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<BR><FONT id=ecxrole_document color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial><FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial><FONT id=ecxrole_document color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial><FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial><FONT id=ecxrole_document color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial><FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial><FONT id=ecxrole_document color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial><FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial><FONT id=ecxrole_document color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial><FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial><FONT id=ecxrole_document color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial><FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial><FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" color=#000000 size=2 face=Tahoma>// Vicinity of Cheron \\<BR> <BR> <BR>[CHA]<BR> <BR><snip></FONT></FONT><BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial><FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" color=#000000 size=2 face=Tahoma><FONT size=2 face=Tahoma>"Chris ... contact Captain Finney on the Meridian," Sasha said."</FONT></FONT></FONT><BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial><FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" color=#000000 size=2 face=Tahoma><end snip></FONT></FONT><BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial><FONT face=Tahoma>[Meridian]</FONT></FONT><BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial><FONT face=Tahoma>Baxter said, "Sir, Challenger hailing us."</FONT></FONT><BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial><FONT face=Tahoma>Rog nodded, "Put Capt. Spearling through Baxter."</FONT></FONT><BR> <BR>[CHA]<BR> <BR>Sasha looked up at the screen. "Captain Finney," she said, and then turned her head to bark out an order. "Mr. St. John, continue evasive maneuvers. Vic ... make every shot count."<BR> <BR>Vic replied, "Aye captain." He let another volley of torpedoes go.<BR> <BR>She turned back to the screen. "I'm considering pulling the Mir, Shenandoah, and Columbia off and have them exclusively target the smaller enemy vessels. The Denobulan and Tellarite ships, too. Keep those smaller ships off our backs so that we and the Vulcans and Andorians can concentrate on the Birds of Prey and the battle cruisers. What do you think?" She wasn't /worried/, not yet, but the battle was shifting and she didn't want to let that happen.<BR> <BR>=+ Rog said, "I quite agree Sasha. We just had one of those smaller vessels attempt a kamikaze maneuver on us. Fortunately, my helmsman got out of the way in time." +=</FONT></FONT><BR><FONT face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT face=Arial>"Glad to hear it. All right then, we'll pass the word along and --" Sasha was interrupted by PO Cinda Zhang, from where she was helping Ens T'Lara at the SCI console. </FONT><BR><FONT face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT face=Arial>"Captain! Incoming vessels at bearing ... 224 mark 91!"</FONT><BR><FONT face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT face=Arial>"On screen!" Sasha shouted. The noise on the bridge was intrusive, what with Vic working the Romulans over with ship's phased cannons and torpedoes, and the medical team arriving to check out the downed Engineer.</FONT><BR><FONT face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT face=Arial>On the main viewscreen -- which the Chris divided in two in order to show the ongoing battle on one side, and the incoming ships on the other -- the image of Cheron showed starkly on one side. Sweeping around the planet on an intercept course were numerous Romulan Birds of Prey. Sasha's fists clenched. "How many?" she said.</FONT><BR><FONT face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT face=Arial>"Ten, Captain," Cinda replied, her voice weak.</FONT><BR><FONT face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT face=Arial>Ten more Birds of Prey? Oh, hell. "Rog ... are you seeing this?" </FONT><BR><FONT face=Arial></FONT> <BR>=+ Rog replied, "Yes and I wish I didn't." Turning to his AO, he said, "Jonas, we have ten BOPS on an intercept course. Let them get half way and let them have it." Turning back to Sasha, he said, "Well, does this change your plans Sasha?" +=</FONT></FONT><BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial>The ships had gotten close enough now to where they could be displayed on the main battle half. Chris put Rog Finney's face back up on the other side. "Yes ..." Sasha said. The plan would have been a good one. Rog was being diplomatic to allow her to see it herself. "We can't divide up like that ... not anymore."</FONT><BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial></FONT> <BR>Rog nodded.<BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial>"Alex!" Sasha shouted at the Helmsman, poor guy. "Put us on intercept, shoot down the middle of them and let's cut that group in half. They don't get to stay in formation like that!" An intact formation of 10 BoP's would tear them apart!</FONT><BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial>"Aye Captain!" The nimble helmsman slapped in his course and engaged it. The Challenger tore forward, shooting around the Larash and a Vulcan Suurok-class vessel, then plunged straight toward the group of Romulans. </FONT><BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial>"Vic, let them have it!" Sasha yelled!</FONT><BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial>Vic began blasting them with both the phase cannon and torpedoes. They just had to break them up.</FONT></FONT></FONT><BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial>[MER]</FONT><BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial>Rog said, "Andre, once we break them up, we'll take the left half. Jonas, pound those Rommie bastards. We have to stop them."</FONT><BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial>[CHA]</FONT><BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial>"Full power to hull plating and weapons ... I don't even want to see a glowstick in the unoccupied sections!" Sasha watched as they swung back and forth on the way to the Romulan formation. </FONT><BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial>"Engineering's got everything we have!" replied Cara Nelson-Samad from the Ops area.</FONT><BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial>"We are in range of their weapons," came T'Lara's calm voice from SCI.</FONT><BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial>Disruptor fire began lancing out from the Romulan ships, targeting the Challenger and the Meridian. "Full power to forward hull plating!" Sasha said, wincing as a glancing blow hit the starboard side of the dish. Vic blasted a hole straight down the center of the formation, firing the phased cannons and liberally using torpedoes. The group split, and Sasha had Alex turn the Challenger to the right and down so that they came back up underneath the right side of the split formation. "Fire all phased cannons!" she shouted.</FONT><BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial>The Challenger bucked and shook as she took hits from the five Romulan vessels. ~ I ... think we better get out of here .... ~ Sasha thought, ~ they're going to pound us to pieces! ~ </FONT><BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial>Vic was glad they'd split them, but it just didn't seem to be enough. He continued to fire.</FONT></FONT></FONT><BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial><FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial></FONT></FONT></FONT> <BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial><FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial>=+ Rog said, "Sasha, we have to back off. They'll tear us apart!" He almost fell out of his chair as the saucer was hit. +=</FONT></FONT></FONT><BR><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT face=Arial>Suddenly a voice came over the COMMs system. Calm, soft and fluid, almost dream-like. <+> "You neglected to invite us," it said. "We decided to join in anyway." <+></FONT><BR><FONT face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT face=Arial>"Captain! Incoming vessels ... four of them ... bearing 171 mark 22!" Knowing what the Captain would want, the view on the main screen shifted to show them. </FONT><BR><FONT face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT face=Arial>"What ... what and who is that?" Sasha said, hanging on tight as the ship was pounded by the Romulans disruptors. The incoming vessels looked like nothing else so much as flying glaciers ... ice-blue slabs of metal, bristling with gun ports and other, less identifiable towers and spires.</FONT><BR><FONT face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT face=Arial><+> "This is Rakul!" shouted the Captain of the Andorian vessel, Menzobarranzan. "I cannot believe it! It is the Aenar!" <+></FONT><BR><FONT face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT face=Arial>"WHAT?!" Sasha shouted. The ships zipped in, fast and sleek in spite of their appearance. </FONT><BR><FONT face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT face=Arial><+> "Is Captain Archer with you? We would like to visit with him again. Fire." The dreamy voice added, sounding like it was an after-thought. <+> There was nothing dreamy about the beams of searing light that erupted from the long spires that stuck out from the leading edge of the ships. All of them fired at once, the beams lanced out and joined in front of their formation, and the joined beam speared into one of the Birds of Prey, slicing through its shields and tracing a long scar of damage along its port side.</FONT></FONT></FONT></FONT></FONT><BR>
<FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial><FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial><FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial></FONT></FONT></FONT></FONT> <BR>
<FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial><FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial><FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial><FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial><+> "Very nicely done, Ehnieh. Do that again, please." The beam weapon lanced out again, shearing off a piece of that BoP they'd hit before.<BR><FONT face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT face=Arial>"Coalition vessels! Re-form the battle group!" Sasha felt renewed energy fill her body as the Aenar vessels tore into the Birds of Prey. Then two of the Romulan battle cruisers rushed up and poured disruptor fire into the Aenar formation, forcing them to split. Sasha noted that the beam weapons were much weaker when on their own, but they still were fast and fearless -- providing a needed burst of power to the Coaltion forces.</FONT><BR><FONT face=Arial></FONT> <BR>=+ Rog said, "Andre, hard to port. We'll reform with the other coalition ships." He looked to see if his sisters ship, the Defiant, was still in existence. It was. He said, "Sasha, what are those ships? Did I hear they were Aenar?" He'd heard of, though never met, the Andorian subspecies or whatever they were. +=</FONT></FONT><BR><FONT face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT face=Arial>"That's the rumor! I've never met them but I'd suppose Rakul would know, eh?" Sasha grinned into the viewer at Rog. The Coalition re-formed for a moment, all the ships that hadn't had to retreat to the nebula because they were too damaged to continue. </FONT><BR><FONT face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT face=Arial>=============================================================================</FONT><BR><FONT face=Arial>The Fleet now stood as follows:</FONT><BR><FONT face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT face=Arial>Star Fleet - Meridian, Challenger, Shenandoah, Defiant. Mir and Columbia retreated to the nebula.</FONT><BR><FONT face=Arial>Vulcans - Whispering Death and two others. Three other Suurok-class cruisers had taken a beating and had to retreat, one was abandoned.</FONT><BR><FONT face=Arial>Andorians - Only the Menzobarranzan was still in play, two destroyed, two in the nebula.</FONT><BR><FONT face=Arial>Aenar - four ships on the field</FONT><BR><FONT face=Arial>Tellarites - Flaxlatrox Cha and one other in play, one destroyed, one in the nebula</FONT><BR><FONT face=Arial>Denobulans - Sharash, Rantaroo still in the battle, one severely damaged, abandoned</FONT><BR><FONT face=Arial>Mixed group of smaller fighters - 7</FONT><BR><FONT face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT face=Arial>Enemy:</FONT><BR><FONT face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT face=Arial>14 Birds of Prey still in fighting shape.</FONT><BR><FONT face=Arial>6 Battle cruisers.</FONT><BR><FONT face=Arial>9 fighters</FONT><BR><FONT face=Arial>All other vessels destroyed, no prisoners, no survivors</FONT><BR>=====================================================================<BR><FONT face=Arial></FONT> <BR><FONT face=Arial><+> Sasha continued on the battle channel. "We're still out-numbered, but I still think we can do this, everyone! Let's get the Birds of Prey and battle cruisers out of action! Remember, all we have to do is hurt them enough to be out of the mix, and they'll -- I hate to say it but it's true -- they'll finish off the job themselves!" </FONT><+></FONT></FONT><BR>
<FONT color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial><FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" color=#000000 size=2 face=Arial> <BR>Vic replied, "Captain, maybe we can conserve torpedoes by hitting one of their ships hard enough, that it accidentally hits the one next to it. With twenty enemy vessels to face, we have to conserve torpedoes the best we can."</FONT></FONT><BR>
<FONT face=Arial></FONT> <BR>
<FONT face=Arial>"Good idea, Vic, let's put that into play. Alex, find two of them that are snuggled in good and close and make it so." She watched as Alex scanned the battlefield, then she spoke on the battle channel again.</FONT><BR>
<FONT face=Arial></FONT> <BR>
<FONT face=Arial><+> "They've been targeting the Vulcan and Andorian vessels -- they're the most dangerous to the Romulans. I suppose they think they can take them out and then pick off the rest of us at their leisure. Stick close to the big ships, everyone ... keep them safe and firing!" <+> </FONT><BR>
<FONT face=Arial></FONT> <BR>
<FONT face=Arial><+> "ENOUGH TALKING! LET'S GRIND THESE FUCKERS INTO MUSH!" The raucous voice of Captain Horzt, Tellarite CO, rang loudly out of the speakers. <+></FONT><BR>
<FONT face=Arial></FONT> <BR>
<FONT face=Arial><+> "It may not be the most logical way to put it, but I agree." That had to be T'Pren. <+></FONT><BR>
<FONT face=Arial></FONT> <BR>
<FONT face=Arial>"Chris, put me through to Rog alone, please." Sasha's voice sounded shakey, but it wasn't nerves, it was because the Challenger was vibrating like a tuning fork from the pounding it was getting.</FONT><BR>
<FONT face=Arial></FONT> <BR>
<FONT face=Arial><FONT color=#000000 size=2>=+ "Rog ... they think we're the weak link here. If we have to, we'll show them just how wrong they are. Agreed?" She leveled a steely look into his eyes, knowing that he knew what she was talking about.</FONT></FONT><BR>
<FONT face=Arial><FONT color=#000000 size=2></FONT></FONT> <BR>
<FONT face=Arial><FONT color=#000000 size=2>The battle raged on. Out-numbered and far from home, the Coalition forces continued their desperate effort to protect their homeworlds.</FONT></FONT><BR>
<FONT face=Arial><FONT color=#000000 size=2></FONT></FONT> <BR>
<FONT face=Arial><FONT color=#000000 size=2></FONT></FONT> <BR>
<FONT face=Arial><FONT color=#000000 size=2>Captain Sasha Spearling</FONT></FONT><BR>
<FONT face=Arial><FONT color=#000000 size=2>Commanding Officer</FONT></FONT><BR>
<FONT face=Arial><FONT color=#000000 size=2>FCL-04 Challenger</FONT></FONT><BR>
<FONT face=Arial><FONT color=#000000 size=2>-------------------------------------</FONT></FONT><BR>
<FONT face=Arial><FONT color=#000000 size=2>Captain Roger Finney</FONT></FONT><BR>
<FONT face=Arial><FONT color=#000000 size=2>Commanding Officer</FONT></FONT><BR>
<FONT face=Arial><FONT color=#000000 size=2>FCL-03 Meridian</FONT></FONT><BR>
<FONT face=Arial><FONT color=#000000 size=2>-------------------------------------</FONT></FONT><BR>
<FONT face=Arial><FONT color=#000000 size=2>PCs borrowed with respect, and</FONT></FONT><BR>
<FONT face=Arial><FONT color=#000000 size=2>NPCs and aliens apb ... us!<BR></FONT></FONT> </div></body>
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