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Post by JW% on Jun 19, 2013 19:44:28 GMT -8
Please check here for crew sign ups and captain registry guidelines: tsdcv3.proboards.com/thread/5531/starfleet-adventures ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The station was at about Jupiter distance from the star Sharblu, a rather out of the way solar system within the Eta Eridani sector block. Sharblu III was becoming an Earth-like planet with some work already, with automated systems adjusting the environment to something that didn't require a sealed suit with it's own air supply. The 'Ships of the Great Waters between the Stars' Fleet had established a space station in this system to keep watch over it. Eta Eridani was, of course, the 'neutral zone' between Federation space and Klingon space. At least it had been before the war had swung into full motion. Now raids from both sides were frequently taking place, and Starfleet had wanted to boost security. So when Starfleet had started encouraging their Admirals to create their own fleets, or 'sub-fleet' or 'flotilla' or whatever this was, the heads of the 'Ships of the Great Waters between the Stars'(a rather literal name devised by a Saurian admiral) had decided that here would be a suitable base of operations. "Commander Kayley Tairen-Shaw." Admiral Wingate said, gazing out the window of his ready room at Sharblu III. It was barely a dot of light at this distance. "I hear that you've finished crewing the U.S.S. Shenandoah." He turned to address her directly. "Cheyenne Class, Heavy Cruiser." He said, referring to the ship. "Think she's ready to head out of space dock? I have missions that need doing." A gesture brought up a holographic display over his desk. "Diplomatic feelers have already been put into place. A trade route between a colony in the Arucanis Arm here..." Blink of light, "And our Embassy on New Romulus here in the Tau Dewa Sector block has been proposed." The two points were joined by a not quite straight line. The curve tried to keep it away from any of the other points where it would be easily hijacked. "Think you can make the first shipping run of this trade route? Basic food and construction supplies for the capital city on New Romulus, nothing expensive, nothing dangerous. Just proof of concept. And of course, making sure that no pirates or other threats are in the way. Think you can pull that off?" It wasn't long after Admiral Wingate dismissed Commander Tairen-Shaw that he would call in the next captain. There were no shortages of jobs that needed to be done after all...
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Post by Fiery Firefly on Jun 19, 2013 20:51:21 GMT -8
Commander Kayley Tairen-Shaw sat and listened to the admiral, slightly jittery to receive her first mission on the Shenandoah.
" Yes, sir the ship is fully crewed. We have just been awaiting your orders to head out." she said affirmatively. And consider it done, every single one of those supplies will make it to New Romulus safe and sound, I assure you."
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Post by JW% on Jun 19, 2013 21:01:55 GMT -8
"You have your orders then." Admiral Wingate nodded. "Make us proud. Dismissed Commander."
The next on his list was Captain Aino Lehtonen of the U.S.S. Kaleva. A light cruiser/escort, Ushaan class. As Commander Tairen-Shaw left Admiral Wingate went to his desk. Recent long range sensor sweeps of a Son'a claimed system near the Federation Core Worlds showed potential use of illegal subspace weapons. Confirmation would be needed before anything could be done, which meant a ship had to be sent to investigate. Low priority, perhaps, but fixing this issue before another Ketteract incident renders that area of space impassible would certainly be necessary.
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Post by Alkonost Storm on Jun 20, 2013 17:58:07 GMT -8
Just then the doors opened and Aino Lehtonen walked in, her stride confident and sure as she quickly assumed position and saluted the admiral. "You summoned me, Admiral?"
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Post by JW% on Jun 20, 2013 18:39:30 GMT -8
"Yes Captain Lehtonen." Admiral Wingate said. "I see you've finished submitting your crew manifest and your ship is ready to get under way, is it not?"
Being telepathic, nevermind having all the stations reports linked through his desk, meant that he really didn't need her to answer that, but he gave her the courtesy of responding before he moved on.
"Captain, you're aware, I'm sure, of the Son'a. A small and dying race with whom the Federation has had frequent contacts, most of them congenial and profitable but... well, in the Battle of Briar Patch they showed that they used an isolytic burst torpedo, a subspace weapon banned by the Second Khitomer Accords because of it's unpredictably destructive nature, to try to destroy the Enterprise E. Fortunately the damage was kept minimal, but you can understand the why such a technology should be kept out of irresponsible hands. And long range sensor sweeps have shown a Son'a outpost that may have more such weapons. Somebody needs to investigate to make certain these sensor readings are, or are not, illegal weapons. I would like that somebody to be you Captain Lehtonen. Think you're up for the task?"
"Remember, this is an investigation only. Unless circumstances call for swift action, you don't need to play the lonestar lawman. Simply submit your findings and a proper response will be forthcoming."
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Post by Alkonost Storm on Jun 20, 2013 18:55:15 GMT -8
"Understood, Admiral. We'll leave at once." She saluted him once again before taking her leave and heading out to the docks.
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Post by JW% on Jun 20, 2013 19:37:43 GMT -8
Admiral Wingate returned the salute and dismissed her, then checked his records to see if there were any updates for ships being made ready to launch.
Commander Sindell Mirea was next called into his office.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Lt. Jovock had established his quarters aboard the U.S.S. Kaleva in what he believed was a logical location: Near the engineering section. While his rank was hardly impressive, he did seem to be one of the ranking officers aboard the ship. Probably the chief engineer.
He kept his quarters looking untouched and spartan, all of his equipment placed neatly and properly away and the bed made to beyond Academy regulations.
With that completed, he followed the memorized deck layout to the engine room to inspect it.
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Post by Adlai Stevenson on Jun 20, 2013 21:15:08 GMT -8
". . . crewmen on decks fourteen through seventeen are to report to the assembly point by 0630 hours. Crewmen on decks eighteen through twenty-one are to report to--"
"Morning? Wouldn't have known," the Centurion noted to himself aloud as he walked the streamlined, whitewashed corridors of the USS Shenandoah, his stride a purposeful, if not militaristic march. Nothing casual about this Romulan, but what else was new?
The Centurion - or Lieutenant Commander Kavar, as the Federation had designated them through their ranking system - made his way toward the bridge, avoiding contact with most of the busy crew of the Cheyenne-class ship, overhearing announcements from the intercom.
"--have fifteen minutes to report to their stations. The weather today is good, partly cloudy with a chance of--"'
Oh, they're trying to be funny now, the Romulan officer rolled his eyes, indignant. Every moment he spent waiting, at ease, not doing his job, was a lost opportunity. He wasn't advancing his career, climbing the ranks, and he certainly wasn't doing anything interesting.
His enemy was no Human, or Klingon, or Imperial - it was boredom. And boredom was beginning to gain the upper hand. No amount of bench presses in the gym or charts surveyed or perky Human science officers bedded could fix that.
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Post by Fiery Firefly on Jun 20, 2013 21:58:24 GMT -8
Kayley gave the Admiral a crisp salute, when she was dismissed, and left to rejoin her starship, the majestic USS Shenandoah, a Cheyenne class which was characterized by its four warp nacelles.
As Kayley made her way to the bridge she saw her Romulan second in command, "Kavar, are things set for take off?" she asked.
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Post by Penny Royals on Jun 21, 2013 8:55:48 GMT -8
Sindell wasn't a woman of many words - never had been, never would be. Nor was she a woman who would easily succumb to silly flights of fancy. But as she stood there in front of the admiral, hands behind her back, feet planted, about to be given her crew's first mission ever, she felt... well, rather jittery, perhaps.
The Ambition was new to her, in a way. She was finding things she had never found before, in her past five years of being on it. She supposed that must be usual, being in charge now. Their previous commander had died and left her the new commander. She mourned his loss for about twelve seconds before bringing her previous crew out of the pit they had been driven into. Since that mission had been so chaotic, of course her entire crew - or shall we say what was left of it - had left her to find a new one. She didn't mind, exactly, just thought it was a bit more of a hassle than what it should have been. Apparently, people didn't like the fact that a big ship had been in a calamity resulting in three deaths...
Even so, she shifted from foot to foot, listening with an avid mind, and thinking about what could happen with this crew now, what horrible things might rise up on this mission.
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Post by JW% on Jun 21, 2013 19:13:57 GMT -8
Admiral Wingate glanced up from his desk and made to stand as Commander Mirea came in. For a moment he took the time to reorganize his thoughts, apparently having had something to say already planned, and now that his empathic senses had picked up her discomfort.
"Commander Mirea." He said with a nod. "Holding up well?" He asked with a look of fatherly concern. "I know first hand that battlefield promotions can be rough. Our station has counseling facilities available. Just stop in and talk, it's what they're there for."
He paused a moment glancing at her. "Very well. Your mission takes you right into the warzone. Patrol the neutral zone from here in the Aldebaren Sector to the Donatu Sector and back." The two sectors of space were right next to each other so it would just be a short loop, galactically speaking. "If you find any ships of Klingon design or using Klingon transponder codes, you are authorized weapons free. They've been raiding our borders and quite frankly asking for this kind of thing. If you see anything you don't think you can handle, back off and signal for help, but if it's just a K'tinga or a few B'rel, show them that we will won't take these threats lightly. The Sherman system has suffered enough damage thanks to their raids, never mind Starbase 157."
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Post by Alkonost Storm on Jun 22, 2013 7:46:22 GMT -8
Finally, the last maintenance checks had been completed: the U.S.S. Kaleva was ship-shape and ready for her newest mission. Graceful as any space-bird, the Ushaan class cruiser lifted from its docking port and flew out through one of the exits in the hangar. Within the ship, Aino leaned back in her seat. "Let me know when we've arrived in the system. We'll have to proceed stealthily from there."
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Post by JW% on Jun 22, 2013 16:18:59 GMT -8
"If stealth is a concern Captain," Jovock noted from his seat off to the side and behind the captain, where he could monitor the ships engines. "Might I suggest we adjust our heading by point oh oh three degrees. This will bring us into an established shipping lane where traffic would not be unusual. From there, we can leave warp near a cluster of mass that would shield us. An asteroid field, or, as it is near a shipping lane, perhaps a starship graveyard."
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Post by Fiery Firefly on Jun 24, 2013 14:33:21 GMT -8
A blue shirt walked in, the medic of the Kurava, Lt. commander Yuuki Kuriyama. " So what are we up to for this mission? Gotta know how much I'll need to clean you guys up later..." he asked aloofly.
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Post by Alkonost Storm on Jun 24, 2013 15:45:36 GMT -8
"We're investigating a Son'a outpost. Recon if you will. Still, it would be best for you to be on standby if things go awry."
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Post by Adlai Stevenson on Jun 24, 2013 18:43:55 GMT -8
Kayley gave the Admiral a crisp salute, when she was dismissed, and left to rejoin her starship, the majestic USS Shenandoah, a Cheyenne class which was characterized by its four warp nacelles. As Kayley made her way to the bridge she saw her Romulan second in command, "Kavar, are things set for take off?" she asked. Kavar saluted his commanding officer, the slight humanoid Commander Shaw. "Yes, Commander. Warp drive is primed and at the ready, and all crew have manned their stations." ---- Aboard the USS Kaleva, Ensign Deirdre Swain made herself look as busy as possible on the bridge, having some small-talk on the side with other crew members as she rigidly acted out the regular motions of a busy bridge officer. This was her first real assignment aboard a Federation vessel, and the last thing she wanted to do was screw this up . . . she'd had a bit of a wild night in the space station, and while it didn't show, she was certainly feeling it. That Romulan sure had a . . . unique modus operandi under the sheets. Hell, be honest, Dee, she thought to herself as she drummed her fingers on the sides of her seat. That shit bordered on the avant-garde.
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Post by JW% on Jun 28, 2013 22:05:32 GMT -8
~~~~~~~~~~~~Starbase
"Admiral Jay." The Andorian officer of the watch snapped to attention as Admiral Jason Wingate walked in.
"As you were." Admiral Wingate nodded. "All ships have launched?"
"Indeed. U.S.S. Kaleva, U.S.S. Cheyenne, and U.S.S. Ambition have all warped out of system. We are still tracking on long range sensors for now, but they'll soon be out of sensor range as they leave the sector."
"Very well. What is the condition of Nukara then?" He asked, watching the monitors as if he could will the three ships to perform well in their missions.
~~~~~~~~~~U.S.S. Kaleva
The computer blinked an estimated time of arrival at four hours on Ensign Swain's monitor, while there were no unusual sensor readings. Everything seemed to be as it should be. A system just off the edge of a trading route, near the mass of stellar debris known as the Briar Patch. It would give them a nice backdrop of gold and rose color to the 'east'(galactic 'counter spin' wise) when they arrived.
Of course the Captain had to choose how she was going to arrive. An option of stealth had been offered, but none of her other bridge officers seemed forthcoming for suggestions.
~~~~~~~~~~U.S.S. Shenandoah
The larger four nacelled ship cruised along a shipping lane on the far side of the Briar Patch, giving the nice coloring of gold and rose out of their 'Port' side windows. Estimated time of arrival showed for six hours at current speed. This was leaving the crew time to make preparations, if any were needed.
~~~~~~~~~~U.S.S. Ambition
The tiny warship cruised at a much slower speed behind the other two ships. The briar patch, a small blotch in their windows, was to the 'north', to the bow of the ship as they were facing in that direction, but their path called on them to turn right as they patrolled.
So far no traffic that wasn't intended had been seen. They had passed Deep Space K-7, with a number of Federation ships and cargo haulers detected. E.T.A for the first stop on their way, the Traelus system, was one hour. Enough time for a little planning at least.
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Post by Alkonost Storm on Jun 30, 2013 12:49:56 GMT -8
Aino's fingers played upon the armrest for a bit before she announced her decision. "Adjust her heading by .03 degrees. We shall be taking Mister Jovock's suggestion. Stand by for further developments."
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Post by JW% on Jun 30, 2013 17:40:23 GMT -8
~~~~~~~~~~U.S.S. Kaleva
In a little over four hours, due to the course correction, the ship came into the system. It's name was a string of symbols and numbers: 83b5 Epsilon, and there was no particularly useful planets in the area. An outpost on a moon at roughly Earth scale, orbiting a gas giant was it's only claim to habitation, and a central hub for asteroid mining and solar collection.
It was, in short, a run down 'truck stop' on the edge of a freeway that was a bit too far away from the big city to be useful. And like many of these run down places, it had a bit of a 'junk yard' 'out back'.
The Kaleva slowed to impulse on the edge of the debris field. From the looks of it a few smaller planetoids had been demolished, possibly from over-mining, and a number of abandoned starship hulls. Many of them quite old, and all of them picked over by raiders, pirates, or scavengers. Somewhere easy to hide in.
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Post by Alkonost Storm on Jul 7, 2013 4:47:56 GMT -8
Aino leaned forward in her seat. "Proceed with caution. We're only here to observe after all."
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Post by JW% on Jul 7, 2013 14:49:07 GMT -8
The unnamed ensign at the helm nodded, declaring "Half Impulse" as the Kaleva moved forward, drifting through the floating debris.
At the weapons station Ensign Deirdre Swain was easily able to pick out targets in the floating wreckage. Abandoned hulks, good for scrap metal or target practice at this point. Sensor readings showed ionization and carbonization on some of these hulks... burn marks where they'd already been shot at a few times. Unfortunately, with just the targeting sensors, she couldn't tell just what had been fired. A closer look might be needed for a full forensic study.
Ensign Swain glanced over at the long range sensor array, spotting a few ships in the area. Possibly making a supply run to the outpost, possible doing something else. They didn't seem to be moving with any urgency. Two Son'a Mission Scout Ships to be precise... looking like a really really evil and mean horseshoes. Slightly smaller than the Kaleva, due to shape alone, and probably similarly armed. Maybe five or six shuttles as well, orbiting or moving about near the outpost. As she watched one moved away and went to low warp, heading out of the system on some mission or another.
Lt. Jovock for his part monitored the U.S.S. Kaleva itself, watching power levels and similar such reports. Everything read good, with all the power being evenly distributed, no station or system getting more, and none being ignored. They were moving with only deflector screens up at the moment, gently pushing the tiny bits of debris in the field away with a passive repulsion field. The larger bits of metal or floating stone had to be piloted around, but they were in no danger of micro-meteorites or bits of dust punching holes through the hull.
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Post by Penny Royals on Jul 8, 2013 21:22:21 GMT -8
Sindell stared at the monitors and screens of the control room. Nothing was in sight, at least nothing big or harmful. After a moment, she called everyone to the room, to gather around.
"Alright. So, as you know, our current mission is to patrol this area for Klingon warships. We're going to be taken right to the warzone."
She stood up, pacing around, further examining the monitors.
"From my experience, this area is pretty low-key. I don't expect us to run into any ships. But if we do, I expect none of you to hold back on opening fire, is that clear?"
She turned to look to the group before her.
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Post by Alkonost Storm on Jul 9, 2013 7:08:34 GMT -8
M'raa acknowledged Sindell's orders with a salute. "Med bay will be on standby, Captain."
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Post by JW% on Jul 10, 2013 17:03:36 GMT -8
((Since I'm allowed to progress with this...)) ~~~~~~~~~~U.S.S. Shenandoah The travel to meet with the convoy was dull and uninteresting, and the captain didn't feel the need to call a briefing for the rest of the crew. The Shenandoah shut down it's driver coils, the great masses within the four nacelles that used exotic matter and high energy to create a field of bent space around them. The warp field faded, giving the outside observer the effect of seeing a streak of light resolve itself into the proud ship. New sensors kicked on as they dropped out of warp and more power could be routed to the auxiliary systems. The visual of the convoy could be seen in the distance, orbiting a planet, large bulky ships that looked like a great box with pods stuck to it. Immediately on leaving warp a friendly hail came from the planet. It seems that already there were... problems. Attachments:
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Post by Adlai Stevenson on Jul 10, 2013 22:40:12 GMT -8
Centurion Kavar surveyed the bridge tersely, hands behind his back as he looked toward the approaching starship. He noted the hail from the orbiting planetoid, looked amongst his fellow crewmates, and . . . quickly began to realize things were not going according to protocol.
"If anyone wants to tell me what's going on, that'd be absolutely grand," he said, generally prickly and unamused. This was supposed to be a run-of-the-mill assignment, and he wanted to get it over with as soon as possible.
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Post by Fiery Firefly on Jul 10, 2013 23:04:37 GMT -8
"Things aren't going the way we planned..." Kayley muttered, "Lets see what they want."
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Post by JW% on Jul 10, 2013 23:39:38 GMT -8
~~~~~~~~~~U.S.S. Shenandoah
"Sir?" One of the crewmen asked as the first officer spoke up and seemed to take charge. Honestly, the ensign seemed confused about what could possibly be wrong. Everything looked normal. The hail was probably just to welcome them to the system and tell them when they would be getting underway and... "Putting the communication onscreen now..."
Immediately the scene of the freighter floating in orbit in front of them was replaced with a stern looking older woman, her hair a bit of a mess like she hadn't been paying much attention to it. Behind her was what looked like an office wall, a few memorabilia mounted on shelves and a picture of presumably the local landscape. It was sorta blueish.
"U.S.S. Shenandoah, we have a problem." The woman had eyes just a little too large for human standard, her species unknown, but the reddish purple skintone pointed to one of the more exotic. Right now however she was frowning at what she saw, be it over the communicator, or at the notes on her desk. "Our convoy has been cut back to just one functional ship. We can't make the full delivery in just one trip like this! At a minimal we'd need three, but the other cargo ships have something wrong with them. One of them we knew was going to be a problem, something about not being able to pump power from one end to the other, but then the other hailed us. They said something about not being able to stabilize a warp field or some other nonsense. Basically they can't go. I'm not an engineer, I don't know why. I'm a broker. I can't make deals with these people if there aren't any ships to haul cargo."
She seemed to run down in her rant, and it seemed that she was glad to have someone who would listen to her and had a hope of fixing things.
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Post by JW% on Jul 17, 2013 20:42:45 GMT -8
((Okay, I'm starting to think this whole thing is just going to collapse...)) ~~~~~~~~~~U.S.S. Ambition The Traelus system was home to several planets, orbiting around the star Traelus. The second of those planets was almost habitable by humanoid life, and in the past had been a Klingon mining colony, later contested by the Tholian Assembly, and still later taken by the Federation. Currently it was the fourth planet, or rather the dust cloud that was trying to form itself into a fourth planet, that was the most important to Starfleet. Scattered and hidden throughout the rocks were satellites pointed towards Klingon space. Each of them linked in an array, creating an impressive telescope that silently and secretly watched the Klingons and their machinations. "Captain Mirea..." One of the officers manning the sensor station said hesitantly. "The satellites here aren't transmitting. It... could just be that they're dusty. They're floating in a cloud after all, dust's sure to collect..." But it could also be tampering, somebody attempting to blind Starfleet to a possible attack. "Should we note this in our log and move on? Or... we have an engineering staff. We could probably fix whatever is broken." Attachments:
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