Shelby 5 Juggernaut Snippet 1

 Sitrep:

   So, the holidays are over, the decorations are down, and I started working on Shelby 6 Hold the Line. I was a bit lax though, I sent Rea Juggernaut Thursday last week and then forgot to post snippets as I'd planned. (as usual)

So, to remedy that, here we go. 

Chapter 1

 

Tau-65G7 Sparkling Seas

 

Commodore Janice Yu watched the bridge crew perform like the professionals they were as the ship ticked down to enter real space. She was an experienced helmsman; she felt every twitch in the ship. She waited in the guest chair though, silent to not jog anyone's concentration.

“Four... three... two... one... and breakout!” the helmsman reported.

She saw the wash of light as it blotted out the simulation of hyperspace and then it was replaced with the main plot. The plot began to be populated with what they knew should be in the system and where, primarily planetary bodies and such. As the hyper wake spread out and the sensors came online they began to report back more and more information about the situation around them.

She didn't realize she was holding her breath in anticipation until the CIC reported positive IFF received. She gushed out a slow sighing exhale of breath, relieved beyond belief. Not that there had been any doubt.

She had hated that she'd been forced out of her command station. The enemy had come in too much strength and had avoided the traps that they'd sent to avoid any other outcome. Sure, it would have been nice to have bloodied their noses and forced a retreat like they had the battle cruisers that had come before them, but it was not to be.

They had bloodied their noses though, that was something. And they had gotten a good look at the enemy's battleline. It was as awesome and terrifying as she'd worried about. It haunted her dreams.

“IFF exchanges complete. We are in the net. Star system secure and in Federation possession,” the captain said with a look to her.

She gave a sharp nod as military theater took over. “Commanding officer?”

“Captain Dunlow ma'am.”

“Signal the captain that I am assuming command when I get to Command One.”

“Aye aye ma'am,” the captain replied.

“I'll need a status report. Make sure we get the updated logs. And the admiralty knows we're here. Send our logs too.”

“Aye aye ma'am.”

“We're getting message traffic already,” the ship's A.I. reported. “A lot of material for you and your staff to go through ma'am.”

The commodore nodded. “Very well. I'll...” she paused. She didn't have an office or ready room.

“The officer's wardroom is available. If you don't want to kick anyone out you can borrow my office ma'am,” the captain offered.

She smiled. “Thank you Micel, I'll take you up on that and try to keep it brief.”

“Not a problem ma'am.”

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Governor Orange Eye nodded as the staff let her know that the commodore had arrived. The arrival had been anticipated for some time. They had been warned by Fred Muggs and the State Department of the pending arrival when the commodore's force had departed Mayweather Station.

“Please reach out to the commodore to pay our respects and offer any aid she requires,” the Tauren governor stated.

“Yes ma'am.”

Ships had been backstopped in the star system since the warning of impending attack on the base had come through. Civilian ships that were independent or not involved in the buildup had headed north up the chain with goods and refugees to what safety they could find.

Other ships were moving south along the chain and back. They feared the enemy moving on the chain though. She couldn't blame them for being nervous. The Federal government continuously assured them they would have plenty of warning but refused to explain how, which undermined their confidence somewhat.

She could understand why on both sides. The Federation needed to play some cards close to the vest at this crucial moment in time.

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Lieutenant Commander Alan Zoid watched the transfer of craft. He grimaced when he noted problems. His eyes narrowed when he saw work crews descend on a fighter and paint it in garish graffiti art razzing the pilot and the carrier it belonged to.

He opened his mouth to object but then closed it. The pilot had been diverted to their ship due to a fuel leak. Technically it wasn't her fault, but she had landed on the wrong carrier so of course she was going to get a good razzing. The tradition went that they marked her ship up as a good natured send off.

He shook his head once she got the clearance to go. He saw the fox stare at her bird, scratch her head and ears, then shake her head and put her helmet on. He had to snort in amusement.

The plan or at least their part of it was to get the carriers back up to 100 percent in ships and logistics. That was a headache. The empty or near empty carriers were headed in system to pick up replacement ships and pilots or wait for them to be shipped in.

Once the initial transfer was complete each carrier wing would have its hands full doing working up exercises to get everyone into sync. He was actually looking forward to that after such a long time sitting on the sideline writing letters to family and doing endless reams of paperwork.

He knew that no one in the fleet could help but feel a bit defeated since they had been forced to run. He resented that. They'd done a bang up job on the enemy. They'd just had more weight of metal and had wanted the star system more. They'd certainly paid for it in material and blood.

He planned to make them pay more here if they ever showed their snouts.

He grimaced. Not if but when, he corrected himself as he noted the Air Boss getting heated with someone new. He decided to take a stroll over to sort things out.

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