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Homeward Bound - Part two: Bloodied
Posted By: M.Laine<firelode@hotmail.com>
Date: 3 March 2007, 12:31 pm
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Corrections from part one: The Admiral states there are two destroyers there is in fact one destroyer and one carrier, my apologies.
Part two – Bloodied
The crew had taken the news well all things considered, Cassius sat in quiet pride as the bridge crew continued their duties despite the obvious damage to the auxiliary stations and a number of the tactical stations. Despite the corpses of gunner Feducci and midshipman Grant; who were laid out on stretchers and covered in white sheets, the surviving medical staff had their hands full with several triage areas and security had not had time to police the bodies.
Cassius stood in front of the tactical screen re-reading the latest probe and ship data on Reach space. The pictures of his home planet scarred and literally flattened under the weight of the Covenant attack were painful to watch, even for the third time in a row. A few of the crew glanced to look in his direction whenever he played the data and even now they gasped, or sighed shaking their heads in disbelief and dismay but strengthened in their determination to carry out their orders.
Strength in the face of adversity seemed to be the order of the day, several frigates, small and relatively useless in battle unless used in numbers, had volunteered to be the advance party into the sortie and the rear guard for the fleets' retreat.
Cassius turned to his second in command, looking up from beneath a dressing on his head wound Commander Holland attempted a wry smile and then winced in pain from an open wound in his cheek. "Sir, we're ready for the jump, all ships are in formation and awaiting your order." Checking the clock momentarily Locke nodded with curt precision. Holland turned his head. "Comm; order the frigates to jump in and all other ships to stand by."
Comm officer Reynolds nodded her head and began issuing orders. The frigates jumped out in unison while the other ships tightened formation, trying to cover themselves with each others' weapons. Cassius watched the clock for forty seconds and then looked to Reynolds: "Twenty seconds lieutenant I want a prompt comms patch, if they need help we need to be there." Reynolds glanced at Locke for a second. "Yes sir starting patch cycle now."
A few seconds later there was a hiss of static over the intercom system then the sound of a connecting signal. "This is Captain Garrett of the Forlorn Saviour we are in the slot and proceeding to the picket line, fighter and bomber escort are tight and accelerating, the line's pretty dense but I think we can get the better of them in close. Do I have permission to engage sir?"
Commander Holland gave Cassius a glance a tight jawed Locke shifted his gaze from the live-feed screen and gave a slow nod. "Captian Garrett you are go for sortie, we will be jumping to reinforce momentarily." The reply was swift: "Understood Commander, the picket line will be clear upon your arrival." Garretts' determination was etched into his gravel toned voice.
Cassius waited for the comm. patch to switch to idle. "Reynolds patch me to the fleet." Reynolds nodded and punched a few buttons then turned back to Cassius with a thumbs-up. "Third fleet, now here this, we are jumping into hostile territory and I need you all at your best to ensure our mission is a success, I know we can do this and perhaps in some small way redeem ourselves in the eyes of our fallen world."
Motioning with his hand Cassius prompted Holland to start the jump cycle.
Three minutes later.
"SIR! Incoming hostile fighters, AFS is down, trajectory puts them on a course for the bridge!" Lockes' head snaps to the main window another enemy beam weapon discharge rocks the ship violently, throwing people not belted down or braced for the impact to the floor.
Out in the cold depths a wing of Seraphim fighters screams toward the bridge and there are now no anti-fighter suppression guns on the bow of the Homeward Bound. Locke scans his tac-screens quickly.
Holland looks up from his systems display; "Sir forty seconds and then they're right on top of us. No data on where they came from but boarding craft are inbound." Cassius Locke pulls a wry smile and points at Reynolds.
"Tactical 8 is at our 3 o'clock high order them to make a pass on our bow, now. Holland; apprise security of the incoming boarding craft." Holland and Reynolds nod, another impact rocks the ship, Locke looks to Lieutenant Hatcher; "Helm put our starboard side against the dorsal profile of that destroyer." Locke raises his voice so that the whole bridge can hear him; "Gunnery posts, tac-desk I want you to drop everything you've got on the destroyer, we need to lure the carrier, that means we need to make this captain hurt."
The Seraphim squadron show their portrait, a straight run into the bridge. From the right hand side at an elevated firing position a hail of armour piercing rounds flicker their way through the silence.
The Seraphim split and buckle, breaking apart in grace and beauty, even death out here seems like a display of life. The flame from inside them ripples out and is carried by the debris in all directions, washing over the Tac-8 fighters as they quietly and quickly fly past the bridge window. The only sign of their passing the rapidly dying flame of five Covenant pilots.
"YES!" Reynolds is pleased that they're dead smiles grow across the bridge crew because they're still alive, the engines' cycle up and the Homeward Bound races into the fight. The Covenant destroyer attempts to raise its profile so as not expose its wide dorsal profile.
Hatcher is well aware of the enemy plan and so are the tactical stations. A barrage of friendly fire over the length of the enemy ship force it to slow while the Homeward Bound climbs higher, Hatcher expertly stands hundreds of thousands of tons of star ship on its starboard flank, they hang over the outmanoeuvred silver hull of the destroyer.
Gunners, the tac-desk and Commander Holland wait for Locke to say the words. Locke checks the trajectories, the death-toll calculation, the firing solution data then breathes in: "Scorch it."
"Fire mission, fire mission this is alpha battery control, clear for ordnance release, fire at will." The message is sung in unison over three other channels the tac-desk updates trajectory data as the destroyer desperately tries to use the frigate skirmish as cover.
"Sir, ordnance is away, there's a sensor contact on a single CSC at our aft, range is 10kk, closing at flank speed. Recommend withdrawal to rendezvous co-ordinates." Locke waits, watching the live feed the destroyer has nowhere to go; four points of light move inexorably to their delivery site, a few feet away from where Cassius stands the tac-desk guides the nuclear warheads to their targets.
As with anything that's already dead they run blindly, three of their beam weapons light up ready discharge. Locke and Holland bark in unison: "Brace for impact!" The barrage slams into the side of the Homeward Bound, the ship lurches violently, Holland stumbles forward grabbing his station for support. Locke manages to keep his eyes on the live feed; the detonation is blinding the destroyer warps and skews along three axis, Locke feels no retribution, no justice its just more blood spilled, more carnage and for what?
Reynolds sits at her station flicking switches, her board flickers on and off at random, she sighs and grabs the arms of her seat. "Sir, we've got a problem." Holland walks over to her while Locke takes mild interest.
"What is it Lieutenant?" Holland already knows the answer, the lights are dead communications are down. "The board is fried sir; that last volley knocked out the connection, if we're going to send a message for reinforcement at the rendezvous site we'll need to get to the auxiliary comm. control on the ventral array."
The ship intercom stutters to life; "Now hear this, enemy boarding craft are ten seconds from contact, imminent internal hostile contact, all hands are to repel boarders, Master at arms out."
Holland looks to Cassius. "Sir we need to get to the auxiliary comm. station, permission to escort Reynolds there and send the message while you rally the fleet and get us to the rendezvous site." Locke knows the hell of boarding raids and the odds of two people making it through the ship in one piece. "Permission granted, take Ruiz and Fillion as back up."
Holland salutes, Ruiz, Reynolds and Fillion fall in, they depart quickly Cassius pauses to wonder who will come back.
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