The March of the 12th (Massive Fleet Participation Needed!)

[OmegaXII]

Captain Havardr M. OmegaXII
USS Snekke-H
NCC-9872
(Adv. Retro-fit - Excelsior)

Better late then never

Space station 39
With hold ups on getting the Aegis Shield, Deflector installed. We have had problems with the Borg console module, its being installed in a science slot. With continue malfunctions has delayed or push for the Hromi Cluster where the Klingons have decided to invade.



Earth space station
So we now have to make a quick trip to Earth space station to finish the retro fit. Star Fleet has asked us to setup with extra supplies and repairs for other star fleet ships in our cargo bays. Cargo bay 1 will be used only for evacuation of the population and extended hospital bay. I am suspecting heavy injuries and loss of lives. This may end up being a bay for the fallen hero’s on the return trip home. Hope for the best , prepare for the worst.

After the extensive work on the Borg console, the blood thing finally works right, the darn thing kept lowering our shields and messing up our anti-proton cannons. We have switched our anti-proton cannons for polaron cannons for now. The anti-proton are in the cargo bay 2 with supplies. We also installed 2 anti-proton beams in the rear, just in case of problems.



“USS Snekke-H you are cleared to leave Earth space dock.”

Roger, ¼ impulse power commander Jaro. Alright plot a coarse for the Hromi cluster warp 9 ... Engage!

Last minute setup of cargo bay 1 into a hospital bay was still in progress.
We dropped out of warp just before reaching the Hromi Cluster. We notified star fleet and the 12th Fleet of our intentions to proceed semi slowly into the Hromi Cluster. We will be looking out for enemy ships in the area, since the Snekke-H is arriving late in the battle. Ship goes to Red Alert!

Breaking through

Not far into the Hromi Cluster we got caught by a group of 7 - D7 Class Battle Cruiser & 8 – Bird of Prey - Class K'Vort, escorting a Dreadnought - Vo'quv (carrier)

RED ALERT!

“We were in the battle with the D7's, we got two of them destroyed and when eight Bird of Prey uncloaked and hit us. We got our tractor beam offline and shields down by 50%. Hull damage by 20% … Apply shield repulsion and prepare for quantum torpedo spread. “



Our ship crew in engineering are busy working at repair the hull and getting our shields fully up to 100%.

Tactical Report … We got two of the D7's out of seven leaving five of them left …. eight Birds of Prey uncloaked after we hit the D7's, Sir!

Time to turn the tables
Time to turn the tables and take some of those Birds of Prey down. As we made our turn, another spread of torpedoes from the five D7's … “Brace for Impact” … Emergency power to shields …..

Lock onto a Bird of Prey … got lock... High Yield III ...torpedo spread ….continue cannons & beams on target... (explosion)Yes, one down seven to go! Get those shields back up! ….Quickly!

Engineer report … Shields at 40% and are regenerating … should be up in 5 seconds …. Hull strength holding at 60% …. engineers are working hard sir to repair both.

Medical report …we have 200 injuries so far … not sure how many more coming, sir

Science report... we have no other cloaked ships that we can find in the area.

Well we are not in the clear yet crew, be prepare for the battle to continue.... as we again turn to make a another run on the Birds of Prey …lock on! … High Yield III torpedo spread! … now finish with continue cannons & beams (explosion)...quick switch to another BOP … shields down … hull... (explosion) YES! .. 2 for 1 run!. Another 2 BOP down ….

Tactical report …SIR! D7's ...PORT SIDE!



Holy crap! …Shields! .. D7's! … “Brace for Impact”... torpedoes incoming! … Sir! Shields are now at down on port side and hull at 40% they hit us hard! … Emergency power to shields ...engineering hull repairs! …. target one of those D7's … give them High Yield III torpedo spread … lets knock those shields down! … continue cannons & beams on target ...(explosion) YES! ..Another D7 battle cruiser down.

Medical report … We now have 450 members down and numbers are rising from the last attack on us.

Engineering report … We are hurting in the hull, but are rebuilding quick as we can … Sir we have lost some of our engineering crew members are now in the hospital bay critical care.

Tactical report … We now have [5] - D7 Cruisers, [5] - Bird of Prey and now [1] - Dreadnought carrier has just appeared. We are out numbered 10 to 1 … Don't know how many squadrons of fighters on the Dreadnought carrier. We could be facing a 41 to 1 odds including the fighters, sir.

One last run!

Tactical ...Sir! The Klingon Dreadnought has came into play and has launched it's 3 squadrons of fighters on us.

Brace for Impact … tactical …. fire!.. Polarize the hull ...Beam at will … Aye! Sir … one squadron down and now the other squadron down … shield down to 70% … shields back up quickly … target & attack the carrier! …

Tactical .. SIR! ... Birds of Prey uncloaking starboard side …

Braces for impact … starboard ships shields strengthen ...

SIR Engineering! .. We are hurting in the shield down star board side and hull weaken to 30%… we are working as fast as we can to get the hull up. Shields can't take much more sir!

Roger...do the best you can

Engineering .. We increased shields by bi-passing a couple of life supports systems on the outer hull of the saucer sections. Shields are back at 100% sir.... don't know for how long?

Alright! … Thanks

Tactical … yes sir!

“Let's hit them where it hurts!” … target the Dreadnought carrier …. Aye, Sir! …. targeting shields with cannons … carrier shields down! Quickly! ...High Yield III torpedo spread! … Yes we got her hurting ...carrier hull is at 30% … keep on that witch! …. TAC track those D7's turn rate … Alright one last run on that Dreadnought carrier … High Yield III … keep continue cannons & beams on target …. (explosion) YES! Carrier is down! ….

SIR TAC! ..D7's have made the turn!

Oh sh-t! … Brace for … Impact! … shields down again port side … hull strength down to 10% … quickly get the hull strength up! … emergency power to shields! ….
SIR , MEDICAL! ….. we are now filled with 500 of 750 crew … captain please!

Roger medical! .. we are going to hit one more of those Birds of Prey …. Bring the ship about …

Engineering ...Sir problem with 2 rear cannons … they went off line ...the Borg console is messing up!

“Engineering quickly, try to get them online!”

Engineering … Sir! ..we got you 1 out of 2 rear turrets back online... You still have the 2 beams in the rear also ... best as we can do!

Nice job engineering! … alright one more blast on those BOP..... High Yield III torpedo spread! … cannons on target! ….. shields down … 20% hull left … keep on target! ...(explosion) Yes!

Tactical report.... They now have [5] – D7's Battle Cruiser ….. [4] – Birds of Prey …..

We eliminated:
[2] – D7's
[4] – BOP
[1] – DN carrier
[30] – Fighters
37 - Total Destroyed

Sir, Science! …. The Klingon force is turning away for the time being... might be our best escape route now to go to warp speed and leave the area. No other cloaked vessels in the area.

Commander Jaros ...Plot a coarse and quickly get us away from here to recover from injuries.

Commander Clev ...Contact star fleet and notify them about the battle and possible ships entering to help the invasion force. Make star fleet aware of our status, let them know that the supplies will be delayed due to battle repairs.

Engineering teams ...Try to get our hull and shields back up to 100%, we don't know what else is headed this way.

Medical … We are moving out of the area … please get our crew on the recovery list as quick as possible.

Commander over the PA:
Crew lets start the recovery … ship is now standing down to Yellow Alert.
We are moving out of the battle field.

Computer talking:
Ships status is now at Yellow Alert!

[Inry]

Bridge of the Admiral Kulakov

Inry looked over the latest reports from the MACO's on the ground. So far progress was good, most teams had completed their initial objectives and were moving on to their primary objectives. The Kulakovs support fire was proving to be invaluable, knocking several enemy hard points out and forcing the klingons to hunker down. Inry smiled at the thought of scared Klingons when Pyr turned around in her chair.

"Colonel, we've lost telemetry data from the MACO's deployed on the ground." Inry frowned and stood up walking over to Pyrs console to see the indicators herself.

"Is it a system problem? What are the ground teams saying?" Talo looked up from his console next to Pyr, a look of concern on his face.

"None ma'am, and I cant get ahold of them at all." Inry turned to Yoksei.

"What about the Exeter or Ross can they hail them?" Yoksei fiddled with her console briefly before turning back to Inry.

"Colonel I cant raise them, they appear to be holding their patrol stations but I cant raise them or anyone else in the fleet. The Klingons must be jamming our communications." Inry forwned at the annoyance of klingon jammers.

"Well we can fix that get a lock on the jamming station on the planet and send a tri-cobalt That should fix things." Yoksei turned and started scanning then turned back with alarm.

"Colonel the jamming isnt coming from the planet!" Inry looked at her a bad thought entering her mind.

"Then were the hell is it coming from!" Yoksei focused her scanners.

"Its coming from astern! Near the Exeter." Yoksei's console suddenly began to beep. "Colonel multiply enemy vessels decloaking! B'rel class, I count five.... no seven.... wait nine! They're firing on Exeter!" Inry watched as the Exeter was quickly over whelmed by the combined fire of the Klingon ships.

"RED ALERT! Get those forward weapons back to standard mode and come about!" Inry watched as the Ross moved to intercept the Klingons but even though it took one of the small scout ships out she was no match for the combined firepower of eight birds of prey. The Kulakov opened fire as her aft phaser banks opened up along with a volley of quantum torpedoes. "Get a emergency message to the fleet and request reinforcements!" Yoksei frantically worked her console.

"I'm trying Colonel, but the jamming is too strong!" The Kulakov shook violently as the Klingons focused there fire on the them. Inry braced herself on her command chair as Pyr called out the shield status.

"We're down to 60%, another salvo like that could be painful." Inry watched as Talo fired off return fire as Yoksei shouted over the explosions going off around the bridge.

"Colonel, theres another ship decloaking, its big, I think it may be a Vo'quev!" Inry looked at Yoksei.

"They cant cloak Yoksei!" Inry was interrupted as another console blew up nearby.

"Well this one apparently can, cause it didn't just appear ouyt of no where." The Kulkov shook again.

"Shields collapsing!" Inry suddenly heard the unmistakable sound of Klingon incoming transport, by the time she looked up and saw the strange round metal ball it emitted a powerful blast wave from itself expanding across the entire bridge. Inry and the rest of the bridge staff collapsed unconscious before the strange device hit the deck. Moments later 5 people materialized on the Bridge, four Klingons and a female Orion. The female held a data pad and began to look at the face of each unconscious crew member as the klingons moved to secure the bridge. As the orion tagged Pyr the Klingon who appeared to be somewhat in command grunted watching the Bajoran beam out.

"There is no Honor in taking a ship like this. These federation dogs do not even have the chance to fight back. I hope your 'Mistress' is well aware of that fact." The Orion looked up from tagging Talo clearly annoyed by the Klingons remarks.

"And I would remind you Commander that the Mistress wanted the officers alive and unharmed, something you and your men are rather hard pressed to do correctly. I would also remind you that my 'Mistress' is in command and until we have what we came for she will continue to be." The Orion moved to Inry and check her face with that on her data pad, she smiled softly as she tagged Inry watching her beam out before moving on finally tagging Yoksei as well. "Worry not Commander once the Mistress has the information we need, we'll be able to strike a great blow against the federation and the twelve fleet, if your lucky you may even be allowed the lead the initial assault on Starbase Valhalla. I'm sure even you would love the chance to gain the glory of the attack yourself." The Klingon grunted as the Orions communicator beeped. She pressed a button on it and spoke quickly into it. "We've secured the bridge officers and are ready to transport out." A female voice responded.

"Very well, we've already beamed aboard their medical officer and chief engineer. Place spatial charges and return to the ship." The Orion put her padd away then turned to the Klingons.

"Commander place the charges, then feel free to do as you wish, understand that the Federation will likely be here soon and if your still here when they do....well......You'll be on your own." The orion gave a short laugh before tapping her comm to be beamed out. The Klingons began setting charges around the bridge, as the Commander watched the carrier and most of its escorts set course toward the Klingon main fleet before they cloaked, leaving him and his B'rel alone.

"Charges set Commander."

"Return to the ship and lets see if we can catch any federation worthy of a fight." The klingons beamed out leaving the Admiral Kulakov drifting in space disabled.

[CerealKillerSD]

Bridge of the Raven,
En-route to Kulakov's and Exeter's last known location.

Lt. Christian was busy tying to establish communications with either ship, having received the distress call from the Kulakov.

"No luck, Ma'am. Neither ship is responding on any Federation channel."

"Thank you, Lieutenant," Aeris turned in her chair towards her Chief Science Officer; "anything, Oren?"

"Picking up traces of weapons fire, multiple warp signatures and a flurry of other Klingon indications. Readings indicate that there were ... quite a few Klingon ships in their area, I don't know what we'll find left when we get there."

Oren gave a Aeris a grave look upon reviewing the information from the sensors, only increasing to an already tense situation.

Aeris activated a Comms link to Sick Bay, "Dezi ..."

"Go ahead," responded the ships doctor.

"Better prep for the worst, Dez," Aeris said with a sigh.

Dezi responded and closed the channel. Aeris turned back to face the viewscreen, still displaying nothing useful. From behind her, the turbo lift doors open revealing her First Officer. She made her way quickly to Aeris' side, bending to relay some information covertly.

"Command is wanting to talk to you."

Aeris looked over at the Tactical station, "how long till we arrive?"

"ETA ... 5 minutes, sir."

Aeris stood from her chair, dismissing the information her XO had just given her. "Bring the ship to Red Alert and prep all systems. I'm not getting caught with our pants down."

The bridge was washed in a reddish hue as the computer changed the status to Red Alert. An alert sounded to inform the crew to take to their stations. The ship lurched slightly as the Advanced Escort dropped out of warp, and roughly 100 kilometers to their port side, lay the U.S.S. Admiral Kulakov ... adrift in space.

"On screen...", Aeris ordered.

The screen showed the derelict vessel, listing to its side and spewing all sorts of gaseous material into space. The crew stared at the monitor for what seemed like hours; with that amount of devastation Dezi may take on a new function .... coroner.

"Anyone alive on there?" Aeris' query wasn't necessarily directed to anyone in particular. Oren pulled himself back into reality and started scanning the wreck,

"No life signs that I can detect, Col. Picking up residual Klingon transporter signals, however. It would seem that they were boarded."

Aeris didn't know whether to take that as good news ... or further bad news. Only good news would be that the Klingons took prisoners ... prisoners that can be rescued, continuing the hope that the Command staff of the Kulakov is alive. However, thoughts of rescue would have wait as a Klingon Bird of Prey decloaked to the Raven's starboard side.

"Bird of Prey, starboard!" Lisan's tactical console light up with all sorts of telemetry and tracking data. "B'Rel class, and there only seems to be one ... for now. Do we engage?"

"Stand by," Aeris ordered, "wait for them to -"

The B'Rel aligned itself to the broadside of the Raven, opening up with a full volley of its cannon's, forward beam banks and a torpedo spread. The Raven recoiled with each impact of the torpedoes, sending the unprepared to the floor and knocking the rest of the crew off balance. Lisan, having been knocked off her console, scrambled to regain her seat.

"Shields down to 40%. Some hull damage but nothing major; although, I don't suggest being their punching bag for the next round."

Aeris took to her seat, "agreed."

"Ma'am, the Klingon Bird of Prey is hailing us," informed Lt. Christian

"Ignore it. I'm not in the mood to listen to his pride -"

Aeris was cutoff, as the B'Rel sent another strike into the, already weakened, starboard side of the ship. The Raven shook violently with each torpedo and cannon hit.

"Lisan, orbit that Klingon and keep our distance at ten kilometers. Computer ... engage Multi-Vector Assault Mode."

The reddish hue on the bridge quickly changed to a soothing blue as the computer prepared the Raven for separation. Lisan maneuvered the ship away from the Bird of Prey and kept just outside of its weapons range. To the Klingon vantage point, the Raven showed no physical changes. The bank of the vessel hid a new challenge for the B'Rel.

As the Raven banked around, the separation sequence completed. All command functions were tied to the main "saucer" section, and Lisan fed the drone sections with target telemetry. Three ships were now bearing down on the Bird of Prey, and as they entered weapon range.

"Col, we're in formation and all ships have the B'Rel targetted," Lisan reported.

Aeris stared at the B'Rel through the view screen for a moment; "Fire."

All three ships began firing, ripping through the Klingon's shielding in moments. The hull of the Bird of Prey proved little resistance once the shields were gone. Fires erupted on the Klingon bridge as consoles exploded in a destructive ballet, while the engineering section ripped itself apart ... until she was no longer.

"Klingon ship destroyed, Sir."

"Thank you, Lisan. Oren, keep a scan going to see if any more guests show up."

The Raven finished its re-integration sequence as it slowed to the Kulakov's position. Sensor scans picked up the spartial charges on the bridge. Vo'ruil, the XO, returned to Aeris' side once again;

"A word ..."

The two headed off into the Ready Room, "Command isn't thrilled for you're little detour here. We need to get back on course, ASAP." The irritation in Vo's voice was easily perceptible, but it wasn't irritation from the fact they were here ... more that she knew Aeris wouldn't listen.

"We'll get back on course, as soon as we figure out what the hell happened here; understood? We were the closest ship in the area and responded to a distress call ... Command can kiss my -"

The Comm's system on Aeris' desk interrupted the conversation,"sorry for the intrusion Ma'am, but the MACO team is ready and assembled in Cargo Bay 2."

Aeris looked at her friend sternly and responded to the message, "thank you Lieutenant, inform the team I'll be there momentarily." She keyed the Comms channel off, "the squad and I are headed to the Kulakov to secure her and look for any survivors."

Vo crossed her arms forcibly, seeing there was no way she would dissuade Aeris' decision, "I can't let you go down there ... at least, not without me."

"Wouldn't have it any other way, Vo." The two officers left the Ready Room and headed for the Turbo Lift, "Lisan, you have the Bridge; Vo and I will be on the Kulakov."

"Yes, Ma'am."

Aeris and her First Officer joined the team in the Cargo Bay, they readied the gear and themselves, packed up the shuttle and headed toward the derelict craft.

[Karadok]

Bridge of the Kyra Magdalen:
Karadok stood watching the Tactical display on the main view screen. There was something almost beautiful about the dance of the blue and red symbols. Except for the fact that each one represented a ship and when one blinked out it usually meant some dead. Karadok felt guilty as a doctor for thinking how wonderful the displays looked.


Something is not right the Klingons are giving way too easily.
"Sakul don't you think..... What just happened."

"Sir 30 Birds of Prey just decloaked behind us."
"I see that Etoura, RED ALERT and lets see if we can get a few of them."
"Send a message to the rest of the fleet in system. If we can't hold them the rest of the fleet is in trouble."
"Yes Sir."
Red Alert Red Alert

Before turning to face the fleet of BOPs the Kyra Magdalen fired her plasma torp and Hybrid plasma phaser at the nearest ship. The enemies shields went down to the beam weapon and the torp caused a plasma fire on one of the wings.

" Activate the red matter capacitor. That will give us a little more power."

As the Kyra turned it was rocked by disruptor fire taking the starboard shields down to 20%.
A quantum torpedo spread was launched from the Kyra at a group of BOPs.

"Sir all 6 torps hit but they didn't do much damage."
"Let's do our best to keep them busy until help can arrive. The rest of the 12th is busy maybe we can hold them off their backsides until some of the late comers get here."

The Kyra hurtled through a cluster of Klink ships firing her dual disruptor and phaser banks at nearly all of them. She took several hits as well. The hospital ship simply was not made for this.

"Sir all shields are down to 30% and the Starboard shield is gone completely trying to regen the shield but as long as we keep getting hit like this we simply can't do it."

"Do the best you can engineering we are almost through this swarm.... What now."
As Karadok looked at the main view screen what he saw made him sick to his stomach.
5 K'T'inga and 2 Negh'Var dropped from warp directly in front of the Kyra.


"EVASIVE MANEUVERS"


" Send a message to StarBase Valhalla it's a trap to destroy the fleet."

"Sir we can't we are being jammed."

" We have to get out of here and warn the rest of the fleet."

Linos the newest member of the Kyra a female Klingon Science officer spoke up.
"Sir, we have no way of knowing if the first message made it through or not, but we could alter a probe to send a tight beam repeating message. The Klingon's will focus on ships not probes. That will get a message to everyone here in system"

"Very good Ensign get it done."

A few minutes latter a small probe launches from the Kyra with the following message .
30 Bird's of Prey 5 K'i'tinga and 2 Negh'Var are to the back of the fleet. Support ships in danger...fleet in danger... we are being flanked....30 Bird's of Prey 5 K'i'tinga and 2 Negh'Var are to the back of the fleet. Support ships in danger...fleet in danger... we are being flanked....

" Takeera see the K't'inga on the far port side a little ways off from the rest of the ships. Let's send a Tachyonbeam to drain her shields and fire both beam banks and a high yield Quantum torp right after. Maybe we can cripple her just enough to sneak past and get out of range of the jammers to warn Starbase Valhalla. Target her shields and have the torps target her subsystems."

The Kyra Magdalen rocked from aft shots coming from the BOPs that had turned around. Plasma torps and the Hybrid beam weapon fired back. As the Kyra focused on the K't'inga and getting out of system to warn the rest of the fleet. The Tachyonbeam and the combined power of the two dual banks did the trick and the Qauntums torps crippled the Klink ship just enough that the Kyra slipped past the blockade, but not before taken some damage.


Kyra Magdalen Warp factor 1. Enroute to Starbase Valhalla

"Report,"

"Sir we have 1/4 of our crew injured 45 dead, and Hull integrity is down to 35%. And we will not be able to maintain warp for much longer."

"Did we get the probe away?"

"Yes sir the probe was left unmolested and made it past the BOPs."

" Send a message to Starbase Valhalla tell them.... tell them it appeared to be a trap designed to eliminate the 12th fleet.... they need to prepare all defenses.... "

"Yes sir"

There was complete silence on the bridge as the reality of what just happened sank in.

"I'll be in my quarters. Etoura you have the bridge."

What are the Klinks up to..... There is no doubt that they expected to wipe the fleet out... to what ends though......

[Black_Astral]

[OOC: Couldn't delete since replies were entered so this is an edit/delete to avoid ruining plot. Post that was here will return at later point when applicable to story]

[Inry]

((Ok this is out of charecter but I think it needs to be corrected. The Klingons are not about to attack Vahalla...........yet. The group that attacked Inry was not a part of the main klingon force. Sorry I should have clairified this earlier. I'll make a new post later when I get a chance to make things more clear.))

[Karadok]

Kyra Magdalen en-route to Starbase ValHalla.
Captain's quarters:

Karadok lay on his bed sick to his stomach. He could only imagine what was happening back in Ry whatever the place was called. Suddenly there was a lurch that threw him from his rack.
Beep
"Bridge to Lykos"
Karadok hit his comm badge.
"What is it bridge?"
"Sir you better get up here right away."
"On my way."


Bridge of the Kyra Magdalen:
As Karadok stepped onto the bridge he was greeted with chaos.
"Commander, comm is down we can't be sure the message reached Starbase Valhalla we sent three separate probes with the same message hoping that will work."

"What else can go wrong."

Etoura had a strange look as she spoke," We are effectively dead in the water. Only partial impulse power... no war.... navigation system keeps blinking out we aren't even sure where we are... We are transmitting a distress call beyond the other warning..... We have 2 hull breaches and sir life support is at minimum."

" Linos I want you and a helmsman to take the shuttle craft and see if you can reach ..... Well anywhere and get notice to Valhalla.... I wish we knew what the Klingons are up to.... It was a trap.... but why......why indeed. Etoura we need to know where we are and let's start trying to repair the damage."

[Inry]

An unknown location.

Inry woke up with a splitting headache and realized at once she was in trouble. A foul stench filled her nostrils and as she opened her eyes and looked around she realized she was in a holding cell a barrier field keeping her inside. She could see other cells but they appeared to be empty. A klingon appeared and walked past he looked at her briefly and laughed, but she couldnt hear it. "The must be sound proofing my cell." Inry thought. She suddenly became more aware as two more klingons came past dragging what could only be Talo, several bruises on his face and wrists, she lost sight of them and began to fear for the others. An Orion women appeared at Inry's cell she gave a nod then began to speak.

"Hello Colonel Koren, Sleep well?" Inry stood up and straightened out her uniform.

"Inry, Koren. Colonel. Serial number 56780934-78" The Orion laughed softly.

"Oh please Colonel, we already know that, in fact we know quite a bit about you and your other officers. However my Mistress would like to know more. Specifically she'd like to know everything you know about Starbase Valhalla." Inry crossed her arms and stared at the Orion.

"Tell her I could care less what she wants to know." The Orion laughed softly again.

"Oh I think you will, everyone tells me what they want eventually." The Orion began to laugh again as Inry was suddenly stunned by a hidden disruptor fitted into the cell. All she could hear was the Orions laughter as everything went black.

.............................................................................................................

The Klingon Command bridge.

The Klingon crew worked tirelessly as the Orion entered the command deck and approached the Command Chair shrouded in Orion silks. When she was close enough a soft feminine voice spoke.

"What have you learned so far Duhiz?" The Orion knelt before her Mistress.

"The information we bought from the Ferengi was accurate. The Kulakovs officers are very stubborn. None have talked, but given time I can make them tell everything they know." Her Mistress remained still as she replied.

"In five days we will rendezvous with the fleet command ship and I intend to present the Kulakovs broken officers as a gift to the General. You have until then. And if you fail Duhiz, I'll present your beaten body as a gift instead, for the General to do whatever he wishes with." Duhiz trembled at the thought as she rose and quickly turned to leave the bridge.

[CerealKillerSD]

The shuttlecraft "Firefly" left the rear docking bay of the Raven. Aeris and Vo'uril were manning the controls and piloting the small craft toward the Kulakov, while the eight-man MACO team was prepping their gear and checking each other one last time. Aeris leaned forward and opened a channel to the Raven,

"Raven; Firefly"

"Go ahead Firefly."

"Proceed to the Xarantine Sector and await further instruction. Keep a channel open and continue to monitor the team."

"Understood. Be advised, Firefly; response time will be 45 minutes, repeat: 4 5 minutes for response. Stay safe; Raven out." The Escort's main engines wound up as the ship began to move forward. In one long turn, she attained the sped and vector needed - and in a flash, she was gone. The flight deck of the shuttle fell quiet as the ship maneuvered towards the large docking bay doors of the Kulakov. Continued attempts to raise anyone on the ship via hail's yeilded no results; although the scanners on the shuttle were picking up bio signs - but who's.

"We're in position, sending Federation override codes ... and .... doors opening." Vo'uril finished keying the sequence into the console in front of her. As the doors neared full open, the automatic tractor-beam locked onto the shuttle and began to tow it inside. The shuttle landed with a soft thump as the beam gently set down the craft in the dock. The rear ramp of the shuttle hissed as the atmospheric controls changed to match that of the Kulakov.

"Alright MACO's ... let's go." Aeris moved from her seat to the aft section of the shuttle. Opening a container holding her stuff, she started to get herself ready. "Gunny, take the squad and secure the dock; we'll start here, work our way through the ship - this will be our fall back point."

The gruff looking MACO gave a quick nod and began barking orders to the rest of the squad, in a synchronized ballet they moved from the shuttle into the dimly lit area and began to secure the docking area. Vo'uril joining Aeris, started to gather her equipment as well.

Aeris reached in the crate, pulling out her Gistii-10 sidearm; un-holstering it, she checked to ensure it was ready to go and then affixed the leg straps properly.

"I can't believe you still have that relic Airy," mocked her First Officer.

Aeris rolled her eyes slightly, "you about ready there?"

The pair stepped off the ramp and Aeris keyed the ramp-door closed, and then engage the security protocols on the shuttle. The MACO's had positioned themselves at the doorway to the corridor, waiting for their next move. Aeris and Vo'uril joined them.

"Docking bay is clear, Ma'am. No sign's of anyone, although we are at the rear shuttle bay. It's mostly cargo bays between us and the rest of the ship. We'll need to get to Engineering if we're going to -"

Aeris quickly cut off the Sargent, "we're not scuttling this ship just yet, Gunny. We'll head to Engineering to see the extent of the damage, but we'll also need to secure Sickbay as well. If there are any survivors, we'll need a triage set up."

Aeris walked over to a computer console and was able to access the deck plans for the old ship. "Sickbay is forward, in the main saucer section ... and ... Engineering is ... right there, in the neck section," there was a short pause, "huh...."

The surprised look on Aeris' face gained Vo'urils interest, "what is it?"

"Deck 13, just aft of the vertical engine shaft ... there's a cloaking device. Didn't think these old Ingram classes had the capability ..." Aeris quickly shrugged to her XO, "learn something new everyday. At any rate, let's move. Vo, you take Bravo and head up this corridor; I'll take Alpha and move along this corridor. We'll move together and meet in Main Engineering."

"Roger." Vo'uril acknowledged the order and joined her fire team.

The door opened revealing a dark corridor. There was a haze hanging in the air from the burnt out electronics, and the smell was just as worse. The team moved up the corridor in tandem, until they reached the point where they were to split. As they silently passed cargo bay after cargo bay, they started to near the main area's of the ship. Vo'uril was the first to break the silence, "contact. Starfleet officer, looks like part of the Security team; no life signs, he's dead."

The hallways were starting to get repetitive; dark and dismal, with a layer of acrid smoke in the air, the red hue from the flashing "Red Alert" status only further solidified one thing ... they were in hell.

Aeris' team pressed further into the darkness along their set route. Their progress was stopped by an emergency force field; looking through the protective barrier she could see the stars and the blackness of space. Where hull plating once was ... only a gaping chasm existed. "Vo, we're going to have to back track a little. Looks like this whole section here is breached, there's no getting around."

"Understood."

One of the MACO's had pulled up a copy of the deck plans on a PADD and found a series of Jeffries Tubes linking their current position to Main Engineering. "Found another route," Aeris informed the other team.

Vo'urils team made it to Engineering first; however, when they arrived there, the doors were sealed from the inside. She motioned for the team's combat engineer to breach the door. As the corporal placed small charges on the door, the rest of the team moved to for cover.

"Fire in the hole ..." with a quick flash, a loud bang followed by a dull thud, the door was freed from itself and collapsed onto the floor. As the team moved for the open doorway, they were greeted with phaser fire from all directions. The team quickly redeployed into the corridor. "Hold your fire! We're Star-"

The statement was cut short as a phaser bolt landed on the door frame above the Commander's head. "Dammit....", she moved back into the cover of the hallway. "Set for stun ... I don't know if they're Klinks, or Starfleet. Sargent, you have a stun grenade?"

The Sargent readied his grenade and give Vo'uril a quick nod, "you bet."

"Good," Vo'uril released her grenade from it's holder on her belt, and activated the charge. With a quick toss, she lobbed the grenade into the rear of the room; the Sargent tossing his into the opposite corner. The team readied themselves, preparing for the grenades to go off.

A bright flash of light, followed by an almost ear-splitting bang was the signal to move. The fire team quickly rushed the room and disarmed those inside. They gathered up the rifles and moved the crewman to a brighter area of the room. The crewman were extremely disoriented by the stun grenades and the team Medic was working to calm the effects of the weapon.

Vo'uril keyed her communicator; "Alpha, Bravo"

"Go ahead Bravo."

"We've secured Main Engineering. Found some crew members alive, although they were disoriented and opened fire on us. Probably thought we were Klingons; better watch yourself out there."

"Understood. We should be arriving shortly." Aeris keyed off the communicator and continued moving forward.

[Forge04]

Colonel Mark “Angel” Davis came out of the hatch on top of the mine’s structure and surveyed the scene before him.

Off the horizon, over fifteen kilometers away, was what was left of the generator facility, the barracks and administrative buildings. That had been five days ago.

On the desert in front of him were 17,000 MACO soldiers, gathering mostly the dead now. The KDF bodies were being taken away to the south and dumped in a large enough depression in order to be covered with the sands of this planet.

The sun crested to the east and highlighted what was left of the colossal transport inhibitor, the arrays blackened on the top from the assault of the fighters and orbital impacts.

Maj. Darchu came out of the hatch behind him and looked at the scene with his colonel.

“Hell of a week eh Angel?” the Andorian sighed.

Angel holstered his 1911 and turned around to regard the battalion commander.


Seven days earlier.

“Target eliminated.”

The scout/sniper team had just killed the first enemies of many. They were only one team of many that had come down in their own ships hours earlier and reconned the battlefield.

Angel’s shuttle was in formation with five others, flanked on either sides by over thirty peregrine fighters, though this far out there was little expected resistance.

They were twenty kilometers out from mine number four, the most isolated mine and the easiest target for the 12th Fleet ground assault.

Driving their vehicle was CPL Iil, a human male of twenty one years. Operating the main gun was PFC Erty, a Saurian male who was younger than his appearance led on at 25. And off the sides were PFC Tyder, an Andorian female and Master Sergeant Paunn, a Caitian male.

“Hitting the objective in five-“ came 1LT Beck’s voice in their ears.

Here we go.

They could feel the shuttle spin on it’s Y axis, the rear door opening to reveal the desert surface for the first time.

They were facing west. Off to their left were mountains stretching high into the sky, recently smashed up by the relative constant flux of the still changing planet.

In front of them though, was their objective.

Over two hundred stories high was what looked to be a smaller Starbase 24, umbrella stretching out for hundreds of meters. Between them and it Angel knew, was the generator facility and barracks for the KDF personnel. Then on the other side was the mine itself, which according to scout team reports still incoming was bustling with over two million Poighet workers.

CPL Iil gunned the throttle as the vehicle jumped forward. Angel adjusted the gun in front of him and looked to his right, seeing the other assault vehicles in line with them. Moments later their parent craft were overhead, providing overwatch and additional firepower.

The peregrines zoomed above them at speed, weapons coming free towards the ground out of sight in front of them, green energy coming up to meet them with anger.

They crested a small hill just in time to see a peregrine go down into the sand a hundred meters in front of them.

Massive disruptor turrets guarded the generator and barracks. In front of them were heavy disruptor guns trained on them, unleashing death every several hundredths of a second. Angel opened up with his gun as the formation of vehicles shifted to the left, the rear gunners bringing their weapons to bear on the gun nests.

Everything was a deafening cacauphony of engines, wind, screaming energy shooting through the air.

“Contine around clockwise,” Angel said through the comm.. net, the other vehicles matching the maneuver.

He looked down at his tactical console to assess the battlefield.

Over two hundred of these nests, with ground troops waiting behind them. Number of them was unknown, but it was a lot.

He looked up in time to the vehicle to their left disappear, then moments later the front dropped away, Angel’s body lurched, and everything spun.