RPG Silver One: Civil War

[Horendithas]

[COLOR="Indigo"][SIZE="1"]Commodore and High Council member Sandra Luciana, along with her Commander Jared Scorer and her newest Sub-Commander Vallon Drace were gathered in the observation room of the [I]Creator[/I]. Each of them sitting at the conference table with a holographic screen up in the center of the table showing Stevens along with his Commander and Sub-Commander of the [I]Conqueror [/I]in the observation room there. Now that all personnel were on board the two flag ships as well as the rest of the fleet that would be going to sector seven and participating in the upcoming mission, it was time to briefly go over their plans.

"[B]As you can see gentlemen,[/B]" Sandra was saying. "[B]A special strike force has already been detached and is in position to disable the border defenses between sector one and sector seven.[/B]" She tapped the input in front of her and the screen split into two views, one of those on the [I]Conqueror [/I]and one of the border.

'[B]The strike force will be timing their attack to occur just before we will be passing the area in hyperspace. In addition to disabling the defenses, they will be setting up a wide range jamming frequency to make sure no reports of the attack reach the representatives in sector seven.[/B]"

Sandra paused to change the view to one of a map of the three planets in sector seven. "[B]It will take us approximately a week to arrive after passing the border. It is possible that someone will get clear of the jamming in order to warn them of the impending attack so it is vital that everyone is battle ready before we emerge from hyperspace.[/B]"

Sandra input a command and each world on the map lit up in different colors. "[B]Now I, along with Vallon Drace will be seizing the main home world in sector seven. Our last intelligence reports indicate that the three representatives of that sector who have turned traitor are located there. While I will be dealing with the defenses and the few battle ships in the area, Drace will be leading the assault transports to re-take the main world there.[/B]"

The world tinted in green stopped flashing and then the one in red began to flash. "[B]Stevens, along with the Conqueror will be re-taking the slave world where parts for ships are manufactured.[/B]" The the red stopped flashing and the one in blue started. "[B]Jared will be taking the battle ships assigned under his command to take over the slave world where the plants necessary for the special explosives are grown.[/B]" Sandra paused for a moment, as if giving people a chance to speak. When no one did she continued.

"[B]Stevens and I will be issuing the appropriate orders as well as the rest of the details to this operation. Study them well, and be sure to address any questions you have before we arrive in sector seven.[/B]" She looked around. "[B]Any questions?[/B]"

Stevens just offered her a lopsided smile as his answer.

"[B]Good, set course for sector seven, we leave at 0800 hours. Dismissed.[/B]" Sandra ended the communication before turning to Jared and Vallon.

"[B]I've already sent the necessary information to your quarters, it should be waiting for you when you log in to the terminal at your desk. One thing to remember,[/B]" Sandra turned to address Vallon Drace. "[B]What happens to the citizens in sector seven does not concern me, by foolishly backing the Resistance or rather New Alliance as they are calling themselves, they chose to accept the dangers involved. However, the three representatives for that sector are another matter.[/B]"

Sandra gave Drace her full attention, giving him a stern glance. "[B]I know perfectly well about your reputation in battle Vallon Drace. When it comes to the three representatives, just remember that we do need them alive. I don't expect you to be gentle with them, but I will not tolerate any accidental deaths. Understood?[/B]"

"[B]Of course sir,[/B]" Drace replied with a slight bow.

"[B]Good. Now, it's time to get ready to make the jump to hyperspace.[/B]" Sandra left the observation room and went back to the bridge with Jared and Vallon right behind her. She took her seat as they took theirs and then several hours later, right on schedule, the fleet made the jump to hyperspace.[/SIZE][/COLOR]

[P.J. McKrafty]

Marc shot up in his bunk almost hitting his head on the bed above him. He scanned the crews? quarters and found his personal computer flashing in the darkness on the other side of the room. He stumbled over to it and switched the screen on blinding himself. He rubbed his eyes as they adjusted to the light of the screen and then read the message. [I]?Wakey Wakey.?[/I] Flashed on the screen, an alarm probably set by Blaine knowing that Marc would sleep through the whole day given the opportunity. Marc walked over to the wall moving his hand over the sensor activating the lights.

Throwing on his basic BDU he left the crews? quarters heading down the corridor to the galley. He stopped halfway down at an intercom in built into the wall.

[B]?Status??[/B] He called down to the bridge. There was a pause and then a voice of a pilot came over the speaker.

[B]?We?ve been on the ground for about two hours now.?[/B] Marc counted the days on his fingers and smirked. [I]?A week to the day?[/I] he thought to himself walking through the door to the galley. Two men sitting at a table instantly shot up saluting him and he waved them to sit back down. He opened one of the holds full of military rations. He reached up and pulled out a bar that the equivalent of a balanced breakfast. He unwrapped the bar revealing a cream colored bar that at first glance you would expect to have the consistency of taffy. Marc took a bite of it and giving a nod to the men as he left the galley.

The door to the cargo hold slid with a screech as Marc entered still nibbling on the bar he had taken. As per usual Blaine was watching over the process of the unloading and he was joined by a woman dressed in the A-class uniform of an Admiral. She turned as Marc walked up and he instantly noticed her cold silver eyes.

[B]?Sergeant,?[/B] She said in an unwelcoming tone. ?[B]May I ask why you are eating a battlefield ration? They are meant to be eaten when full meal is not possible.?[/B] Marc swallowed a bite of the bar be fore answering.

[B]?I like the taste.?[/B] She gave him a look expecting a smile to show it was a joke but he kept a straight faced expression.

[B]?They taste like stale marshmallows from your planet.?[/B] She replied with an awkward sick look.

[B]?As I said before, I like the taste, so may I ask why we have the pleasure of your company Admiral??[/B]

[B]?Cobbs, I am the head of this port and am helping supervise our latest shipment.?[/B]

[B]?Well, as you can see it goes well.?[/B]

[B]?We have something as thanks for doing this job.?[/B] She waved to a man standing at the entrance to the cargo bay and he nodded

[B]?It was just orders. I am doing my part just as you are.?[/B]

[B]?I was told to distribute these to your unit,?[/B] the man came back with a metal crate on a trolley. She gave him a nod and he returned to the entrance. She bent over opening the crate and pulling out a dark grey device that looked somewhat like a small handgun. She handed it to Marc and he took it from her.

[B]?What is it??[/B] He asked trying to find a way to hold it.

[B]?It is a suppression device. It delivers an electric shock rendering its victim unconscious, it is accurate at 50 meters and can drop someone in less than a second,?[/B] Marc finally figuring out how to hold it pointed it at one of the metal crates and shot startling both Blaine and Admiral Cobbs. The device let forth a straight bolt of electricity that hit the crate and spread out making a hissing noise. ?What the hell are you doing!??

[B]?Testing the gun, I must admit it is impressive, but in our line of work we don?t usually use tactics that are nonlethal, but it will make taking prisoners easier so I thank you,?[/B] Marc turned to one of his men whistling and waving him over. [B]?Take this crate to the armory.?[/B] The man nodded and left to get a trolley.

[B]?Well I guess this is where I take my leave, Sergeant.?[/B] She gave him a salute that he returned. She left the ship with the man at the entrance following her.

[B]"Lets get the cargo off the ship and get ready to go back to Sector 11"[/B] Marc said to Blaine as he went to help one of the crew with a trolley.

[Aaryanna_Mom]

Daniel did his best to not sigh over the constant presence of security no matter where he went. Though he knew about it and even understood why it was necessary, he still hated it. In many ways he wished that his father had never been so foolish as to join the Resistance in the first place. It was easy to see why he did, but sometimes he wished that all that had happened since his father was discovered had not. And at the same time, he wondered how many other families would have had their lives destroyed if nothing had happened.

It was a paradox that would remain unanswered, since he knew that if it had not been him, it would have been someone else. And seeing what had been done to Earth when it had been invaded, how Fleet Admiral Stevens had arranged for over half of the population to be shipped to the different sectors regardless of family ties, Daniel wouldn't change things even if he could. Too many lives depended on them winning, on setting things right as much as one could. It was a daunting thought though, the sheer amount of work that would be required to reunite families would take decades if not longer.

And that didn't include all the other things that would need to be done. The whole structure of the Versilan Empire would have to be totally redone. The representatives from the sectors who had broken off would have their work cut out for them when the time came. Daniel pulled his thoughts back to the present, he hadn't meant to tune out both Kade Tyrell and Greydon Kreid as they headed for the bridge. Usually he had something to say, even it was nothing more than a simple inquiry as to how they were doing.

But as they entered the bridge and the two took up their standard position of being close enough should trouble arise and yet far enough away that he could freely discuss plans with his Sub-Commander without being overheard. He merely offered both of them a brief nod before heading over and taking his seat, turning to talk to his Sub-Commander, Chris Spencer.

"[B]Have you finished with the team assignments?[/B]" Daniel asked once he had taken his seat.

"[B]Yes sir, I'll forward those to you right now.[/B]" Spencer replied.

Daniel pulled up the information at the terminal built into his chair, taking a moment to briefly overview it. "[B]Good, once we've made the brief stop in sector Eleven to pick other ships that will be coming with us, we'll make the jump to hyperspace immediately.[/B]"

"[B]So soon sir? What about the border defenses in sector Fourteen. Won't those be a problem?[/B]"

Daniel just smiled, "[B]Leave that to me, I have something that will take care of that long enough for us to slip in. By the time they realize what's going on, it will be too late. Now, more importantly, what's your progress on tracking down the unauthorized transmissions we detected? As well as finding out what happened to the weapons that went missing?[/B]"

"[B]I'm afraid I have little to tell you sir,[/B]" Spencer said apologetically. "[B]The only thing we've been able to determine is that the unauthorized transmissions came from someone's hand held computer. However, whoever did it was clever enough to modify the identification numbers of the transmission so they don't match up with the computer in question.[/B]"

"[B]I see, so in other words, it doesn't match any of the known or registered computers for the network.[/B]" [I]That's going to be a problem[/I]. Daniel thought. By doing that, the person responsible was making it next to impossible for them to track them without literally catching them in the act.

"[B]I'm afraid so sir, we'd have to catch them in the act.[/B]" Spencer said, unconsciously echoing Daniel's thoughts. "[B]Also, they've changed their tactics. We haven't seen any transmissions for several days so either they quit sending them, or they've found a way to do so that doesn't flag the system as being an unauthorized transmission.[/B]"

"[B]Well keep looking for whoever it is just the same, they're bound to make a mistake.[/B]"

"[B]Of course sir. Just as we'll keep looking for whoever is stealing the weapons. So far everyone we've suspected has come up clean, so we're going through the next bunch who are in a position to access the weapons.[/B]"

Daniel just nodded. "[B]Very well, carry on then.[/B]" He turned back to his terminal and pulled the information for the planned attack in sector Fourteen back up. Taking the time to carefully go through the teams and the overall plan. It wouldn't take them long to get there once they left sector Eleven. It would be the first time he had lead a fleet in battle and Daniel wanted to make sure everything was ready.

[GuyYouMetOnline]

[COLOR=darkslateblue]Kiva knew her job wouldn't be easy. In sector 14, she'd just had to get within transport door range of Tessa, but this time, her objective was to map the defenses in sector 13. In order to do so while remaining undetected, a simple unpowered approach wouldn't be sufficient. She'd need to get it, sweep the sector, and get back out. Fortunately, the [I]Transcendence[/I]'s recon drones would help, and they were as hard to detect as the [I]Transcendence[/I], but theirmobility was limited. The [I]Transcendence[/I] would still need to pass through the sector to place them and retrieve them, which was a problem. But Kiva had a solution.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#483d8b]Kiva exited hyperspace well outside of the limit and proceeded towards the sector at full speed, with all stealth systems active. As Kiva neared the sector, she deployed a recon drone, then altered her course slightly and launched another. She continued this until all the necessary drones had been launched, then entered hyperspace, still far enough away that this was undetected.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#483d8b]Kiva's course took her around the sector. The drones would move through sector 13 under their existing momentum, and Kiva'd launched enough drones to cover the entire sector. When their ballistic courses carried them back out of the sector, Kiva would pick them up. By calculating the drones' trajectories, she knew where they should be. She also knew that this wouldn't be exact, but it would be close enough for her to find the drones. She'd retrieve them, then head for the rendevous point with the data they'd contain. With that information, the attack on sector 13 was likely to proceed smoothly.[/COLOR]

[TheResplendent]

[FONT="Tahoma"]After some time, Vallon proceeded to his quarters to retrieve Pheonia. She was waiting there for him when he got there, dressed in uniform, her face still showing the effects of the short-lived sparring incident. She saluted him and bowed, Vallon bringing her chin back up from the bow with his hand. He waved her along as she followed him.

Vallon took a look at the information on the memory chips Sandra gave to him concerning the three people he was charged with taking alive. Clearly his immediate attention to that matter spoke loudly of his idea of what to prioritize when comparing it to the fact that he had yet to look at the memory chips Jared had given him. He went through all the introductory system starters for the chip and began scrolling through the names.

[b]"Garrik Kublai, Ana Crowe, and Joseph Steiner...traitors to the High Council eh? It's nothing but prolonged suicide."[/b] Vallon mentioned out loud as he read up on them. Pheonia followed quietly behind, not making any eye contact with anything that wasn't in front of her path. Vallon finished with everything he considered to be significant and placed the chip back into his pocket. Feeling around while he was in there, he took out the slave chip that Jared had given him and observed it for a couple of seconds.

[b]"Well...I suppose we've got some time before we depart for Sector 7."[/b]

Vallon put the chip in and began looking over the large list of names. He noticed the two particular names in red text that Jared had made mention of. He let out a [i]hmph[/i] to himself and curiously opened the files, wanting to know exactly what made these slaves so worthy of special interest. Moments after reading the file for one Celestia Henderson, he broke out into laughter accompanied by a poor attempt at stifling it.

[b]"Such advanced knowledge of our computer systems? This inconsequential slave? Is Jared playing some sort of prank on me by feeding me such nonsense?"[/b] Vallon rhetorically asked in disbelief.

Pheonia directed her attention to Vallon for the moment. [b]"Celestia Henderson and Jason Sanders are being held under special care for that very reason. Their expertise is being put to use here on The Creator, don't misunderstand sir. They are simply being used."[/b]

[b]"I've no doubts of the intentions of keeping them here if this scribble is true. It's simply being convinced of the fact that such lower life forms are capable of these feats is a bit far fetched, or do you not agree?"[/b]

Pheonia stayed silent and only nodded when Vallon turned his head to face her. As they reached the turbo lift, Vallon set it to take them to the servants quarters. They stepped off the lift once it reached their destination, Vallon promptly inquired as to the whereabouts of the two slaves. The guard pointed him out in the direction of their room, Vallon walked off promptly without a word. Pheonia gave a slight bow of thanks and hurried to catch up.

Moments later the door to Celestia and Jason's personal quarters was within point blank view. Vallon smirked and simply punched in a code on the locking mechanism next to the door, causing it to unlock. The sound alerted Jason who looked up, though Celestia was not present in that particular section of the room.

The door opened and Vallon stepped into the doorway, Pheonia waited behind him with his hands clasped behind her back. Jason took a few steps back, he had never seen this man before but he was clearly an officer of the ship. He then took notice to his uniform badges and quickly realized who the man standing infront of him truly was.

[b]"C...commander Drace?"[/b] Jason said to himself, though not nearly low enough not to be heard. Vallon raised an eyebrow and stepped further into the room. It was easy to tell his rank, recognizing the type of badge from the last sub-commander that was stationed on The Creator.

[b]"Well, you're already smarter then I would have initially given you credit for, being able to indentify who I am without having met me already. However that's about as much credit as i'm willing to give the likes of you."[/b] Vallon explained, as he looked around the room. It was much more then any slave to the empire should be entitled to. He scowled inside his head at the kind of treatment these slaves were receiving, though the room was nothing like his or Commander Jared's.

[b]"Jared seems to have some notion that you and your friend would be of some sort of use to us. Hmm...and where exactly is the other one?"[/b] Vallon demanded.

[b]"Celestia...she's..."[/b] Jason began to say, though was quickly interrupted by Celestia herself walking into the room.

[b]"Jason, who....ahh! S..sir! I'm sorry, I didn't realize!"[/b] Celestia bowed her head, noticing Vallon there as she walked in.

[b]"Well then, you're both here now. Just thought I'd see for myself exactly what was so special about you two..."[/b] Vallon began to say as he walked over to Celestia. She didn't move anything but her arms, unsure of how to react. He reached out and grabbed hold of Celestia's arm and pulled her toward him forcefully. Jason's eyes widened as he took a step forward but was impeded by Pheonia using her arm as a barricade.

[b]"Celestia!"[/b] Jason yelled, as he tried to force his way passed Pheonia. With no other choice, she forced him back with her hand, causing him to fall backwards.

[b]"If you intend to attack, I will stop you every time. Just sit still."[/b] she warned. She kept her eyes on Jason as he clinched his fists. Vallon turned his attention back to Celestia who was trying to shake herself free, he grabbed her chin with his fingers and observed her face.

[b]"Well...you certainly don't look very special to me. Even if everything Jared said you have achieved is true. Why don't you explain to me how you've come to gain such knowledge?"[/b] Vallon inquired.

Celestia didn't answer, she was focused more on the pain in her arm. Vallon tossed her aside, quickly becoming impatient with the idea of confirming the information he received. Celestia landed on the bed as Jason rushed over to her. Pheonia glanced down at her hand-held computer and turned her attention to Vallon.

[b]"Sir, we should be on our way. You'll need to gather and prep the troops for deployment."[/b]. Vallon silently walked back toward the doorway and stopped only to turn his head toward Jason and Celestia.

[b]"You two best hope you remain on Jared's good side, since he's pretty much your only protection around here."[/b] Vallon continued out, Pheonia behind him. She turned and glanced over at Celestia who was gripping her arm, she remained there for a couple of seconds and followed Vallon hastily upon hearing his call. [/FONT]

[Blayze]

[SIZE=1]It was a moment when Tyrell and Greydon were not on duty when he made his move. Night on the ship, indicated only by a dimming of the lights to simulate darkness, and the majority of the crew were resting. But Daniel Landers was still on the bridge with Chris Spencer, and Kreid was one of the few other crew members still awake. He sat in the chair he had slept in every night since his arrival on the ship, but this time his eyes were fully open. He looked at the timer that sat next to his bed, and as it clicked over to a new hour, he felt his floor of the ship rock.

Suddenly his comm system chirped into life, with a dozen different channels all screaming at him. He jumped to his feet and answered the comms:

[B]"Kreid!" [/B]shouted Franklin's voice, [B]"We need you here right now! There's been an attempt on Commander Landers' life!"

[/B]Greydon smiled to himself, then leapt into action, opening the door and sprinting down the halls of the ship to Commander Landers' quarters. There were teams of men all around, and smoke was billowing out of the open door of the Commander's quarters. Franklin stood by, barking orders into the comms system.

[B]"Kreid!" [/B]he shouted as he saw Greydon, [B]"Someone planted a high explosive underneath the Commander's bed. It was on a timer, so it's just lucky he was still on the bridge when it happened. We need to find out who did this!"

"I think I might know," [/B]yelled Greydon over the noise, [B]"Kade Tyrell told me the other day that he'd been smuggling weapons all over the ship. I think he has a supply in his quarters!"

"Take a team and go and arrest him, Kreid," [/B]replied Franklin, [B]"I'll clean up here."

[/B]Greydon raced to the security area and signaled all available officers to Tyrell's quarters, where he met them, armed and ready. He swiped his hand over the touch panel, and the door opened, letting the team inside.

[B]"Kade Tyrell, I am arresting you for intent to smuggle high-grade weapons, and attempting to assassinate Commander Landers," [/B]said Kreid, walking over to where Tyrell was sat, and hauling him up out of the chair.

[B]"But...but I..." [/B]stammered Tyrell, [B]"I didn't do anything!"

"Search his quarters," [/B]Kreid shouted to the rest of the team, who began to overturn every piece of furniture in the room.

[B]"We know you've got the weapons in here, Tyrell. It's just a matter of finding them," [/B]Kreid snarled, his face close to Tyrell's now.

[B]"Sir," [/B]said one of the security officers, [B]"I think I've found them." [/B]The officer pushed over one of Tyrell's cupboards, revealing a large hole in the wall overflowing with crates of the same types of weapons that were found under Daniel Landers' bed.

[B]"Take him away," [/B]said Greydon, letting the officers drag Tyrell away as he knelt down next to the hole in the wall. He laughed quietly to himself. This plan was simple yet so effective. Tyrell was out of the picture, and Tyrell's arrest would relieve any suspicion about more moles for the time being. The New Alliance would believe they had rooted out the mole, but he was still at large on the ship.

This was turning out to be a good day...
[/SIZE]

[SunfallE]

[COLOR="RoyalBlue"][FONT="Lucida Sans Unicode"]It had been a while since someone had simply barged in on Celestia and Jason in their quarters. And even then, the one doing so had never been so forceful and rude. At least not since they had been recaptured, Jason preferred to not think about what happened the first time they had been taken prisoner. This time though, the few times that Elite Commander Ketch Dakar had entered their quarters with no warning while they were working in the Council Center, though cold and arrogant, he had never mistreated Celestia in that manner.

Jason sat next to Celestia on the bed where Sub-Commander Drace had tossed her aside, holding her protectively in his arms as he watched Drace and the other woman leave, he couldn't help but choke at Drace's final parting words. About Jared, of all people, being their only protection. Jared protect them? Only if someone higher in authority ordered it! Jason knew damn well that if given his way, Jared would not be protecting them at all.

He could feel Celestia trembling as she tried to hold back the tears, and as soon as the door closed behind Drace and the other woman, they spilled forth as Celestia buried her head in his chest and cried. Jason was careful to avoid holding her where Drace had grabbed her left arm, even though the woman with Drace had stopped him from attempting to go to Celestia, Jason had seen the look of pain on Celestia's face as she had tried to get free.

Jason simply held Celestia for a while, keeping an eye on the display next to their bed with the time on it while doing so. Then when it was apparent that they would need to leave soon in order to arrive at the computer lab at the appointed time, he turned his attention back to Celestia who was already starting to calm back down.

"[B]Hey,[/B]" Jason said as he gently pushed her back a bit so they were facing each other. "[B]I hate to say it, but we need to finish getting ready. The last thing we need is to antagonize Kenath even more than we did before.[/B]" He reached up and brushed the tears away.

"[B]Is your arm okay?[/B]" Jason asked as he carefully pulled up the sleeve of her shirt to take a look, a slight bit of a bruise could be seen but other than that she appeared to be fine.

Celestia took a deep breath before responding, "[B]It's fine,[/B]" She said, her voice still wavering on tears. "[B]Once he let go it quit hurting.[/B]" She reached up with her right arm, rubbing her eyes to finish clearing out the tears as she stood up.

"[B]Just give me a moment to go and wash my face and I'll be ready.[/B]"

Jason watched as she left and then entered the bathroom, once she was inside he got up himself and angrily slammed his fist into the nearest wall. [I]Hell! It just never ends! [/I]In all the time he had been caught up in this mess, never before had he wanted to kill someone. But when Sub-Commander Drace had not only grabbed Celestia without warning and it was apparent that he didn't give a damn if he was hurting her or not... If not for the other woman there he would have attacked him.

He fought to bring his own emotions back under control. As much as it hurt, there was nothing he could do. Jason knew he had no training to fight, it would take more than what little strength he possessed, even if he had been altered so he was stronger like other Versilans were. Without combat training, that strength was useless. With a sigh of exasperation he went over to check on Celestia who was just coming out of the bathroom.

"[B]I'm ready Jason,[/B]" She said, even though the look in her eyes said otherwise.

Jason pulled her into his arms and hugged her tightly, kissing her on the forehead before he finally let go.

"[B]Lets go then, if we're lucky, we'll never see Sub-Commander Vallon Drace again.[/B]" Though Jason doubted it.

Celestia did not bother to answer that statement. The only way they would ever be free would be for the Resistance to win the war that had started. She smiled hesitantly at Jason before turning towards the door leading out of their quarters. Then, moments later, the two of them left and headed for the computer lab that they had been assigned too.[/FONT][/COLOR]

[Aaryanna_Mom]

Daniel was less than thrilled with the events that had occurred last night. It was a simple matter to clean up his quarters and replace the stuff that had been damaged by the blast, but what really concerned him was that someone had the skill to bypass the security required to even get into his quarters. He had no doubt that Kade Tyrell was guilty of weapons smuggling, he had been quick enough to admit it. But he insisted that the attempt to kill him was not connected and Daniel had to agree. Kade Tyrell was a little too foolish, openly bragging to others about his illegal dealings. In the end Daniel found it hard to believe that he was the one responsible. Though he kept that strictly to himself and his second in command Chris Spencer.

For one thing, if someone was clever enough to get around the security to get into his quarters, why would they have used something as crude as a timer when there were plenty of sensors that would have detected movement and would only go off when someone was close to the bed or actually sitting on it? Daniel sighed inwardly, he didn't have time for it. Especially since his instincts told him that there was far more going on than a simple attempt on his life. Other than to keep Kade Tyrell locked up there wasn't much else to do. The Resistance may have teamed up with the different sectors to form the New Alliance, but it didn't change the fact that Resistance policy did not allow for standard interrogation techniques.

And as long as Daniel was in command, there would be no torture on his ship. Like other things that the Resistance stood for, humane treatment of prisoners that did not include using the powerful disruptors that were horribly painful along with the various drugs the military used, was a must. And though Alexander Franklin had objected, since he was use to what the military always did, Daniel had been firm. Anyone caught torturing a prisoner would be dealt with, to hell with how they were [I]use[/I] to doing things. He would not condone or approve of it. Daniel knew all to well just how horrible interrogations were.

"[B]Sir, we're about to emerge from hyperspace in sector fourteen.[/B]" Spencer said urgently. "[B]I still wish I knew how you got your hands on those codes that let us bypass the border defenses.[/B]"

Daniel brought his attention back to the present. "[B]Sometimes it's better to not have information of that nature.[/B]" Daniel shook his head as he pulled up the battle screen at his location, checking to make sure that all were ready.

Those in sector fourteen were expecting them to arrive, but the codes entered into the system indicated that they had the clearance to be there. By the time they realized that they were hostile, it would be too late. As much as he wanted to give them a chance, it just wasn't possible.

Daniel brought up the countdown on the main screen and issued the order to bring everything to Amber Alert. Fifteen minutes later, every section reported in, ready to begin the fight. They had trained and did drills often enough on their journey to the sector, now he had to trust that they really were ready.

"[B]All right, on my mark, bring us out of hyperspace. You are to fire at will, use your judgment when selecting targets. Defenses as well as any Elite Specialist in the area take priority. Let the Battle Ships deal with any other ships in the area.[/B]"

"[B]Understood sir,[/B]" Spencer replied.

Daniel watched the countdown and then pulled up his own section for overriding and putting in commands if need by. "[B]All right this is it gentleman, lets show the High Council that we mean business.... And Mark![/B]" Seconds later the fleet dropped out of hyperspace, right on target. Easily within firing distance of the research center and military outpost on the dead world in that sector.

Within a matter of seconds shots were fired as the powerful lasers and disruptors of the Liberator opened fire, taking out the defenses that were closest. Daniel watched as the battle unfolded, as the surprised forces there attempted to respond. The flag ships weren't the most powerful ships in the fleet for nothing and he took advantage of it, issuing orders to direct where the attacks were focusing. Daniel also took up the secondary task of quickly targeting the lone Messenger Ship of an Elite Specialist in the sector, disabling the ship before it could take advantage of it's faster speed to escape the area. And then to utterly destroy it when they attempted to fight back.

Thirty minutes later, it was over and as the damage reports began to filter in, Daniel issued the order for the assault transports with the troops, assault and security teams to head for the surface. But not before broadcasting a message demanding their surrender and cooperation. There was no reply of course, no facility that did top research for the High Council would. They would have strict orders to not cooperate in such a situation.

Daniel turned his attention back to the damage reports as well as overseeing the launch of the transports. And then it would be necessary to deal with the Battle Ships that had surrendered. Even if the space forces in the area had been dealt with, there was still a lot of work to be done.

[Horendithas]

[COLOR="Indigo"][SIZE="1"]Getting past the border between sector one and seven had gone exactly as planned and in only a few days they would be arriving at the main world in sector seven. Unless someone managed to get clear of the strike force that had taken down the border, their arrival would be unexpected. Especially since undercover operatives had been tasked with making sure that any potential alarms would not be set off as they traveled through the sector. And even if they were alerted as to their intentions, they would be no match for the size of the fleet approaching.

Sandra, though it was not necessary, was currently on the bridge at her station and going over all the details of the upcoming battle. She had already done it many times to fine tune and make sure that everyone was fully prepared. It wasn't until she realized that Jared was chuckling at her that she finally looked up from what she was doing and over to where Jared was sitting.

"[B]And just what do you find so amusing?[/B]" She asked when she realized that he really was laughing at her.

"[B]At your serious expression Sandra. We won't be arriving for several days and yet you're still going over the assignments as if you only just issued them.[/B]" Jared leaned back, crossing his legs as he smirked even more. "[B]In other words, you need to relax a bit before we get there. You'll be more focused if you do.[/B]"

Sandra turned her chair so she was facing Jared, "[B]Are you trying to tell me that you have no reason to review the plans for the battle? Not even the ones for the section of the fleet you will be commanding?[/B]"

"[B]Not at all Sandra, I've already done that and I intend to do so again before we arrive. What I'm saying is that there is only one element that concerns me about the upcoming battle and that is our newest Sub-Commander Vallon Drace.[/B]"

"[B]Then perhaps you can enlighten me as to why Vallon Drace concerns you.[/B]" Sandra leaned back herself as she cocked her head to the left upon finishing her statement. Her own eyes reflecting the amusement she felt over Jared questioning Vallon Draces's involvement.

"[B]I have no concern over his actual ability to lead or rather to fight. What I am concerned about is whether or not he'll remember to take the representatives alive as ordered[/B]." Jared laughed a bit. "[B]You are not the only one to have heard about him, and after looking though his service record, it's clear that using him to capture the three is a potential risk.[/B]"

"[B]I know Jared, that's why I assigned him the task.[/B]"

Jared's eyebrows shot up, "[B]Then why did you say you want the representatives alive?[/B]"

"[B]Because I do. Even if he fails in his mission to capture them, when word gets out that he is the one responsible for leading that aspect of the battles, I expect the representatives in others sectors to start having second thoughts about backing the New Alliance.[/B]" Sandra smiled.

"[B]It's simple really, if he captures them as ordered, they'll be sent to sector one, interrogated and then tried and executed. If he fails, I'll use his reputation to put fear into the others who would be so foolish as to oppose the High Council.[/B]" Sandra laughed delightedly.

"[B]It's rather ironic in a way. He reminds me of you actually.[/B]" She laughed even more at Jared's slightly offended look. "[B]I only mean that both of you are known for being vicious, him in battle, you as an interrogator.[/B]"

"[B]Then you understand my concern Sandra, if he kills them, who will I interrogate?[/B]" Jared said with exaggerated mock seriousness.

Sandra just laughed even more. "[B]Don't worry Jared, we'll have plenty of traitors who would benefit from [I]your[/I] expertise.[/B]"

"[B]Good.[/B]" Jared said shortly. "[B]Blaine was such a disappointment after all, cooperating and taking all the fun out of it.[/B]"

Sandra just smiled even more. "[B]Oh I know, and that in itself was rather amusing, to see one such as him so easily handing over information. Anyway, I'll keep what you said in mind Jared, but until then, I want to finish reviewing this.[/B]"

Though as she turned back to her station, Sandra found herself feeling a bit more lighthearted. In that respect, Jared's skill as her Commander was something she never wanted to do without. There weren't enough people around who could freely laugh at her and talk to her as though they were equals. And now that she was a Council member, she expected that it would stay that way. It was unavoidable, but it was also a bit lonely at times.[/SIZE][/COLOR]

[Aaryanna]

[COLOR="goldenrod"][FONT="Comic Sans MS"]Crystal had every intention of forcing Sub-Commander Vallon Drace to submit to the required medical check up. But with the upcoming battle in mind, she had found herself far busier than she would have ever expected in getting ready. Ever since they had left for sector seven she had been completely caught up in the preparations for the rescue and medical side of the battle. Assigning teams to the small pick up ships for retrieving escape pods and for boarding any ships that surrendered. Making sure all supplies were in battle readiness. The list just went on and on.

It was the first time she had been put in charge of overseeing the entire battle in that respect and she quickly learned that setting things up for two flag ships in addition to all the other ships was a massive project. Not that it was hard, since all medical personal were trained for such eventualities, it just wasn't often that one had enough advanced time to really set things up. Fortunately they were almost finished, which was a good thing since they would be arriving in only a few days.

"[B]Doctor, I need your help with something.[/B]"

Crystal looked up as her assistant entered her office. "[B]What did you need?[/B]"

"[B]Well, it's the authorization for using the smaller light weight transport ships for doing the pick ups. It hasn't been approved like it should have.[/B]" She handed Crystal a data chip.

Curious as to why it wasn't approved, Crystal inserted the chip into her hand held computer and pulled up the file. It was true that the smaller light weight transport ships weren't standard for emergency pick ups. But once she had noticed that they were simply sitting and not being used for the battle, she saw no reason why they couldn't be used instead of the standard pick up ships. They were quicker, had better shielding and using them would help to reduce the danger to the medical crews being sent out.

Crystal narrowed her eyes in anger when she saw the reason why it had been denied.[I] I think not.[/I] She thought angrily as she closed her hand held computer and stood up. This was one thing she would not stand still for.

"[B]I'll take care of it.[/B]" Crystal said irritably as she started to walk past her assistant. "[B]You keep working on the preparations based on having the better ships at our disposal.[/B]"

She did not bother to wait for a reply as she tucked her hand held computer into her right side pouch. Instead she marched out of the infirmary and straight to the closest lift. Crystal chose the destination that would take her to where the bridge was located, choosing the selection and then she stood there, tapping her foot in anger on the floor while the lift took her to the passageway just outside the bridge.

Crystal did not hesitate, instantly heading inside the bridge, ignoring the security and deck officers as she immediately headed for where Jared was seated. Upon reaching his location she then also saw that Drace was there as well, something that only irritated her even more.

"[B]Jared, I need to talk to you.[/B]" Crystal stated the moment she was close enough for Jared to realize that she was there.

"[B]What can I do for you Crystal?[/B]" Jared asked even as he favored her with a smile.

Crystal took out the chip that her assistant had given her and tossed it to Jared who deftly caught it. "[B]You can start by explaining to my satisfaction why that request was denied. I see no reason why I can't use those ships when they are going to be sitting there doing nothing during the battle.[/B]"

She waited patiently while Jared read through the request and the denial, switching between watching Jared and Drace, who was nonchalantly standing there as if nothing important was being discussed. [I]Why that smug little...[/I]

Jared finished reading the report and looked up, "[B]I'd be interested in knowing why it was turned down as well actually.[/B]" He fixed Drace with a glance. "[B]I understand the reasoning behind the ships being more costly to use than the standard pick up ships, however, I see no reason why using them would be an issue either.[/B]"

Drace merely shrugged a tiny bit, "[B]Using them was not the issue sir, as I stated in the response, such a change requires higher authority than I posses, reassigning ships from their intended purpose is not something to be done lightly.[/B]"

"[B]This is true, however, you could have simply forwarded the report to me Sub-Commander Drace.[/B]" Jared pointed out.

"[B]I was not aware that something as trivial as a slight improvement for medical teams was worthy of your time Commander.[/B]" Drace said formally. "[B]After all the difference between the ships is hardly worth noting.[/B]"

"[B]Only to the one who is receiving assistance Sub-Commander.[/B]" Crystal said icily. "[B]As well as those risking their lives to see that they get the care that they need.[/B]"

"[B]Then it's settled. I'll put in the necessary authorization for you to use the ships Crystal.[/B]" Jared assured her.

"[B]Thank you Jared. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to finish with the [I]trivial [/I]medical preparations for the upcoming battle.[/B]" Crystal shot yet another irritated glance at Drace as the sarcasm of that statement was directed solely at him.

She didn't wait for Jared or Drace to say anything else, without another word she turned and stalked off the bridge to head back to the infirmary. Her movements still betraying her irritation. Sure Drace had followed procedure, there was nothing to fault with the denial of her department's request. But at the same time, it was clear that dealing with him was going to be more than the simple irritation of getting him into the infirmary for his required checkup. [/FONT][/COLOR]

[Blayze]

[SIZE=1]Greydon sat in the transport ship with the rest of the soldiers the New Alliance had put together. His new colleagues were made up of members of the internal security force, the assault teams and the general soldiers of the New Alliance, and they all looked nervous. Greydon had hated watching the [I]Liberator [/I]take out so many Versilan ships, especially when he had seen one of them, which had belonged to an Elite Specialist, get blown out of the sky by the flagship's disruptor cannons. But he made sure his face showed no emotion, keeping his real feelings hidden.

He shifted the disruptor rifle that he held, and then laid it down on his lap. The signal came through that they were two minutes from landing on the planet, and from there they wouldn't have long to take the research facility by storm. His team would be one of the first to land, so they were in charge of "creating" an entrance to the facility.

It didn't seem like long before the back of the transport opened up, and the team spilled out onto the dusty ground below. As soon as Greydon's boot hit the ground, laser bolts began whizzing around him, carving chunks out of the ground, and blowing orange sand up into the troops' faces.

Greydon lifted his rifle and took quick aim, blasting away a Versilan who was levelling his own rifle at the team. He grimaced a little as he did - he felt like a traitor to be killing his own people, but it was necessary. Laser bolts and disruptor charges flew around him as he ran to the outside wall of the facility. The rest of the team met him there, and the captain began planting the explosives.

[B]"You'd better get back! This is going to be a big explosion!" [/B]he shouted, latching the magnetic device onto the wall and arming it. The team ran behind a small cluster of rocks nearby, but as the captain ran to join them, a laser bolt blasted into his back, slamming him to the floor.

Greydon rose up above the outcrop and fired two shots at the source of the shot that had killed the captain, and heard a scream. As he provided covering fire, taking out a number of Versilan soldiers, one of the other soldiers with him, a human named Jackson Giraldo, ran out to the captain's body and retrieved the detonator, slamming his thumb down on the button, and blowing a hole in the wall of the facility. Unfortunately, a chunk of the stone that comprised the wall blasted outwards and struck him in the side of the head, knocking him to the ground with a sickening crunch.

Greydon was the first through the breach, rolling into the building and taking out another two Versilans as he did. The other members of the team followed him in, and he signalled for them to secure the next floor while Greydon himself made sure the scientists on this floor were safe. They rushed upstairs, leaving Greydon alone.

[B]"P...please don't hurt me!" [/B]whimpered one of the men, dressed in the familiar white overall of a scientist, cowering in the corner. Greydon whirled around and walked over to the scientist, dragging him to his feet.

[B]"I won't hurt you as long as you co-operate. We need the information on both research projects you are working on. If you give us the information then we won't hurt you."

"I can't give you that information...it's top secret...only the High Council have access to that information!"[/B] Greydon sighed and slammed his fist into the scientist's face, feeling his nose break. The scientist whimpered a little more as he grabbed his nose to try and stop the flow of blood that was already pouring down his face.

[B]"You said you wouldn't hurt me!"

"I said I wouldn't hurt you if I co-operated. That's the least punishment you're going to get, so I suggest you work with us instead of against us, for now at least."

"I...I can't...you have no idea what the High Council would do to me!"

"I have every idea what they would do to you. I've seen what they do to traitors like you. In fact, I used to be in charge of those punishments."

"Y...you're one of us?!"

"That's right. I'm an undercover operative, deeply infiltrated into the New Alliance. If you give me this information, then I can use it much to my advantage. In fact, it could mean the end of the Resistance movement. Do you understand? I need you to do this."

"But...you can't prove that you're an operative. You could just be a Resistance member. I can't give you the information...I surrender...you'll have to take me in for questioning."

"See, you've just made a very foolish mistake, doctor. Because now you have refused and surrendered, you are going to talk to the Resistance. And as I have told you that I am an operative, I cannot allow that to happen. Do you see your problem?" [/B]The scientist nodded.

[B]"So I'm afraid you have only one way out," [/B]said Greydon, offering the laser pistol in his hand to the scientist, [B]"You will have to do the honourable thing." [/B]The scientist took the weapon, and Greydon let go of his lapels. The scientist then looked shakily at the weapon, before aiming it at Greydon and pulling the trigger. The weapon clicked, and Greydon smiled, holding up the power cell.

[B]"I might have known you would have no honour," [/B]he said, drawing another pistol from the holster at his hip and blasting three laser bolts into the scientist, throwing him against the wall, and letting him slump to the floor. Greydon walked over to the scientist, picking up his empty weapon and slotting the power cell back into it. As he got up and turned around, he saw a young Resistance soldier, trembling and aiming a rifle at him.

[B]"I saw you...you said you were an undercover operative!" [/B]he stammered, blinking the sweat out of his eyes.

[B]"I was bluffing," [/B]said Greydon calmly, a smile on his face, [B]"I was trying to convince him that I was an operative so he would hand over the information without us having to resort to violence."

"But...you shot him!"

"He's just a Versilan scientist. Do you really think that it matters whether he is alive or dead?"

"Our orders were to secure every scientist in the base!"

"There are 27 others. What does it matter if one of them dies? We have enough to get the information we need - Commander Landers wasn't expecting us to bring them all back with us, anyway." [/B]Greydon began to move forward, his hands in the air.

[B]"Stay where you are!"

"Or you'll shoot me? I doubt that very much. You look young - you've probably never shot anyone in your life. In fact, you don't look too comfortable holding that gun. This isn't what you're meant to do, is it?" [/B]Greydon continued to move forward, until his chest was pressing into the end of the gun barrel, [B]"If you're going to shoot me, there's no better time than right now, is there?"

[/B]The soldier shook his head, and Greydon grabbed his head with both hands, a tight grip which the soldier began to whimper at. He smiled, and looked deep into the soldier's eyes, then twisted his hands round, snapping the young man's neck with a single movement. The body slumped and fell to the ground, the rifle clattering along next to him.

[B]"Sorry," [/B]said Greydon, [B]"That didn't need to happen." [/B]He grabbed the scientist's body and dragged it over next to the soldier's body, laying it just behind.

The rest of the team then rushed down the stairs, their boots slapping against the metal of the stairs.

[B]"Kreid!" [/B]shouted one of them, a large, muscular man named Hirtius, [B]"What the hell happened here?"

"The scientist killed the kid while I was trying to download the information. He came at me, too, but I managed to shoot him down. It's a damn shame, that kid was a good soldier."

"Well, we got the information!" [/B]said Hirtius, holding up a pair of data chips, [B]"Now all we need to do is blow this place to the ground."

[/B]The next ten minutes or so were spent planting the high explosives that a number of the team were carrying, setting them at the points that were holding the building up. When they were detonated, six explosive charges planted at various points on the bottom floor would rip the building's foundations apart, and the building would collapse.

[B]"Let's get the hell out of here!" [/B]Hirtius shouted, and the team exited through the hole in the wall, taking as many of the scientists as they could with them (it was about twenty-three in total), half the team rushing them back to the transport ship through the laser fire, the other half splitting off to assist the rest of the teams to take the outpost.

The explosives detonated, ripping the foundations away, chunks of stone flying high into the air, and the walls began to collapse, the fire of the explosions heating the metal infrastructure of the building, causing the girders to expand outwards, shattering the walls and windows, and the rubble collapsed to the ground in a huge cloud of settling dust and rubble...
[/SIZE]

[Rachmaninoff]

Darren had expected to be required to meet again with Stevens since he had indicated that once he had rested they would go over his new assignment, but that had not happened. Instead he had been escorted to his quarters and told to stay put until he was called for. Even to the point that there were security personnel outside his door at all times. Making him virtually a prisoner even though his quarters were far from tiny. No, like before he had been once again given a room meant for special guests. It was quite spacious and hardly confining since it had floor to ceiling windows all along one wall. Still, roomy or not, it was galling to be locked up.

Even the view, which was one of the ship traveling in hyperspace didn't comfort him. Darren didn't know where they were going since no one could be bothered to tell him, but based on what was on the data chips that Stevens had given him it was likely that they were headed for sector seven. Otherwise, what Stevens was asking him to do would be pointless. It would require the resources that could only be found in that sector. There just wasn't another way to do it.

Darren resisted the urge to slam his fist into the wall yet again. He had requested the right to at least walk around the ship, but it had been denied. Leaving him to depend on the update system to find out what was going on. Though that only gave him the information he was entitled to as the Shipping Expert. Disgusted he turned the terminal off at his desk and got up to go and stare out the window. [I]I wonder how Kerstin is?[/I] He clenched his fists in anger. [I]Stevens wouldn't even let me say goodbye! [/I]

Before he could truly get angry again the chime indicating someone was at the door to his quarters sounded. Surprised he voiced the command for the computer to let whoever was out there in. And then he froze in shock when he saw just who it was. [I]Oh hell![/I] Darren took a step backwards without thinking about it. [I]Why did he have to come here? [/I]If he had his way, Darren would have never opened the door.

"[B]I must say Darren, I come here to see that your needs are being taken care of and all you can do is back away and give me that kind of look?[/B]" Stevens laughed as he entered his quarters and the door shut behind him. "[B]So many would pay any price to gain my favor and yet you look ready to run. Such a pity.[/B]"

"[B]You know how I feel about that sir.[/B]" Darren said stiffly.

"[B]As a matter of fact, I do. So stop looking like an idiot and come and take a seat. I'm here to go over what I gave you in the data chips and nothing more.[/B]" He helped himself to one of the more plush chairs in the center of the main room and indicated that Darren should do the same.

Hastily he grabbed his hand held computer off the corner of his desk along with the chips and took a seat on the opposite side of where Stevens was sitting. Cursing inwardly at his fate of now being required to deal with Stevens instead of Jared. Making him cringe since he never thought he'd see the day where he'd admit that he would rather be working with Jared. Darren had thought [I]nothing[/I] could make him feel charitable towards Jared in any manner.

Stevens sighed, "[B]No wonder Jared found you annoying. I'm sure you got the same warning from him that I'm about to give you as well.[/B]"

"[B]And just what would that be sir.[/B]" Darren said, taken aback as he wondered just what in the world Stevens was talking about.

"[B]You really are naive aren't you?[/B]" He laughed at Darren's puzzled look. "[B]For someone such as myself who is accustomed to taking whatever he wishes, just like Jared, the more clueless and reluctant one is... the more desirable they are.[/B]"

"[B]Like I told you before sir.[/B]" Darren said tartly. "[B]You and Jared are the same."[/B]

"[B]I'll give you a bit of free advice then, since this will apply to working with individuals like Blaine as well. You need to take those obvious emotions and feelings that you wear so openly on your sleeve and hide them.[/B]" Stevens gave him a mischievous grin.

"[B]It's not likely to save you from what I would do, but in the world of politics, it's absolutely essential. Much in the same way that it was when you were dealing with potential clients when you were simply delivering cargo.[/B]"

"[B]I'll keep that in mind sir.[/B]"

"[B]Good. Now have you reviewed the material I sent you?[/B]" Stevens continued when Darren indicated that he had. "[B]Then lets start going over the fine points of that shall we? I want to be sure there is no confusion as to what you are expected to do.[/B]"

True to his word Stevens stuck to talking about what was on the data chips he had given Darren. He was still relieved when Stevens finally left though. [I]I hope he doesn't plan on holding all the meetings here. [/I]Darren thought as he stared out into space from his vantage point of standing a foot away from the windows. It made him horribly uncomfortable since unlike Jared who tended to only target those who truly deserved punishment. Stevens was well known for having his way with whoever caught his fancy. And with him being a member of the High Council... Darren would have no means to stop him or even object should he choose to do so.

[P.J. McKrafty]

The captain’s voice came over the intercom of the jump bay. [B]"Drop off in thirty seconds."[/B] The men in the bay all started to get anxious some excited other nervous. Marc stood up at the hatch grabbing onto the handrail, hooking a safety line onto the wall, and pulling the door release. Blaine ran over to the opening hatch and manned a turret hung from the ceiling also attaching a safety line. The sound of him letting out short bursts filled the bay.

[B]"Team one your up."[/B] Marc called and seven soldiers stood up running to the bay door all of them checking their gear and getting ready. The ship made a low sweep and slowed to a hover about a yard off the ground. The soldiers ran up and jumped out two giving covering fire as the other three ran for cover. The ship then took off again.

Marc’s team was reassigned a few days ago to skip travel to sector eleven and make their way to sector fourteen where they were to take the supply depots in the confusion of the battle. The security would be weakest then and it wouldn’t take much to capture them four seven man teams and one six man team lead by Marc were to take the five depots and call in Drop ships to deliver more troops to hold it and start transporting the good out of the area.

[B]"Team two your up,"[/B] The men imitated the earlier team exactly and the ship took off again. The ship jolted making Marc stumble and get jerked by his safety line. The captain voice came over the intercom again.

[B]"You guys better buckle up they know we are here now and the anti-air is sending its regards."[/B] The ship made a low sweep barely missing the tops of the buildings. The third team and fourth team made their jumps and it was Marc’s team next. He unhooked himself walking and getting ready with the rest of him men. He slid his helmet on and initiated the radio. The men checked in one by one on the radio and it was time to jump.

Marc was the first one out immediately firing upon three men who looked like simple security officers. They ducked out of sight and the rest of the men debarked taking cover and signaling Marc to move to cover. The ship took off and Marc barely made out Blaine mouth 'Good luck' as it left.

He motioned for the others on the other side of the cover to flank while they lay down fire. The team moved up staying low guns held to where the two men were taking cover. Before the soldiers even arrived the men had stood up dropping their guns and holding their arms up. The team instantly brought them down and subdued them with their suppression devices. Marc and his men moved up keeping a watch on the door close by. He keeled by the unconscious man and started rummaging through his various pockets until he came by a identification card. Marc quickly pocketed the item and motioned for them to move to the door.

[B]"You three will clear the depot of resistance, it will be only minimal just alike these guys, we will head for the anti-air in the area and neutralize it, mind your cover and stay sharp, move out."[/B] The three men nodded and started at the door using the id card to open it and counting to three and moving in. Marc and his men when around the building.

The place seemed almost deserted, they didn't even encounter any resistance on their way to the anti-air. Once they reached it they found out why. The guns was at least 5 meters high, there were found with 3 men working at each of them them and two armed soldiers standing guard at each. Marc turned to his men pulling up a piece of cloth that covered his neck mouth and nose. His men imitated the same and they pulled a pair of goggle over his eyes and nodded to his men.

They each pulled out a grey grenade and the it over their cover toward the anti air guns. The soldiers guarding the guns jumped to their cover and started firing where the grenades originated from. The grades started to hiss and spin releasing a thick white gas.

[B]"MOVE!"[/B] Marc yelled and he and his men took their marks, The first two soldiers when down fast since their initial response to the gas was to stand up and gag.The men manning the gun now ran while the soldiers guarding started to fire randomly into the gas.

[B]"Depot resistance neutralized sir, what shall you have us do?"[/B] chirped the other team over his radio.

[B]"Move in and supply support."[/B] Marc called back on the radio. He ducked behind a freight car. The other two returned fire on the panicked soldiers. Marc leaned around the corner looking through the scope of his rifle. He fired off a shot killing on of the soldiers. They traded fire for a good five minutes before the Versilan men got desperate and they saw the gas had started to clear, they ran forward charging Marc and his men. Marc started to pull back when a flurry of bolts came down from the rooftop cutting the soldiers down.The team rondevued behind a freighter where they paused to catching their breaths and get a grip on the situation.

[Shy]

[size=1][indent]Colin and Bright Eyes had left Maia?s home early the next morning. The kind old woman had taken a liking to the boy and his dog, but knew it was only a temporary arrangement. Sales from her trip the market had been poor; and there was no way Maia could take care of Colin at her age. Giving them what little money Maia could spare, the two set off towards Espalo in an oversized set of clothes belonging to her late husband. Even Bright Eyes was given a new handkerchief to wrap around her neck.

Espalo was a city of many things to its? citizens. To some it was a chance for a new life, while for others it seemed like a prison. What was once a city of limitless potential had started to fall apart in recent years. Thousands of former slaves have crowded the city, demanding equal rights and city services. It was a bureaucratic nightmare, made worse by Espalo officials who had made their livings off of corruption and scandal.

For Colin the city of Espalo was a chance to find his family. He had no idea how he would find his parents, but he knew where to begin his search. He had been told the story many times before: an orphan child found along the streets of Espalo with a small dog by his side, but he never knew exactly [I]where[/I] he had been found. It wasn?t until shortly before leaving the farm that his former master had told him of the place: The Joyous Church of the Republic.

In a world ruled by the laws of alien science, it seemed like there was no place for God. There were only a handful of churches in Gallana, and it was far from a religious community. The Versillans had made a point of stamping faith over the centuries, destroying many sacred texts and holy sites. As a result, those who practiced their beliefs often did so in secret, constantly in fear of being caught and executed.

Centuries passed, and the humans continued their fight for independence The Joyous Church of the Republic was rebuilt as a symbol of this renewed freedom, even though many of its? most fundamental teachings had been lost to the ages.

It was a plain-looking building, made of a faded white stone with many cracks in it. At night it was a home to prostitutes and the homeless, but on quiet mornings like this it was a sanctuary from the turmoil that faced the rest of Gallana. Colin wondered if his parents belonged to the church, or knew someone who did. So much time had passed since he had been left on the steps of the building, it seemed unlikely that anyone would recognize him.

The church was quiet, save for a few elderly patrons lost in prayer. A few colorful embroideries lined the wall, promoting Gods that Colin had never heard of before. At the end of the building was a beautiful dark-skinned woman, draped in a flowing, white linen gown. She looked at the boy and his dog, and smiled.

?[b]Are you lost, child?[/b]? She asked curiously.

Colin shrugged. ?[b]We?re not lost, ma?am. My name is Colin, and this is Bright Eyes. We?ve been trying to get here for a long time,[/b]?

The woman patted Bright Eyes on the head.

?[b]Well of course you were, Colin![/b]? she said as she laughed, ?[b]After all, all roads in life lead through divinity. You can call me Theela.[/b]?

?[b]No. We?re not here to pray. We?re here to find my parents.[/b]?

?[b]I don?t understand.[/b]?

?[b]I was left here, when I was a baby,[/b]? Colin replied anxiously, ?[b]Do you know who my parents are?[/b]?

Theela?s demeanor turned sour as she thought to herself for a moment. She placed her hand on the boy?s shoulder, and kneeled down by his side.

?[b]I?m afraid I don?t, but maybe I may know someone who does.[/b]?

The boy?s eyes widened. ?[b]You do?[/b]?

?[b]I [I]may[/I]. We can ask the Tribune when they arrive for afternoon services? if you were found here when you were a baby, they would know.[/b]?

Bright Eyes wagged her tail enthusiastically as Colin wrapped his arms around the woman, clutching onto her tightly. ?[b]Thank you! Thank you! Thank you![/b]?[/size][/indent]

[GuyYouMetOnline]

[COLOR=darkslateblue]"Okay, last one," Kiva said to herself. "And... there you are. Drone locked. Transport door open... all right, got it. Searching data... good, it's clean."[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#483d8b]Upon retrieving each drone, Kiva'd run a search program to look for any evidence that the drone might have been detected, but there hadn't been any. Which was fortunate, because if the enemy knew their positions were known, they'd redeploy their forces, rendering the collected data useless. Either that, or they'd pretend they hadn't detected the drone and lay a trap, but fortunately, it seemed that none of the drones had been detected. That wasn't absolute, of course, but it was as close as one could get.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#483d8b]With her mission completed, Kiva course for the rendevous point. Daniel's fleet would be in sector 14 by now, and when the fleet finished there, it would head for the rendevous. By the time they arrived, the [I]Transcendence [/I]would already be there. Kiva would wait under full stealth functions with all nonessential systems shut down, in case of the enemy showing up at the rendevous by some random chance. When Daniel's fleet arrived, Daniel would broadcast a code, which Kiva was to respond to in order to verify her identity before revealing the [I]Transcendence's[/I] location. But Kiva had a different idea about how to do things, one Daniel didn't know about.[/COLOR]


[COLOR=#483d8b]When the [I]Transcendence[/I] arrived at the rendevous point, Kiva went to low power and full stealth as instructed, but she also did something else. She launched a drone, which was programmed to let its momentum carry it well away from the [I]Transcendence[/I] before using its limited propulsion sysetms to bring itself to a halt. When she received Daniel's code, Kiva was going to send her responce from the drone, which would use it's ECM systems to mimic the [I]transcendence[/I]. Since Daniel didn't know about this, he couldn't reveal anything about it if his end was compromised, so based on the fleet's actions, Kiva would be able to determine whether or not Daniel's end had been compromised. It was most likely an unnecessary precaution, but when undercover in the Empire, Kiva had survived by taking every precaution she could think of, and she didn't plan to change that.[/COLOR]

[SunfallE]

[COLOR="RoyalBlue"][FONT="Lucida Sans Unicode"]Celestia had heard about what was going to happen within the next day or two. The others who were working in the computer lab spent most if not all of their spare time talking about the impending battle in sector seven. But probably what bothered her the most was how much some of them were looking forward to those who had broken off being dealt with. It was, to be frank, sickening. Making it hard for her to concentrate on the assignment that her and Jason were suppose to be working on. As a result, most if not all of the work was being done by Jason at the moment. Something that Kenath had noticed and commented on already, clearly displeased with her.

Reminding Celestia that she was leaving him no choice but to notify Sub-Commander Drace if she did not do what was expected. Though that just made things worse, just thinking about having to deal with Drace again was enough to make her sick. Especially since the others working in the computer lab were making bets as to how many traitors he would slaughter in the upcoming battle. Celestia was startled from her musings by a poke in the side from Jason.

"[B]Stop that Celestia. You're just going to make yourself sick again.[/B]" Jason cautioned her. "[B]I know it's wrong and I know that it's sick but please, don't listen to it. Or at the very least try to ignore it.[/B]"

"[B]I'm sorry Jason,[/B]" she said contritely, turning back to work on her part, only it seemed that Jason had already finished.[I] How?[/I]

"[B]I've been busy while you've been fretting,[/B]" He smiled kindly at her. "[B]I used a type of modified find and replace function to hunt through the previous program to pick up the part of the code that would work just fine in making a new one. It seemed kind of pointless to totally start from scratch when it wasn't necessary.[/B]"

"[B]How long...?[/B]"

"[B]Most of the past week silly.[/B]" Jason poked her again. "[B]You've been out of sorts ever since...[/B]" Jason's face darkened briefly. "[B]Our unexpected visitors dropped in.[/B]" He tried to keep the bitterness out of his voice though it wasn't easy.

"[B]I'm sorry Jason. I'll do better from now on.[/B]" Celestia hadn't meant to be so out of it, but it had been hard to get it out of her mind, and all the talk about the battle that was due to happen didn't help.

"[B]Make sure that you do.[/B]" Kenath advised as he approached them. "[B]While you've been busy worrying over things that do not concern a mere slave, your... what do you Earthlings call it again?[/B]"

"[B]I would be called her husband sir.[/B]" Jason answered quietly.

"[B]Yes that's the word, such fuss to give names to something as simple as having your status tied to one another.[/B]" Kenath sighed every so slightly. "[B]As I was saying, while you've been busy neglecting your duties, your [I]husband[/I][/B]" Kenath indicated Jason. "[B]Has been picking up the slack.

Though I was under the impression that it was you Celestia who was the one who had the expertise. And that only the absurd new law allowing families to stay together among the slaves kept the two of you together.[/B]" He gave both of them a measuring glance.

"[B]I was told that Jason lacked the necessary skills to really be of any use. Care to explain that? Since I will be required to include it in my weekly report for Sub-Commander Drace?[/B]"

"[B]I'm sorry sir,[/B]" Celestia fought to keep her voice calm when she wanted nothing more than to tell all of them to go to hell. "[B]I'll work harder. Jason has always been good at what he does sir, it's true that most of the work is done by me, but that doesn't mean he isn't good in his own right.[/B]"

Kenath laughed a bit, "[B]After looking over the core program that he put together by using bits of the previous one I won't argue that. Still, it is clear that you are the one who understands our technology better. So I expect you to start pulling your weight. For now I'll simply include what's going on in the current report for the Sub-Commander, but if this trend of you slacking off continues Celestia,[/B]" He gave both of them a stern glance. "[B]I'll have no choice but to recommend both of you for disciplinary measures.[/B]"

"[B]Thank you for telling me sir. I'll make sure no recommendation will be necessary.[/B]" Celestia hated to say it, clenching her hands in her lap as she did so. Attempting to argue or even justify that she shouldn't have to work for them was pointless. But oh how she wanted to.

"[B]See that you do.[/B]" Kenath said before heading back to his own station overlooking the computer lab.

"[B]Like I have a choice,[/B]" Celestia said bitterly in a quiet voice once Kenath was out of hearing range.

"[B]Celestia,[/B]" Jason cautioned her.

"[B]I know Jason. I know. I'll save it for when we're back in our quarters, though why they even call them our rooms is a mystery, since we have no control over that either. They can come in there whenever they want regardless of how we feel about it.[/B]" She turned back to her workstation and pulled up what Jason had done in the past week.

With the core program re-written, now it was just a matter of putting the rest back together to make it more secure, to essentially fix it so it couldn't be hacked into. At least not for now. And she didn't dare leave any holes in the program. Unless she wanted Jason to suffer as well, she had to make sure it was as tightly put together as possible. It pained her to be making their systems better since doing so would make it that much harder for the New Alliance. With a sigh she started working on the new update program.[/FONT][/COLOR]

[Rachmaninoff]

Kerstin did not like it, necessary or not her new look annoyed the hell out of her. She hadn't realized just how much she preferred her long blonde hair and old fashioned style of dress. For one thing the reddish brown color and only having it go just past her shoulders looked terrible with the gaudy make up the stylist had taught her how to use. Like the old fashioned clothing, she was also use to far more simple means to enhance her beauty. Though it had never taken much, she didn't need it. Now, Kerstin felt cheap and she didn't even want to think about the horrible revealing clothing that was not much better than a second skin.

"[B]Bah![/B]" She snarled at her reflection as she hit the panel to cover the mirror. Stalking back out into her quarters on the tiny transport ship. Soon they would be arriving in sector eight and even though Jeffery Sherman had clearly explained that she would not be required to actually work as a paid escort she still hated it.

It didn't matter that it was a cover, that even those who would be attending the meeting would also be dressed up as something they were not. When Kerstin had questioned Jeffery as to why such a secret ordeal would even allow a paid escort he had merely given her an odd look before explaining that the other agent was posing as a very wealthy investor that the group was trying to convince to join the New Alliance.

And when that still didn't clue her in, he had bluntly pointed out that someone like her would be used to help persuade a client. Kerstin had just turned red at the thought, especially when she learned that it was a common tactic in politics. It pained her to no end to realize that all the times Jared had teased her about being naive, he had been correct. [I]The things you learn,[/I] she shook her head.[I] Or rather the things you ignored since you didn't want to believe people were like that.[/I] Kerstin sighed as she left her quarters to go and meet Jeffery for one of their final lessons before they arrived.

It didn't take her long to get to the recreation room, since the ship was so terribly tiny. Kerstin hadn't really given it a thought, but being on the[I] Creator[/I] had spoiled her a bit since she hadn't realized just how excessively luxurious her quarters there were. She found that in addition to missing her brother Darren terribly, she also missed having all that space as well as the expansive view from the windows that had run all along one wall of her quarters. In this tiny thing, she had no view at all except through a monitor or when she was on the bridge.

"[B]Ah Kerstin, right on time.[/B]" Jeffery said as she entered the recreation room. "[B]You've done a good job learning what you needed to but I'm afraid your walk and mannerisms are still off just a bit. We are passing you off as one of the newer girls, but still, you'll stick out if we don't fix that.[/B]"

Kerstin came to a halt, facing Jeffery. "[B]I already told you, I am not going to walk so I [I]bounce[/I]![/B]" She glared at him a bit. Still frustrated at having been forced into doing the assignment.

"[B]You can and you will. Don't be so damn stubborn. If you mess up you'll put yourself and our agent at risk. Do you really want to end up dead or locked up by the New Alliance? If that happens, you may never see your brother again.[/B]"

Kerstin just threw her hands up in the air in disgust. "[B]Fine![/B]" [I]Damn stupid... [/I]It was annoying as hell.[I] No wonder Darren is still so angry over being forced to become the Shipping Expert. Hell, how many stupid things did they make him do?[/I] It was a question that as soon as she met up with him again, she was going to find out.

[Aaryanna_Mom]

Daniel did his best to not cringe at the destruction they were causing, it was necessary, but it pained him to be fighting against his own people. The force at the research facility had been on the light side with only ten Battle Ships, relying on the system defenses instead of a more prominent space forces presence. But by having the codes to identify them as being safe, they had not been able to get them switched over in enough time to make a difference.

Of the Battle Ships defending sector fourteen, four had been utterly destroyed, two disabled, and the remaining four had surrendered when it became apparent they were outmatched. Daniel had already sent teams over to assume command as well as the medical teams out to pick up escape pods and hunt for survivors in the two Battle Ships that they had lost in the battle. He was also having the wreckage of the Messenger Ship for the Elite Specialist checked as well. Daniel knew just how resourceful they could be and he did not want to leave anything to chance.

"[B]Sir, the research facility had been destroyed.[/B]" Spencer reported. "[B]They were only able to recover twenty three of the twenty eight scientists working there.[/B]"

"[B]I see.[/B]" Daniel sighed inwardly, thinking that it was a good thing William had made sure to send Kiva to retrieve Tessa before the battle began. Losing her expertise would have been a problem.

"[B]The teams taking the military outpost have broken in and are storming the place even as we speak. They have yet to find the Commanding officer for the base sir.[/B]"

"[B]What about the teams securing the supplies?[/B]" Daniel asked even as he continued to review the reports for the medical teams working to pick up the survivors.

"[B]They're still suppressing some resistance but should be finished soon, once they take care of that we can move in and seize the supplies.[/B]" Spencer turned to look at Daniel. "[B]It's pretty much a done deal sir. Once they finish we can start moving all the prisoners to the transports to be sent to sector nine.[/B]"

"[B]Excellent, once everyone is clear of the surface we'll finish up by leveling the place entirely.[/B]" Daniel glanced again at yet another report coming in from the medical teams, this time one indicating they had picked up an escape pod in the vicinity of where the Messenger Ship had been. [I]I wonder...[/I]

"[B]Do we really want to do that sir? Wouldn't it be better to simply seize the outpost?[/B]"

"[B]You have your orders Spencer, let me know when everything is taken care of.[/B]" Daniel ordered.

"[B]Yes sir.[/B]" Spencer turned around and continued what he had been doing before.

Daniel resisted the urge to sigh. He didn't want to destroy everything, but after discussing it with William and the representatives of the New Alliance, it had been agreed. They didn't have the resources to attempt to maintain or even defend the outpost or the research facility, and leaving them unharmed would only make it easier for the High Council to go back to conducting illegal research by simply taking the place back from the New Alliance.

No they were better off leaving sector fourteen out of it and using the resources to maintain sector thirteen once they took it over. Earth along with other resources there could really make a difference. If things went well, they would gain more people willing to fight and another aspect altogether, one that could mean the difference between victory and defeat.

[TheResplendent]

[FONT="Tahoma"]Vallon had excused himself shortly after Doctor Crystal took her leave of the two commanders of The Creator. The zero hour was close, and it was time to gather the forces of the flagship for the invasion of Sector Seven. Pheonia Roth followed behind, as her role dictated. Though he had not spent much time aboard The Creator, Vallon has much experience with leading assaults and mobilizing on short notice. He was sure that rallying the forces of the ship would not be an arduous task.

Vallon laughed to himself at how Crystal's inconsequential concerns were actually carefully noted by Jared. In his mind, no real Versilan warrior needed to worry so heavily about medical issues, and those who required it were simply not strong enough to survive with the rest of the race. They were blessed with expedited healing and normal speeds, strengths, and durability that exceeding the limits of normal humans, it seemed unbecoming for that not to be enough. Vallon's training forced these beliefs on himself.

[b]"Pheonia, tell me. Have you ever been physically injured to the point of requiring medical attention?"[/b] Vallon asked her, keeping his pace steady. He asked not out of curiosity, but more like an entertained attempt at further understanding the weaker links of the Versilan race.

Pheonia hesitated, a bit unsure of how to answer at first, but decided on the honest answer being the best choice. [b]"Yes sir, during my first year on the Security Forces. I required surgery on my leg after a skirmish with the Resistance."[/b]

[b]"Is that right? Injured by those weaklings. Well, for my sake I guess I should hope that was far in the past."[/b] Vallon commented sarcastically, and making it rather obvious that he did not sincerely rely on Pheonia's ability for his own safety.

Vallon proceeded onto the lift that transported them down to the barracks level, there they met with Captain Nithaniel Colins.

[b]"Sir, welcome. The troops have been organized and are awaiting your orders."[/b] Colins greeted. Vallon just smirked and bowed his head slightly in acknowledgement. He walked passed the Captain, Pheonia behind him. Nithaniel couldn't help but take notice to Pheonia's figure, making his glance as unnoticeable as he could.

Vallon used his clearance code to grant them access into the docking area where the ships stood surrounded by a myriad of Versilan armed forces, standing at attention awaiting word from the new sub-commander. He took position on an overlooking walkway and looked down at all the soldiers before him. He took as much time as he needed to survey the area to his satisfaction and breathed in deeply the air around him as if he was recently deprived of breathing.

The chatter and confusion on the faces of the soldiers was eventually made apparent, some wondered who Vallon was, other's knew but simply wondered what he was doing simply standing there. Moments later, with a renewed smirk on his face, Vallon thrusted his hand into his interior coat pocket and pulled it out with his hand wearing one of thise disruptor knuckles.

[b]"Pheonia dear, if you would please stand aside a couple of yards."[/b] Vallon quietly instructed. Pheonia heeded his command, a bit perplexed.

He followed up by destroying the railing infront of him with two swings. He jumped into the air and brought his body weight down at twice the force he jumped with causing the walkway to collapse and cut off where the damage to the railing was done, plummeting Vallon down to the troop's level.

Vallon landed with a loud crash that could be heard throughout the general area of the ship, some troops scattered not expecting what had happened. Vallon leaped from the severed platform moments before it's impact and quickened his way into the thick of the troops, as soldiers backed away and created a path for him.

[b]"VERSILAN WARRIORS, LISTEN TO ME HERE AND NOW!"[/b] Vallon bellowed to further gather the attention of the army.

[b]"I am Vallon Drace, your new commander! However I am no different from you! I stand here amongst you soldiers on the same level because I am a soldier just like you! My title does not dictate what I do, MY ACTIONS DICTATE WHAT I DO! I do NOT know how procedures were run before my arrival here, but this is how they will be run NOW. You fight with me, I will fight with you! You are the backbone of the Versilan army, and I will empower each and every single one of you with the same courage, pugnacity, and intensity that I hold for our pride as Versilans to crush the Resistance!"[/b]

Soldiers looked at each other in awe of the new sub-commander's approach to giving a pre-battle speech. Many of them looked invigorated by his words and lent their ears to hear more. How each soldier would personally feel about Vallon Drace may not have been determined yet, but at this point everyone's attention in the room was fixated on one point.

[b]"SOLDIER, what is your name?"[/b] Vallon asked, randomly pointing to someone. The unsuspecting soldier took a moment to physically indicate his questioning of his choice. Vallon nodded, telling him that he was indeed talking to him.

[b]"Jacob Wallace, sir!"[/b] the soldier answered crisply.

[b]"Then my name might as well be Wallace, as yours might as well be Drace! Because we are brothers in battle, we fight cohesively as a single unit because this army is to be feared for it's coordination and ferocity! Together we will obliterate the Resistance and prove YET AGAIN the dominance of our great empire. My job is war, and I will take this war and win it. You are those who will be by my side in this victory, raise your voices and show me your desire for superiority! Raise your voice in harmony with mine and let us show why The Creator will not fail as long as I stand here with you!"[/b] Vallon continued, thrusting his hand forward, a figurative burning glow in his eyes that alone commanded those soldiers in direct sight of him.

The soldiers collectively began cheering in response and began a chant for the Versilan empire. Vallon's jaw hung loose and his eyes focused as he made crisp movements with his body to the sound of his support. Inside he was laughing meniacally and his obsession with victory burned through the back of his eyes, overtaking any other sight one might see through the windows to his soul.

Pheonia watched on from the top, her heart pounding in her chest at the obedience Vallon received from just his speech and actions alone. He had been on this ship for a day and never met a single soldier, yet his efforts to put himself on a personal level with the soldiers commanded an earned respect. It was not military protocol, that was certain.

[b][i]'Surely he isn't sincere about his feelings for this army...he...he's a master of manipulating the masses for his own purposes. If this invasion ends in victory for the empire, he'll have this army at his beck and call. It's...incredible.'[/b][/i] Pheonia thought to herself, as she watched on.

Vallon waited until the commotion calmed down before putting the exclamation point to his pre-battle speech. [b]"The previous leader of this army, sub-commander Harris sits comfortably behind a computer amongst the council, no longer concerning himself with the bloodshed and complexity involved in combat. I stand here with you, willing to risk my very life on the field of battle! I would accept no such [i]promotion[/i] if it meant drawing me away from my calling. NOW, prepare yourselves, board your ships for the time is NOW! We will reclaim what was once lost! Heed my orders when I give them and kill ANY Resistance member that gets in your way, NOW GO!"[/b]

The soldiers ate every word and advanced themselves in the name of the empire, in the name of Vallon Drace. Vallon flipped the hair out of his face and gritted his teeth.

[b][i]'This is only the first victory. May the Resistance tremble before the power of Vallon Drace, and may all who oppose me die trembling in an irreversible state of trepidation. '[/i][/b][/FONT]

[Horendithas]

[COLOR="Indigo"][SIZE="1"]Jared for the first time was carefully set up in the observation room of the [I]Creator[/I], the conference table changed into a holographic display of the three planets they would be taking along with all of the ships represented on the display. He was already linked in directly with Sandra who was on the bridge and Stevens who was also set up in the observation room of the [I]Conqueror[/I]. Everyone was ready, even Crystal who was set up on the bridge of the [I]Creator[/I] to oversee all of the medical aspects of the battle.

He looked back at the display, they had already made a short stop and positioned the three aspects of the fleet so that their exit point from hyperspace would put all three sections of the fleet in the position to attack immediately. It was but a short stop and the agents in the sector responsible for suppressing any news over detecting the hyper space signatures had done their job as no alarm was raised or transmissions indicating they were coming had been detected.

"[B]All right everyone,[/B]" Stevens was saying moments before they arrived. "[B]Remember your targets, priority goes to taking out any Messenger Ships as well as to neutralize planetary defenses. You'll have a brief moment to immediately target any ground troop facilities before the distortion shields are raised so be sure to take it.[/B]"

"[B]Remember,[/B]" Stevens said, knowing that at Vallon Drace would be listening in from his position of being with the troops on standby. "[B]The three representatives are to be taken alive, anyone else is irrelevant.[/B]"

Acknowledgments came from all parties who would be leading the battle and then at the appropriate mark the fleet dropped out of hyper space, taking the forces there by surprise. Immediately Jared shifted his attention to the section he was leading that was taking back the planet where the special plants for explosives were grown.

Jared almost laughed out loud when he realized that not only had the New Alliance not increased the defenses for that planet, but that the immediate scans indicated that most of the military presence was gone. [I]I wonder where they moved them too? [/I]He wondered as he issued the orders for the defenses to be disabled and then the transports to head for the ground to seize the main buildings. His part was turning out to be far too easy as the Battle Ships surrounding that world launched the troop transports.

"[B]Well, what have we here,[/B]" Sandra said as she looked at the readouts in front of her, ignoring the connection to Jared and Stevens for the moment. "[B]Target the new construction and take it out at once.[/B]" She commanded the bridge crew, even as she looked up to the holographic monitor connecting her to Stevens and Jared.

"[B]It seems that the New Alliance was in the process of building more training facilites for troops.[/B]" She advised them. "[B]What is the status on the facilities at your locations gentlemen? Initial scans indicate that there is a lot more in terms of troops than there should be.[/B]"

"[B]That would explain why my group is encountering little to no resistance at all Sandra, the troop facilities here are pretty much vacant. I'll know as soon as the transports land, but it looks like they simply freed the slaves and left a token force to keep things in order.[/B]"

Sandra crossed her legs and leaned back a bit as she observed the battle, her fingers flying over the input for the terminal as she issued orders and directed the path of the attack.[I] They were not expecting us to come here.[/I] She thought as she watched the powerful lasers of the [I]Creator[/I] take out several of the new facilities being built before the powerful disruption shields were raised.

"[B]It's the same here Sandra,[/B]" Stevens commented. "[B]It looks like most of the troops were moved to the main world to assist with the construction. Just as it looks like most of the fleet that was here was sent elsewhere."[/B]

Sandra had to agree, the last intelligence report they had gotten indicated that there were close to thirty Battle Ships but so far, unless they were hiding elsewhere in the sector, there was only the fifteen that her section was dealing with. [I]And here we brought the two flag ships along with fifty Battle Ships to be prepared. [/I] She shook her head as one of the enemy Battle Ships exploded, close enough to the [I]Creator[/I] to cause a brief tremor to run through the deck.

"[B]I'm going to go ahead and launch the transports, with the distortion shields raised on the planet, they'll need to land at the outskirts and take down the generators so we can transport the rest of the troops to the surface.[/B]" Sandra pulled up the com link to Drace.

"[B]Sub-Comander Drace, you are to launch at once.[/B]" She ordered.

"[B]Understood Commodore,[/B]" Drace said with a formal bow.

Sandra cut the link and went back to overseeing the battle that was raging, yet another Battle Ship exploded, leaving the number of ships still fighting at six. [I]Damn stupid fools[/I], she thought as she pulled up yet another link to send a general broadcast, the same one that had been issued within moments of the battle starting. A demand for them to surrender. This time, it was heeded and the remaining ships came to a halt, powering down.

"[B]Start the clean up gentlemen,[/B]" She said even as she watched the transport ships launch and head for the surface. "[B]It seems that the representatives can't be bothered to answer the call to surrender.[/B]" Though seeing that even a surrender would gain them no mercy, it did not surprise her. Sandra leaned back even further and smiled as she watched the report indicating that the first of the troop transports had landed on the surface.[/SIZE][/COLOR]

[Aaryanna]

[COLOR="goldenrod"][FONT="Comic Sans MS"]As always, battles were the one part of her job that Crystal truly loathed. Even as she kept on top of what was going on, issuing orders to make sure that escape pods were picked up and debris from ships carefully searched for survivors, a part of her cringed every time a ship was destroyed or defenses that were manned were taken out. [I]If only we could have settled this without fighting. [/I]She thought sadly as yet another Battle Ship exploded, causing a tremor to run through the deck of the bridge.

"[B]Commander, we're picking up several distress signals from escape pods that have landed on the surface of the planet. Should we retrieve the escape pods or leave them to the forces led by Sub-Commander Drace?[/b]" Crystal turned her attention back to the screens in front of her, reaching up briefly to touch the small communicator attached to her right ear. Keeping her connected with the others who were also overseeing the deployment of the medical forces. Then she tapped her chin with her right forefinger, deep in thought.

[I]If I leave it up to that barbaric fool, they'll just kill whoever is in those pods.[/I] Decided she spoke into the small mic attached to the communicator she was wearing as it came down so it was partly along the side of her face.

"[B]No pick them up immediately. Send teams four and five, I want the people in those escape pods retrieved before the troop transports land.[/B]"

"[B]But what about the escape pods that we picked up heading out into deep space?[/B]" The chief doctor on the Conqueror asked her.

"[B]I'm going to send the reserve teams out to retrieve them. I want those people picked up before the troops land on the planet![/B]" Crystal ordered firmly.

"[B]Yes sir. I'm sending them there now.[/B]"

Crystal watched in satisfaction as the teams deviated from their flight path that was taking them away from the battle and then back into the fray, neatly flying between the mess and avoiding the chaos that was going on. Most of the time ships broadcasting a medical signal were left alone, but it wasn't a guarantee. They had already lost one team early on when it had been caught in the explosion of a Battle Ship being destroyed.

She sighed just a little bit, wondering just how many death reports she would be required to do once everything was said and done. And though she could see the logic behind why Sub-Commander Vallon Drace had been chosen, she did not agree with it. After her first encounter with him she had checked further into his service records.

To say that he was violent would be an understatement. Drace did not take prisoners, Drace merely slaughtered the fools who stood in his way. It certainly explained why she had overheard others placing bets as to just how many he would personally kill in the upcoming battle. As a doctor, such a stance went against everything she had been trained to do, it was her job to save lives not destroy them.

Crystal brought her attention back to the present, though she had kept track of everything just the same, multi tasking like that was a simple matter for her. The teams were returning from the surface with the escape pods, and not a moment too soon as it seemed that the first of the troop transports were landing on the planet.

"[B]Start preparing the secondary teams, everyone.[/B]" Crystal announced, "[B]Once the troops on the main world have gotten in so far, we'll move in and start retrieving the wounded.[/B]"

"[B]Understood, most of them are already standing by Commander.[/B]"

"[B]Good.[/B]" Crystal replied. "[B]Also, start double checking the field for any stray pods we may have missed.[/B]"

Crystal turned briefly from her station to look over to where Sandra was overseeing the battle and then she turned back to her own station. [I]If only this hadn't been necessary. [/I]She thought sadly. The moment they had arrived, she knew it was hopeless when she saw that the defenses there were outmatched. And it had pained her that they had refused to surrender, other than a few of the Battle Ships that is. [I]What could they possibly hope to gain by refusing? [/I]She sighed again as she started going through the incoming reports of the wounded and the dead.[/FONT][/COLOR]

[P.J. McKrafty]

Marc set the last of the charges on the AA Guns base. His men were scattered around the area watching for any enemy movement. Marc gave a whistle and he moved to cover along with three of him men that were close enough to be affected by the explosives. One of his men he had watching for the signals that the other teams were supposed to indicate that they had taken the area came into view from the roof.

[B]?Sir, all four of the flares have been lit, it?s just us then we can call in the drop ships.?[/B] He called out.

[B]?The charges are set, try getting a hold of the captain and tell him to connect us to the long range so we can contact the Liberator?[/B] Marc replied pulling the detonator out of his pack. He set it to the charges frequency and held the button down. There were three beeps and the charges each went off one by one. They came out from behind cover slowly and saw each AA Gun was destroyed. ?Light the flare.? One of his men nodded and sped off in the direction of the room access ladder.

Marc checked the radio and found it already on the long range. [B]?Liberator, this is Division 539, we have neutralized the AA guns and are ready for drop ships.?[/B] Marc sat silent waiting for a reply and then repeated himself. [B]?Liberator, this is Division 539, we have neutralized the AA guns and are ready for drop ships.?[/B] This time the radio crackled as he let go of the transceiver.

[B]?Division 539, this is Command Bridge on the Liberator, I assume this is Sergeant Nazarian??[/B] replied a voice on the other line.

[B]?Yes, we have control of the supply depots and need support and transport.?[/B]

[B]?Drop ships are inbound on the depots?[/B] Marc switched over to the radio channel that Blaine was on.

[B]?Blaine, I need you to pick up the other teams and transport them to my position.?[/B]

[B]?We are already on it.?[/B]Blaine replied as the radio went silent. Fifteen minutes passed before the ship arrived with Blaine and the other teams aboard. They all filed off the ship and it took off.

[B]?Where are they going??[/B]

[B]?They have another objective I guess, anyway we are getting a ride back to the Liberator on one of the drop ships.?[/B]

It was only a hour before the first drop ships arrived leaving troops to hold the depots and taking Marc and his men to the Liberator. The ship had little turbulence on the way there. Marc looked out the back hatch as they flew over the sector. The terrain was riddled with signs of battle but it seemed that The Alliance had taken control for the most part.

[Aaryanna_Mom]

Everything was wrapping up nicely, the research facility had been dealt with, the scientists had been detained and the teams sweeping the military outpost were returning with the last of the people who had been stationed there. Other than the Commanding Officer who was being detained on the [I]Liberator[/I], the rest of them had been put on board the transports that had been called in and were now on their way to sector nine to be dealt with. The representatives there would deal with the tedious task of sorting who would be willing to join the New Alliance and those who would simply be detained until the war was over.

"[B]Sir, the last of the groups is returning, all personnel as well as the supplies have been retrieved. Unless their is some sort of special shielding, the scans indicate that there is no life left on the surface.[/B]" Spencer turned to face Daniel. "[B]We can begin the razing when you give the orders sir.[/B]"

Daniel nodded, "[B]Very well then, on my mark, you are to execute the firing pattern that I have forwarded to you. Leave nothing untouched, not even the research facility that was already dealt with.[/B]"

Spencer just gave Daniel an odd look, his eyes reflecting the confusion he had over why they had even bothered to destroy the research facility if they were going to bombard it from orbit. He looked away briefly and then back and Daniel again.

"[B]I don't understand sir, why bother wasting the explosives on the research facility when we were going to destroy it from space anyway?[/B]" He finally asked.

"[B]It's simple Spencer. True the main objective was to retrieve the scientists as well as the data, but destroying the facility at the ground level was in case we were required to leave before we could finish.[/B]" Daniel stood up and walked over to where Spencer was, standing just behind his chair with his arms clasped behind his back.

"[B]The details of the third research project is equally if not more horrifying than that of the other ones. It was decided that making sure that research was halted permanently was the main priority of this attack.[/B]" Daniel just waited for the implication of that to sink in and moments later Spencer's eyes widened slightly.

"[B]Something more terrible than the illegal modification's that they did to everyone? I... It's hard to imagine something more horrible than that.[/B]" Spencer turned back to face the terminal in front of him. "[B]I assume that you'll be informing the crew? Of the contents of this research sir?[/B]"

"[B]In time Spencer, in time.[/B]" Daniel said. "[B]Now began the razing.[/B]"

"[B]Yes sir.[/B]"

Daniel turned and walked back to his seat and sat down and then watched on as the powerful lasers of the [I]Liberator[/I] were used to utterly destroy the outpost, the supply buildings, the living accommodation's and then finally to make sure that there was nothing left of the rubble where the research center once stood.

"[B]Razing complete sir, your orders?[/B]"

"[B]Move us to the border between sector thirteen and fourteen, at these coordinates.[/B]" Daniel forwarded the location to Spencer's terminal. "[B]Once we arrive in a few days, we'll go from there.[/B]"

"[B]Understood sir.[/B]" Spencer started issuing orders, aligning the ships together far enough away from the planet so they could make the jump to hyper space. And then once the fleet had made that jump he turned yet again to Daniel.

"[B]Earth is next? No offense sir, but wouldn't it be better to deal with sector four or five? There's no advantage to freeing Earth, at least not yet anyway. But seriously sir, defending that sector would be a waste since there's nothing there worth seizing.[/B]"

"[B]Don't worry Spencer, you'll see why we are going there in due time.[/B]" Daniel stood up. "[B]In the mean time, maintain our current course and contact me if anything needs to be attended to.[/B]"

He turned to leave the bridge just as the security assigned to him was switching teams, putting Greydon Kreid along with the one who had replaced Kade Tyrell as the ones currently assigned to his security. Daniel smiled just a bit when the two fell in place to follow along with him as he headed towards the cells on the [I]Liberator[/I].

"[B]I trust you got enough rest after assisting with the raid of the research facility Kreid?[/B]" Daniel asked as the walked along the corridors of the [I]Liberator[/I].

"[B]Yes sir.[/B]" Kreid replied.

"[B]Good and excellent work by the way, it's a pity that we couldn't secure all of the scientists but I suppose that can't be helped.[/B]" Daniel entered the lift that would take them to the floor where the cells were located.

"[B]What do you know about interrogations Kreid?[/B]" He turned to look right at him, noting how he seemed slightly surprised by the question and then shrugged before answering.

"[B]Not much sir, only that I had no desire to be caught and interrogated myself. I was on the [I]Creator[/I] sir, everyone knows about Commander Jared Scorer. I'd rather die than be touched by him.[/B]"

Daniel turned back to the lift door as they arrived. "[B]You're not the only one Kreid.[/B]"

"[B]Sir?[/B]" Kreid sounded puzzled as he followed along as Daniel left the lift and headed towards the security point for the cells.

"[B]Never mind Kreid, all you need to know is that so long as the New Alliance is in charge, there will be no [I]interrogations[/I], or rather inhumane techniques used to gain information.[/B]" Daniel sighed every so slightly. "[B]Anyway, all I'll need you to do is provide security as always, if the Commander of the outpost gets too unruly all you are to do is simply restrain him, understand?[/B]" He stopped and turned to look at both of them and then continued once they both nodded.

Daniel, after briefly greeting the security for the area and finding out which cell the Commander was being held in, turned to head down the corridor and get it over with. It was but a mere formality since without the harsh interrogation techniques, they would learn nothing. But Daniel had no intention of changing that, and neither did Williams or the representatives of the New Alliance. When the time came, he would love nothing better than to scrap all of the interrogation equipment through out the Versilan Empire.

[SunfallE]

[COLOR="RoyalBlue"][FONT="Lucida Sans Unicode"]Celestia had not been the one to issue the order that during times of conflict like the upcoming battle, she along with Jason were to be kept in their quarters until it was over with. It hadn't stopped Kenath from being surprised by Doctor Crystal's reminder shortly before they were due to arrive in sector seven though. She had not missed his look of irritation which was swiftly followed by acceptance after Crystal had shown him something on her hand held computer. But the look he had shot in her and Jason's direction was unmistakable, and she wondered just how that would affect further dealings with him. So far, everyone she had dealt with had objected to what they considered special treatment that no slave deserved. It never seemed to cross their minds that she was not the one to make those decisions.

When they had been at the Council Center, her pacifist and non-violent views had not been well received and had often lead to harassment, including an actual fight between Jason and the researchers there after they had insulted her. Still she couldn't change how she felt and even if she could she would not. Celestia would not accept that killing someone else was necessary or even required. Just as she would not accept others attempts to make her see the [I]error[/I] of her ways as they would put it. She was not so naive to believe that she would never harm someone if it was necessary for her own defense, but she still would do everything in her power to avoid it.

A tremor ran through the floor of their quarters and Celestia looked up from her position of sitting on the sofa in the middle of the main room towards Jason who was returning from another part of their living area. She didn't need to say anything to know that he had felt it as well. It was obvious from the look he sent her way. Just as it was an obvious indication that the battle was in earnest since she knew perfectly well that it would take quite a bit of force to cause a tremor like that in a ship as big as the[I] Creator[/I].

Jason didn't say a word as he came over and sat down next Celestia and then held her close when she moved over. He knew how much violence of any kind pained her. He didn't share her non-violent views, but at the same time he would have preferred that there was no fighting. And though they would learn later just how many had died, he was at least happy that Crystal had made sure they didn't have to be present while it was actually happening. The last thing Jason wanted was to see Celestia collapse again.

[CENTER]*********************[/CENTER]
It had almost been a waste to even bother with sending a stronger force to the facility where the plants were processed and to the facility where the ship parts were made. If Stevens had known that the New Alliance had moved most of the resources to the main world he would have not bothered with sending the [I]Conqueror[/I] to assist with retaking the other worlds in sector seven. He would have instead gone directly to the main world along with the [I]Creator[/I].

Stevens took note of several Battle Ships as they were destroyed in close proximity to the [I]Creator[/I], close enough that he was positive that it would have been felt through the entire ship. Though a quick look at the battle data showed that the damage to the flag ship was superficial and would be easy to repair.

"[B]What's your status Jared?[/B]" Stevens looked over to the holographic projection of Jared on the [I]Creator[/I].

"[B]Other than a few facilities we're pretty much finished here. Unless they are hiding additional troops behind distortion shields, there's nothing left to deal with.[/B]" Jared informed him.

"[B]Sandra?[/B]" Stevens asked, turning his attention to her.

"[B]The troop transports led by Sub-Commander Drace have just landed on the surface, once they disable the generators for the distortion shields we'll transport down the remaining troops.[/B]" She looked up from what she was doing to look directly at Stevens.

"[B]Unless you have need of the manpower, I suggest you send two of your transports over, I'm sure I won't need them, but if I do, it would be better to have them on hand.[/B]"

"[B]I'll send them over at once then, since I have no need of them.[/B]" Stevens turned away briefly to issue the order before turning back.

"[B]All that leaves to be done is retaking the main world and the three representatives,[/B]" Stevens smiled. "[B]Such an easy victory will only make putting our next move in motion that much easier.[/B]"

He looked back at the display in the observation room of the [I]Conqueror[/I], noting how the battle in space was pretty much over. Of the fifteen ships that had been in the sector ten had been destroyed and the remaining five were in the process of being seized after surrendering to Sandra. Regaining five Battle Ships was a good thing, though it was a pity that they had lost three during the fight.

Still Stevens was pleased, without the [I]Creator[/I] the loss would have been a lot higher. Since most Battle Ships simply didn't have the ability to fight off the more powerful ship. Even if they had lost one to the New Alliance, it would make no difference. Especially once he put some of his other plans into motion. It was only a matter of time until order would be restored, a thought that just made him smile.[/FONT][/COLOR]

[GuyYouMetOnline]

[COLOR=darkslateblue]As Kiva had expected, it was a few days before Daniel's fleet arrived, but Kiva had made use of that time. She knew exactly why sector 13 was the next target, and her objective there would take some work. Getting to her target wouldn't be too hard, and she'd found a way to deal with the area's shielding. With an assault team to back her up, the on-ground portion would be likely to proceed smoothly. The problem was that at any time, somebody could activate the self-destruct device. Kiva needed a way to prevent that from happening. Fortunately, she'd been to the location before, so she knew exactly what equipment was there, and it was unlikely there'd been significant changes since then.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#483d8b]Knowing what was there to work with gave Kiva an edge. She took one of her pre-existing programs and configured it for the job it would need to do. Since she knew what hardware there was, she was able to set up her interferance program to be more effective than usual. All she had to do was get into the target's computers and download the program, which she'd set to intercept and eliminate any signals to the self-destruct mechanism. The button could still be pushed, but thanks to Kiva's program, it wouldn't do anything. Kiva's computer skills had been a primary reason she'd succeeded both as an Imperial operative and as an undercover Resistance agent, and they were serving her just as well now. The only trick was getting into the computers, but Kiva had a solution for that, too.[/COLOR]


[COLOR=#483d8b]A signal sounded when the fleet was detected. Kiva waited as they exited hyperspace and the flagship broadcasted the code. Kiva signaled the drone to activateand transmit the responce code, which it did. The drone, which was now mimicing the [I]Transendence[/I],received a communications request, which it relayed to Kiva via a tight-beam transmission, something that worked only if the destination's exact location was known but was essentially impossible to detect. Kiva accepted the request through the drone; she would use the drone as a relay until she was ready to reveal the [I]Transcendence[/I]'s true location.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#483d8b]"Hello, Kiva," Daniel said.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#483d8b]"Daniel. Looks like you did rather well in sector 14."[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#483d8b]"Yeah. Everything went as planned."[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#483d8b]"Good, because sector 13's going to be a bit tougher. Sector defences are every bit as tough as expected, but I got a complete reading of the sector's forces, including patrol patterns, and all indications are that I went completely undetected. I'm sending the data now."[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#483d8b]Kiva sent the data through the drone to the [I]Liberator[/I]. "Transmission complete," she said.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#483d8b]"Excellent," Daniel said. "Now, about your objective in sector 13."[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#483d8b]"Just give me a second, then we'll move on to that." Kiva ended the transmission, then sent one to the [I]Liberator[/I] directly from the [I]Transcendence[/I]. "Hello again," she said.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#483d8b]"What was that about?" Daniel said.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#483d8b]"This." Kiva sent a signal to the drone to deactivate its ECM. At the same time, she brought the [I]Transcendence[/I] fully online.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#483d8b]Kiva saw the commotion this sudden turn of events caused on the bridge of the [I]Liberator[/I] and just laughed. "What the hell was that?" Daniel said to her.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#483d8b]"Just an additional precaution I came up with," Kiva said. "What you were seeing was a drone. That way, I could evaluate your intent without revealing my actual location. Although to be honest, I mainly did it for fun. And I have to say that the look on your face was priceless."[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#483d8b]"Um... well, I guess you did a pretty good job of fooling us. Well, anyways, um, should we discuss your role in the coming operation?"[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#483d8b]"Sure, but first, have you identified the Imperial agent or agents on board the [I]Liberator[/I]?"[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#483d8b]"No," Daniel said. "At least, I don't think so. There was an attempt on my life, and we seem to have identified the one behind it, but I think he was framed. This agent or agents has done everything right so far, including managing to make the transmissions in a way that made using them to track him, her, or them impossible."[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#483d8b]"Then go to your quarters first," Kiva said. "And by the way, I would recommend that your personal security include only those who you've been able to do complete checks on. The Empire most certainly wants you dead, and having someone in your personal guard would be very useful in achieiving that objective. At the very least, make sure you're alone in your quarters while we talk to insure that nobody we don't want to hear what we say hears it."[/COLOR]


[COLOR=#483d8b]"...which will effectively deal with that particular problem."[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#483d8b]"Sounds good," Daniel said. "It should work. Of course, there's still the problem of the class X shielding. Have you figured out a way around that?"[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#483d8b]"I haven't come up with anything besides the brute-force method," Kiva said. "I do still have the schematics in the [I]Transcendence[/I]'s database, so I know where the shield generators are located. And I also know that the shield doesn't cover the entire planet, because that would be a huge waste of energy. So after I've taken the self-destruct system out of the picture, we'll send demolition teams down as close as we can and have them move in on foot to destroy the generators. Since there are three generators, we'll need three demolition teams."[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#483d8b]"But won't that give the paople down there time to repair the self-destruct mechanism?"[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#483d8b]"Well, first they'd have to know it won't detonate, and even with routine checks, they're not likely to notice what I'll have done. And if they do, well, I think they'll find it hard to fix. Since I know what the hardware is, I can go after it from that end. Basically, it would take days to fix, and replacements aren't exactly standard equipment, so we'll have plenty of time before they can blow the place up on us. Of course, they will have time to organize themselves to defend against our attack, so I'll want my assault team in class alpha heavy combat armor. That's probably overkill, but I don't like to take chances. Put them in an assault shuttle, but don't launch until I give the signal that the self-destruct system has been neutralized. We don't want them to have any reason to doubt what I tell them. I'll take the demolition teams in the [I]Transcendence[/I]. Transport them over to me before exiting hyperspace."[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#483d8b]"Understood," Daniel said. "I'll make the arrangements. Good luck, Kiva."[/COLOR]

[COLOR=#483d8b]"Don't worry," Kiva said. "I can do this. Kiva out."[/COLOR]


[COLOR=#483d8b]With a battle plan made based on Kiva's data, the fleet reentered hyperspace and headed for sector 13. Not many knew why sector 13 was the next target, and adding to the confusion was the fact that the New Alliance intended to make an extra effort to hold the sector rather than just eliminate the Imperial presence there. But it was indeed important, and Kiva's objective was why. [I]And they may very well have another toy ready by now,[/I] Kiva thought. [I]When the Empire learns about this, they're not going to be happy[/I].[/COLOR]