and replied, Of course you can Alice. We were just discussing Oliver Ps idea on improving the offensive punch the Intreped has. I read your message Oliver P and I think with the right people working on it, it would work. I have not really started to look at the weapon systems other than to know what we have as weapons, she said as she sat down. She placed her tablet on the table and quickly brought up the schematics of the CNP33 turrets. How were you thinking of adding the laser cannons? she inquired. That is what we were discussing and the only way I can see of doing it is by making the turret fixed in that is does not retract into the ship. I am fully clued up on how the Sensor Masking System works and Tishun agrees the system can be modified to Mask the exposed turrets and weapons, replied Oliver P. She nodded her head in understanding. My second question is what would be the power output of them and how would they be powered? That was something else we have been discussing, replied James K. Ok, she said and took a mouthful of her coffee. Something else I thought of as being possible was to add plasma firing weapons to the weapon systems, but that I am not sure of where they should go, said Oliver P. Alice sat and took another mouthful of coffee. As this is going to be a new weapon system other than we do have hand held plasma weapons, let us place them in the nose and remove the two of the Pulse Lasers. Both Oliver P and James K thought about her suggestion and the seemed to agree with her. James K said, Yes, that is an excellent idea, but rather than losing the weapons lets place them on the
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top of the Hydroponics Pod in a turret. I will take a look at the plans and see where we can place the turret. Alice nodded her head in agreement. Danny walked over and said, How goes the work on the Flyeye, as I have named it? Not too bad bro, Tishun is decompiling the programs and I cannot do much more until I know what the receiver station gets. He nodded and joined the table. What is being discussed here? New weapon systems and upgrading the current ones, replied Oliver P. He looked at Oliver P and asked, Ok, what are your ideas? I am always interested in improving the Intreped and the rest of the fleet. We are thinking of adding laser cannons to the CNP33 Turrets as well as replacing the forward weapons with a plasma based weapon system, replied Oliver P. Danny nodded his head and said, Ok, I know how powerful the A7, A9 and the A15 are so how far has the plans got? I have been thinking about it for a couple of months, replied Oliver P, but this is the first time I have involved anyone else in the planning. Keep me in the loop concerning this, Danny said. Of course Captain, replied James K. Dannys internal communication system activated and Richmond said, Captain we have had a burst transmission from the two Hornets. They are going to do a couple of fly pasts and then stay in position for a couple of hours and then head back. We have the initial images and video in now along with a short amount of their outgoing communications. Thank you Richmond, I will come to C&C to review the initial information in a short while, he replied. The system de-activated and he asked the Oliver P, What are the planed outputs on the new weapons? That is what we are trying to work out how powerful they should be, replied Oliver P He nodded his head and said, I shall leave you to your planning, give me a brief update when you have been able to fix the power outputs and also the locations. Yes captain, said James K. He stood up and walked out of the Hydroponics bay and as he approached the lift doors they opened. Inside he said, C&C please Marcha. A few seconds later the lift doors opened onto C&C and he walked to the map table in the middle. Richmond and Major Batts stood on the opposite side. On an LPD was a Space Elf he guessed from the War Mont. Captain, said Major Batts. Major, Commander and? he inquired.
Force Commander eWark Captain. Afternoon Force Commander, he said and looked at the images on the map table. The image was of the outpost. It had a small transparent dome and a large building fixed to the side; on the roof of the sat a few antennas and a couple of receiver dishes. Surrounding it was a very broken and rocky terrain but a couple of hundred metres away sat an area of what looked like packed ground. He said, Ok, it looks very undefended. That was our initial response but the Force Commander has said it will likely have some remote defence turrets in the rock stacks mainly pointing into the air. Force Commander eWark added, There is also likely to be a few manned turrets on the approaches to the actual base itself. He nodded his understanding of the situation. Do the Hornets have any form of ground scanning system? No I ordered them outfitted with passive systems as they are flying Sensor Masked at the moment and I have ordered them not to reveal themselves to the base. Right I thought as much as I tried to have a look from the nose cameras, he said. You said you have some of their communications? We do, said Richmond and he tapped the screen of his tablet computer. The speakers started to play the communications. What is the situation with the Flyeye watching rTuth? inquired a voice. We have completely lost communications with it. It looks like the transmissions are being jammed by someone boss. Force Commander eWark said, From the voice patterns we have been able to determine the person called boss is Dashary, the overall boss of Trans Darra. He has over 67 outstanding convictions against him ranging from simple breaking and entering all the way through to mass murder. From what the Space Elf Federation Intelligence Bureau has discovered he personally ordered the complete destruction of a small Moon Dwarf Colony just because they would not supply one of the ores the reactors in the Headquarters needs to operate. He has a bounty of over a hundred million Strens on his head alive. I have transmitted a complete list of all the members of Trans Darra wanted by the Federation. Danny nodded his understanding of the situation. How much more have we got of the communications? About another five minutes, Major Batts replied. Ok lets hear it, he said. The rest of the communications concerned other operations and possible operations to be run on the planet and the spaceport. At the end came something all three faces changed to being disgusted with.
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Major Batts said at the end of the recording, I think we need to inform the Gangrels and also the colonys security teams about. I agree with you on that. If I did not already know Alice needs the base intact I would say order the Hornets to destroy it, Danny said. You would get no complaints from me on that, said Richmond T. Danny turned and said to the pair working the communications stations, I want you both to do a complete search for all transmissions from Trans Darra. This is for my eyes only. He turned back and said to the three, I want to be completely informed about Trans Darra and the work they do as I intend to deliver Dashary and the rest of the board to the Space Elf Federation. Also send all information concerning the transmissions to Explorer Base so at least Darra Von can block them. Let me know when the Hornets have either returned or sent the rest of the information back. Will do Captain, said Richmond T. Danny turned and left C&C by the lift. Deck One please Marcha. Right now he needed to go, relax and have a long chat with Nibs concerning Trans Darra. A few seconds later he walked into the Hydroponics Bay above the engine room in the Top Pod. He found a quiet place and sat down at one of the tables. He sent to Alice, Sis are you free I need to have a chat. He knew she would likely come and find him very quickly if she was. I am a little busy, what is up bro? she inquired. I need to talk to you about Trans Darra. I heard some very disturbing communications with the outpost. Give me twenty minutes and I will find you. Are you in the Hydroponics Bay in the Top Pod? I am, chat to you soon. He took out his PDU and sent a chat request to Nibs he also added what he wanted to chat about. He placed the PDU on the table and lent back so he was lying on the bench seat looking up at the stars above the Intreped.
Chapter 9
After a short while he PDU went beep, beep as it received a message back. He picked it up and looked at the sender. It was from Nibs. Ì have read the reason, what is up?` she asked, also included was a request for a video conference. He accepted and the screen showed Nibs sat on a sofa. Hello Nibs, he said. I need your advice on the matter concerning Trans Darra. Nibs nodded and said, Let me get all the information we have on them and also let me access the latest information and I will get back to you, do what your heart tells you to do. I will; thanks. Chat to you soon. The conference ended as Alice walked over and inquired, You ok bro? He looked at her and sat up. No would be the answer, I am not ok. I am very angry and. He thought about his state of mind. I really want to bring Trans Darra down. Have you reviewed the burst transmission we received from the Hornets especially the communications? Not yet. I have been working with James K and Dancetina improving my understanding of the engines and power systems. He nodded and said, Listen to it and tell me what you think? Alice sat and downloaded the file into her internal memory and reviewed it. At the end she looked at him and said, I know exactly what you are thinking bro and I totally agree with you. They need to be stopped. We need to show them that we are not willing to tolerate this sort of operation. He looked at his sister and said, I know, but how do we even start to take an organisation like this apart. I have spoken to Nibs concerning the matter and she is reviewing the information at the moment. I thought you had, I think the only way is to start at the edge and work our way in. Let us start to hurt them before going for the kill. Remember the lessons from Gath before departmental selection, she said. He thought back to the lessons Gath had given them. Yes I do, Intelligence is the key to any successful operation, the more information you have the higher your chances of success even against a numerically superior force. That is the one, so let us, the Intreped start to gather the intelligence, the information. Remember the second lesson he gave. Again he thought about the lessons and he nodded his understanding as to what Alice was talking about. Yes I do, he said as his mouth change to one of being evil. Let us start to surgically remove the sub
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operations. Let us cost Trans Darra money and prestige, it will likely force their hand and leave them open to the killing blow. Alice nodded her head. One other thing we cannot do this alone, we are going to need the support of the Federation as the Warhound did when they retook Rugthz III. The Federation controlled the space as the Warhound took the planet. Here let the Space Elf Federation interdict the companies supplies, jam the signals, block the net transmissions. One question that needs answering how are they transmitting the signals and that information is hopefully available in the outpost. If they are like any other broadcaster they are going to relay on advertising and the money that brings in, the more people who see the shows the more advertising money they can get. He nodded his head when what Alice was saying, clicked. He said, I have asked the communications stations to start scanning for transmissions so at least I can get a proper handle on them. What are they looking for, etc. I said it was for my eyes only. I think a more important aspect is to find out where they recruit and what are the guidelines used. How is rTuth doing? He is fine; I had a brief chat to him before he chatted to his mother. I was going to go back and let him hear the communications recording. It might be the key to having him open up. Alice looked at him and said, So let us go and see him and let him hear what we have. The pair stood up and they walked out of the hydroponics bay and down to the lift. Security Cells please Marcha, Danny said. The lift moved and a few seconds later the doors opened onto the corridor; opposite the doors stood the closed doors for the Security Cells. They walked across to the corridor and the doors slid open and inside stood uTun and hovering in the open door to the cell block flew Ittitan. Danny asked the pair, What are you doing here Council Members? Checking up and seeing if there is anything we can do. Dr White is inside giving rTuth a check-up, replied Ittitan. Danny and Alice moved around them and into the corridor running passed the five cells. They stood in the door way to rTuths cell and watched as Andrea completed a full medical check-up on him. She turned and smiled at them as she headed out of the cell. She said as she looked back at him, He is in perfect health I think thanks to the Juicer Rig he wears. I have given him an option of coming off the drugs and maybe in the long run becoming a full cyborg. I was sent some files Simon Sinc provided Dr Nuriegummie on undertaking a full conversion and I think with the right technology which I already have the guys from Tech Services working on, I think I will be able to undertake the operations. This is with all the information Anti-Char was able to provide when she formally quit Security Command back in 2068. Danny looked at her and asked, Simon Sinc; is he a relation of Commander Iain Sinc? I think from what Dr Nuriegummie said Simon is Iains twin brother. From what I understand he runs a
large community of gifted young people in Killeash. She left the cell and allowed the pair in. rTuth, we have some new information concerning you and it is all good news. It looks like Trans Darra is very scared that you are now free, Danny said and activated the speakers in the cell. rTuth listened to the recording and smiled at the fact. Captain, when I saw my mother on the communications link I realised that they had lied to me. They said if I did not do what they wanted then they would hurt her and she yet she was sat crying that I was alive. She told me that she had spent all her money and all the time since I was taken in the raid looking for me. I owe you a life debt Captain and in the Grey Elf Culture I will repay my debt. You saved me and your ships doctor has told me of options I never knew existed. She spoke of coming off the drugs and if I wanted becoming a full cyborg. If you have a place for me on your ship then you now have a bodyguard. uTun and Ittitan appeared in the cell door way and uTun said, Captain a Life Debt is only ever given when you have saved a person from certain death and it is very, very rarely given to anyone not of the same culture. He turned and stared at uTun. He turned back to look at rTuth and he said, rTuth your words humble me, but it is not I you should thank it is yourself for having the strength to get to this point. I am very new to your and all the other Elven cultures out here, but as Captain if you wish to stay on this ship then we will be happy to welcome you aboard. Now stand up so at least I can remove your shackles and covers. He stepped over to rTuth and scanned the card Monica D had given him on the planet and the shackles opened as did the covers on his hands. Walk with me and my sister so we can chat about Trans Darra Toral Productions as they now have an enemy in me and the forces this vessel represents. rTuth followed him and Alice from the cell and out into the corridor. uTun and Ittitan followed and very quickly they all walked into the Main Hydroponics Bay. They all collected a drink and headed for one of the tables as the sounds of the YGs playing in the tree houses drifted down to them. rTuth looked around for the source of the sounds and saw the children playing in the trees. I have a question who are the young ones? I am very surprised they are even on the ship. The young ones are all members of the Young Gangrels, replied Alice, and they do not take very kindly to people not calling them either YGs or Young Gangrels. He looked at Alice and asked, Are they the same as the similarly dressed from the planet? Yes they are, they all belong to an organisation called the Gangrels, replied Ittitan. You will learn a lot from them I think rTuth. YG Paula ran over to them and said, Hello friend. Can you come and play Captain? she asked. Not at the moment YG Paula, but I will come and play soon, he replied. rTuth took a mouthful of his ojan juice and said, I think the first piece of information I need to give you is that the Dark Line Productions have a few other sites on the planet they are all places of safety and also
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places where they take people they have kidnapped before shipping them off planet on light transports. I know of one such ship due to leave in a days time. I am not sure of the cargo but I think it was destined to head for the studios filming Young Bloods. uTun looked disgusted at what rTuth said. Alice asked uTun, What is Young Bloods? Young Bloods is a long running series from Dark Line Productions. Each episode you normally see at least three young people, normally from what Intelligence has been able to piece together under 120 being either raped, forced to have sex and more often than not being killed, replied uTun, and if they are not killed then they in the following shows are normally forced to do the acts along with the four or five main stars all of them are around 200. Ittitan added, Elves mature a lot slower than Darra Vonians. It is roughly 10 elven years equals one of your years. Danny looked at Ittitan and said, So with that they are under 12 and the stars are about 20. Yes that is about right, she replied. Danny asked rTuth, Where is the transport taking off from? There is a site 200 to 300 kasha from the spaceport where Trans Darra Toral shifted all their transport flights to when the spaceport was re-taken. The transports fly out low and on the far side of the planet they head up into space and head away around the sun. Danny looked at Alice and said, I think an interdiction mission is called for. Alice smiled and replied, You are so right bro, you are so right. He activated his internal communications and said, Commander Danes prepare the ship to leave orbit and head away as if about to make a jump to hyperspace and activate the Sensor Mask. I will explain when I get to the Command Deck. He switched channels and said, Communications, open a secure channel to the spaceport. A few seconds later Frank A replied, Channel open Captain. Spaceport Control, Captain Curtdoza here. We have information about a transport about to leave Rugthz III carrying kidnapped young people and we are heading to interdict the transport before it jumps to hyperspace. Spaceport control here Captain, thank you for your information, we will continue the cargo off-loading when you return. -The Gangrels have reported a spate of young people being kidnapped, happy hunting. He stood up and said to the table after closing the communications channel, Shall we go and see what we catch. Oh yes, lets, said uTun and joined him in standing. rTuth stood up as did Alice. I will go and inform the engineering crew to get ready, she said. She turned and headed for the lift on the other side of the Hydroponics bay.
Danny led the rest of the table to the lift and said, Command Deck Marcha. A couple of seconds later the lift doors opened and they all walked out onto the command deck where Heinrich vacated the Captains chair. He moved to it and switched on the ship wide broadcast system. Now here this, this is your Captain speaking I have just been informed of a transport about to leave the planet carrying kidnapped members of the community; we are going to interdict the transport and rescue them. We will be running Sensor Masked. Commander Titovoth how long can the Hornets stay in space? Richmond T walked out of C&C and replied, About five days Captain. He looked at rTuth sat beside him and went to ask something. rTuth has volunteered to be my bodyguard and I accepted. Something to do with the Grey Elf Culture and a Life Debt he owes me for saving his life. Arh, not a problem. Richmond T moved to stand at his security station behind him. Cargo bay doors closed and sealed Captain, said Simon C. Thank you Simon C, take us out at maximum speed and when safe activate the Sensor Mask. Post that; swing us around and head for the far side of the planet, full passive sensor sweep. We are looking for a light transport leaving on the far side. Simon C brought the engines to power and headed out of its position. After a couple of hours he made it look like the Intreped jumped to hyperspace and activated the Sensor Mask. Looking out of the forward canopy the stars moved as he banked the Intreped around and headed for the far side of the planet where they would lay in wait for the transport to leave. Major Batts, Commander Potter, Dr White, Chief Engineer Curtdoza can you all please report to my office on the Command Deck please, he said. He stood up and rTuth followed him as did Richmond T into his office at the back of the Command Deck. A few minutes later all the requested people walked in and sat on the various chairs present in the office. He sat behind his desk and asked, Commander Potter how skilled are the gunnery crews as I will likely need them to knock out the engines on the transport? That would depend on the transport Captain, but some of the crews are very skilled, I will make sure they man the CNP34 turrets on the Main Body and only use them. He nodded is liking of the plan. Major Batts can you have a couple of squads of EVA trained Assault Troops ready to launch and board the transport. Certainly Captain, Major Batts replied. Good. Dr White can you be ready to receive the injured and the kidnapped, from the information rTuth has told us there will likely be young people on board probably traumatised from what has happened to them. I will make all the necessary arrangements to treat the injured and the traumatised, she replied. I will also make sure the Gangrels and YGs are involved in the treatment of them.
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Alice I need the best method of bringing the transport on board. I was thinking about using the Workbees we have to bring it into the flight deck. Alice nodded her understanding of the plan and replied, I will make sure we are ready to bring the transport on board and I will make sure the Gangrels and YGs are ready to receive the kidnapped from the transport. Major I will be leading the assault so can you make sure an Environmental EVA Suit is made ready for rTuth as he has volunteered to be my bodyguard. Yes Captain I will make sure everything is ready. He nodded his thanks at the Major and said, Ok everyone go and get ready, dismissed. Everyone stood up and left the office. He turned to rTuth and said, I think you had better get going and follow the Major so he can get an Environmental EVA Suit ready for you and also give you some basic lessons in the control of the EVA Systems we use. Yes sir, he replied and followed the Major from the office. Alice and Richmond T stayed in the room. Is it wise you going Captain, inquired Richmond T. Yes it is as I also intend to transmit the assault to Trans Darra. This is the start of end for Trans Darra Toral Productions, if they want to trade in this Galaxy them they need to learn how to trade ethically and not break the laws of the Federation and Darra Von. Richmond smiled an evil smile. Alice reminded me of two lessons one of our lecturers taught us in the first half year of being in Security Command. The first is the more we learn the easier it will be to beat them and the second the more we hurt them the easier it will be to pick off the targets at our leisure and the more money they will lose. Basic economics, the more costly the operation the more likely it is to be closed. He stood up and headed back into the Command Deck. How long before we in position? Three hours Captain, replied Heinrich. I have the PESA and all the sensors on receive on the lower section scanning the planet looking for the launch site. The Spaceport Security is standing ready to raid the site. Good, he said and retook his seat. An hour later rTuth returned and Danny indicated for him to come and sit on the seat on his left hand side. He sat down and asked, I was wondering what you meant when you spoke of being Sensor Masked? Danny looked at him and replied, We are at the moment running on communications black out, nothing bar information from the planet coming in or going out. The ship is completely covered in nanytes, microscopic machines similar to what actually makes the Flyeye that alters the way the ship looks to those watching from outside. It looks to all people looking at us from the outside as if it is empty space where we are completely invisible but like the invisibility spell it does not work when we go into combat. All the fighters,
shuttles and PAs are also equipped with the technology. A couple of hours later Robert S said as Danny walked back to his seat carrying a couple of drinks for himself, Heinrich and rTuth, Captain I have a visual of a transport flying low to the surface. The screen activated and displayed the transport as it headed for the opposite side of the planet to the spaceport. He watched as rTuth stared in shock as where the screen sat had been nothing by empty air. He quietly sniggered at rTuths reaction. He handed rTuths glass of ojan juice and Heinrich is taban. Start a back trace of the transports flight path. He activated the LPD in the arm and the screen displayed the transport and the listed specifications for it. The specification said the transport was capable of about 0.5 Light Mach in normal space and around Light Mach 4 in hyperspace. Richmond T, deploy a section of Hornets to shadow the transport, they are only to attack on our orders, he said. Yes Captain, responded Richmond and he told the required people to launch the section. He turned to rTuth and said, I think it is time for us to go and get ready. Commander Danes the ship is yours. He stood up and rTuth joined him. Yes Captain, responded Heinrich and moved to take the command seat. He led rTuth to the main armoury where he picked up his weapon for this operation, an A9 Plasma Assault Rifle. rTuth looked at him and asked, What weapon would you suggest Captain? He thought about the question and replied, I would say an energy weapon, and he picked up a CAT88 for him. The pair walked out and very quickly the walked into the changing room where the two squads were getting ready. Fifteen minutes later he donned his helmet and activated the screen showing him what the transport was doing. The pair walked out and also stood on the Flight Deck was a squad of PAs and four Workbees. On the screen inside Dannys helmet the transport began its climb into orbit. Captain where are the Hornets you sent? asked rTuth. They would be shadowing the transport at a safe distance. Now do you see what I mean when I said about the Sensor Masking Systems? I do and this is impressive. As the transport left the atmosphere Danny activated the communication system and said, Trans Darra Toral Productions Transport this is Captain Curtdoza of the CS002 Intreped you are ordered to come to a halt and prepare to be boarded. The four Hornets following appeared as did the Intreped.
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Danny knew as the ship appeared the shields would have gone up and the four CNP34 turrets would have gone live. The transport accelerated and banked right. As it did the CNP34s fired warning shots across its bow. Tishun scan and display all the information please. A second screen activated and the transport post the scan appeared. The transport fired its own lasers at the Intreped; some of the shots missed and some hit the shields. The CNP34s fired again as did the Hornets as they accelerated to attack speed. The transport began to take evasive actions as the CNP34s fired again and hit the ship. These blasts shut down the main engines and as the Hornets overtook the transport and it fired its retros slowing it down. The Intreped slowed and stopped with the transport just in front of the nose. All four of the CNP34s targeting it. The PAs took off and headed for the transport. Assault unit, let us go, Danny said as he and rTuth walked through the force field holding the ships atmosphere in. The unit fired their EVA packs and headed for the transports airlock hatch. A couple of minutes later Danny, rTuth and five more of the assault unit touched the hull and all of the activated their magnetic clamps securing them to the hull. Get that hatch open, he said and added, have we got a force field generator with us. We do Captain, Major Batts made sure we did. One of the unit on the hull began to work the hatch and after about a minute it opened revealing a four man airlock. Danny dropped his EVA pack as did the rest of the unit on the hull. The first two dropped in and started to work on the inner hatch. He and rTuth dropped in next and raised their weapons to the assault positions as the two worked on getting the inner hatch open. Force field in place Captain, said one of the men on the outside. The second person air-rated the airlock as the first man opened the inner door a few laser blasts entered the chamber as Danny and rTuth moved out. Dannys smart link locked on to the one firing and returned fire; the plasma rounds hitting exactly where he wanted them to, the attackers hand forcing him to drop the laser pistol. The second two entered and moved in the opposite direction only to have a further four to drop in and replace them. Danny and rTuth entered a small living area to find a couple of the crew holding two girls hostage. Their arms wrapped around the girls neck and a laser pistol pointed at their heads. His smart link targeting the two hostage takers as they stood behind the two girls. He watched as one of the pair bit down hard on the guys wrist causing him to release her. Danny did not
need a second chance to fire and one plasma round hit the guy right in the head. rTuth also fired and his CAT88 bored the second hostage taker right through his left eye. Nice shot, Danny said. A fourth man appeared along with four more crew their hands in the air holding laser pistols by the area above the pistol grips. The first man said, We surrender. Very sensible decision, Danny said. Secure the prisoners, he said to the assault unit behind him. Intreped, Captain Curtdoza, we have secured the transport, deploy the Workbees. Three of the assault unit behind him moved around as he and rTuth covered the prisoners. They took the pistols and searched them for more weapons. They soon bound the prisoners using the ceramic ties and sat them all down in the living area. Assault unit, rip this transport apart, he said as he removed his helmet. One of the two girls walked over to him and said, Thank you Captain, if you want the rest of the kidnapped people they are hidden in compartments under the floors here and in the main cargo bay. Thank you, he said. What made you bite down like that? I was trained by the Gangrels during the occupation and I acted as if I was subservient to them and only when you boarded did I know now was the time to fight back. I am Annabell Rosalin. Daniel Curtdoza Captain of the CS002 Intreped at your service. He turned and said, Annabell tells me the kidnapped are hidden in areas under the floors in the corridor and the main cargo bay. Okay Captain, replied one of the assault unit as he moved to start looking for the chambers. The sounds of the magnetic grapples attaching themselves to the outside came through the hull. He moved to the cockpit and watched as the transport turned and headed back for the flight deck. rTuth moved to stand beside him and said, I am impressed by the targeting system. He looked at rTuth and said, Yes, meet one of the pieces of technology we have. They are called Smart Links and they as you saw link the weapon to the tactical computer that will only fire at the enemy. Intreped, Captain Curtdoza. We have five prisoners one injured and two dead. Not a problem I will have security and a medical team waiting on the flight deck Captain, said Richmond. That was some nice shooting in there from both you and rTuth. He smiled at the compliment. Thank the smart links, he said. If we can take the transport I think we might seize it. I would be a good way of infiltrating the organisation. Captain, Tina D here, I have Nibola Calton-Patterson on the line for you. Thanks, put her through, he said and a second later Nibs said. Captain, both myself and Sandra have reviewed the information. I am sorry Nibs, but I am a bit busy at the moment, I will contact you when I am less busy. Not a problem, chat to you soon. Oh nicely done, we watched the assault.
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He smiled at that and said, Thanks, chat to you very soon. The link went dead as the Workbees pulled the transport into the flight deck. He looked at the controls and pressed the control for the feet to extend and he also engaged the contragrav. The transport soon rested on the feet and one of the assault team opened the hatchway to the outside and allowed the medical teams on board. After the injured departed the assault unit escorted the prisoners off the transport to the awaiting security teams. He and rTuth moved back into the living area as the first of the compartments unlatched and one of the assault unit lifted the lid. Inside sat four girls and three boys all of them looking very scared as the lid opened. Annabell looked in and said, We are free, Captain Curtdoza of the Intreped rescued us. One of the older girls looked up and she stood up as Andrea walked up the ramp to the outside with a couple of the Gangrels close behind her. Dr White and the Gangrels will look after you until you return to the Spaceport, Danny said and helped the one who had stood up out of the compartment. The youngest one of the four stood up next and Danny bent down and grabbed her under the arm-pits and lifted her up and placed her on his right hip. Thank you for rescuing us, she said sounding very timid. Find those compartments and if you need to cut this transport into little pieces, also bring in a tech team I want a complete download from the ships computer, he said and carried the girl down the ramp and onto the flight deck where a few of the YGs stood waiting. He placed her down on the deck and said, Go with the YGs and they will make sure you are ok. Thank you, she said. Annabell walked down the ramp with the other seven. He turned to her and asked, What is that girls name? Isabelle Mounts, she said and walked to where a few of the Gangrels and YGs stood. He turned to rTuth and said, Let us go and get changed. rTuth nodded and followed him back to the changing rooms. After the pair got changed Danny said, One job to do is to get you a cabin rTuth. True, he said. Well anyway I think a drink is called for. rTuth nodded his head in agreement. As they walked towards the lift he asked, Who was the person you were talking to on board? Nibs, Danny replied. I think so. Danny smiled and replied, Nibs is the Captain of the CS001 Warhound the prototype of this class of vessel; she is also a master of knowing people as well as battle field tactics. I asked for her advice a few hours ago concerning Trans Darra. The lift door opened and he said, Main Hydroponics thanks Marcha.
The lift doors opened and they crossed the corridor and headed for the drinks making area and collected themselves each a drink. As they walked to one of the tables Danny asked, So what do you think so far? It is interesting. You are someone different though from what I understand most Captains do not put themselves in harms way and yet you are not scared of doing that. The pair sat down and he replied, No I am not. I have to thank Nibs for teaching me that indirectly. Before coming on board and taking the positions of Captain and Chief Engineer both me and my sister Alice shadowed the commander of Triton Base in the LaGrande 4 point around Darra Von. The commander told us that Nibs and Sandra, her legal partner, knew to get the best from a crew was to be one of them and not aloof from them which most officers are. He took out his PDU and sent a conference request to Nibs. If you want to know more about Nibs and her other persona the Black Fairy go and read her GhostNet pages and journal articles by her and her unit The Vixens. One more item you are going to need is a PDU; we will pick one up in a bit. Who taught you how to operate like that? rTuth took a mouthful of his ojan juice and replied, My years as a slave, I was bought by Trans Darra Security Arm and I showed a natural skill when it came to enforcement. I was made a Juicer a couple of years ago before being sent to DR1554 to work as an enforcer.
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Chapter 10
Dannys PDU went beep as Nibs replied and opened the conference window. You free now Danny? she asked. Yes I am, he replied and took a mouthful of his coffee. Good and nicely done with the interdiction, how many people did you rescue? Dannys face said no idea. At the moment the tech crews are ripping the transport apart looking for the chambers where the people are being held; so far we have rescued nine. I have ordered a down load of the transports computer core as we can hopefully find out what the destination was. I am also going to be sending back a complete ship schematic to Explorer Base so we can give the small companies the chance to compete up here with the big boys. Nibs nodded her understanding and said, Good idea that. Sandra appeared as rTuth moved to join Danny on the opposite side of the table. Hello new friend, she said. Yes, sorry Sandra, Nibs; meet rTuth a Grey Elf who volunteer to be my bodyguard after we rescued him from being a slave Juicer to Trans Darra. Hello rTuth, said Nibs and smiled at him. A head appeared and Nibs picked the person attached to it up and sat him on her knees. rTuth meet YG Wayne, mine and Sandras first child. rTuth looked very surprised at what Nibs said. What? he inquired. Sandra laughed and said, I think rTuth needs to have a read, but in summary Nibs was not always Nibs. Five years ago Nibs was called Nicolas a man on Darra Von. We froze some sperm and I was artificially inseminated and have YG Wayne and YG Hart-Fire because of it. Danny smiled and said, When we have sorted out your cabin go and read. rTuth said, I will. Ok, in relation to the problem of Trans Darra, what are your ideas and plans concerning them Danny? Nibs inquired. My plans are to gather intelligence and information about them and also strike at the small operations. This should hurt them and hopefully bring them to us rather than we go to them. Nibs nodded her agreement to the plans. Pretty much that was my idea except be cunning in your operations, use their operations against them. Show the supporters other ways, other companies. Creation Universal and Inform are about two months away from broadcasting their first shows to the galaxy there. Other broadcasters are not far behind them. Street Services News is currently broadcasting their sites over the FTL transmitters to the rest of the Galaxy.
Dannys face changed to one of being very impressed. Now I am impressed and I think a prefect way for the Intreped to let the galaxy know about the missions and the problems we encounter. Yes. Mary told us a little over an hour ago that the first Federation Starliner arrived in the Darra Von system little over a week ago and is scheduled to remain in system for close on two weeks. I think they are leaving a couple of hundred people on Darra Von and taking a similar amount when they leave. I think most of the people leaving are members of the various News Channels including three net based News providers, said Nibs. Two of the Great Houses of the Space Elves are also funding a chartered Starliner to arrive in a months time. The Federation Embassy has run a lottery to choose the people to depart on the Starliner. I think from the latest reports nearly all have sold up and will be leaving Darra Von. The liner will also be carrying the first 500 Darra Vonians to go to the Federation Star Academy. Dannys face changed to looked very impressed by this. You did not know about this? Nibs asked. No I did not. I do need to get up to speed on what is happening on Darra Von in relation to these activities but getting experience in command was my first thought not reading up on the politics. That will be changing in the next few days. Actually that is a good idea we do need to continue with the unloading of the cargo we are carrying. He activated his internal communications and said, Heinrich what is the status of the cargo unloading? We are running our transports Sensor Masked to the station at the moment and Roger L estimates we will need about a day to finish the cargo transfer. We also have a confirmed loading date for the rest of the aerospace fighters; they will be arriving in about half a day. I have also contacted Trashan concerning our new ETA with them. He nodded and smiled at the news and said, Good thank you Heinrich for that report. I hope that was good news Danny, inquired Nibs. It was, he replied. We will be taking on the new aerospace fighters in half a day and will have finished the cargo transfer in about a day. ***** Danny walked into the medical centre on board to see how the rescued were. In the end they had been able to rescue 56 young people, most had been beaten and a good number of the girls had also been raped. The one he had shot had been treated and placed in one of the cells on board. Sat at the beds of the girls still in the Medical Centre were members of the ships security force and most looked like they were taking statements from them. Andrea W walked over from her office and said, Good evening Captain. Evening Doctor, how are things here? he asked. Andrea W looked around the centre and said, Pretty good these are the last of the young rescued and they should be released in a couple of hours. The rest are being housed on Deck Five in the free cabins and
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they are all being looked after by the Gangrels and YGs as we speak. Have you heard the report from Richmond T? No, not yet, she replied. He nodded and said, From the statements being taken it looks like all of the transports crew are going to be charged with at least six counts of kidnapping, rape and either torture or abuse. We have also had secure communications from Monica D and Administrator Reds and all the safe houses rTuth told us about have been raided and another 130 people have been freed. Administrator Reds has requested the prisoners be transferred back to the planet to stand trial there. Andrea W nodded her head in understanding. I just hope the people on the planet are ready, it is going to take a long time for some of them to get over what they went through and some of the youngest have asked about their families. I know and the Gangrels have been able to find the families and they have chatted to them, he replied. Good, she said as YG Paula and YG Edward walked in carrying a few pieces of bday cake. Whose bday was it? he asked. One of the kidnapped had it two days ago and The YGs organised a flash party for her and the rest. After the pair had handed each of the girls a piece of bday cake they walked to where Andrea W and he stood and offered them both the final two pieces. Thank you YG Paula, YG Edward, he said and took one of the two pieces. Andrea W took the last piece and also said, Thank you. I will be calling past in a bit to check up on them. Ok doc, YG Edward said and the pair left the Medical Centre. What is the situation concerning the other plan? Andrea W asked. We will move to take the outpost when the last of the cargo is off loaded in about fifteen hours. The two Hornets are still on station watching. We have received three more burst transmissions from them and C&C are going through the Intel at the moment, he said. He turned and said, I shall chat to you soon doc. Yes chat to you soon Captain. She turned and walked back to her office. He left the Medical Centre and headed for the lift he was going to go and get some sleep as he needed it. He had already written a report for the all the NetNews Services and he had an FTL interview with Inform News in a little over twelve hours time. He walked out of the lift on Deck One and turned towards his cabin. Sat in the Observation area was rTuth and he was looking at his PDU. He walked in and said, How are you rTuth? rTuth turned his head and replied, I am good and I think I will be taking the option of becoming a full conversion cyborg but I will wait for until the end of the assault on the Outpost before I go and see Doctor White about it. I have to say though Nibs and Sandra are two very unique people and along with the rest of the Vixens are quite a team. I have read I think 30 of Nibs Journal pages and 20 of Sandras and I can see what you mean when you said they are gifted.
I never met Nibs or any of the crew of the Warhound other than my younger brother and his partner. I have chatted to them and all the YGs on the Warhound and I am really impressed by them, he said. Anyway I am heading to bed as I have an FTL interview with Inform News in twelve hours. rTuth smiled and said, Good night Captain, have a good sleep and I shall see you tomorrow. Please call me Danny, he said. Captain is for those situations that require a formal rank. rTuth nodded his head in understanding and thanks. ***** Danny woke up and looked over at the clock on his bedside table. It read 07:20. He swung his legs out and thought, Today I have my first interview. He moved to the bath room and got washed, after that his next stop was the kitchen and a strong cup of coffee. When he had that in his hands he headed for his desk and a review of what took place last night and the reports on the interviews of the transports crew. By the time he had finished reading those he sat back and thought about what might happen in the hour long interview he had. He knew the program was Inform News Politics Review and the presenter of Adam Bulsicon. Gill Q said over his internal communications, Captain I have Adam Bulsicon on the line for you. Thanks, put him through, he replied. Good morning Captain, said Adam B. Good morning Adam B, he replied and took a sip of his now cold coffee. He stood up and walked to the kitchen and made himself another. As he was doing this Adam B said, Todays interview, as you know it is scheduled for an hour, what you do not know is that we are using a live net feed from the viewers and hopefully they will be also asking questions of you. He finished making his coffee and thought, This sounds interesting. Ok, any chance the interview could include the Chief Engineer, my sister. No, not a problem at all, it might be rather interesting as from the messages on the forum boards have asked a few technical questions about the ship. He nodded his understanding. Ok, one other thing, your show has advert breaks I thought about during those moving around the ship so it give the viewers the chance to see other areas. Now that sounds like a good idea, Adam B said. What areas had you thought of? he asked. To start with I had initially planned the interview to happen in my cabin. I thought about including the YGs Area, the Main Hydroponics Bay and finishing in the Forward Observation Area with the back drop of Rugthz III as that is the direction the Intreped is facing at the moment, he replied. That does sound rather good, Jane C has briefed me about the ship and the crew so I think that would be ok. What are you going to be using to feed the images from the ship? He took a mouthful of his coffee and replied, A FCSU as it is mobile and has a full function video
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system inbuilt. He guessed Adam B was nodding his head. Sounds good, anyway I will let get on and contact you again at about 09:45 so the control room can set up the feeds. Ok, chat to you then, he said and as the line went dead he said, Alice you free to join me on Inform News Politics Review? Yes of course I am. It will be rather interesting I think, she replied. Are you in your cabin? Yes, I have been reviewing the reports on the interviews with the transports crew and the ship operations last night. He took a mouthful of drink and moved to the comfortable chairs. Ok I will join you in about 15 minutes. Twenty minutes later his cabin door opened and Alice walked in with a FCSU floating just behind her. Morning bro, she said. Morning sis, he replied around a smile of welcome. She headed for the kitchen and made herself a taban. She joined him on the comfortable chairs. This is going to be very interesting, she said. More so than you think sis. Adam B was already spoken to me this morning and we will be taking questions from the viewers as well as from him. She looked at him very impressed by this. Now this does sound interesting and rather fun then. He nodded and smiled his agreement. I also suggested that during the advert breaks we move around the ship using the YG centre, the Main Hydroponics Bay and the Forward Observation area with the back drop of Rugthz III. Now that does sound good, she said and took a mouthful of taban. How were the interviews? she inquired. From the report from Richmond T, pretty good, he replied. ***** At 09:45 Gill Q said, Captain we have Adam B on the line and we are setting up the feeds from the FCSU. Ok put him through, he said. The LPD on the wall flashed to life and Adam B appeared. Good morning Captain, Chief Engineer. Alice said, Good morning Adam B. How is Darra Von? It is okay, he replied. Your communications person said she is sorting out the feeds from the FCSU. Danny nodded his understanding and said, Yes she said she was. A few minutes later Adam B said, Ok, the control room says we have the feed now. A few seconds later he said, Yes I can see you both. After he looked at the pair he asked, Can I ask a personal question? Of course you can, replied Danny. How old are you both? Danny laughed and replied, I am 40 and Alice is 43. We have both been members of Security
Command since we were 15. Quite a while then, I am surprised do they not retire members after they reach 39. Dannys face said, that is a difficult question to answer. Yes they normally do retire agents about that age but as we both were on operation when that happened it was a bit hard for them and we quit at the end of the operation. It is surprising what friends can do for you, replied Alice to Adam Bs face. His face change to one of now I understand. 10:00 ticked around and the LPD Dannys desk came to life as the credits for the show started. At the end Adam B appeared and said, Good morning Darra Von and Galaxy. Today is a very special day for us here on Inform News Politics Review as this entire episode is dedicated to just one thing an interview with the Captain and Chief Engineer of the CS002 Intreped. The pair appeared in the upper left corner of the screen. Captain Daniel Curtdoza and his sister Chief Engineer Alice Curtdoza, welcome to Politics Review. Danny answered first, Thank you Adam B for inviting us. I know this is not the normal format for the show. Yes thank you, Alice replied and smiled at the FCSU. Right, said Adam B and he took a mouthful of his water. How are things in the galaxy? Danny thought about how to answer the question and replied, Things are not too bad here at the moment. The ship itself is in orbit around the planet of Rugthz III one of Darra Vons first three colony worlds, we have only been here a few days and after we have taken on the last of our aerospace fighters and offloaded the last of the cargo we will be travelling on to the capital of the Space Elf Federation. What are you going to be doing there? Danny took a mouthful of his coffee and replied, There we are going to be taking on the last of the crew and the last of the combat force we are carrying. We hope the scientists and engineers coming on board will be able to help us understand certain aspects of space flight that still, not alludes us, but is one of the harder sciences to understand. That of Hyperspace Physics and the Hyperdrive we have installed, not that we cannot repair it, we just do not understand the finer points of it operations. Arh, ok, so the crew is a multi-race crew then? inquired Adam B. Yes, the scientists and engineers coming on board come from at least four of the races in the Federation and the military forces are also a mixture of five different races, Danny replied. We at the moment have one Grey Elf on board and through his cultures heritage he has become my personal bodyguard. He volunteered for the position after we rescued him. Adam B looked very impressed at this. Now that is one very impressive action. He looked down at a monitor and said, Ok we have a question from one of our viewers. Thank you James Hinds. With that being
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the first production Warhound class, do you both expect any problems with the systems? Alice replied first after she finished a mouthful of taban. Yes and no, yes I do not expect all the bugs have been ironed out from the systems and no because the crew are all experts in the equipment on board. We both only joined the ship just over a week ago and so far no glaring problems have arisen with the systems. I know if any do then the crews are more than capable to fixing the problem. I do not see myself as a doer as such I see myself as someone who gels the various departments together as well as someone who improves the technology. The Warhound, the prototype uses some very advanced experimental engines, I hope to make those engines easier to construct and maintain. As Alice answered the question Danny thought about his answer. Unlike my sister I do see myself as someone who gets his hands dirty. Intelligence passed to us led us to interdict a transport thought to be carrying kidnapped members of Rugthz III, but rather than leave the interdiction to the troops and security personal I personally led the assault. It netted us the successful release of some 50 plus kidnapped people and the transport which we seized. Very interesting answers there I think the viewers would agree. Adam again looked at the monitor and said, Ok we have another question, this one from Martha Odel. With the Intreped being the first production ship how much experience do you both have with command and being Chief Engineer? Danny smiled at the FCSU as well as laughed. Almost none, this is my first real command, but both mine and my sisters origins have allowed us to gain a massive amount of experience in aspects important to Captains and being Engineers. I worked as a field member of an Intelligence Gathering Organisation and through that I have gained the experience the overall commanders thought would be needed. Myself I worked on some very high tech projects and it is through that knowledge and understanding that the commanders asked if I wanted the position of Chief Engineer. For all of you wanting to see the galaxy in the future production vessels apply yourselves now and get qualifications; they need may not be in areas vital to being on a Star Vessel. It is through those that places at the new Space Academy and the apprenticeships become available and then you will gain the skills and knowledge. Danny finished the answer by saying, In a few months a chartered Starliner is arriving funded by two of the Space Elf Great Houses and on that will be the first 500 people to be selected to attend the Space Elf Federation Star Academy. Thank you Captain, Chief Engineer; we will be back after a short break. Before you go to the advert break let me say this, added Danny. The technical skills are not the only aspect of space travel; all the combat and exploration vessels are going to need people with other skills ranging from languages to diplomacy, the sciences and all the little skills. Adam B said at the end, Thank you for that. The LPD changed to showing the adverts. The pair stood up and Alice grabbed the remote control for the FCSU. They walked out of the cabin and down the corridor to the YG Area where Danny pressed the doorbell.
YG Paula called from the other side, Who is it please? It is Danny and Alice; we had hoped to have the second section of the interview with the YGs. The door slid open and the seven YGs in the room all had agreeing smiles on their faces. Come in, said YG Edward, We are watching the show ourselves. They both walked in and took to a couple of seats and Danny picked up YG Paula and sat her on his lap so she was in the shot from the FCSU. Over the speakers in the room came the producers voice who said, We are on in ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one. You are on Adam B. Welcome back viewers and I think you can see the Captain and Chief Engineer have moved locations to what is the area Captain? This area is the ships Young Gangrel Zone. Say hello YG Paula. Hello Darra Von, said YG Paula. Hello to you YG Paula. Can I now ask how old are you YG Paula? YG Paula smiled and replied, I am four Adam B. Adam B looked impressed at this. Captain how come you have what can be only described as children on board? Adam B and the viewers let me explain one thing, none of the 25 Young Gangrels on board are just children, they are as much members of the crew as myself or Alice are. Nearly all are here because they were once disadvantaged and they make up one very important aspect of the ship. They are a squad in their own right and have the job of making any people who board the Intreped lifes hell; they know the back areas and can pop-up anywhere on the ship effectively undetected. They also have the task of making sure the morale of the crew is always good and I gave them the job of making this vessel feel lived in. They are doing that really well, said Alice. On a few corridor walls are pictures, paintings by them and other members of the crew. A few corridors have pot plants which bring a splash of colour. Adam B looked really impressed by this information and looked down at the monitor. Another question from a viewer; YG James Jackson from the 433rd Youth Feeder YG group asks, What is it like being on the Intreped? It is fun, replied YG Paula. It was fun living on Explorer Base with my mum and it is more fun being here with my friends. Danny said, YG Paula told me why she is here, her mum was a construction engineer working on the Intreped and died when her Workbee was hit by a small rock, it ruptured the cockpit. Due to that all the Workbees underwent a small modification in that all the crew now wear breather masks. Alice added, The Workbees on the Intreped are further being modified by the addition of a forcefield over the inside of the pilot pod that should stop the air escaping should it happen again. Adam B asked, How can the YGs make attackers life hell?
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Each and every YG is equipped with a small laser pistol designed by one of the joint engineers on the Warhound that is how. To give you an idea of how the good the YGs are, the YGs on the Warhound have notched a considerable number of victories over the Warhound crew in training exercises. Each and every one is equipped with full environmental armour, HUUs and a tactical computer which links the Smart Links the pistols have with the HUUs targeting system. Right, ok we have another question, this time from Timothy Jimes a Gangrel from the High Cliff Sharks Suraban. How many Gangrels are on board and what do the Gangrels do? We have 60 Gangrels on board and they work along side the security teams under Commander Richmond Titovoth. They carry out the same job as the GYPS units do in Suraban and Surra. They would investigate crimes committed by the crew whilst the officers are investigated by three middle ranking officers. We have already had one such incident, one of the Section Chiefs was reported to me; I also saw the incident as it happened. He was investigated and a board of inquiry took place, he was convicted and relieved of his duties. He was sent to the Orbital Facility in orbit around Rugthz III, Danny replied. Thank you for that and we will be back with more questions right after this advert break, said Adam B. As the advert break started Danny said, Thank you YGs for that. He and Alice stood and headed out of the YG Centre. The FCSU following. YG Gina called after them, Where are you heading to? The Main Hydroponics Bay and then the Forward Observation Area, replied Alice. A couple of minutes later the producer said, You are on in ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one. Thank you all and welcome back. Now for the headlines. The large screen LPD in the main Hydroponics Bay showed one of the news anchor women reading the headlines from Darra Von. Adam B said as the headlines went on, Thank you for showing the viewers that. Some on the comments we have been getting are to say the least interesting. Thank you, Danny said. Adam B, you are on in five, four, three, two, one. Adam B took a mouthful of water and said, Welcome back viewers and welcome back Captain and Chief Engineer Curtdoza. Some of you if you watched the last section saw the pair sat in the vessels YG Centre. Again they have moved to where Captain? The Main Hydroponic Bay and sat with us are a considerable number of the off duty crew. Alice controlled the FCSU and it slowly showed the off duty crew sat around watching the LPD. Very nice, said Adam B. Anyway back to the reason you are on the show. Being Captain what are your orders from your commanders? YG Ben carried a couple of mugs of coffee to the pair and placed them down on the table.
Danny replied, Our orders are to help the Space Elf Federation around their controlled space, patrol and generally help all the peoples of the Galaxy. Those are in addition to improving and understanding the sciences of space and space travel. As Alice said earlier one major goal of the ship and its mission is to improve our fundamental understanding of the science of Hyperspace Physics. A second sub mission is to improve the technology used on board the Intreped and so improve the technology of the other vessels coming off the production lines and orbital facilities, Alice added. Adam thought about his next question and asked, With that in mind has any member of the crew suggested improvements to the vessel? Yes they have, replied Alice. Commander Oliver Potter, head of Ship Board Weapons has already suggested adding laser cannons to some of the turrets as well as adding a pair of plasma weapons to the main Forward Weapons Array. We are when they are ready to install removing two of the PL20s and placing them in a turret on the top of the pod where we are sitting at the moment. What are the rest of the weapons? Adam B asked. Danny took a mouthful of coffee and as he placed the mug back down he replied, The rest of the weapons include various output neutral particle cannons, anti-particle cannons which are the main offensive weapon, missiles and point defence cannons. That is some weapons load out the vessel has, said Adam B. Ok, we have another question from a viewer. Thank you Janet Francis of Echo City, with you both having very little experience in command have you seen any problems with the crew accepting your positions? In answer, yes I have, replied Danny. I do not know about Alice and the Engineering Crews. I am sorry but due to confidentiality clauses in my contract I cannot say more. I have not seen or heard of any problems with my position, but that is not to say there are no problems. As Alice was replying Danny said, Gill Q can you get Nicole on the line please? She is already on the line wanting you Captain, replied Gill. Nicoles voice said, If you want to answer the question then do so. Adam B asked the next question, A vessel that size what is its maximum speeds? Danny said, Sorry ladies and gentlemen something has come up. Alice replied to the question, The maximum sub-light speed is 0.87 Light Mach and about 7.6 Light Mach when the Hyperdrive is working. Thanks Nicole, Danny said. Sorry back to the previous question. Both of us have now been given permission to fully answer the question from Janet Francis. The organisation we both belonged to was Security Command and a lot of the viewers likely know about the Wacker War back in 2068. The issue I spoke of surrounds the Mercenary Command we have on board, Wacker Inc and Security Command hired the unit along with others to support the Wacker Military and Security. Everyone knows the outcome of the War, the Street won and during the battles of the actual war all the commands lost a considerable number of their men
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and equipment. The contract signed by the commands and Wacker Inc and Security Command said they would be reimbursed for the losses of men and equipment, both parties failed to live up to that side of the contract. Thankfully Major Batts does not hold any grudges against myself and Alice. He was not too happy when we came on board but we have chatted about it. He understands that Security Command never pays for losses caused during missions, and Wacker Inc filed for Section 12 Protection, which massively limited the funds available. May I add, that is all we can say concerning the problems and how come we are here. Ok thank you for that answer, said Adam B and as he looked at the monitor he said, ok, it looks like the next viewer question has been removed but we have others. One comes from Edd Pads from Eban Protectorite City, What are if any changes between the Warhound and the Intreped? There are a good few changes between the Warhound and the Intreped, Danny replied. The first and biggest is the Warhound is capable of planetary operations where the Intreped is not. The rest are more cosmetic differences in that the weapons load out is different and the methods of combat vehicle deployment. We drop the CSMRs via drop pods, the Warhound does not. Out of the cosmetic differences the weapons load out is the biggest. The Warhound has a twin 200mm Rail Cannon on a turret just under the nose, where we have four heavy pulse laser cannons in the nose, Danny replied. During their upgrade they placed PL20s where we have ours currently and increased their accommodation. Other differences are in the engines, Alice said, The Warhound uses experimental Grav-Engines and we currently use standard reactionless engines. The outputs are the same, it is more the size and weight is different, the grav engines are far smaller the reactionless ones. Adam B said at the end, With that we will take another advert break and we will be back with the Captain and Chief Engineer right after these. The LPD changed to showing adverts and the pair stood up and headed for the lift. Inside the lift it moved just after the door closed and opened on the corridor leading to the Forward Observation Area. Sat on the sofas was rTuth and he looked engrossed in something. He looked up and said, Hello Danny. How was the interview? It is still going on, we have moved around the ship and this is our last stop. As the area did not have an LPD Danny took out his PDU and on the screen appeared the adverts. Over their communication systems came the producers voice which said, You both are doing really well and some of the questions Adam B has for this session are very intelligent. Adam B you are on in five, four, three, two, one. The PDU screen changed to show Adam B sat looking at the camera. He said, Welcome back viewers to this a special Politics Review. Welcome back Captain and Chief Engineer Curtdoza. Hello again Adam B and the viewers, said Alice. Danny said using his internal communication system, Heinrich any chance you can get the pilots to shift the view of the front of the ship so we have half of Rugthz III and the rest space?
Not a problem. Danny looked back over his shoulder as the planet moved and stopped exactly where Danny had wanted it. As the ship moved Alice said, As you can see we have moved again, this time to the Forward Observation Area and the backdrop is Rugthz III. And now it is Rugthz III and space, Danny said. Also with us is the Grey Elf I spoke of earlier. Alice operated the remote and the PDU Screen changed to show rTuth sitting reading from his PDU. Danny said, rTuth come and join us, being my bodyguard you might as well be known by the people on Darra Von. rTuth stood up and walked to where the pair sat and joined them. Adam B said, Good morning to you. He looked down at the monitor and said, Right we have another question this time from R.J. Turns from Mine Belter LaGrange Station. What are the best ways of joining a crew of a ship? Danny thought about the question and replied, The best way of joining a Star Vessel is to be dedicated in your job whatever it is. Also another good aspect is to be ready to help those around you, fix the problems as they arise and as you see them, replied Alice. One such person on the crew proved to me during a training exercise how professional she was and she joined the vessel straight from being an apprentice at Star City. She took a mouthful of coffee and placed it on the small table. Adam B again looked down and said, A question for rTuth from Morgan Zang, How did the Captain save you? rTuth looked as if he was thinking about his answer and replied, How the Captain saved me was by giving me the chance to get away from my employers. He looked at Danny. Danny replied, Tell the people the truth rTuth. It is what marks us as friends of the people. Ok, he said and looked back. My employers changed me from being a normal Grey Elf into an Elven Juicer, someone who is faster and slightly stronger than my native Elves. The one drawback is that I would not have lived very long as the chemicals running through my body speed everything up which from what I have been told by the medical team here is killing me in a few years. I am still researching the option the medical teams have given me. Adam B asked, Which is what? Becoming a full conversion cyborg, he replied Ok, Adam B responded and again looked down at the monitor. Another question this time from Traz, What forced you to quit Security Command? That question we are sorry we cannot answer as it would compromise the safety of our friends, Danny said.
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That is completely understandable, said Adam B. Right we have time for one more question. This one is from the shows producer, Would it be ok as we have had a lot of questions sent to us sending them on to you so you can answer them at your leisure? Yes it would be perfectly ok, replied Danny. I will look at the ships roster and see if we have anyone with netpage design skills and set them the task of producing a netsite for the ship so the people can see and get to know us. The site will also include all the science and other technical questions for the people on Darra Von to look at and maybe come up with answers and therefore help us and the designers and construction engineers improve the ships, said Alice. Adam B said at the end of Alices reply, Thank you both again for that. I think all the viewers see that being out in space is something most people can aspire to and maybe in time join you and the other crews. Thank you viewers for your questions to the pair and I will see you all next week on Politics Review. The PDU screen changed to showing the end credits. The screen changed again to show Adam B. Thank you both for that, I found it a very interesting interview and I do hope you show the galaxy that Darra Von is here to help and support them. Danny smiled and replied, That we all hope we do. After the PDU screen went back to showing the desktop he turned to rTuth and said, By being a member of the crew you have joined the oldest scene on Darra Von, the Street Scene. We as a scene live by three simple rules and they are Street helps Street; the second if we have a skill that is wanted by someone else we teach them that skill; and the third is we never lie only to known enemies. He stood up and said, Let us get the last of the cargo off loaded and then take that outpost.
Chapter 11
Danny sat in the Captains chair as Roger L said, The last of the cargo has been off loaded Captain. The transports will be back in an hour. Good thank you Load Master. Commander prepare the ship to take the outpost. With pleasure Captain, responded Heinrich. Commander Titovoth what is the status of the Hornets? A couple of seconds passes as he guessed Richmond T checked the status of the two Hornets. They are at the moment heading back to the orbital facility. He nodded and said, Signal them our plans and we will pick them up on route. Also signal the War Mont V and inform them of our moving and also inform them we will collect their assault troops as we head for the outpost. With pleasure Captain. I guess you will be leading the assault forces? Richmond T asked. Danny nodded that he would. That means I am going to be joining you as well along with the elite of my security force. Again Danny nodded that he understood the plans. I think Alice will also be joining us as she needs to get access to the computers and the data streams. He turned to look at Major Batts and asked, Are your assault forces ready? They are, the plan is to deploy two fully loaded combat transports, one will be carrying a couple of squads of power armour as well as troops. Ok, we will have a full briefing when the Hornets have returned and we have collected the War Mont Vs assault troops. Take us out of orbit please. Certainly Captain, said Simon C. The nose of the Intreped moved up and very quickly was moving forward over the northern area of Rugthz III. The last burst transmission from the Hornets what did the Intelligence staff get from analyzing it? he asked. A lot, replied Major Batts and the LPD in the arm went live and displayed some of the information gathered. Danny quickly read the information and said, Ok we will assault from both the front and back of the base. He stood up and said, Commander Reims the command deck is yours. He turned and walked to his office so he could review the information. He sat at his desk and the LPD on it came to life as Tishun piped the
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information to it. As he read he used his PDU to make provisional plans for the actual assault. The photos and video the Hornets had been able to get showed a couple of areas of compacted ground where the Combat Transports could land and deploy the troops from. He activated his internal communications channel and said, Sis can you come to my office on the command deck. On my way bro, she replied. ***** Danny, Major Batts and Richmond T stood on the flight deck as the transport from the War Mont V landed. The side door opened and out came a stocky female Moon Dwarf. She approached the three and said, Force Commander Drauntan at your command Captain. Welcome aboard Force Commander, Commander Richmond Titovoth head of Ship Board Security and Major Batts Commander of the 6th Assault Infantry. Commander, Major, said Drauntan. Can I assume quarters for my 40 men have been sorted? They have Force Commander, said Major Batts. If you would follow me I will show you the quarters. Force Commander along with all 40 of her unit followed Major Batts. Richmond T turned to Danny and said, An interesting force. Danny nodded his head in agreement. Yes, quite a mix. Fleet Admiral sent over a list of the unit along with all their specialities and you are looking at a very well rounded unit. I am just working out the numbers for the combat transports, Richmond T said. Danny quickly worked out the rough numbers. With then having forty and the plan to take two squads of PAs it leaves us with space for 80 troops. Yeah that was what I thought; it would depend on what the Major has assigned to the force. I think he has assigned 10 flight capable so it would give us another 20 spaces, said Richmond T as they turned and left the flight deck. How goes the plans? he asked. Pretty well, Alice says she can quite easily construct more FCSUs so I was planning on using them to show us the orbital defences as well as the ground defences. Richmond T nodded his head in understanding as the lift doors opened. Main Hydroponics Bay thanks Marcha. A few seconds later the doors opened and allowed the pair out onto the corridor running down the side of the bay. They crossed it and found Alice and Yelena sat at one of the tables. They both collected themselves a drink and headed for the table. Danny asked, Can we join you two? Alice looked up and smiled at her brother. Of course you can bro, Richmond T. I will say this rTuth is getting on really well with the YGs and Gangrels. Danny looked around and saw rTuth playing what he thought was a game of tag with the YGs.
YG Paula tagged him and he stopped and waited for a few seconds. At the end of the time he walked very fast after them. As he tagged one Danny called, rTuth. He looked up and said something to the group. He walked to the table and joined the four. You are getting on really well with the YGs and from what Alice says the Gangrels as well, Danny said. Yes Danny, they have just accepted me and I feel as if I have become one of them. Danny smiled at this and the fact rTuth had found friends on board. That is great to hear, as after the assault I want a lot of the crew without combat training to start to get some and that includes you. rTuth nodded his head in understanding. I have watched some of the Gangrels spar, or something and it was nasty to watch; very brutal. Gangrel Street is very brutal and very to the point, said Richmond T. It is true street fighting. The upcoming assault you know I will be leading the assault troops. Yes and I will be at your side Danny, he said. Not this operation, said Danny. I need you to protect Yelena as she is going and has no real combat training. Not a problem, who will be protecting you Danny? he inquired. Me and my elite security force, which includes three Gangrels, replied Richmond T. rTuth nodded his head in understanding. rTuth, do not worry, I am going as well, said Alice, and will be working alongside you. rTuth nodded his understanding and said, Not a problem. Major Batts walked in to the bay and over to the table where he sat at the end. Major what PAs have you assigned to the assault? Danny asked. Ten Flight capable, five Jumping Jacks and five MPA3s to prove a fire base and hard hitting strike unit if it is needed. From the images the Hornets have sent back, they should not be needed. Ok, I was just making the final plans for the force make-up, he said. Major Batts took out his PDU and loaded a list of the assault unit he had selected. Without knowing what forces Richmond T was planning on taking I have already selected eighty troopers. All I had planned on taking was my elite unit of ten and further ten to handle the prisoners. The Spaceport is sending a transport behind us to provide us with a second line support unit. They will be replacing us when we leave, said Richmond T. Both Danny and Major Batts nodded their heads in understanding and comprehension. Good, how far behind are they coming? About an hour, but if we need longer then they will relive and allow the troops to join the fight, said Richmond T.
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Danny understood the plans Richmond T had worked out with the Spaceport forces. Good, I think we all should get some rest and set the briefing for 06:00 Ship Time tomorrow morning? I will let all the assault troops know and time for the briefing, said Major Batts. Force Commander Drauntan along with a few of her force walked into the main hydroponics bay and they looked around. They all walked to the drinks area and after getting themselves a drink each they headed for one of the empty tables. Danny stood up and walked to the end of the table and knelt down. Force Commander, how are the quarters? Excellent Captain, she replied. My unit commanders Unit Serge, uPulan, Orrkshun, Wullan and fRut. So what are the plans for the assault? We have a briefing booked for 06:00 Ship Time tomorrow morning in the main briefing room on Deck One and the actual assault is scheduled for tomorrow night when the outpost is on the dark side of its rotation. She nodded her head in understanding. Any other plans? she inquired No the hydroponic bays, and observation areas are open for your men to relax in and the gym and other facilities are also open. We do not generally go for formality here, it is mix and enjoy yourselves environment, he replied. That is really nice to hear, said Orrkshun. So few of the Space Elf Federations vessels go in for that. Danny laughed at what Orrkshun said as YG Paula ran over and smiled at the new arrivals. YG Paula meet the Force and Unit Commanders of the Assault unit from the War Mont V. Hello friends, she said. You free to play Captain. Not at the moment YG Paula, he replied, maybe later. She smiled and said, Ok. She turned and ran back to the rest of the YGs. He stood up and turned to head out of the bay; he wanted to spend some time in the Space Sciences Lab, Drass had said he would be working in there for a lot of the time he was on board. Captain, said uPulan. He stopped and turned back. Yes uPulan, he said. After the assault as my squad has only just been assigned to joining you, would it be ok for my unit to stay on board. He thought about the Space Elf Federation force assignments and he did remember something about a change in the assignments. Yes certainly uPulan. I remember an update being sent from the Federation Military Command concerning it. Thank you, he said. Drauntan said, I will organise the transport of the rest of your units gear over. uPulan looked back and said, Thank you Force Commander. Danny watched as Drauntan looked as if she was communicating with the War Mont V. Done, she said. Over Captain said he would organise it and get it transported after the assault. Will
we be needing our battle transport? No, we have assigned a couple of our combat transports to the assault force, he said. Ok, I will let the crew know to return to the War Mont V and bring over your units gear. uPulan nodded his head in thanks. Thank you Force Commander. Danny turned and this time he left the bay. ***** At 06:00 he walked into the main briefing room and saw all the 140 people involved in the assault sat waiting for the briefing. Good morning everyone, he said and walked to the map table. Tishun flashed the area map around the outpost to the screen above the table. Ok the screen above me shows the outpost and the surrounding area out to about 10km. The deployment plan was to place one transport here and the second one here. The screen showed the two locations with red circles. We know for a fact this landing area, the area closest to the outpost changed colour to a blue circle, is protected by at least four orbital weapons and six ground based emplacements which when revealed will be hit by the flight capable PAs whilst the rest will be taken by either the ground forces or the Jumping Jacks. He looked around the room at the people sat listening to the briefing. Some looked like they were taking notes. The actual assault plan is for two strike teams to hit the front and back entrances, but flexibility is vital as we do not have any plans of the outpost. If other entrances appear then they are to be taken. The other major plan is to extract as much information from their computers as we can and for that reason the Chief Engineer is also going with us, she has the skills to hack into their computers. Again he looked around the room especially watching the assault forces from the War Mont. He continued, The other specialist is Yelena who has the task of dealing with their power systems. Any bombs are going to be mine and a number of other people present responsibilities. As you all already know the assault is timed for when the Outpost is on the dark side of the planets rotation. From the recon already carried out it looks like they do not have much in the way of night fighting capability. I think they are relaying on not being discovered more than anything. We do not expect much in the way of problems once we are inside the outpost but you never know so be aware and ready at all times. Tishun our ships computer is currently upgrading the combat systems of our allies in the assault and thank you to Force Commander Drauntan for allowing that. Not a problem Captain, I have read the reports of the forces supporting the Warhounds assaults on the two pirate bases and from them the new systems proved themselves to be highly effective. He smiled at Drauntans reply and said, Right the rest of the day is yours as Tishun has calculated the time the outpost is in darkness will be about 21:00 Ship Time so we will start to prepare at 18:00 Ship Time. Any one got any questions? he ended with. After a couple of minutes for the people to think about the plans and if they understood them he said, Right them dismissed.
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The room broke and Alice, Yelena, Richmond T and Drauntan walked over to him. Very nice briefing Captain, said Drauntan, concise, clear and very well handled. Thank you Force Commander, he replied. I pride myself on being simple and not making plans to complex. This is a simple assault to seize the base. Drauntan turned and headed out of the briefing room. Yelena asked, Why have you included me in the assault, there are better people from the Power Systems Department? Alice turned and said, I have read the resumes of everyone working in Power Systems and none showed the flexibility that your resume did. Your tutor stated on the letter of reference that you showed a natural flexibility to look at a problem and work around it that may be a very important skill during this assault. Plus we do need someone to fill Mr Leddow position and if you do as well as I think you will, that promotion is yours Yelena, Danny added. I work of ability not rank or length of time served. Anyway I think as we have about 12 hours before we need to think about getting ready I think it might be a good time for you to gain some combat experience Yelena. I have had Tishun prepare some training scenarios that should serve you well during the assault. rTuth walked back in to the briefing room as he had walked out chatting to a couple of the Elves. He walked to the table and asked, What is happening? We are about to go and give Yelena some combat experience rTuth, said Richmond T. Right, I think I will join you as I would not mind getting some as well, I might be a Juicer but I have not been trained in what is going to be happening tonight. The five people walked out and very quickly they walked in to the changing rooms where they all donned their environmental armour. Their next stop was the armoury where they all collected their energy weapons. A few minutes later they all walked into the Holo-Training room where Danny said, Tishun load Danny Combat Training Scenario One please. The room changed and they found themselves on an area similar to the site around the outpost. Right lets walk through the operation first. Remember you are going to be moving in behind the main assault forces rather than as a direct member, but that still does not mean you can let your guard down. Combat is very fluid and can change at a moments notice, Danny said. Richmond T added, The Gangrels have a saying, we prepare for the worst and hope for the best. The worst in this assault is that they defences are tougher than we think they are. The best is that the defences are unmanned and not ready for the assault. We will have the element of surprise during the assault as the combat transports and PAs are all equipped with the Sensor Masking systems. It should provide us the chance to land and begin the assault without them ever knowing we are there, said Alice.
It is going to come as a massive surprise to them, said Richmond T. Danny led the group off the transport and ahead of them moved the figures of the primary assault force. From the recon those four rock stacks have an energy weapon that points into the sky and so should not cause us problems, Danny said. See the openings in the rock stacks? Yelena nodded that she did. Those we think will contain the ground defences and again should have already fallen to the primary assault forces. Danny led them down the pathway leading from the landing area towards the main entrance. At the main entrance Richmond said, Depending on the preparedness of the defences will determine the method of entry. If it is a defended assault then we will likely have to blow the door off but in that eventuality we will have force field generators that will seal the breech. On an undefended assault we will likely have to crack a coded entry system, which will likely fall to me, said Danny. Or maybe me, added Alice, it would depend on the system they are using. Inside we have no idea what to expect so follow Alices instructions unless you are doing your job when we will follow your instructions, Danny said. Yelena nodded. Right next combat scenario, in this we will not be targeted and the advantage of these are we can pause the operation. Tishun load Danny Combat Training Scenario Two please. The scene changed to one of an urban environment. Run the scenario please. The scenario started and all around the group the noise was deafening as assault rifles fired, explosions took place and the general sounds of an intense battle took place. Pause, Danny said. The scenario stopped. Yelena said, The noise is the first thing I noticed. Danny and Richmond both nodded their heads. The noise in a full battle is deafening. This scenario is the final battle of the Wacker War and is the combat for a meat processing plant on the south side. The forces attacking are made from 60% Gangrels and the rest are forces from the Street Scene. Mine and Alices younger brother and his partner were directly involved in the assault along with their GYPS Unit. The overall force commander was Gary Sutherland and he gave the command for the assault to the pair and from the reports I read they handled it very professionally. Continue. The scenario resumed and the group watched as the assault forces breeched the fence line and spread out from that entry point. One of the women fired her weapon at one of the armoured vehicles and the three pulses started a fire that after about a minute caused the turret to explode.
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The woman who destroyed the vehicle is Brei, Alexs partner and chief gunner on the Warhound, Alice said. What weapon did she use then? Yelena asked. A CN20, it is a neutral particle rifle, Danny replied. Yelena looked at the damage it had caused and said, Creator. A short while later the group stood beside the office building as a group of Security Command men tried to uncover a massive vehicle. Brei and Alex had taken to a fox hole and after a few seconds they both popped up and fired their weapons. Brei was using the weapon she had been carrying on her back and four of the Security Commands men dropped. Alex also fired his second weapon and destroyed the head of the fifth. What was the weapon Brei used then? inquired Yelena. I think it was a CAT88, it is a pulse laser rifle, Alice replied. She was a sniper for the GYPS as she is gifted when it comes to ranged weapons. Danny said, Tishun end the scenario. The scenario stopped and the room returned to its original state. Do you see though when I said combat can be chaos, Richmond said. Yes I do, replied Yelena. I would say it is more organised chaos though than true chaos. It can be it does depend on the troops and the people in command on both sides. Major Batts will be in overall command coordinating the assault from the Intrepeds C&C. I will be in command on the ground, Danny said. The Major will see all the various aspects as the assault happens where I will only really see my assault front. I will be relaying on him to liaise with me on the other aspects. The group turned and walked from the room and back to the changing rooms where they all got changed and they then headed for the Hydroponics bay and some food.
Chapter 12
At 18:00 all the assault force assembled in the changing rooms and they all started to change into their environmental armour. Danny walked in with Alice, rTuth and Yelena and they too headed for their lockers and quickly had removed their clothes and started to don their armour. Richmond T walked over leading one of the elite security men. Alice, rTuth, Yelena meet Master Sergeant Lims, he will be commanding the five man unit assigned to protect you. Evening Master Sergeant, said Alice. Good evening Chief Engineer, he said and waited for them to finish changing. Twenty minutes later the entire force filed passed the main armoury to collect their weapons. Roger L handed Danny his A9 and said, Good luck out there Captain. Thank you Load Master, he said and continued on down the line to the next person who handed him his 8 e-clips. He slotted one into the weapon and stored the rest in the two pouches on the front of his armour. Just behind him came Yelena who carried a CN20. At the end of the run he moved out of the way and Yelena followed him. He looked her over and inquired, You ready? Yes I am, I just hope I do not freeze out there. If you do you have a number of people around you and I think Richmond T and I will be more than willing to help you through any problems you have. She smiled at him and Alice joined them. Right I think we had better head for the Flight Deck and the combat transport, she said. Yes we had better. Commander Danes has positioned the Intreped where the CNP34s will be useful to us should we need them, said Danny. He walked to the lift and a few seconds later he led the group across the corridor onto the Flight Deck. He headed for the lead Combat Transport and along with the rest of the force assigned to it boarded. He moved to stand in the cockpit door and looked out. He watched as the ten flight capable PAs stood ready on the edge of the deck looking out into space. He knew they would have no problems getting to the planet as the moon was a vacuum. As the last of the assault troops boarded the PAs assigned to the transport also boarded and the rear door closed. The door sealed and the pilot took the transport off the deck and hovered waiting for the second Combat Transport to join it.
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The flight PAs walked off the edge and disappeared down. As the last of them vanished the pilot engaged the engines and the transport started to move forward and a few seconds later the Sensor Mask engaged and it left the flight deck and headed for its off point just off the landing area. He knew the second would be also heading for its launch point. He turned and looked at the troops in the back and said, Ok people get ready, two hours to go. Captain we have Commander Danes on the communications for you, said the pilot. Thanks I will take in on my internal communications link, he said. Captain, the Intreped is ready the command deck crew wish you luck today. Thanks, he replied and donned his helmet. His systems went live and on the view plate appeared his preferred options. He felt the link between the armour and him engage and his cyber vision displayed the targeting system for his A9 along with all the other information it sent via the smart link. Alice moved to stand beside him as the transport manoeuvred into position. Not long now bro. He turned to look at her and said, No, not long now. He knew he was ready as were the rest of the forces. He looked at the helmet display and saw all the position locks for the rest of the forces on board. ***** T minus five minutes people; look alive, he said. The forces on board began their final checks and generally got themselves ready. Sealing cockpit, said the transports commander and the door closed as he moved back and headed down the transport to the rear entry door. Stood with him were Richmond T and the five man elite unit who would be the first people off the transport. The Jumping Jacks would follow and take the orbital defence weapons whilst the Flight PAs provided fire support. He looked back and saw the rest of the force was all stood and they looked ready. His plan was to simply over whelm the defences. Major Batts said, Two minutes. As the countdown started his own internal clock reset to the countdown timer and he lifted his A9 to his shoulder in readiness. The Transport had changed facing so the rear hatch faced the entry path. Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one, go, go, go, said Major Batts as the transport touched down and the rear doors opened. He led the troops from the transport and immediately opened fire on the slits in the rock pillars. His plasma rounds blasting the protective screens and opening the area behind to the vacuum of space. Two balls of plasma flew in and finished the destruction he had started. He ran for the track way and proceeded down it towards the main entrance. He stopped as the track forked and headed down to what looked like a shuttered garage. He indicated for a squad to take the garage area and as he moved he watched as one of the War Mont Vs squads moved down the track towards the doors.
He moved at the head of the forces and as they entered an open area a pulse laser opened fire on them. He moved and took cover behind some rocks as one of the slower men took a couple of pulses. The man went down flat on his face. The laser stopped firing and this gave a couple of his colleagues the chance to drag him to safety behind a rock outcropping. He looked at the unit designation and found the downed person was from unit 2. Unit 2, Captain, how is he? he inquired. He is ok Captain; he took a couple of pulses to his arm. The units medic is patching him up now. Ok, he said and popped up and as he did he fired his A9 at the location. Richmond joined him firing his A7. A couple of other men also fired their grenade launchers at the slit. The combined damage from the A9, A7 and grenades destroyed the nest. A second turret also fired and got one of the flight PAs to fire one of its missiles at the site. The site disappeared in an explosion. Captain, Unit 7, we have entered the garage and found a couple of what look like land rovers, they both have Trans Darra logos on the side. Thank you Unit 7, he said and indicated for his unit to move as Alice and her unit reached him. They moved from behind the cover and crossed the opening and continued down the track way towards the front door. PA7, Captain, the people inside are beginning to construct rudimentary defences. Ok, understood. Assault Force Two, Captain, what is your status? We are approaching the back door now, replied Force Commander Drauntan. He flattened himself against the wall and looked at the entry system. It was a very simple system of entry, no codes needed. Get the force field generators in place, he commanded and one member of his unit moved and split the four corners and Nanytes on the bottom attached themselves to the wall surrounding the door. They activated it and created an air seal against the door way. He hit the door open button and the door slid open to reveal an eight man airlock with four men inside. The men inside opened fire using laser weapons. He relayed the video from one of the men who could see inside and stuck his A9 around the corner. He pulled the trigger and fired. He watched as the plasma rounds hit and took the men down. They all were wearing basic environmental suits rather than Environmental Armour. He moved into the air lock and as Richmond T joined him he glanced out of the small window in the inner door. He went to work on the aeration control system and very quickly had the airlock room refilled with air. Outside a couple of the elite unit worked the sensor and they soon had that thinking the outer door was sealed. They entered along with a couple of the following unit. The entire unit moved out of the way of the door and he opened it and found no one on the other side. He realised that the people inside had thought the four in the airlock would have stopped the attackers. He
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checked the camera view from the second assault team and saw them attaching the force field generators to the wall surrounding the back door. He signalled the rest of the unit to follow him as he moved into the area beyond the airlock. The area was an open area where a further twelve environmental suits were hung up. He moved to the next door and again he opened it with a pair of the elite unit knelt down with their weapons ready to fire. Again no one was on the other side. Alice, Yelena and rTuth entered and along with their unit they followed him into the corridor beyond. Unit 7 appeared from a ramp up and turned away down the corridor. Unit 2 entered and moved in the opposite direction to Unit 7. He crossed the corridor and at the end of a short corridor he again opened the door and found a couple of very startled people working the computer consoles. He and rTuth fired and killed both the men. All yours Alice, he said. She looked at him and he knew she was smiling under her helmet. She moved to one of the computers and removed her helmet placing it down beside the computer. She drew her data transfer cable from its home on her neck and she quickly plugged it into the computer. After a few seconds she said, I am online with the computers. She made the main screen display one of the security cameras from inside the dome. The screen displayed a lot of people hiding behind makeshift barricades. Captain, Unit 2, we have found an entrance to the dome. Alice can you display a map of the outpost. I am looking for exactly that, she said on his internal communicator. The screen changed again and displayed a map of the outpost. I am downloading it to all the assault force, she said. He looked at the map and found it had been updated. Find me the Power Centre Alice, he said. Found it, she said, It is through that door. A second door opened and beyond it went a set of steps down. It is down one level bro. He nodded and said, rTuth, take Yelena and the rest of the unit and secure the power centre. Unit 3 protect Alice at all costs. Found the Communications Centre, she said, Unit 7 is closest. Unit 7, Captain, you are the closest to the communication centre, go and secure it. Considered it done Captain. He moved back out of the door and headed towards Unit 2 with Richmond T and his unit along with Unit 4 close behind. All forces, Captain, Alice has complete control of the outposts computer system. Richmond T asked, How are you talking to her? Through my cyber communicator, he replied, Alice would you mind opening the door to the dome? The door slid open and Unit 2 entered ahead of him and Richmond Ts unit.
He looked at the ammunition read out and ejected the old e-clip as it only had fifteen shots left. He slotted in a fresh e-clip and followed Unit 2 as they moved down the wall of the control area. Unit 2 stopped as they approached what looked like on the map as the main road running through the middle to the back door. He saw the blips of the second Assault Force had secured the second airlock and they looked like they were waiting for something. Bro it looks like all the barricades are facing towards you and one is twenty feet down the main road. I am uploading the camera views now to Tishun. Again the map updated as Alice added numbers to the positions of the cameras. He selected camera three and looked right down the main street. He could see the barricades and glimpsed a few heads appear and disappear. Assault Force Two, Captain, make a quiet entrance to the dome and prepare. Not a problem Captain, replied Drauntan. He removed his helmet and called from where he stood after a full squad of Assault Force Two had entered the dome, Occupants this is Captain Curtdoza of the CS002 Intreped we have you surrounded surrender and you will be treated with dignity. He watched as a few of the people seemed to be looking at each other. One voice shouted, Behind us. He saw more of the people look at the back door area and jump the barricades so they faced the new attackers. See you have no escape. Surrender and you will be treated with dignity, he called. We also control the computers. Captain, rTuth, we have control of the Power Centre. As well as the outposts Power Centre. We are all wearing environmental armour where you do not; I will give you a minute to decide otherwise we will attack. Captain, JJ Unit we have entered the dome, where do you want us? Stay put JJ Unit; they have fifty seconds to decide whether or not to surrender otherwise we attack. Confirmed. As the seconds ticked down he saw more and more of the people decide that surrendering was the better option. Commander Danes, Captain, position the Intreped above the dome and de-sensor mask, I want to make sure they understand. Moving now Captain. He looked up as the Sensor Mask deactivated from the front of the vessel to the rear. He noticed a few looked up at through the dome. At five seconds to go one of the people shouted, We surrender and we hold you to your words
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Captain. As a member of the Street Scene of Darra Von, my word is my bond. All assault forces, Captain, move to disarm the defenders, they have surrendered. He moved from his hiding place into the main street and watched as the rest of the units moved and took the laser pistols and other energy weapons from the people. Unit 2, 9, and 10, Captain, secure the buildings. Alice how many people here? he inquired. 67 in total, 40 paid employees of Trans Darra and the rest slaves, she replied. Captain, Commander Danes, the second line forces have landed and are deploying to secure the facility from you. Thank you Commander Danes. Alice what is the status of the data upload? A couple of seconds passed and Alice replied, The upload should take about 30 minutes. I am heading for the Communications Centre now. Ok sis, he replied. He slung his A9 and walked down the main street and watched as the assault troops secured all the buildings inside the dome. As he approached a small square in the middle he watched as a group of 15 people, all pretty young, were led from one of the buildings. Knelt on the ground outside were a couple of women, their hands on their head and their ankles crossed in a fashion of prisoner control. Richmond T walked up to him and said, We now control the whole outpost including a small hanger with a couple of transports. He nodded that he had heard and said, Good, the second line forces are here and they have entered the outpost. They are securing from the control centre out. Ok, so how long before they take control? Richmond T asked. I would say fifteen to twenty minutes. Ten minutes later the commander of the Spaceports forces walked up to him and said, Captain, we now pretty much have taken control of the outpost, what do you want done with the prisoners. Transport them and the now freed slaves to the Intreped so the Interrogation teams can start to interrogate them, he replied. All assault forces, Captain, allow the second line units to secure your positions and prisoners. Then return to the combat transports on the main landing area. ***** Danny walked down the corridor within the Security Compound on the Intreped and stopped at a doorway. He scanned his ID card through the reader and the door opened, he stepped through and stopped at the desk in front of the door. Captain, said one of the two working the desk. He removed his vibro knife and CLP30 and handed them to the pair. The one who had spoken pressed a button and the door beside the desk opened and allowed him through into the corridor on which the interview rooms stood. He looked through the windows looking onto the observation room and saw Richmond T stood watching one of the interviews. He pushed the door open and walked in.
In the interview room Richmond T was watching sat an older man and a security officer and one of the combat forces Intelligence personal. How is it going? he asked. Pretty good thanks, most have been very helpful. Some on the other hand have remained silent and not said a word. He watched as Richmond T turned up the speaker beside the one-way window. The Intelligence Officer asked, The orders you spoke about a bit earlier who did they come from? Ruaz Thros, Head of Personal Management. He and Drass are the only two people we have dealings with at the head offices. Thank you for your help in clearing that up. The security officer stood by the door moved and led the man away down the corridor towards the Cell Block. We have had to convert one of the Cargo Bays into temporary holding as we only officially have space for twenty prisoners. Arh, how are we controlling them? Danny asked. Tishun has increased the local gravity to 3Gs and also added a slight sedative to the air system, replied Richmond T as the pair walked from the room into the corridor. The pair in the interview room walked out and the member of Ship Board Security said, Captain, Commander. The two continued down the corridor to the end and into the cell block. As they walked down the corridor Danny looked into each cell and saw the prisoners not looking down, just not very happy with their situation. What is your overall opinion of the prisoners? he asked. Richmond T looked as if he was thinking about the answer. From the ones who talked, they were not very happy with the protection they had been given. I think the first few members of the people were the defence force. I seriously think they never thought they would be assaulted by forces as well trained as us. Are you serious? he inquired. Yes I am, responded Richmond T. I honestly think they thought the likely attackers would be persuaded by the defence grid. I do think it helped that our ships are equipped with Sensor Masking technology. From the interviews I have glanced at it does seem they were very shocked when the Intreped appeared and at such a low altitude. I could clearly see the CNP34s pointing right at the dome. What is going to happen to the prisoners? Richmond T inquired. The plan is to hand them over to the War Mont V as they are better equipped to handle the numbers, Danny replied. Richmond T nodded his head in understanding. Does Drauntan know this? he inquired.
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To my knowledge she does. ***** Danny stood on the Flight deck as the last of the prisoners were loaded onto the transport returning the allied assault units to the War Mont V. The last of the combat equipment belonging to the first squad of the Space Elf Federation had been moved to their storage areas a few minutes before. Drauntan stood with him and he turned and said, Captain it has been a pleasure working with you and your forces. I hope you luck on your mission and I also hope to work alongside you in the future. Force Commander Drauntan, it was my honour to have you on board and for your forces to assist in the taking of the outpost. They were highly professional and very skilled. Drauntan walked to the transport and he turned and saluted him. Danny returned the salute using the standard Echo County Military one. He smiled as the hatch closed and the transport lifted off the Flight Deck. He turned and walked out of the Flight Deck and into the lift. Command Deck thanks Marcha, he said as the doors closed. The lift moved and a few seconds later the doors opened and allowed him on to the Command Deck where Richmond T vacated the command seat. He sat down and said, Mr Carbuncle, set a course for Trashan and engage at Light Mach 6. Certainly Captain, Simon C said and lent back into his pilot couch. He engaged the VCS as he shifted the Intreped out of orbit around Rugthz 4. A couple of minutes later the Hyperdrive engaged and the stars became streaks of light and the purple bubble of hyperspace appeared around the ship. Flight Commander Patricks what is our ETA in Trashan? Four days Captain, he replied. He sat back and thought about the last few days. The Flight Deck now had two transports and they were being upgraded to incorporate the new technology and weapon systems. Those he knew would come in very handy for fooling Trans Darra Toral Productions, but also as private vessels that could be used to ferry around VIPs and also as a training tool. He turned and looked at Richmond T stood at his station behind him and asked, Richmond T how comes the combat training course? Very well, all the Gangrels have volunteered to train the crew in Gangrel Street as well as combat tactics and battle field lessons. I have an accreditation scheme planned and ready to be implemented. I have already accredited all the 6th, the security unit, the Gangrels, yourself, and the Chief Engineer. I have set the testing dates for those members with some combat experience for when we reach Trashan. Excellent, he replied and he knew he looked very impressed by that. The Gangrels had accepted nearly all of the slaves from the outpost as members. He looked at the LPD and tapped the screen and worked out the current crew numbers along with the specifications of the ship and the life support system.
He activated his cyber communicator and said, Alice, what is the maximum number of people we can safely take? About 2100 bro. Why the question? she inquired. Just working out the crew numbers what with the new additions to the Gangrels and the people we are due to take on at Trashan. I had already looked at that and we have a good 250 person window before we hit maximum safe numbers. I already have the guys in Environmental Services looking at upgrading the system. As well as I am looking with Tishun at increasing the number of quarters on board; I recon we can fit another 50 standard cabins in the main hull. I have already started to plan a massive addition to the Intreped by adding a lower pod and two wings running from the bottom of the engineering pods. Ok, I am impressed. So how much space will that add? he inquired. Alice laughed and said, I will give you a briefing later bro. He smiled and quietly laughed. Ok sis, you know we have been invited to a party this evening in the Hydroponics Bay in the Top Pod? Yes I do, she replied, Chat to you then. The line went dead and he looked back at the screen as Ittitan, Drass and uTun walked from the lift onto the Command Deck. They all moved to the seats beside him. Ittitan asked, How long before we reach Trashan Captain? Four days Council Member, he replied.
Chapter 13
Danny walked in to the Hydroponics Bay in the Top Pod and saw a banner hanging between two trees saying, Happy 12th Bday Hatshun. He smiled at the banner and the party the Gangrels had thrown for the new member of the YGs. YG Paula ran over from playing with them and said, You made it Danny. She looked really happy at the fact. He looked at her wearing a party hat. I said I would, he said and walked with her to where some of the YGs sat looking exhausted after the few games they had already played. So where is the bday girl? he asked. Here Captain, she replied as he joined the YGs sitting on the floor. And where is my party hat, he inquired. Right here, said YG Paula and she placed it on his head. He smiled at the fact. He had been to very few bday parties in his time with Security Command but he
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and Alice if possible always tried to celebrate his and hers along with Alexs. They had built quite a present collection over the years and hopefully they would be able to give him them at some point in the future. His PDU buzzed and he took it from his pouch. He looked at who was calling and saw it was Alex. He connected the call and said, Hello little brother, how are you and everyone else? We are super good thanks and we have some excellent news for you and Alice. You are officially uncle and aunty. Brei has just had triplets. He stared at Alex in shock. Triplets! Oh congrats bro, and where is the lucky mother. Right here, said Breis voice. Alex moved the PDU and showed Brei laying up in bed holding all three. What have you named them? he asked as Alice walked into the bay. Daniel and Alex Jnr. He pointed at the two boys and, Alice-Bray after you and Alice. Where is Alice I have tried to contact her. She is right here bro, he said as Alice sat down and had a party hat placed on her head by YG Paula. She looked at the screen her eyes opened in real shock. Congrats Brei and you Alex, she said and she wore a big happy smile. Thank you Alice. We do wish you were here right now as Nibs has agreed to stand and preside over our Partnershipping when I am fully up and about. How old are they? asked Alice. A few hours, replied Brei, Alice-Bray came first, then Daniel and lastly Alex Jnr. Danny shook his head and smiled at the fact he was an uncle. Bro, sis if you were here you both would stand as two points on the cardinal, Alex said. Alice smiled at the news. So who is standing points then? Not decided on that yet, but Sandra is one and Abiba is the second. What points would we stand? asked Alice. Brei looked up and replied, You Alice would stand as North Point or Family and you Danny would stand as South or Strength. They both smiled at the two points they would represent. Doris M walked behind the pair and looked over their shoulder and said, Congratulations, you must be Alex and Brei. We are, replied Alex, anyway you have party hat on your head so you must be enjoying a party so we will let you get back to that. We both want to watch your Partnershipping live, said Alice. You will, replied Alex and the screen went black as the connection closed. Doris M moved to knee beside them and said, I have just had a conversation with Sarah C and she says that as Captain of the Intreped you should be the person to stand and officiate the introductions of new Gangrels.
Danny looked very surprised at this. What? he asked. When a YG reaches 14 or a Gangrel is asked to join he or she is introduced to the Gangrels at a Gathering where the current leader stands as witness to the new members swearing the Oath of Allegiance. As you are Captain you are our leader. He nodded his head as it clicked what Doris M was saying. I understand now. It would be an honour to officiate for you. How many new members are going to be joining? Twelve and rTuth is one of them. He accepted membership when we asked a couple of days ago. It looks like he has spent a lot of time reading up on the scene and all the aspects of it. Commander Titovoth has agreed to be the oath reader; it was him who said you should be the person to welcome new members. He smiled at Doris M and said, I accept. May I suggest the event happens when we reach Trashan as I think all the crew should be present for this. That was our plan as well, said Doris M. Alice took a small item from her pouch and said, Bro shall we go and give our present to the bday girl. He looked at Alice and said, Yes lets. The pair stood and walked to where YG Hatshun sat looking very happy at the party. They knelt down and Alice said, Close your eyes YG Hatshun and put your hands out. She did just that and Alice placed a small box on her hands. Open them and open the box, said Alice. YG Hatshun opened her eyes and opened the box. Inside was a small musical box with a small area to keep valuable items. I will code the box to your bio-signature in a couple of days so only you can open it, said Alice. It is from both me and Danny. YG Hatshun looked up at the pair and said, Thank you. She moved and gave them both a hug together which got them both to hug her back. Welcome to the crew YG Hatshun. Tomorrow I will give you and the other new YGs your laser pistol and vibro-knife. As YGs you should join them as members of their unit. YG Paula came behind her and wrapped her arms around YG Hatshun neck and said, Welcome to the Intreped YGs YG Hatshun. She moved her arms and gave YG Paula a hug as well. Thank you for having me. YG Edward shouted, Let us have a game of hide and seek. All the YGs stood up and headed to where YG Edward stood whilst he told them the rules. Doris M came and sat beside them as YG Hatshun returned and gave Alice the box. Please look after it for me. It would be my honour, she replied and YG Hatshun returned to the group and chose the first seeker. At the end of the game the Chef walked in pushing a cart. He was followed by the rest of the canteen
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crew and placed all the items from the rest of the trolleys on the tables already set up. Danny stood up and walked to where he stood watching the cart he had pushed in. He looked at the food layout and said, Thank you chef for the food. It was a pleasure to prepare it, and I hope it is the first of many bday parties to be held on board. All the YGs lined up with YG Hatshun at the front. They all moved along the tables choosing what food they wanted. Doris M walked up behind Danny and Alice and asked, Would you like to have a camber cigarette? Danny thought about the question and replied, I am not sure if it will affect us as we both have toxin filters in built to our lungs. Richmond T walked over and said, I think you will find if does affect you. When you had your Position Locators removed Dr Nuriegummie added a program to your system control circuits that stops the harmful chemicals and toxins, but camber is not harmful to the programs. Alice said after remembering something, I remember Dr Nuriegummie saying something about us finding little presents from Ren and Anti-char. I remember her telling me that when I woke up, Danny said and took the one Doris M offered and lit the tip from the lighter Richmond T offered. Alice took the second and also lit the tip from the same lighter. They both took draws and after a couple of seconds felt the effects of the smoke take hold and to him it felt good. As the last of the YGs moved along the table they both took their places and choose the food items they wanted and moved to join the YGs as they ate the food. rTuth came and sat beside him and said, Captain, when we reach Trashan I have decided to undergo the full Cyborg Conversion. The techs are constructing the system as we speak; they are the same plans as the ones Simon Sinc uses to help the people in his community under Killeash. Ok, I have no problem with that, he replied, as long as you do not undergo the operation before you are introduced as a Gangrel. No, I had already told Dr White that she can operate only after that has taken place. Richmond T says you are going to officiate the ceremony. He nodded that he would and took a mini sausage roll and shoved it into his mouth. Doris M asked me a little while ago and I accepted. So what is going to happen then? he asked really interested in knowing. Alice sat beside the pair and asked, What are you two talking about? rTuth is going to undergo the full Cyborg Conversion, Danny replied. Alice nodded at this. So that is what the techs are working on in the science labs and micro-workshop. Yes, I have been fully involved in the design, said rTuth. I want it to look as close as it can to the way I look now, Dr White is also storing some of my seed so mum at least can see little ones. Danny smiled at this. Well me and Alice are now aunt and uncle. Alex and his partner had triplets a few
hours ago. rTuth smiled and said, Well that is news and I hope the pair are doing well? They look as if they are, Danny said. We had a quick chat a little while ago. I am so happy for the both of you, said rTuth. Anyway back to my original question, Danny said. What is going to happen? rTuth shoved a sandwich into his mouth and replied after finishing it, From what Dr White and Thomas Sinc said Dr White and her team will be removing my spinal cord and brain from my head and placing it inside the head and back of my new body. Post that procedure; medical nanytes are going to rebuild the various links between that and the rest of the new bodys systems. Tomorrow I am going to be going down to medical to have Tishun carry out a brain recording so the new cyber brain can be written with the correct operating system. Danny thought about the procedure and asked, Do you mind if I watch the operation? No, I would be very happy if you did. ***** Danny walked into the Micro-workshop and stood just inside the door as Alice and rTuth stood watching the techs work on the various systems. Alice placed her arm on the bench and instructed the tech stood beside her how to open her arm. The tech popped it open and watched as Alice flexed her fingers and thumb. He looked back at the arm he was working on and loosened something inside. He walked over to the table as the fingers moved as rTuth moved his fingers. That was impressive, he said. Alice looked up and said, Hi bro. Yes it is Tishun has already written the operating system to the Cyber Brain interface and rTuth is using one of the neural induction head pieces to control the systems. It is like I am already in the body, it is freaky, rTuth said. I have already had the legs over there, and he pointed to them, running at my fastest speed under full flow juicer. I think I clocked about 75kph. Danny did look impressed at that. The techs estimate I could be going at almost double that speed at full speed if not faster. At this he really did look impressed. That is some speed. rTuth nodded that he agreed. I just want one Murderthon against a couple of Hyperion Juicers I am going to slaughter them. Danny looked at the arm and asked, How about the power systems? Advanced power cells and normal eating provide the power. From the calculations working on full power rTuth should be fully operational for about 50hrs, said Alice. Danny nodded his head in understanding and semi surprise. Is the system the same as us? Pretty much, but with modifications Simon Sinc uses in his. I am not 100% sure but I think the
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Warhound has 25 of the cyber kids on board. They are learning how to be one and support Yarosh and Dreedun when it is needed, Alice replied. Anti-Char did a lot for cybernetic and bionic research when she handed Dr Nuriegummie all the data from the work done by the docs at the research base. Danny thought about the early procedure. How are you protecting the brain? The plan is to knock rTuth out and tip him upside down and place him inside a bath that will keep the brain alive, it is the same liquid and life support system as the one Tishun lives in, replied Andrea W. And that is when the Doc takes over, said Alice. Andrea W smiled at the group. Tishun said I could find you all here. Yes Alice is right, at that point the medical team takes over. I am going to be using a life like image of rTuth and when I make movements during the operation robotic arms will follow my moves and carry out the same procedure on rTuth. I have just finished watching Simon Sinc carry out a full cyber kid conversion twenty times on twenty different people. I have just reviewed rTuths medical scans and I will have Simon Sinc watching my every move and he will be available to point out the problems. I can see why Body Chop Shops are so easy to operate. Both Danny and Alice nodded their heads in agreement. We in Sec Com had standing orders close them down. We usually went in mod heavy with the bulk of the troops being Security and Combat, Danny said. So how much is finished? he asked. rTuth looked at him and said, The head and main torso is finished. He led them to where the torso stood. Danny looked at the torso structure and the way it looked. You are one very handsome Grey Elf rTuth. Why thank you Captain, he said. Danny turned and said, I have to see Richmond T and Doris M about something, it is to do with the introductions. rTuth looked at him in semi horror. Nothing wrong, I hope? he inquired. No, it is just I think better that I also swear the oath before I welcome you, he replied and left the Micro-Workshop. He quickly found Doris M and Richmond T both in the gym. A couple of minutes later he walked in and found a number of the Gangrels stood watching circles of crew men. He stood just to the side of the door and watched as the crew men trained. He noticed Yelena stood and step into the circle. Her opponent very quickly had her on her back. He stood up and walked to the circle and tapped Richmond T on the shoulder and Hello. Richmond turned and said, Hello Danny, what are you doing here? I need to chat to you and Doris M about the Gathering ceremony. Richmond T nodded and called over the gym, Take fifteen. The pair walked to where Doris M stood. Danny said, Doris M, as Commander of the Gangrels I want you to stand as leader for mine and Alices Introduction. It is wrong for someone not a Gangrel to stand and welcome new members. Richmond T thought about what Danny had said. Yes, you are right, the leader has to take the oath
before being installed otherwise as you said, the person is not a Gangrel. Doris M smiled and said, Captain I would happily stand as leader for your and Alices Introductions. We will do it just before the others. Yes that was what I hoped, Danny said. ***** Danny stood waiting for his and Alices Introductions to the Gangrels. Quaz F stood just inside the Flight Deck ready to act as the caller. He nodded and both Danny and Alice stepped into the bay. Quaz F called over the entire crew, This day we of the Gangrels on board the Intreped and the Gang as a whole welcome to our membership two new members. I give the Gangrels Captain Danny Curtdoza and Chief Engineer Alice Curtdoza sponsored by Commander Richmond Titovoth. As the pair started down the middle of the Fight Deck all the crew started to clap. They stopped on the bottom step of the three step raised platform. Monica D raised her arms and the clapping subsided. I Doris Manning, Commander of the Gangrel Unit on the Intreped welcome you both to our ranks, approach. Danny stepped up the final two steps and knelt down. He kissed the back of Doris Ms hand and stood up. Alice followed and also stood up. Richmond T stepped forward and said in a voice that commanded respect, Repeat after me. I Danny Curtdoza or Alice Curtdoza do swear this night. The pair repeated the words and he could feel something. He could not name the feeling but it was a really nice feeling. Richmond T continued, That I will follow the leadership of Sarah Cutherlate, wherever it may lead the Gangrels. He looked up and saw above the platform was a live display showing a massive room where a large number of people stood watching the screen showing the ceremony on the Intreped. He turned to look at Richmond T who winked back and smiled at the same time. They repeated the words. He knew he was smiling even more that the official commander was watching. Richmond T continued at the end of the pair repeating the words, Through war and peace, through prosperity and poorness, and my allegiance shall remain loyal to her and the council whatever path she may lead us on. They both repeated the words and at the end Sarah C said. The Gathering on the Intreped I give you Danny and Alice Curtdoza, Danny is now my representative on the Intreped. Danny repeat after me, I Danny Curtdoza shall lead the Gangrels through war and peace, through prosperity and poorness.
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He repeated the words and at the end Monica D stepped off the platform. I give the Intreped Gangrels your leader, said Sarah C. He stepped up and turned to face the now cheering crew. Alice and Doris M both retreated down the three steps and they moved to the right hand side. The first five new members of the Gangrels and it included rTuth walked the Induction Walk. He looked down on them and saw how proud they all looked. The five stopped on the bottom step and he like Doris M had done raised his arms and the crew quietened down. He said, I Captain Danny Curtdoza, Gangrel Leader on the Intreped welcome you all to our ranks, approach. rTuth stepped up the two steps and knelt down. He kissed the back of Dannys hand and stood up. At the end of the introductions some of the Majors command had been in a command band and they took to the stage that had been rigged on the left hand side of the flight deck. Danny approached Richmond T and asked, How come Sarah C on the screen. They had a Gathering booked at the same time. Our band is being shown in the audience chamber and we are going to be showing the next three; Foot Loose, Dark Legion and The Temptress to close. She said she wanted to show the Inductions here at the main Gathering and so I had the communications centre set up the channel. She said she would watch and officiate the installation of the leader here. Dannys PDU buzzed and he took it out and connected the video call from Sarah C. Welcome to the Gangrels Danny and Alice, she said. Thank you for being here, he said. I know being a Gangrel has been the best thing to happen to Alex and I cannot say how much it means to me and I know Alice. Oh yes, thank you Sarah C. That was a big surprise. Sarah C smiled and said, We will chat soon I am sure, so enjoy the party that the gathering is. Danny nodded and smiled at Sarah C he slipped his arm around Alices waist and gave her a squeeze. She turned and gave him a kiss on the cheek. Dancetina and James K walked over. Dancetina said, That was incredible, to watch all those happy faces was amazing. rTuth approached carrying a couple of glasses and he passed them to the pair. We in the Grey Elves have a tradition that when some really special happens then the people involved drink a blessing. Then I think we all should drink a blessing, Danny said. He turned and walked to the stage and when the second song ended he called the lead singer to him. May I come on stage and say a toast. Yes, of course you can Captain. rTuth moved to stand beside him. Good as this is your tradition then would you do the honour rTuth. rTuth thought about the request and he said, Yes I will.
He followed the Captain up the steps and they moved to the middle of the stage. Danny unclipped the microphone and said, Attendees, crew watching, everyone get yourself a drink for rTuth is going to Bless the Gathering. A few minutes later everyone on the flight deck had a drink in their hands and rTuth said, A blessing on this very special occasion I think for all the new members and also for the crew of this vessel. A blessing on all those here may our future bring happiness and hope to us and everyone else. At this he raised his glass. The entire flight deck followed and the few elves on board shouted, A blessing to all.
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Chapter 14
So when do you go under the knife rTuth? Danny asked at the end of the Gathering. Not until we reach Fratten Five, it is the only place where Doctor White is willing to carry out the procedure as they have a full Cyborg Conversion suite waiting should it be needed, rTuth replied. Over the last few hours I have been coming off the drugs and stimulants from the Drug Harness. Andrea removes the bio-computers and my neck collar tomorrow morning. Danny nodded and smiled his head in understanding. I still want to be there for all the operations. You will be, I asked Tishun to inform you when I am about to go under. Danny smiled and said, I am off to bed. Chat to you tomorrow then Captain. Danny walked out of the Flight Deck and a few seconds later he opened the door to his cabin and collapsed on to his bed. Danny wake up, rTuth is about to go under, said Tishun. Danny lifted his head and looked over at the clock on his bedside table. He thought back to the previous night. He smiled as he remembered what happened last night. Thank you Tishun. I shall be right there. He moved with a purpose and a few minutes he walked out of his cabin wearing some clean clothes and having had a wash. He quickly entered the main medical suite and saw rTuth laying on one of the beds. Dr Edwards stood ready to inject the first of the four chemicals rTuth would need to take him under. He moved to stand beside rTuth and he grabbed Dannys hand. I think I now know what you are to me Danny, said rTuth. And what would that be? Danny inquired. The dad I wish I had, he replied and started to drift off into a light sleep. Danny looked up and asked, How long before he is fully under? About five minutes, I have just introduced the second chemical that should stop the adrenal glands from producing more. The third chemical is a general paralysis chemical that the doctors on the War Mont V said would paralyze rTuth. The last completes the drop and also stops the Bio-Comp from signalling the systems, it also includes some nanytes that will seal the injection sites. Andrea W walked into the suite and said, Post the operation we will keep him under light sedation whilst we clean his blood of all the foreign chemicals and replace them with nanytes that will seek the spinal cord and brain stem preparing it for the move to the cyborg body. He will be awake just maybe not very with it. Just before we start the actual conversion operation Tishun does another Mind Scan and writes the final coding sequences to the cyborg brain.
Danny nodded his head in understanding. How long before he is up and around? Andrea W shrugged and made a face to say No idea. It would depend on how badly the operation is wanted. With rTuth I would not say very long as he wants this. He is under now Andrea, said Dr Edwards. Thank you Mike, we now give him fifteen minutes to allow the nanytes to do their job and then I open him up. Danny nodded and said, Ok, tell me when you have finished and rTuth is waking up. I am going to spend a few hours sparring in the combat simulator room. Andrea looked at him as if to say What? I am about to go and see if I cannot create an advanced combat training program based off the Vixens and the Hunters. Both the doctors nodded their heads in understanding. He turned and walked out and headed for the one of the two smaller combat simulator rooms. He tapped the door open and the door slid open. He walked inside and at the control panel he picked up the tablet and moved to the centre of the floor area. Ok Tishun. Can you access all the video recordings of all the members of the Vixens and Hunters whilst they were involved in unarmed combat especially the files for when they sparred. Working on that right now Danny. Can I ask what this is for? Yes some advanced combat training for all those who want it. I am looking at trying to re-create the various forms each member uses and try and re-create the forms here in the combat simulator. Ok interesting project, said Tishun. I will direct one of the secondary computers to the task of analyzing and compiling the data. Show me the Gym and the training going on there, he requested and on the Tablet. Now let me see if the program I added to the control systems works. He tapped the corner of the image and moved it up and out of the tablet. The screen appeared hovering within the room. Excellent it does work. He tapped the corner and increased the size of the screen. He watched as Richmond T and a couple of the Gangrels put the group though some fitness training. Richmond T, Danny you are working them hard. I know, and how do you know what is going on? inquired Richmond T. I am in one of the combat simulator rooms building an advanced personal combat training program. My plan is to try and re-create the Dragon Styles for training purposes and I am watching you on the cameras in the gym. Richmond T stopped and looked at the camera. Danny made it move to indicate which camera he was viewing. I will join you in a bit that sounds like a very good project. I have always been interested in knowing more about the Dragon Styles.
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Ok, chat to you in a bit then, he said and moved the screen to the side. Tishun open a video window and display all the Vixens. The screen opened and all 19 members of the Vixens roster appeared. Remove Tameria, Louise, Anti-Char and the younger members just focus in on the 12 original members. The people requested disappeared leaving the original twelve members and they went full screen. Ok, now composite for each a sample of their fighting styles and compare all the moves with known martial combat forms. Working, this will take a little while to do as each has over 10,000 hours worth of combat footage from training to actual combats. Danny nodded and said, Ok, using all known parameters create two Mauya experts for some combat. Again using all known variables have it complete in a combat. Tishun created the two forms and they started to have a combat. After a couple of minutes fighting Danny said, Ok, now alter the style of one to incorporate more street fighting moves and rules. One of the two changed and started to fight using a more street fighting style but still included the Mauya base. After half an hour of trying various combat forms Richmond T walked in wearing his workout clothes. He walked to where Danny was watching a pair of fighters using Anja Martial Combat Form. Hi Richmond T, just the person I wanted to see. Are you up for going head to head against various opponents? Ok, as long as it is not too hard, Richmond T replied with a slight laugh to his tone. Danny looked at the tablet and tapped the Mauya expert. Richmond stepped into the circle and the combat started. Very quickly the Mauya expert was on the defensive as the brutal style that was Gangrel Street started to pay dividends. Ok I can see where Security Command was having so many problems against Gangrels especially in the later marks of Black Light. How come, I thought you were inside a prison? Danny shook his head. Both me and Alice had a full link with the outside throughout. We downloaded all the information we wanted from the net and burst transmitted our reports back. It is very difficult to track a burst transmission and almost impossible to track a Security Command agent working on the wireless hubs in the prison especially as Security Command Tech improved the prison a few years earlier. We were hoping to use it as a dumping ground for all those the Greys picked up. He looked over at the screen with the twelve Vixens on and saw Wongs and Hell Brights was the closest to being finished. Tishun can you composite Wongs and Hell Brights rough styles from the current data?
A few seconds passed and Tishun replied, I think I can. Wong and Hell Bright appeared. Ok, now two different opponents same style. Two opponents appeared and the two combats started after a few minutes of the two combats starting Danny began to understand Wongs. It flowed and was a very aggressive defensive form. It looked like Wong used aggressive blocks and counterattacks combined with charging. The most vicious weapon Wong had was her hair, it was long. How long is Wongs hair Tishun? Platted, almost eight feet and she uses either a weight or a small blade at the end to assist the movement. Richmond T nodded as he seemed to understand how nasty that was. Well I need a drink for one, he said. Yes so do I, I am waiting for the call from the Doctor saying rTuth is waking up, Danny said. Tishun can you continue to compile the data files please. Command Deck, Captain Curtdoza, what is our ETA at Fratten Five? Three days now sir, replied Simon C. Danny nodded and walked out of the Simulator Room. Four hours later Andrea said, Danny, rTuth is waking up. Thank you doc, I will be right there, he stood up from the comfortable chairs in his cabin and headed for the medical suite. He walked in to a very groggy rTuth. rTuth smiled as he saw Danny enter the suite. Andrea W was checking on the various vital signs. Everything went very smoothly the nanytes did their job of sealing off the various injection points and sensors. It came away with no problem at all. Danny smiled at how the operation had gone. I feel strange not having the bio-comp on my chest, I know it needs to go for the rest of the operations to be a successful. We are cleaning the blood now and adding in more nanytes. These are very specific and go only to the central nervous system connection nodes. They actually carry out the cutting of the nerves and blood vessels. All I am really doing is making the cuts to actually remove the brain and spine. Danny looked very interested in knowing more. This is the area of medical science where the Kittani are superior. From what I know it is due to there once association with the Splugorth or something. Ittitan flew in and said, You are correct doctor it is due to that association they just improved it when we came together. So how long before we can start? Danny inquired.
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In about three days. I am not making the initial cut until I know I have a professional Medical Facility ready to step in, replied Andrea W. I know three of the additional crew are doctors themselves; I think one of them is a Cyber Doc. Danny looked impressed by this. We are taking on 300 people from the Federation, and none of my staff have operated on other races. I know at least 75 of the first 500 going to the Space Elf Federation Space Academy are going for medical training and that is post them already having qualified as doctors. rTuth groaned at the conversation. Sorry rTuth, said Danny. Can I have a drink, he requested sounding slurred throughout the request. Certainly rTuth, replied Andrea W. She turned and took a bottle from the table and gave it to his hands. He sucked at the straw and took some of the liquid down. I will be back later rTuth, said Danny. As Danny walked out of the medical suite rTuth requested writing it on to his PDU, Can someone set up an LPD, the control box for my induction helmet and let me practice. Andrea W said, Yes I will get the techs to set that up for you. She walked to her desk and requested exactly what he wanted. He lent back and thought, Well if I am cooped up in here I might as well get some practice in. ***** Danny sat in the command seat as the Intreped approached Fratten Five. All stop Simon C please. Allow the vessel leaving to leave. They will bring us in when they are ready. Five minutes later the Controllers voice said, CS002 Intreped, Frattan Five Control you are cleared to dock, release all controls we have you under tractor beam. The outside view started to move as the tractor beam pulled the Intreped to the position it wanted and began to pull her in. Five minutes later the Intreped stopped and a couple of seconds later clamps attached to the vessel and held it in place. A couple more seconds Tishun said, Docking tube attached. Preparing to take on cargo. Danny stood up and joined the Council members as they headed for the docking tube and the Station. Drass turned and said, Captain, thank you for your time in transporting us. It was my pleasure Council members; do not hesitate to ask for help for I count you all as friends. Ittitan flew down and said, I will organise a couple of fairy families to come aboard. The YGs will enjoy having them and you do not need to worry about problems with the life support system. The five turned and walked off towards one of the lifts.
He turned and walked back on board. He went straight to the Medical Centre. Doc have we got a wheel chair. I want to give rTuth a tour of Frattan Five. I do not see any problem, the operation is not booked until tomorrow morning so yes, I want to come too though. He smiled at Andrea W. I might go and get some of the YGs as we are due here for a couple of weeks as two of the units do not arrive for another 10days. Ok, I will get rTuth and meet you by the docking tube in fifteen minutes? Danny nodded his agreement and said, See you in fifteen. He turned and headed out of the Medical Suite and he turned towards a ramp as he knew all the YGs had been in the Main Hydroponics Bay. He walked in to the bay and found none of the YGs. Tishun where are the YGs? he asked. In their quarters getting ready to head off the vessel. Danny nodded and said, Thanks Tishun. He turned and a few seconds later he pressed the bell on the frame leading to the YG Section. The door opened and YG Hatshun opened the door. YG Paula said, Hello Captain. Well it saves me asking who wants a tour of the Station. So who is coming? Every YG chorused, Me. A few minutes later they all arrived at the door ready as three Gangrels walked down the corridor. We volunteered to look after them, said Rupert F. Right then let us go, said Danny. We are also giving rTuth a tour as I do not think he has ever visited Frattan Five. Nor have we Captain, replied YG qUlim. Danny smiled at this. Well then you are here now. A few seconds later he led the first group that included YG Paula who held his hand off the lift and towards the docking tube. Andrea W and rTuth also waited for them to arrive. Coming down the corridor from the opposite direction walked Alice, Dancetina, James K and Yelena along with a few more of the engineering crew. Andrea W pushed rTuth over the docking tube and stood on the far side was wWish. Hello there, he said. Admiral wWish, said Danny. It is a pleasure to meet you. I was hoping to invite you and the command crew to a reception later? Danny thought about the request and replied, When would it be happening? From about 21:00 Station Time, wWish replied. Danny thought and heard Alices voice.
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It equates to about 20:15 ship board time. I have equated all the ship board clocks to their time, it saves on hassles. The day length equates to the same. Ok, thanks sis, he replied. The command crew will certainly attempt to make it. It would depend on how long we are touring the station. wWish looked at all the YGs and said, I shall not detain you any longer Captain. The Federation has converted your currency to Starens. Thank you Admiral, he said as he turned towards one of the lifts. Inside he said, The Hub please. A few seconds later the lift doors opened and released the group onto the ground floor of the hub. The group moved out of the way and the second lift arrived and out walked Andrea W and rTuth. Danny moved to take the wheel chair from Andrea W. I will take it now, he said. YGs stay with us please. This is a new place with possible dangers everywhere so minimum twos preferably more. The next lift arrived and Alice and a number of her team walked off. Yelena being one of the group. The group moved off around the Hub stopping to look at the items on sale from the vendors. Danny looked around and saw outside the windows was a view of the inside of the station itself. He pushed rTuth over to the windows and he looked out. He looked down and saw the Intreped sat at its docking port. It estimated it was at least 500 metres from the window and the far side of the open expanse was a good 5km away. Hello Captain Curtdoza, said a voice from behind him. He turned and saw a Space Elf woman stood behind him and rTuth. I am eRuthan, wife to Star Admiral wWish. He asked me to find you and be a guide. Thank you, he responded as did the entire YG group with him, Alice and the few others walked over and looked out of the window. YG Paula stood on her toes to look out. Alice picked her up so she could see out better. Down below us is the Intreped, YGs. All of the YGs looked down and saw the Top Pod and the Main Pod. Danny turned and asked, How big is Fratten Five? The total size of Frattan Five is about two thousand million cubic feet. The bay where the vessels are parked is about five hundred million cubic feet. Danny looked back at the expanse and said, This is a big facility. I think Explorer Base is only 750 million cubic feet in total. Yes, Frattan Five is an engineering marvel and the coming together of all the various races in the Federation. We have fifteen Frattan Class Star Bases two here in Trashan and the others dotted throughout Federation Controlled space normally at major trading posts or the Capital Worlds for the various races. He turned and pushed rTuth along the hub. What is the total population of the Starbase? About 200,000, a quarter are Federation military from all the various commands, the rest are civilian
workers. A lot work in the Construction Cradles outside. We are launching the Parrka a Space Elf Dreadnought in about a week and a half. It is located on the cradle closest to the station. Interesting, Danny replied. The reception tonight is happening in the main Observation Deck at the top of the station and you have an excellent view of the surrounding orbital facilities and Trashan below us. I think I will try and make that then, who is coming from the station? My partner, a few of the chief designers from the four vessels currently being constructed, a number of the engineers and various other people, eRuthan replied. Danny pushed rTuth as they toured the Hub. At one caf they all stopped and eRuthan told the waiting staff to tab it to her accounts. Not a problem Captain eRuthan. Danny turned to look at her in surprise. Captain. What vessel do you command? One of the System Patrol Vessels, we spend a month out and a month back. We are the vessels to interdict the smugglers and other undesirables. YG Fred asked, Maam would it be possible to take some photos as I draw and I would really like to draw the scene from the window overlooking the Intreped? Danny looked at YG Fred and said, He is very skilled. He took out his PDU and showed eRuthan the painting of the Intreped from Explorer Base. The painting is of the Intreped as I looked at it from Explorer Base, said YG Fred. eRuthan looked very impressed by the painting. You do have some skill Young Gangrel. She looked up and said, I was lucky enough to meet the YGs of the Warhound and I fell in love with them. My partner and I now take regular trips to Trashan and the childrens homes on the surface, we are organising a holiday for some of them to come here and we hope go back different I would say. The trip actually starts this weekend coming. I think the YGs and Gangrels would like to meet them when they come aboard. On the flight here I was officially made the leader of the Gangrels on the Intreped by Queen Sarah Cutherlate. He looked at all the YGs with him and they all looked very interested in helping. YG Hatshun said, Council Member Ittitan told us of the issues with the Childrens Homes, I think we should help them. eRuthan smiled at the news of the help from the YGs and Gangrels. I knew you would help. I noticed you have some non Darra Vonians? Yes all the non Darra Vonians YGs were rescued from a Trans Darra Toral Outpost; we assaulted the facility and freed a number slaves. We also interdicted a transport carrying more children that were destined for some of the Dark Line shows. All the native members went back to the planet and were re-united with their mums and dads. They all became YGs or Gangrels as well. I have already officiated over the new Gangrels
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Inductions. If the situation is as bad as you say I will talk to Sarah C and get her to send a Gangrel Unit out. eRuthan smiled at Dannys offer and said, No need Captain, Sarah C is already organising such a unit and it will be travelling aboard the Starliner iShin Chatz when she returns here in a couple of months. I think the Gangrel unit is having a tour as I know the Starliner is due to visit the Moon Dwarf Trading Centre MD0996. Some of the ruins on the third planet are incredible. Danny looked very impressed and said, A place to visit then I would say. Oh yes, to look out over the ruins as the Gas Giant in orbit four sets with the sun just behind is truly spectacular. It does not happen that often and I think the Starliner stops when the next one is due to happen. Danny smiled at the idea of visiting when the next time it happened. How is the crew of the Warhound. I heard they jumped into the Three Galaxies a couple of months ago. More like six months ago. Mine and Alices little brother is one of the crew. He and his partner Brei have just had triplets. eRuthan looked very happy at the news. Wish her and the YGs all the best from me, I spent a while chatting to both Alex and Brei during the reception Nibs held for us; a remarkable pair. Danny smiled and said, Both me and Alice were hoping to be free from Security Command before he left, but our escape took place two months after they left. We have regular contact with them as we have a permanent door to Phase World now. eRuthan looked very happy at this news. That is excellent news. wWish walked over and said, I hope my lovely wife is being helpful Captain? She is thank you Star Admiral. wWish turned to look at eRuthan and inquired, Have you asked them yet? Yes darling I have and they have agreed to it. It is going to mean so much to the members of the homes we are bringing up. ***** Danny stood waiting for the command staff attending the reception and watched as Alice, Dancetina, Yelena appeared closely followed by Commander Potter and Andrea W. rTuth sat in his wheel chair still feeling rather week from the withdrawal from the Juicer Chemicals. Alice arrived and asked, How many more? A few, I am hoping Doris M, Richmond T, Major Batts and a couple of the officers from the 6 th are going to be able to make it. A group of seven people started down the boarding tunnel. Sorry we are late, said Major Batts. I was just sorting out the accommodation of the first of the federation troops. Not to worry, you are here now, said Danny as he turned towards the lift. A few minutes later the doors opened and allowed the party out onto the top observation deck.
The view from the windows was incredible. Danny walked into the room and headed straight for the windows and he looked out over the close orbit of Trashan. wWish and eRuthan walked over towards where he stood with rTuth looking out over the near orbits. Captain, Chief Engineer, said wWish. Star Admiral, Captain, he replied. I never did introduce you to rTuth here. No you did not, replied eRuthan. How come though? Danny looked down at rTuth and replied, We rescued rTuth here from being a slave for Trans Darra. He was a Juicer; he decided to undergo full bionic conversion so he can fulfil a Life Debt he owes me from saving him from certain death. Andrea W here is actually doing the operation tomorrow morning. wWish looked very impressed by that. A Grey Elf Life Debt is rarely given and it has never been given to anyone of another race, he said. True, but Danny here is the first person other than mum to pretty much not lie to me. He did exactly what he said he would do and that is stop Trans Darra spying on me. The people on the Intreped have made me one of the family almost, I am a full Gangrel and being a Juicer I would only live maybe 10 maybe 12 more years. That is not enough time to do what I see before me now, a life full of adventure and great things. He looked up at Danny and asked, At some point in the near future I do want to see mum again. Danny looked down and replied, That is not a problem. It would be my pleasure to take you home. No need rTuth, said wWish. Fleet Admiral Rodorshav organised passage for her to here, she should be arriving in a few days. This news made rTuth smile. I must thank the Fleet Admiral for that. wWish whispered in Dannys ear, Along with uTun, but he does not want to be mentioned, family honour. Danny looked at wWish and smiled that he understood. Alice interjected at this point, What are the cradles? Are they construction cradles or something? Yes they are, replied wWish. This one. He pointed at the closest one, is currently constructing a Parrka class Space Elf Dreadnought, one of the largest ships in the fleet. The Dreadnoughts and the War Cruisers of the Nuteash are similar in size and weigh in at about ten million tonnes each. One of the dwarves walked over and said, Good eve all. Good eve to you Graush. Captain Curtdoza please allow me to introduce one of the chief designers of the Parrka Class. Danny smiled his welcome. I must admit that is one impressive vessel. Thank you Captain. From what I have seen of the Intreped and the Warhound those two are very impressive. They pack quite a punch with the weapons. That they do, Commander Potters is the Commander of Ship Board Weapons and knows a lot more about the weapons and what they are capable of, said Danny.
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Arh just the man to speak with then, Graush said and he turned away to head to another group of people. Graush designed the weapons on the Parrka and I know he really wants to get his hands on the antiparticle technology, said wWish. I know the Moon Dwarves are in the process of de-constructing a class three cradle for transport to DR1554. I think the deal worked out was a lend lease style of deal, basically made sure it stays in one piece. Danny nodded his head and asked, How come though? Our rules of ship salvage, the Warhound disabled six vessels the pirates used and the laws of salvage say that any one capturing a vessel has the salvage rights to it. They captured six and so Darra Von has six vessels that need repairing and upgrading. Tishun the Intrepeds computer is from one of those vessels, the Trashan V. Ambassador hHillfifer had special connection to that vessel as it was the first one he commanded and he personally made sure the vessel was going to become a Councils personal ship. Elf politics got in the way and Trashan V was shipped off to one of the Ship Parks, just in case we needed it again. The pirates stole it and it became one of their defence vessels. The plan for Trashan V is to make it into a first class orbital hotel for visitors to DR1554. Danny did look impressed by this. Dancetina and Yelena walked over looking very happy at something. Alice asked, What has got you two looking so happy? Dancetina replied, We have been offered a tour of the Parrkas engines and James K a tour of the Power Systems. He hopes to watch the power up sequence next week. Alice looked very impressed by this. Well done to the both of you.
Chapter 15
Danny walked into the surgical suite and over to the bed where rTuth was laying. Dr Edwards walked over and said, Are you ready rTuth? I am doc, he replied and gripped Dannys hand. Thank you for being here. You owe me and I now owe you. You are more than just simply a friend, you are family rTuth. Dr Edwards started to inject and asked, Count back from ten please rTuth. rTuth started and when he hit eight no more numbers came out. He is under, said Dr Edwards. He took a tube and fed it down his throat into rTuths lungs. He taped it in place and plugged in the oxygen system. He released the bed and moved it into the actual operating room. Danny turned and walked up the stairs to the observation room and sat down to watch Andrea W carry out the operation. He watched as the team lifted rTuth onto the cradle. Only when rTuth was on the cradle did Andrea W make a number of holes in the skin on both his front and back. She stepped back and the cradle lowered into the bath and at this he knew why the holes. The fluids from the body slowly started to come from the holes on the top. Only when the fluids from the top ran the same colour at the liquid in the bath did they fully immerse rTuths body in the bath. At this Andrea W signalled to one of the technicians and he pressed a button that sent a slight shock through rTuths body. Andrea Ws voice said from the speakers, The shock is to activate the nanytes inside to finish their job and separate the spinal column from the surrounding tissue and to protect the actual brain case. He nodded that he had heard. Alice walked in and took the seat beside him. I thought you would want to see the final specifications of rTuths cyborg body? Yes, he replied and looked at Alices tablet. The screen displayed the entire body and the body itself turned on the vertical axis. rTuth was handsome before, he is stunning in that body, he said. Alice nodded her approval. The rest of the systems are state of the art. One of the techs has taken the project of rTuths cyborg body to be his personal project. The vision system is as good as ours except with both telescopic and micro vision. His hearing includes everything we have except it is four times more acute than ours. His Cyber Brain is advanced, thank you to the Nuteash for the nano-processors he has ten thousand of them and each is as powerful as a midrange computer. Each is fully independent and can be used together on tasks, the control software deals with the allocations, I think 100 control each of the main functions of
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which there is about fifty. He has had the legs up to 220kph in a sprint and he has maintained if for half an hour before he stopped. It is pretty much until he gets tired. The power system is advanced battery life for 50hours with both internal biovore power production system and an external hook up. Danny looked very impressed by this information. What about damage potential and resistance? He is capable of punching through at least six inches of heavy Tibarra Armoured plate, he has lifted ten tons and I think he could lift more with the correct supports for the arms. The chassis is a medium/heavy version, except where we have 25% bio-functions, rTuth will have about 2% and that is protected in an armoured bubble. The Cyber Medical Centre are very interested in our technology on the hinges and the smoothness rTuth has in movement. It looks like the joints on their technology are not very smooth and can be a little jerky. He looked up and saw Andrea W was about ready to start the cuts on the holographic body. She started at his head and cut completely around the head. She looked up and pressed the go button and the remote medical laser started the actual cut on rTuths head. As the cut finished the arm moved in and removed the skull cap. She flipped the body over and started on the cut to remove the spinal cord. A couple of minutes later the cut was finished and she checked over the actual cut and pressed the go button. The medical laser moved and started to make the actual cut in rTuths body. About a minute later the cut finished and the arm moved back and slipped the entire piece of skin away. Now comes the delicate part, said Andrea W as she drew the spin out of its home. The entire length of the spine just slipped from its home. The medical arms doing the exact same procedure as the two doctors working the virtual bubble as the last of rTuths spine was removed the cradle removed the body. Danny looked at the ceiling and saw the completed cyborg body. He looked at it and asked Alice, That is still a chrome skin? Yes, for now, when rTuth is fully together we will apply the synthetic skin so sealing the entire body. The skin itself is as tough as our skin. rTuth is already working on a suit of heavier armour for himself, it will likely be similar to a PA in that the joints will be assisted in their movements. How long now Doc? he asked. An hour tops, all I have to do is slid the spine in and seal the head and neck area. I then make the connections between the organic and cyborg body. The cyborg body moved down and entered the tank. The fluid washed into the open holes cleaning them and making sure any bacteria ended up killed. Only when the lowering stopped did Andrea W move and kneel to look straight down the spine into the opening waiting to take it. When she was perfectly happy was the only time she actually moved the spine so it entered the hole. It slipped in really smoothly. At the end of its travel was the time she placed the brain inside the brain case. As she took away her hands the brain stayed in place. She entered the code to close the brain case.
Danny knew this was a onetime only code, the programming would delete the record of it having every existed on the system. In the bath the three pieces that made the top of the head moved and sealed the hole trapping a thin film of the liquid in both the spinal cavity and the brain case. After a minute a small laser torch moved and welded the edges of the opening closed. Danny looked very interested at this. From what I know the nanytes that line the edges of the plates melt into a solid mass joining all the plates together, said Alice. Now Andrea W went to work and she used a screen and a complete scan of the torso. She seemed to be remotely controlling the nanytes to bridge the caps between the actual spine and the casing around. It took a further forty five minutes for the final connections to be made and the main processer started. On the screen appeared the sequence boot and at the end appeared a clock counting down. Good, we have the completion clock running. 43 hours to complete the self-diagnostic and form the connections between the Cyber Brain and the elven one. Thank you Andrea W, that was most enlightening, he said and looked at the clock. He set a countdown going for 42 hours, 45 minutes. He wanted to be back when rTuth woke up. I will chat to you soon Alice. He walked out heading for the Hydroponics Bay at the back of the Top Pod. He was going to spend the next two weeks reading up on the various systems on board. He found his preferred log and sat down against it. He took out his PDU and started to read more about the command systems on board. A few hours later Alice said over their internal communication system, Danny, where are you? Top Pod Hydroponics bay, I am just reading up on the systems, he replied. rTuths internal computer has knocked a further four hours off the clock. It looks like the system is accepting rTuth a lot quicker than we expected, replied Alice. He nodded and said, Ok thanks. He stood up and saw YG Fred sat close to the pods glass and it looked like he was drawing and painting something. He walked to have a look at the painting and he looked out of the window and he saw he was drawing the TY665. He looked back and saw the detail YG Fred had caught, it was simply incredible. I need to sort out the netsite for the Intreped, he thought and walked away leaving YG Fred to paint. As he walked he took out his PDU and started a search through the crew looking for people with netpage design skills or similar. He soon had a list of six people all with good netpage creation skills and a couple of actual designers. He found two of the group were sat in one of the Conference Rooms that could be converted into a cinema. He sent a message that he wanted to see them after the film was finished. He headed for the Main Hydroponics Bay. Twenty minutes later the pair walked into the bay and after getting themselves a drink they walked to
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where he sat reading. Captain you wanted to see us? inquired Urri L. He looked up and replied, Yes I did, sit down all I want to do is ask if you two along with a few more are up for giving the Intreped a netsite? The pair sat down and looked at each other. Urri L replied, Yes I guess so. What do you want on it? I use to write netpages as a hobby, I would not say I was an expert at it. That does not matter, learn as you go. I am learning as I go, he said. Travix asked, Ok as I worked as a Netsite Design Consultant for a couple of years before joining the crew. What do you want on the site? Various things, one a completely viewable Intreped; that I think you are going to need help on. Another thing is a page where viewers can send questions to the crew, pages like that and somewhere we can put updates to. The pair looked at each other and Urri L asked, Who else have you got to help on this project. Five other netpage coders and one more designer type person, Danny replied. The pair nodded and Travix asked, Could you get them all together so we can discuss and find out what we will need help on? Of course I can, I was just waiting for a time and place. The Simulator Rooms are now equipped with an advanced control system that allows fingers to control displays either on a tablet or in the actual room. Urri L looked very impressed by this. How long have we had it? Only a few days I installed it. Sec Com uses a similar system. I wrote the entire program myself over the four years I was undercover inside a prison. Alice worked in the infirmary as a nurse and field medic. Now that sounds like a rather interesting story, said Travix. I think things like that should go up, it shows us as a people rather than as an instrument. Yes, I agree with you on that, said Urri L Danny looked at the current shift patterns and the crew he had selected. He found them all free and off shift. Shall we say twenty minutes in Simulator Room Two? Yes that is okay, said Travix. Danny sent the message and looked at his mug. I want a drink, either of you want one? They both looked into their mugs and said, No thanks Captain. He stood up and headed for the drinks making area. Twenty minutes later he, Travix and Urri L walked down the corridor towards Simulator Room Two. Stood around the door were the rest of the people he wanted on this project. Good afternoon everyone, he said and the door opened. He walked in ahead of the rest of the group. When everyone was in and the doors had closed he said, Thank you all for coming here. The reason for me asking you here is to give you the project of giving the Intreped a netsite where people can visit, look around
the ship, ask questions and just generally find out information about the ship and our mission. Rachel T stepped forward and said, Without knowing what the skills are like in the rest of the group I know I worked for ten years as a netsite designer and coder. Well I think we have our team leader then, said Travix. Thanks Rachel T, I had done netsite design but not to that experience. She turned and said, Not a problem Travix. She turned back and asked, Captain how do you want the site to look like, I guess not a corporate looking site? No, something that draws people in so they want to know more mainly, he replied. Rachel T nodded and said, Tishun can you access my dads server the net address is 1344.8665.0875.8664.7644. Not a problem already looking for the address. A few seconds later Tishun replied, Found it. Good, display the contents of the drive labelled Rachel Turners Netpages, Password, alpha, delta, zul, hotel, nine, nine, eight, brat, king, chump, fox. In the middle of the room appeared the entire contents of the root directory. Nice, how long has this been running? A few days, I installed the software. Use your fingers to move, size and everything else, Danny replied. He looked at his internal timer and saw it was almost time for him to go and welcome the first of the new crew on board. Rachel T used her fingers and opened a number of different netsites. Captain, which one do you like the look of? He looked at the sites opened and said, I like that and that one. He pointed to the two sites. Any chance you can merge them? Yes things like merging sites for me is very easy as all the various pages are modular and have all the external coding with them rather than accessing a single main file someplace. He nodded and said, Ok those two. Travix and Urri L have a few more of my ideas, but I must away, the transport is due to land in a few minutes. The group nodded their heads and Travix asked, What is the timetable on this? Get a front page, specification page and a 3D render up as soon as you can, the rest can follow, we are here in the Trashan system for a couple of weeks at least and I will request that each of you are removed from the shift rotas. He turned and headed for the door. Thank you Captain, said Urri L as he left the room. Danny headed for the Flight Deck as the transport would be coming up from Trashan and would land directly on the flight deck. It was the first of two transporting the technicians and scientists on board. He looked into the Flight Deck Control Centre and watched as the shuttle appeared with in the area outside. Patrick R looked around and said, Hi Captain. The shuttle you are waiting for is about two minutes out;
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they have just entered the bay. He left the control room and headed for the Flight Deck proper. He stood waiting for the shuttle to land. As it did he saw a couple of people looking out of the windows. The side and rear door opened and the people started to exit. jKith and her son walked over and she said, Good noon Captain. He nodded his head in welcome and said, Good noon to you jKith and hGun. Welcome to the Intreped. I gather you all know that we do not depart for a couple of weeks. Yes we do, we were all briefed on the planet. Good, he said and called the rest of the group over. Right your first stop before your quarters is this way. Each and every crew member has a PDU and through that it allows you to contact anyone on the vessel, netmail and work away from your cabin or station. He stopped at a stack of boxes. Take one each and complete the initial boot sequence and then Tishun will show you to your quarters. Everyone took a box and opened them. They all left after completing the initial boot sequence. jKith stayed put and said as the last of the group had left. No one in the group knows the reason for me being here other than I am a Particle Physicist. Arh, okay. I have read your resume and also the letters of recommendation tied to that. The letter from Star Admiral wWish told me the complete story concerning what happened. hGun asked, Does the Intreped have YGs on board as I swear I read that you do? We do, but a lot of them are being given a tour of Frattan Five by eRuthan and the Star Admiral. The pair nodded their heads and jKith said, Thank you Captain, anyway I think we have a couple of cabins to find. Grab a couple of boxes and I will show you to your cabin via someplace I need to check in on. I am overseeing the Intrepeds netsite and have just started the team designing and writing it on the task. Not a problem Captain, said jKith. I will be good to get back into space again. When the security troops busted down my door on the station I knew I was looking at a considerable length of time in prison. Star Admiral wWish understood why I did the actions and so he asked for my resignation and he said he would look at getting a station on one of the science ships, then my son said he had volunteered for the Intreped and I asked the Star Admiral. Danny laughed at what jKith was saying and said, The Star Admiral does seem to be a nice man. jKith smiled and said, He is. I never got the chance to say thank you to Council Member hHillfifer for her assistance as well. Do you know where hHillfifer is now based? jKith shook her head and said, No. I heard he had accepted a position of Ambassador somewhere new? Yes he did and he is the Ambassador to Darra Von. Danny stopped outside the Simulator Room. The doors opened and he saw all the people sat around a
table with their PDUs out. He walked over to the table and found the two sites displayed on the table. Rachel T looked up and said, Hi Captain. Hi, I was just wondering what was happening? We have the front end pretty much designed and almost coded. Tishun is compiling the 3D render of the Intreped as I already have the coding for a 3D moveable render. Tishun is also coding the plans for each deck on the ship. He nodded that he was impressed by the work so far. I am going to contact your Section Heads and have you signed off for the two weeks we are here. Thanks Captain. I would not worry about asking my Section Boss as I work in Tech Support and this is support, I am supporting the ships netsite, and I can have some fun rather than work to overall objectives, replied Rachel T. He smiled and said, I will be back in a bit so give me a report then. He turned and headed out to rejoin jKith and hGun. A while later he was sat in the Main Hydroponics Bay eating his dinner and reading about the linking between the Command Deck and the Weapon Control systems. jKith walked in and approached the table where he was sitting. May I join you Captain? He looked up and smiled at her. Please do all I was doing was reading up on the ships systems. She looked at him very surprised as Alice and Dancetina walked in and to him it looked like Alice was learning something. They both headed for the serving hatch and after collecting their dinner they headed for where he sat. No me and my sister here only came off a four year undercover operation for our previous employers. We quit and Nicole offered us the positions of Captain and Chief Engineer. As this is only the second ship to slip Space Docks other than the Colony Ships we do not yet have methods to train people. We learn very much on the job rather than through formal study. Oh yes, very true, added Alice. I have spent the afternoon learning about the safety systems on the engines as well as looking at the plans Anti-Char drew up concerning the Grav-Engines. I can see where the problems start with them. Oh where? he asked. Alice took a mouthful of her stake pie and replied when she had swallowed it, They have to be precisely aligned otherwise the magnetic waves that actually make up the system fail. It all comes down to polarity, the charge used to create the field and the temperatures used are at least three times hotter. He nodded his understanding of the situation. jKith what do you think of your quarters? They are excellent. Much better than I expected, are all the cabins as well equipped? They are all equipped in the same manner. To us everyone is the same, some of the crew might sleep in double cabins and the various combat units sleep as squads, but each cabin has a kitchenette, chairs, bedroom
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and a bathroom, replied Danny. ***** Thirty hours later Danny stood in the medical suite waiting on the last few seconds to tick down for rTuth. Alice and Peirce S, the technician, both walked in and Alice said, I do not know what has happened, but rTuth has changed the Cyber Brain. I have no idea how, but he has. Zero flashed up on the screen which indicated the end of that phase. rTuths eyes opened and they seemed to focus on the ceiling and then his head lifted and he looked around. He saw Danny, Alice, Pierce S and Andrea W stood looking happy at him. Danny moved first and quickly he stood beside his bed. How do you feel? he asked. I do not know, I am feeling some very strange sensations from all over my body. All the prelim work cannot prepare you for the sensations my mind is feeling. Well that is good, it means the system bed down procedure worked, said cFan as he walked into the room. Danny looked at him and stared. Yes Captain, I am also part cyborg, 75% of me is cyborg. I was caught up in a battle and lost my left arm, half of my left leg and the whole of my right leg. The field medics managed to rescue me and my own will made sure I remained with my body. They tried to patch me up, but I was not whole. I commissioned a team to design me the rest of my body. This is what we designed. With it I feel 100%, completely whole again. He moved past Danny and looked at the monitors. You rTuth are going to be taking it easy for a couple of days whilst I run some tests to see how the programming to brain has bedded down. Not very nice that, he said in response. cFan shook his head. I am very interested in the technology used in the joints and your nanyte Technology and understanding. They could be used for a lot more. Oh yes they could, replied Andrea W. That is the reason the programming for them only happens at two sites on Darra Von, Echo Tech Tower in Echo City and the Academy of the Street. Teams that wish to steel the technology are welcome to try, except they will be going up against some of the toughest security measures on Darra Von. Both the Academy and Echo Tower have AIs assisting the security forces. Danny nodded and said, Standing orders in Security Command say Raids against Echo Tower, Echo City and Academy where off limits; hence why we were never able to gain the secrets other than the basic version. You said AIs are they like Tishun? They are exactly the same. They came from twenty placed in suspended animation by the Dwarves and Elves. Dr Nuriegummie woke one and it died, at the time Isobel did not know the correct procedures. The rest we were able to wake up as before the first one died she told Isobel how to wake the rest. The caves location has always been a closely guarded secret. I think all of them have now been woken. rTuth looked around the group and asked, Would it be possible for someone to get me some food. I
have been able to work out what one of the sensations is, I am hungry. Peirce S turned and asked, What do you want rTuth? Just some food thanks, he replied. Danny looked at Peirce S and said, Get him a sandwich and a drink. Peirce S vanished and left the group. I think I am going to see how to adopt people. I have grown really fond on YG Paula and to watch YG Fred paint is incredible, said Danny, and you are now as much family as they are rTuth. I shall leave you now for the two docs to start to help you bed the systems down. Thanks, rTuth said and moved to give him a hug. Danny turned after rTuth had released the hug and smiled at the others. He left feeling very happy. He walked into the Simulator Room that had become the hub of the netsite design team. He saw all the six programmers working on various pages. Rachel T was designing something as she had a large number of windows open and she held a tablet. He passed through the pages and said, How are things going? Rachel T turned and said, Pretty well, The Front End is up and Travix is designing an animation for the first page. The rest are coding different sections of the site. Danny looked very impressed by this. Well I am pleased, how long before the site is up? We have the Front Page, 3D Render and Forum Pages up, the journal section should be up by tomorrow if not this evening. Urri L has been learning very fast. I know he works for Dancetina and I would not mind taking him on as my assistant. I can see this growing quite a bit especially with all the science projects going to be taking place. Where are the pages? he asked. We have a copy on board and the instant we update that the netsite held on the Hubs Computers are updated. He nodded his understanding and felt his PDU vibrate and buzz. He took it out and saw it was Nibs calling. He connected the call. Nibs what do I owe this call? Just a social call really. She appeared sat on a comfortable chair in her cabin on the Warhound. You in the Simulator Rooms Danny? Yes, I have a team working on the Intrepeds netsite and they are using this room as I installed some advanced controls for the display systems. I am also using it to study and learn about the Dragon Styles. I have Tishun analyzing every recorded close quarters combat you guys have had. Nibs took a couple of seconds to look at the current site. It looks good so far, she said. Well allow me to introduce the team leader Rachel Turner, Danny said and sent the video window to the Simulator Room.
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Hello Rachel T, she said. In a while I will contact you directly concerning the netsite and security coding. Rachel T looked perplexed at this. I was one of the designers for BlackCity, Ren and Tina made up the others, we had input from the guys working the Hub and the AIs. Sorry, she said and looked as if something clicked. Are you the person called the Black Fairy? I am, Captain Nibola Calton-Patterson also known as Nibs or the Black Fairy. She looked really upset at something. I should have recognized you, Captain of the Warhound. I am going to transfer you back to my PDU Nibs and leave Rachel T and her team to the job, Danny said and Nibs appeared on the PDU screen. How are things in the Three Galaxies? Not too bad, a few of us decided to take a break from the intrigues one person keeps playing to regain face amongst the rest of the habitants of the Manors. At this Nibs looked like she was slightly laughing. The ET Store is thriving. It has already taken a third shipment of MA Series weapons and a second of the other weapons. The PAs are just keeping up with demand, Naruni are squirming because of our prices a good 10% cheaper and generally better quality than theirs. How about where you are? Danny shrugged his shoulders and said, Things are not too bad here. A lot of the crew are either on Frattan Five or Trashan. We will be watching the slipping of a Space Elf Dreadnought next week. Nibs nodded her head and asked, How is rTuth? He is good, getting along really well. From what cFan has told me rTuth is going to be taking his first steps today and tomorrow he will be wrapped in the synthetic skin. Nibs looked very impressed by this. Well how are you and Alice finding things? It has not been too bad. How is Brei, Alex and my nephews and niece? They are all doing great, and next week they are getting legally partnered on the Warhound. They do wish you both were here but it is being net broadcast for selected people to watch live; Cassandra, Grattan, you two and the Intreped, Harry, Alan, and the guys at the Forensic Centre. Tell the pair we would not miss this for the galaxy, he said. Nibs smiled and said, No I wish you both were here, but that would be a bit hard to organise. He smiled at the offer and replied, Yes, slightly. I am thinking of adopting a couple of the YGs from here, YG Paula and YG Fred. YG Paula is just full of love and YG Fred is quite an artist, he has painted the Intreped from Explorer Base and he has been working on one of the TY665 which is docked beside us. Nibs sounded very interested by that. Now those sound rather good. I think the one of the Intreped will be on the netsite under the Gallery Section. I will take a look when it is up, said Nibs, but how are you finding things, sod the job you do, personally? He walked into the Main Hydroponics bay and collected himself a coffee and headed for an area of ground away from the main group of tables. Personally I have found it very easy to integrate myself in with
the crew. Even Major Batts now understands that both of us do not support Security Commands position on the paying of Mercs and other employed forces. I am not complaining. At least here I can get my hands dirty rather than standoff almost getting involved only when it was most advantageous. Nibs laughed and replied, Yes. Both me and Sandra thought that from the reports some of the Gangrels who visited the prison. Arh, he said and understood the reason for their choice. For the next hour the pair chatted about their various pasts and life in general. ***** The following day Danny stood in the medical suite where rTuth was about to take his first steps with his new cyborg body. rTuth was sat up reading something on his PDU when cFan walked in. Okay rTuth I think it is time to see if the system allows you to walk and then we can progress onto the rest of the tests when we see what your body can do. rTuth nodded and swung his legs down off the bed. He slipped off the bed supporting himself on his arms and hands. His feet touched the floor and he increased the weight standing on them. He stopped supporting himself and stood up straight; his auto-balance helping him to stay up-right. Good rTuth. Now try and take a step, said cFan. rTuth looked down and lifted his left foot and placed it gingerly down on the ground. The right foot lifted and got placed in front of the left. He closed his left foot to his right and said, Yes, my first steps. Danny smiled and said, Yes your first of many steps I think. With that test, let us go to the lab and give the systems a real test. cFan led the group out of the medical suite and down the corridor towards the work shop where the body had been built. Sat at his work station was Peirce S. He turned around as the door opened and said, Hi. Yes, he added when he saw rTuth walking with the group. rTuth walked to the treadmill and stepped up. cFan picked up the controller and set it going at a slow pace, after a short while of this pace he slowly turned it up to a more natural walking speed; all the time cFan looking at how the legs moved. After a minute of this speed cFan upped the speed again to a fast walk. He again studied the legs. After a minute of a fast walk cFan upped it again to a jog and as rTuth started to jog Danny watched as the whole body moved. It did flow very naturally. After about five more minutes rTuth was pretty much hitting top speed of about 220kph. Good, is that about your top speed? Yes, I think I could add a few more kilometres per hour in a sprint, replied rTuth. Ok, right on to the next test which I will only push to about two tonnes. cFan slowed the treadmill down and as it stopped rTuth stepped off. He followed cFan to the lifting tests and grabbed the two handles.
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cFan set the gravity to equate to 500 pounds. rTuth easily lifted it and held it out horizontal. cFan again studied the arms as rTuth held the weight. Ok, put it back down and I will up the weight. He did and again rTuth lifted it with no problems. cFan again increased the weight and again rTuth lifted it with no problems. Thanks, I can see the joints lie beneath a transparent cover. The cover is actually nanytes programmed to move with the various joints, said Peirce S. cFan nodded and smiled at the technology on display. Peirce S would you mind at some point taking a look at the joints on here and seeing where they can be improved as I will send all the findings back to the Cyber Medical Centre. Yes, Captain? he inquired and looked at Danny. Of course you can, you are the ships resident expert on the cyborg bodies. Thank you Captain, he said.
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A while later Danny stood with rTuth as cFan prepared a large bath in which sat liquid synthetic skin. Okay in you get rTuth, said cFan. All you need to do is keep your mouth shut, close your nostrils and eyes. It will only take a few minutes for the synthetic skin to bind to the shell and then you can get out and step into the heating area where the system will harden the skin. He turned to the Danny and said, Alice showed me the production centre on board as the system created the liquid synthetic skin. Now that was very interesting to watch. I know, he said. In a few days me and Alice are going to be injected with the first of our upgrade nanytes which will improve our current systems. The last procedure is to have a similar bath where the nanytes will strip the Tibarra skin lacing and replace it with the same ceramic. From the work Anti-Char and Ren have done it will make us tougher than our ex-colleagues in Security Command. cFan looked highly impressed by that. I would like to have a good look at your systems at some-point. Danny watched as rTuth stepped into the bath and laid down. We can do better than that. Anti-Char spent a number of years working at a research base on the southern polar cap and the doctors and her built a complete understanding of her systems. We have all the data on her, Louise and Tameria on file. A couple of minutes later rTuth stood up and stepped out right into the heating array. He spent five minutes being cooked and after that he stepped out and opened his eyes. He lifted his hands and looked at them. He moved his fingers and found the synthetic skin just moved as if it was his own skin. Captain Curtdoza, Star Admiral, we have rTak here. Thank you Star Admiral, would you mind bringing her to the docking tube and we will meet her there. With pleasure Captain, wWish said. Danny looked at rTuth as he looked as himself in a full length mirror. Get some clothes on as you have a meeting to have. He turned his head to look at him and picked up his clothes and quickly put them on. He walked with Danny as they headed out of the lab and entered a lift. Forward airlock thanks Marcha, said Danny. The lift moved and a few seconds later the door opened and allowed the pair out onto the corridor running past the forward airlock. They both walked down the docking tube to the Starbase and stood waiting for them was wWish and rTak. Her face was just a pure smile as she looked at rTuth. Son you have grown into a very handsome Grey
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Elf man. Mum, responded rTuth and he hugged her. He broke the hug and looked at her face. You are cold to touch. The Star Admiral said something about you being different, she said. rTak, said Danny, please accept the hospitality of the Intreped. Thank you Captain, she said and turned to wWish and said, Thank you Star Admiral for your hospitality. wWish smiled at her and said, It was my pleasure rTak. He turned and headed back towards the lift. Danny led the pair over the docking tube and to the Main Hydroponics Bay where they all got themselves a drink and walked to one of the tables. I know I am cold mum. When I was taken by the pirates I was sold to Trans Darra Toral Productions and a couple of years ago they made me a Juicer and thanks to the crew of the Intreped I am now a full conversion cyborg. The coldness is for a little while my natural state as my systems finish the binding to the synthetic skin. I have literally only had the skin on for a few minutes and from what Doctor White and Cyber Doctor cFan have said it will take a couple of days before I have a normal skin temperature. Your son when we rescued him from Trans Darra joined the ships crew as my bodyguard, said Danny and he took a mouthful of his coffee. I am similar to rTuth in that I am also a cyborg, but only 75% on me is cybernetic where rTuth is 98% cyborg. Only his brain and spinal cord are natural elven. rTuth turned his head to look at Danny and said, Danny saved my life from certain death in a few years mum and I owe him and the crew a Life Debt for that. Danny, may I call you that? she inquired. A Life Debt not only honours the recipient but it also honours the family of the person making it. You Captain are now a member of my family and of House Quezar-Mel. I know one of my house leaders is on Trashan I will ask him to formally accept you and your family as members of the House. You may, formal ranks are only used when necessary and as I am semi off duty please call me Danny. You now honour me and my family rTak and with sounding completely ignorant I on behalf of my family accept. rTuth is a member of my family as well. She smiled at that. I have something to tell you son that if it comes out will destroy one of the Space Elf Great Houses. Council Member uTun Rajin is your father, at the time his marriage to his wife was going through and very bad patch. He visited our home to get away from the problems in that and I was working as an administrator of the colony. We had a two week relationship and you were the result. At this Danny knew what wWish had meant when he had said family honour. Elven politics being the way it is any liaison between a High Council Member and a member of a lesser House without the permission of the Family Head is grounds for family expulsion and elves do not return from that. rTuth took a mouthful of his ojan juice and said, Mum my lips are sealed on the matter. She looked at him and smiled. Good. uTun has paid for all the searching I did for you and he has
offered me a job here on Trashan as his personal assistant. At the time of our relationship I never knew what I felt but when I arrived on the planet he met me and I realised I actually loved him back then and I still do, but I know that my love for him will be from afar. He told me he actually loved me more then and now than he ever did his wife but marriages like the one he has to his wife is how Great Families keep their positions on the High Council. Danny nodded his head as he began to understand the Elven ways of doing things. It sounds highly complicated, he said, and something that needs learning about. rTak laughed at that and said, Yes, it is very complicated, but it is better to let the High Family Politics wash over as unless you live in the environment it is almost impossible to fully understand. Alice walked in with a couple of Kittani, and they, after getting some drinks walked to where the three sat. Danny meet Mellishun and Motzolla, two of the new members of the engineering and systems support crew. Motzolla has said he is very interested in trying to make the Grav-Engines work and has a few ideas on how to make them less precisely aligned. The three sat down at the table. Chief Engineer Alice Curtdoza, meet rTak, rTuths mum. rTak meet my older sister. We also have a younger brother who is serving on board the CS001 Warhound. rTak looked at Alice and smiled. I hope in the next couple of days to be able to welcome you to the Quezar-Mel House as I am going to ask our House Leader to preside over the house acceptance ceremony. Alice stared in real surprise at her. Oh my, thank you rTak and as rTuth is very much a member of our family then welcome to our family. Thank you it is a real honour to belong to your family, she said. ***** Danny walked into Main Engineering where the entire engineering staff stood waiting for him. He joined Alice as she stood on the floor and said to the gathered crew, Thank you for being here today. As you all know we had to let one of the section heads go whilst we were at Rugthz III and it left the Top Pod Engineering without a Section Head. Since then both myself and Alice have been hunting for a new Section Head and today I can announce one has been selected from the Engineering Crew in the Top Pod. I would like to invite Yelena Jims to please step forward. Yelena stepped from the people and stood in front of him. I as Captain of the CS002 Intreped hereby field promote you Yelena Jims to Section Head. He inserted the rank insignia to represent a Section Head into her work clothes collar. Thank you Captain, she said and saluted him in the manner of the Echo County Military. He returned the salute and said, She knows that she over the time she has been on board she had shown a very great aptitude and skill in her work, learn from her examples and respect her position. The entire Engineering Crew cheered the field promotion.
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She was swallowed up by the rest of her team in the Top Pod. He and Alice turned and walked out of the Engineering Section. ***** A while later both Danny and Alice sat in the Top Pod Hydroponics bay when rTuth and rTak walked in and found them both reading about the various systems on board. rTak asked, May we join you Captain, Chief Engineer? Danny turned his head to look at them and replied, Of course you can. I have just come off talking to the four Heads of the Quezar-Mel House and they have all agreed to preside over both for you being accepted into the family. They are here to vote on the removal of the Greeshtok-Du House from the High Council, something to do with some proven illegal activities. I am not one for the politics side of our cultures and so have not inquired as to the activities. They asked that they be permitted to meet you tomorrow and they have also requested a tour as they all are very interested in understanding more about the people from our home-planet. It would be our honour to extend the hospitality of the ship to them. I know also tomorrow Alex and Brei are going to become legal partners. We are getting a live feed from the ceremony and if things can be sorted out highly likely to be stood as two of the Cardinal Points for the ceremony. Tishun and Yarosh are at the moment sorting out the systems to link the ceremony to the main Simulator Room on board. The pair each smiled a good smile at this news. I would love for the Heads to be also present as then they will be able to meet the rest of the family as when one family becomes partnered to another the two families join and become one, said Alice. I think that would be really good as I have only had brief chats to them both, said rTuth as YG Fred walked up to the table. He asked as he took out a canvas, Captain, what do you think of my latest painting? Danny looked at the painting of the TY665. That is amazing YG Fred. Have you been introduced to rTak yet? No Captain I have not, he replied. Danny showed Alice the painting. That is truly excellent YG Fred. She passed the painting to rTuth. He had a really good look and said, You have really caught the ship as I can see in some of the windows people? YG Fred joined the end of the table and said, I know, I took some photos of it and used them to finish it this morning. I already have my next painting planned and it will be the Parrka class whilst it is in the cradle. I was allowed to take a few photos of it whilst we had the tour. Danny looked at Fred and asked, Have you ever thought about doing people? No I have not. He looked at Alice and said, May I commission you to try as I would like to hang one of me, Alice,
you, YG Paula, rTuth and the rest of my family in my office on the Command Deck. YG Fred thought about Dannys request and asked, How many people? Danny worked out the number of people. Twenty one, he replied. rTak said, That is a large family you have, well large from what I know about EM001. Yes, but with the addition of Brei to it she has quite a large step family as well, he replied. I will have to talk to Alex and Brei about making contact with them as I would love to talk to them. Same here bro, said Alice. Danny thought about the ceremonies tomorrow. When would the House Heads be arriving? he asked. I think they are heading up this evening as they are going to have talks with one of the Moon Dwarf Tribes about leasing a couple of mines as the house needs the minerals from it, rTak said. Danny thought about the quarters situation and said, rTak please would you extend an invitation to them, we would be more than happy to have them stay on the Intreped as I do know the crew of the Warhound is having a pre-partnership party this evening. I think a few of the crew play in a ship board band and are performing this evening at it. It would be a good way for them to start to learn about us as a people. rTak thought about Dannys suggestion and replied, I will see if they would be interested. Where would they be accommodated? In the VIP quarters on Deck Five, he replied as his internal communicator went live. Captain, Richmond T, I have some information that you might find interesting it concerns Trans Darra. He looked surprised at this and replied, I am, where are you Richmond T? In C&C at the moment. Danny nodded his understanding and said to the group, Something has come up that requires my attention so I shall say bye for now. He stood up and headed away from the group and said, Major Batts, Captain Curtdoza, would you mind coming to C&C as Richmond T has information on Trans Darra. I am already here Captain, he replied. A few minutes later Danny walked in and approached the Map Table. Ok what is the information concerning? Richmond T looked up and replied, It looks like one of the Grey Elf House has been caught undertaking activities on behalf of Trans Darra, especially Dark Line Productions. He looked at Richmond T and asked, Is the family the Greeshtok-Du House? Both Richmond T and Major Batts looked very surprised at him. Yes, how did you know? Richmond T inquired. Danny nodded his head at this. rTak invited me and Alice to join her Grey Elf House and she told me a little while ago about a vote to remove that family from the High Council over some illegal activities they have been proven doing. I just added two and two.
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Major Batts nodded his head in understanding and said, Right. The information is concerning the shipment of child slaves to one specific place so they can take part in the Darkness Games. We have reviewed a short bit of the programs and it is not nice. The children are forced to take part in a series of games that loosing would likely mean them either being raped on air by adults or death in a few quite disgusting ways. They range from being ripped apart by torgats or being burnt alive or be killed in a very one sided gladiatorial combats. He looked at the pair and asked, Do we have a location for these games? Not exactly but we do have the leaving point for one of the transports and they are regular flights from what the reports say, Richmond T said. Dannys face changed to one of planning and generally being very evil. Right, I will tell the House Heads when we meet them and when we have finished here we will go and see if we cannot put a stop to this. It might lead us to other programs and production sites. Do we tell wWish? asked Richmond T. Danny thought about it and decided, Yes, but not over a communications message, I will tell him personally. We do not know if the communications are being listened to. The pair nodded their heads in understanding. This looks like a bit of a break. I do wonder how the transmission of the outpost raid went down, said Major Batts. Danny smiled at him and said, I hope it went down like a ton of bricks. Where did the information come from? The Outposts computers, the Intelligence guys have only gone through about half of it but this is something we can use, Major Batts said. He nodded his head and said, Oh yes it is. What was the encryption like on the data? Not too hard to crack. I think they were relaying on not being discovered and the Security Teams holding the assault forces up long enough to wipe the data, replied Major Batts. Alice, Danny, we have had a break through, the guys in Intelligence have discovered a site where children are forced to play life or death games. Loosing usually means death or similar. It looks like the House being voted off the council is also involved in it. Score one for the good guys, she said. I will tell the others. Danny nodded and smiled at the pair. Good work and well done to the guys working Intel. Major Batts smiled his thanks for the comments. I will let them know that, he said. Danny smiled and walked out onto the Command Deck and headed into his office. Star Admiral, Captain Curtdoza, are you available as I wish to discuss something with you? I am, he replied. Good, can I meet with you in person as the matter concerns Trans Darra? The line was silent and wWish said, You may, come to my personal quarters. You do not mind eRuthan
being present? No, he replied. I shall meet you there in a few minutes. He walked out and entered the lift. Forward airlock Marcha, he said. A few seconds later he walked out and crossed the docking tube to the station and a short while later he exited the lift in wWishs quarters. Captain, said wWish and he came down from his desk and invited him to join him on the comfortable seats. Thank you Star Admiral, he said and sat down. What is the matter you wished to discuss with me? Danny took out his PDU and showed him the intelligence his Intel team had been able to find out. wWish looked at the information and nodded his head as he read and understood what it said. At the end wWish passed the PDU back to him. Now that is very interesting Intelligence. May I ask how are you planning on using it? By seizing the transport and using it to send in a strike team and closing the games down as the Intreped will be following it. A lesson taught to us during our training is to gather intelligence and use that against the enemy. For the greater the intelligence the more operations we can affect and the greater the effect on the whole organisation. At some point they will come to us and at that point we will be in a position to beat them. Can I ask you how does the Federation Council work? How Council works is by being made up of two levels, the Lower Councils and the Upper Council. Each of the 12 races in the Federation has its own Lower Council and they decide laws and similar for each of the races and the makeup varies with each race. Because the Elves and Dwarves are made from a number of sub races each of them has its own Council as well. The Upper Council is made from, in the case of the Space Elves, from five Houses, or Great Houses and each has a seat for however long they can maintain them. The only way to be removed from the Upper Council is to be Barred and that only happens when the house is charged and convicted by a majority vote from the Lower House. Once a House is barred the length of time before they can be looked at for re-election is decided by an open vote and it does depend on the severity of the crimes. eRuthan walked in from the lift and asked as she headed for the kitchen, Drinks? Danny thought about the request and replied, Please eRuthan. Thanks dear, wWish replied. My House, House Tealanta-Pie was barred 90 years ago for being caught with our hand in the pie, the crime was not that serious but it led the Space Elf Lower Council to Bar us for 100 years, we can vote on every matter including Barring and Sanction Votes we just cannot be elected to the Upper Council who decides the Laws that govern the whole Federation. From what I know the House Greeshtok-Du is looking at a lengthy Bar in the realms of 1000 plus years. At this Danny looked very shocked.
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Danny a 1000 years to an Elf is half our average life span. I have only heard of one House being Life Barred and they left the High Elf Lower Council and have never returned. The entire House left Federation Space over 300,000 years ago. Reports by deep space explorers have said that the House commands and empire of two hundred worlds and is very war like. The work the Warhound did when they helped us destroy the pirate bases has indicated the force behind the pirates is that House. What was their crime to warrant such a bar? he inquired. eRuthan returned carrying a tray and said, They were charged with the deliberate destruction of four planets that would not allow them the mining rights in the asteroid belt of their capital planet. Post the destruction of the planets the Federation helped the remaining three planets get back on their feet and the Wood Elf House that called the planets home have sat on the Upper council for 15,000 years. They are one of the most helpful Houses the Federation has. Every ship in the fleet has at least two house members on board and I think the Intreped even has one oKlim Frazard-Olith. Danny looked at eRuthan and said, Thank you for that information. The Grey Council Bar vote is due to happen in about an hour and the Sanction Vote a couple of hours later, said wWish. Danny nodded his head in understanding. rTak has said that all four of her House Heads have agreed to preside over the Acceptance Ceremony of myself and Alice tomorrow. Both wWish and eRuthan looked at him very surprised. Oh my, you and Alice are being given an honour never given to a member of another race by any of the Elf Houses. Your helping of rTuth is bringing something else to us and acceptance of non-natives. In the matter of the intelligence gathering I shall see what resources we have on the planet, said wWish. eRuthan looked at her husband very surprised indeed. Danny said, The Intelligence teams on the Intreped discovered the Greeshtok-Du House is involved in some illegal activities and is having a barring vote happen today. Information we downloaded from a computer at a Trans Darra Outpost has shown us a transport belonging to Greeshtok-Du leaves ER885 every few weeks. It transports children to the Devil Games production site. We intend to intercept one and use that to land a strike team on the planet to stop the production and gather more intelligence on Trans Darra. eRuthan looked at him and nodded her head. Hun have you got any idea of the suggested Sanction term? No, but I do recon it will be a considerable one as this is just one of the crimes they are accused of. The others include Racketeering, and the trading of slaves, replied wWish from behind his desk. Danny watched him as he worked at the computer. After a couple of minutes wWish said, General Orza, what resources do we have on ER885 as intelligence has stated Greeshtok-Du has a transport leaving every couple of weeks carrying participants for the Devil Games? I shall take a look for you Star Admiral.
Danny stood up and walked to the desk and looked at the screen. The General was a Nuteash and he looked like he was working a computer where he was. We have three two man teams, a couple of companies of Uzzl Troopers and a squadron of FT56 Strike Fighters on the planet. What do you want done with the transport? Nothing as Captain Curtdoza and the Intreped will be heading to you in a couple of weeks and they will be dealing with it. If you could prepare one of the Companies to travel with them it would be most appreciated, said wWish. Danny thought about the situation and asked, How many men in the company? 500 Captain, replied General Orza. To transport them would put too much strain on our life support systems at the moment as we only have a 250 person window with the current crew numbers, he said. The General nodded his head in understanding. You need not worry about that Captain as both the companies have their own battle transports and would be using them. He looked a little perplexed at this. wWish looked at him and said, The units General Orza spoke of breathe a different air mix to us and to all the main races it is poisonous for us to breathe. They are one of the newest races to join the Federation, but as yet they do not have seats on the Upper Council as to us they still have problems that need to be overcome before that can be offered. Arh, said Danny. What are the issues? I shall leave the task with you General; all communications concerning this are to be sent to the Intreped or myself only. Orza nodded that he understood the situation and the screen went black. The issues are the fact they do not have a unified council governing the twelve planets as a whole, along with a few minor issues that are being dealt with by the ambassadorial team on the home planet. wWish stood up and moved back to the comfortable seats. Darra Von is closer to becoming a full member because of the Planetary Government, but even then we still have a few worries about some things. Danny smiled a laughing smile and said, The corporate control of the halls of power being one? Yes and no, replied wWish. Our biggest issue is corruption that seems to be happening and the crimes certain countries seem to commit against the populations. The last point is highly minor as the High Council knows the situation and that it is limited to the countries and the people are fighting it. Danny nodded his head as he fully understood the situations. One thing I am not sure you are aware of surrounds Security Command and the fact that when they gain the technology to produce star vessels they will become a problem. They like to control usually through subtle means, using dirt and information people do not want out. wWish nodded his head in understanding of what Danny was saying. What would you suggest is the
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best method of fighting that? he inquired. Being alert and also knowing how to detect them. One method is to look at the colour of the skin. 80% have a slightly lighter skin colour than humans and that is due to the fact our natural skin colour is grey. That comes from the Tibarra weave they do as a part of the modifications they carry out during training. The other is to place advanced scanners in secure locations, I know the Conspiracy has the technology for those. The last 20% make up the elite Alpha Core, they do not hide that fact, they are a dull white, they are all equipped with cybernetics twenty years more advanced than the Grey Skins as the 80% are called by the main population, he replied. Even Security Command has members that think they should be just providing elite security to the corporations and not what Commander Sinc wants them to do, which is infiltration, gather dirt so he can control the corporations, etc. eRuthan looked displeased by that. Not very nice that, she said. Nibs did talk about the Wacker War and what the Council of Twelve thought would have happened if that had been successful. Danny shrugged his shoulders and said, I and about 10% agree, but that 10% are no match for the White Skins, especially with the fact they equipped every member with a self-destruct system that can be triggered by a simple push of a button. The Conspiracy has the technology to make sure that signal does not work and also the understanding to remove the Kill Switch and the Position Locator. That knowledge allowed me, Alice, Tameria, Louise and Anti-Char the chance to escape. Bro, where are you? Alice inquired. Chatting to wWish, why what is up? he inquired. Nothing, I was just wondering where you where? she said. rTak has just asked the four House Heads and they agreed to the hospitality offer. They should be arriving at about 17:00 Station Time. He nodded and said to wWish and eRuthan, Sorry I am chatting to Alice concerning rTaks House Leaders arriving on board the Intreped. Not a problem, said wWish. The room communicator made a sound and a voice said, Star Admiral, Starbase Communications here. We have a communications request from Alex Curtdoza and Brei Handsworth for you. Right, put them through, he replied. A couple of seconds passed and Alexs voice said, Good day to you Star Admiral. Good noon to you Alex and Brei, how can I be of assistance to you? Star Admiral both myself and Brei would like to invite you to our Partnershipping ceremony tomorrow. Yarosh and Tishun have been able to link the communications channels so the data streams can be understood by the Simulator Room Computers. Alice has just told us Danny is with you? He is, wWish replied. Danny looked up from taking a mouthful of drink and said, Hello Alex and Brei. Hi bro, said Alex. As the communications have been sorted out, would you please stand as the South Cardinal point?
Danny smiled at Alexs request and said, It would be my honour to Alex. You will have to let us know what is going to happen though. We will, Tishun has all the information on file including the Blessing you are going to be saying. He smiled again and replied, Good. I do need to have a chat to you about contacting the rest of the family. Breis voice said, Danny, Grattan has said he would love to hear from you at any time. He smiled at this news. Thanks Brei, I will contact him sooner rather than later. See you later then bro, said Alex and the line disconnected.
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Chapter 17
At 17:00 Danny, Alice, rTak and rTuth stood at the Starbase end of the docking tube waiting for the arrival of rTaks House heads. The lift doors just down the corridor opened and out walked four elves. They looked left and then right and they smiled when they saw the group. rTak and rTuth both bowed to them as they approached the group. Good eve eYa, oUshan, fRuff and pLuk, she said. Good eve rTak and rTuth; Captain, Chief Engineer; thank you for your offer of hospitality," eYa said. Danny and Alice both nodded their respects at the four. It is my pleasure that you accepted the offer, said Danny. Please we shall show you to your cabins so you can freshen up before dinner. Danny turned and started across the docking tube. fRuff said as they walked, When rTak told us of rTuths Life Debt to you and the vessel from saving him from certain death and the others agreed to welcome you and your family to the house, I spent some time reading about you and the vessel. It is true that you and Alice have only been in your positions for a very short space of time? Danny turned his head towards fRuff and replied, Yes it is true. Both of us were before joining the Conspiracy, members of the organisations arch rivals, Security Command. We both spent four years on an undercover operation to root out an information leak and when that had been sorted we escaped from the prison. It was a few weeks later that we were formally released from our contracts to Security Command as a medical team removed two systems from us both. It was during our debriefing that the Chair of the Council of Twelve offered us the positions here on the Intreped. He turned and led the group to the lift doors which opened and allowed the group on. Deck Five please Marcha. The lift moved and a few seconds later it arrived on Deck Five. The doors opened and Danny led the four to their quarters. When you have freshened up, just enter the lift and say Main Hydroponics Bay and Marcha will make sure you arrive at the right place, he said. Thank you Captain, we shall chat to you very soon, said pLuk. Danny and Alice both nodded their respect and headed back down the corridor to the lift. A few seconds later they walked across the corridor into the Main Hydroponics Bay and YG Paula ran over and jumped into his arms. She asked, Are you going to become my dad?
I am going to try, he replied. Sarah C is at the moment looking into it for me. He walked to one of the tables and sat down. YG Paula moved to sit on the bench seat beside him. I am so happy, you are the best father. She smiled a really big smile. Fifteen minutes later rTuth led the four House Heads into the Main Hydroponics Bay and they approached the table where Danny, Alice, YG Paula and YG Fred all sat. Welcome to our canteen and also general gathering and relaxing area House Heads, he said. Allow me to introduce YG Paula and YG Fred hopefully two members of mine and Alices family. The six joined the joined tables and eYa asked, Hopefully Captain? Yes hopefully, YG Paula and YG Fred are members of the Young Gangrels here on board because of being disadvantaged. I know YG Paulas mum worked on the Intreped as a Construction Engineer she died when her Workbee took a hit from a micro asteroid. All four looked very unhappy at this. pLuk said, It is so nice to see that she is here then. I know Ittitan is leading a massive effort to help the children in the childrens homes around the Federation. From what she said when she arrived back from travelling on the Warhound it is time for us to become more than we were and help them. Danny smiled and nodded that he understood what pLuk was saying. Yes, I know Star Admiral wWish and his wife have organised a holiday for some from Trashan and the YGs and Gangrels on board are going to be there when they arrive on the station. I have a feeling when they return they will be different I think would be the best description. Our younger brother and his partner adopted four young people back in 2068 after they joined the Gangrels and I know all four just love life now. They all used to live in a squat and would not have had much in the way of nice things. The Leader of the Gangrels on Darra Von has sent a unit to help in that effort. Even here on the Intreped the Gangrels and YGs have helped non-native Darra Vonians. We rescued a number that were being held as slaves at an outpost of Trans Darra Toral Productions. Here is one now, he said as YG Hatshun walked in carrying a tray on which was a plate and a bowl of food. YG Hatshun come and join us, he said. She turned and walked towards the table and everyone sitting on the same side as he was moved down a bit to allow her the room to sit down. Even rTuth is a member of the Gangrels on board. I presided over the introductions of all the new members when we arrived in the system, he said. Both me and Alice also became members that day. Queen Sarah Cutherlate made me the official Leader of the Gangrels on board and I know that when one family member is offered membership then all family members are offered membership. All four looked at him very surprised at this. fRuff said, That sounds very interesting and very similar to us in that when membership of a House is offered then all direct family also become members. The last count the Grey Elves did I think 30% of our
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House members also belonged to other Houses. I was going to ask about that, he said. Tomorrow Alex our younger brother is becoming legally partnered to Brei and she I know has a large family at least seven members. oUshan said, Then membership is offered to all her direct family. It is how we have built such a strong race as when one from another House joins a House member then their family also joins the house as well as remaining a member of their previous House. Our House has 4000 Space Elves, 2300 High Elves, 3000 Water Elves and 1400 Wood Elves in addition to 180,000 Grey Elves. Both Danny and Alice looked at oUshan in surprise. Alice said, That is some House. eYa shook his head and said, No we are one of the smaller Grey Elf Houses. Some have over three million Grey Elf members, one I think has 14 million spread throughout Federation Space. The pair looked very surprised and shocked at the figure. Michella O walked over pushing a trolley on which sat enough plates for every person at the table to have dinner. Your afters will be brought over when you have finished, she said. Danny looked at her and said, Thank you Michella O. He looked back at the group and said, This is not normal, we normally queue with the rest of the crew when it comes to having food. Even though I am Captain it does not change who I am and why should I be brought food when the rest of the crew queues. At the end of an excellent first course Alice looked at the four and asked, The Ceremony tomorrow what will actually happen? eYa replied, What will happen is that all four of us will stand as witnesses to the oldest saying the Loyalty Oath. Tishun has translated it into Basic for you. Danny looked at Alice and said, Well sis, that means as you are older than I am you will be taking the oath then. Alice smiled at this and said, Do not worry; I have been learning Elven for a couple of days as my Cyber Brain has downloaded all the necessary language files. eYa looked very impressed at this. Normally we would expect new House Members to have read our Book of History, but that is not expected of you Alice. Alice said, No we will read it and hopefully next time we meet any of you we will be able to prove that we have. Danny knew they would as he would also read it and also read up on Council and Federation politics as both now affected him and the vessel. I will also read it and I have already started reading up on Council Politics, that is highly complicated indeed. oUshan said as Michella O pushed a second trolley on which sat bowls of afters, It normally takes about twenty years for an Elf to understand Council Politics. It is all based around alliances, between the different houses we all vote in our own way but we are mindful of the House Alliances, being House Members does not build an alliance, to us politics does.
Danny thought about that and mused to himself, A very interesting concept that. He took a mouthful of the pudding and asked after finishing it, So how does a House build alliances as with politics on Darra Von alliances last only the length of time they are needed? eYa smiled as he finished his first mouthful and replied, This is very good food. How we build alliances is through knowing what another House wants and needs to progress, it might be access to medical treatments or something as simple as being there to help in a crisis. It depends on situations. One alliance we have with House Ruji is just a simply allowing them reduced costs when landing or docking at our facilities. Alliances do not only exist within the various lower council chambers. We had a meeting with a couple of Cave Dwarves from the Echeallon Tribe and we built an alliance based on the fact one of their mines produces a mineral we use in the construction of power reactors. We offered then in exchange for the mineral, access to the plans for them as we know a couple of sites need new power reactors. Alice said, Now that is very interesting. So you are saying to build an alliance you have to be able to offer something in return to offset the item you need? eYa thought about what Alice had said and replied, Yes, pretty much so. The greater the need the greater the returning offer. Another question for you, inquired Danny. The star fleets what is the situation with them? Those are very simple, the Federation has its own fleet as does each of the races, normally we only have system patrol vessels and light hyperspace capable vessels. All the capital ships are controlled by the High Council. Only the Nuteash and the Uzzl have their own Capital Ships. The Nuteash because they build a lot of the Capital Ships and they need them to defend their planets from outside attack; the Uzzl because they breathe a toxic air mix. It is easier for them to use their own ships than to have them operate on Federation vessels. Danny nodded his understanding to this. What about funding the Fleets? Alice asked. oUshan replied as he put his spoon down, Funding is set in Federation Law, the military has a base funding of 30% with science and exploration getting 15% everything else is funded out of the rest. All the Elven sub-races spend at least 20% on our military and exploration. I think the Space Elves spend closer to 30% on that. That sounds like very large sums of money involved there, said Danny. It is, last Financial Period the Federation spent four million billion Starens on the military and that did not include the construction of vessels. From the research I have done on Darra Von your corporations control the assets, here we have no corporations as such, everyone works for the betterment of the Federation, said pLuk. That would be a lovely concept, but so unlikely to happen on Darra Von, said Alice. It is the mighty dck that rules and how much they can get from the hard working people.
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All four House heads laughed at that. eYa said, That might change in a few thousand years, but we have been around for a very much longer time. The early humans were first starting to appear at the end of the dwarves and elves reign on Darra Von. Dannys PDU buzzed from his pouch and he took it out. Alex was calling him to have a video chat. He connected the call and Alex, and Brei appeared on the screen. A second invite happened and the screen displayed Name Unknown. He connected that video call. The screen changed to display both the video calls and the second window showed a woman, a dark skinned man and three younger people, they all seemed to be sitting around a screen. Alex said, Danny, is Alice with you? he inquired. She is bro, he replied. Alice moved and looked at the screen. She looked away as if thinking about something and said, Madam, are you Cassandra, Breis mum? I am Alice, she replied. Danny said, Hello then, I was trying to work out a method of contacting you and Grattan. Hello to you as well Danny, Grattan said around a smile. Cassandra asked, Where are you at the moment? We are at the moment docked at Frattan Five, one of the Starbases in orbit around the capital of the Federation. We are waiting for the rest of the crew and combat forces to arrive, the last will be arriving the middle of next week, he replied. eYa stood up and moved to look at the screen. Can I contact you back in a little while as it might be better to continue this in my cabin as we have the four House Heads of the Quezar-Mel Grey Elf House here? Not a problem, said Grattan and his screen went blank. Chat to you in a bit, said Alex. Bro, can you get Abiba, Kami, Cassie, James and Pettra with you as well as the triplets as the House Heads are here to conduct a ceremony and they should meet everyone. Brei smiled as the sounds of a baby crying came from the speaker. Not a problem Danny, shall I also get Raymond? Yes please do, he replied. The screen went black and he said to the group, I think we should head to my cabin as it has a larger LPD which would be much better to use than the PDU. The group stood up and followed Danny to the lift. Thirty seconds later the entire group sat on the comfortable chairs. YG Paula sat on Dannys lap and YG Fred sat on a bean bag he took from the YG Centre. Danny sent the video conferencing request to both Alex and Grattan and both groups appeared on the screen. Raymond will be here shortly, said Alex, he has been learning how to pilot one of the CSMRs we
have on board. Not a problem, said Danny. Some introductions our end first, eYa, oUshan, pLuk and fRuff the heads of the Quezar-Mel House, rTak rTuths mum and the instigator of me and Alice becoming members of the House. Here with me is my husband Grattan Jigick, Juliette, Hanna and Olivia. And here, said Alex, is Abiba, Breis half-sister, Kami, YG Cassie, YG James, YG Pettra, YG AliceBray, YG Daniel, and YG Alex Jnr. eYa said, Through that House membership is also extended to all the direct family down to direct parents. Cassandra looked at the group in surprise. She said, This is something we never thought would happen. What is going to happen then? she asked. eYa replied, As Prime Head of the House I will stand as witness to Alice, being the oldest, reading the Quezar-Mel Loyalty Oath. This is the first time we have welcomed Darra Vonians to our House and it is because of rTuths Life Debt to Danny for saving his life. Grattan said, I was planning to organising a business trip to Trashan in the next few months as I know Jon has arranged a chartered Transport to take members of the business community here in Suraban to the capital. I shall have to see about making it a family trip or organising one separately. Allow us to organise that, said pLuk, as our Houses home planet is AV7668 some 46 light years from Darra Von. May I ask what position do you hold? I am the Chief Executive and Chairman of Jigick Fuel Oil. The company name is a bit of a misnomer as we also provide medicines, fuel for the new generation of Anti-Matter reactors and also power generation equipment. These are used on the work-shacks and orbital stations around Darra Von and also a few of the mining centres in the near asteroid belt. In a few months we also hope, when negotiations are finished, to be providing the NPUs used on one of the orbital shuttles. oUshan lent forward and said, May I contact you Grattan so I can discuss a business venture with you? Certainly oUshan, I shall await your call. Dannys PDU buzzed as it received a call. He took it out and saw it was Sarah Cutherlate trying to contact him. He picked up YG Paula and placed her on his seat. I need to take this call from Sarah C, he said and moved to his desk where he accepted and transferred her to his desk LPD. How can I help you Sarah C? he inquired. I was just contacting you to say a Planetary Judge has agreed to allow your adoption of YG Paula and YG Fred in your and their absence. I explained the situation to him and he agreed it would be a bit hard for you to appear. He said he would be contacting you in a couple of days so he can have a chat with you and the pair. He stared in utter surprise at the screen. Oh my, he exclaimed. That was fast, he said.
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We in the Gangrels work very fast, she replied. The order is effective from today; I have only just come out of the hearing. He smiled at the news and said, Thank you Sarah C, but as I am busy socialising with members of the Quezar-Mel House I shall bid you good day, but thank you for that. Not a problem, I am happy I could help you in this matter, she said and the screen went black. He stood up and walked back really happy at the news. YG Paula, YG Fred, it looks like I am now officially your dad. That was Sarah C who has been able to organise me adopting you both. He picked up YG Paula and placed her back on his lap after he had sat down. Dad, she said and gave him a hug in happiness. The Judge is going to be contacting us in a few days so he can have a chat with me and you both. Everyone sat in the cabin and on the LPD all looked really happy at the news. Welcome to the family YG Paula and YG Fred, said YG Pettra and the smile she had was a great one. Thank you Danny, said YG Fred. I never had a dad. Raymond appeared on the screen and joined Alex and Brei. Brei said, Dad, meet eYa, oUshan, fRuff, pLuk, rTak and two new grand-children, YG Paula and YG Fred. Hello everyone, he said, and hello to you grandchildren YGs. Hello grand dad, they both said around smiles. Alex said, Oh we have news, not tomorrow but the day after we are leaving Phase World as a CCW ship has found out where Rose is. It looks like she is on a planet about 1000 light years from here. Oh that is excellent news, said Alice. I hope she is well? Alex nodded his head in agreement. He said, When we arrived Daraus was able to make contact with her and from what he said he saw she is helping some people fight an Evil. Creator help the evil then when you guys get there then, said Alice. How long is it likely to take? About 142 days at Light Mach 7, replied Raymond. Quite a while then, said fRuff. What about communications though? When we leave Phase World we will be on netmail only as the FTL signal travels about 250 light years a day, replied Raymond. The following couple of hours the three groups chatted and generally got to know each other. At the end of the time Danny looked at the digital clock and said, I think we have a Pre-Partnershipping party to attend. He stood up and everyone else joined him as the headed for the Main Hydroponics Bay. In the bay was a raised area with a few instruments set up. Music was coming from the speakers as the people attending the party mingled and chatted. As they entered the Bay YG Edward offered everyone a drink. He said, Nibs is about to make a toast. The massive LPD sat above the stage displayed the Main Hydroponics Bay on the Intreped and Nibs took to a raised area as well.
Ladies and gents of the Warhound, Intreped and on Darra Von this party marks the last night of freedom for both Alex and Brei. I know the love they show to the world and the people are truly great. So I toast the lucky couple. To a life filled of fun and adventure. All the people in the places celebrating the event cheered and raised their glasses to the toast. I now welcome one of the great bands on the books of Gangrel Music; Parrazarn, she said and the screen changed again to one showing then walking out onto a stage. The audience erupted in noise as the first track rang out from the speakers. The music from the band soon had a considerable number of the party goers on their feet dancing and enjoying the great music. fRuff walked over during the bands set and asked, Now that is a great band and I know they would likely go down really well here, how would one go about getting them? Danny laughed and replied, The first step is to talk to the bands management company or in the case of Parrazarn Gangrel Music. A few of the bigger program producers are going to be starting to broadcast over the FTL waves in a couple of months. They have a few music channels that broadcast a wide variety of music, some similar to Parrazarn, some similar to Shakka from Trans Darra, who I think started out on Darra Von. fRuff thought about Shakka and after a few seconds he said, You are right she is Darra Vonian, but how? I did some research into her early music and it suddenly stopped, I liked her music and songs. The files on her disappearance said they thought she had been kidnapped by an unknown group as her two body guards had been shot by what the photos showed laser weapons and her vehicle was left with the back door open by the side of a road. The bodyguards had returned fire as a few shell casings were also found at the scene. At this fRuff nodded his head in understanding. Well Captain one piece of information you will be interested in then is she is doing a series of six concerts on my home planet of TI2712 in a couple of months. Danny looked at him and smiled. Thank you for that information, he said, and I think TI2712 is going to be playing host to the Intreped in a couple of months then. If they want to kidnap her then lets repay the favour and take her back. Back when she first hit the music scene she did a lot of work helping the refugees and those people hidden by the main stream. It will also be a good intelligence gathering as that will be the biggest weapon we have against Trans Darra. The more operations we disrupt the higher the likely hood they are going to come out to play. And when that happens the Federation Fleet will be waiting for them, fRuff said and he also smiled an evil smile. You Captain a man after my own life force. I spent a number of centuries serving in the Federation Ground Military and on board an Imm Class Heavy Frigate. Danny laughed at fRuff comments about him being after his life force. fRuff in a couple of weeks we are going to be attacking one of the Devil Games sites. Intel we gathered from an outpost in the Rugthz System led us to finding out that the Greeshtok-Du transports slaves from a planet. We plan on seizing the
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vessel and having it transport a strike unit to the site and as they attack dropping the entire assault unit right on their heads. fRuff turned his head to look at him and said, You do that and that is going to really piss Dashary off. He has a personal liking for The Devil Games. Danny looked at the people enjoying the party and asked, How much do you know about Dashary? fRuff replied, Enough to know that he likes to be on control of things, if a show or operation does not have his or the boards approval then the makers are going to be in for a world of pain and hurt. He to my knowledge has personally signed the death notes to over 300,000 people just because they thought they could do something that hurt Trans Darra Toral. Danny smiled at this. Bring it on then, he said. Bring what on bro? Alice asked from behind him. Danny turned and looked at his sister. fRuff has just been telling me about the fact Dashary has signed the papers ordering the deaths of over 300,000 people. Alice looked at the pair and said, Now that is information. Review this sis, he said over the internal communications. He downloaded all the information fRuff had told him. Bro I like the way you are thinking, she said. fRuff looked very strangely at her. Danny has just synced all the information you two have been chatting about with me fRuff, she replied. fRuffs head moved as if he now understood. YG Paula ran over and grabbed Dannys hand. Come and dance daddy, she said. YG Fred also came over and grabbed Alices hand and said, You too aunty. Come and enjoy the party. All three followed the pair and joined the people enjoying Parrazarn.
Chapter 18
The following lunch time all the crew stood on the flight deck along with wWish, eRuthan, and two LPDs on which were Alex, Brei and everyone from their family on the Warhound and Cassandra and Grattan and their three. Also present, stood on one of the lifts, which sat slightly raised and had a set of three steps up to it, was eYa, fRuff, oUshan, pLuk. Alice and Danny both stood in the front of the gathered crew wearing their Number One Uniform. eYa said over the people, Today the House of Quezar-Mel welcomes the family of the Curtdoza and Jigick to our members. Alice as the oldest if you wish to lead your family into our house please step forward and say the Oath of Loyalty. Alice stepped from the crew and she walked up the three steps to the platform. She turned out to face the crew and said, in Grey Elven, I Alice of the Family Curtdoza and by relation the family of Jigick state on this day in front of the House of Quezar-Mel Heads the Loyalty Oath spoken by all the Members on the day of celebration. I pledge my life and the lives of my family to the House and to the Heads of the House. They lead and I lead my family in following their course, be it to war, be it to peace, be it to greatness or ruin. The ultimate leadership of the Quezar-Mel House I leave to the Heads and shall never speak ill or wrongly of them. My family shall fight for them should it be required, my family shall defend them and their decisions. On this day I do pledge and shall abide by the Loyalty Oath. eYa said after Alice had finished. I as High Head of the House of Quezar-Mel welcome you Alice and your family to our members. Remember the Oath and be loyal to your family and new House. He stepped forward and along with the other Heads they all took her hand and group shook. He moved at the end and gave her a hug in welcome. He said as his head sat close to the ear, That was very impressive, perfectly recited in Grey Elven. Welcome to the House of Quezar-Mel. Thank you for accepting my family eYa. The hug ended and Alice turned to the crew. She said, As this day also marks a very special occasion for myself and Danny as our little brother is getting partnered to his Life Partner come and enjoy the ceremony and the party the Gangrels have organised for the reception. She stepped down and joined Danny, YG Paula, YG Fred, rTuth, rTak and the Heads of the House as everyone left the flight deck and headed for the Main Hydroponics bay and the Main Simulator Room. Everyone with Danny walked in to the Main Holo Room and found the room already displaying the holographic representations of the people at the ceremony.
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Stood in the middle was Nibs and Sandra waiting for the rest of the main guests to arrive. Brei and Alex along with their family all walked in to the chamber and the dress Brei wore was stunning in the way it looked. The family all took to the seats in the front with the youngest being taken by three members of the Rams. When Alex and Brei had entered the circle Nibs started the ceremony and ten minutes later she said to the pair, Now call your Cardinal Points in the order North, South, East, West. Brei started and called, North, Alice. As Alice stood up Alex called, South, Danny. He stood up and began to move around the area. As he did Brei called, East, Cassandra. Danny watched as Cassandra smiled and stood up. She walked around the area and as she did Brei called the last point. West, Grattan. He stood and headed for the western point of the area. Nibs called as Grattan arrived at the western point, I, as guide and orator, call the fifth element Spirit, Sandra. With this Sandra moved to the very centre of the area and she stood legs slightly apart. After Sandra had arrived in the centre Nibs said, The couple have called a member of their families to stand as a cardinal point; I now call on each to utter the Cardinal Blessing upon the gathering as I call upon the creator. She started the blessing, I call upon the Creator, Mother Goddess, Father God to bless this couple. Alice said, I represent the family aspect of the point, and I call upon the Spirits associated with the Family to bless the couple with good health, long life and a good sense of family. Danny said as the same time as the others, I represent the Strength the couple have both together and part and I call upon the Spirits associated with Strength to bless the couple with good health and strength to overcome all the ills and obstacles that are thrown at them. Cassandra said whilst she smiled at the pair, I represent the Intellect the couple has, and I call upon the Spirits associated with Intellect to bless the couple with the intelligence to know, what the right thing to do is when the time comes. Grattan said in Chivveran, I represent the Compassion the couple has for each other and for those around, and I call upon the Spirits associated with Compassion to bless the couple with the compassion needed in their lives. During this Nibs continued to say, I call upon the highest of the powers the joining of which formed Darra Von and the MegaVerse, and all who have existed since and been partnered in the thousands of different ways. It is this power that I call upon to bless this couple with the insight, the skills, the knowledge that they all will need in the months and years to follow. Nibs turned and picked up the chalice from the alter and she said, I call upon the mother goddess to
bless this drink and cord, as I offer the chalice to the couple to drink and as I bind their wrists to signify joining and the start of their new world and lives as legal partners. She passed it to Alex and Brei and she produced a piece of cord from her pouch. When they had both taken a sip Brei offered it back to Nibs who took it and placed it back on the alter. She turned back and took the nearest hands and bound then together. At the end of the ceremony the party on the Warhound started as Danny led the people from the Intreped out and up to the Main Hydroponics bay. Here the party was just beginning as Dark Legion took to the large LPD screens and their first song rang out over the speakers. A little while later Danny sent a chat and video invite to Alex and on the screen appeared both him and Brei. That was beautiful he said. Thank you Danny, and thank you for sending us the acceptance ceremony, he replied. eRuthan walked over and said as she looked at Dannys PDU, Brei you looked beautiful but I am sorry as both myself and wWish have an appointment on Trashan. We are bringing a group from a few of the childrens homes to the station for a couple of weeks holiday. Not a problem eRuthan, it was lovely to have you attend the ceremony, said Brei. eRuthan turned to Danny and said, The shuttle is going to be arriving in the lower flight deck at about 10:00 Station Time tomorrow. I will make sure the Gangrels and YGs are present and waiting for you, he said. I think we are also transporting the two fairy families as well, she said. ***** Alice joined fRuff as he danced with YG Paula to Lovers Heaven Gith Girls Go. This band is as good as Parrazarn, he said. We know, said Alice. You should take a look at all the bands on the books of Gangrel Music, they are all as good. He smiled at this. I will and I will organise a few concerts, the Elves of my home planet are going to love them. At this she smiled and Yelena, Dancetina and James K joined the group as the track ended and the next one started. At the end of that track Uthium said, Guests, both here at Gangrel Command, on the Intreped and the Warhound I now welcome to the stage the other band to be playing this party, Polidash. All the attendees cheered at Polidash walked out onto the stage. Uthium picked up one of the five Rudeashian Drums on stage and the other four were also picked up by members of the Travellers. We now bring you our biggest selling song, Refugee Hell. Iffran started the track on his bass gui-dram and the heavy slow beat sung out from the speakers on the Intreped. Greever came in and a couple of bars later Uthium started to sing and Polidash started to play.
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eYa moved through the party goers and said, This is brilliant, I have never had such fun. We have got to organise something, Parrazarn and Dark Legion are excellent. I know eYa, said fRuff. I am going to be contacting Gangrel Music about them coming and playing. I know the people are going to fall in love with the music. Danny joined the group and said, The people are just as good, all four members of Dark Legion are as down to earth as the Gangrels. They played a small concert on Triton Base a couple of days before we joined the Intreped. Everyone who attended and the rest of the station as the concert was broadcast throughout the station just loved having them play. Both the House Heads smiled at this. eYa said, The more I get to know you and the people on the Intreped the more I see what we do as being not wrong, just not right. I think Ittitan has a convert to her cause, we do need to help the people not so lucky as us. Danny smiled at the eYa comments and said, eRuthan and wWish are bringing up a group from Trashan tomorrow and when the Parrka slips the cradle they all will be on board watching from space. The YGs and Gangrels are going to be welcoming the group to the station and I know for a fact when they go back they will go back different and I bet they will be Gangrels. rTuth joined the group as he danced with YG Edward and YG Hatshun and they both wore excellent smiles. Danny looked around the dancers and saw rTak dancing with a few of the Gangrels as the Rudeashian Drums section started. The sounds from the five drums rang out and took the people into a dancing frenzy.
Chapter 19
Danny walked with a few of the YGs out onto the Lower Flight Deck just before 10:00. A few transports and shuttles sat on the Flight Deck along with a few of the Construction Workbees. Danny looked at the Workbees the elves used and they looked different to the ones on the Intreped. As one of the elves working the Flight Deck walked pasted the group, Danny asked, The Workbees, how do they operate? The elf stopped and asked, The Workbees? Those, he replied and pointed at them. The elf nodded that he now understood what he was talking about and replied, They are piloted and work on the ships? Sorry, he said and took out his PDU and quickly found a short video file of a Workbee working. He showed the elf the video. Okay, said the elf. They have four arms; two with magnetic grapples at the end of them, a second set then weld the plate in place whilst work crews weld the inside of the panel to the frame and the rest of the skin. Danny nodded his head as he thought about how to improve the ones on the Intreped and the ones working around Darra Von. A large shuttle entered the flight deck and he saw sat in the pilots seat was eRuthan. wWish sat beside her in the commanders seat. The shuttle landed with the rear door facing the group. The door opened and wWish walked down just ahead of the younger elves and other races. Danny led the Gangrels and YGs towards the group who stood at the foot of the ramp. wWish smiled at the group and said to the ones around him, These are the people myself and eRuthan spoke of on the flight up. He looked up and said, I thought spend a bit of time in the Observation Deck so the two groups can get to know each other? Good idea Star Admiral, he replied and the two groups walked towards the lift at the side of the flight deck. eRuthan walked off and closed the rear hatch. She joined the back of the group and asked Danny, Where is Alice? Having a tour of the Parrka with Yelena, Dancetina and James K, he replied. Ok, she said and waited for the groups ahead of them to board the lifts and head for the Observation Deck.
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Danny walked out and saw the Gangrels and YGs mixing with the entire group from Trashan. wWish walked over to him and said, Now that is a really good sight, the two group just mixing and hopefully becoming friends. He smiled at the way the Gangrels and YGs were just interacting with the group and said, I knew they would. They just absorbed the ones from the outpost and here they are doing just the same absorbing them. I think I will be welcoming a lot of new Gangrels to the ranks next weekend. wWish laughed when he said it. What do you mean? he inquired. When a person is asked to join they are introduced to the Leader of the Gang or the local Leader. When we arrived in the system that is what happened to both me and Alice, we were introduced to Doris M and Queen Sarah Cutherlate watched over the entire procedure and then made me the local Leader. I now have the rights to welcome new members. She will likely do the same when the unit arrives in a few weeks. What I will do though is get Githage to send through the designs for the more popular Gith clothing as I heard one of the unit that helped me and Alice escape say, You cannot be a Gangrel and not a Gith. At this wWish laughed again. The Gangrels are truly an interesting group. How much do you know about their history? Enough to know they have been around for a long time, over 150 years. Jane Chancer and the same Sarah Cutherlate created them to provide the Conspiracy with a professional army. They do more than that, they provide disadvantaged people with a new extended family one built on friendship and just helping them. I know Alex has not looked back after he joined during the Wacker War. He has a very good First Class Lower Degree in Archaeology, he scored 91% overall, in the top 10 for his year, Brei got an Honour Lower Degree, she scored 96% I think she was 4th in the year and 20th planet wide. wWish looked out is real surprise at this. That is impressive as I know the obstacles they both had before starting. YG Fred walked over with a couple of similar sized elves and a Kittani. He said, Take a look at what iLoshh, qLim and Frozat drew. Danny bent down and looked at the drawings the three had done in their small notebooks. The pictures were good he knew that. In a while I think YG Fred should show you his work and I would really like to see these drawn larger. I will show them the different things I use when drawing, said YG Fred. Danny smiled at him and asked the three. What are the pictures of? qLim answered first, Mine is of the Spaceport tower taken from the balcony of the Council Chamber. Frozat said, It is the Kittani Technical Academy close to the home, a couple of the people who attend visit and one gave me a couple of pictures he had taken. Now that is a very good drawing Frozat, he said in encouraging him. iLoshh replied last, Mine is of the front of the Council Building Captain. Danny looked at YG Fred and asked, Have you started on your painting of the Parrka yet?
Not yet dad, he replied. I am hoping to start it next week as I want to get a few more pictures of it away from the cradle and also of the cradle itself. It will help me in the actual preparing the picture. At this wWish turned and said to the group, I think it is time for me and eRuthan to show you to where you are going to staying whilst you are on Fratten Five. One of the older members asked, Are the Intreped Gangrels going to be around as well? They are, replied wWish, and I know that when the Parrka slips from the Construction Cradle next week the Captain has said you all are welcome to be on board to watch as the Intreped will be in space during the occasion. Quite a number of the people from the Home stared at the two adults in surprise. Danny followed the group as wWish took them to the First Class hotel where they would be staying for the two weeks. rTuth walked over to him and said, From what a couple have said to me they do not enjoy living in the home. They have heard stories from others who have come through that in some they are beaten and in a few members disappear and are never seen or heard from again. Doris M walked over and said to him, I have been told that a couple of Grey Elves visited last week and four of the younger girls left with them and they have not returned. I have the names of the four and the elf who told me thinks the pair were from the Greeshtok-Du House. Danny looked at her very concerned and said, Thank you for that information. wWish walked over and asked as he saw Dannys concerned look, What is up Danny? Doris M here has just told me a pair of Grey Elves, from what the person thinks, came from the Greeshtok-Du House and took four young girls away and they have not returned. wWish now looked also very concerned at this information. When you told me about the transports Danny I started to conduct some covert research into the situation and from the information I was able to find it looks like the Homes are the biggest source of slaves. I have started my own investigation into the situation. Danny nodded his head in understanding. I will contact Sarah C and tell her about the situation here and then contact the unit she has sent, I think the slavers are about to run into a brick wall that the Gangrels are. How easy would it be to find out if any transports belonging to Greeshtok-Du have departed Trashan? wWish thought about the question and replied after a couple of seconds, Not that hard as all transports have IFFs that transmit what House has ownership. I will get on that in a bit. Am I right in guessing the Gangrels and YGs have organised a party this evening for everyone? Doris M replied, We have Star Admiral as well as giving them all a tour of the Intreped. wWish smiled his appreciation to what Doris M said. Good as I have also organised a tour of the station for tomorrow and next week for them to spend a few days with the various departments on board. It is very hard once a person has entered a home to make anything of your life as with a lot of things you need to have a House to sponsor you to go to college; join the military or gain any form of position other than the lowliest
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jobs. Danny and Doris M both looked unhappy at this information. A few of the group walked into the lobby of the floor of the hotel wWish had booked for them. wWish smiled at the group and said, We will wait for the others and then we will head for the hub where each and every one of you has a 300 Starens expense account. eQulin replied, Thank you Star Admiral. This must be costing you a fortune. Not really, Ittitan has been a major mover in the new support for the homes across the Federation. A few minutes later the rest of the people arrived in the lobby. wWish said to the gathered group, Right everyone we are now heading for the Hub. Each of you has a 300 Starens expense account linked to you ID cards and later the Gangrels and YGs from the Intreped have organised a party for everyone. Tomorrow you are all getting a tour of the station and the next day you are having a tour of the Intreped. Next week I have been able to organise you all spending time with the various departments on the station where I hope you will all gain something from. I know Ittitan and a number of the High Council Houses are drafting a new law to be applied across the Federation. It will say that no position whatever the position can discriminate, I think the term is, against anyone from a home. You should be able to get whatever job you want within reason. The entire group smiled at the news. ***** Alice piloted the shuttle into the landing bay on the construction cradle and saw a couple of people stood waiting for them. She touched down and brought the reactor back to provide enough power to power the on board systems. James K stood up from beside her in the commanders seat and he headed to the side door and it opened after he hit the button. He led Yelena and Dancetina from the shuttle. Alice followed after completing the post flight checks and joined the back of the group after she closed the hatch. Good morn to you all, said Massarn. Good morning to you, replied James K. Alice looked around the Flight Deck and saw a large number of shuttles unloading supplies and equipment. On the flight over she had seen a number of Flight Deck openings and even in those shuttles sat unloading. Welcome aboard Construction Cradle Three, said Massarn. Allow me to introduce Allumtar the head of Power Systems on the cradle. James K asked, How much power does the cradle produce? Fifty million kilo watts, the cradle uses about ten million and the rest is being fed into the Parrka. She is fully capable of supporting life but she is not producing her own power other than via two secondary reactors that power the lights, lifts and the on board computers, replied Allumtar.
The four nodded their heads in understanding. Well on with the tour, said Massarn and he turned and walked to a buggy that stood waiting for them. Everyone else climbed in and he drove out of the Flight Deck and down a wide corridor. They passed numerous people working on various things. He stopped the buggy on a bridge over a large transparent dome looking down at the Parrka. He climbed out and headed for a set of stairs down to a platform beneath the bridge. Everyone else joined him and stood looking down at the vessel. The dome was about a third of the way down the ship and on both the left and right hand sides of the vessel Alice could see what she thought to be engine heat exhausts. How powerful are the engines on the vessel? she asked. The outer engines you can see now produce two hundred million pounds of thrust, replied Massarn. He moved and pointed at the next four back. Those all produce two thousand million pounds and the main engines at the very back each produce eight thousand million pounds. Yelena looked very impressed by the figures. That is forty thousand million pounds of thrust. They are some engines. That they are and will push the Parrka Class Vessels to about 0.58 Light Mach in normal space. Alice nodded her head and said, I think we all read up on the various systems on board the Parrka Class vessels. One area I am interested in finding out more about is your environmental systems. We have a 250 man window with our current environmental systems and they are rather large and quite bulky. Allumtar thought about what Alice had said and inquired, How big is your current system and what are the total number of people supported? 2100 people and I think the total size is about 4000 cubic feet, she replied. We get the bulk of our food from mana powered food producers, she replied. Our systems are about the same size, Allumtar replied. We would love to make the system smaller, but that has completely alluded us. Massarn said, Next stop, the Parrka itself. He turned and led the group back to the buggy and he drove off down the corridor. He turned and started down a side corridor and soon he started to drive down a circular ramp. At the bottom he drove down the corridor and through a large opening in the wall. We have now entered the Parrka, he said. Alice looked around at the people working on various tasks in constructing the vessel. From one team she saw an intense blue light as the three men welded something together. She asked, What is the first task you complete in building a vessel as I have some provisional plans to increase the size of the Intreped? Massarn replied, The first task is to build the structure as everything is attached to it. After that we place the outer skin of the hull on and make sure that is completely sealed. After that is completed we start to add the defensive systems, shield generators, weapon blisters and turrets as well as sensor arrays. The next job
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is to add the inner plating and make sure all the high voltage cable runs are in place, we also run the power system for the defensive systems as the inner plating is added. Only then when everything is sealed and the systems have been tested will we break through the inner and outer skins into the blisters and turrets. After that we construct the inner areas of the vessel. She nodded in understanding and took out her PDU and wrote a few notes for the time planning for the additions. She was still working out where would be the best place to actually construct the additions and how best to fix the lower pod to the rest of the ship. She had initially planned to run two wings from the bottom of the Engineering pods. She had also looked at running wings from the two lower wing pods both with and without the wings from the Engineering Pods. Can I ask what are you thinking about doing Alice? Massarn inquired. I am thinking about adding a Lower Pod but I am still mulling over how to attach it to the Intreped as well as where to have the Pod and Wings built, she replied. This is the first time I have told anyone other than I am thinking about it. James K turned his head towards her and said, I think we need to have a meeting as some people have expressed issues with aspects of the ships operations. One is the collection of the CSMRs, the Combat Transport Pilots have to fly vertical to actually pick them up for transport back to the ship. Alice thought about that problem and decided it was time to let others into the planning of the expansion. I agree we do need to have a proper meeting of all the Department Heads so we can bash out the best and most efficient designs, she said. Massarn stopped the buggy and said, Everyone out, we have arrived at the Main Engineering Bay. Everyone climbed out and followed Massarn through an open blast door into the Main Engineering Bay. Alice looked around the bay and found it to be massive she looked back down two extensions that ran down beside the corridor they had driven down. There she saw massive reactor vessels. She estimated four times bigger than the main reactors on the Intreped. James K asked after looking around the bay, The reactors behind us what is the power output? Those four are dedicated reactors power the all the engines and also the FTL drive, which is the column in the middle of the deck. Beneath our feet is the power cells to actually push the vessel to Light Speed, replied Allumtar. Each reactor vessel is almost thirteen thousand tons. All the other systems take power from smaller reactors throughout the vessel. Massarn said, The main engines are right in front of us. He led the group to the railing and they looked up and down at the back plates of the engines. Running down the sides were gantries and ladders ran both up and down from the deck to other gantries. Dancetina looked at the engines and asked, Can I take a closer look at the acceleration chambers? Massarn looked down the gantry that ran from the deck. I would have thought so as I think that open panel leads onto a few. Thanks, she replied and both her and Yelena headed down the gantry and they stopped at the open
panel and started talking to the pair of workers stood working on something. Alice turned and looked at the Hyperdrive column. Now that is something else, she said. I read that Hyperdrives was an area the Federation excelled at. It is, replied Massarn and Allumtar led James K towards one of the reactors with a hatch open. I have looked at the schematics on the Intreped and Warhound and yes this is one area we could really help you on. That is not exactly a Hyperdrive in a traditional sense. That is something very new and only at the moment equipped on this vessel. I am nowhere near being up to speed on it. From what I have read the system surrounds the ship in a bubble similar to a Hyperdrive, but where a Hyperdrive forces the ship into an alternative dimension, this does not. The people working at the consoles would likely know more about the technology. She nodded her head and the pair walked towards the five Kittani. She tapped one on the shoulder and asked when he had turned to face her, How does this new FTL system work? Reggimma replied, The Wazarn Field Producer surrounds the ship in a negative gravity bubble and using the ships engines pushes it to FTL speeds. When the vessel slips the cradle next week we will be attaching four field generator pods to the top, bottom, and both sides. It is from them the field is actually produced. It is a simple matter of switching the field generators off to slow the ship from FTL speeds. The biggest difference between the old Hyperdrives and this is the ship remains in real space throughout the flight and can easily manoeuvre and change course without having to return to normal space. She realised this would be a massive boost to the vessels as it would mean being able to bypass gravitational wells and everything that would affect Hyperspace travel. If you want a more detailed explanation then I would contact the Space Technology Campus on Trashan. The system was invented there and they built this very system. Basically this vessel is the test bed for the production version as we also have a standard Hyperdrive as well. She looked at the column and knew she wanted to know more about the system and how is actually worked. Dancetina and Yelena joined her as she looked up at the column. Is that the Hyperdrive? asked Dancetina. Alice looked at her and said, Yes this is an FTL drive system but no it is not the Hyperdrive. This is something very new to the point this is the prototype of the production version. Both Dancetina and Yelena looked up at the column. Yelena said, Oh my. How does it work? That is something I am going to be looking at finding out about. Thank you for your help, she said. Reggimma smiled at her and went back to work on something. The four walked to where James K stood with Allumtar looking into the reactor vessel. This is impressive, he said when the three joined him.
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How so? asked Alice as she looked inside the chamber. The engines rather than work of electricity as ours do, they work off the actual plasma created when the Anti-matter reactor is in operation. Dancetina thought about what she had seen in the engines. That would explain the injectors instead of the heating elements we use in ours. Allumtar turned to the group and said, This system is pretty new, only four vessels have the system and I know the TY665 is currently undergoing an engine upgrade to the new system. I know they are about to initialise the reactor on the other side of the bay. So shall we go and watch the power up sequence and then go and have some food. After that I would be happy to give you a quick tour of the rest of the vessel, said Massarn. Alice replied, Thank you. The group walked over to the other side of the bay and stood at the viewing port as the engineers opened the hydrogen streams and began to pressurize the reactor vessel. On a small panel beside the door the display said 25 atms One of the engineers said, Ok, holding at 25atms. Open the AM injectors. Another engineer said, Magnetic Containment Field Injectors holding steady. Opening the AM Injectors. A few seconds later he continued, AM particle mass at initialization density. Initialize the reactor core, said the first engineer. Alice watched as in the middle appeared a very small white ball of plasma. Plasma Containment Field is holding steady at 10 units radius. A couple of seconds later another voice said, Confirmed Containment Field is holding steady. The first voice said, Bring the reactor to power, 10% output. The viewport began to darken as the plasma ball increased in size. We have Plasma feeds, said another voice. Power is at 10%. So that is how an AM reactor is started, said Alice. Pretty much, replied James K. Ours are under a vacuum and we fire hydrogen and AM into the middle at the same time. I do like this system it is much safer than ours as we do have to precisely align the injectors before firing. Allumtar said as they turned away to head back for the buggy, It is a much safer system. I can provide you with all the details on the system as I can see why you say your system is unsafe. James K smiled at him, Thank you. May I transmit the information back to Explorer Base. Yes I know the Federation Council has already authorised supplying information about things like AM reactors as you already have them, Allumtar replied. I would very much like to see the new FTL system in operation, said Alice as she climbed into the buggy. Massarn climbed in and turned the buggy around heading back down the corridor. I will see what I can
arrange as again I know the Federation Council has already approved you having access to FTL technology. From what my son has told me you are letting the Cyber Research Centre have access to the Cyber Technology being used in rTuth or someone from the Intreped. Yes we are, replied Alice, from what I have seen cFan using and what rTuth is using our joint systems are very much superior to yours. What does you son do Massarn? she inquired. Well he is not exactly my son other than I married his mother a few years ago, but he calls me dad. cFan is my son and I know he has already started working on upgrading his cyborg body. Alice stared at Massarn. Oh my, she said. ***** Danny sat in the Main Hydroponics Bay reading up on how the Command Systems connected to the propulsion systems. Alice joined him and said, Evening bro. Evening sis, he replied. Have a good tour? he inquired. Yes a very interesting tour to say the least. It looks like the Parrka has a new FTL drive system, she replied. He looked at her in a questioning manner and asked, How new? Very, like the Parrka is using the prototype production version new, she replied. He opened his eyes wide is surprise. How good is the new system? Very good, from what I was able to find out the ship stays in real space rather than jumps to a parallel dimension. It allows the ship to manoeuvre and carryout course changes as if it was still flying in real space rather than dropping back changing direction and jumping again. I am going to be contacting the Space Technology Campus on Trashan tomorrow to try and get more information on it. Their drive system uses plasma straight from the AM reactors rather than electricity as ours do. We also have the understanding on how to make the AM reactors safer to start up, they use magnetic containment fields and pressurized reactor vessels where we work in a vacuum. He looked very impressed by the information brought back from the trip. Anyway, I am having a meeting in about twenty minutes in my cabin concerning the increasing of the size of the Intreped. I have all the Department Heads coming and I did say I would give you a briefing on the idea. You did, he replied and finished his drink. Shall we head to yours now? What is your idea anyway? He noticed she was thinking about something. I also have some information concerning Trans Darra. The visitors from the Home told Doris M who told me and wWish. He has started his own investigation into the situation and will be keeping me fully in the loop concerning his findings. Oh, what? she asked as they placed their dirty cups on the hatchway to the kitchen. It looks like the Youth Homes are a big supplier of slaves to the corporation. One of the visitors said a
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couple of Grey Elves, they think, from the Greeshtok-Du house took four of the younger girls and have not yet returned. wWish is getting a list of transports that have left Trashan along with the ownership details. I have contacted Sarah C and the Gangrel Unit heading here and they are pissed. Mind you something else has come out of us arriving. Ittitan and a few of the High Council Houses are drafting a new Federation Law that outlaws discrimination against people coming from a home. Alice smiled at that news. Now that is good to hear, she said. The pair walked out of the lift and turned towards the front of the Pod. Sat in the observation area was Major Batts, Oliver P and Andrea W. Alice said as they walked into the area, You are early. Yes, said Major Batts. I have just sorted out the next seven Federation Military Units accommodation and I wanted to come and see the YGs. They are on the Station with the visitors from Trashan, said Danny. They are going to back later as they are holding a party for the visitors. The three stood up and followed Alice into her room. Oliver P asked, What is this meeting about Alice? An expansion to the Intreped as James K told me about some issues the pilots of the Combat Transports have when collecting CSMRs from a combat zone, she replied. She grabbed the chairs from around her desk and asked, Danny, can you get the chairs from your cabin. Not a problem sis, he replied. Fifteen minutes later the rest of the Department Heads arrived and had taken a seat. Right thank you all for coming here, some of you are wondering what this meeting is for and to start I would like James K to explain something he had heard from some of the Combat Transport pilots. James K smiled at her and he stood up, Yes. Some of the Combat Transport pilots have said they are not happy with the situation concerning the collection of CSMRs after they have been used in combat. It looks like the Combat Transports have to fly vertical so they can attach themselves to the backs of the CSMRs. Some have said it is not very safe and could be rather dangerous as one error and you are looking at damaging the engine exhausts on the ground. I have heard the same, responded Peter T. Another thing which they have said is the transport of injured, the transports are not kitted up for it at all. Andrea W nodded her agreement to what Peter T said. I agree I have looked at all the transports and shuttles and I agree, none can be rigged very easily to ferry injured parties. Right with those comments then I think the idea I had last week would be a real bonus then. I initially had planned to just have a Pod located beneath the Main Engineering Pods, but with what James K told me and what people have said today then I think it would be better to have it as a separate vessel attached to the Intreped, said Alice. Ugine asked, How did you plan on attaching the pod?
Via wings, she replied. This is one area I am debating, I am not sure which option, either two running from the Main Engineering Pods or having them run from the two lower pods. Ugine thought about it and suggested, Why not both. It would mean direct access to the hangers and flight deck and also access to the wing pods. Dancetina asked the next question, What about engines and also powering it? I would say keep it the same as the other pods, replied Alice. Throughout the discussion Danny listened and thought about the bigger picture. I have one question who is going to build this pod and what about the system to launch and recover it. Those are the questions that need answering next, Alice replied. One thing I will say, said Major Batts, I would like to have a C&C for the ground forces and what about storing the CSMRs and all the other battle equipment. I guess we are not going to be housing all the troops in the pod. No, they will be staying where they are in the main vessel. The pod will be more an assault transport, C&C, fire base and field medical centre, replied Alice. Danny knew Alices idea of the additional Pod was a very good one, but the question remained who was going to build it. One question no one has asked or answered, the weapons load out, what is that going to be? asked Oliver P. Again that is something to be discussed, replied Alice. I would say as it is a part of the overall vessel then it should be kitted out in a similar way as the other pods, but also keeping with the plan of making it a fire base. Danny looked at Oliver P as he thought about the situation with the weapons. Okay, I think we all should work on our own areas. I will look and work with Major Batts on the aspects of it being a fire base, Oliver P replied. Now that is a very good idea, replied Danny. Alice as this was your idea you put together the overall plans for the pod and wings and I think the idea of using both sets is very good. It would increase the offensive punch of the Intreped and the other Warhound Class vessels. Also look at if possible keeping the construction in house so to speak. Peter T how much room do we need to operate the fighters and transports from. The Flight Deck is very big and would lend itself to being a good construction site if properly utilised. Assuming we have no major offensive actions then we need just the front third of the flight deck, he replied. Danny thought about the upcoming operations and the biggest would be the Devil Games Assault. With the future operations being what they are, the only major assault will be the Devil Games one and as we are assaulting we can launch the fighters and transports early. How goes the upgrading of the two transports? Peter T looked at his PDU and replied, They are almost done, we only need to add the Sensor Masking
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and they are pretty much finished. Danny nodded his head in understanding. Tishun, he said. Is it possible to attach the transports to the hull and have access ports from the Intreped? A few seconds later Tishun replied. I would have thought so we will need to build a proper cradle for them but it is feasible. I will start working on the designs for that now. Where would we be putting them? Any suggestions with the schematics of the transports? he inquired. A couple of seconds passed and Tishun answered. I would say on the lower hulls. I think the best sites would be the Lower Pods. It would not compromise Flight Deck Operations and if they are placed in the middle then it will not alter the operational arrangements of the weapons. Danny understood Tishuns suggestion and replied, Ok, make it happen people. Alice have a chat with the engineers at Explorer Base about the plans and get them to send the complete specifications for the construction of Main Engineering and the Lower Pods. Alice nodded her agreement to his suggestion. I will get to work on the designs for the frame work and have the Construction Centre start manufacturing the frame work. I will prepare the work crews for the project, said Ugine. Good, anyway I know the Gangrels and YGs are holding a party in the Main Hydroponics Bay for the visitors so I think it would be a very good time to go and meet them, he said and stood up. Everyone else joined him and he, Dancetina and Oliver P grabbed the chairs from his cabin and took them back. A minute later the three walked into the Main Hydroponics Bay and found the party in full swing. Stood at a set of decks was one of the ships crew and the music coming from the speakers was full on dance music and a lot of the people attending were dancing and generally enjoying themselves. Even eRuthan and wWish were dancing with some of the visitors, Gangrels, and YGs. He moved to the drinks making area and made himself a cabila. He went hunting for Doris M as he wanted a cambar cigarette. He found her chatting to a few of the visitors as they sat on a log around a small open fire. He looked very surprised at this as having a fire on board he thought was not the best idea. How come the fire? he asked. We are plugged into the environmental systems from the station and they are rated for four times the number of people on board the station, replied Tishun. Yarosh allows an open fire in the Main Hydroponics Bay on the Warhound. He sat down beside Doris and asked, Any chance I could have a cambar cigarette? Yes you can. I will sort you out a tin and supply. The Wings running from the Main Hull to the Lower Pods have a number of growing rooms and it all gets produced there. She took out her tin and handed it to him. He opened the top and started to roll one up from the contents. fRuff walked over with a couple of the younger members of the visitors and he sat down with them. I
am exhausted, he said. The youth have so much energy it is amazing. I know, he said.
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Chapter 20
Boss, we have just picked up this transmission. It was directed straight at us here. What, Dashary said. Who knows we are based here? He now was very interested in knowing who knew where they were. Take a look. I have not looked at it yet as it is addressed to you. He started the recording and watched as the outpost in DR1554. He stared in real shock as the Assault Forces landed and took the outpost from the defenders. At the end appeared one of the two from the capture of rTuth. Dashary and Trans Darra Toral Productions you are now put on notice you are being watched and we are watching you and your company very closely. Break the moral codes all people of the galaxy live by and know this we are going to be coming for you. Who was he and who the hell did he represent. They would never be able to take Trans Darra Toral down it was just too big to fall. oSheen I want to see you now, he said into his communicator. Coming boss, replied oSheen. Ten minutes later oSheen walked into his office and asked, What do you want to see me about? I want information on him and her; he has threatened Trans Darra Toral Productions. oSheen looked at the LPD and studied the persons displayed. Ok I will get the Intelligence Teams on it now. Do we have a name or some other information concerning them? Yes I think they are on the CS002 Intreped, he replied. oSheen looked as if he was thinking about something. That is going to make it a lot harder to find information out about them. For one the CS002 Intreped is one of the ships from EM001 or as I think it is called Darra Von. Two the security on the ship is very tight, I know our Intelligence Teams have tried to send Flyeyes on board and they do not get very far. It is as if the ships computer is jamming the control signals as well as the data streams. At this he knew finding information out was going to be very hard indeed. How about the teams we have on Darra Von? We do not have any teams on Darra Von. Our last operation was a complete failure and we lost the only team we had. I think they were working with one of the crime syndicates and that was completely destroyed by an elite strike force. From the last transmissions we got the commander of the force was called, I think, The Black Fairy, or something similar. May I use your computer boss? Of course, why do we have information then? he inquired. oSheen nodded as he moved and quickly brought up the last data transmission from Darra Von. The screen showed a full on assault.
Stop the playback and zoom in on the one with the animal at her heels. The screen zoomed in and he realised the person was the same from the fight with Metzza. I know who she is, he said. That is Nibola Calton. oSheen looked at him and said, She is also called The Black Fairy. How do you know her? A video file I have seen showed her fighting someone called Metzza. She is very good easily a match for some of our best fighters. Who are the other two with wings? I have never seen a race quite like them before? Those two are, from what I have been able to research, First Ones, I think they are a Fallen Angel Risen Daemon. From the rest of the footage they are subservient to Nibola and the woman she carried as she landed. Dashary looked at oSheen very surprised indeed. He knew no one commanded a Fallen Angel Risen Daemon; it was always the other way around. Continue the playback, he said. The video started again and from the main entrance to the compound came an explosion and the two doors hung off their hinges and running through them came more people all dressed in the same way as the first four. Dashary watched as he saw the new arrivals were as good as Nibola was. He studied the video and noticed that they all fought in ways that complimented each other. The video turned and he saw stood in the opening three more people and they all looked like they carried support weapons of some kind. The middle one fired and the video turned and showed an armoured vehicle burst in to flames. Creator that is a powerful weapon, he said. We know, oSheen replied. I have no information on the rest. I have teams of our best Net Junkies trying to crack into the net transmissions and they have failed every time. They are using some very advanced defensive systems and the transmissions are encoded using systems I have never seen before. Dashary lent back in his chair. He knew that they needed more Intelligence Teams on Darra Von and pretty fast. We need to get Intelligence Teams on to Darra Von very quickly, he said. We know and we are trying but the Federation Council is screening all the applicants requesting permission to stay. I can get visitor passes but they only last for a couple of months. We need to have teams stay longer than that to have any chance of finding information. What about transports? he inquired. Tried that, the instant a transport drops out and is detected by the System Patrol Vessels now operating in the deep system they are ordered to halt and are boarded. If they do not like the answers or if something flags any of the crew or passengers then the transport is turned around. They have also arrested the crew and passengers from two transports. He stared in utter shock. Are the Federation vessels? They are, oSheen replied.
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As this he knew transports were pretty much out of the question as well. Why is the Federation protecting Darra Von so closely? I know, but it is not public knowledge, Darra Von is my true home world. The Elves and Dwarves of the galaxy originated there, replied oSheen. He looked as if he now understood the reason for protecting the system. Defence Commander pZeem can you come to my office please, he requested. A few minutes later pZeem walked in and inquired, You wanted to see me CEO? Yes, I want all our ships on alert Trans Darra has been threatened. pZeem nodded his head in understanding. Shall I inform the Pirates and the Black Market of this threat? No as the threat does not directly target them, it just targets us. He stood up and said, Thank you both for that, oSheen continue your efforts in trying to locate information about them and the others. He walked out of the office via a side door and headed for his quarters where he was going to think and plan how to deal with this new threat to his company. He understood the threat was very real and if what he had seen from the assaults on DR1554, the outpost and the Pirate bases this new threat was very powerful. Facarn met him in the entrance lobby and inquired, You alright boss? No, I have just watched and been briefed on a new threat, a very dangerous and powerful threat to Trans Darra. She now looked very concerned at this news. Where does the threat come from? she asked as she walked with him onto the balcony overlooking the central gardens. EM001 or as it is better known Darra Von, he replied. We have lost the outpost in DR1554 to an Assault Force from the CS002 Intreped. Getting intelligence on the people from the ship is very difficult as the Flyeyes are being jammed and putting teams on Darra Von is being just as hard. This is very serious then. If you want I can travel to where the CS002 is and see what I can find out? He thought about her idea, it was a good one but he needed her here more than out there. I need you here, you are the only person I trust with my personal protection. Jazzarntan is good but he does not understand the situation. She nodded her head in comprehension of the reasons. When is the next Devil Games due to start? he asked. In about four weeks, the organisers are gathering the participants now and from what they say it should be a good games. He sat back and smiled, he need something to take his mind of this. Maid, he ordered, Bring me my drink. Yes master, came the reply and a few seconds later she brought him his and Facarns drink out to them. He grabbed her and gave her a passionate kiss.
Chapter 21
Alice sat in her cabin with her tablet on her lap. On the screen were the structural plans for the Intreped along with the starts of the frame work for the new pod. She had spent a couple of hours talking to the designers of the Warhound Class about her plans and how the actual frame work and hull sheeting had been constructed. She knew the crews on board were good enough to make the plan happen, but she was stuck on the actual size of the pod. She wanted it big enough to carry all the combat equipment and the bulk of the troops to the combat zone. This alone would make it a larger pod than the others. At this point she also began to think about adding a small Flight Deck area. She would only make it capable to carrying a couple of transports or fighters. One last area was the transport of ammunition and other supplies. Oliver P, Major Batts where are you as I need to have a chat with you both? she said into her internal communicator. I am in the Forward Weapons Bay looking at the connections for the plasma weapons, Oliver P replied. Major Batts here, I am currently putting some time in with the trainees on the combat course. What is up Alice? he inquired. I just need to have a chat with you both about the weapons load out for the new pod. It can wait until you are free. I am heading for the Main Hydroponics Bay, she replied. Ok, I will meet you there in about thirty minutes, replied Oliver P. I will catch up with you at some point today, but Oliver P knows what I am looking for in the way of weapons for the Fire Base. She nodded her head and said, Ok, chat to you soon then. She stood up and headed to the Main Hydroponics Bay. Thirty five minutes later Oliver P walked into the bay. He walked over to where she sat reviewing the structural plans for connecting the wings to the pods and engineering pods. How does the planning go Alice? he asked. Pretty good thanks, all I need now are the weapon load out details and I can pretty much finish the Pods plans. Can I assume the load out on the wings is going to be the same as the current wings? Oliver P thought about what she said and replied, It would depend on the size of them. She understood the situation and brought up the overall view of the vessel with the rough design on the new Pod and her preferred location.
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He looked at the location and asked as he pointed to the wings from the Lower Pods, What is the overall length of those wings? Rough lengths are between one and half and two times the length of the Lower Pod Wings, she replied. He nodded and thought about something. She guessed it was to do with the weapons load out. My initial plans would be two missile turrets on the underside, one on the top; maybe four or five various neutral particle cannons and a couple of PDSs, he replied. What about the Pod itself? she asked. He took out his PDU and brought up the Major Batts plans for the fire base aspect. The Major wants at least four missile turrets and a couple of artillery pieces along with a number of other close defence weapons rail cannons, heavy lasers and similar. I do want to have a number of CNP34s, PDSs and a fourth AP Cannon located in the Pod. She entered the details in to the notepad and brought the various design specifications to her working area and started to place them inside the body of the pod. At the end she showed him her rough idea for the locations. He looked at the plan and nodded his approval. I think I do want something covering the rear as that area is almost undefended in the terms of weapons load out, he said. Ok, she replied and shifted a pair of CNP33s and CNP34s to the rear of the Pod. Yes that is pretty much it, he said. One idea the Major had and I do think it would be a very good one is to give it some mobility. She thought about the suggestion and replied, The pod is being equipped with contra-grav units. Oliver P shook his head and said, No that was not what the Major wants, he wants some form of tracked movement and also a method of dropping the CSMRs when in the atmosphere. She sat and looked at the rough plans and decided it would be possible to do exactly what the Major wanted. She quickly drew rough sketch of her idea for the tracks, she took the idea from some of the massive earth moving machines Darra Von used. She now had to actually draw the structure for the pod and she knew that would take her a while to do. Oliver P asked, Where is Danny today? Danny is on the station with the Gangrels, YGs and the visitors. They are having a tour of the station meeting the Department Heads they will be with next week, she replied. ***** Danny stood with the some of the YGs and a group of the visitors as Commander Trassish chatted to the group about what went on in the Orbital Control Centre just beneath the Observation Deck. As you can see the crew members working here have a hard job as the number of shuttles and transports flying around the station and the Construction Cradles is rather high, he said.
One of the visitors stuck her hand in the air and said, How many ships would you say are flying at any one time Commander? That is a difficult question to answer. At the moment with the DR1554 about to slip the Construction Cradle the number of transports and shuttles ferrying equipment and supplies to the Cradle and vessel we have over 400 different transports flying. When she slips this week, we will cut the number to maybe 50 or 60. On an average day we usually have between 250 and 300 on the screens about 60% of them are heading out to either the deep system or out of the system itself. Danny asked, Have you decided where you are going to place the Intreped when the DR1554 slips the Cradle? Yes we have Captain; the plan is to position the Intreped above the Observation Deck. Commander Trassish looked around the group and said, Right I think the next stop is food which is being served in the Hub. He led the group back to the lift in the middle of the room and a minute later the doors opened and allowed the first group out onto the Hub level. Danny walked in last with his group and the doors closed and a few seconds later deposited the group on the Hub right opposite the restaurant serving lunch. He led the group over and found the rest of the group. He walked over to where Commander Trassish and asked, The naming of ships how does that work? Ship naming is very simple we name the bulk of the ships after star system names. The DR1554 was suggested by Drass in honour of the strength of the people colonising the planet and the problems they had when the pirates attacked. The vessels first stop during its flight test is the star system DR1554 where it will take on two squadrons of CB30 Ruger Class Strike Bombers. I think the next stop is Darra Von itself where the plan is to take on a full reinforced company of Special Forces as well as pilots and technicians for the bombers. Dannys face changed to one of being very impressed at this. I have not kept up to date on matters like that as it is more important for me to learn about the Intreped and its systems. How long before the DR1554 is ready to join the fleet then? he inquired. About six months from when she slips the Cradle, replied Trassish. Star Admiral wWish is a much better person to talk to about the plans for the vessel. Yes I am, wWish replied. The long term plans depending on how your work goes gathering intelligence is to assign it to a small strike fleet that will be detailed with the destruction of Trans Darra. The Federation High Council has now had enough of that companys antics and has decided to shut it down once and for all. Did you have a good morning? he inquired. Danny thought about the mornings visits and said, I think so. I know the group asked some very intelligent questions and they all showed a real interest in what goes on. wWish smiled at this and said, It was the same with my group and I think eRuthans group as well. Danny knew with the change in the Federation Laws and the work the Gangrels would do and were
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doing now, it would mean all the people from the Federation would get the same chances. hGun has already set the older Gangrels a project of looking at the various suns and the different types. I know Doris M and a few of the YGs have already started to spend time watching and learning about the various systems on board. I think the YGs are learning about the back areas and the various systems that are hidden from general view. I have noticed some of the crew have started to add things to the ships netsite as well as answering questions people from Darra Von have asked. YG Edward walked to where the three stood chatting and asked, What are the requirements for entry to the Federation Star Academy? One of the older members was talking about wanting to attend. wWish and Trassish thought about the question and wWish replied, It would depend on what the person wanted to do. Each department on a vessel has a slightly different course structure and entry requirements. Entering Command School the person needs a good understanding of Politics, Federation Laws with a bit of Federation History. Engineering you need to have a good understanding of Basic Science, or Machines. It does depend on what the person wants to do on board, replied Trassish. Danny thought about the next week and the timetable for things. YG Edward can you show me the person? Yes, YG Edward replied and led Danny and the other two to where eLam sat with one of the younger members on his lap. eLam Captain Curtdoza, Star Admiral wWish and Commander Trassish would like to chat to you about you wanting to attend the Federation Star Academy, he said. Danny sat down as he went to move Rizeem from his lap. Stay there eLam. wWish and Trassish dragged a couple of chairs over and sat on them. wWish asked, What are you looking at wanting to do on a Star Vessel eLam? eLam thought about it and replied, I would like to go into one of the technical areas or maybe Ship Board Security. I know at least four of the older people here want to join the Federation Star Marines. Danny thought about what eLam said and realised this would be a good chance to help him and maybe the four get better. Star Admiral, would it be ok for eLam to spend the next week shadowing some of the Intrepeds crew as Alice is designing a big addition to the ship and a lot of the departments are involved in it. wWish looked at him and replied after a couple of seconds of thinking about it, Yes. I think it would be a really good idea. I will have a chat to Commander Titovoth but I am sure he would have no problem allowing the four who want to join the Marines coming and watching our crew men be combat trained, Danny added. wWish looked very happy at this offer. I know the tour did not include the Military Forces we have on board the station so I do think it would be a really good idea. Danny looked at eLam and asked, Who are the four? Muzuian, qTarn, Pullissha, Ozzian, replied eLam. Danny nodded and stood up. He looked over the group and saw a group of four stood together. He
walked over to where they stood and asked, Is one of you Muzuian? Muzuian turned and looked at him and replied, I am Captain. Good, I hoped I had gotten it right. eLam has just told me that you four are wanting to join the Federation Star Marines. How would you like to spend next week watching and learning from the Combat Forces on the Intreped? All four looked at him with real surprise in their faces. qTarn replied, I know for one I would really like to. I know the Federation Star Marines are some of the toughest military forces the Federation has. He looked at the four and said, Tomorrow on the tour I will make sure you all are in the tour group with either Major Batts or Command Titovoth. Major Batts is the Commander of the Combat Forces and Commander Titovoth is in charge of Ship Board Security. A couple of fairies flew over to where Danny stood and Mulliat asked, Are you Captain Curtdoza? I am and who are? he inquired. I am Mulliat Mullizar the head of the Mullizar Fairy Family. Council Member Ittitan asked if we would not mind joining your ships crew. Danny smiled at this news. Council Member Ittitan said she would ask some of you. It would be a pleasure to have you join the crew. He looked over the group and found a number of fairies now hovering with members of the group. Ittitan flew over from the door and said, Good afternoon Danny. Afternoon Council Member Ittitan, he replied around a happy smile. Thank you for asking the fairies about joining the crew. Not a problem. They are all very interested in learning more about Darra Von and the people who come from our true home world, she said. Mulliat asked, Accommodation has that been sorted for us? At the moment no, but I am sure something can be sorted very quickly. How much room do you actually need? inquired Danny. Not that much, just a small area of a cabin will do as we all live in either large communities or friends homes. We carry all of our living requirements with us, Mulliat replied. Danny smiled and knew the ship was now something very special and with the addition of the Fairies very much a Federation vessel as well as one from Darra Von. Ous asked, What is actually going on today. Council Member Ittitan spoke of your ship having Young Gangrels on board? Today some visitors from a few of the Youth Homes on Trashan are having a tour of the station. All the members dressed in black or dark colours are members of the Intrepeds Gangrel unit and YGs and they are being friends to the visitors. Tomorrow the visitors are getting a tour of the Intreped and for the rest of the
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week five are going to be shadowing members of the crew, he replied and had YG Fred and YG Paula walk over to him. He looked at YG Paula and saw a fairy sat on her shoulder. She looked up at him and said, Meet Ruejinni. She says her family has been asked to join the crew? she inquired. They have YG Paula, he replied. She smiled a big smile at this news. Great, I did have a lot of fun with the fairies from the Warhound, she said. ***** Danny stood by the boarding tube as the Youth Home members all walked across the tube and onto the vessel. Welcome all to the CS002 Intreped, he said. He turned and led the group to the lift and the doors opened. Marcha knows where we are going so just allow the doors to open and she will make sure you arrive at the Main Hydroponics Bay. He led the first group into the lift and a few seconds later the doors opened and allowed the group off opposite the bay. He walked across and inside the bay stood the six people waiting to for the group. A couple of minutes later the last of the visitors walked off and across the corridor into the bay. Danny stood waiting for them and said, With everyone here now I will introduce you to your guides for the tour. Major Donald Batts the Commander of the Combat Forces; Commander Richmond Titovoth head of Ship Board Security; Doctor Andrea White Chief Medical Officer; Commander William Ugine Drums Head of Technical Services; Commander Oliver Potter Commander of the Vessels Weapon Systems and of course myself. I think Star Admiral wWish has already divided you up into six groups and the only group already assigned to a guide is the one containing the four I spoke to yesterday. The various groups walked to the rest of the tour guides whilst the one with Muzuian, qTarn, Pullissha and Ozzian walked to Major Batts. Danny smiled at his group and said, Now I know you all know Dan from yesterday as he volunteered to help me during the tour. Our first stop is actually here for a drink and a little chat about what you all want to get from the tour. I am sure if some of you want to spend a little time in a section something can be arranged either today or next week when the DR1554 slips the cradle. This is your tour of the vessel. He led the group to the drink making facilities where they each got themselves a drink and followed him to where a couple of the tables had been placed end to end. He asked after everyone had sat down, How did you all find yesterdays tour of the station? One of the older members stuck her hand into the air and replied after waiting for him to indicate it was alright to do so, I found it very interesting and I am going to really look into maybe joining the Federation as a member of a vessels crew. Danny looked very impressed at this. Can I ask you how did you get to be Captain? she inquired.
Danny looked at her and replied, How I got to be Captain is a strange case of a couple of things really. The first has a lot to do with my younger brother Alex and the fact he serves on the CS001 Warhound, Darra Vons first combat star vessel. The second is very much to do with my origins. I spent over 25 years working for an organisation called Security Command. Let me just say they did not ask if you wanted to join, you were forced to join. They provided companies and corporations with elite security forces. Their job was to protect the sites from being raided or attacked by Street Ghosts whose job was to steal information and similar from the sites. He took a mouthful of coffee and continued, For the last four years I spent working undercover trying to track down an information leak. At the end of that operation I and my sister Alice quit the organisation, with the help of a few friends, a few months back; the local Gangrel Unit to the Prison being one group of the friends. Where is Alice now? aYezz inquired. She is also here as Chief Engineer, the reason she is not giving a tour is she is working on designing a new pod which will act as a Combat Transport. It will allow the deployment of Combat Troops from orbit as well as a Fire Base and local C&C. rTuth walked over and joined the group and smiled at the members. I thought you were training? Danny asked. No Doris M said I do not need to do the fitness training, he replied. Danny smiled at him. Asharh asked, How come, from what I was told yesterday being fit is very important to a Gangrel and I know it is important to being on a combat vessel? If it was not for the crew of the Intreped I would have died in a few years as I was kidnapped by pirates, sold into slavery, bought by Trans Darra Toral Productions and a couple of years ago made into a Juicer. Danny here offered me a way of escaping from Trans Darra and Doctor White offered me a way of not dying in a few years. I am now a Full Conversion Cyborg, just 2% of me is elven, the rest is very advanced cybernetics and bionics, rTuth replied. A few of the group stared in real surprise at him. Both myself and Alice are also cyborgs. We are 75% cyborg, converted by Security Command, Danny added. Neither of us got a choice in the matter, they just did it without asking first. That is horrible, commented hJarnt. Alice walked into the bay and over to the table. Good morning to you all, she said. Morning sis, he said. How are the plans coming? he asked. She looked as she was thinking about her answer, Pretty well thanks. She placed her tablet on the table and showed the group the plans she had drawn for the pod. Danny looked at them and inquired, Those are new? Yes, it was something the Major wanted and from what Tishun has shown it would work and work
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well, she replied. Let me have a look later today sis, he said and he looked at the group and said, I think we should get the tour started. This is actually our first port of call on the tour. As you can see and saw when you first arrived this is one of our main relaxing centres on the Intreped. We have a further three smaller Hydroponic Bays located in each of the outer pods. They are all used as quiet places and the one in the top pod is also where the Gangrels and YGs hold bday parties. All four bays help a lot in the environmental systems as well as providing fresh food for the kitchen. He stood up and had the rest of the group join him. He led the group to the open kitchen door and said, Chef, what are you preparing for the Youth Home visitors today? Adam W turned from preparing something and walked over to the group. I am preparing a speciality soup and fresh bread along with a lot of sandwiches and something very special for the all the visitors. Chef Adam W is a true master when it comes to cooking of the meals on board. I know for one I have not actually eaten in my cabin since I came on board, I like his food that much, said Danny. rTuth nodded his agreement to what Danny said. He is really good and an absolute master with his hands and knife. Thank you rTuth, he said. I started out as a kitchen hand working for the cooks in Echo County Military and I worked very hard to get to where I am now. Danny smiled at Adam W and said, Thank you Adam W for that. Onwards. He turned and walked out of the bay and down the corridor to a door on the right hand side. It slid open and he led the group in to one of the main Environmental Suites. This room is one of the most important rooms for the survival of the crew on board as this room is where the air we breathe out is converted back into usable air, Danny said as Justine T walked around the large chamber. He smiled at her and said, Justine T here is one of the Environmental Technicians we have and is going to explain to you all how the system works. Thank you Captain, she said. The system works by pumping the air through this chamber. She tapped the lid of the chamber. It is filled with a liquid that removes the carbon atom every breathing creature breathes out from the two oxygen atoms it combines with as we use the oxygen. The carbon atom is then sent down a pipe into the boxes at the far end. In there the carbon is compressed and we make carbon blocks that do a number of different tasks on board. We use it in the fire suppression system, use it when we have an open fire in the Main Hydroponics Bay or we feed it back into the item creators. Each Hydroponic bay has a number linked to it and we have a number in the main body and also in the Engineering Pods, Danny added. As yet I have not actually looked at how the system works but that is one of the areas I will be learning about. As Captain I need to have a working understanding of the various systems and how they all interact with each over as a whole. Thank you Justine T for that explanation. It was not a problem Captain. I hope every Youth Home visitor has a very informative day and goes away wanting to know more as this is only one little area of a star vessel. Danny led the group out of the room and down the corridor and past the rear door into the bay. He
stopped outside an open door on the left hand side. In there is one of the Technical Support Centres. If any of us has a problem with the general use equipment on board we tell the people in there and they come out or we take the item in for them to fix it for us. They also have a supply of the more popular items like tablet computers, PDUs and similar. eLam asked, Is that where I would be spending my time? No, replied Danny. Technical Services as the department is known also has people working on other areas. They provide damage control teams, people to work on the fighters, shuttles and transports we have on board as well as a number of other very important areas. One of which is our next stop, the Lift Maintenance Area which takes up almost the entirety of Deck 16. He walked down the corridor and from hidden speakers came a voice. Good morn Intreped, I am Trammisk and I am currently sat in the on board music centre. Gavin S has allowed me the chance to choose the next track. The track started and Trammisk said, Here is something from time past, Where and What. Danny smiled at the chance Oliver Ps group had been given. A door on the right hand side opened and he led the group in and over to a waist high railing that surrounded the platform they stood on. The group looked down onto a large area where a number of lifts moved along tracks. The Lift Maintenance Area, he said and opened a gate. He stepped onto the ladder that ran down to the floor beneath them. At the bottom he looked up as the rest of the group followed him in climbing down to the platform. When the last of the visitors, rTuth and Dan had joined him the platform slowly moved and a minute later it arrived at a door which slid open. Danny led the group into the room. Sat a number of terminals were a few of the crew and on the wall mounted LPD was a side view and the plan views of all the levels of the Intreped. One of the two women stood up and walked over to the group. She said, Good morning Captain, Youth Home visitors. Good morning Maz, said Danny. I was hoping you would be kind enough to explain a little about the job you do here? With pleasure Captain, this room is one of two lift control centres the Intreped has, the other is just in front of the main hanger in the Engineering Pods. Here the controllers provide a human back-up to Marcha the ships first Secondary Computer System. The LPD on the wall shows the location of every single lift we have and Marcha makes sure a lift is available in the shortest possible time at any lift door where a crew member is standing. She then listens to the destination request and takes the shortest, safest path to the destination. We have 150 lifts and on an average day we will have 60 in operation. When we get busy we make sure we have at least thirty lifts in reserve for the times when the Ship Board Security and Combat Forces need them to get to a
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site to repel boarders or quell mass violence. eLam asked, How fast do the lifts move then? The lifts move at an average of about 200 kilometres an hour and if one person wanted to visit each and every lift door on board it would take about thirty minutes, she replied. The system is used in at least four different sites on Darra Von three of them are the great cities associated with the Super Nexus, she said, and the last is the ATEC Archaeology on the edge of Killeash Metro. Danny smiled his thanks at Maz and said, Thank you Maz for that, but our next stop awaits. He led the group to a door to the left hand side and the doors opened. Take a look through the window. He could see three lifts waiting for them. He led the first group into the lift and said, Command Deck thank you Marcha. With pleasure Captain, replied Marcha. Ten seconds later the doors opened and he led the first group out onto the Command Deck. They moved away from the doors and a couple of seconds later the doors opened again and rTuth led the second group out. A further couple of seconds the doors opened and deposited the last group on the Command Deck. The group looked around the Command Deck and saw a number of the stations manned. Heinrich looked at the group and stood up. He walked over to them and said, Welcome all to the Intrepeds Command Deck. As you can see even when we are docked we maintain a limited crew on the Command Deck, just in case something happens and we have to move very quickly. I know the station uses Tractor Beams to move vessels around the bay, but you still need a crew in case the system fails and we need to leave the station under our own power. All the key areas have a skeleton crew. Most will be working on their own projects or just relaxing or performing system services on the equipment. The main view port is equipped with a cover that extends when the Intreped is threatened and we go to the internal screen. Tishun activate the main screen please, he requested. In the middle of the Command Deck appeared the main screen and displayed was the schematic of the Intreped including all the performance information. The entire group stared at the screen as a second before there had been nothing there. How does that work? asked Quzal. Heinrich replied, By a mixture of holographics and projected images. The pilots fly the Intreped inside a virtual bubble. Some watch the vessel from above and slightly behind, others from the seat with them being the Intreped; it depends on how they were trained to pilot. ***** Major Batts looked the group he would be giving the tour too and he said, Welcome to you all. Let me introduce you to my First Officer Captain Debbie White. Captain Curtdoza said some of you are interested in joining the Federation Military? We all are interested in joining the Federation Military, just different forces, replied qTarn. Can I ask what unit do you command? The 6th Assault Infantry, the Intrepeds Combat Unit, he replied. Debbie W commands the units elite
strike force, as four years ago the company she commanded was asked by the GSF, or Gangrel Special Forces if they wanted to join. The entire company said yes. I shall let Debbie continue as we continue the tour. He turned and walked out of the bay and stood behind Oliver Ps tour group as they waited for the lifts to take them to his start point. Oliver P led his group into the lift and the doors closed. Five seconds later the doors opened and allowed the first group in. He said, Vehicle Hanger thank you Marcha. The lift moved and ten seconds later the doors opened onto the vehicle hanger and he led the first group out. A couple of seconds later the doors opened again and Debbie W led the second group out. The entire group looked around the hanger at all the combat vehicles. Major Batts walked down the bay and entered a small briefing room where the group moved to sit down on the seats. Uzka asked, Captain White who are the GSF, the Major said they are the Gangrel Special Forces. On the first night I did a bit of reading on the Gangrels and nothing was said about the GSF? That does not surprise me, she replied. The GSF are quite simply the elite, the best of the best in the Mercenary Forces on Darra Von. The unit does not officially exist on any Mercenary Register on Darra Von for the simple reason you cannot simply join the GSF, they ask you to join. They undertake highly secretive operations that no other unit including the Gangrels would undertake. They raid the camps of the various forces fighting for control of the Dellidum War Zone making sure no one force gets too powerful and actually takes the Super Nexus. They are equipped with equipment forty plus years more advanced than anything the rest of the planet has including the forces from Echo County and they are equipped with advanced equipment. A few of the group stared at her in shock. Ozzian inquired, So what do they actually do then? They patrol the planet in very advanced sub carriers that spend thirteen months operating completely underwater almost never coming to the surface unless it is to launch an assault. The Parrka is due to pick up a reinforced company of Special Forces. They are actually picking up a reinforced company of GSF all trained in ship board operations and initial assaults from boarding actions to securing a landing zone on a planet. Major Batts knows it was my recommendation that led to the 6th being brought into the Conspiracy and being trained by the 12th Gangrel Raiders. My company rejoined the 6th after the training had finished and that is when I told them what we had been doing. All of our operations are rated above Top Secret on Darra Von. No one knows what we do to protect the planet, not even the Gangrels. Only the Council of Twelve and The Academy of the Street know we exist. The only way of knowing a GSF member is to see their arm patch and then it will look like the Patch of a Gangrel Mercenary Command or the parent unit, only the letters GSF under the patch indicating membership. Anyway we are not here to hear about me, we are here for a tour of the ships combat forces and equipment.
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Major Batts stood up and pushed the wall leading onto the hanger back and said, This hanger has all of our, the 6ths combat vehicles from the eight Copter Gunships to our fourteen Battle Tanks. All of our Power Armours and CSMRs are kept above the Flight Deck directly above us. As you can see we rely on fast moving vehicles mainly as it keeps to the overall specialism of the 6th Surgical and Anti-Terrorist Operations specialising in Intelligence Gathering. I hope in a few months to be able to deploy the entire force from and Assault Transport that will live just beneath the Engineering Pods which is where we are now sat. Come here all of you, he said. The entire group stood up and joined him in looking out onto the hanger bay. He pointed to the back wall. Beyond that wall is the Main Engineering bay. The entire area out there is dividable in half as officially the Engineering Pod is actually two pods joined; each is an exact copy of the other. The only differences are some of the rooms, this is a briefing/teaching room and on the other side is a workshop where the unit repair and maintain the vehicles. Anyway I know all the technicians are members of the 6th and they are more than willing to answer questions and help you understand the equipment; so go and explore, climb, ask questions and generally learn about the equipment. The entire group walked out of the briefing room and headed into the Hanger. Some headed for where a couple of people worked on one of the copters, whilst others just wandered looking at the vehicles and equipment. Debbie W asked, What is our next stop? The Power Armour Bay and then the CSMRs; I thought as I know the some of the off duty members are learning Gangrel Street this afternoon I thought go and watch then train and maybe if they want join in, he replied and they both left the briefing room and headed in different directions. He walked to where a couple of the younger members of his group stood looking up at one the Battle Tanks. He walked behind the pair and lifted them both to the front of the tank. He swung himself up to the area above the tracks. Uzullim bent down and opened the hatch way above the drivers compartment. She looked in and he joined her after lifting eRet to the top of the main turret. He asked, Do you want to get in and sit on the seat? Uzullim looked up and inquired, Can I? Yes, that was the whole point of the tour, it was to let you see the vessel but at the same time learn about the various aspects. This afternoon we will go around the rest of the vessels key areas, he replied and lifted Uzullim into the hole and down onto the drivers seat. Uzullim sat down and looked around at the area. Put the head phones on and I will go and sit in the turret. He stepped up and opened the Commanders and Gunners hatch and lifted eRet into the Gunners hatch. He sat down on the edge and lowered himself into the turret where he passed eRet one set of head phones and placed the second set over his head. Can you both hear me? he inquired.
eRet nodded that he could as he looked around at the various controls, screens and other equipment. I can, replied Uzullim. He disengaged the firing circuit but activated the rest of the control systems. All the screens flashed on as the on board computer booted and showed the control systems. He stood up and looked around and made a judgement call on the area surrounding the turret. eRet, he said, grab the controls and move that one left and right. eRet placed his hands on the controls and moved it right and the turret started to move right. He looked up and had a big smile on his face. Donald lifted himself slightly out of the hatch and looked down as Uzullim sat with her hands on the controls and she looked like she was driving the tank. The turret stopped and started to move back the other way. He looked around at the rest of the group and saw a couple of them sat in the pilots and weapons seat of one of the CAH100 Fishtail Attack Copter. After an hour the group all walked back to the briefing room where Donald asked, Did you enjoy that? eRet replied, Yes I did, that was fun. The rest of the group all nodded their heads in agreement to what eRet had said. Pullissha said, It was, especially listening to some of the stories the technicians have to tell. Donald smiled at the group and he knew this was exactly what was needed. Right then two more stops before lunch and I will leave what happens after lunch up to you, we can have a tour of the rest of the Intreped or we can go and watch some of the 6th training? The entire group followed him as he walked back to the lift doors and up to the Power Armour Stores.
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Chapter 22
Danny sat with the Gangrels, YGs and the Youth Home visitors as well as wWish and eRuthan in the Main Hydroponics Bay as the tractor beams moved the Intreped away from its docking bay. A couple of minutes later the doors to space opened and allowed the Intreped to move through and out into space. Alice walked in joined the group and placed her tablet on her lap. wWish said to the group, The Intreped is now under its own power. The Intreped accelerated away and swung round and up to its place above the observation dome at the top of the station. Ahead of them sat the Construction Cradle holding the DR1554. About thirty minutes to go before the Cradle detaches from the DR1554 and allows the vessel to move under its own engines. Only the two outer engines will fire and move the vessel to its parking orbit, said wWish. YG Fred had his camera ready to take some pictures of the cradle and the DR1554 as she moved away. Twenty five minutes later red lights started to flash on the arms holding the DR1554 in place. wWish said, That is warning all the crew to either get out of the arms or get to the various safe zones inside as when the arms detach the entire arm is open to the vacuum of space. Five minutes later the red light went on constantly and from the ends located on the vessel came puffs of air as they began to move away from the hull. It took two minutes before the arms stopped moving and the DR1554 powered up its engines and began to move away from the Cradle. Danny watched the scene and saw YG Fred was taking photos, a lot of photos. Twenty minutes later the DR1554 stopped moving and powered down its engines in its parking orbit. wWish said as the engines powered down, Six more months and the DR1554 will make its first FTL jump and then we will know if the new system works and we can start mass producing it. We already have provisional agreement to allow Explorer Base to be one of the construction sites for the new system. Danny looked very impressed by this news. He said to the entire group, I think this would be a very good time for everyone to follow me and Alice to the Main Briefing Room where Alice is going to give a talk on the project she has been working on. Alice smiled at him and said, I think so too Danny. The group stood up and followed the pair to Deck One and the Main Briefing Room. Inside Alice headed for the map table at the front and plugged in her tablet. It took a couple of seconds before the Intreped with the new addition appeared on the screen above her. She looked up and saw it. She looked at the group and said, Right as you all can see the screen above me is showing the Intreped with a new pod located beneath the Main Engineering Pods. I can tell you all
Explorer Base is also going to be adding the modification to the CS003 Fraker and all the subsequent Warhound Class Vessels. They are also looking at either adding or modifying the existing designs to incorporate a better method of infantry force delivery and retrieval. The screen changed to one showing just the pod on its own. The actual pod, will serve a number of functions not only being a force deployment and retrieval vessel. It will serve as a forward C&C Centre for the forces, a field hospital, as well as a fire base as it is equipped with four twelve shot missile tubes and a pair or 250mm artillery pieces. In addition the pod will be fully mobile on either a contra-grav field or four sets of tracks and will be armed with laser cannons, Neutral Particle Cannons and various other weapon systems. The screen changed again this time to show the internal floor plans. Danny looked at the plans and realised Alice had done a lot of work on the actual layout of the pod and had taken a lot of different things into account. The plans included a number of exits ramps for vehicles and the infantry forces, enough room to store all the vehicles, facilities to drop the CSMRs and the Fishtails. As you can see from the floor plans the pod itself will have four main floors and two smaller floors where the C&C, Command Deck and the surgical suites will live, she said. Ozz asked, What about defences other than the weapons? The pod will be equipped with the same defensive screen generators as the Intreped which will make it a very powerful mobile base. I have also included a small flight deck here to accommodate a couple of our fighters. She tapped the tablet and a circle appeared to indicate where she meant. The screen changed again and this time showed just the structural plans. Danny looked across the room and saw a number of the visitors and the Gangrels were really studying the screen. I can see some of you are very interested in this plan. I am I right in guessing you are interested in this type of work? she inquired. The group studying the plans nodded their heads to indicate they were interested. Right, as I still have a few plans to do I think after this talk come and see me and I will begin to teach you all the aspects you will need to know to draw technical plans, she said. As you can see this image shows the actual structural framework for the pod. This is an area where Explorer Base will be able to improve on as with us constructing the pod on the ship we do not have the facilities to actually construct the frame work very easily. We have had to include a lot more cross bracing and other supports because our facilities for constructing those are not as extensive as those on Explorer Base. Again the screen changed to show the wings which would actually hold the pod onto the Intreped. eLam asked, How are you going to actually connect the pod to the wings? I will be explaining that in a bit eLam, she replied. The wings as you can see are constructed in a similar fashion as the pod and like the rest of the wings will incorporate all the same facilities, weapons and equipment. My hope is that when the new FTL drive system is brought in the necessary wave guides will be
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run along the wings and the Pods themselves act as field inducers for the system. Again the screen changed and showed the actual fixing areas. The plan is to use wedged clamps and very powerful electro-magnets to actually fix the pod to the wings. We will also include various power feeds and lift access facilities in the actual fixing. Danny smiled at the level of design work Alice had done. There is also something else. I hope the Pods Command Deck will also be able to act as a secondary Command Deck should the main one be rendered inoperable at any time, he said. That concludes this little talk and if you want to learn more about design and this type of work then remain where you are and I will start teaching you. A number of the people present stood up and headed for the door and they disappeared. Danny remained sitting as he wanted to have a better understanding of this type of work. Ok everyone gather around as I do have a project for you to do, she said. He stood up and walked to the Map Table and looked at the screen built into the top of the table. The screen showed various aspects of the design process. The first thing that is very important is to understand the materials that will make up the construction. The pod is constructed entirely from the ceramic as we do have a small construction centre on board. One aspect of the learning about the materials to be used is working out the various tolerances and structural strengths. As the Manufacturing Centre can only produce structural supports of about 5 metres, we need to make sure the joints are strong hence the higher number of cross braces. The structure created at Explorer Base will by much longer and so need fewer cross braces, she said. eLam asked, Any good data stores you could recommend Alice. May I call you that? You may, she replied. Danny looked at her as she tried to work out what eLam mean by the words data stores. Tishun answered the question they both were thinking, Books Alice. She looked up at the speaker and said, Thank you Tishun. She looked at wWish and asked, Anything you can suggest? Yes there are a number of very good books and I know the librarys have now access to the Academys Digital Library, he replied. May I say I do like the work you have done Alice. You will need to look at power and all those aspects. I know I will. The plans are not quite finished, I still have those plans to do, she replied. We do have a project for you though, she said and looked at the Gangrels and YGs. Yes, what is it Alice? asked Danz. We do not have a medical transport, all our current transports are not easily convertible to transport people injured in any environment, she replied. I would like you to go and design one. Personally I would base the design on the combat transports. I would also go and talk to Doctor White about what she would need the transport to have.
Danny added, If you think the Combat Transports are to role specific then design a new one but keep the size roughly the same. The rest of the afternoon the group including wWish, Danny and Alice sat in the pods observation area working on the two designs. Danny sat and started on a design of his own. Even in his time in Security Command he had wanted to design a combat copter for them, he knew now he could actually make it happen. He had a few more ideas, but they would wait until he was better educated in the concepts of design before he started on them. ***** That evening he sat in his cabin reading up on the Environmental Systems when his door bell went. He stood up and opened the door and saw rTuth and eLissie stood outside. He looked at eLissie and saw she had been crying. Come in, he said and moved out of the way of the door. What is up? he asked. rTuth started, eLissie has just been told by eRuthan and pTateen one of the girls taken by the members of House Greeshtok-Du was her younger sister. Sit down eLissie. rTuth can you get eLissie a drink, he said and led eLissie to the comfortable seats. He sat beside her and wrapped his arms around her and hugged her close to him. Do you want to talk about how come you did not know about your sister? he inquired as she sat up and took the drink rTuth brought back. There is not much to say. Mum had me and because of something I do not know about and because of that she was expelled from the House Matchatin-Yarrkan. As is the tradition with in the Federation when that happens any children are removed from the parents and placed in the Youth Home system. I do not know what happened to mum since then. He nodded and asked using his cyber communicator, eRuthan any chance you could come to my cabin as I need to ask you about the Youth Home System in the Federation? Not a problem Danny. Can I take it eLissie is with you. I have just been told by pTateen what he said and she left the group in tears. She is, he replied. A couple of seconds silence happened and eRuthan said, I shall be right there. A minute later the doorbell rang and rTuth stood up and opened the door to both eRuthan and pTateen. Danny looked at the pair and said, Come in. They did and pTateen moved and took eLissie into his arms and gave her a hug. He said, I am so sorry, I wish I had known. Do not worry. I only know because mum told me before she was expelled what she would name her next daughter. Danny looked at eRuthan and asked, How much do you known about the situation? eRuthan started, I have spent the afternoon looking at the Born Certificates of all the Youth Home
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members we brought on the trip with the aim of trying to reunite family members and through that I was able to find out eLissie mothers name and the fact three other children have been born to her. One older and a member of Reggieen House and two younger uTakateen-pullitan and dZamdar; dZamdar is living at a Youth home on UQ983 and I had that confirmed about two hours ago he was still there and well. I had no idea uTakateen-pullitan had been taken as some Youth Homes are not very good at updating the statuses of members. It is all to do with the non-status of the youths living in the system. I knew pTateen lived at the same home and I was planning on asking him about her tomorrow morning back on the station. Danny nodded his head in comprehension of the situation. Do you know the situation of wWishs investigations into the transports leaving Trashan, in the last two weeks? he inquired. Yes I do, four transports have left Trashan belonging to Greeshtok-Du; one was heading to the houses home planet; the second to one of the major trading centres; the last two to the target planet. As the specifications on both of the transports are both a lot slower than the Intreped you should beat them there, she replied. Danny smiled an evil smile. What is the situation on the planet? The situation is nothing has changed since wWish contacted them. The Intreped has been listed as a Federation Military Vessel and the Council is organising a Liaison Officer at the moment and should be with us when you dock tomorrow. He will be able to help you smooth things with the planetary authorities, but as a Federation Military Vessel you have the rights of stop and search of any vessel you suspect of carrying out illegal activities; the right of seizure of the vessels you stop as well as full arrest powers. The Liaison Officer will again be able to inform you of the various laws. Danny nodded his head in understanding. Tishun can you search the crew for anyone with legal training or knowledge please? Searching now Danny, Tishun replied. A few seconds later Tishun replied, No one on the crew has any legal qualifications, but we do have one who lists as an interest, Planetary Laws. Where is the person? he asked. A second later Tishun replied, He is currently sleeping. Danny nodded his head. Please leave him a message saying I wish to see him concerning his Planetary Laws interest. He sat and thought about other situations. I need to contact the Heads of the Quezar-Mel House. I need know about any spies they have inside the House and what is the situation with the Devil Games. eRuthan asked, For what reason? I want to get intelligence on the operations of Trans Darra and the only way is to have people on the ground watching and listening, he replied. The best place to start is at the edge and work in to the centre. eRuthan thought about what Danny had said and she nodded that she agreed with him. Anyway everyone is enjoying themselves in the Main Hydroponics Bay so shall we return to them. Captain, Petty Officer Conners here, you want to have a chat with me?
Tishun said you were sleeping, Danny replied. I am a very light sleeper and your message caused my PDU to buzz and it woke me. Get some sleep Petty Officer Conners, what I need to chat to you about can wait, he replied. Ok, chat to you tomorrow sometime. Danny stood up and joined the group as they headed for the Main Hydroponics Bay. ***** Danny sat in the Main Hydroponics bay eating his breakfast when Mike Conners walked over to him carrying his breakfast. Captain, you want to have a chat with me about my interest in Planetary Laws? he asked. Danny looked up and replied, Yes I did, take a seat. Mike did and started his breakfast. I need someone from the crew to go and have a look at the Federation Laws concerning what a Federation Military Vessel can and cannot do in relation to operations within the Federation. Is something to do with the upcoming operations against Trans Darra? Danny nodded as he took a mouthful of his cereal. Yes it is. We have information about a transport leaving a planet we will be heading to later this week and I need to know what I can and cannot do in relation to stopping and searching the transport. We do have a liaison officer joining us sometime today who will also know the laws and regulations concerning the operation of Federation Military Vessels. Mike nodded his head in understanding of the situation. Right, ok I will get right on it and try and give you a briefing in a couple of days about them. That should be good enough, I will also make sure you meet the Liaison Officer when he comes aboard, Danny said. Captain, Gill Q, I have Commander Tillitan on the line. Put him through Gill Q, he replied. The line connected and he said, Commander Tillitan, what can I do for you? I was just wondering what the situation is as I was told you were docked at the Station and yet you are in space? Danny quietly laughed at this. Commander, we watched the launching the DR1554 yesterday with the Youth Home visitors and we should be docking in a next couple of hours as the Youth Home visitors all have activities to get to today. Not a problem Captain, I shall await your arrival back then. The line disconnected and Danny smiled. He took out his PDU and connected to the Federation Military Personal System; he went searching for the Commander. A couple of seconds later the page returned and showed the Commander was Nuteash. Interesting, he said. What is Captain? inquired Mike C.
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Danny looked up and replied, Our Liaison Officer is a Nuteash. Command Deck, how long before we head back for docking? About two hours Danny, replied Richmond T. The doors are being used to allow transports out for the DR1554. Internal Control estimates it will be about two more hours before they can allow us to re-enter and dock again. Thanks Richmond T, he said. Two hours later Danny and Mike C watched as the Intreped was brought into the docking centre beside the TY665 and the clamps moved from the station and held the Intreped secure. The docking tube slid from the station to the airlock door and sealed itself against the hull. The green light came on to indicate the tube had air and Danny opened the door to wait for Commander Tillitan to head over from the station. Commander Tillitan slithered along the docking tube and asked as he stopped, Permission to come aboard Captain? Permission granted Commander Tillitan. Allow me to introduce Petty Officer Mike Conners, the person I have assigned to make sure you are fully briefed about the upcoming actions against Trans Darra. May I also ask would you mind briefing him on all the laws and regulations pertaining to what we can and cannot do as a Federation Military Vessel? Not a problem Captain, Star Admiral wWish gave me a short briefing on the situation last night, replied Tillitan. Danny smiled at this; he knew he had a real support in wWish which was good news. He guessed he would have others as well, but a lot would remain behind the scenes. I shall allow Mike C to show you to your cabin as I need to go and make some plans concerning the actual assault, he said and turned for the lift. Inside the lift he said, Simulator Room Three thanks Marcha. As the lift moved he asked, Tishun, where is Major Batts? He is in his cabin Danny, replied Tishun. Thanks, change of destination Marcha, Major Batts Cabin please. A few seconds later the lift stopped and the doors opened and allowed him out onto Deck Twenty Two. He turned down the corridor and walked to Major Batts cabin and pressed the bell. The door slid open and Major Batts said, Come in Danny, what do I owe the pleasure of your visit? I need your input on the initial strike forces for the raid against the Devil Games, he replied. Not a problem, Major Batts said and moved out of the way of the door and allowed Danny in. Danny walked in and saw Debbie W and another woman sat and they looked like they were planning something. We were planning some advanced training for the rest of the 6th, he said as he followed Danny to the arm chairs. Danny sat down and looked at the second woman.
Allow me to introduce Lieut Commander Rebec Adams, Debbie Ws first officer in the 3 rd Company, Major Batts said. Rebec, he said and nodded his hello greeting. Debbie looked at him and asked, What do you want to plan? The initial strike teams for the assault, he replied. Well that is easy, Debbie replied. The initial strike force will come from the 3rd Company as the entire Company has been trained by the GSF. The Company makes up just under half the ships crew as a part of our training was how to operate the Subs and Sub Carriers the GSF uses. Danny then realised why so many of the crew were combat trained but not listed as a part of the 6 th. Is that the reason so many of the crew are combat trained. Yes it is, replied Major Batts. The Company also includes a specialist four squad platoon made up entirely of gifted people. The ship has four Psi-Techs a number of Mages and others. Danny looked at Major Batts in surprise. Oh my, how many of the unit were involved in the assault of Rugthz IV? Two of the squads, Rebec was in command of the two, he replied. Debbie W said, How many people can the two transports take? I would say about 50, but I do not know what the life support situation is, Danny replied. Tishun what is the maximum number of people the two transports can take and not put a strain on the lift support? About 60, a part of the upgrade was to increase the number of people the Life Support Systems could handle, replied Tishun. Danny knew with that the initial strike forces would have about 150 elite troopers on the planet to seize whatever landing sites they had. Ok that would give the initial strike teams about 150 men to seize any landing facilities they have. How quickly can you deploy reinforcements Major? he inquired. Major Batts thought about the transports they had available. With the Sensor Masking technology within five minutes I can have relief forces on the planet including the CSMRs and a quantity of PAs, he replied. That is good, mind you it does depend on the planet where the games are held, Danny added. Major Batts nodded his agreement. If the planet is a vacuum then as a lot of the forces are trained in parachuting then I could deploy the entire force in a few minutes. That includes the PAs. Danny knew that would be a very big advantage, but if the planet was then the centre would be enclosed and that would cause a few problems. What are the armours environmental systems like? How long can a person operate without needing resupply? Major Batts thought about the armour and how long the people could operate without resupply. About
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16 hours, he replied. Danny thought about that and decided it should be long enough to seize the site. Ok that should be long enough to allow the assault troops to seize the site. We will use the Uzul as first line support as we only have limited knowledge of how good they are. That was my thoughts exactly, Debbie W said. After a further thirty minutes the initial strike force had been planned and Debbie W would make sure they all knew the plans before the Intreped left Trashan.
Chapter 23
Two days later the last of the personal from the Federation had come aboard and Danny sat on the Command Deck with Heinrich and Commander Tillitan sat on either side of the command seat. Mr Carbuncle take us out please, he said. With pleasure Captain, Simon C replied and said, Fratten Five Control, this is the Intreped permission to depart. Permission granted, replied the controller. Dominic T said, Docking tube detached. A couple of seconds later he said, Clamps retracting. The tractor beams pushed the Intreped back from its docking position and she turned to head for the main door out. A couple of minutes later the main doors opened and allowed the Intreped out into space. Take us away from the station and when possible engage the Hyperdrive and set course for ER885, said Danny. Rose E engaged the engines and the Intreped accelerated away from the station. Tishun plot the position of the transport heading for the planet and its ETA? A couple of seconds passed and the screen engaged and displayed the location of the transport along with its ETA with the star system it was heading to. Danny worked out the flight time for the Intreped at maximum speed. It would only take then five days to each compared with the transport needing a good half day more. He nodded to himself as he worked out the timings. After a good couple of hours of flying Simon C sat back and his virtual bubble appeared around his seat. He engaged his VCS and pressed the Hyperdrive engage system. The purple bubble appeared and jumped the Intreped to Hyperspace. ***** Five days later Danny sat in his office on the Command Deck watching some of the video files from the 3rd company as they worked alongside the GSF forces. He was very impressed by the skill of the GSF. They were far better than even the White Skins and would kick their arses in battle. Simon C said, We are coming up on the system Captain. He stood up and walked onto the Command Deck as the Intreped dropped from Hyperspace on the edge of the system. Engage the Sensor Mask and prepare flight of fighters to deploy and intercept the transport. Tishun
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would you show the planet we are heading to maximum magnification. The screen appeared as Alice walked out of the lift and she headed for the Engineering Station at the back of the command deck. She turned and looked at the planet as the planet rotated there appeared a couple of large combat vessels. Danny knew the two vessels were from the Uzul and he studied them quite closely. He like the way they looked as he had read up on the race and found out the Uzul had an ok relationship with Trans Darra. That meant the ship would not bring any real problems when it dropped out from hyperspace around the target planet. Prepare the ship for interception, he said. Commander prepare a boarding team. Commander Potter prepare the weapon crews for the same operation as Rugthz III. Done Captain, the forward CNP34 batteries are ready, he replied. Boarding teams know who they are and will be ready when needed. Tishun estimate where the transport will drop and position us close but not too close, he said. He watched as Tishun told Simon C where to position the vessel so making it easy to intercept the transport. Now it was a waiting game. Fifteen hours later a transport dropped out roughly where Tishun had estimated it would and the transport proceeded on towards the planet. Launch the fighters; Simon C; move us behind the transport. Oliver P walked out and relived the crewman working the weapons station and he took the weapons to hot stand-by. Targeting sensors ready Captain, he said. Thank you Commander Potter. The screen showed the location of the four fighters as the accelerated past the transport. Communications open a channel to the transport please, Danny requested. Channel open Captain, replied Francis P. Greeshtok-Du transport, this is Captain Curtdoza of the CS002 Intreped, by the authority of the Federation Council you are ordered to come to a halt and prepare to be boarded. Chozai said after couple of seconds, There targeting sensors have gone live and they are hunting. Danny smiled and said, Mr Potter would you de-Sensor Mask the Intreped and go weapons hot please. Tishun bring me up a full scan of the vessel please. The screen engaged and displayed the transport as the Intreped de-Sensor Masked and the shields went up. The transport accelerated and began evasive manoeuvres and fired its weapons at the Intreped. Forward gunnery crews would you please show the transport what they are dealing with. The four forward CNP34s fired and they all hit the engine block. The hits shut the engines down. Tishun can you break into their computers and force the vessel to slow? Danny asked.
Done Captain, Tishun replied and the transport began to slow. Flight Deck deploy a couple of Workbees and a unit of PAs to shadow them. Already on it Captain, replied Adzarn. The screen showed the two Workbees as they left the flight deck with a unit of 10 PAs covering them. Fifteen minutes later Danny, rTuth and Richmond T stood with the two squads of Security Personal on the Flight Deck waiting for the Workbees to pull the transport into the Flight Deck. The transport hovered and one of the Psi-Techs from 3rd Company touched the hull and after a few seconds the legs came down and supported the transport. A few seconds later the boarding hatch opened and from the entrance way came a load of laser pulses. At the end of the initial burst of laser pulses the lead Security Team headed up the ramp firing as they boarded. Danny drew his CPL30 and joined the back of the lead team with rTuth just behind him. At the top of the ramp they saw a couple of dead bodies and the security team moving into the living area and cargo bays. Knelt in the living area was a couple of grey elves and down a corridor leading to the cockpit another one was being searched for concealed weapons. From a ladder directly ahead of him came another person who attempted to stab him only to get the both Danny and rTuth ramming their fists right into him busting him wide open. Danny said as the Wood Elf died, Idiot. I agree, responded rTuth. Richmond T followed them up leading the second Security Team. He stopped at the top allowing the rest of the team to take control of the prisoners and said, Some people just do not get it do they? Danny looked at him and said, No, we are a war ship and so the crew are going to know how to fight. Commander Tillitan said over the communication system, They must have thought we were some form of system patrol vessel which normally has training crews. Well I can tell you they knew the Intreped was more than a simple patrol vessel. I am looking at the data files held on the main computer and the Intreped is listed with its correct designation, said Yanz. I have set up a data download to Tishun so we will be able to see what they knew. As the last of the crew were led off Danny said to the tech teams, Take this vessel apart and find me the slaves they should have been carrying. Bang, bang, bang came from the wall very close to where Danny stood in the living area. He turned and looked at the wall where the banging had come from and after a minute of studying the wall he found a small control panel. He called, Yanz get in here and release this panel. Yanz walked up the ramp and touched the control panel and a second later the panel came away from the wall and behind it sat a number of children ranging in age from about 10 to 16.
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Danny looked at the group of very scared children and said, You are now safe, we will not hurt you. He offered his hands to one of the group and lifted him out and placed him of the deck. Andrea W walked in with three Gangrels and a couple of YGs. He helped the rest of the children out and said, Go with these people, they will make sure you are looked after. Do you know if uTakateen-pullitan is with you? he inquired. She is, one of the children replied. Ennz shouted, We have a number of areas in the cargo bay. Go Yanz and see what you can do to get them out of the bays, he said and asked, How many of you are here? About forty sir, the one who had answered before replied. He looked at the group and said, I am Danny and enemy of all those who deal in slaves and kidnapping. What is your name? I am pUttish Gronz. Right then go with the Gangrels and Doctor White and they will make sure you are cared for. He turned and looked into the Cargo Bay and found a couple of panels stood against the walls and the tech crews helping the children from where they were. He inquired, Is one of you uTakateen-pullitan? I am sir, she replied. He smiled at her and said, Ask one of the Gangrels to bring you to me after you have been checked over as I know someone will want to talk to you. She walked out with Doris M. He turned and headed down the ramp from the cargo bay thinking about what to do with these children. He knew he could drop them off on the planet, but that was risky as they might again be kidnapped. He took out his PDU and requested, Tishun can you open a secure channel to Star Admiral wWish please. Channel open Captain, Tishun replied and the screen on his PDU changed to show wWish. wWish, we have intercepted the transport and they were carrying the children taken from the Youth Homes and one of them was uTakateen-pullitan. We now have a problem as I do not want to take them with us when we assault the Devil Games site. wWish looked as if he was thinking about what to do. From intelligence we have found out, the next Devil Games does not start for a couple of weeks. I will dispatch a vessel to take them from you and bring them back to Trashan. Danny nodded his thanks and replied, Thanks, we will head for the planet and await the vessels arrival. He headed for the lift and the Command Deck. He walked out and said, Richard Q head for the planet. With pleasure Captain, Richard Q replied and he pushed the throttles forward and the Intreped started to move towards the planet.
He headed for his office as he needed to chat to Nicole about the situation with the Fraker and who would be crewing the vessel. He entered his office and requested, Tishun can you open a channel to Nicole please. Channel open, Tishun replied. The LPD on his desk appeared Nicole. Hi Nicole, I was wondering what the situation is with the Fraker? he asked. The situation is it should be slipping space dock in about six months, maybe a couple more depending on how the upgrade Alice is working on goes, she replied. Danny nodded his understanding and asked, Who is going to be crewing it? We have provisionally slated it to be crewed by the GSF. Ok, he replied and knew when it slipped it would be one hell of a vessel. What is the situation with Security Command? They are trying to get access to the technology but each and every time they try we stop them. We have to thank the Fifth Wingers for keeping us up to date on what is happening, she replied. A unit tried to infiltrate the Academy of the Street a couple of weeks ago and they all ended up very much dead. I wonder who changed the rules concerning the raids, he said. I bet it was Iain Sinc. He is getting bold now. Tell us about it. It does look as if they are getting really annoyed that he is unable to gain the technology to program the nanytes along with all the other technology we have. How are things up there? she inquired. Danny moved his head as if to say, not to bad. It is ok, we are gathering intelligence on Trans Darra and are about to raid one of their production sites. The site produces something called The Devil Games and they are not nice at all. It has youths competing in various games and loosing or failing to complete usually means something horrible happening to the person. We have also just rescued a large number of youths from being transported we suspect to take part in the games. Nicole looked very impressed by this. She said, That is good work you are doing for the Federation. I am hoping to visit Trashan in a couple of months and will likely be travelling with a number of business leaders from Echo City and Darrumith. Danny nodded his head in understanding. How are you planning on travelling to Trashan? By transport C.Industries Space Production is at the moment constructing a 300 ton personnel transport for use by business leaders and VIPs. The plan is to crew it with GSF personal. What plans other than the assault do you have? Danny stood up and walked to the food producer and requested a coffee. He replied, Taking back Shakka for one and gathering more intelligence on Trans Darra. The hope is to force Trans Darra to come to us rather than the Federation going to them, as it looks like their HQ is in a sun cluster.
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Nicole nodded her head in understanding of the plans. Shakka, I swear I recognize that name from somewhere. You should she was kidnapped in 2048, both her body guards were shot with what looked like laser weapons. Nicole looked surprised at that. Where did you find that out from? The History Guild netsite, he replied. Nicole looked down as if she was working on the computer where she was. Ok, now this is interesting. I wonder if any other unsolved cases with similar MOs? she mused. I do not know I have not directly looked for any others, he said. What support are you going to have going with you on the assault? One of the newer member races called the Uzul. From that wWish has said they breathe a different air mix to us and so they are coming in on their own vessel which with the information should not cause any problems. The information says they have an ok relationship with Trans Darra and so should not cause any problems. Do not worry Nicole I think they know the situation and the fact I am not going to be scared about ordering the destruction of their vessel should their forces turn on us during the assault. I know wWish has already told the commander of the forces that they are on probation, plus they are not full members of the Federation yet, which is another plus point. They want that very badly so they should be on their best behaviour during the assault. Nicole looked happy at that news. That is good to hear plus hHillfifer has told us we are very close to full membership of the Federation. We only need to sort a couple more aspects before we are offered it. Danny now looked impressed. wWish said something about that during our stay at Fratten Five. Pass on some graduations to the guys working on the netsite for the Intreped. Would you ask the team if we could use the netsite as a template for the rest of the ships? I will, he replied and took a mouthful of his coffee. What are you up to at the moment? inquired Nicole. Not much, just reading up on the various aspects of Federation Politics and how the Federation and the various races are governed, he replied. Nicole nodded her head in understanding and said, I will let you get back to that Danny. Chat to you very soon. Chat to you soon as well Nicole. He disconnected the communications and sat back in his seat. The ships communication system kicked in and YG Fred asked, Dad are you free as I want to show you something? I am YG Fred, where are you? he inquired. In the Top Pod Hydroponics bay, replied YG Fred. He stood up and headed for the Top Pod Hydroponics bay. He walked in and found YG Fred sat at one of the garden tables with his drawing book in front for him, YG Paula sat opposite him. He sat down beside
YG Fred and looked at the drawing book. YG Fred turned back a page and showed him the pencil drawing he had done. Danny looked at it and saw it was the picture he wanted of all the family. That is really good, he said. This is just a prep sketch for the actual picture dad, said YG Fred. Danny looked at the picture and saw Brei and Alex had the triplets in their arms and each family group were grouped but still together. I do like this, he said. I cannot wait until it is finished. I have joined a small art club on board it looks like a number of the crew are also artists in various fields, he said. The art work that is going up are prints from them. Danny looked impressed by this news as it meant the ship was becoming something more, a proper community. He remembered seeing some of the art work on the walls and most of it was good. What are you working on now? he asked. This, replied YG Fred and he turned the page. On it was a pencil sketch of YG Paula. He looked at it and then at her sat opposite. You are very skilled YG Fred. Danny, Andrea W, where are you? In Top Pod Hydroponics bay Andrea W, he replied. Good, uTakateen-pullitan has had her check up and she is fine. Danny smiled to himself and said, Thank you Andrea W, could you bring her here and we will contact her sister. I will bring here right away, responded Andrea W. A couple of minutes later Andrea W and uTakateen-pullitan walked into the bay and over to where he sat with YG Fred and YG Paula. He stood up and moved to another table and the pair sat down. He said, uTakateen-pullitan I know someone very close to you would love to have a chat to you. She looked at him and asked, Who, I know of no one who wants to talk to me? Communications, Danny, can you open a channel to Star Admiral wWish and ask him where eLissie is at the moment? A couple of seconds later wWish replied, Danny I am about to transfer you to eLissie, she is working with the tech crews working on TY665. A couple of seconds later eLissie said, Captain Curtdoza Star Admiral wWish has just told me you wish to speak with me? Not me exactly, are you near something you can have a video chat on? A second passed and eLissie said, I am now. Good I am going to transfer you to my PDU, he said and she appeared on the PDU screen. He looked up at uTakateen-pullitan and said, Say hello you your older sister uTakateen-pullitan. He passed his PDU
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over to her and heard eLissie say. Sis, you are safe. He heard her crying and he guessed it was crying at being happy. uTakateen-pullitan looked thoughtful and said, eLissie. She then said, I remember mum saying she had other children and they were in the youth homes. Where are you? I am on Frattan Five, Star Admiral wWish and Captain eRuthan organised a holiday for a number of the people at a few of the homes. I told Captain Curtdoza about you and he said he would look for you. He stood and moved to look at the screen. He said, Star Admiral wWish is organising a transport for the youths we rescued and they will be returning to Frattan Five in a couple of weeks.
Chapter 24
Danny sat in the command seat as the Intreped entered high orbit around the planet. The screen activated and a Cave Dwarf appeared on the screen. He said, Captain, welcome to ER885. I hope your stay here is a good one. Any chance a few of us can come down to the planet? requested Danny. Not a problem Captain, replied the Cave Dwarf. Thank you. The screen disappeared at the end of the communications. Danny turned and looked at Hamik and requested, Open a secure channel to General Orza. Opening the channel now Captain, she replied and the screen appeared. Captain, said General Orza. How can I be of assistance? I just need to know the names of the agents on the ground? requested Danny. General Orza looked as if he was working at a computer and a small screen appeared beside the main one. Here are our agents on the ground. I will contact them now and inform them of your arrival and they will meet you at the Rebbs Mist Bar. I will transmit its location to you now. Have luck in your hunt Captain. Danny smiled at him and said, Thank you General, Intreped out. The screen disappeared and Danny stood up. Richmond T prepare a small team of five and make sure one of the team is a Psi-Tech, he said. Alice, rTuth are you available to join me on the planet. Of course I am bro, she replied. I will meet you in the Hanger. Ready and waiting Captain, replied rTuth. He nodded and added, rTuth head for the Hanger I will brief you and Alice there. He disconnected his communicator and said, Richmond have the team meet me, Alice and rTuth on the Flight Deck, minimum load out, black light. The team already knows and will be waiting for you Captain. He nodded his understanding and said, Commander Reims the bridge is yours. He headed for the lift and the hanger. About ten seconds later he walked out and headed for the transport Alice was preparing for the run to the planet. rTuth walked out of the opposite side and also headed for the transport. He boarded the transport and sat with Alice as rTuth took the seat nearest them.
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Ok the plan is we are meeting with the Federation Agents at a bar hopefully they will be able to tell us which transport is heading for the games. When we have that information the rest of the team will go and survey the transport and the Psi-Tech will go and gain the IFF codes, that way we will know exactly which transport is the one we want, he said. rTuth and Alice both nodded their heads in understanding. rTuth asked, Where do you plan on taking the transport. That I am still thinking about. With our transports being equipped with the Sensor Masking System and the tech crews rushing the upgrading of the third we might be in a position to not need the transport. Alice smiled at his plan and said, Right then, let us go. He looked at her and agreed. rTuth I want you to go with the others when we have the location of the transport. I want you to be their eyes and ears outside where the transport is. Ok, what about trouble though without any assault weapons the team will be vulnerable, said rTuth. Alice turned her head as she prepared for the flight down. She said, Do not worry, this shuttle has been modified to include a couple of hidden compartments with a few assault weapons in. She floated the shuttle off its legs and it moved towards the lift heading down into the Flight Deck area. A minute later the shuttle moved off the lift and landed close to where the Security Team stood waiting. They boarded and strapped themselves in. Alice headed out of the Flight Deck and down along the landing beacon towards the large town on the planet surface. As the shuttle headed down Danny looked out of the window and saw a large expanse of farm land around the town and brought up the details on the planet and the town. The town was a major producer of food for a few planets in the nearby systems. As the town got larger to the north sat a number of landing pads and a few had transports and shuttles in. ER885, this is shuttle CT0024, requesting clearance to land. Request granted land in bay 33, we have switched the beacon on please fly down the beacon and land. You have been given exemption from being searched by Federation Illegal Goods Office. Thank you control, he replied. Alice changed course and headed down the beacon to bay 33. He checked the local laws on searching and found transports and shuttles were only searched upon arrival not departure and the ones that were, normally passed the inspection. Danny guessed a sum of money also changed hands either during or just before the search took place so the illegal activities were overlooked. Alice landed the shuttle and powered down the systems. As she did Danny turned and said, Ok wander and explore, either myself or Alice will contact you when we have the information concerning where the transport we are looking for is berthed. When we have that information Abrielle I need you to go and set up a hidden communication channel to the Intreped so
Tishun can download the information we need to find the site of the Devil Games. The rest of you are to protect her at all costs. Bia replied, Not a problem boss, do you want anything else done to the transport? No, we just need the final location as I am still in the process of planning the assault. I need to know where the games take place as that will determine a number of things we do not have information about, he replied. He stood up and opened the side door and allowed the people off the shuttle. Alice and rTuth joined him and they headed for the bar where they were going to meet the Federation agents. The three walked into the bar and they looked around the people present. They walked to the bar and sat on the stools under the bar. They all ordered a soft drink and waited to be contacted. A few minutes later a tall elf joined them at the bar and she too ordered a drink. She said quietly to Danny, Are you here concerning the transport heading to the Devil Games? He looked at her and nodded his head to say that they were. In a couple of minutes come to the back room. Do not worry about having problems with the staff; they are all ex Federation Internal Security members. She left them and headed down the bar and into the back room. A few minutes later Danny stood up and walked down the bar towards the back room. Inside the room sat the female high Elf and a Kittani. Good noon to you Captain, said the Kittani. The information you need concerning the transport heading to the Devil Games is that it leaves from bay 45 in five days. We have not been able to find out the destination for it, but it is due to carry a good 110 if not more young members of the various races from the Federation. Danny nodded his understanding of the information. Thanks for the information. He activated his internal communications link and said, Guys, Danny, the bay we want is bay 45. Thanks we are on it now, replied Abrielle replied. Bia said, What is the time scale for getting back to the shuttle? Take as long as you need. He disconnected his link and stood up. Thanks again for the information and very soon you should be hearing about the closure of the Devil Games. The pair smiled at him. He turned and headed out of the back room and returned to where Alice sat. rTuth had disappeared to go and help the team. Alice said, That was easy. Yes it was, maybe a bit too easy, but at least the team are all GSF trained and so they should know how to get themselves out of trouble. Finish these and head back for the shuttle just in case we are needed sis, he
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said. Alice nodded her head in agreement and the pair finished their drinks. ***** rTuth heard the instructions from Danny concerning where the transport was located and he stood up leaving his half full glass of drink on the bar. He headed out of the bar and he ran back to the shuttle so he could get one of the assault weapons and support the guys heading for the transport. He punched in the code to unlock the compartment and took out one of the CAT88 laser rifles and he hid it beneath his jacket and headed for bay 45. As he walked he looked at the images from the Intreped and found a very good vantage point where he could see and provide the team with support. As he headed for the site he would use he recalled the various lessons Major Batts and Command Titovoth had taught his group concerning providing support to a unit. He knew his major role was to just watch and only fire when the unit was in real trouble. He looked up at the building he would be using and tried to work out a method of getting to the roof. He looked at the buildings around it and saw a wall he knew he could get to and from that he would be able to start his climb up to the roof. He pulled himself up to the wall and from there he started to climb up and jump between the buildings until he reached the roof of the building he wanted. He moved towards the front and knelt down at the edge. He looked over and saw bay 45 and the transport. He recognized it the moment he saw it as the one that had brought him to Rugthz III. This fact he made a note of as it might be important at some point in the near future. He took out the CAT88 and stood it against the wall and waited for the team to appear. As he waited he zoomed in and looked around the landing pad at all the areas where people could hide. As he did he also looked at the area with his thermo vision which he remembered Captain Waters saying would show him if anyone was hiding. He opened his data channel and allowed what he could see to be transmitted to C&C. This he knew would be a help to the team as they would know what he could see. He waited and half an hour later he watched as a number of blips appeared on his internal map system. He watched as the five members moved towards the bay. They stopped and waited for something and after a few seconds they moved again. After a couple of minutes they entered a tunnel leading to the landing bay proper. He watched the team as three of the group stopped and the other two moved out into the open and approached the transport. He watched as Abrielle stopped just under the hull and the pair waited for about a minute. At the end of the time they both moved back towards where the rest of the unit had stopped and all five moved back and out of the landing pad. He would wait where he was for about thirty more minutes and then he would also extract and head back for the shuttle. ***** Danny and Alice both sat in the shuttle waiting for the rest of the team to arrive back from the intelligence gathering mission.
Forty five minutes later the five man team getting the information arrived back at the shuttle. Abrielle said as she strapped herself in, I have the information we need, they are heading for the system ER0879 and their departure time is three days. Ok, that is very good news, said Danny and he turned around and entered the system name into the onboard computer and it connected with the main database on the Intreped. A few seconds later the system data appeared. Danny looked at the information displayed and had an idea which planet the transport would be heading for. Well I think I know which planet they will be heading for. It is in orbit around the first gas giant which is orbiting in orbit three. It is the only planet with a breathable atmosphere even though it is thinner than is normal, he said. How thin is the atmosphere? inquired Alice. Danny opened the data box on the planet and replied after reading the information stored, Basically if people exert themselves then they will be out of breathe pretty quick. I think it is going to be environmental suits with the system providing a boost to the natural atmosphere. Alice and the group sat behind them nodded their heads in understanding. Ok, not to bad then. How far is the system from us now? she inquired. Six days at Light Mach 7, he replied. Abrielle what is the classification on the transport? Abrielle thought back to what she had found out when she touched the transport. It is a PT44 Heavy Personnel Transport, she replied. Danny brought up the information on that class and found its maximum speed in hyperspace was Light Mach 5.4. He worked out the time for the distance and replied, Assuming it will be flying at Light Mach five it should take the transport just over eight days. When are we going to be leaving then? Danny thought about the plans and said, Probably later today. I want to be in system and pretty much set up before the transport arrives. A little while later rTuth arrived back as the shuttle and sat down. No one saw you or approached the transport after you guys left, he said. Good, lets head back to the Intreped and head out of the system, said Danny and he opened a channel to the spaceport control. Spaceport Control, Shuttle CT0024 requesting clearance to depart? Clearance granted CT0024. Alice powered the reactor and engaged the contra-grav and floated the shuttle off the ground retracting the legs when it had climbed five feet. She pulled back on the controls and pushed the throttle forward. The shuttle headed up and fifty minutes later it landed on the flight deck of the Intreped. As Danny walked off the shuttle he said, Communications open a channel to the Uzul vessels. A couple of seconds passed and Andrew W replied, Channel open Captain Izzeem on the line.
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Thank you Andrew W. Captain Izzeem I was wondering how much you knew about our mission? I have been fully briefed by Star Admiral wWish. I was wondering if you had a destination? He entered a lift and said, Command Deck thanks Marcha. We do it looks like the transport is heading to the system ER0879. A couple of seconds passed and Captain Izzeem replied, That is good as ER0879 is within our area of control so my vessel dropping in will not bring any problems with the colony. I am guessing the centre is going to be on the third planet orbiting the gas giant? That was my guessing, he replied as the lift doors opened and allowed him onto the Command Deck. Heinrich stood up and allowed him to take the command seat. We are going to jump pretty much now and head for the system so we can get set up before the transport arrives. A second passed and Captain Izzeem replied, Not a problem we will jump a couple of hours after the transport jumps and head towards the planet in preparation to support your forces. Danny smiled at this and said, You do realise that when you arrive you are not going to be able to see or sense us? Yes, the briefing from the Star Admiral stated your vessel is equipped with some very advanced sensor masking technology, Captain Izzeem replied. We shall see you in system Captain Curtdoza. The communications channel closed. Danny said, Timothy D take us out of orbit and set a course for the edge of the system. There we are going to wait for the transport to arrive and take the youths back to Fratten Five. Post that jump toward QZ623 and stay in hyperspace for twenty one hours and then drop us out and set course for ER0879. You got it Captain, Timothy D replied and he piloted the Intreped out of orbit and headed for the edge of the system. Open a channel to Star Admiral wWish, he instructed. The screen activated and wWish appeared. Captain how can I be of help? I just need to know when the transport is going to be arriving as we are heading for the edge of the system now, he inquired. A couple of days, I have asked a Vessel Crew Transfer ship to head to you and it said it was a couple of days from the system, wWish replied. Thank you, Danny responded and the screen de-activated. ***** Danny stood on the Flight Deck as the combat transport taking the youths to the vessel taking them to Fratten Five dropped from hyperspace. Right there is your transport home and in a few weeks I am going to be returning to Fratten Five and I want to see all of you, he said. You will Captain, said uTakateen-pullitan. Thank you I have had a couple of chats with my sister and
brother and he said he would be happy for us to go and live with him and his House. That is great news, he said and smiled at her. All the youths boarded the transport and it headed for the other vessel. Half an hour later the combat transport returned and the Intreped jumped to hyperspace.
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Chapter 25
Danny walked onto the command deck as the Intreped dropped from hyperspace and instantly Sensor Masked. Head for the gas giant in the third orbit as the likely planet is in orbit around that, he said as he sat down. Simon C piloted the Intreped towards the gas giant. He knew to make the final plans for the assault he would need to see the actual planet and the site of the games. Without this he had only the most basic idea of how to assault the site. The plans he had made needed an initial strike team on the planet transported down ahead of the main assault force. Those men and women were going to seize the key installations; the Landing Control Centre, Power Centre and also any outside Communications Centre. He knew the forces for the initial strike team were going to be from 3rd company 6th Mechanised. The rest of the plans were dependant on what the PESAs picked up. As the Intreped approached the planet he ordered, Take us into a low orbit Gareth L. Sensors I need a full spectrum passive sweep of the area around the colony. He knew the colony had been initially setup as a mining centre mining a valuable ore the Federation needed in the construction of their Hyperdrives. Gareth L piloted the Intreped into a low orbit and the screen came on and showed the colony. Commander Tillitan looked at the images on the screen and asked, How many IFF transponders are we receiving? A couple of seconds passed and Andy O replied, Seven Commander Tillitan. He turned his head to look at Danny and said, That means one of the transports is not broadcasting and if my understanding of Trans Darra is right then that one is the personal transport of Dashary. Danny looked at Commander Tillitan and inquired, Dashary as in the head of Trans Darra Dashary? Yes, the very same, he replied. Danny looked back and smiled an evil smile. This was better than he had hoped; the chance to arrest the chair of Trans Darra was excellent news. One thing I will say though; his personal bodyguard Facarn is very good, she has been the champion of the Combat Sports Games on at least twenty occasions. She is deadly and very efficient at what she does. His bodyguard are also very good. Ok, that just means we have a shoot on sight order against her then. Richmond T, do we have any photos of her and Dashary? he inquired. He looked at where Richmond T stood looking at one of the LPDs in his station. No, well not up to date ones, he replied.
Danny nodded and stood up. Commander Tillitan the Command Deck is yours as I am going to go and put the final touches to the assault plans. Not a problem Captain, he replied and moved to the command seat. Danny headed into his office at the back of the Command Deck. Inside he requested, Major Batts, Captain Waters can you come to my office please as I will need your input on the final plans for the assault. Major Batts replied first, Not a problem I will be there in a couple of minutes. The door slid open and Debbie Waters stood on the far side. She walked in and took one of the seats in front of his desk. The initial plans what are they? she inquired. My initial plans were to put at least two strike teams on the planet before the main assault force goes in, he replied. Debbie nodded her head in understanding. Can I assume the initial forces are coming from the 3 rd? she asked. Yes along with elements of the 6th, Danny replied. Have you had a look at the images the PESAs have brought back? Not yet, I was in C&C about to have a look when you called me, she replied. The door slid open and in walked Major Batts. He moved to the second seat and sat down. Major Batts, I was about to show Debbie the images the PESAs have brought back. Good, replied Major Batts. Danny activated the LPD and turned it so all of them could see the images. One thing which is good is the fact it looks like Dashary from Trans Darra is also on the planet as Commander Tillitan said that one of the transports is his personal one. I want him alive but his bodyguard has a shoot on sight order, she is supposedly very good, he said. Ok, said Debbie. She looked at the images and said, Is that a dome covering that complex? It looks like it, said Major Batts. It must be because of the thinner atmosphere and the fact the people would not be able to compete very long or something. What are your initial plans for the assault? The initial plans are to put a couple of strike units on the planet to seize key installations then the rest of the forces land and hit the dome, he said. How many men can we put on the planet at one time? Major Batts thought about the question and replied, It depends on if we want just troops or troops and support? Both but limit the support to just PAs as I do not think the vehicles are going to be much use as the atmosphere is thin and the engines are not going to work very well. Debbie quietly laughed at this. Do not worry about the engines all the vehicles are powered by Nuclear Power Units. Danny smiled and nodded his understanding. Well still keep the forces to infantry and PAs. Any support will be provided by the copters and the fighters.
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Major Batts nodded and asked, What about the CSMRs, they would be a better method of support then anything? Danny thought about Major Batts idea about using the CSMRs. Okay I agree they would be a good method of support for the forces. The only issue is the collection of them, he replied. Major Batts nodded his understanding. True, that might be a problem, but I do trust the pilots of the combat transports. One more idea I had was to put a force on to the transport we picked up and have that come in and request emergency landing to fix a problem, Danny suggested. The pair thought about the idea. It is a good one and might allow us the chance to seize Dasharys transport, just in case he is able to escape, added Debbie W. Danny knew Debbie W was right it would allow them the chance to actually seize the transport before the main assault forces landed. Okay, I will leave the final force choices in your hands, but myself, Alice and rTuth are going to be heading down with the initial strike units though. The pair nodded and stood up. Debbie asked, How long do we have to select the forces? A few hours as I want to be in a position to take the sites before the transport arrives, replied Danny. Debbie and Major Batts nodded and they headed out of his office. He stood up and requested, Tishun where is Alice at the moment? She is on the Flight Deck working on the Assault Transport, replied Tishun. Thanks, he said and headed out of the office and towards the lift. A minute later he walked onto the flight deck and saw the initial stages of the Assault Pod. He looked at it and saw the four massive tracks had been built and placed. These were supporting some of the lower section of the structure. He headed for where Alice stood directing the construction teams. How are things going? he asked. Alice looked at him and replied, Pretty good bro. You can see how far we have got. Yes and it looks very impressive, he said. How long do you think you are going to need? A few weeks to get the main structure done and then a six maybe seven more to get the skin and the internal decks done, she replied. He nodded his understanding. Would you like to be any place specific or not? It would be nice to be somewhere where we can have access to a fixed facility and more people, she replied. He thought about what Alice had said and replied, I think get this operation over with and we should return to Rugthz III after a quick visit to Fratten Five, we never gave the Gangrels that tour we promised them.
Alice remembered the request and said, Very true we never did and that is wrong we should have. She then thought about the fact Rugthz III had an orbital facility and the man power they needed. Plus it would give us the fixed facility and the manpower we will need. He smiled at her. Bingo, he replied. He inquired, Tishun where is rTuth? He is training in the Main Simulator Room, Tishun replied. Sis you need to be ready to join the initial strike teams as they are going down before the main assault force and it looks like Dashary of Trans Darra is also there. Alice now looked very pleased. Good, she said. Where are you heading now? To the Main Simulator Room rTuth is there training, he replied and turned for the lift as the first transport landed in the other half of the Flight Deck. A couple of minutes later he approached the Main Simulator Room and found a program running. He looked at the screen outside the door and found the program running simulated a battle field. He opened the door and stepped into the room. The door closed behind him and he found a true battle field with a few rubblized buildings and a number of other buildings had had holes blown into them or were missing sections. He stepped in and drew his CLP30 and using his own mapping software he found rTuth and a number of other crew men were assaulting a large building. He moved through the rubble and approached the unit as they prepared to assault the building. He looked at his CLP30 and found Tishun had taken control of the firing circuits. He saw a couple of men in a window firing on the assault forces. He returned fire and dropped both men. He moved and joined rTuth as he covered the first four men as they moved across the open space in front of the main door. rTuth looked at him as he knelt beside him. What are you doing here? he whispered. Finding you, he replied. We are heading to the planet as a part of the initial strike force. rTuth nodded and indicated for the second group to move. They did and very quickly joined the first at the door way in. The two teams at the door indicated for the last group to move and rTuth ran leading the team across the open space as a couple of groups of men appeared and opened fire. Danny quickly targeted them and fired taking both groups out very quickly. He watched as rTuth dropped his shoulder and barged the door open. One from each team span around the open door as rTuth hit the ground inside the entrance. They fired on a few men inside before they could get a target on the prone form of rTuth. He zoomed in on the left hand group and he looked at the patch on the arm. It was the patch of the 3 rd Company except this one had the letters GSF just beneath it. He then realised rTuth was training in preparation for the upcoming assault. The two teams entered and fanned out inside.
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He moved and knelt down watching the teams as they secured the building. A while later the scenario ended and all the assault troops walked out looking pretty pleased with the training mission and how it had gone. Bia looked surprised at him as he sat watching how the operation had gone. Very nicely executed that, he said. Thank you Captain. Debbie told us we would be apart of the initial assault units and Groshan suggested we should take rTuth and give him a bit of training working alongside us. He looked very impressed by the idea. That is good thinking as me, Alice and rTuth are joining you as a part of the initial assault units.
Chapter 26
Danny walked up the boarding ramp of the first transport carrying his A9 and a bag containing the rest of his battle equipment. He stowed it in the cargo bay beside his environmental armour and headed for the cockpit. Alice came and sat beside him in the pilots seat. Let us get this show on the road, he said as the ramp closed and sealed. The internal door slid closed and also sealed itself. Alice engaged the contra-grav units and the transport lifted off the Flight Deck. She engaged the Sensor Masking system as rTuth came and sat just behind them. A pair of lights went on as the weapon turrets went live. Alice pushed the throttles forward and the transport moved forward towards the main opening. The second transport followed and the pair headed for the surface. The final plans were for the two transports to land on either side and the forces to assault from both sides. Danny hoped this would split and weaken the defence forces enough for them to be able to take control of the seven primary targets before the main assault force landed and the actual assault on the Devil Games started. He wanted to be at the front of that assault as having the chance to arrest Dashary was one he was not going to throw away. He suspected arresting Dashary would be a lot harder than the plans had suggested. The whole arresting of Dashary would depend on the level of protection he had and whether or not the teams seizing the transport succeeded. Major Batts had prepared four of the CSMRs to drop and support the troops on the ground. The Uzul Battle Transport was due to arrive a few hours before the transport and stay in a parking orbit until the assault when they would deploy their troops to support the Assault Forces. The entire plans timing would depend on how good the defence troops were and their ready status. The third transport would leave the Intreped in a few hours hidden by the gas giant and then return an hour after the transport carrying the slaves had arrived. They would request clearance to land due to a problem with their Environmental Systems. At that point the third strike force would hit from the middle out and combine with the two forces assaulting from either side. Alice banked her transport away and down on a wide landing arc. The plan called for a few of the men to move into the colony and gain up to date intelligence on the sites
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and the defence forces. This mission he would not be a part of as the chance of his, Alices or rTuths faces being known was a little high for his personal liking. The infiltration forces were made from a number of elves and dwarves from the combat forces. He knew they understood what was needed as they all came from an Intelligence gathering background. He stood up and joined the rest of the unit as they started to get ready to head for their assault position. He headed into the cargo bay and found Bia and James U sat in front of the small C&C unit. After an hour Alice landed the transport some five kilometres from the edge of the colony and powered down the reactors to the level needed to maintain the internal systems and shields. The initial recon team left and headed for the colony, he knew it would take a while for them to get there and locate a safe place to operate from. They all had small cameras and secure communication units built into their breather masks. Let them look around the colony and set up the surveillance equipment that way we will be able to get a better picture on the situation inside the colony, he said as Debbie W handed him a mug of coffee. He turned to look at her and asked, What are the rest of the guys doing? Setting up small domes to live under, she replied. We used the system when preparing for sea launched assaults. He activated his internal vision system and connected it to the cameras located on the outside of the transport. He watched as the various squads constructed a series of domes each pretty large. He watched as one of the members dropped a see through panel on to a dome structure. Okay, I am now impressed, he said. Meet the technology the GSF play with along with over 200 submersibles all of them very advanced. A lot of the technology for the Environmental Systems on the Intreped originates from the GSF Sub fleet. They have subs ranging from 5000 tons all the way through to Battle Carriers weighing in at 250,000 tons. They all are capable of staying underwater for over half a year, she replied. He looked at Debbie W very surprised. Damn, I had wondered when I was looking through the personal files about GSF designation of your Company. I did a bit of searching and found nothing other than a couple of rumours and legends. Being Security Command I had heard a few stories about units getting wiped out by a very skilled battle command and all that was reported was the letters GSF. Debbie W quietly laughed and said, Yes, one of those units was destroyed by my company. From what I remember the unit was all white skins. We also support the Academy of Street when they hit the North Polar Prison. They knew how to fight but the problem was their tactics were very strict and from later analysis showed they did not vary. Danny now laughed and replied, That is about right. Combat tactics were drummed into us. To vary from those was frowned upon. She nodded her head in understanding.
Tomorrow I am going to take a closer look at the colony and the production centre, he said. Not a problem, I will make sure a unit is ready to escort you Danny, she replied. ***** In the morning Danny woke and rolled out of his bunk on the transport. He stood up and found rTuth laying on the bottom bunk and he was reading something. Morning rTuth, he said. Morning Danny, rTuth replied and unplugged himself from the charge point in his bunk. He sat up on the edge of his bunk. Danny headed for the small kitchen and sorted out a couple of drinks. As he walked back to where the bunks were situated he looked into the cockpit and saw Alice sleeping in the pilots chair with her feet up on the top of the dashboard. He smiled and handed rTuth one of the two mugs. He sat down on rTuths bunk and inquired, When did you get to bed last night? A couple of hours after you, he replied. I am impressed by the technology in use outside especially the domes. I sat with a few of the squads and we just chatted about our lives before joining the crew. They have some very interesting stories to tell. Danny took a mouthful of his coffee and added, And I hope some of the stories end up on the netsite. I am putting up the story about mine and Alices final operation. It is almost finished now in that I have a couple more months to go before I escape. rTuth looked impressed by that. That sounds really interesting and I would love to read about it. I will let you read it before it goes up, he said. Later today I am going to be taking a close look at the colony and the production site and you are on the team going with me. I know Debbie W is also sorting out the rest of the unit. I go where you go Danny, he said. ***** A few hours later Danny stood with the unit going with him to look at the colony. The teams operating on the inside had brought back some very good images and reports. Danny said, This is just a simple recon mission. We are going to have a look at the colony and the production centre. Any one got any questions? After a couple of seconds and no one had put their hands in the air he said, Right then let us go. He led the unit away from the base towards a rise in the ground to the north east of the colony. From the initial look at the site he had estimated the colony had a couple of thousand people living there and maybe a couple more living at the production site. rTuth walked beside him carrying his CAT88 in the patrol position and asked, How many people do you think live at the colony?
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A couple of thousand in the colony itself and like a similar amount in the production centre. I am wondering how many of them are combat trained and will be willing to fight when the assault happens, especially with us using PAs and CSMRs. rTuth quietly laughed and replied, Hopefully not too many. A couple of hours later the group crested the rise and stopped. The colony spread out beneath them. Danny sat down and studied the layout looking for the key sites the initial assault forces would need to take to allow the rest of the assault forces to land. He noticed a couple of blips on his internal mapping system were moving and he took a look at the data on them. He found out they were a pair of FCSUs and it looked like they were moving over the colony checking things. C&C, Danny, are you controlling the FCSUs? he inquired We are, replied Debbie W. They are a very good way of gathering intelligence as they are silent, small and almost no one ever looks up. He thought about what Debbie W had said about them and he did agree with her. They were small, silent and people did not normally look up unless instructed to. He looked at one of the entrance ways to the dome and saw four security guards stood checking everyone going in to the site. He zoomed in to the group and had a look at the weapons they carried. C&C, Danny, can you check the weapons the security are carrying? On it boss, replied Maxine. Danny look, said rTuth. He looked at where rTuth was looking and saw a security vehicle moving down the route-way just inside the dome. It floated off the ground. He again zoomed in on the six sat in the back. Again he looked at the rifles this group carried and after close examination he thought they are cheap looking. They must not be expecting trouble, he thought. Skipper look, said Patrick W and pointed at a ground vehicle. He did and saw a group of eight people sat in the back and on a pole just behind the cab sat a heavy weapon. As he studied the group he saw the people around them did not seem to like them. The people seemed to fear the ones in the truck. It cornered and he looked at two of them as they looked at a couple of colonists on the corner as they waited to cross the road. I am not mistaken am I when I say the colonists do not like them? Patrick W inquired. No you are right they do not, he replied. Basic thugs with guns, likely very little training, poor leadership and will probably run when we attack especially when they realise even with hostages they still get killed. Joyce said, Boss, take a look at that. She was pointing at a scene of a couple of security beating up a colonist. C&C, Danny can you send a FCSU to the site I and Joyce are looking at. He watched as one the two
FCSUs moved and very quickly sat watching the scene. He opened the video feed as well as the audio system. Next time you do not pay up on time we will cut off your hand, said one of the thugs. Okay I have seen enough, let us head back to the base, he said and stood up. ***** A couple of hours later Danny walked into the cockpit and found Alice reviewing the information the recon team inside the colony had been able to find out. How much have you found out? he asked as he sat in the commanders seat. Bits and pieces, she replied. The security is basically thugs with weapons and the colonists hate them. They are no match for trained people. A pair tried to get aKarrka to give them protection money last night they ended up dead, both with broken necks. He nodded that he knew. Yes, we found that out earlier. The weapons are cheap knock offs of Federation weapons. C&C, Skipper, we have Loozen on the line about to give his report. Put him through to the cockpit thanks C&C, he replied. Loozen what have you been able to find out? he inquired. A lot, Dashary has a team of 25 of his elite body guards with him. I was able to get inside the dome last night and found out his transport is at the back of the dome on its own private landing pad. This information annoyed Danny as it meant the plan for taking the transport was going to be a lot harder than the initial plans. Damn, he said. eUzzi has more information. What I can tell you is he has a straight road running from his private apartment straight to the transport you are looking at a good fifteen minute run or a couple of minutes be vehicle. eUzzi is now here skipper. Okay put him on thanks, he said. A couple of seconds went by. eUzzi said, Captain what I can tell you is the transport has a team of fifteen of his private security guards around it and one is sat in the weapons turret. From what I know of the security they are good and if I know Trans Darra some would have been modified in some way. Their weapons are the best money can buy. The transport itself has also been modified, it was producing more power than the standard production model and it looked like the sub-light engines are also more powerful. Danny nodded his head in understanding. Okay, it is very likely then the Hyperdrive has also been upgraded as well. I would say yes it has, Dashary is a man noted for his paranoia when it comes to his safety, replied eUzzi. Thanks, maintain your surveillance. I need to alter the plans a bit, he said and closed the communications link. C&C, Danny can you open a laser communication channel to the Intreped, I need to
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speak to Major Batts and the Commander of the third transport. Laser Communication is hunting for the Intreped now, replied Maxine. Found them and it has locked on. Channel open Captain. Gill Q said, Ground forces, Intreped Communications, what is up? Gill Q, Danny here, I need to have a chat to the Major and the Commander of the third transport. Okay Captain, putting you through now, she said. A second passed and Major Batts said, Hi Danny, I am surprised to hear from you. You would not have heard from be it not for a change of plans, it looks like Dasharys transport is on a private landing pad at the back of the dome with no other landing pads near to it. The line was silent for a couple of seconds. Okay, how are we going to do this then? Is the transport equipped with the Sensor Masking System? The techs are just finishing that now skipper, replied Rebec. Danny nodded his understanding to the situation. Right I need you to land the transport on the far side of the dome and assault from there. From the second the flag goes up you will have maybe a couple of minutes to secure the transport and it is protected by 15 of Dasharys personal bodyguards and they are well armed and armoured. eUzzi has taken a look at it and he says the transport is ready to depart at a moments notice. Okay, we will do our best skipper, Rebec replied. That is all any of us can do, just be careful, he said and closed the communications channel. Alice looked at him and asked, So with his capture being on such a small window, what about support for the unit? That I do not know, when the flag does go up I will direct a flight of Hornets to intercept the transport that is likely the best we can do, he said. We can expect the crew to be good at their jobs and know what they are doing; we can hope we catch them at a down period. Debbie W walked in and lent on the backs of the chairs. She asked, What are the new plans then? Danny looked at her and said, The third transport is going to land on the far side and assault from there. The time window is not good as the recon team estimates two minutes before Dashary takes off. Debbie W nodded her understanding and said, Rebecs force is the one force I would say could do it, it does depend on the training and equipment the body guard have. From what eUzzi sent back, it does look like the weapons and armour are top of the range stuff. That is what eUzzi said just now. I am going to take a four man unit and have a look for myself. I will do that this evening, he said. Alice looked at him and said, And I am going with you Danny. He looked back at her and smiled. I thought you would, he said. And I will make up the last member with rTuth, said Debbie. What do you want the rest of the forces to do?
Wait and move into position tomorrow, we will launch when the transport has landed. I want a unit detailed with seizing it. A while later Danny waited with rTuth for Alice and Debbie W to arrive before heading for the area around where Dashary had landed his transport. The pair walked down the ramp carrying their assault weapons and looked at the two sat on a couple of rocks. They stood up and headed away from the transport on a route that would take them to a good vantage point overlooking the north side of the dome. As they walked Danny asked, Debbie W how come the 3rd company got chosen to join the GSF? I think it was the fact that when the final battle of the Wacker War launched I took the safety of the company first and the orders to engage second. I knocked out the Wacker Military Major when he instructed the company to engage the 12th Gangrel Raiders. He did not listen the reports from the other companies that had engaged them, the Raiders pretty much destroyed them in short order. Post the end of the war the company had lost 40 men over the duration and I had for a couple of months before the contract been training the company as a Force Recon Unit. We started recruiting replacement members and that is when Dant and Tantric signed on. It was about four months later that Dant and Tantric actually offered the command the contract to join the GSF. We accepted in what I think the Commander of the forces where we were based said was record time. The four walked around the site Danny had used earlier and continued on towards the point they wanted. What happened after the invite? inquired Alice. The first month we spent it recruiting the rest of the men to fully man the company and we also recruited a 5th four squad platoon at the same time we were also training and improving our Force Recon skills, she replied. The following couple of months we supported the Academy of the Street and post that we started to learn the skills we needed when working on the subs the GSF uses. We also move to Boot Camp to provide the Academy of the Street and ET Special Security with a elite force for their operations. Interesting, replied Danny. I do not remember hearing anything over the Security Command communications. What level of equipment did they have? Rather advanced, M40s and D300s rigged to take binary rounds. Their vehicles were equipped with some advanced reactive armour that came from Naruni and a couple of other Corporations. They also have a number of advanced PAs again from the same sources, Debbie replied. Danny thought about what had happened and made a note to have a closer look at that when they finished with the operation here. He was interested in finding out if the White Skins had their hand in it as well. It was not unknown for them to have a hand in things like that. A couple of hours later the four sat down and began to watch the landing pad and the activities. A woman walked down the ramp of the transport and looked around at the members of the Body Guard as they patrolled and maintained the heavier weapons.
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Danny looked at her and then checked the photos of Facarn and it was the same person. Debbie W said, That woman; is she Facarn? She is, he replied, at least we can update the image of her. She does look very tough and lithe. I can see why she won the combat championships. He looked at rTuth and saw him looking down the barrel of his CAT88. I so wish I could put a laser pulse into her, he said. Not yet, we will get that chance in due time rTuth. He looked at Alice who was checking some readings from her portable scanner. What is the scanner saying Alice? he inquired. The power output from the transport is at least double what the standard version produces and from the size of the engines it is fast. It might be able to out run the Hornets, she replied. A couple of hours later the four headed back to their base camp as the third transport had landed seven kilometres to the north of the dome.
Chapter 27
The following morning Danny woke and laid on his bunk thinking about the operation that evening. This was going to be the start of the downfall of at least Dark Line Productions and it might lead onto more operations against the production company which was a good thing. He had a number of unanswered questions that could not be answered until the assault happened; the first would the colonist help or hinder the assault forces. The second concern the training of the Domes Security Forces. rTuth walked passed and asked, Do you want a drink Danny? He thought about rTuths question and replied, Please. A couple of minutes he returned carrying a mug of coffee for him. He finished the coffee and got out of the bunk and headed for where Alice sat in the cockpit. Debbie W also sat and they looked like they were reviewing the intelligence gathered last night. What have you to report? he asked as he took one of the other seats. They have a couple of snipers set up on the buildings and they are looking north along the approach route of the third unit, Debbie replied. I have spent a while trying to identify the weapons the transport has and I have not been able to. I have even linked into Tishun and even he has not been able to identify them. I reckon they are a mixture of weapons as the barrels are different. The closest weapons I have been able to find are a LX4 rapid firing laser cannon and a NA10 Ion Cannon; basically a particle weapon. The LPD in the middle of the console showed the transport. These, she said and pointed at the front, look like missile launchers and this dome is some form of jamming system. Have you sent your findings back to the Intreped? he inquired. Yes, Commander Tillitan said he would be having a look but he has not gotten back to us yet, Alice replied. He nodded his head in understanding. Have you told the Northern Assault Units of the snipers? Yes, via the Intreped. Rebec said she had deployed a couple of counter snipers to deal with them and they would be targeting Facarn when the flag goes up, replied Debbie W. He smiled at this as he knew the skill of the snipers would be very good. Alice added, The Intreped estimates the Transport is about fourteen hours out. It looks battered but I think that might have been due to an Ion storm it flew through on the edge of the system. Danny looked unhappy at this news. Those can be pretty bad from what I remember reading about. I hope the people it is carrying have not been injured.
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More than likely they would have been scared as a ship is tossed about with sparks from the electrical systems flying everywhere, said Debbie W. I will signal the forces to start moving into their final positions. Move them closer to the arrival time, I do not want the oxygen supplies running out on them, said Danny. Cockpit, C&C we have just had word the Uzul vessel has just entered high orbit and has deployed a standard check up team down to the planet. Danny nodded as he remembered reading that was standard operating procedure for all Federation vessels. C&C, Danny inform the recon teams of that and have them listen in to the talks between the crew and the administrators of the colony. Will do. Debbie W looked at him a little perplexed. Why are we doing that? I do not trust them and I think the Federation Council does not trust them implicitly. I just want to make sure they do not tell the colony of the planned assault, he replied. They must know the Intreped is more than capable of destroying their vessel, she said. Danny shrugged his shoulders and said, They do, but it is always better to err on the side of caution. Seven hours went passed and the Uzul transport lifted off and headed back for their vessel. Danny stood behind the C&C terminals watching the transport fly up. Loozen, Danny anything to report on the meetings? he asked. No, they went off without a hitch, not a word about the operations and if there was the two guys watching the barracks have not reported anything like stepping up of security patrols, Loozen replied. It was a standard find out what was going on meeting. The Uzul said they would be staying in orbit for a few days though. He knew that was a set up so them staying in orbit would not ring alarm bells. I did see the head Administrator leave just after the four Uzul left and he was heading for the Dome. Thanks Loozen, we are going to begin moving the troops into position in a few hours, he said. Open a laser communication. channel to the Intreped. Maxine pressed a button on the control panel and said after a couple of seconds, Channel open Captain. Intreped, Danny, any movement from Dasharys transport? No movement at all everything looks normal from the PESAs images, skipper, said Richmond T. The combat transports are loaded and waiting the go signal from you guys. They will be on the ground about thirty minutes after the flag goes up. The CSMRs and the PAs will be in a position to support after about ten minutes. All the PAs are deploying from a couple of standard transports. He nodded his head in understanding of the deployment times. You two go and get ready; the Intreped C&C will be running the show when the assault starts. *****
Danny moved with rTuth and Alice close behind him to the final positions before the off. He looked around him and saw the entire assault team were in position waiting to move. He estimated it was about another hour before the transport landed and all hell broke loose. Fifty five minutes later he watched as the transport headed down the landing beacon. Okay five minutes to go, he thought to himself. He saw on his map screen four blips appear and very quickly they took the labels indicating they were the CSMRs. He saw a four more and these he knew were the copters heading down. Major Batts voice said, All forces, Intreped, go, go, go. At this he watched as one of the counter snipers fired and killed the sniper he had been directed to kill. A hail of fire came from the rest of the bodyguard troops as the second sniper also died and the Northern Assault force moved from their positions some 1500 metres out and returned fire against the Body Guards. Inside the colony alarms started to wail as the fact the colony and dome was now under attack registered. On his map view he saw forty blips appear from nowhere and realised they were the PAs being deployed from their transport shuttles. He moved and moving very closely behind him came rTuth, Alice and Debbie Ws command squad. His target was not the colony; it was the Dome as if they could stop Dashary from leaving then it meant he could be arrested. The small screen that showed the northern assault showed the turrets on the transport firing on the approaching Assault Forces. His timer showed one minute and twenty five seconds remained before Dashary should have escaped. rTuth shouted, Danny look out. He looked and saw four of the colony security charging at them. He dropped to the kneeling position and brought his A9 up and fired a burst of three plasma rounds at them. The rest of the unit also fired and the four dropped dead as the mixture of plasma, laser and binary rounds hit them. More laser pulses came from the dome entrance he was heading for. He shifted targets and found the Security Forces inside the dome had taken cover behind various items. He fired at them as two direct fired grenades detonated just inside the dome. At the same time three smoke trails flew over head as a few of the PAs also engaged the position. The firing lessened as the effects of the missiles and grenades took effect. He stood up and ran towards the entrance as the heavy doors began to close he guessed hoping to keep the attackers out. They finished sealing as he arrived at them he looked at the control panel for the door and found it was a swipe card and coded entry system. Debbie and Alice arrived and she looked at the system. She took her fist and smashed the outer casing. She took a look at the internal systems. Debbie W can
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you get one of your Psi-Techs here as I am going to need them to unlock the door, she said. They might be able to get into the computer systems from here. Debbie W nodded her head and quickly sent the request. Danny looked at the northern assault forces as they waited for the person to arrive. He watched as the assault forces got bogged down in an intense fire fight against the transport, the Body Guards and a few of the domes security personal. A vehicle came out of the entrance way and stopped very close to the ramp up into the transport. One of the snipers took a shot at Facarn. She moved very quickly and only got caught in the arm by the shot as Dashary headed up the ramp closely followed by a couple of the Body Guards who had arrived with him. She disappeared up the ramp and a few seconds later the transport lifted off the ground as the lower turret went live. It accelerated and headed up as the lower turret fired at the attackers. Transport has been secured, came over the communication system. The Psi-Tech arrived and a few seconds after he had touched the control system the doors started to open. At this Danny lifted his A9 and along with the rest of the squad prepared to enter the dome. As the doors finished opening a large quantity of laser pulses came from the security inside. Three of the PAs returned fire with their rail guns and other weapons. He watched as a number of plasma balls flew in from the second squad who had moved up to support his squads entry. Even stood where he was protected by the wall surrounding the entrance way he felt the heat from them plasma rounds detonating. By the time the heat had died down the firing from inside had stopped and he swung around and saw burnt bodies. He smiled as this was going to make Dashary really angry. He looked up and down the road and saw from one of the other entrances a second assault team had entered. All assault units, Danny, wait for the reinforcements and then secure the dome. As he waited he felt the vibrations of the sixty ton CSMRs moving towards the colony and the dome. He looked outside and saw a Fishtail and a couple of PAs launch missiles and fire their main weapons at some site in the centre of the colony. He brought up the camera view and looked at the situation which was a building now in flames as a few of the Assault Troops helped the injured from it and the surrounding buildings. Danny, Intreped C&C the Uzul had deployed their forces and should touch down outside the colony in about an hour. Our reinforcements should be with you in about fifteen minutes. Thank you C&C, how about Dasharys transport? He escaped to hyperspace pretty much when he left the atmosphere and the reports from the Hornets chasing him were it was heavily shielded and the turret crews were very good. He nodded his head and thought, Okay we need to make better plans for the next time we meet. Fifteen minutes later the reinforcements arrived and he entered the dome proper for the first time. He wanted to find where the slaves were being held as they were the first priority now Dashary had escaped.
He stopped at a corner of a route-way that led deeper inside the dome and quickly glanced around the corner. Up the route-way he saw a few of the ground vehicles had been flipped over and his thermo showed behind them were a number of people, likely Security Staff and the workers for the company. C&C, Danny, any chance we can get either a CSMR or some PAs in here as I am looking at a barricade with Security Sstaff behind it. Working on that now, JJ Squad three has just deployed and should be with you in a couple of minutes Danny, replied Major Batts. He knew when the JJ Squads would scare the crap out the defenders. He had not seen them at work personally but he had watched a few video files on them. A little while later a Jumping Jack landed a few metres away from him. The pilot asked, How many men down there? I estimate ten, maybe a couple more, he replied. The helmet nodded his understanding and took off. He looked at the map and found the squad of five moving over the roof tops of the buildings. He glanced around the corner again and saw a head appear looking down the route-way. The next sound was a scream as the JJs dropped on the defenders he watched as they came down with their arms wide and their vibro-claws extended from their hands. It took under a minute for the defenders to die and the truck to be pushed out of the way. He led the three squads down the route-way thermo checking each building front as they walked. He stepped passed the vehicle and saw the mess the JJs had left of the thirteen bodies. Limbs had been ripped and sliced from the bodies a couple even had no heads and another his torso lay separated from his legs and hips region. rTuth stepped through and stopped himself as he looked around the slaughter. Each and every member of the JJ Squads are confirmed psychos and in a few cases they should be locked up in secure institutions for the mentally insane, commented Danny. I have watched a few video files on them and even those do not prepare you for the mess they leave. The unit fired their jump packs and departed over the roof tops likely Danny knew heading for a second site that needed their special attention. The group entered a small square and they stopped at the edge. Joyce said, Skipper, I have a large thermo blob in that building. I cannot make out the shapes. He nodded his head in understanding and headed to the far said of the entrance door. Joyce joined him as Alice and Debbie got ready to enter. He banged on the door and shouted, You inside come out with your hands up. As he spoke the tactical computers translation system translating it into Federation Base. The door opened and out walked a group of about twenty very scared adults and a few younger people.
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Their hands held high above their heads. Alice pointed for them to move to the right hand side of the door way. They did and had a couple of the men from the support unit sit them on their knees with their ankles crossed. Danny walked to one of the older elves and asked in a plain voice, Where are the slaves held for the Darkness Games? He replied, I do not know sir. I do, they are held beneath the bosses villa in the basement. He has cells and other rooms down there where he holds the nasty creatures. Danny looked at the young man and said, Thank you for that information. All assault forces the slaves are held under Dasharys villa. It looks like he has some cells with them and some of the creatures they use during the games. Danny, Assault Force Two thanks for the information. From the map we are closest to the villa. He nodded his head and said to the rest of the unit, Let us continue on with the search. He turned back to the group and asked, How many more are there of you here? A lot, we are spread out in the dome and the mine beneath us sir, replied another one of the group. Thank you for that information, he replied and left the two watching the group as a squad of PAs landed in the square. Danny headed over to them and said, Continue with the search as from what they said, the slaves are being held both up here and in the mines. I think the mine entrance is next door to the large building in the middle boss. Danny nodded his understanding and said, Go and take a look and if you can get down it with no problem then do so, otherwise wait for support. Okay, she said and took off with the rest of her unit. They flew towards the building in the middle. Assault Team Two, Danny, proceeded to the mine entrance and support the PAs heading there now. Will do, replied Mark T. He signalled his unit to move out and he pointed at the building. He knew the rest of the command would secure the dome. As they approached the building they saw a couple of the JJ units sat on the roof of a building overlooking the mine entrance. One dropped to the ground and approached him. The entrance is secure, the PAs and a couple of squads from Assault Unit Two have begun to descend. It looks like from what is there the mine shaft was a part of the games. He pointed at an area beside the entrance and it did look like an assault course of some kind. Have you taken a look at the course? he inquired. Other than to see it no, but it does not look too bad. I am just wondering what the liquid is and the earth
patches what is waiting there. Danny nodded that he had an understanding of what was likely to be present. Assault Team Two, Danny what is it like down there? Not very nice, the climb down is hard, replied Mark T. Thanks to the mages we are going down on aerial plates, one mistake and you are falling. We have likely gone down four hundred metres and I estimate the bottom is another kilometre and a half. He shook his head in disgust at what went on. Dashary must be stopped, he thought. Rebecs unit appeared from the front door and she headed for where he stood with the JJ. Skipper my unit have secured the above ground building. We were waiting for you and your unit to arrive before we headed into the basements. He nodded and along with rTuth and Alice they walked towards the house. Two of Rebecs unit stood beside one of the open doors. He led the group which now included two squads of Assault Unit Three down the stairs into the basement. The first room they came too looked like an anti chamber cum relaxment room with LPDs and other entertainment around the walls. Sat on the table in the middle was a stack of money and surrounding it were a number of piles of cards. We will take that lot, he said and pointed at the money. Leading from the room were two doors both looked like they had security control boxes beside them. Alice looked at the boxes and said, Door open. She pressed the button and the door slid open to reveal a control room with a lot of production technology present. I think this might have been the production booth, she said. Danny looked in and saw on the LPDs lining the wall were images from various camera positions most looked like there were in the mines as the images looked like they had a green tint to them. Night vision systems, he said and watched as the PAs and Assault Unit Two passed one of the cameras. Assault Unit Two we can see you. There are cameras in the mine shaft. Okay, said Mark T. Any chance you can let us know what is ahead of us? he asked. Danny laughed and replied, Of course we will. I will direct a couple of Assault Unit Three to watch and report to you. He stepped out of the door and over to where Alice stood at the second door. A pair of Assault Team Three stepped in to the room and went to sit down on the seats. Alice opened the second door and the instant it opened he realised something was wrong. As she went to step through the door he stopped her and said, Hang on sis. He turned and grabbed a chair and pushed it down the corridor. A couple of metres in a number of lasers fired and destroyed the chair. How are we going to get passed that, she said. rTuth looked down the corridor and said, I can see a button in the middle.
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Let me boss, said Dranzer and a translucent mist headed down the corridor and at the button something pressed it. Push another chair down the corridor. Danny grabbed a chair and gave it a hard push. It skidded down the corridor and the lasers remained inactive. Thank you Dranzer, he said and stepped into the corridor. Alice followed along with the rest of the two squads. At the other end the door opened and Danny looked into the room and saw a large chamber with a number of torture items in. In two man shaped items hung from the ceiling were a couple of young adult elves. Get them down, he commanded. rTuth and Alice both grabbed them and lifted them up a bit as a couple more people went about unhooking them. The pair lent them against the wall and rTuth busted them both open. Alice looked at the pair and said, They are still alive, get me some water. A minute later one of the unit arrived back carrying a couple of glasses both containing water. She dipped her finger in to one and wiped it across the lips of the pair just to moisten them. They both licked the water resting on their lips and she repeated the action. The woman weakly opened her eyes and tried to speak. Alice shook her head and said, Do not try and speak. We will get you medical attention. She turned and looked over her shoulder and shouted, Someone get Luca or a medic here now. He said, Luca, any medics, Danny, we need you in the building in the centre of the Dome we have a couple of elves that need medical attention now. Luca here Danny, I am just outside the building and I am heading to you now. Where are you exactly? In the basement, I will send one the unit to get you. He moved and helped Alice move the male elf to lean against the wall. The female elf was moved by rTuth and Rebec so she was sat beside him. Luca walked in and went straight to the pair and after a quick check over she said, They are both dehydrated and starved. I will give them both a slight boost to their health and let us get them out of here. What are you going to need Luca? inquired Danny. Just a couple of people and a couple of stretchers, she replied. He turned and said, Go and get a couple more people and find something that can be used as stretchers. We also need a couple of medics with us just in case more slaves need help. Done boss, said Pauline M and she along with Breen headed back down the corridor. Luca started to chant a number of words and move her hands in very specific movements. A couple of seconds later she touched the two elves and sat back as they started to breathe a little better. That should help them until we get them to a proper medical centre. I think there is one in the colony outside, but I will be looking at getting them back to the Intreped as soon as I can. They are going to need a proper medical facility. Danny nodded his head in understanding. Anyway guys on wards with the exploration. He stood up
and had the just of the unit join him. He headed for the one door leading out of the room. The male elf shook his head weakly and said, No, danger. Danny stopped and looked back at him. Door leads to danger, he said. Danny nodded and lifted his A9 to his shoulder and had rTuth move to stand beside the door. Rebec knelt down and raised her A7 ready. Danny nodded and rTuth opened the door. He looked into the corridor and could not see anything wrong but he was not sure. He picked up one of the items that had held the pair and threw it down the corridor. It landed and the floor disappeared and it dropped into a liquid and started to fizz. The floor returned. Damn this place is full of surprises, he said. He bent down and pressed the floor with his hand and the floor disappeared again releasing the gas the acid had released. In the ceiling a couple of extractor fans started and drew out the gas. rTuth said, Great how the hell are we going to get across that. Bia said, Very easily. She too started to chant different words and move her hands in different patterns as Luca. Force wall, it will take our weight and allow us to cross. She moved through the door and stood on thin air. She headed across the bridge and found a lever on the far wall she opened the door and found a large chamber. She lightly placed her foot on the floor and increased its pressure. She stepped off and reversed the hand movements. At the end she pulled the lever and the floor returned and a very faint click happened. Danny again hit the floor and this time it did not drop away. He lightly stepped onto the floor and found it was solid. He walked down the tunnel and entered the chamber and found a number of large cages. In a few paced some of the beasts he remembered watching in his research. Bia pointed to the first cage and said, That is a Dragonsaurus a very nasty hunter and very powerful. That, she said and pointed to the next cage, is a Conservator, a hunter; they normally hunt slaves for the Splugorth. I want to know how the hell Dashary got his hands on one. Danny looked at it and saw it was looking at him with slit eyes; it was as if it was sizing him up for the kill. Dashary is dead. Release me and I kill Dashary, it said in a very guttural tone. It was as if it growled the words out. rTuth entered next and looked around the room and stopped when he looked at the Conservator. He bent down and inquired, Ikhas? Ikhas looked at rTuth and his mouth changed to one of a slightly happier one than just staring at the people in the room. rTuth, why are you here, you left. I know, I was taken to be converted to a Juicer. Captain Curtdoza here and the crew of the CS002 Intreped saved me from my fate. I do wish they had allowed you to join me, but I left the station a month after the change.
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Danny looked at rTuth and asked, How do you know Ikhas? rTuth stood up and said, Ikhas was captured by Dashary whilst he was illegally hunting on SD64-II. He came to the station where I was a slave and forced to help us unload cargo from the transports. He looked back at Ikhas and asked, How come you are here? I escaped and Dashary captured me again and has forced me to hunt in the mines below us. rTuth you are a friend. rTuth nodded his head in agreement. I was the only member of the slaves to show Ikhas respect and where everyone else shunned him and his hunting ways I did not. I allowed him the chance to feed off my mana store. I had a very high amount of natural mana and would have likely gone in the Magick Professions when I was old enough. Captain please free Ikhas he is intelligent and should not be caged. Danny looked at Ikhas and looked at Debbie W and Rebec as they walked in and stared in shock at the caged creatures. Ikhas said, You have changed my friend. rTuth nodded that he had changed. I have, Captain Curtdoza and the crew saved me from dying in a few years; I am now a Full Conversion Cyborg. I now owe him a Life Debt for giving me the chance to live. I am his Body Guard. Danny thought about the situation and the friendship rTuth seemed to have with Ikhas. rTuth if I release Ikhas he will be your responsibility. Ikhas, he said and knelt down and continued, You have to understand I am Captain of the Conspiracy Vessel The Intreped, what I say goes, but I will give you your freedom and the chance to help us in capturing Dashary. Ikhas thought about something and replied, Captain if you give me my freedom from being caged then I will serve you and your vessel. I will do my best to curb my wants for Dasharys death, but I ask you now for this I want his woman. She beat me in combat and she has mocked me and my kind ever since. His eyes drew to slits again and his voice became a growl as he said it. Danny said, Free him rTuth. rTuth nodded his head and gripped the bars of the cage. He pulled and twisted the door from its home and Ikhas crawled out of the cage. Debbie W whispered in his ear, I hope you know what you are doing. I hope so to, he replied. One lesson the Gangrels taught me is the one of respect. If you show respect to another then it is highly likely they will show respect back. rTuth did not have to respect me when I offered him a chance to be free of Trans Darra. He did and he gave me a gift greater than anything, he gave me the gift of unconditional friendship. No intelligent creature should be caged like that whatever their origins. Slaves are caged by being slaves. Prisoners are caged but they have the chance to be free when they change their ways. Debbie W thought about it. Danny sensed she agreed with him. Ikhas how much do you know about the complex? he inquired. Nothing, when they wanted me hunting the slaves they took me to my release point in the cage. My
collar is what they used to control me. It was never on whilst I was here or hunting. Danny nodded and asked, Anyone know of someone who could help us find the traps down here? A couple of seconds passed as the group thought about his request. Bia replied, Adzarn, he is very good at finding mechanical traps and similar. Adzarn, Danny, you on the planet? I am Skipper, why do you need me? Bia said you are very good at finding mechanical traps? The line was silent for a second and he replied, I am not bad, why the question? We are at the moment in the basement of Dasharys home in the dome and so far we have found a couple of nasty traps. Ok, I will head to you now. I should be with you in about ten minutes. Skipper, Mark T we have entered the first tunnel we have come to. It is about a kilometre down from the surface. Danny turned to Ikhas and asked, How much do you know of the mines? A lot, the first two tunnel levels are full of traps and dangers, the third is where the slaves that work the mines are kept. Be warned some are very mad and are used to hunt the people released in the games. Danny nodded his thanks and said, Mark T, Danny we have information that the first two tunnel levels are full of traps, the slaves that work the mines are on the third level and be warned some are mad and are used to hunt the released. Thanks for that Danny. We will proceed to the third level now. Ten minutes later Adzarn walked in to the room and looked around at all the cages and stared in somewhat wonderment at the sight of the Conservator. How come we have a Conservator? Ikhas seems to be friends with rTuth from his time as a slave for Trans Darra, replied Danny, and he wants Dashary and Facarn. Adzarn nodded his head in understanding. I had a look at the traps in the first two corridors and they are simple and effective. Danny nodded his head and said, Right let us move onwards then. The group headed down the chamber and found a lot more cages some with creatures others empty. Ikhas how come the empty cages? Danny inquired. They are empty because Dashary is always looking for more creatures to make the games more interesting for the viewers. At the end of the chamber Adzarn stopped the group at a closed door. He looked at it and ran his hand over the edge of it. Step back everyone, he said and moved to the side closest to the handle. Danny lifted his A9 and waited for Adzarn to open the door. He looked around at the group and saw Ikhas crouched ready and waiting.
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Adzarn opened the door and beyond was a short corridor. Adzarn moved into the entrance and looked around at the walls, ceiling and floor. He bent down and lightly ran his hands over the floor. He brushed away the earth covering the floor and drew his fingers around the edge of something. He said, Pressure plates. He took out his knife and slipped it down and lifted the plate slightly so he could see under it. Mm, interesting, I do like Dasharys thinking. These are not to stop the slaves and creatures getting out they are to stop people getting in. Danny looked at him and asked, How do you mean? Think about it skipper the button in the middle of the corridor, the lever at the far end. He did and he realised Adzarn was right they were not the most logical places for the safetys to be. I bet if we looked hard enough we would find other entrances to the complex in the buildings where he would take the slaves and creatures from. Bia have you got another Force wall spell memorized? No, but I do have it in my spell book, she replied and took a book from one of the pouches on her webbing. She opened the book to the right page and read what was on the page. Ten seconds later she stepped up and walked down the corridor to the other end. Adzarn stepped up and followed her down the corridor where he looked at the door and opened it. Danny followed closely followed by rTuth and Ikhas. The chamber at the end was full on cages all of them empty. Bia said, I bet this was the room where they held the slaves for the games. Danny looked around the room and found Adzarn looking at the walls. Found it, there is a door-way here, he said. He stepped back and lifted his MA40 Carbine and fired a burst at it. The dust cleared and he looked through the hole in the rock door. There is a tunnel on the far side leading up. Get it open guys, said Danny Both rTuth and Ikhas headed for the door and rTuth punched it where Adzarn pointed at. A couple of blows later rTuth and Ikhas grabbed the door and they pulled together. They ripped the door from its door way and the tunnel on the other side led up. Adzarn looked at the floor and said, It is safe. This is how they brought the slaves and creatures in. He walked up the tunnel Danny stepped into the door way and saw Adzarn open the door at the far end. Okay everyone let us get out of here. I will send in a demolitions team and seal the complex after we have removed the creatures. I will also order the destruction of the residence. He led the group out of the building right across the street from Dasharys residence. He looked up at the front of the residence where he saw a balcony. He realised Dashary must stand on the balcony watching the slaves get led in.
C&C, Danny, what is the situation with the rest of the colony? We are just mopping up now, a few areas of resistance but that is it now. We should be in complete control in under an hour, replied Major Batts. Find anything in the Dome? A group of slaves and some of the creatures Dashary uses in the games. One of them was a friend of rTuth and has been released into his care. He wants Dashary and Facarn badly. What is the situation with the pair we rescued? The line was silent for a couple of seconds. They are on route up to the Intreped now, replied Major Batts. Okay, we are going to head back to the transport, he said. Okay, chat to you in a few hours then.
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Chapter 28
Danny walked down the ramp ahead of the rest of Assault Unit One. Stood at the bottom of the ramp was Major Batts. The last of the colony security forces surrendered about twenty minutes ago and the Uzul forces have taken control of about 75% of the colony and about 50% of the Dome, he said. Danny nodded his head in understanding and said, Have you informed the Uzul forces that the prisoners are there responsibility and we expect them to be treated in accordance with Federation Policies? How many more slaves have we found? Major Batts nodded that he had. He looked pasted him as rTuth and Ikhas walked down the ramp. How come? he inquired. About five hundred, three hundred worked in the mines; Mark T thinks helping and hindering the competitors. Danny looked over his shoulder and replied, Ikhas is a friend of rTuth from his time as a slave. Both Bia and Egor have said they sense no evil intent off Ikhas. I did a little reading on them on the way up and a rare few change from being evil to good that comes from the Federation Databases on the evils and their forces. Tishun confirmed it, he said a couple of hundred years ago he was the AI aboard one of the Federation Science Vessels; one of the crew was a Conservator. He used to be the security for the teams sent to the planets. They have some very useful abilities; they can see invisible things along with a few more. He turned and started to walk towards the changing room so he could stow his armour. I have ordered all the animals, weapons and equipment be brought up to the ship so we can take a look and see what needs to be dumped in the nearest safe keeping centre. Ten minutes later Danny walked into the Main Hydroponics Bay and found the YGs all playing on the play items. YG Paula ran over and jumped into his arms. Welcome back dad, she said. He walked to the drinks making area and collected himself a coffee. He turned and walked to one of the tables and placed her on the seat beside him. He sat down and took a mouthful of drink. What was it like on the planet dad; Major Batts allowed us to watch some of the operations, she said. Danny thought about the operation and replied, It was not too bad, the person we wanted escaped though. rTuth and Ikhas walked into the bay and after rTuth collected a drink they headed for where Danny sat with YG Paula. Danny looked up and rTuth sat down and Ikhas sat on the ground at the end of the table. YG Paula meet the latest member of the crew Ikhas, he is a friend of rTuths. YG Paula looked at Ikhas and said, And now you are friend of mine.
Captain, said Ikhas, how come the children? rTuth told me this is a warship. YG Paula looked at Ikhas and said, I am not a child Ikhas, I as is all the under 14s on board Young Gangrels. Danny looked at YG Paula and said, The YGs on board are as much members of the ship as everyone else. They are all members of the Ship Board Defence teams and have been detailed with causing as many problems and confusion amongst attackers as they can and that is considerable. They can and do pop-up where you least expect them too normally behind the attackers. They are all being trained in Gangrel Street and have a specially designed laser weapons and armour. They are also learning how to maintain the back areas. I am sorry friend, he said. Apology accepted, she said. YG Fred walked over and gave Danny a hug in welcome. He moved around the table carrying a large canvas. You finished it YG Fred? he inquired when he saw the canvas. Yes I have dad, he replied and lifted up the painting. Danny looked at it and he loved it. That is amazing YG Fred, I love it. It is going to be hung behind my desk in my office on the command deck. I have sent a picture to the Warhound and one to Grattan on Darra Von, he said. His PDU played a sound to indicate something and he took it out of his utility belt and replied to the video chat request. Danny looked over at the screen and saw it was Cassandra. From the small speaker came the Cassandras voice, YG Fred that painting is amazing. Can I have it blown up so it can be hung as a print in the house? she asked. Yes I will send you the file so you can get a proper print done, he replied. Is Danny there? she inquired. I am Cassandra, I have just come back from an assault on a Darkness Game site, he replied. Ok, how did it go? Pretty good, except our prime target escaped, we did rescue a lot of slaves from the site which kind of made up for the loss, he said. Good, she replied. You will get him in time Danny. He smiled as he knew she was right they would. It would take better planning and also making sure his Transport was dealt with before hand. Richmond T walked in and over to the table. He knelt down and whispered in his ear, Communications has just received a message from a Federation Patrol concerning the seizing of a transport carrying seventy slaves bound for the Blood Combat Arenas on IT3443-2. He looked at him and smiled a subtle smile in thanks. How does the download of information from the Domes computers go?
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Pretty good, Tishun estimates he has about 40% of the information from them. The rest of the forces should be heading up in a few hours. The demolition teams have started placing the explosive charges in the complex and the main residence, Richmond T added. Danny nodded his head in understanding. One place I do need to go is the medical facility and a look in on the two brought up. Richmond T stood up and said, They are doing better. Dr White has been personally supervising their treatments. Luca was right when she said they were dehydrated and starved. They were also tortured quite badly. Danny finished his coffee and said to the table, I think I need to go and get the report from the doctors treating the pair. He stood up and walked with Richmond T out of the bay. ***** rTuth sat and watched Danny go and he smiled that he was going to make sure Danny lived a long life. rTuth, said Ikhas. rTuth looked at Ikhas as he moved to sit on the seat Danny had vacated. Yes my friend, he responded. He is an interesting man and not the traditional Captain of a warship. He is someone who is interested in the welfare of the people. That he is, replied rTuth. When he and his sister captured me, he knew I was scared of Trans Darra finding out I had chatted to him. He organised bringing me to the ship so they could not listen in. Since then Trans Darra has tried to send a number of Flyeyes onto the ship and every time Tishun has stopped them. Where Trans Darra lied to me about my mum, he did not and organised me chatting to her over the FTL Link. She visited after we had arrived at Fratten Five and she has since been offered a job with someone very special. I am not going to say anymore than that other than to say my silence is what is best for him. Bia walked in and after collecting herself a drink she walked to where they sat. YG Paula and YG Fred both got down and headed back to join the YGs playing in the trees. Bia asked when she had sat down, Ikhas how do you survive as I remember learning during our training you feed off mana? I feed by simply cutting someone who has a high mana base, replied Ikhas. rTuths PDU buzzed, he took it out and saw on the screen a male elf. Who are you? he asked. I am the pictorial reprensation of Tishun, rTuth. Ikhas you need not worry about needing to feed in the traditional sense. I served as a Science Vessels AI a couple of hundred years ago and learnt how to feed Conservators as one served as a member of the vessels security team. I can transfer the required energy from my own stores as I regenerate from the natural mana stores on the vessel. I draw from everyone on board constantly; it is what powers the item creation platforms we have. Bia looked impressed by this information. Well that answers that question, but I now have one for you Tishun, do you draw from the mages on board? No, no Vessel AI draws directly from a mage unless it is offered. The crew on the Intreped is such that
even at my highest outputs of mana there is always more than enough for me to remain at full power. We know how important your stores are Bia. Having the YGs on board mean I need to draw even less as they radiate more mana where adults do not radiate it as much. ***** Danny walked in the medical facility and found the two elves sat up in bed. They both looked a little healthier than they had on the planet. A tube ran from their arms into a number of bags that hung from hooks in the ceiling. Andrea W walked out of her office and approached him as he stood in the door watching the pair. Doc, he said, what is the prognosis on the pair? he inquired. Good, they are both on high energy drips and have taken sips of water rather than have to lick it from their lips. She indicated that should follow her into her office. He did and inside he sat on the desk looking at the pair. The torture they both suffered is another matter though. cFan and wImmz have both had a close look at it and from their prognosis it is highly likely they will never have natural young elves. I have run an experiment the infertility clinics run on Darra Von to see if we can use other cells to allow them the chance to at least have young and the results look promising. Luca is looking at maybe trying a few of her spells to see if she can repair the damage done, she is also consulting with Barry to see if he might be able to help. We have not told them the situation as yet as they are not ready to hear it. He nodded that he understood the situation. wImmz has spoken at length with the Birthing Clinic on EE026-4 and they are very interested in the infertility work Darra Von has done. It does look like Darra Von is more advanced in a number of medical areas. That may be the case, but Darra Von is a friend of the Federation and if can help them improve that area then all the more reason to help them. I know if Alice had the chance she would have had children. Andrea W looked at him and suggested, Has she thought about having a surrogate mother, I am sure one of the crew would be happy to carry a baby for her? I am not sure, but is it even possible for her to provide clean enough cells for the chance to have them, he said. Andrea W looked like she was thinking about something and said, Have her come and see me and I will see what we can do. We have an advantage out here we have zero gravity and that can do wonders which are not even possible in micro-gravity. Danny smiled and nodded that he had a very basic understanding of the situation. I will have a chat to her about it, he said. ***** Eight hours later Danny sat in his cabin relaxing.
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Communications, Danny can you open a channel to Star Admiral wWish please Channel open Captain, replied Trevor D. The LPD changed to show the Star Admiral sat in an office. Star Admiral, he said. Danny, how are things with you? he inquired. Things are very good thanks, the assault was a success in that we rescued a good 500 slaves and freed the colony and mining centre. Dashary escaped but that was more due to bad luck and his Body Guard forces than anything we did wrong. wWish looked upset at that news. Damn, he said. What is happening to the slaves you rescued? At the moment they are on the planet being cared for by the colonists and the Uzul. I was thinking about the situation with them as I guess a lot of them would like to go home and maybe find family and loved ones. wWish thought about the situation and suggested, I will signal one of the vessels in the area to call past and pick up the ones who want to leave. I will also talk to the Federation Council about getting some help in sending them back to their home planets. Danny nodded his thanks on the slaves behalves. Thank you wWish, he said. What are your plans now? inquired wWish. Our plans now are to head back to Fratten Five as I said I would call and see how a certain girl was doing and then head for Rugthz and get the upgrade to the Intreped finished. Post that I think it is about time we rescued Shakka from Trans Darra, he said around a smile. What do you want done with the creatures we found? wWish thought about his question and answered, Bring them back with you and we will ship them off to planets better suited to house them. Ok, Danny replied and said, Command Deck, Danny, what is the situation with the creatures we found? We have brought them up and placed them in Cargo Bay 22. Ikhas has said he will watch them. He has asked that you allow him access to the weapons we have brought up, replied Heinrich. Danny thought about Ikhas request and replied, Allow him the access to them and let me know what weapons he takes. Will do. Danny looked back at the screen and wWish was looking interested in what he had said. Sorry Star Admiral, we found Dashary had a Conservator caged and it looks like he was a friend of rTuths from his time as a slave. Very interesting, I have heard of a few that have joined the Federation, it is a low number I think in the last 1000 years only six have joined us, replied wWish. I read about that and Tishun said he served as a vessels AI and had one that acted as a member of the
Security Forces on board. wWish nodded that he knew about that. Yes I served as the vessels captain and I had no trouble with him. He was a great planet Security Officer for the science teams. I think he might still be serving with us on the WQ774. They are on a deep space exploration mission at the moment. How long before you depart? A few hours yet, we are going to be staying in orbit just to make sure the Uzul are following the Federation Policies on prisoner handling, he replied. The buzzer on his door sounded and he stood up and headed to it. wWish said, I will let you get on Captain and see you when you arrive here. Chat to you very soon Star Admiral, he replied and opened the door. Stood on the outside was Alice. Come in sis, he said and moved out of the way of the door. You wanted to see me bro? she inquired and headed for the comfortable chairs. Yes, I visited the medical suite earlier and Andrea W told me about the fact the two elves we rescued would unlikely be able to have natural children. She has run some tests the infertility clinics on Darra Von run and the results are promising. I know you before you joined Security Command you wanted to have children and Andrea W brought up a good idea, surrogacy. Alice thought about what he was talking about. She replied, Okay, but what about the contamination of our cells though? Andrea W thinks with us being in zero-g she might be able to do something concerning that, he replied. Alice sat back and thought. After a few seconds she said, I will need to go and have a chat to Andrea W concerning it, but I would love the chance to have a child. I know you would, he said, and I know this would be one of the best environments to have them in. Alice smiled as the buzzer went again. He stood up and headed for the door and opened it. Come in rTuth, he said. Thank you, rTuth replied and walked in. How is Ikhas settling in? he inquired as they walked to the comfortable seating. rTuth replied, Pretty well, he volunteered to keep a watch over the creatures we brought up and has asked that you allow him access to the weapons we brought up? Already allowed that, Heinrich asked me a few minutes ago. Where is Ikhas going to be sleeping? In with me, replied rTuth. Alice looked at rTuth and said, I am sure we can find him some quarters. Do not worry Alice, Ikhas has not had the best of times living on his own. It was what led him to being captured in the first place. He was hunting for some stock on SD64 when he came across Dashary and his hunting party; they were also hunting for creatures to stock a few of their more violent shows. He thought he
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would be able to keep away from them but they caught him and something in the trap stopped him from teleporting back to his boss. At the time I think Dashary had no idea of what Ikhas was and put him to work in the cargo loading centre. When I left he escaped and killed a number of the security guards watching the loading and unloading. Facarn hunted him and she beat him in single combat and they shipped him off to the Darkness Games site; from then he had been hunting the slaves released into the games. From what he has said, he has been forced to kill something like 200 competitors normally during the last couple of rounds. Both he and Alice looked unhappy at the news of how Ikhas was treated. That is the one thing I hate most, the treatment of slaves, they are just a financial commodity for their masters. I bet some of the successful competitors would have earnt the company millions not only in advertising but also in betting. More than bloody likely bro, added Alice. How long before we depart and head for Frattan Five? A couple of hours yet, I just want to make sure the Uzul are following the Federation Prisoner Policies, he replied. I might leave one of the transports in system for a few days and have them watch the situation on the ground. You two want a drink? Alice replied, Please bro. rTuth thought about the offer and replied, Yes thanks, just a juice of something. I have been wondering how Dashary has taken the assault and the fact he has lost this site to the Federation. Same here, Danny replied as he walked towards the kitchenette.
Chapter 29
Dashary sat in the living quarters of his transport and he was seething with anger. Who the feck are they? How dare they assault the Darkness Games site? Facarn walked in from the cockpit and said, I have just looked at the sensor logs as we left the atmosphere and the readings are the same as the ones we got in DR1554 for the Intreped. Who the guys were on the ground, that I have no idea; they were very well trained. If the alarm had not sounded I think they would have gotten to the transport before us boss. He looked at her and said, Thank you for getting me on the transport. When we get back I want a security review of all Dark Line Production sites. I want the security upped on all the sites. I do not plan on losing any more production sites. I also want a Board Meeting organised the only topic is how do we deal with this new threat. One of the Body Guards placed a drink on the table in front of him. He looked up and said, Thank you Master Serg. You are welcome boss. It looked like you could do with it. He looked at Facarn and noticed for the first time she was hurt in the arm. Get that looked at Facarn, I cannot afford to lose you. She looked at injury and said, I will when we get back to the HQ. She called over her shoulder, Anything coming after us? No boss, the Intreped has remained in orbit. He sighed in relief at that news. Who the hell were those people? They were not Federation troops that much I do know as my security team is far better than them. Facarn said as she sat down beside him, I will take a close look at the Intreped and try and find out as much as I can about them and the crew. Thanks, he said. I still do not believe what happened. How did they find out about the site, it is a secret where we produce the Dark Line shows? No idea, I will also take a look at that. ***** The transport landed in his private landing bay and Hazz stood waiting for them. Dashary walked down the ramp and saw from Hazzs face he was not happy with something. What is up Hazz? he inquired. We received a FTL communications message from Captain Curtdoza a few days ago and it showed the
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entire assault on the Darkness Games site from start to finish; all three hours of it. The equipment they used is advanced, well beyond what the Federation has, he said. Dashary did not look happy at this news. A while later Dashary sat in his apartment with Hazz, oSheen and Facarn. Right with the loss of the production centre on ER0879 we need to re-evaluate our security of the other Dark Line Production Centres, we can expect them to be targeted next, said Dashary. We also need to seriously look at getting the rest of the Security Forces trained in defensive operations. Facarn sat forward and said, That I will get on and I have already started on; I have ordered your Personal Security Force to begin training the station security in advanced defensive and assault tactics. I will in a few days put some feelers out to a few of the Free Combat units to bolster our production site defences. Dashary looked at her and said, Also employ a couple of units to go and cause them problems. I doubt they are as good as they seemed. They hit us by surprise and that is more than likely to be why we lost the site. Facarn shook her head as if to answer no it was not; she said, No boss, we lost the site because the security in the colony were crap. They had no leadership, they were hated by the colonists. We need to seriously look at employing Security Forces, not using locals. Dashary thought about what she said and he realised she was right, they did. oSheen said, Intelligence wise what I can tell you is Captain Curtdoza is highly connected on EM001. He was offered the command of the Intreped by Nicole Chancer. Information on her is sketchy; it looks like she is a Street Ghost with some standing. She has one brother and sister both of them are also Street Ghosts and Jane Chancer was also the chair and CEO of one of the MegaCorporations on EM001. Nicole herself is an enigma as she has I swear a twin, but he is not listed as a sibling and this person was the Chair and CEO of Echo Tech Inc and C.Industries, another two of the MegaCorporations. Dashary looked at oSheen and said, Show me. He brought up the images of Nicole and Nicolai. Nicolai is not Nicoles sibling, they are the same person. oSheen looked as if he was trying to work something out. Nicole is what is called Trans, in that she sometimes goes in the male mode and sometimes in the female. Do a back trace on the Chancer family tree, he said. oSheen looked interested in knowing why. Why boss? he inquired. I have a feeling you will find that Nicole, Jane and Richard have no siblings and also no end certificates. I remember facing a Richard Chancer 200 years ago and he kicked my arse around the ring that day. Facarn would have a problem beating him in a fair fight. oSheen nodded his in understanding as to the reason. Maid, bring us some drinks, he commanded. A couple of seconds the maid walked in and collected a fresh round of drinks for the group.
Hazz you have said very little, he said after the maid had departed the room. I know, I have been working out how do we combat this new threat. At this point in time I have no idea how to even start. Dashary took a sip of his drink and said, At the moment all we can do is to control the fallout from the loss. I have called a Board Meeting tomorrow; the only item being discussed is this new threat. One thing you can do is start to scan the FTL bands. You are looking for anything we can use against them. That also applies to you oSheen, we need to have an edge when we next meet them. I do not plan on having any more losses to them. ***** Dashary walked down the corridor heading for the Board Meeting of all the Department Heads. Facarn caught him up and said as they walked, I have taken the video apart and they are using some highly advanced equipment. It is as if they know what is happening all around them without anyone directing them on the ground. Communications if it happens it is silent. The heavily armoured units are powerful and some are very nasty. A unit of five slaughtered thirteen men with them having a chance to reply. The big units must tower over ten metres and they are heavily armed. Dashary said, They cannot be that good, they must have some form of external control we are just not seeing it. How many men would you say were on the planet? Facarn looked as if she had no idea. I would say 600 maybe 700, she replied. Danny nodded and asked, How many crew would you say for the Intreped? She looked again as if she had no real idea. She replied, Likely more than 1500 men. Again he nodded his head in understanding. They came to the door into the Board Room. Continue with your analysis and come and find me after the Board Meeting, he said and opened the door. He walked in as she turned and headed away. Good noon to you all. You all know why I have called this meeting. I have just come from an hour long FTL conference with Adarn Close Weapons, they want to know what we are going to do concerning this new threat to us. Are they pulling their sponsorship? asked Fazzimma. He looked at her and replied, No they are not. He looked around the table. Regarn asked, Do we know where this threat comes from? We do, Dashary replied, they come from EM001 otherwise known as Darra Von. One thing I can add is they are closer to becoming full members of the Federation than our allies the Uzul, added tRimma. Dashary looked at him in surprise. You must have that information wrong, they have only been amongst the Federation for what nine months? No this information comes from a very reliable source in the High Council. They have a Planetary
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Government where the Uzul do not, there are only a few minor issues stopping the vote from going ahead. It looks like hHillfifer is going to advise giving them full Council Membership in a few months. Dashary sat back and looked at each member of the Board in shock. This is not the news I wanted to hear. I have oSheen looking for intelligence into the crew members; Facarn is already having the elite train the Security Personal so we can bolster site security. One thing I can add is we are having real problems hacking into the FTL signals they are using a very advanced encryption system on all the communications coming from EM001. The Net Teams need to get access to the encryption system before they will be able to break in to it and we can start transmitting signals to Darra Von. No two communication messages use the same encryption. All we can read is the header and all that contains is the people receiving it, the sender and a series of twelve letters and numbers. Everything else is encrypted. Dashary looked at Telamine and said, That is not good. Ok use whatever contacts you have to get access to the system or the programs. ***** Dashary sat in his office looking out over the insides of the HQ when the door buzzer sounded. Come in, it is open, he called out. Facarn walked in and sat on the chair in front of his desk. He turned and looked at her. How did the Board Meeting go? Pretty well, we have a few good ideas as to how to combat them, but it all relies on a few pieces of back ground information that we do not have. How is your analysis going? Pretty good boss, I have finished analysing the footage. The weapons are a mixture of ballistic, energy and plasma, they are using some very advanced targeting systems that seem to be able to differentiate between friend and foe. Looking very closely at the items that cover one of their eyes shows a number of screens and one looks like a map with dots on and these dots move, she replied. Dashary nodded his head in understanding. Reports from the Head of News Shows said the Federation Military now have some new technology and it is supposed to improve their accuracy and allow them the knowledge of locations, he said. The Technology Reporters are trying to get a look at it but have had no luck and we both know how hard it is to get anyone from the military to help us. Facarn nodded her head in a fashion saying she knew that already. One thing I can confirm rTuth is with them and he seems to be protecting the captain and he is no longer wearing the Juicer Rig. Anything else you can report about him? he inquired. Yes he looks slightly different now than he did. I have the technology teams looking at it but they so far have come up with no answers, she replied. He shook his head in frustration. I would love to know what their next move will be, where they are going to hit or what they are going to do.
Facarns hand held computer bleeped. She took it out as it bleeped for a second time. She looked at it and said, This is good, we have just had the update to the Federation Ship Registry arrive and it does list the Intreped and a second ship The Warhound. She looked at the information stored on the vessels and her eyes opened wide. He looked at her and tried to work out why the look on her face. Oh my! she said. The CS001 Warhound and the CS002 Intreped are both Warhound class Heavy Attack Cruisers. She looked up at him and continued, They each have a crew compliment of 1800 men and their weapons load out is powerful. What do they have? he inquired. Anti-particle weapons, missiles, various rated neutral particle cannons and Point Defence Weapons; The Warhound has a 200mm twin Rail Cannon and the Intreped four heavy pulse laser cannons, she replied. They have a troop compliment of 1000 men and 800 crew and they are between 25 and 40% faster than a comparable weight Federation vessel. It was his turn to look surprised. What is their speed then? Sub-light 0.87 Light Mach and in hyperspace 7.6 Light Mach. He knew from those figures these would be serious ships, quite capable of outrunning his transports top sub-light speed of 0.72 Light Mach. My only question is how the hell did they appear in low orbit without the colony knowing and alerting us. That is not mentioned here, she replied. He powered up his computer and took a look at the file and he looked down the list. In the Under Construction section he saw the entry for the CS003 Fraker and the DV001 along with a number of smaller System Patrol Vessels and they all had the CS classification. He thought about why the difference in classification. He then realised the difference was due to a rumour he had heard whilst he travelled on Darra Von 200 years ago. Have you looked at the Under Construction section? Yes, why the two classifications on the vessels? she asked. I have a feeling the CS stands for Conspiracy Ship. This is only rumours I heard whilst I travelled as I did spend a number of years on Darra Von, this was before I knew Darra Von was EM001; the rumours concerned an organisation fighting the evils that had set up home on Darra Von, he replied.
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Chapter 30
Danny sat in the Command Seat as Simon C jumped to hyperspace on the first leg of the return journey to Trashan. He knew how long it was going to take before they dropped out and altered their heading and made the second jump. He was planning on spending the time working on the pod and his idea for a new troop support gunship. He stood up and said, Commander Danes, the command deck is yours. He turned and headed for the door. He wanted to go and check up on Ikhas as he was sleeping in cargo bay 22 watching the creatures they had brought up from the planet. Inside the lift he inquired, Tishun, where is Ikhas? He is using Simulator Room One at the moment, Tishun replied. Thanks, Marcha Simulator Room One please. The lift moved and a few seconds later the door opened just down from the door in to Simulator Room One. He walked down the corridor and looked at the panel outside the door. He saw Ikhas was using his Advanced Close Combat Training program. He pressed the door open button and stepped into the room and stood in the arch way watching as Ikhas fought Amy. He shook his head as Amy span low and took out Ikhas legs, then with the speed of a trained master she forced him on to his back. Program end, said Ikhas. The program ended and Amy vanished. Ikhas, he called. Ikhas looked around and saw him stood in the arch way. Captain, he said and walked over to where he stood. How are you finding the Training Program? he inquired. Bloody hard, I have fought three, Tina, Jum and Amy and they have all beaten me. I cannot work out how come; I am feeling like my time in captivity has destroyed me. Danny laughed at this and said, No it has not. On route from Rugthz to Trashan I set the computers working on creating these programs because all twelve of the Vixens are something more than just people trained in close quarters combat. They are The New Dragon Defenders of Darra Von and the Darra Toral Galaxy; they are all masters and also something more than just human. Tishun display the twelve original Vixens for me. All twelve Vixens appeared in a box suspended in the room. Nibs, Sandra, Wong, Jum, Tina, and Abs are all True Adepts; they are faster, stronger and tougher than normal humans. Angel and Damieel are a Fallen Angel Risen Daemon team. Hell Bright and Amy are both
mages and Amy is also tattooed with I think 14 tattoos. Ikhas looked at him and said, That is not possible no one can be a mage and have 14 tattoos. Going over six destroys all magick wielding abilities. You can with her origins, he replied. Ikhas looked at him in utter shock. Are you telling me she is a Chaing-ku Dragon as they are the only race to be able to mix Tattoos and Magick. She is not exactly a Chaing-ku but something very close, she is half Darra Vonian half Chaing-ku; do not ask me how come as I do not know. I think it is to do with who her mother was, he replied. Ren is a PsiTech and Paul PD is a Shaman. There is one more member of the team that is not displayed but that is due to the fact he has no fighting skills other than being an Angel Wolf who from what I have read was able to break the curse on his kind. Ikhas looked away in utter surprise and shock. They are all masters of their chosen combat forms and each is based off a specific Dragon Defender of old, he said. Oh my, no wonder I have been getting beaten then. I know all about the legends of the Dragon Defenders. They were brutal and very powerful, he said. Danny laughed again at this. So are these twelve, the difference is these Dragon Defenders use guile and an assassins blade to do the same job as the old Dragon Defenders. It is what I am doing here with Trans Darra. I am removing bits and using intelligence rather than going straight for the kill. In time Dashary will come to us and it is then we will destroy him; plus we can have a lot of fun in the mean time. One other thing each and every member is partnered to each other, they fight as one team distinctive elements. My younger brother and his partner are partners not only in the legal sense but also on the battle field, again I have no idea how come; but to watch them work and fight is amazing. How are the creatures doing? Ikhas thought about the situation with the creatures and replied, Not too bad, I have had to beat the Demonrunner a couple of times, but he now knows I am the boss and is being good, but that species is like that. You need to show them who the boss is. Do you know what is going to happen to them? Danny nodded his head in understanding. No other than Star Admiral wWish is going to likely send them off to somewhere better suited to handling them. Ikhas now nodded his head in understanding of the situation. I will leave you now but I will say this, do some research into the Vixens before trying to fight them. Ikhas looked into space and said, I will. Tishun display for me all the files showing the Vixens in combat. A list appeared in the room in chronological order from the first battle under the Wacker HQ. Danny turned and walked out and turned back for the lift. A few seconds later he walked across the corridor running down beside the Flight Deck and onto it.
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He looked at the pod and saw a number of teams working on building the structure. He headed for where he saw Alice chatting to Ugine. He stood back rather than interrupt the pair. Alice said, When we arrive in the Rugthz system and we move the structural frame work out of the Flight Deck we will have to rotate the work crews as I do not want them working for too long in space. I agree with you on that, but at least with us being there we will have access to more people as only 100 of the crew have true EVA training when it comes to construction work, Ugine replied. Alice stood thinking about the situation and said, I think it could be a good time to get more people trained in that then. We have thirteen days before we arrive in Trashan and then another six to Rugthz and that is without thinking about the flight times in the systems. Ugine now thought about something. That would mean a good 25 days before we even start to think about putting everything together. Alice nodded her head in agreement. She looked over her shoulder at the working being done and when she looked back she saw him standing waiting. Bro what can I do for you? she inquired. I thought about putting some time in helping. We are on route Commander Danes knows what he is doing, so I thought I would lend a hand down here, he replied. Alice thought about it and replied, I know the team building the engines and reactors need some help. I have most of the crew working on building the structure frame work. Where are they working on those areas? he inquired. Down the other end of the flight deck, she replied. He turned and walked down the flight deck. He bent down as he walked under the frame work linking the tracks together. At the other end of the pod he saw the crews from power systems and propulsion working on the engines and one of the two AM Reactors. James K stood looking up at the starts of the vessel. He headed of where James K stood and asked, You need an eager to learn worker? I always need those Danny, especially one with your gifts. How much can you lift? Not as much as rTuth, probably around 500 to 600 lbs easily, he replied. James K thought about what was needed doing. Okay, I do need someone to support the lower injector assembly in place as the work crews weld it in place. Danny smiled that he was happy to do whatever. James K walked to where the assembly sat waiting. What is the system we are using? he inquired. I have reviewed the information from the Federation on their AM reactors and have designed this off their specifications. It should give us a 10 maybe 15% power increase over the current reactors, James K replied. The engines are going to be new as well again designed off the Federation versions. Danny looked at the assembly and lifted it after placing his hands on a pair of hand holds. He moved it to the hole in the bottom or the vessel and aligned it so it fitted snugly in the hole.
James K moved with his and said, Make sure the plates are snug with the skin. A couple of the crew moved beside them and using star plasma torches they spot welded the brackets to the skin holding it in place. After a couple of minutes the welds had cooled and Danny released the hand holds and moved back out from under the skin. How is an AM reactor built? he inquired. James K led him up a set of steps and at the platform at the top Danny looked into the actual vessel. As you can see the reactor is built on an internal frame work which is removed when we have finished it. Here we are building it in three pieces the bottom, top and middle sections. The top is in the other half of the flight deck. When we reach Rugthz we will move the two sections out of the flight deck and into the pod. At that point we will build the middle section from the inside out as the actual reactor vessel is made from three skins with the outer one being made from a super dense ceramic. The welds on all three sections must be continuous and not have any flaws; that is the really hard bit and only three crew are qualified to actually do the welding; me, Richardo Montro and Dancetina. Richardo M is at the moment welding the Injector Assembly into place. The spot welds are on the outside and so are not so important. Danny watched as Richardo M very slowly welded the injector housing into place. Plus the middle and outer skins will also be welded into the assembly, added James K. Danny shook his head in wonder as the level of expertise in the crew. The other thing that is vital the welds must be flush with the inner skin. That is really hard to do. I think Alice might have the skills but she is unqualified. You can only get the qualifications after serving on either an AM Construction Team for at least a year and a half or have be qualified on a Star Plasma Torch for four years. I have had my Star Plasma Torch qualifications for seven now and even I cannot assess people for AM Reactor Welding Certification. Danny looked at James K in surprise. To give you an idea of the power of the Anti-Matter we are carrying as our fuel supply, one ounce had the same explosive potential as a 200 kiloton nuclear warhead. We are carrying 47 kilos of the stuff. The only crew with access rights to the stores are the Section Heads and both Yelena and Alice have said to all of us that they will not enter the Fuel Store Room without one of the others being with them. Creator that is some potential, Danny said. James K nodded his head in agreement. To make sure the AM Reactors are safe the gap between the inner and middle skins is full of high pressure liquid helium. It is under about 200 atmospheres which the guys who designed the reactors said would nullify any possible damage from stray AM atoms. That is in addition to the entire inside of the reactor having a magnetic containment field. Danny stood and thought about what he had read on the reactors, he knew he had only really touched the surface of it. What is Anti-Matter then? he asked. Anti-Matter is the exact opposite of matter; where matter is composed of a positive core and a negative
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shell; anti-matter is the opposite, a negative core and a positive shell. The AP Cannons we have reverse the charge on particles and then fire them out of the cannons along a magnetic tube. The diameter of the tube indicates the power output of the cannon. At 10% power the tube is about a nanometre which equates to about 10-6, where a metre is 1, in diameter, at 100% it is about 10-4 in diameter. Okay, so that is how the AP Cannons work. I have looked at them briefly but the science behind them is what baffled me. I have never really been taught much science; Alice was always the scientist of us. Being Security Command Intelligence it was never really taught to us, he said. James K nodded his head in understanding. If you want you should look at sitting in on some of the science workshops that are being run for the Gangrels, YGs and any crew interested. I might look at those, he said. Are the workshops listed anywhere so the crew can find out when they are happening? James K thought about it and replied, I think Tishun might have the schedule for them. I think jKith is running a workshop on Particle Physics in a couple of hours in the Particle Lab. I might look at getting to that and any others that are run. I am always interested in improving myself, he said. After five more minutes Richardo M stopped and dropped the HUU he was wearing into place and looked like he was studying the weld. At the end of this he stood up and headed for the ladder up the framework. A minute later he stepped onto the platform and looked down at the work done so far. Captain, he said. This is some job you are doing here Richardo M, said Danny. Richardo M smiled and said, Yes it is, but it is nice to put my welding skills to work. I worked on the other AM Reactors powering the Intreped and the Warhound. I got my AM Welding Certification working on the Intrepeds Reactors. So how long have you had the certification then? Danny inquired. Three years now. The AM Reactors were the first major piece to be installed after the frame work had been finished, replied Richardo M. Danny thought about the fact of the workshops and said, I think I will go and find jKith and have a chat to her, he said. James K smiled at him and said, Okay, thanks for the Injector Assembly; it would have been a nightmare putting it in. Danny laughed and replied, I am only to pleased I could be of help. Alice can lift about the same as I can. He turned and walked down the steps and saw rTuth was stood looking up at something. rTuth, he called and walked towards him. rTuth looked over at him and replied, Danny. What are you looking at? Danny inquired. That, rTuth replied and pointed at one of the sections of the structure. I have just placed and welded it
in place and Jason H said he was impressed by my welding skills. Danny looked impressed by this. Well done you, he said. What are you up to at the moment? rTuth inquired. Heading to have a chat with jKith about her Particle Physics Workshop she is running, as we are pretty much on down time at the moment we might as well use it to improve ourselves. Ikhas is, he is taking on the Vixens on the Simulator Rooms. rTuth nodded that he knew about it. I know, do you know how is he doing? When I was there about an hour ago he was not very happy as Amy, Tina and Wong had beaten him. I explained to him about the Vixens being the New Dragon Defenders and masters of their forms. He then understood that it was not him, they were just better than he is at the moment. I pity Facarn when they go head to head again, as if Ikhas trains against them he is going to kick her arse. Good, it is about time someone did, said rTuth. rTuth any chance you can support this strut for us, called someone in the frame work. He smiled at Danny and said, My abilities are being called for. Chat to you later Danny. Danny smiled as rTuth headed off towards one of the ladders up. He turned and headed for the lift. Tishun where is jKith at the moment? She is in the Particle Lab Danny, Tishun replied. Thanks, he said and walked into the lift. The Particle Lab thanks Marcha, he said. A few seconds later the lift door opened and allowed him out opposite the Particle Labs door. He crossed the corridor and the door slid open. He walked in and saw jKith and hGun were both working on something. jKith any chance I can have a chat with you, he said smiling at the pair. jKith looked up and replied, Of course Captain. She walked to where he stood looking around the laboratory. How can I help? Danny thought about what he wanted to know about. Todays workshop what are you going to be covering? he inquired. It is Basic Particle Physics, she replied. Danny nodded his head in understanding. Have you got any problems with me sitting in as I am interested in understanding more about it? No, anyone is welcome to come along Captain, she replied. What are you wanting to learn? Just the basics, I was just down on the Flight Deck helping James K with the AM reactor they are building. He was talking about particles being a positive core and an electron shell and anti-matter being the exact opposite, not that it went over my head, it was just very advanced, he replied. jKith laughed at this and said, That I can understand. Anti-Matter is very complicated and if it is wanted then I will go into it in a future workshop, but one is just going to cover the basics of Particle Physics. hGun is also running a workshop on Stellar Physics and I know other scientists are going to be running other
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workshops. Danny nodded his understanding. I think I will be coming to a lot of them then. As a part of my training we never really covered science other than a basic understanding. A couple of hours later the door slid open and in walked a number of Gangrels and a few of the YGs they moved to the seats that had been set up. A couple of minutes later the door opened again and some of the crew walked in these people also headed for the rest of the seats. jKith looked at the group and smiled as they settled down. Most took out their PDUs and got them ready for the workshop. Tishun, Danny I am not available for a while. If anyone needs me it had better be a good reason, he said. Not a problem, I shall inform Commander Danes that you are not available for a while. Thank you, he responded and like everyone else he took out his PDU. Right everyone, I know you are all here to get a basic understanding of Particle Physics and that is what I hope to give you by the end of this session. If you want more advanced workshops then I will be happy to provide them. First things first who am I and why am I giving you this workshop. I am jKith and I hold a Trashan Science Academy Thesis in Particle Physics, my Thesis was on how particles react under specific interactions; it is available on the Library Database. This workshop I will cover the basics, what is a particle, how it is made. I will brush on atoms and molecules, but Professor Fendick will be holding workshops on that, before any of that I think you should know about me and what led me to being here. Danny sat at the back and listened to what jKith was saying, he looked at his PDU and brought up her thesis and quickly read the introduction. He saved it as it was going into a lot of this that went right over his head. I am 1040 years old, just over half the average life span of elves in the Darra Toral Galaxy, and have served on seven different star vessels and space stations. The last before here was Frattan Five. I have to thank Nibola Calton-Patterson, Star Admiral wWish and Ambassador hHillfifer for what happened to me then. The times between my times in space I worked at a number of places and Science Academies. One with the Captains permission I would like to take a group to as it is a place where a lot of very Advanced Particle Research is carried out. I was 689 when I finished my thesis at the facility and it took a further three years before I was awarded my Thet Award. ***** At the end of the Workshop Danny stayed in the laboratory whilst the rest of the people headed out chatting about various things jKith had spoken about. She walked over to him and asked, How did you find that Captain? Very informative indeed, he replied. The Facility you spoke of at the start where is it? It is orbiting QS273-3, the orbital base is one of the Trashan Science Academy Sub Centres. They do a lot of Particle and Stellar Research there. hGun gained his Posin Award whilst working there on Sun Matter
and Sun Particles, she replied. They walked out of the laboratory and turned for the ramp up to Deck Fifteen. As they walked Danny asked, How is it only one Fermion can be in one Quantum State but more than one can occupy the same location? That is very complicated, but the simple answer is Fermions are pretty much the building blocks of atoms and so matter, she replied. The complicated answer involves some pretty advanced Quantum Mathematics. We only start looking at that when we go from base schooling to higher schooling. The pair walked up the ramps from Deck Eighteen to Deck Fifteen and down the corridor into the Main Hydroponics Bay. They headed for the drinks making area and collected themselves both a drink. They moved away from the main area and sat down on a log. Danny asked, Why are you here? I looked at your service history and other than the blip during your time on Frattan Five; you could be earning three times what you are being paid to serve here. I know, the real reason is to support my sons research into Black Suns. He has a theory that if a sun is subjected to the right gravitational forces then it will undergo a quantum shift and become a Black Sun. My knowledge and understanding of Particle and Gravitational Physics is far superior than his, she replied. Danny smiled and nodded his head in understanding of the reason. Plus I do enjoy space and space travel, she added. The facility orbiting QS273-3 what makes it so special? he asked. The facility is the site of the largest magnetic accelerator ring and operates in micro gravity. There is almost no area of the station with any form of artificial gravity. The only place that has it is the landing dock and that is at the end of a 1000metre arm. Particles after being fired travel 200 kilometres before they reach the main collision chamber. They might be kept out of the chamber and continue to circle for hours possibly undergoing small collisions so the researchers get access to other particles before ramming them together in the main chamber, she replied. My thesis studied the effects on particles and atoms as they travelled around the various rings. My main Thet Assessor was so impressed with my research he offered me a permanent position on the staff. Danny looked at her very impressed by this information. I have had a quick glance at your thesis and just reading the introduction it went over my head. jKith laughed at that. At some point I will go through it with you Captain and explain it in simple terms for you. Can I be honest with you Captain? Please do, it is something members of the crew are, we are honest with each other and the galaxy as a whole. I do not know what it is about you and the pair from the Warhound, but since I first met you. She put a lot of emphasis on you. I feel drawn to you in a way I do not understand, she replied. Danny looked into her eyes and he could see something. What he saw he could not explain. Are you
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with anyone at the moment? he inquired. No my partner and father to my five died 200 years ago whilst he served on QJ766. It was a System Patrol Vessel that was attacked and destroyed by a pirate raid, she replied. To be honest with you, I have not had a partner my entire life. My time with Security Command unless it was vital for the job then having a partner was frowned upon. jKith looked at him perplexed by that. Security Command do not recruit in the same way as all the corporations, they take you, basically kidnap you from whatever environment you lived in. You cannot escape from their control unless you have very powerful friends, which me and Alice did. They implant a position locator and a number of powerful acid vials inside the bodies which they can detonate at any time or they do when your body stops functioning. jKith looked disgusted by this. How can the planet let it happen? Security Command provides the corporations with elite Security Forces and the corporations pretty much control the corridors of power around Darra Von. They fund the candidates during the elections to the various Governmental Houses is how they get away with it. jKith shook her head in sorrel of the situation on Darra Von. It is changing but it is slow. A lot of the new corporations and big companies are now funding the candidates and they are being allowed to follow their own agendas not the ones set by the corporations. It all started just about four years ago after the Wacker War in Suraban, when Jon Caser stood for election to the position of leader of the city government. He won with 73% of the overall vote and I think 90+% of the voting population voted. I am going to have to take a look at Darra Von and its way of doing things, she said. Danny smiled at her and said, If you want as I know we are going to be in the Rugthz system for a few months as the upgrades are done I will take you to Darra Von on one of the transports we have. She smiled at that offer. Thank you. I would like to see the original home world of the elves and dwarves.
Chapter 31
Danny walked down the docking tube and at the other end stood wWish. Good noon Captain, Council Member uTun is waiting on Trashan with Council Member Ittitan, he said. Thank you Star Admiral, responded Danny and walked with wWish to the lifts. Inside the lift wWish said, Teleport Centre. About ten seconds later the lift doors opened and they walked down the corridor and into a room. In front of Danny stood a raised platform and a couple of people stood behind a screen. He stepped up and turned to look at wWish stood behind the panel. Engage, said wWish. A whiteness enveloped him and a second later it disappeared and he stood on the platform, the only thing telling him he had moved was the six controllers and a squad of security that stood around the room. Council Member uTun and Ittitan were behind a similar panel. Good noon to you Captain Curtdoza, said uTun. Good noon to you both, he replied and stepped from the platform. Ittitan flew out ahead of him and uTun. Hope the returnees have been helped? Danny inquired. They have, replied uTun. They have all been put up at one of the hotels on the edge of the city. eLissie and uTakateen-pullitan have been reunited and their older brother should be arriving later today. I had a private chat with the House Elders of Reggieen House and they have agreed to allow both sisters to join their brother as members. We have not told the pair yet. Danny smiled at the news of this. That is good to hear, he said as they walked out of the Council Chamber onto the plaza in front. And today they are having a tour of the Council Chambers, said Ittitan. The group sat on a number of seats basking in the sun. rTak walked over to the group and said, Good noon Captain, I hope the operation went well? It did bar Dashary getting away, he replied. The four walked to where they sat. One of the young male elves looked up at Danny and said, I remember you, you rescued us. Well not me personally, but the vessel I command did. A small unit of Gangrels are heading here now and there ETA is a couple of days. Sarah C funded the chartering of a private transport to get them here as soon as they could, said Ittitan.
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Danny nodded his happiness to this news. ***** A while later Danny was walking at the back of the group with uTun and he asked, Do you know of any good restaurants as I want to take eLissie and uTakateen-pullitan for a meal? No need everyone here is having a meal on me this evening. Oh I forgot to mention when you arrived eLissie has just signed up for a Technicians position on one of the Science Vessels that are due to leave in a few months. Danny thought about something and asked, What is she going to be doing on the vessel? I think she is going in as an entry level Technician, she does have some technical aptitude, uTun replied. Danny thought about the situation on the Intreped. He inquired, How setup are the Science Vessels for someone without previous experience? So so, some vessels are better than others. Why the inquiry? uTun asked. Apprenticeships, which is what eLissie will be doing, she is going to be learning on the job. One of the crew, Yelena Jims she came straight from being on an apprenticeship at Echo Star City and she now is Section Head of the Engineering Bay Top Pod. I field promoted her due to having issues with the previous Section Head, he replied. I would have to clear it with the head of Technical Services, but we are going to be staying in the Rugthz System for a number of months whilst we finish and install a new pod. uTun thought about what he was saying. Clear it and then I think we should ask, he suggested. Danny opened a communications channel to the Intreped and said, Ugine, Danny. What is up skipper? she asked. What would you say about having eLissie join the ship as an apprentice? The line was silent for a few seconds as he guessed she was thinking about the suggestion. Well we are going to be Rugthz for a few months whilst we install the pod it would give her the time to see if she likes us and us the chance to see how quick she learns, Ugine replied. Danny, said Alice. I am sat with Ugine at the moment. I will take her as apprentice. I am learning so it would be a good way of testing my knowledge and skills. Danny nodded his head in understanding of Alices idea. Okay, he said. Chat to you likely tomorrow I am going for a meal with the ones we rescued. Okay, chat to you at some point then, said Alice. He looked at uTun and said, It is sorted. Alice is willing to take her as an apprentice, and rather than split her from her sister for a second time she can join the Gangrels. How old is uTakateen-pullitan? uTun thought as the group listened to what rTak said about the room they had entered. 137, I think, he said. I have a question for you uTun, how come it takes so long for Elves to mature? uTun shrugged his shoulders and said, Our emotions mature slower than humans. By the time an elf is
140 they would have left basic schooling and be using those skills in everyday life. At 200 is the youngest any elf can apply to the Advanced Schooling System as it is at that point an elf is mentally mature; we can be very intense especially in the younger years. When we do something it has been known to take over peoples lives it takes ten years for an elf to give birth, for the first six you basically have no idea you are pregnant. At that point your House takes over caring for you. After the birth the female elves have to wait ten years before you can pregnant again. Later in the day everyone from the rescued group, eLissie and dZadacar sat in one of the top restaurants on Trashan. Danny sat with the group and said as the staff cleared away the dishes from the first course, eLissie, uTun told me that you had signed up as a Trainee Technician on a Science Vessel. What would you say if I told you the Chief Engineer on the Intreped was willing to take you on as an apprentice? eLissie looked at him with real surprise in her face. She asked, What is an apprentice? An apprentice is someone who learns from their master or mistress. Basically you will be shadowing Alice as she goes about her work as the Chief Engineer. You will see every Technical Department on the ship and likely be working alongside the other crew as they go about their tasks. The plan is when we leave Fratten Five we are going to be going to our colony in the Rugthz system and spending a number of months as we add a combat support pod to the Intreped. A lot of the time you are going to be working on that as the pod is going to be sat beneath the main Engineering Pods on four sets of wings. Other work that will be going on is we will be increasing the number of cabins, weapons load out and environmental systems. If the upgrades work they are going to be implemented on the other Warhound class vessels and maybe modified for other combat vessels being built. Doris M has also said if you uTakateen-pullitan want to stay with your sister then you can join the Gangrels on board. uTakateen-pullitan looked at Danny and her face was also one of surprise. The time I spent with the Gangrels was a lot of fun. dZadacar said, You both now have a house. That is the reason I am here and that was to take you both and dZamdar to live with me and my wife. eLissie looked at him and asked as the staff laid out for the main course, What do you do? I work as an aide to one of the House Governance Members on FD3445-5. I did enjoy the lecture Alice gave on designing things. After you left I spent my free time designing a couple of new items that I thought would be good to see, said eLissie. Danny now looked very impressed by this. Well if you accept then look at putting some body to the ideas. I also have a couple of ideas for new combat vehicles that I am working on. For the rest of the meal eLissie ate and thought about what Danny had said. At the end of the meal she said, I accept the offer. Good, when I travel back to the Intreped tomorrow morning you both, I hope, will be coming with me.
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uTakateen-pullitan nodded that she would be. dZadacar said, Right then it looks like I will be collecting your brother and then going home. I do want to see you both soon though. You will brother, said eLissie, you will. Danny thought about where dZadacar lived and said, You might be seeing them pretty soon as Darra Toral Music has a couple of concerts planned for your home. I think so, why? he inquired. One of the artists performing during the concerts was kidnapped from Darra Von. I am going to repay the favour and take her back, he said. dZadacar nodded his head in understanding. I will put the silent word out concerning it. Danny shook his head in response. Do not; we do not know who works for Trans Darra Toral so word might get back to Dashary. Do it post the operation. My plans for Dashary and Trans Darra is to keep nipping at the edges until we get him really pissed off and he might then come out to play in our ball court. That is when we destroy him and his organisation. I know I pissed him off when we shut down the Darkness Games. Well I can tell you after your assault on the Darkness Games Dashary convened a Board Meeting and from what the Darra Toral Business News said, they only item was a new threat, said dZadacar. I am also a minor share holder in Darra Toral Music and Darra Toral Total News Channel. Danny walked with the group back to the hotel they had been put up in. Inside the lobby he said, I will call past for you both tomorrow morning. Okay Captain, we will be ready, said eLissie. Danny turned and joined uTun as he singled for a taxi. What are the hotels like in the area? he asked. No need, I will put you up in one of the guest rooms at my place, replied uTun. Thank you Council Member. ***** The following morning the vehicle uTun had lent Danny that morning arrived at the hotel and the driver climbed out and opened the back door for him. Thank you, Danny said as he climbed out and walked inside the lobby. Both eLissie and uTakateen-pullitan sat waiting for him with their small bags. Right are you two ready, he said. Yes we are Captain, said eLissie. Danny looked at her and said, Danny will do, Captain is only for times that require it eLissie. He looked at uTakateen-pullitan and said, In a few days you uTakateen-pullitan will be introduced to the Gangrels on the Intreped. What? she inquired. Let us get moving and I will explain, he said. The pair stood up and walked out of the hotel and they climbed into the back of the car as the driver held
the door open. Inside the car Danny said, It is a tradition in the Gangrels that all full members are introduced to the leader of the local unit, in this case. At the Gathering the new members swear the oath of loyalty to the leader of the local unit and the overall leader on Darra Von. You are now uTakateen-pullitan a part of the oldest gang on Darra Von. To give you an idea of how many people you join, the Gangrels have 20 full Mercenary Commands all with 20,000 plus members; four Special Forces Commands and these have 40,000 members each; 500 Youth Feeder units and they average about 100 members each and 200 Street Gang Units. That is without adding in the support personal based at the various command and bases on Darra Von and in the EM001 system. Have you met the Gangrels on the Intreped? uTakateen-pullitan asked. Yes I have, eLissie replied. Star Admiral wWish and his wife Captain eRuthan organised a couple of weeks trip to Fratten Five, the Intreped was docked during our trip. We even got to see the launch of the DR1554 Polinka Class Star Elf Dreadnought in space. I made a lot of friends whilst I was on board. The vehicle pulled up in front of the Council Building and the driver again opened the door and let the three out. Danny said, Thank you. You are very welcome Captain, he replied. Danny led the pair into the building and up to the first floor. They walked into the Transport Chamber and Danny said to the controllers, Fratten Five thank you. The controller said, Site set and everything is ready. The three walked onto the platform and turned to look at the six controllers. The whiteness enveloped them and they appeared on the Fratten Five platform. Danny led the two off the platform and out of the door. A couple of minutes later he led the two across the docking tube to the Intreped. Commander Danes, Danny, make preparations to depart the station. Set course for Rugthz System. With pleasure Captain. The door behind then closed and sealed. They walked to the nearest window as the docking tube retracted and a couple of seconds later the clamps released and the vessel moved back away from the inner column of the station. The lift doors opened and out walked Alice and Doris M. I asked Tishun to tell me when you were on board Danny, said Alice. Welcome to the Gangrels uTakateen-pullitan, said Doris M. The five walked back to the lift and a few seconds later the doors opened and they walked across the corridor into the Main Hydroponics Bay. After getting a drink each they all walked to one of the tables and sat down.
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eLissie asked, What am I going to be learning? Whatever you want, Alice replied. Almost everything I know about the Intreped and Star Vessel Operations I learnt whilst I have been on board. I already had a good technical base to start with mind you. Through the window the group watched as the Intreped travelled through the main doors and out into space proper. In about ten seconds we are going to be under our own power and will at a safe distance jump to hyperspace for the journey to Rugthz, said Danny. Alice placed her tablet on the table and said, eLissie come and watch as the various systems work to push us away from the station. eLissie moved and sat beside Alice and watched as the reactors increased their power outputs feeding the outer engines. Danny also watched at the various systems worked together. Alice pointed to an area in the middle of the diagram and said, This area is the area that actually powers the Hyperdrive. These figures are the charge stored in the two banks of power cells. The stacks started beside the outer engines started to fill up as power from the reactors was sent to them. How long before we jump to hyperspace? eLissie inquired. I will check, Danny replied. Pilot couches, Danny, how long before we jump to hyperspace? About an hour, Simon C replied. Thanks Simon C, he replied. It will be about an hour as our flight route would take us through the sun. eLissie looked at him interested in knowing why. From what we know, even though Hyperspace is a parallel dimension, it is not. Suns, gravitational wells that exist in this dimension exist in Hyperspace, replied Alice. A vessel cannot travel in hyperspace through a gravitational well unless that well is known and stable or the computers have access to up to date scans of it. Most sun systems the safety systems will drop you on the edge unless you are willing to risk it. It has become an unwritten rule that ships drop out on the edge of populated star systems if you mean no harm to the people, said Danny. The assault on Rugthz the Federation fleet dropped out pretty much on top of the pirates. They had pretty accurate readings of the gravitational fields as the Warhound was already in system and had previously reconed the system. eLissie looked perplexed at that. How could the Warhound have already been in system? The pirates would have attacked it. Danny laughed at that and replied, The Warhound like the Intreped and all the other combat vessels coming from the Darra Von are equipped with very advanced stealth systems. Also the hull is coated in nanytes that display what is on the far side of the ship from whatever angle you are looking at it from. Do not worry about understanding the technology, that is a part of you learning, said Alice. Doris M said, I think when we have finished the drinks we let them go and get settled and then meet
back here in 50 minutes. Danny agreed with the idea and said, That is a very good idea. I will also go and get a couple of PDUs for you both. The pair stood and joined Doris M as she walked out of the bay towards the lifts. One thing which is good, those two have an invite to go and visit their brother on FD3445-5; he works as an aide to one of the House Governance members on the planet, said Danny. Alice thought about what he had said, Why does that system name ring a bell with me? Shakka is playing on the planet, he replied. Alice smiled and nodded that she now understood the reason. How are we going to do it though? she inquired. We will put a couple of transports on the planet and have the Intreped Sensor Masked in high orbit. They know the Intreped by now so we will keep that as a backup to the rescue forces, he replied. One other thing dZadacar is a minor share holder in a couple of Trans Darra legitimate companies and told me they held a Board Meeting and the only item discussed was us. It looks like we have made an impression on Dashary. Good, replied Alice. He stood up and inquired, You want another drink sis? Alice looked at her mug and replied, Yes thanks. He took her mug and headed to collect the two drinks. As he sat back down he asked, How did the off loading of the creatures go? Pretty well, it looks like rTuth and Ikhas now has a pet. From what I have read on the Demonrunners they are fast and might be perfect in capturing the faster criminals of Trans Darra. Danny looked impressed by that. rTuth walked in with Ikhas and the Demonrunner on what looked like a ceramic lead. At the table rTuth looked at the Demonrunner and commanded, Sit. The Demonrunner sat down as instructed. Good boy, he said and made a bit of fuss with him. Very nice, said Danny. Yes, Azzak said he is still quite young and with a firm hand can still be taught, said rTuth. He is getting that firm hand with us, said Ikhas. Danny looked at the Demonrunner and asked, Have you named him? Yes, he has been called Sibene, which is runner in Grey Elven, rTuth replied. Danny bent down and looked at Sibene and he looked right in the eyes after a few seconds Sibene looked away and Danny followed him constantly looking him in the eyes. He heard Alice whisper to rTuth and Ikhas, Danny was rather good at making animals trained to kill and attack be his friend. He found that if you can maintain eye contact and not look away for a while then the
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animal knows who is boss. After a couple of minutes Sibene cocked his head to the side and his mouth dropped open and he started to slightly pant. Ikhas said, Sibene has never done that before. The YGs walked in with Brad S after one of their lessons. Have the YGs been introduced to Sibene yet? he asked rTuth and Ikhas. Not yet other than in passing, replied Ikhas. Pry no one ever hurts them or their will be hell to pay. They have made me more than welcome. YG Fred has even started a drawing of me which I have to admit, and I am no art expert, is good. Danny stood up and said, rTuth hold Sibene close. He looked at the YGs and called, YGs come here please. They all walked over to where he was and he moved out of the way. He said, YGs meet Sibene, he is rTuths and Ikhas pet and for a while he should be treated not with fear but great respect. He was one of Dasharys pets in the Darkness Games. He looked at each one. One at a time, give him a hug around his neck. YG Paula moved first and she wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him a hug in friendship. At the end of everyone giving Sibene a hug in friendship they all walked back to where Brad S sat waiting for them. Azzak walked over from the door and said, I watched the entire thing and throughout I had a couple of my abilities up and not once did I feel anything but, not friendship, but something along the lines of a want. Groshan walked in and he also walked over to the table and said, rTuth may I take the Demonrunner as I have had great success in training them to be friends. I had a couple of adults when I first became a Shaman. Not a problem, please do Groshan, rTuth replied and handed him the lead. Groshan walked a short distance away and sat down in front of Sibene. Ikhas said after turning back to look at Danny, You have some crew here. I have been watching some of the crew work and they all seem very dedicated to their jobs. They all are Ikhas, he replied. Groshan is one of Debbie Ws GSF Command and she even answers to Major Batts who is the commander of the Intrepeds combat forces. 40 minutes later both eLissie and uTakateen-pullitan walked back in to the Hydroponics Bay and they headed for the table where he sat with rTuth, Alice and Ikhas. eLissie sat down and looked at Ikhas and asked, What are you? I am a friend and a member of the crew and I am called Ikhas. She smiled at him and looked over at where Groshan sat with the Demonrunner. What is he doing? Training Sibene, replied rTuth. Sibene was being held by Dashary for use in the Darkness Games. Danny placed two boxes on the table and said, A PDU for each of you, we use them for working away from our specific stations, communications and a whole host of other tasks.
uTakateen-pullitan asked, How long before we jump to hyperspace? About five minutes, Danny replied. As the time approached eLissie stood behind Alice and watched the power distribution plan as the command deck made the final system checks before engaging the Hyperdrive. Danny also watched at the reactors beside the Hyperdrive went to full power and began feeding power into the drive system. The two indicators beside the power banks, suddenly dropped to zero as the purple bubble formed around the vessel and she jumped to light speed. The instant the Intreped jumped the reactors dropped their power feeds to the drive system and the two bars beside the power banks began to fill. eLissie asked, How come? The two reactors each produce ten million kilowatts of power and they drive system needs about ten million kilowatts to maintain FTL speeds after the initial jump, replied Alice. This is one innovation we have; it gives Danny the ability to drop out and within six seconds, the time it takes to calculate a new FTL route, Danny can jump again. All the CS vessels have the system.
Chapter 32
Danny stood and held one of the support struts in place as Edward G welded the end to its home. The pod itself was beginning to take shape as most of the lower deck struts had been fitted and welded together. He looked out of the front Flight Deck opening as the Intreped dropped out on the edge of the Rugthz system. He smiled at this as it would mean they could very soon start to actually put the pod together properly. Danny looked around the construction and saw both rTuth and Ikhas holding some of the next deck up support struts as the crew welded them into place on the column running from the lower deck. He called, Alice, as she walked down the flight deck looking at the frame work plans. She stopped and looked up at him. Yes bro, she said. What is the weight rating on an unsupported deck? About a thousand tonnes, with beams running from the next deck up it increases to about fifteen hundred tonnes. Why the question? she inquired as he jumped down. Just wondering about the weight distribution on the structure. She nodded that she now understood and said, The plan it to keep the smaller vehicles on that deck and the larger ones on the lower deck. The height between the two decks is enough clearance for them. The only vehicles not going to be able to fit under are the CSMRs. They will be sat in their own bays along the outer walls. The areas above the tracks will be workshops and also armouries for the various missiles and auto cannon rounds they use. He nodded his head in understanding. Sis you know I am planning on taking the new YGs and
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Gangrels and a few of the elven crew to Darra Von for a few days, I was wondering about the ratings on the transports? They can take 40 people without much problem. The environmental system is rated for that many on a longish trip, she replied. Who are you thinking of taking? rTuth, jKith, hGun, eLissie, uTakateen-pullitan, plus the all the new Gangrels. I hope to meet with Grattan and his family along with a number of other people on the trip, he replied. She nodded her appreciation of his plans. Take my regards to Grattan and his family bro, she said. Of course, he replied as eLissie walked out with Ugine and they seemed to be chatting about something. The pair walked to where he and Alice stood. Ugine said, Have you seen eLissies ideas for new equipment? Only briefly, replied Alice. No, he replied. eLissie took out her PDU and brought up the drawings she had done of the two new items. They looked at them and they looked very useful. One of the drawings was of a new Workbee and the second was a shuttle except this had a couple of arms that extended from the nose. Alice looked very impressed by the new designs. The Workbee looks very useful especially with the additions of the legs. It would allow it to move over a hull and work directly on a site. One thing I will say, make the legs extendable so it can be used at sites like Explorer Base in the construction of vessels, she said. Ugine nodded her agreement to Alices suggestion. That would be a good idea, she said. eLissie what would say to having a few days trip to EM001? asked Danny. eLissies face lit up at his suggestion. I would love it, she replied. Does the invite include uTakateenpullitan? Yes it does; and it includes all of the new Gangrels and YGs along with a few more members of the crew. I am making sure the crew also have some shore leave. They have all surpassed my expectations of them, he said. The plan is reach Rugthz III and move the construction out of the Flight Deck, give the Gangrels and YGs a tour of the Intreped and then take one of the transports to EM001. I have always wondered what home would look like. I have been doing a bit of reading on the history of EM001 since coming on board and it does not sound a bad place, she said. Danny thought about what eLissie had said and added, EM001 is not a bad place overall, just some of the countries and a few cities are bad. How are you finding it? he inquired. It is good, especially having my sister here, I had a chat with dZamdar last night and he is over joyed to have a house and a family, she said. One thing I would like to do is try and find mum. We will see what we can do on that point, he replied. Anyway back to work I think. ***** Danny sat in the captains chair as the Intreped slowed to a stop.
The screen activated and on it appeared Administrator Reds. Welcome back Intreped. What do we owe the pleasure of this visit? We are conducting a major upgrade to the vessel and need somewhere that had a base and man-power, he replied. I also have an apology to make for not giving the Gangrels and YGs the tour I promised them on our last visit. It will happen this visit I promise. How and where is Mr Leddow? Mr Leddow is currently hard at work, I might add, at one of the Transport Service Bays down here. He is pretty good at doing services of the transports we have landing, Administrator Reds replied. Danny looked very impressed by this news. Now that is good to hear, he said. Chat to you very soon Administrator Reds. Yes chat to you very soon Captain. Danny turned and looked at Daniel J and said, Open a channel to Monica D thanks. A couple of seconds passed and Daniel J replied, Channel open Captain. The screen activated and Monica D appeared. Sorry Monica D for not giving you the tour on our last visit, but we are going to be here for a few months and so tomorrow a couple of our transports will be heading down to bring you all up for the tour. Do not worry about that, we had a tour of the War Mont V a couple of days after you lot jumped to hyperspace. How have things been with you? she inquired. Pretty good, we shut down one of the Darkness Games sites and rescued over 500 slaves, he replied. Monica D looked very impressed by that information. Now that is good news, I bet the boss did not like it. I do not think so as he held a Board Meeting and the only item on the agenda was us, he replied. Monica D laughed at that. Hoe hum, she said. The two staff members we took out last time you were here have helped in blocking the transmissions from Dark Line Productions. Have you sent that information back to Darra Von? he inquired. We have, she answered. He nodded his appreciation of the fact. Anyway I think we need to move the items we have been constructing on the Flight Deck out into space so I will chat to you tomorrow, he said and stood up. The screen vanished and he headed for the lift. He was going to be piloting one of the Workbees as they pulled the various sections out of the Flight Deck. Twenty seconds later the lift door opened and he walked to where the Workbees stood waiting. Three of them had people preparing to assist in the moving of the sections. He opened the front of it and looked at the controls. He quickly understood them as they were the same as the ones on the EVA pack arms. He climbed in and sat in the control seat and remembered the lessons from his few sessions at Triton Base. He picked up the breather mask and checked the oxygen flow. He closed the front and heard the air seal being made. He pressed the engage button and said, Flight Deck Control,
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Workbee Four, I am ready to go. Okay Workbee Four, we are just waiting for the PAs to be ready and we will drop the gravity to zero on the Flight Deck. A few minutes later the last of the PAs arrived and grabbed their positions on the structure. One of the deck crews connected one of the cables running from the front of the pod to his Workbee and slapped the front to indicate it was set and ready. All teams, Flight Deck Control we are dropping the gravity to zero now. He activated the forward thrust units and felt the Workbee take the strain of the taught cable. He looked around and saw the rest of the Workbees also take up the slack and move forward to join him as the PAs lifted the pod from the deck and slowly walked it out of the Flight Deck. He knew the plan was to take the pod and position it in roughly the right place beneath the Main Engineering Pods. There EVA units would weld holding cables to the hull mainly to make sure it did not move away under its own weight. His Workbee passed through the force field at the front of the Flight Deck and along with the rest of the Workbees they pulled the section from the deck and down. It took a further fifteen minutes for them to position it about right for the EVA teams to secure the cables to the pod. He released the cable and headed back for the top section and half an hour later that too was positioned right and the crews spot welded the structure together. It would take another two days for the crews to finish the welding and start to actually build the outer skin of the pod. It would be a further four to five months of pretty much constant work to finish the pod and wings, but at the end they would have a proper drop pod for the combat forces to use. He landed the Workbee and released the front stepping out to be replaced by one of the experienced crew men. He would work on getting the experience but now was not the time as he needed to plan his trip to Darra Von. He had a number of important meetings planned and would be also showing the other visitors around at the same time. He knew Ambassador hHillfifer would also want to meet him and the visitors. He headed for the Main Hydroponics Bay where he was going to contact Grattan and see when would be a good time to visit. jKith sat at one of the tables and she looked like she was working with hGun on something. He walked to the table and asked, Can I join you? jKith looked up and replied, Of course you can Danny. I am just making the final preparations for a month long trip to the southern point of the systems sun so hGun can finish collecting the data he needs. Danny looked very impressed by this. What are you collecting as data? he inquired very interested in understanding. The last time I was here I was three days away from collecting all the data I needed to write my Thet Thesis. The pirate attack kind of screwed that up, he replied. I am right in saying you are taking a group to EM001 Danny? You are and you both are on the invite list along with all the non Darra Vonian members of the
Gangrels and YGs, he replied. hGun smiled at the news. I have wanted to see the true Elf home world and I also knew it was off limits to all but the military and intelligence teams. YG Fred walked in and headed for the table where they sat and he wore a smile. Danny inquired, What has got you so happy? I have just had a reply from Brei, and Alex, he replied, they love the picture and it has taken pride of place above the comfortable chairs in their quarters on the Warhound. Now that is really good news, said Danny. You know you and YG Paula are coming with me to Darra Von as we do need to meet with the judge who granted your adoption, he said. No I did not. When do we leave? YG Fred asked. In a few days, we have a few things to do here first, he replied. A couple of the elven YGs walked in along with one of the elven Gangrels. Danny looked over at the group and saw the one in the middle had been crying. He went to stand up and had jKith grab his arm. No Danny, she said. I think you will find out she is have what we in the elves call a phase. The crying is just the external signs of the emotions inside. He sat back down and said, I have a lot to learn about the elves, he said. jKith smiled at him and said, I am very willing to help teach you.
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Epilogue
Danny climbed down the boarding ladder of the transport he was taking to Darra Von. Stood waiting to join him was jKith and rTuth. He headed for the cockpit and sat in the commanders seat. He powered up the ships reactor and brought all the other systems on line at the same time. jKith joined him in the cockpit and sat in the pilots seat. She said when she had settled down, Intreped C&C, Transport 02 requesting clearance to release and head for the flight deck. C&C here, clearance granted Transport 02. Danny pressed the release clamps and the shuttle dropped away from the Intreped. jKith applied a slight pressure to the throttles and the transport started forward. She swung it up and around heading for the main entrance to the flight deck. She landed the transport a few metres away from the group going to EM001. Danny stood up and headed for the ramp off and as he arrived the group walked up the ramp carrying their bags containing all their clothes for the trip. Store your bags in the cargo bay and find a seat until we jump to Hyperspace, he said. He turned around and headed back to the cockpit and sat down. jKith powered the contra-grav and at the same time she pushed the throttles forward. She piloted the transport out of the flight deck and head away from DR1554-3. After about an hour she pressed the hyperspace engage button and the transport jumped to hyperspace. Danny stood up and headed back into the main cabin. Right everyone, we have jumped to hyperspace. We now have six days before we arrive at EM001, he said. ***** Danny sat in the pilots seat as the autopilot dropped the Transport on the edge of EM001. He took the controls and accelerated heading for Darra Von. Any system patrol vessels, Intreped Transport 02, we have just dropped out of hyperspace and proceeding on course for Darra Von, he said as jKith walked into the cockpit. Intreped Transport 02, RT056 here, you are cleared for destination. Thank you RT056, he replied and pushed the throttles to about three quarters and engaged the autopilot. He sat back and watched as the transport headed in system. ***** Two days later all the YGs and Gangrels either stood looking out of the cockpit or looked out of the two turrets the transport had as they passed Explorer Base. eLizzie asked, What is that facility? That is Explorer Base, the main star vessel production facility for us, replied Danny. He slowed the transport and altered the flight angle so the cockpit window was giving a better view of the base. As you can
see the base has a number of vessels under construction. [aaa] asked, Is that the same as the Intreped? It is that is the CS003 Fraker. The other vessels are our second colony ship, which should be able to set up four colonies; the last vessel is the DV005 a Benta Class Destroyer, he replied. [bbb] asked, What about the ships in the distance? Those are all DV vessels, he replied. They are slightly slower than the CS named vessels and have a slightly different weapons array. Where the CS vessels have anti-particle cannons they are going to have heavy pulse lasers and similar. Danny headed on passed the second moon and entered the mid zone orbital control. Orbital Control, Intreped Transpost 02, request clearance to proceed to Darra Von and Chancer Fields? Clearance granted Intreped Transport 02, welcome home. Danny thought about the voice and inquired, Is that you Beanna? It is Danny, he replied. How are things out there? Not too bad thanks, he replied and headed on towards Darra Von. Three hours later he put the transport onto the flight path heading for Chancer Fields. rTuth sat just behind him and jKith with hGun sat in the other seat. rTuth said as Echo City appeared through the gaps in the clouds, That looks like some city. It is, Danny replied. It is Echo City and is classified as a Metroplex as the population is in the tens of thousands millions. The city itself covers almost two million square kilometres with a good 30% of that area living in domes on the sea bed. Some of the Metros cover over two million square kilometres, others have populations of over 35 thousand million people. Danny landed the transport and stood on the apron was a coach. The door opened and out stepped Ambassador hHillfifer who smiled as he looked up at the cockpit. Danny finished the post flight checks and powered down the reactors. He stood up and grabbed his bag from the cargo bay and followed the group off the ramp and over to the coach. Captain Curtdoza, said hHillfifer. It is a real pleasure to meet with you and all the Gangrels and YGs you have rescued. Not all the Gangrels and YGs, just the ones from Rughtz III and a few from the other operations, Danny replied and followed hHillfifer up the steps onto the coach. As he walked up the steps he heard hHillfifer say, jKith, it is good to see you again. Any you Ambassador, she replied. The doors closed and the coach turned and headed out of the Chancer Fields heading for the centre of the metro and the groups hotel. Danny looked around at the group as they all looked out of the windows of the coach as the city passed by. He lent over and asked the driver, Does the coach have a tour guide system? Yes it does, the driver replied and he pointed at the microphone.
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Danny stood up and picked it up. Right everyone, he said. Everyone looked at him. As everyone is looking out of the windows, I thought I would give you a running commentary on what we pass, we will be visiting a few places whilst we are in the city. He looked around and saw the Chancer Mansion out of the left window. On our left is Chancer Mansion, the first home of the Chancer Family. hGun asked, Is the Chancer family the same as the ones on the Council of Twelve? Yes the very same, he replied. I am not up on the history of the family, but it is one of the places are are visiting. He looked around and saw in the distance Echo Tower and the Hub. In the distance is the centre of Echo City, The Hub and in the middle is the tallest building on Darra Von, Echo Tower. The tower now stands at one thousand, two hundred and sixteen metres, over a kilometre tall. It is the headquarters for Echo Tech Inc and a number of other Echo Tech companies. He looked at hHillfifer and asked, What is the iternary for today? Today, there is a reception at the World Presidents Mansion and dinner around mine for everyone, she replied. I then thought about catching a show at the amphitheatre in Ring Park. Danny looked very impressed with the evenings entertainment. Now that is very good of you hHillfifer, he said and sat down to continue the commentary. An hour later the coach pulled up in front of the doors to the hotel and allowed everyone off. As Danny walked off the driver said, Here talk my card, I am basically your driver for your stay here in the city, he said. I will go and park up in the coach park on 23rd Radius Street. Give me ten minutes to get here from the coach park. Danny nodded that he understood and said, We are only going to be here about thirty minutes as we have a reception to go to and then on for dinner at the Ambassadors resisdence and then a show in Ring Park. Ok, I will go and use one of the short term spaces and await your departure, Renaud said. Danny left the coach and the doors closed behind him. He followed the rest of the group into the entrance foyal. hHillfifer walked over from the reception desk carrying an envelope. She said, Renaud is one of my drivers and volunteered to drive the coach for you guys. Dinner tonight is nothing fancy, just a get together with the rest of the embassy staff. I have a standing rule that everyone who can comes and eats dinner it allows everyone the chance to talk, discuss matters and basically report matters in an informal environment. The pair boarded the lift and headed up for their floor. Danny said, Very similar to meal times on the Intreped, they happen when shifts come off duty and I know all the officers on board have a standing rule that unless busy no door is every closed. What are the rest of the plans for you and the group? she inquired as they sat on a couple of comfortable chairs in the lobby of the pent-suites. Visiting and enjoying Echo City. I know I have a meeting with the World President as well as giving a
verbal report to the Council of Twelve tomorrow. Then it is a day of sightseeing in the city before we had for the Academy of the Street for a few days of proper relaxing camping under the stars; we also have a tour and chat with a few members of the Youth Parliament on one of those days. Lastly we head for Suraban as I want everyone here. The lift doors opened and the first group walked out. Danny handed out the keys for the first group and went on saying, To meet Sarah Cutherlate and I am seeing the judge who granted me the adoption of YG Fred and YG Paula. Then everyone is going for a party on the beach at Grattan Jigicks home before we head back for DR1554. The doors opened for the second time and Danny did the same as the first time. Quite a busy schedule then, said hHillfifer. Yes, he said and felt his PDU buzz. He took it out and saw it was Alice calling him. He connected the call and said when she had appeared on the screen, Hi sis. Hi bro, how are things on Darra Von? she inquired. Good, everyone is freshing up before we head off for a reception organised by the World President, he said. Then to dinner at the Federation Embassy and a show in Ring Park. Very nice, she replied. How are things there? he asked. Alice thought about her answer and said, Pretty good, we have completed the lowest deck and partially installed the lower of the vehicle decks and workshops. The armour is double thickness around the lower deck to protect the ammunition bins. I am also thinking of installing magnetic fields around each as well. One of the elven technicians suggested it as they are used to contain anti-matter. You should commendate the person sis, he said. Already have, she replied. We also have finished one of the Workbees eLissie designed and the legs work like a dream. I will tell her that when we head for the reception, he said around a smile. Twenty minutes later the first of the group arrived in the lobby. eLissie followed the group out leading a second group. Danny stood up and headed for where she stood and said, A message from Alice, they are using your design of Workbee at the moment. They have built one and are testing it out at the moment. She looked at him in utter surprise. She said, You are kidding. No, Alice told me herself and sent a video file taken by one of the Space FCSUs, he said and replayed the video file for her. She watched as her design of Workbee welded one of the outer skin plates in place. hHillfifer had also seen it and suggested we send the plans for it to the Federation for them to build and use.
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hHillfifer walked over and said, I will get one of the Embassy staff to set up complete copyright for the plans and sign it to you eLissie. You are going to be one wealthy elf I think as a lot of starship production companies and maintenance centres are going to likely buy and use them.

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Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds The Maker of Stars, the Destroyer of Worlds

The Maker of Stars, the Destroyer of Worlds.

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds

Printed on 16/07/2010The Maker of StarsNicola Lenna Clubb The Destroyer of Worlds