The Starsong War (IC)

[DeTess]

Upgrading the mechs takes the better time of two days, even with help provided by Revalk's crew whenever they aren't needed to finish work on the ship itself. When the work is done, Revalk calls a crew meeting.

The ship's briefing room is filled almost entirely by the ship's crew, numbering twenty-five all told, including Yue, Adrian and Zeke. Revalk's own salvaging crew makes up the bulk of the ship's complement, and most of the rest are from Avron as well. The only stranger among the group is an android, sitting a bit separated from the rest. Zeke, Adrian and Yue had seen her once or twice in the past few days on the ship, but she had mostly isolated herself in her room.

Revalk has taken up a position in the centre of the room, and once everyone has arrived and taken a seat, motions for silence. "There are three things I'd like to say before we begin this meeting in earnest. First of which is an introduction." He nods towards the android. "This is lieutenant Enwa, with Imperial intelligence. She's here in an advisory capacity."

The only acknowledgement the intelligence officer gives of her introduction is a nod, and Revalk moves on with his briefing. "Secondly, the votes have been tallied, and the name for the ship we've all settled on is the Fenrir. Yue came up with that one." A short applause and general exclamations of approval fill the room. "And lastly, I'd like to congratulate all of you. Between the refit of the ship and the mecha, we've done in three days what should have taken two weeks. That's something to be proud of, and a good sign of things to come." Another round of cheers fills the room.

"Now, let's move on to our mission." Revalk's voice cuts through the noise in the room and everyone quietens down again. "While we where busy putting the ship in order, the Portmaster's people and Lieutenant Enwa have been looking through the data salvaged from the Fujin ship. There was very little useful information in there, but we have learned one interesting thing, and that is that the ship on which Fujin's leadership left the colony carried three more people. The record on that had basically been expunged, existing only long enough to get permission for launch. However, based on the timing we think these three are Bernahrd and his kidnappers. This further confirms Fujin's involvement, and gives us a lead to chase."

"In addition, we found information that this holding of the Fujin corporation was receiving large sums of credits, as well as shipments of goods that tended to quickly disappear from their warehouses and records." Enwa cuts in. "This proves that whatever happened here was organized at a higher level than what the local director could manage."

"That's correct. Thank you, lieutenant." Revalk takes over again. "There is some bad news too. The portmaster has been unable to reach Stork after his first acknowledgement of our message. In fact, it seems like Avron has been cut off from the federation's network. This could mean that someone is preparing a strike to silence us, or is just hoping that they can keep us isolated for long enough that whatever we have to say no longer matters. Which brings me to the point of this meeting. There are a couple of potential courses of action open to us. The most direct course is to set off and start our investigation into Fujin. We could try to track the ship that took the local director off world, and try to find him and Bernhard. Alternatively, we could try to backtrack the Latrodectus' flight-path before it came to our colony the first time, to try and find out where it got the glasser rounds, and who provided them. Lastly, we could risk staying in system for a couple more days, to see if any attempt is made to move against the colony. We might be able to learn something from such an attack, if it happens. That's how I am seeing things right now. The floor is open for suggestions and opinions."

[Valmark]

Adrian had been sitting through the conference with Tooth in his arms -nobody had taken the tally seriously- listening silently, glancing curiously at Enwa given his unfamiliarity with androids and perking up when he mentioned Bernhard.
"Everybody knows what I want to do... But we got only a ship and a handful of robots, so I can't exactly go off on my own. Losing a couple days feels iffy- what're the chances of us getting attacked in that limited time and not past it?"

[Merilan]

It was... good, as it were, to be part of something that was positive - it was not like what the Galm was like, where they were skirting around toxic people and miserable goals.
They were working towards something quite collective, something good.

"It is nice to meet you all. I look forward to working with you," Yue nods.

She listens on in on the briefing, folding her arms. "... I'm personally going to vouch for Bernhard as well. I know Adrian wants that, and I'm in the thought of mind that when we know people are in danger, I prioritise people over leads."

[DeTess]

"The portmaster and me expect any attack to happen rather quickly if it happens at all, because a delayed one defeats the point of attacking at all." Revalk shrugs. "If this conspiracy thinks they've got us isolated and neutralized already, then they'll leave us alone. If they think the survivors of this colony are a threat, then they need to deal with us as soon as possible. I personally want to get on their trail as soon as possible, but I do think we need to consider the possibility of another attack on Avron, even if its just to decide that its unlikely."

[YuweaCurtis]

Zeke would have tried to get at least passing familiarity with those he encountered during the last few days. Things would work better with a crew who knew each other after all. Especially if he could learn there strengths and weaknesses, but of course that would come later. Also treating people as facelas was a bit rude and not good on a ship like this.

He would formally introduce himself to the crew before settling in for the briefing. Hearing the others speak, he would think then add in his own opinion. "I mean an attack would definitely mean people are on danger. Bernhard is already kidnapped and if he's fine he'll probably remain that way because they need him for something. My worry is how likely we are to lose the trail if we do stay back."

[DeTess]

"Well, it has been five days already since they left." A young woman whose uniform bears the patch of Revalk's salvaging crew, as well as the name 'Anna', speaks up. "We'd be following the trail through navigation buoys anyway, and such a trail takes a long time to get cold, so I think we could afford the time to look out for the colony first."

Revalk shakes his head. "You're right that we're unlikely to lose their trail with a few more days. However, ideally we'd catch up to them in space, and there's still a slim chance of that right now. The shuttle they left on was a fairly old model, and this ship will actually be able to cruise faster than they will. With a couple more days, we'll lose that chance for certain, and getting to them if they're holed up somewhere will be a lot trickier."

[Valmark]

Adrian looked down, scratching Tooth behind the ear.
"...we can stay a couple days here for me" he said with a dejected tone "Bernhard won't be happy if we abandon everyone to an attack. And even if we left someone behind to protect the colony taking away the Fenrir will mean they can just shoot from ships with nearly zero risk"

[Merilan]

Yue quietly nods, apparently satisfied with that reasoning. "... hang in there," she says of Adrian. "You know him better than we do, but I know he's tough -- and he'll probably be happy knowing the folks he knows back here are safe and sound too, no?"

[YuweaCurtis]

"I guess that decides it, if no one else objects," Zeke stands up , walks over to Adrian and puts a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "We'll be after the old man before you know it. We can work out some general rescue plans while we wait."

[Valmark]

Adrian nodded at the two of them, smiling.
"Yes, yes you are right. He would want me to stay and make sure everybody's safe. I've actually been working on something that should make it easier to get him back... Or anybody from Ouroboros we might not want to kill" he glanced at Yue with that.

[DeTess]

"Well then, it seems we've reached a decision. The duty roster for patrols will be posted within an hour. if three days pass without any sign of trouble we'll meet again to discuss our next move. Unless anyone has further comments..." Revalk looks around the room, expectantly, but no one else speaks up. "Then you're all dismissed."

***

A day and a half pass in relative quiet. The Fenrir begins patrolling space near Avron while its crew acclimatizes to the ship and to eachother. On the second day of the patrol a crewman named Mel goes around the ship, distributing patches for the crew. The patch depicts a grey wolf breaking the chain holding it back, against a background of three interlocking gears.

On the night of the second day of their patrol, Zeke, Yue and Adrian receive a message asking them to report to the bridge immediately. When they arrive, they find Rief, Aisha and Revalka lready on the bridge. Revalk is in uniform, but his hair and beard are unkempt, suggesting he only just came out of bed. When everyone ahs arrived, he tells Rief to make his report.

Rief taps a couple of buttons on the captain's console and the starscape visible through the windows of the bridge disappears, and is replace by a heavily pixelated and zoomed in image. On it, several stars are visible, as well as a pair of light sources that flicker on and off. An overlay with information is quickly added, marking the ships that belong to the engine flares together with projected courses. "The first of these two ships jumped into the system from the Federation jump-point an hour ago. It immediately set course for Avron. The color and intensity of its engine flare suggest that its a small military ship, likely a corvette. The second ship arrived half an hour later. It's military as well, but larger. A heavy frigate or a destroyer, most likely. It immediately got on an interception course with the first ship, and the two have been jockeying for position ever since. All else being equal the corvette should have been able to out-accelerate the larger ship, but if it is low on fuel it might not be abel to afford to do so." He turns to Aisha, who shakes her head.

"We're still not receiving any sort of identifying beacon from either of them." She responds. "If these are ships from the Federation Navy that is very odd. They might run silent when jumping in if they were worried about an imperial presence in the system, but they should have been able to rule out any serious fleet by now."

"If we try to intercept them, we could get to them in about six hours." Rief takes over again. "That will announce our presence, and right now they might have missed us, or dismissed us as an inconsequential freighter. They seem to be roughly headed for Avron though, so we could wait. Within about 12 hours they should be fairly close to us and we might be able to get the jump on them. However, if that corvette has fuel trouble the larger ship might catch it before then. There's no reason to assume that that's a bad thing, but both of these ships running silent does not sit well with me. We could try to hail them from over here. Any message will take a long while to arrive, but its the safest way of determining who they are and what they want, though it will also reveal our position."

[Valmark]

Adrain had arrived flying, using his brand new wake board- he basically went everywhere with that thing at this point.
"Can't we hail them while going there? Seems the safest bet by now, instead of waiting them out without knowing if either is a friendly"

[DeTess]

"There's no reason we can't." Rief Responds. "It'll give them a fairly good idea of what's headed their way, but it would be hard to sneak up on them anyway if we choose to intercept."

[YuweaCurtis]

"Well if we can't reliably sneak up on them I guess this is the best course if action. I would rather suddenly show up though. Which ship are we headed to? I imagine we are going to try communicating with both? While running no signal is odd, I feel if they really want d to hide we would not of been able to find them so easily"

[DeTess]

"The ships are close enough that we won't have to pick which one to approach for a while yet, even if we start trying to intercept them right now." Revalk nods at the screen." As for being stealthy, It'd be next to impossible to find them without a broadcasting identity beacon if they weren't using their engines as much as they are now. The moment they stop using them they'll disappear until we get far closer, but we can determine their course when that happens so we can still intercept them."

The image on the bridge's viewscreen changes slightly as Revalk speaks. The two engine flares even out and become brighter instead of continually flickering on and off, and the ship's trajectories, which had been rapidly changing before now start to even out.

"It seems that corvette is done trying to outmaneuver the other ship and is now instead trying to outspeed it." Rief remarks.

"Well, if that's what they'll try the computer should be able to figure out their trajectory as soon as they're done." Aisha replies.

Rief shakes his head. "That corvette will make a burn of 23 minutes, thirty seconds. That'll place it on course for rapid transit to Avron. That Heavy frigate, at its current angle will make a 38 minute and change burn, for an interception about seven hours from now." As he speaks, he plots his predicted course on the screen.

Aisha turns around in her seat and looks at Rief in surprise. He simply shrugs. "Being able to eye-ball trajectories without the aid of computers is a required skill in the imperial navy, especially for a gunnery officer. I'll make certain you and the rest of our prospective bridge crew learn that skill as well, as soon as we've got the time."

Revalk looks at the projected course. "I think we're agreed on trying to intercept them. Commander, plot a course aiming to intercept them right when the bigger ship catches up to the corvette. It's best we do this all in one go. If possible, make our first burn at reduced engine power. That should increase our chances of sneaking up on them, and even if they do spot us, they might assume we're a smaller and weaker ship than we actually are."

"Understood, captain." Rief begins plotting the course, and after several moments the ship's engines kick in.

"As for the message..." Revalk turns back to Adrian, Zeke and Yue. "...standard procedure would be to identify ourselves as being part of Avron's militia and demand these ships identify themselves as well. If any of you have another suggestion that's more likely to get us the info we need though..."

[DeTess]

"Heh, it probably is a bit early in the morning to come up with anything fancy." Revalk replies when the others indicate they haven't got a better idea. "Very well, I'll send them a message. It'll take about an hour and a half for any reply to get back to us though, so I suggest you get some more rest."

***87 minutes later***
[OOC note: Those that returned to the bridge will see this, those that decided to try to get some more sleep or do something else will instead get a message summarizing the discussion below]

"We've got a reply." Aisha reports. She presses a couple of buttons and an older man in the uniform of a federation commander appears.

"System militia vessel Fenrir, I am commander Aiken of the destroyer FFSS Kukri. We're currently in pursuit of a mutinous vessel attempting to take military secrets to the empire. They are low on fuel and we will have them cornered before long. Your assistance is not required. However, stand by. Troubling news about this system has reached us, and once we're done with this traitor I'll inspect your vessel and the colony."

"The message included some official identification codes and friend or foe signals that confirm that he is who he said he is." Aisha adds. "They're also sending out a strong jamming signal now, so even if that other vessel wishes to reply, they can't do so now."

"It seems like we don't have much choice then." Rief responds. "Unless he attacks us, any trouble we cause for them would put us in direct conflict with the federation."

"I don't have a good feeling about this. Adjust course to keep us close by though, I want..." Revalk's orders are interrupted as Aisha speaks up again.

"I might have been wrong about what I said before." Aisha's hunched over her monitor, tapping out a series of commands.

As the silence after Asiha's statement grows, Rief's voice lashes out. "communications officer, would you mind explaining that?"

"Right, uhm, sorry captain, commander. There appears to be a signal encoded on the jammer's noise. I read about a technique used by the federation during the breakaway war to get messages through jamming, and if its the same I should be able to decode this."

"Can't be." Rief replies. "I know of that trick, and it can't be done against modern jamming equipment."

"Well, however they're doing it, it clearly is working." Aisha responds, sounding a bit peeved. "It's a repeating text message, I've got it for you here."

Ship ID: Mantle, Federation intelligence. Tasked with investigating conflicting reports of Avron incident. Pursued by rogue vessel. Requesting immediate assistance.

"They've included an ID code as well, which according to the portmaster's database belongs to a privately owned yacht with some rather unusual access permissions."

"So now they're both claiming that they're official federation authorities and the other isn't. Well, that's what we should have expected, of course." Rief shakes his head.

"We'll continue as planned then. Intercept them both and order them to stand down and prepare for inspection once we have them in range. If either of them tries to run away or starts shooting at us, we know what's what. Unless anyone has another suggestion?"

[Valmark]

"It's probably obvious, but we should also shoot at the one that shoots the other if it happens- the ones telling the lie are more likely to panic and fire" Adrian piped up. He had spent some time taking care of Tooth, before coming back to the bridge to see how it was going "I'm more inclined to believe the ones with the secret message. That thing about the yacht seems like a good cover. Good job Aisha" he smiled at her. Seeing how she had reacted when Rief told her it was impossible, he figured a praise would be helpful. Besides, it was true.

[Merilan]

"The Ophanim has enough stealth capabilities to do reconnaisance at this point in time," Yue remarks where she's already boarded and getting herself ready to take off. "I could deploy and identify one of the ships, and if Adrian or Zeke has similar, the other?"

[Valmark]

"I can do that" Adrian nodded "Seems like a good idea. I'll have to make the Fluffy slower, but whatever"

[YuweaCurtis]

Revalk may had his skills, but so did Aisha. "That's really good work," he would give her a warm smile. "I'm also inclined to believe the smaller vessel more, bit we really can't tell yet. I'll stay back and defend the ship, but I'll switch out my extra ammo for a flight pack just in case one of you need me. Be careful, the Kukri is likely to have good sensors, advance weapory, and a Lance of Valkyre 3s." Unless he was stopped, he would then jog off rhe bridge and make his way to the hangar. Hopefully by then they would already have his flight pack equipped. He would await launch orders.

[Valmark]

"You know, the fact that we know to watch out for the Kukri makes me think they'll be the bad ones. Maybe it's premonition" he mounted the wake-board, nodding 'byes to go prep the Fluffy for launch.

[DeTess]

"Be careful when scouting these vessels out. We don't want to give any bad actors the chance to pick you off one by one." Revalk warns them before they leave.

***

The Fenrir's flight deck is a hive of activity, the ship's many automated tools busy attaching the flight packs to the three mechs. The final bolts are tightened and the fuel-hoses retract just as Yue, Zeke and Adrian take their place in their respective cockpits. As soon as the flight packs and cockpits are secured the deck crew retreats and the Fenrir's hold is quickly emptied of air. The large doors in the floor of the modified cargo bay then retract, allowing the three mecha to launch.

"I've uploaded interception courses for both ships to your navigation computers." Rief's voice comes over the radio. "Keep in mind that once you get close to them, the Kukri's jamming will cut your connection to us. Aisha and I are trying to work out how that corvette cut through it, but don't count on us figuring out a countermeasure before you get there. Fly safe."

Spoiler: OOC

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I want hide, move silent and spot checks from those approaching those two ships. I want to know what special stealth systems you might have active (such as invisibility, or systems that reduce enemy sensor ranges), which of the two you're approaching and how close you're willing to get on your first approach.

Also, keep in mind that it'll still take about two hours to intercept these ships (a bit less for the corvette, a bit more for the destroyer)

Rief trying to figure stuff out (1d20+11)[22]
Aisha trying to figure stuff out (1d20+10)[24]

[Merilan]

"Roger that, Revalk. We'll use due caution," Yue answers as she activates the systems on the Ophanim, shifting it to Bird Mode as it starts to gain a cloaking effect.

She hears Rief as he explains that the jamming will cut the connection, nodding as she darts further through space. Given she has the Electronic Disruptor to reduce system ranges, she's willing to get a bit closer...

Spoiler: OOC

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Yue is currently using the Greater Invisibility and Electronic Disruptor modules for this:

Electronic Disruptor(III)- Radars and special senses like Blindsight/sense/similar fail to detect you unless you're inside 1/12 their max range (if this would result in a range less than 5 mu, the radars can't detect you at all). In addition your mecha gains 30 temporary HP, but this HP is always lost first and can only be recovered when you could change Arsenal options.

Quantum Generator(III)[Rev]-Blink and Invisibility, Greater.

And also flying at 105mu/round

Hide (1d20+9)[24]
Move Silently (1d20+9)[23]
Spot (1d20+11)[14]

[Valmark]

Adrian nodded at the instruction.
"No worries, I'm always prudent. Yue, which you prefer? Kukri or Mantle?" he asked prepping for launch.

Spoiler: Ooc

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I got Nacht System and electronic disruptor.

Move Silently: (1d20+12)[18]
Hide: (1d20+12)[17]
Spot: (1d20)[17]

Not sure wether I can add the HARO to everything? If yes then +3 to everything, otherwise just to Spot.

Adrian will get closer first to the Mantle if Yue doesn't express any preference, and will try to get as close as reasonably possible. Surely within range of his own sensors.

[Merilan]

"I'm confident I can get closer with the loadout I have at the moment - I'll handle the Kukri," Yue answers. "Either way, though, we can't be certain of anything right now, so we'll all have to be prepared for the worst."

[DeTess]

***The Mantle***
Adrian slides into position some distance from the corvette's port bow. The ship's sleek white hull is visible from Fluffy's current position, but only barely. The ship itself isn't that much larger than Adrian's mecha, and Adrian can't identify any weapons or other offensive systems.

Spoiler: The Mantle

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OOC scale note: This ship is Large.

***FFSS Kukri***
20 minutes after Adrian's approach of the Mantle, Yue's Ophanim takes up position near The Kukri. The ship's a brutal slab of metal and guns painted in the dark blue typical of federation navy vessels. It's clear that this ship has been designed around its main cannon, which seems larger than normal for a destroyer class vessel. It also carries an extensive array of AA weaponry, though it seems to be lacking the batteries of missiles common on other warships.

Spoiler: FFSS Kukri

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OOC scale note: this ship is Huge.

Spoiler: OOC stuff

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There are no signs that either ship has noticed their new companion.

[YuweaCurtis]

"No Adrian, that only means I'm somewhat more aware of what a military destroyer has than some seemingly random private craft. That and well, it's a destroyer so yea it's gonna be dangerous." Zeke would reply to his bit on which to worry about.

***

Zeke would let the other two launch then follow close behind. He wouldn't worry about getting much velocity as he would just turn around and land in the outside of the ship. Before he launchs, he would activate his invisibility. When he lands on the ship he goes for both a place nearby weapons and that gives the clearest view in the direction of there approach. If he were to fire it still may give away the fact there's an invisible unit, and he wanted to keep surprise as long as possible. He would prepare his longest ranged weapon and remain on standby.

[Valmark]

"Know what? Whatever" Adrian told himself, going nearer the Mantle to establish a private communication and hopefully pick something more up on the sensors.
"Hey! Here's Adrian, on the Fluffy. We picked up your secret signal- got any way to prove your identity and intentions? You both saying the other ship is the bad one"

[DeTess]

The corvette reacts almost immediately once Adrian starts talking. It's white hull suddenly ripples with color before fading into the black of the surrounding space, making it more difficult to make out the ship's silhouette from the surrounding emptiness. Fluffy's systems identify a number of weapon's systems deploying from previously hidden mounts in the moments before the ship's camouflage system fully engages, and several lights on the mecha's console flicker on to warn Adrian that several weapons systems have just locked on to him.

A moment of silence passes.

Then a male voice replies over the tight-beam connection. "I apologize for the welcome... Adrian? But to say your approach isn't exactly in-line with any protocol I'm aware of is a bit of an understatement. As to your question..." Fluffy receives a short burst of IFF information, and the displays a simple logo on the communications console, showing a crow surrounded by a set of laurels and a circular yellow rim with the words 'Vigilantes Custodes'. "I am commander Mercur, Jonathan Mercur, Federal Internal Affairs Bureau. As for my intentions... How about a trade? You'll tell me who you are, who this captain Maserat is, and how a colony that by both versions of the story should have been stripped of all means of defense still has enough firepower left that they're willing to pick a fight with a pair of intruders. And if I like your answers, I'll tell you what I'm here for."

[Valmark]

Adrian rised his eyebrows.
"...sure, I have no plans to tell no to the invisible ship aiming a hundred guns at my face. I'm Adrian and I'm a civillian from Avron, which is why I barely have an idea of what the protocol is supposed to be. Maserat's the captain of the Fenrir and anything else will have to be said by him for obvious reasons. But he's waiting to intervene because we don't know who's the good guy here, which is why I've tried to come here silently to talk. And we adapted a ship terrorists left behind, while the robot's mine. We aren't exactly willing to pick a fight, but when two ships, one of them apparently heavily armed, come towards our planet we haven't got much of a choice. Is that enough? I'd really like to move on to the part where you got a big Federation ship trying to capture you and your reply to a potential friend is to pull guns on them" he explained, keeping the same distance ready to smoke himself to throw the enemy off tracks. Meanwhile he checked the information sent him.

Spoiler: Ooc

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Local Knowledge check for the symbol? And possibly for Mercur.

(1d20+7)[24]

If History applies instead then add 8 to the result.