Captain Mark Shranz | bIng 'aj Ro'Tal | erei'Riov Koval tr'Liun
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Personal Log - Mark Shranz
bobsled624
Member Posts: 267 Bug Hunter
Mark can be seen sitting on the edge of his bunk rubbing his eyes with the heels of his hands.
“Computer, begin personal log.”
The computer chirps and starts recording, adding to the growing file.
“So, we made it back to Praetorian. But it’s bad news. The Iconians are here. In the Outback. On top of that, they’ve overrun Sigma X-5 and several dozen other friendly systems. TFA ships tried launching SAR sorties against them, but they were repulsed. So far, the casualty count isn’t clear…but it’s sure to be in the thousands.”
Standing up slowly and stretching, Mark pads over to the replicator console punching in a couple of commands. A small tumbler with amber liquid appears in a blue whir. Taking the tumbler, he sips at it lightly, pursing his lips at the bite of the fiery liquid.
”In response to the Iconian thrust, TFA command has split the available ships into three battlegroups. We’re currently attached to Ramillies as one of her escorts. Instead of engaging the enemy, we’re attempting to keep further systems secure. I’m working on a little something for Amalei to cast an eye over, but honestly….I have to wonder at the sanity of a direct assault on Iconians or Herald forces.
Shaking his head slowly, Mark takes another light sip from the tumbler.
”Let’s not even mention that absolute numptie…Kagren. I mean…for all the Lords above! Who thinks that throwing a fleet to crash against a sphere and a full force Iconian fleet is a good idea?! Someone who has lost all sense of reason, that’s who!”
Calming down slightly, he takes another sip from the tumbler, perching on the stool in front of his console.
”And to top it all off…Vulpes is back in the picture. That sick, twisted Orion TRIBBLE. is back in our lives. In amongst all the other comm traffic, including the comm from SFI requesting a recon mission to Andor, TFA command got a garbled distress call from the Avenger. Nick Mansfield’s boat. An older model Excelsior class, but still a good piece of equipment. But he was off on a survey of Arborea…or OB 222 as it’s listed on the Starcharts.”
Mark pauses again, sipping at his drink, a small grin creeps across his lips.
”Now, what’s rule number one of a War. You don’t go on a survey mission, no matter how well intentioned, without some form of escort. Nick…well, he never was one to strictly observe protocol. Hell, his first night on the station he tried to bed Alenis.”
The smile fades as the events of the last 24hours come back to him.
”Well, it looks like he got the kick in the teeth he was looking for. While we were on a routine patrol through OB-15, I got a coded databurst from Amalei. Simple instructions. Book it to OB-222, find the Avenger. So, the dutiful soldier, I obeyed. We ran under cloak, but because of the urgency, I ordered Otto to open up the taps on the engines and run her hot. I knew that the Heralds might be able to spot her, but then again, that’s the risk I had to run, or it would have taken days to get there.”
Sipping at the tumbler again, he rolls it lightly in between his fingers, watching the amber fluid move in the glass, as though examining it.
”They spotted us once or twice, and there were a couple of close calls, but they never managed to get a bead on us…though I guess they weren’t really trying. When we arrived at Arborea, I ordered a full stealth protocol, meaning we could only search with passive sensors. Why? Well, lords only know what might have happened to the Avenger, and I did not want the same fate to befall my beloved Fin. So after a good three hours of searching in the vicinity of Arborea III, Leftennat Lesi located their Ion trail leading to the fifth planet. Figuring it as good a lead as any, I told Otto to head us that way.”
Mark sighs, contemplating what he’s about to say next.
”When we found them, they were…well, for lack of a better word, battered. Hull breaches everywhere, main and auxiliary power offline, not to mention the micro meteorite hull impacts. Worse, she was surrounded by 5 unknown vessels. A quick search of the database and Leftennant Lesi found a….rough…match to the ships. Outback raiders. The little TRIBBLE that Vulpes brainwashed or paid to be his lackeys. Though not particularly heavily armed, five to one are long odds, even for the Fin. So we took our scans, made the best assessment of the situation we could and then boogied on out so I could get my report out. Last I heard, Jy managed to get a team together and they towed the Avenger back to dock. Us lucky few, on the other hand are back on patrol. God bless OB-64, our new home for the next couple of days. A little passive sweeping, and hopefully we’ll uncover something good.”
Mark wanders across the room and eases himself on to the bunk. Putting the tumbler on the deck, he lays down on the bunk, closing his eyelids.
”Computer, end log.”
The computer chirps, ending the log.
“Computer, begin personal log.”
The computer chirps and starts recording, adding to the growing file.
“So, we made it back to Praetorian. But it’s bad news. The Iconians are here. In the Outback. On top of that, they’ve overrun Sigma X-5 and several dozen other friendly systems. TFA ships tried launching SAR sorties against them, but they were repulsed. So far, the casualty count isn’t clear…but it’s sure to be in the thousands.”
Standing up slowly and stretching, Mark pads over to the replicator console punching in a couple of commands. A small tumbler with amber liquid appears in a blue whir. Taking the tumbler, he sips at it lightly, pursing his lips at the bite of the fiery liquid.
”In response to the Iconian thrust, TFA command has split the available ships into three battlegroups. We’re currently attached to Ramillies as one of her escorts. Instead of engaging the enemy, we’re attempting to keep further systems secure. I’m working on a little something for Amalei to cast an eye over, but honestly….I have to wonder at the sanity of a direct assault on Iconians or Herald forces.
Shaking his head slowly, Mark takes another light sip from the tumbler.
”Let’s not even mention that absolute numptie…Kagren. I mean…for all the Lords above! Who thinks that throwing a fleet to crash against a sphere and a full force Iconian fleet is a good idea?! Someone who has lost all sense of reason, that’s who!”
Calming down slightly, he takes another sip from the tumbler, perching on the stool in front of his console.
”And to top it all off…Vulpes is back in the picture. That sick, twisted Orion TRIBBLE. is back in our lives. In amongst all the other comm traffic, including the comm from SFI requesting a recon mission to Andor, TFA command got a garbled distress call from the Avenger. Nick Mansfield’s boat. An older model Excelsior class, but still a good piece of equipment. But he was off on a survey of Arborea…or OB 222 as it’s listed on the Starcharts.”
Mark pauses again, sipping at his drink, a small grin creeps across his lips.
”Now, what’s rule number one of a War. You don’t go on a survey mission, no matter how well intentioned, without some form of escort. Nick…well, he never was one to strictly observe protocol. Hell, his first night on the station he tried to bed Alenis.”
The smile fades as the events of the last 24hours come back to him.
”Well, it looks like he got the kick in the teeth he was looking for. While we were on a routine patrol through OB-15, I got a coded databurst from Amalei. Simple instructions. Book it to OB-222, find the Avenger. So, the dutiful soldier, I obeyed. We ran under cloak, but because of the urgency, I ordered Otto to open up the taps on the engines and run her hot. I knew that the Heralds might be able to spot her, but then again, that’s the risk I had to run, or it would have taken days to get there.”
Sipping at the tumbler again, he rolls it lightly in between his fingers, watching the amber fluid move in the glass, as though examining it.
”They spotted us once or twice, and there were a couple of close calls, but they never managed to get a bead on us…though I guess they weren’t really trying. When we arrived at Arborea, I ordered a full stealth protocol, meaning we could only search with passive sensors. Why? Well, lords only know what might have happened to the Avenger, and I did not want the same fate to befall my beloved Fin. So after a good three hours of searching in the vicinity of Arborea III, Leftennat Lesi located their Ion trail leading to the fifth planet. Figuring it as good a lead as any, I told Otto to head us that way.”
The Silverfin searching the Arborea system
Mark sighs, contemplating what he’s about to say next.
”When we found them, they were…well, for lack of a better word, battered. Hull breaches everywhere, main and auxiliary power offline, not to mention the micro meteorite hull impacts. Worse, she was surrounded by 5 unknown vessels. A quick search of the database and Leftennant Lesi found a….rough…match to the ships. Outback raiders. The little TRIBBLE that Vulpes brainwashed or paid to be his lackeys. Though not particularly heavily armed, five to one are long odds, even for the Fin. So we took our scans, made the best assessment of the situation we could and then boogied on out so I could get my report out. Last I heard, Jy managed to get a team together and they towed the Avenger back to dock. Us lucky few, on the other hand are back on patrol. God bless OB-64, our new home for the next couple of days. A little passive sweeping, and hopefully we’ll uncover something good.”
Mark wanders across the room and eases himself on to the bunk. Putting the tumbler on the deck, he lays down on the bunk, closing his eyelids.
”Computer, end log.”
The computer chirps, ending the log.
"Your fun is not wrong" -Jeremy Randal@borticuscryptic
Proud Member of the Operational Support (Bug Hunter) Team
Proud Member of the Operational Support (Bug Hunter) Team
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