From alton.reich@snet.net Sun Jun 7 11:27:18 1998 Date: Tue, 31 Mar 1998 22:14:13 -0500 From: Alton and Elizabeth Reich To: distribution:@snet.net; (see end of body) Subject: USS YAMATO: The Approach Newsgroups: alt.starfleet.rpg SD: 100331.2145 MD: 4.2100 Isaac sat in the center seat and stiffled a yawn. It was becomming painfully obvious that he should take the advice he had given CMDR Connor a few hours before and get some sleep. If LT Driver had proven anything over the course of the past few days, it was that he was capable of handling the normal business of running the night shift. "Hyperwave broadcast, captain," stated the tactical officer. Stern looked up with interest. He was aware that Indigo Fleet had installed the experimental hyperspace transmission systems in a few of the newer vessels and that YAMATO had one and PROMETHEUS was scheduled for hyperwave installation at the earliest possible opportunity. Still, this was the first time that he'd been witness to the operation of the device. It was experimental and only to be used for high priority communications when real time communication was needed. YAMATO was not very far from OMEGA, but without the large subspace relay networks of the rest of the Federation, signal strength and speed decayed quickly meaning that the delay was already nearly five minutes. By tunnelling a subspace signal throught the dimensional warp barrier, it was possible to greatly increase the speed of the signal, effectively eliminating transmission lag up to 20 light year, eliminating almost an hour of subspace tranmission lag. It was power intensive and it required the sender to know the location of the recipient with high precision, but when it worked, as it was doing at the moment, it was magnificent. The screen cleared to reveal the image of Vice Admiral John Brooks. His uniform was impecable as always, but his face looked as if the only break that he might have taken in the last several days was to change uniforms. "Captain, we have had an interruption in communications with the outpost in the Tabillin system. All attempts on this end have failed to reestablish communication. With the tensions with the Dalriada running high, we can't afford to wait and see if the situation resolves itself. I am dispatching YAMATO to the Tabillin system. The nebula is rated as a class 4 navigational hazard, so be careful. There are only a limited number of approach vectors to the system, so it would make it relatively easy to hold if the Dalriada have invaded. "However, don't be too overanxious, captain. We don't want to cause a panic and the situation might be as simple as a downed communication relay. Questions?" "If the Dalriada are in the system, what are our orders, Admiral?" Stern asked. "You are not to engage a superior force. It would be more important for you to withdraw and report a Dalriadan presence." "Understood, Sir. We should arrive in the Tabillin system by 0900." "Good luck, Captain. Brooks out." The Admiral's image faded from the view screen and Isaac wondered for a moment what kind of pressure he was feeling. Then Isaac stood from the center seat and walked forward a few paces. "LT Driver, you have the bridge. Get us to Tabillin, warp 7. I'll be in my quarters if you need me." Driver stood, "Aye, Sir. I have the bridge." *** [A short while later, Isaac's quarters] Isaac laid in bed and stared at the ceiling wondering how many commands end on the Captain's first mission. There might be more to the situation on Tabillin than met the eye, he told himself. The outpost's communications array could simply be inoperable, although, given the current situation, any outpost commander who didn't dispatch a ship to the edge of the nebula to send a transmission to OMEGA wasn't fit for command. An ion storm in the nebula could also disrupt communications, as could as could the inevitable differences in nebula density. The root cause isn't necessarily an attack by the Dalriada, Isaac told himself. Right, he thought wryly, and if my grandmother had wings she could fly. *** [Bridge - MD5.0830] Isaac stood from the center seat and looked around. He could feel the nervous energy pulsing through him, and he had to move around before it began affecting the rest of the crew on the bridge. He took a few steps forward. "Anything on long range sensors, LT D'Artgnan?" "No, Sir, just the nebula. It seems too quiet, if you ask me," Bregan replied. "I agree. Any trace of ship traffic?" "No, Captain, but that doesn't mean much. We would only be ablt to detect an ion trail from a ship if it had passed within the last 6 hours at this range. The last contact with Tabillin was more than 6 hours ago," Bregan replied. "Understood," Isaac said with a slight nod. He could feel CMDR Connor's eyes follow him as he made his way up the horseshoe on the port side of the bridge. He paused at the by the tactical station. "Tactical system status, LT Trisx?" he asked. "Shields and weapon systems are on stand-by. LT Bal's point defense system is ready should we need it, Sir," she replied crisply. Isaac nodded, considering, "Raise shields. I know it will degrade our sensor performance, but I don't want to be caught with our shields down." "Aye, CAPT, raising shields. Should I initiate red alert?" Isaac nodded, "Yes, initiate red alert, LT." On a ship the size of the YAMATO it was difficult to keep secrets, and he expected the crew was at battle stations already, but it might as well be official. He walked to starboard and stopped at the science station. "LT Stephens, what can you tell me about the nebula?" "It's fairly dense as nebulae go, Sir. There's a high concentration of dust as well with a fairly high proportion of heavy metals even for a class 4 navigation hazard." "How will that affect sensor performance?" "It will severly limit sensor range." "What about the Dalriada?" Isaac asked. "I'm not sure," Cassandra replied, "Based on what we know, it seems as if their sensors and ours work on the same principals, and therefore will be affected in a similar way, but I can't guarantee that." "So sneaking in through the nebula isn't a very good idea, LT?" "It would be a gamble. If their sensors are affected as our are, then they wouldn't see us coming. If not, we'd be an easy target." Isaac nodded and made his way down the satrboard side of the bridge. "ENS Mahs, what's the compliment of the outpost on Tabillin?" Say consulted the monitor next to his seat, "2 Frigates, 10 attached runabouts for doing commerce inspections, and 80 people assigned to the outpost itself. About 300 personnel in total." Isaac turned toward the view screen. The nebula hung as a brilliant, sparkling curtain before them. It also concealed from view the Tabillin system and whatever mysteries it held. "LT M'gan, slow to warp 2 and take us into the corridor through the nebula," Isaac ordered. NRPG: Ok, folks we get to play this one at a more normal pace. We have about 2 weeks to get through this encounter with the Dalriada. I'd really like everyone to post. There's lots here to write about. A few reminders: There are 3 Dalriadan Battlecruisers in the system, each of which could blast the YAMATO to bits. Our clues to their presence will be (and we may not find it all) debris from the brief fire-fight between the Dalriada and the Starfleet vessles assigned to the Tabillin outpost. Most were destroyed near the outpost, but one frigate was destroyed closer to the wormhole. We also might be able to detect the wormhole the Dalriada created to get to Tabillin. Our one advantage is the ability of the YAMATO to go to warp. It will be impossible to do that if we are too close to an object with a large gravitational field, but once at warp, the Dalriada won't be able to attack. The final "out" is that one of the Dalriadan commanders is going to be over anxious and do something to alert us to their presence before they are in range to attack the YAM. That will give the YAM a chance ot get away. Finally, I'm not sure what our role will be once this is done, but I have an idea if Jeff J doesn't. Respectfully submitted, CAPT Isaac Stern CO - USS YAMATO (NCC-1705-E) Alton Reich -- Alton & Elizabeth Reich alton.reich@snet.net "Dreams are sometimes catching / Desire goes to my head / Love responds to your invitation / Love responds to imagination / Respond, Vibrate, Feed Back, Resonate" -- Rush, Chain Lightning %%% overflow headers %%% To: Alter Ego , Josh Young , Pat Schumacher , Les Chappelle , Janis Hill , Vicke Denniston , vicden1@yahoo.com, Kristine Berg , Karen Fainges , Alexs Thompson , Jim Littleton , Jeffrey Jenkins , Jeffery Trock , George Harmon %%% end overflow headers %%%