| Beyond the Wall of Hope - Calm Before the Storm |
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Calm Before the Storm (17/05/02 )
"That will be fine Lady Aurora. Now ensign, let's get you dressed. You are coming with us."
"I'll wait outside," Aurora says, starting to head for the door.
"Belay that!" The Admiral commanded. He didn’t want to let Aurora out of his sight until she was safely aboard his ship. He couldn’t afford to have to try to find her if she got called away. That might result in him having to confront Captain Orion about taking her with him.
"Sir?"
"You stay right there little lady."
Aurora and the ensign both blushed.
The Admiral grins, "You can turn around and close your eyes if you prefer."
Aurora smiled and crossed her arms, not turning around. Looking directly at Brightwing.
"Sir!" Brightwing stammers, blushing redder.
Aurora smiles and winks before turning her back on Brightwing. *Gotcha!*
"I think the little lady just paid you back for that kiss ensign."
"Yes, sir," Brightwing grinned.
When Brightwing is dressed, the three leave the room together.
The doctor speaks up immediately, “Admiral, I must protest. The patient is in no condition to be out of bed. He has just come out of a coma…”
“Duly noted doctor, he is however needed. I must override Wykin, you know what is at stake here.” Torvaine replied sternly.
Dr. Wykin nodded, “Aye, I do…”
“Besides I feel fine!” Brightwing lied.
“Sure Winger…” Karen’s eyes narrowed, she grabbed his arm, spun him around in a kind of waltz like maneuver and then let go.
His head spinning, he braced himself against the wall. It took every bit of will to keep his legs from buckling under him.
The Admiral grabbed Karen’s shoulder, “that is quite enough sergeant!”
“Sir he is in no condition to be going on this mission…”
The Admiral flattened his ears back against his head and bared his teeth, “I will not have my orders questioned! It is that kind of response that got you busted down in the first place. Now help Winger and let’s get this mission on, time is something we have very little of.”
Karen saluted, “Aye sir!” A slight bit of sarcasm entered her voice.
Aurora barely had time to grab her emergency gear and space-battle suit before she was hurried by Torvaine aboard the Star Phoenix. The Rear Admiral had wasted no time hustling Aurora aboard the Star Phoenix, He wanted her securely aboard before his troops arrived. There would be no time to go looking for her before they were to leave. He also didn't want Captain Orion to get wind of the fact that he had enlisted the aid of the psychic civilian. It would not be wise to risk another confrontation with the Captain. The Lady Aurora was needed to save his son and his comrades, possibly even his wife as well.
Aurora was curious about the ship. She was surprised that a Rear Admiral had a ship that was so cramped for space. The corridors barely had enough room to let two persons pass. If more than two people wanted to go in opposite directions, some of them would have to step back into the nearest doorway or alcove to allow the other to pass. This was one situation where Aurora found her shorter stature a blessing.
Aurora soon found herself in a small private cabin, alone with the Rear Admiral. She felt he was a bit uneasy having her aboard but he was determined to have her along. He tried to reassure her about her safety and cautioned her to obey orders of military personnel, especially when it concerned her safety.
”I can understand your reservations about this mission and the strict military discipline that is usually required from the team members. Let me assure you that I have not pressed you into military service; you are still a civilian and will be treated as such. However, you will be required, when we are in the field to obey the orders of military personnel. This goes doubly in regards to in dangerous situations, my personnel, as well as all military in general, are highly trained to recognize dangerous situations. You will be required to obey their orders and accept their judgment.” The Admiral lectured at her like she was a first year cadet.
There was a knock on his cabin door.
“Come.” Torvaine ordered.
Sergeant Karen Summers entered the cabin escorting Commander Lalita.
“The Commander has been briefed sir, she requested to meet with you sir.”
“Thank you Karen, please escort Aurora to crew quarters so she can get some rest.”
Karen nodded to the Admiral and smiled at Aurora, she was trying to be friendly. Aurora relaxed a little. Both exited.
Commander Lalita sighed, “are you sure it’s a good idea to bring the Civi along?”
The Admiral looked very sure of himself and answered firmly. “Ryana thought so and I believe she is capable, so yes.”
“As you say, I just wanted to register my concern sir. Also, we transmitted a tight beam message to Lieutenant Alraen and his Lancers on Planet side. They have repaired their transport, but have been unable to pull out due to the anti-orbital laser cannon.”
“Did you advise him of our plan?”
“Yes sir. Admiral, how do we plan on getting past the gun emplacement?”
The Admiral smiled, “we won’t be avoiding it, the Phoenix will be taking it out.”
Lalita raised an eyebrow. “Just how are you planning on doing this?”
Torvaine took a deep breath, “well I have designed the Plan as follows:
Brightwing will be piloting the dropship for landing, taking all essential rescue personnel: the marine platoon, combat medics, myself, Aurora and Karen Summers.
The Phoenix will be minimally crewed, with you, Lalita in command.
The anti-orbital laser cannon’s scanning range extends to sub-orbital range. A combat ship can detect the lock-on signal from the weapon’s targeting array, and has a five second window between lock-on and firing solution.
The weapon’s shielding prevents successful location until firing. The range of the Phoenix’s main Plasma Laser cannons will allow the ship to be parked in High orbit and act as artillery.
The Gyran weapon will need to fire twice for the Phoenix to coordinate its location. When the anti-orbital cannon is located, the Phoenix will lock on and take it out.
The Plan is to launch two altered Cruise missiles from the hard-points on the Phoenix. These missiles are fitted with EM-transmitters to boost their scanner signatures to the size of dropships. Since the Phoenix can only carry two of these, the real dropship will need to head in after them and act as final bait. The cannon will retract after the second shot, and its armored bunker is impenetrable to our weapons, the gun must be exposed to be destroyed.”
Lalita shook her head, “That’s unnecessarily risky…”
“I disagree, with Brightwing’s Run-by-Wire© interface, it will allow him to dodge the weapons if necessary. It is the only way, and the rest of the crew accepts it as necessary… I offered to let any opt-out without repercussions.”
“Even the civilian?” Lalita questioned.
Torvaine shook his head, “she doesn’t know or need to. Everyone will transfer to the dropship when we dock with her in zero-g.”
At the sleeping area Aurora saw that the bunks went from floor to ceiling. They were stacked six high. Karen stored Aurora's belongings in a wall locker just inside the doorway and keyed it to her DNA.
"Are you tired?" Karen asked, hopeful.
"Well, yes. Besides I guess this may be the only time I have to rest anyway."
Karen was surprised at this observation. She quickly recovered.
"The top three layers of bunks are unclaimed so take your choice."
Aurora had surprised Karen again by taking the top bunk, which had less space than the others.
"With my smaller size I'd be more comfortable there than others." Aurora had told her. Aurora had then levitated up onto the top bulk. She pulled back the blanket and slid in. She turned her back to the doorway and pulled the blanket up. She was asleep before Karen left the room to help the ship get ready for lift off.
| Calm Before the Storm (Foxmage and Aurora ) - 17/05/02 |
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