[Galaxy] 2161.10.02 - CHA JL - Spearling/Nelson-Samad - "The Battle of Cheron, In Progress"

Sun Oct 2 12:18:27 PDT 2011

//  Environs of Cheron  \\

[CHA]

"Evasive!" Sasha shouted, gripping the arms of the captain's chair.  Her eyes were glued to the main viewscreen, which showed a blossom of fire approaching the Challenger, dead-on.  St. John's fingers flashed over his console, causing the ship to immediately wrench herself to the side and down.  The direct hit turned into a glancing blow, skittering off the polarized hull of the Earth ship and moving on to an area of empty space, where it dissipated.

"Romulan ship is coming around for another attack."  Cara said as she watched the screen in front of her "Port side toward the rear pilons."  She said as the BOP swung back around for another run.  "Captain, they're nickle and diming us to pieces."  Cara said as she braced herself.

"We're about to reverse charges," Sasha snarled.  The element of surprise had played itself out perfectly, but was now moot.  It was now down to firepower, tactics, and skill -- with a modicum of luck thrown in for good measure.  The Challenger was holding up well.  St. John made the ship dip and dive, taking it to the limits of her design specs, using the impulse engines and thrusters to not only dodge incoming fire, but present a stable firing platform for Vic at the tactical console.  Her eyes narrowed, Sasha winced even more as the Romulan vessel peppered the Challenger with bolts of energy.

"Hull plating down to 45%, we've got small breaches on decks 8, 9 and 12."  She said "Damage control teams are responding and getting emergency bulkheads into place."  Cara looked at Sasha.

"Got it, Number One.  Vic, let him know how unhappy that makes me," Sasha called out to the Second Officer at TAC.  He responded with a barrage of phased cannon fire and even managed to lob two torpedoes at the large alien vessel.  The cannon-fire splashed across the fuselage of the Bird of Prey and one of the torpedoes exploded on the belly of the ship.  The other torpedo impacted on a Romulan fighter that unluckily intercepted it before it could reach its designated target -- with disastrous results.

"Captain our opponent is moving off."  Cara said with a slight sigh of relief "The fighter that was on approach was destroyed."  Cara looked at the information "It's going to be about two hours before hull plating is fully on line again."  Cara said "Breaches are being sealed.  Only minor injuries at this point."

"Thanks, Cara.  Mister St. John, follow that Bird of Prey!" Sasha said, and then, "Bridge to Engineering!"  As she waited for an answer, she noted Vic's barrage of the BoP continuing, pounding away at her stern as she maneuvered.

=+  "Engineering."  =+  The connection crackled and popped.

"Status on the hull plating, Mister McDonald!" Sasha hung on as the Challenger slid under a  Romulan scoutship (Vic hitting it with phased cannons as they did) and around the Shenandoah, following the Bird of Prey through the battlefield.  At the edge of the main viewscreen, they could see the Meridian hammering away at another Bird of Prey.

=+  "Working on it, Captain! We'll have you up to 80% on forward polarization in five minutes!" =+

"Shit," Sasha muttered to herself.  That was one thing the Star Fleet engineers really needed to work on.  Getting some decent shields for their combat vehicles!  "We're going to route you more power! Put it to good use!"  She cut the COMM, then yelled back to Cara in the Ops area.  "Cut environmental in all uninhabited areas.  Cut artificial grav in those areas, too.  Reduce power to non-essential areas -- shunt it all back down to Engineering!" 

"Yes ma'am."  Cara said as she began rerouting power back to main engineering giving Rick as much power as she could "I've got as much power rerouted as I can Captain."  Cara said as she watched the numbers scroll across her screen.  

The Bird of Prey slowed and swung around, leveling its starboard side towards the oncoming Challenger.  "Let 'er rip, Vic!" Sasha shouted.  "Concentrate on that shield generator -- it's vulnerable!"  The barrage was deafening.  St. John had his hands full, trying to dodge the incoming disruptor bolts and keeping the ship steady for Vic.  The Challenger shuddered and shook, then shot upwards and angled nose-down, giving Vic a nice full-on shot of the shield generator area.  He obliged.

Cara looked up as they dove down, the inertial dampeners straining to compensate, she said nothing as Vic fired at the BOP and waited to see the outcome of the weapons fire.  "Don't they ever give up?"  She muttered "Damaged and broken, they fly undaunted...."  She said.

Vic continued hammering away at the Romulan shield generator.  Apparently finally cluing in on the Challenger strategy, the Bird of Prey began to roll as she moved off at what passed for the Romulan version of full impulse.  "Keep on them!" Sasha shouted, both to St. John and to Vic.  

"Captain, their shielding is down to almost 5%."  Cara said loudly 

>From behind the Challenger, two smaller Romulan fighters -- either having been called in by the BoP or acting on their own initiative -- leveled at the stern of the Earth ship.  The Challenger shuddered and bucked as they fired on the less-polarized hull plating at the rear.

"We have two Romulan fighters at the aft of the ship.  Routing power to the shielding there. "  Cara called out as she quickly moved power around some to protect their vulnerable spots.  

"Vic, swat those flies away from our stern!" Sasha shouted.  Vic was sweating as he continued firing at the shield generator and then fired two torpedoes at the fighters to the rear.

"One down!"  Cara called out "The other is breaking off contact."  Cara paused "Captain, Whispering Death is coming in hot and is firing at the other fighter.."  Cara's voice trailed off.  "The second fighter has been destroyed."  Cara said as she rearranged power one more time.  

<+>  T'Pren's voice came calmly over the COMMs system on the shielded, coded battle channel.  "Continue, Challenger."  <+>

"Give the SubCommander our thanks, Chris," Sasha said, looking back at the screens where a weaving view (due to St. John's evasive maneuvers) showed the pounding the area over the Bird of Prey's shield generator was getting.

Two seconds later, Cara looked back at the BOP.  "Captain, their shields have failed.  They are defenseless so to speak."  She said looking back at the information coming across her screen.

Sasha leaned forward, a clenched fist held up.  "Target both engines and FIRE!" she yelled.  Vic smacked his hands down on his console and flaming death shot out from the Challenger.  She was taking fire, too, though, the BoP desperately carving away at the hull polarization.

"Captain hull plating is down to 25%.  We can't keep taking the hits from that BOP."  She said "I'm routing as much power as I can to main engineering, but we're losing places to take it from."  Cara said 

>From out of nowhere, the Columbia swooped in and added her firepower to the barrage.  

Cara watched as the Columbia started firing as well "Captain, I'm reading a large power build up on the first BOP.  I suggest that we move away."  

"MOVE!" Sasha shouted.  St. John wrenched the ship away, turning upwards and outwards in a fast graceful loop, missing the Shenandoah by meters.  The Challenger swung around behind yet another BoP where it was battling for its life against the Menzobarranzan (Andorian) and the Mir.  "Don't stop, get back get back," Sasha shouted -- this time over the battle channel, too.

>From behind the 2nd Bird of Prey, space was lit with a flash of blinding white light, followed immediately by a rolling wave of destruction, lightning appearing to flash within the circle of force.  It hit the 2nd BoP, pushing it outward and causing an explosion amidships.  It hit the Mir a glancing blow.  "Mir -- get out of there!" Sasha shouted over the battle channel.  Four of the Romulan fighters that had, unfortunately for them, gotten too close, went up in smaller explosions of their own.

Cara watched the destruction of the first BOP and began looking closer at the second one "Captain, there is a build up of power on the 2nd BOP.  Their antimatter reaction chamber is about to breach."  She said loudly "The four fighters were destroyed in the initial explosion."  She said giving a report.

"All Coalition vessels, get clear ... Romulan warship about to blow!" Sasha shouted over the battle channel.  As they moved clear, the second Bird of Prey lit up surrounding space with its matter-antimatter detonation.  The Challenger rocked back and forth, shaking like it was in a terrier's mouth.  Sparks erupted from several consoles on the Bridge, namely the Science port console and the Engineering console.  The Engineer on duty took a jolt from his station and was thrown from his chair, where he lay on the deck, motionless.  

Cara had just heard the CMO's call from Sickbay =^=Yes Commander, we need a medical team to the Bridge.  We have at least one man unconscious and possibly another with minor injuries.=^=

=^=  "On it!" came the reply from Sickbay.  =^=  

Cara looked at the list of damages "Captain, we're not quite dead in the water but we've taken a hell of a beating.  We've got hull breaches on decks 8,9 and 12.  Minor hull breaches on decks 4-6.  Our sheilding is at minimum, there are plasma leaks throughout the ship."  She said as she rattled off the damage reports that she was receiving "We've got multiple wounded, nothing serious at this point it seems."  She said finishing the summary of damages "Repairs will take a few hours at least.  Emergency bulkheads are in place and we're doing a head count to see if we lost anyone in the hull breaches."

Sasha looked at the main viewscreen as St. John leveled out the Challenger, evading the pieces of Romulan vessel that were tumbling away from the blast point.  Vic was still firing the phased cannons at any enemy vessel that tried to get too close.  On the screen, Sasha could see the Mir and the Shenandoah, giving hell to one of the remaining Birds of Prey.  The Menzobarranzan and the Rantaroo were double-teaming another one, while the Whispering Death finished pounding another BoP to dust.  The Columbia was chasing smaller Romulan craft.  Three Tellarite ships, two Denobulan, one Andorian vessel, and one Vulcan ship were out of the battle -- they had limped back (or been towed) into the nebula when it became apparent that they weren't able to continue.  But that still left too many Birds of Prey in the area, along with the other smaller Romulan ships that still buzzed around, wreaking havoc.

"Chris ... contact Captain Finney on the Meridian," Sasha said.

Captain Sasha Spearling
Commanding Officer
&
Commander Cara Nelson-Samad
Executive Officer
==================
FCL-04 Challenger

<Other PCs and NPCs apb Anna> 

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