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<TITLE>[New-Darwin] 05 Sep 2161 :: Space :: Capt Kurisawa, Cmdr Galan, Cmdr Knight</TITLE>
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[ Gamma Sagittarii system, closing on the second planet ]<BR>
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"Warp engines are powering down," the engineer called over the intercom. "Impulse control to Helm."<BR>
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Captain Kurisawa rose from his seat and stepped forward, "Tactical Alert. All combat systems at the ready." He leaned over his helmsman's shoulder. "Nice and easy, Lieutenant," he said quietly and calmly. "Like a coiled snake."<BR>
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"Debris, Sir," called the science officer from her scope. "Expected, given the report of the destroyed Klingon ships, but I'm detecting some residual energy off the planet's ionosphere." She turned to the viewscreen. "It seems we were warned not long after the fight actually happened. It's still fresh."<BR>
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"Then they're still close," offered the tactical officer.<BR>
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Kurisawa straightened and looked to the comms station. "Marx, hail the Aurora." He turned back and keyed the intercom on the arm of his captain's chair. "Bridge, to Mason."<BR>
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=Yessir.=<BR>
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"It looks hotter than we would have liked, Major. Prep for the assault, we're letting you boys off the chain first chance we get."<BR>
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=Roger that, Sir. A-Team is ready at the transporter. B-Team is loading in the shuttlepods. We're good to go."<BR>
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"Very good," Kurisawa acknowledged, and turned his attention back to the viewscreen...<BR>
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[ Romulan Evader Decimus]<BR>
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Men were scurrying through the ship as fast as they could, almost totally silent in their padded boot coverings. The ship had been designed from the outset as a stealthy vessel, as opposed to older models that had been retrofitted with cloaking devices. With her ambient electronic signals attenuated, these were the quietest warships in the Praetor's fleet, and Decimus already had two kills in her foray into human space, even though they had dispatched Klingon interlopers. Now, a human vessel had arrived, and on the bridge, Galan paced behind his crew as they maneuvered the ship to deal with this latest threat.<BR>
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"Commander," the tactical officer whispered to his leader. "They call another ship. Another human must be nearby."<BR>
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Galan knew they had not detected a human vessel since they arrived. "Scan the surface. Could it be on the ground?"<BR>
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"Negative power signatures from our current position," the tactical officer reported. "Could the Klingons have destroyed it?"<BR>
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Peering through the viewing portal into the space surrounding his ship, Galan contemplated their next move.<BR>
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[ ESS Constitution, Bridge ]<BR>
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"No answer from the Aurora," called Marx from the comms station. "Repeating hail on different frequencies."<BR>
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"Could any of that debris be from her?" Kurisawa asked aloud. "Maybe the battlesite is fresh because it's new."<BR>
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"Negative, Sir," replied the Science Officer, still intent on her scope. "It's all Klingon. And I'm not picking up any signatures that may be cloaked vessels. The Romulans have either tweaked their equipment, or they're not here."<BR>
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Kurisawa squinted in suspicion as he stood in front of his chair and watched the viewscreen. "Helm," he said almost quietly, "ease us into orbit. Give me geosinc over the colony."<BR>
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"Geosinc orbit, Aye Captain."<BR>
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Kurisawa turned and keyed his intercom controls again. "Bridge to Ibarra."<BR>
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=Ibarra here, Captain.=<BR>
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"No signs of Romulans or the Aurora. We're entering geosinc. Prepare to contact the colony via the Youngblood protocol. And be advised we'll be launching the assault teams as soon as we're able."<BR>
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=Aye, Captain. Initiating comm codes, and awaiting confirmation of geosinc. Ready to act as Mission Ops as soon as the MACOs are dirtside.=<BR>
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Kurisawa nodded slowly as he considered his options, and returned his attention to the viewscreen...<BR>
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[Bridge, ESS Aurora, Ionosphere of GS-V]<BR>
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Hidden within the ionosphere of GS-V, the Aurora continued its slow, silent orbit. Waiting for the moment where she would be joined. The communications department had worked solidly on making Lt. Shepards plan a reality: to send a warning about the Romulans through Aurora’s network of sensor probes as soon as Constitution dropped out of warp. Now the necessary preparations were complete, although naturally a test had not been possible.<BR>
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“Something just dropped out of warp...close to GS-II.” Came an informative voice from the science station.<BR>
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“Constitution?” Knight asked, knowing that the officer wouldn’t have left out a vital piece of information like that if she had known.<BR>
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Richardson at communications commented next. “Their hailing us...broadband message...it’s Constitutions ID.”<BR>
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“Sensors confirm.” Reassured science.<BR>
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“Ok...” he paused to consider their plan again. Had it failed? Surely they wouldn’t risk direct communication if they knew. He didn’t like the idea of giving away Aurora’s position, but at this point it didn’t look like he had much of a choice. “Open a channel.” Richardson nodded in confirmation. “This is Commander Knight. ESS Constitution, be advised, we believe that there are Romulans in the vicinity. Repeat, we believe there are Romulans in the vicinity.”<BR>
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[ Romulan Evader Decimus]<BR>
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"There are two, commander," the tactical whispered over his shoulder. "They are hailing each other."<BR>
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"Change course," Galan whispered back. "Move off. We are at a disadvantage, move closer to the inner moon. We will use its magnetic signature to disguise our cloak."<BR>
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This changed much, the Romulan captain thought to himself. There would be no way they could remain near the planet. If they de-cloaked to attack one ship, the other could quickly turn and destroy them. The new vessel was much larger than their relatively small ship, and probably had sufficient armaments to dispatch them quickly.<BR>
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However, there might be one opportunity for them to even the odds.<BR>
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"Belay that order. Inform the shuttle bay to prepare the mines."<BR>
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[ ESS Constitution, Bridge ]<BR>
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"I have the Aurora, Sir. Putting them on screen."<BR>
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The forward starfield changed to Knight. "Repeat, we believe there are Romulans in the vicinity." There was some obvious wear and tear on the man, but he maintained the bearing of a starship CO.<BR>
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Kurisawa nodded. "We're aware, Commander. Word was relayed several times before finding us, but we got it. I appreciate the warning from your probe network, though. My comms officer was actually rather impressed that you got that together so quickly. But we've had some time to plan, and my intel analysts suggested a bold approach to throw them off balance, which is why we're headed straight in to drop off the assault teams while trying to get a-hold of you. Now we get to see how the Romulans react, and gauge who we're dealing with. I suppose that sounds reckless, but we've had some success with such gambits in the past." There was a slight smile. The last time such a gambit worked was just a week ago, and the result was the location of a medical outpost they were headed to check out before being diverted here.<BR>
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=Understood Captain.= It may have been premature but Kurisawa’s calm handle on the situation brought Knight great relief. In addition, even if they were going with a some-what audacious plan at least it would get the Klingons out of his home at lot faster. =Aurora is in fighting condition, we can provide assistance, as er...you see necessary.=<BR>
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"As /you/ see necessary," Kurisawa corrected. "When this is over the Constitution be on track to leave for another mission, but this is /your/ home. Us, Romulans, Klingons... we're all in /your/ backyard, so it would be a disservice for me to tell you how to defend it. I would /suggest/ that Constitution continue on course to unleash the assault teams, then /we/ can see about flushing out these Romulans. Sound like a plan?"<BR>
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Knight appreciated the professional courtesy. “I agree. The assault teams need to be the priority.” Reports from the planet were sketchy, and the situation in parts of the colony was almost completely unknown. There was still the possibility that people were dying and that had to be stopped immediately no matter the risk that the Romulans potentially possessed. “I think that it would be best if Aurora rendezvous with you. We’ve had a shuttle on stand-by since we heard about the invasion... our people can contribute to a ground operation if needed.”<BR>
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"Good," Kurisawa nodded. "I have an advance team ready to transport to the surface. If you can have someone ready on your pad, we'll pull them along and get the ball rolling. Then we can coordinate the shuttle teams' deployment."<BR>
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=Aye Sir. I'll have someone on the pad by the time we reach transporter range.= Knight nodded to his tactical officer who promptly relieved herself. They'd discussed various contingencies; he trusted that she knew who to collect in /this/ scenario.<BR>
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[ Romulan Evader Decimus]<BR>
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Several environmental suit-clad crewmen slowly pushed a tall cylindrical object towards a portal at the far end of the shuttle bay. No powered mechanism was in operation. Brute force was required for this particular task. Another group was copying them farther inside the bay, as was another. Three mines were being prepared for departure...their mission was to add to the Decimus' glory that had been plentiful this day.<BR>
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On the bridge, a careful plan was being formulated and briefed to the bridge crew by their captain. It was obvious now that their sister ship would not arrive in time to assist them in securing the space above the human outpost, if she had not been destroyed or diverted in route to the system. Only Galan knew that forces were massing not too far away, and that if this offensive failed, the war could be lost. Even though they had not been tasked, they were still accomplishing a vital mission for the Empire, and with the arrival of this large warship, they had fulfilled their role in diverting human ships away from where they could stop the fleet. He had earlier sent a message to the crew that had left proud smiles on the faces of all of them.<BR>
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"We will need to drop these mines in the path of the human ships, without leaving them an opportunity to avoid them. With a lack of natural obstacles, we are forced to ensure they fly into the minefield." Galan paused for a moment, but the bridge crew knew what he meant. "We will be required to release them at point blank range."<BR>
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They fought the urge to look into the faces of their comrades, and remained still.<BR>
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-----<BR>
Capt Togusa Kurisawa<BR>
Commanding Officer<BR>
ESS Constitution<BR>
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Commander Galan<BR>
Captain<BR>
Romulan Evader Decimus<BR>
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Cmdr Anthony Knight<BR>
Captain, ESS Aurora<BR>
Assigned to the New Darwin Colony<BR>
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