From jdt7@cornell.edu Wed May 27 08:06:45 1998 Date: Tue, 19 May 1998 18:25:23 -0600 From: "Jeffery D. Trock" To: INDIGO FLEET List Serve Subject: [INDIGO] USS PROMETHEUS: Heroes Never Die (1/2) ---OFFICIAL INDIGO FLEET TRANSMISSION--- Date: Tue, 19 May 1998 20:44:45 -0500 From: jdt7@cornell.edu (Jeffery D. Trock) Subject: [INDIGO] USS PROMETHEUS: Heroes Never Die (1/2) Stardate: 100519.1900 And I heard a voice from heaven saying, "Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord henceforth." "Blessed indeed," says the Spirit, "that they may rest from their labours, for their deeds follow them!" (Revelation 14:13) FMD : 6.1600 Scene : Bridge, USS AGAMEMNON Captain Rick Slick stood on the bridge of the AGAMEMNON, taking care to stay out of the way as Captain Wilkes' crew hustled about. For the past half hour or so, he and the CO of the AGAMEMNON had been going over new tactics to use against the INVINCIBLE-class battlecruisers in the final wargame exercise. He intended to watch the mock battle from a different perspective, also allowing his new executive officer, Commander Sovak, an opportunity to test his combat skills while the stakes were relatively low. "It's 1600, sir. Shall we proceed?" inquired the executive officer. "Affirmative... care to start the show, Commodore?" Captain Wilkes directed at Slick, who, being the most senior O-6 of the assembled battlecruisers, had been acting in the capacity of squadron commander. The PROMETHEUS had been detached to Battlecruiser Squadron (BATRON) Nine for the past few days, operating in the INDIGO Fleet Weapons Testing Range. The squadron's current mission involved evaluating a system of countermeasures designed to defend against the Dalriadan Pulverizer missiles. This system, called Wild Weasel/Silent Wave, had been installed on the AGAMEMNON and the PROMETHEUS. The Wild Weasel portion of the system involved ECM probes which surrounded the vessel and attempted to interfere with the final targeting of the missiles. Silent Wave was the advanced computer algorithm which sent instructions to the individual probes regarding maneuvering and interference signal frequencies. Meanwhile, the AGINCOURT, WARSPITE, COURAGEOUS, LION, and RENOWN, all INVINCIBLE-class battlecruisers, had been equipped with probes modified to behave like Pulverizer missiles as much as possible. They were to attack the two AGAMEMNON-class battlecruisers in order to determine how effective the countermeasures might be. While the real versions of the Pulverizer missiles closed to within 200,000 km of the target and then detonated a fusion bomb, pumping a powerful phase-modulated x-ray laser right through the target's shields like a hot knife through butter, the mock Pulverizers were just probes outfitted with a small zero-power phaser emitter. When the probe came within 200,000 km of a target, a phaser beam would be directed towards the vessel, registering a hit on the target's computer and allowing simulated battle damage to accumulate. In driving off the "Dalriadan" forces, the AGAMEMNON and PROMETHEUS were allowed to use zero-power phasers and photon torpedoes rendered non-lethal by removing the antimatter warheads. Each of these weapons also registered simulated battle damage on the opposing ships. So far, the AGAMEMNON and PROMETHEUS had been only able to disable at most one of the attacking battlecruisers before being "destroyed". While the exercises had provided valuable feedback in how to adjust and improve the countermeasures, it was also a daily source of humiliation for Captains Slick and Wilkes. Captain Farthington of the AGINCOURT, an egotistical, pompous Brit, was the most vocal source of the derogatory comments. Captain Slick addressed the AGAMEMNON's TAC officer. "Open a channel to the PROMETHEUS," he instructed. Once TAC had done so and nodded a 'go ahead' to him, Slick said, "Commander Sovak... I'll be watching today's exercises from the AGAMEMNON. This will be an excellent training opportunity for you. You have the PROMETHEUS. I expect a full report when I return aboard after we're done." After realizing whom he was speaking with, he then corrected himself by adding, "Er... I meant brief report, not full." Not that a brief report was going to be any less verbose coming from the Vulcan. [[Understood, sir.]] was Sovak's simple reply, although Rick had a feeling that the Vulcan XO would much rather try to simulate a diplomatic solution than to simulate combat performance. "Very well, prepare to begin. Slick out." He turned to Captain Gregory Wilkes and requested a comm patch to the entire squadron. Greg responded by flipping a switch on the armrest of his chair. "All units, this is COMBATRON 9," Slick began. "Today's mock battle will be the final exercise before we head back to OMEGA. We're running low on torpedoes and probes, so let's make the most of what we have left to make any final enhancements to Wild Weasel before we bring her home. Dalriadan forces, are you in position and ready to go?" [[Tallyho, COMBATRON 9... this is the AGINCOURT, stationkeeping at the in-system edge of the range. We're quite good to go, sir.]] responded the lead vessel of the opposing force. "Excellent... good luck. All units, proceed," commanded Slick. With that, Captain Wilkes closed the squadron comm channel and opened a link to the PROMETHEUS. "Activate Wild Weasel," directed Slick, walking down the horseshoe to sit to the right of the ship's commanding officer. {{NRPG: "Symphony of Destruction" by Megadeth begins to play in the background.}} As the five INVINCIBLE-class battlecruisers approached from the opposite edge of the range at speeds in excess of 300,000 kph, the ECM probes were released from the cargo bays on the two "Aggies". Soon, dozens of Wild Weasel probes had surrounded both the AGAMEMNON and PROMETHEUS, swiftly maneuvering about according to the Silent Wave algorithm. "Execute to follow... attack maneuver Phoenix-Foxtrot-Six," Slick announced, referring to a tactic suggested by his navigation officer on the PROMETHEUS, LTJG Gabriel Phoenix. He waited a few moments for the navigators of both ships to prepare for what was coming next. As they were sitting at the outer edge of the range, farthest away from the center of the Terebellum system, the battlecruisers would be able to generate a warp field for a short duration. Of course, due to the gravity fields present in the system, warp drive could not be sustained for a significant period of time before gravitational interference with the warp field began. For maneuver Phoenix-Foxtrot-Six, they wouldn't need to maintain warp for very long. "Standby... execute!" On his command, both ships engaged their warp drives for the few moments necessary to bring them right into the faces of the other vessels. When they came out of warp several thousand kilometers from their opponents, both battlecruisers unleashed streams of phaser blasts and pulses from the phaser turrets as the vessels shot past. This tactic was highly unorthodox, and quite frankly, came as a complete surprise to Farthington and the other commanding officers representing the opposing force. Captain Farthington spilled his hot tea all over himself as the battlecruisers emerged from warp directly in front of his ship and veered off to either side of the formation, strafing the INVINCIBLE-class ships and adjusting their heading with maneuvering thrusters to continue facing their targets. >From intelligence reports, it was known that the Dalriada preferred to engage targets at long ranges with their missiles. It was not clear how capable they were at sustained short-range combat, but Slick and Wilkes were more interested in the surprise factor at this point than tactical feasibility. Captain Wilkes had ordered the AGAMEMNON into the firing position needed to take a potshot at the COURAGEOUS with its phaser cannon. Following suit over on the PROMETHEUS, Sovak had directed the phaser cannon on the WARSPITE, striking it with a burst of Promethean fire. The "Dalriada" fired back with their phaser weapons, which registered as Dalriadan particle cannon and plasma bolt hits on the Aggies. They were too close to let off any of the Pulverizer missiles, for in reality, the fusion explosion would engulf their ships at that range. The short-range battle continued, ships jockeying for a superior firing position at speeds around 150,000 kilometers per hour. The maneuverability of the PROMETHEUS and AGAMEMNON had been restricted somewhat to account for the greater maneuverability of Dalriadan warships. As a result of constant pummeling, the WARSPITE's shields quickly went down. The PROMETHEUS was quick to send over a Marine boarding party to secure Main Engineering, as well as the main and auxiliary bridges. Soon thereafter, the AGINCOURT's shields were swiss-cheesed as well. "Sir, the AGINCOURT's starboard shields are down... our Marines are ready to board," reported the XO. "Proceed," instructed Captain Wilkes. "Oh, and tell them to bring Captain Farthington to me. We can serve him his blasted tea and crumpets in our brig this evening," he added while laughing. After several moments the OPS officer announced, "Boarding parties away, sir." "Sir, the RENOWN, COURAGEOUS, and LION are withdrawing at full impulse power," reported TAC. "Dammit, they're moving back to release their Pulverizers," Captain Slick pointed out. "If we chase after them, the AGINCOURT and WARSPITE will stab us in the back with their missiles. That'd be just like Farthington, too..." Wilkes warned. "Let them go... the exercise is useless unless we actually test the countermeasures. Let's finish these two off," Rick decided. "If we can nail them both before we go down, it won't be a total loss." FMD 6.1615 As the two Aggies came about, the AGINCOURT spat out beams of phaser energy at the AGAMEMNON, causing all sorts of klaxons and lights to go off on her bridge. "Nice shot," commented Wilkes. "Shields at thirty percent and holding! Aft torpedo tubes and long range sensors offline!" An officer timidly approached Captain Slick. "Sir, I regret to inform you that the computer has designated you as having been severely injured in that last impact. We're going to have to take you to Sick Bay," the officer explained. In order to make the simulation as real as possible, not only did certain systems fail depending on the amount and location of simulated battle damage occurring, but the computer also simulated crew casualties as well. This aided the medical department in training for mass casualties. "What the hell, son? Do I look severely injured to you?" Slick asked, a bit frustrated that he wouldn't be able to participate in the rest of the exercise. Meanwhile, the AGAMEMNON pounded on the AGINCOURT in frustrated retaliation "Uh, um... sir... the computer says that you're severely injured. The rules stipulate you need to--" "I friggin' wrote the rules, Ensign. How severely injured am I?" "You suffered massive head trauma, you're bleeding profusely, and you've lost the use of both of your legs," the ensign read from the PADD. "You call that severely injured?! That's just a slight inconvenience... get out of here," Slick snapped. "The Marines report that both the AGINCOURT and WARSPITE have been secured and are out of the game!" OPS exclaimed. "Shall we give Captain Farthington replicated tea, or the real thing?" Wilkes asked his grinning XO. "I'm detecting the launch of several dozen Pulverizer missiles, sir!" TAC exclaimed. Over the past few days, the crew had come to realize it was usually several minutes after this announcement that their ships had been designated as destroyed. "Return fire with torpedoes and close to phaser range," Wilkes commanded. But by the time they were within the phasers' maximum effective range of 300,000 km, it was all over. The Pulverizers had emitted their phaser beams... about 35% of them missed, jammed by the countermeasures. The rest hit their mark, quickly filling up damage displays on the PROMETHEUS and AGAMEMNON. Both were left crippled in space. [[Federation warships, this is the Royal Dalriadan Navy. Surrender your vessels at once, or we'll make up a little poem about how we kicked your asses and send it out on tomorrow's daily fleet report,]] mocked Captain Roderick of the USS RENOWN. "Roderick, this is COMBATRON 9. You're fired," joked Slick. "Pack up your bags and go home. Your career is over." [[Ah, the Commodore's being a poor sport again,]] remarked the CO of the COURAGEOUS, Captain Howard. [[Perhaps a lollipop would cheer you up, sir,]] he added, referring to the case of lollipops the Chief Medical Officer of the PROMETHEUS had sent him as a form of medical assistance. "Yeah, yeah... that's enough," Rick said. "I want your evaluation reports by 2000. Let's wrap up here and start heading back to OMEGA at 2100. COMBATRON 9 out." FMD 6.1630 {{NRPG: "One" by Metallica begins to play in the background.}} "Captain, I'm picking up a vessel on my long range sensors, coming out of hyperspace and entering the Fleet Weapons Testing Range," TAC reported, moments after Slick cut off the squadron communications channel. "Are there any scheduled arrivals for Federation vessels?" Captain Wilkes asked his operations officer. "No, sir." "Shields up... go to GQ!" Wilkes called out, not taking any chances. All over the ship, the crew was called to battle stations. In the background, the following announcement could be heard echoing through the corridors, followed by the red alert klaxon: <> "PROMETHEUS, this is Slick. Have you got a fix on that incoming, bearing 245 mark 49?" [[Captain, this is Sovak. Commander Walker informs me that it has the signature of a SOLAR-class vessel.]] "The NOVA?" the XO of the AGAMEMNON inquired. "We'd know if the flagship of the fleet was scheduled to use the range..." "Incoming message from the NOVA, sir." "Put it through," Wilkes and Slick both said simultaneously, sharing a glance at each other. [[...say again my last. This is Captain Robert Brooks commanding the battlecruiser NOVA. We are under attack by Dalriadan warships. They have dimensional warp drives and transition to normal space of their fleet is imminent. Data on pursuing vessels is encoded on a subcarrier of this frequency.]] "When the hell did they give Brooks his ship back?" Slick pondered aloud. "Get me back on the PROMETHEUS." "You know I can't do that, Commodore. We're about to engage in combat with the Dalriada... you heard the message. My shields are staying up," Captain Wilkes calmly explained. "Dammit, Greg... that's my ship over there! I've got a green XO in charge..." "What the hell do you want me to do, Rick?!" Wilkes demanded, building the tensions on the bridge. "I suggest you slip into your combat suit and climb into a harness, we may be in for a rough ride. XO, get to the Battle Bridge." The combat suit Wilkes mentioned was a light vacuum suit designed to protect crew from hull breaches. Slick pulled up the suit and strapped himself into a battle harness, which prevented crewmembers from bouncing around the bridge like jello during combat. The executive officer made his way towards the turbo-lift... his job would be to take command of the ship from the battle bridge should the main bridge become disabled or the two more senior officers were killed. "The entire squadron is low on torpedoes from all the exercises... there's no way we can hold off Dalriadan warships," OPS declared. "Well, Rick... here's the final test of the Wild Weasel system..." Wilkes commented uncomfortably as the Dalriada appeared on the sensors. "Hail the NOVA. Time to find out just what the hell Brooks is trying to pull," Rick said, gnashing his teeth. FMD 6.1635 An image of Captain John Robert Brooks, son of CINCINDIGO, appeared on the main viewscreen. It had been quite some time since anyone had seen him acting in the capacity of commanding officer of the USS NOVA. [[Captain Slick... I'm a bit surprised to find you aboard the AGAMEMNON. Did you already muck up the battlecruiser my father originally gave you?]] "Not quite. The PROMETHEUS is off my starboard beam. What have you done with Captain Villiers?" [[He's been properly relieved for the time being, but that's not important right now. In a matter of minutes, a significant amount of Dalriadan warships will crash out of hyperspace and continue towards OMEGA,]] Brooks explained. "I suggest we warn them... BATRON 9 has just completed a string of combat exercises and we're low on torpedoes. We can't put up a fight." [[They've knocked out our long-range communications. I have to get to the Starbase with critical information.]] There was a pause. [[Can you delay them?]] Slick exhaled and considered the situation for a few moments. "They'll try to take us out from a distance with their missiles as soon as they crash into n-space. Two of my ships have countermeasures, but I need your help defending against that first volley of Pulverizers." [[Agreed... on your command. Brooks out.]] The image on the viewscreen returned to that of the open weapons range, with a few spatial distortions off in the distance... "Shit... I'm picking up... 27.. no, 28 ships!" TAC reported excitedly, his fingers dancing around the controls. "We'll be overwhelmed in a matter of seconds..." FMD 6.1641 Twenty-eight blips on the long-range sensor display suddenly became one massive blip as all 120 missiles in the volley registered on the sensors. "Pulverizer missiles launched, sir... I'm counting more than hundred!" TAC exclaimed. "The warships have slowed to a halt and are holding position." "Fire a spread of torpedoes set to detonate within that volley!" Wilkes commanded. "BATRON 9, take out those missiles with your torpedoes!" Slick ordered over the squadron comm channel. Just then, the NOVA discharged a flurry of torpedoes towards the approaching swarm of Pulverizer missiles. Taking a hint from the AGAMEMNON and the NOVA, the PROMETHEUS and the INVINCIBLE-class battlecruisers followed with torpedo barrages of their own. The massive torpedo retaliation would hopefully knock out most of the incoming missiles, but it was time for them to make a break for it while they still could. FMD 6.1643 "Squadron, this is COMBATRON 9," Slick found himself saying, more out of instinct than anything. "The AGAMEMNON and the PROMETHEUS will delay the Dalriada with the countermeasures while the NOVA and the rest of the squadron make a tactical withdrawal to Starbase OMEGA." [[COMBATRON 9, this is AGINCOURT... a 'tactical withdrawal'? With all due respect, you're off your bloody rocker. We've been training to fight for the past week... let's do it.]] Slowly, the missiles approached Battlecruiser Squadron Nine, which held position in a modified echelon formation. The NOVA continued to spray full spreads of photon torpedoes out of her aft launch tubes as she began to race towards Starbase OMEGA. "I'm losing comms with the NOVA... the Dalriada are jamming the hell out of them," OPS announced. [[COMBATRON 9, this is COURAGEOUS... I concur with AGINCOURT. Let's kick some ass.]] Rick winced. If they had only known what the DSF APOCALYPSE had done to the PROMETHEUS at Burrakis, they wouldn't be foolishly suggesting an attempt to take on 28 Dalriadan warships. Especially when the entire squadron was low on photon torpedoes after the past few days of mock battles. "Squadron, my last order stands. If you do not comply, make no mistake... we will all be wiped out in a matter of moments, failing to deliver the information we've gathered over the past few days to OMEGA. Withdraw now." [[COMBATRON 9, this is--]] "GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE! THAT IS A F$%KING ORDER!" [To Be Continued in Part 2] +--------------------------------------------------------------------+ | Midshipman Jeffery D. Trock, USNR Cornell University NROTC | | Web Page URL: http://www.people.cornell.edu/pages/jdt7/index.html | +--------------------------------------------------------------------+ ***This message sent by an official member of Indigo Fleet*** Are you also posting your message to the newsgroup?!!! ---END TRANSMISSION---