[color=lime]The Solace.[/color] The Solace's hangar bay was filled with a sort of dulled commotion as techs rapidly moved to start rearming and repairing The MAS's that were returning. Thus far, several of the squadron had yet to return to the ship, and with the time till jump rapidly ticking away, the mechanics were rushing to clear the landing decks so the returning pilots could land. In quick succession, Sanders and the last of the Naginata fighters collided with the Solace's drag-cables, sets of emergency landing cables stretched across the hangar to reduce the speed of returning MASs. As quickly as they could, they walked, or in the cast of the fighter, taxied, to their slots, thus clearing the hangar for more pilots to land. The landing spaces were quickly cleared, as the techs prepared to catch the last two remaining MASs from the Wargods. [color=khaki]"Clear the landing bay!"[/color] shouted the deck chief, above the general din, his voice amplified by his ultra-light MAS's external speakers. [color=khaki]"Steiner and Commander Simms are the last- What the fuck?!"[/color] The deck chief and several other technicians dived out of the way as a shuttle barreled into the hangar bay, skidding and bouncing along the hangar floor before getting caught in the drag cables, forcing Simms to break off before he crashed into the occupied space. Steiner landed in the other sided of the hangar bay and threw himself out of his cockpit, not bothering to park his machine, shock clear even through the polarized faceplate of his helmet. He bounded across the hangar, tearing his helmet off of his head. [color=firebrick]"What the hell is this?!"[/color] Steiner bellowed, as people began to rush out of the shuttle, its contents a mixture of non-military, and military personnel, it must've been an escape shuttle from the Ulysses, as the military personnel from the shuttle had the patches of Cerol's Defense Force MAS Division. The inhabitants of the shuttle breathed a collective sigh of relief, and some even began high-fiving one another as they congratulated each other on a safe landing. At the same time, the lights began to blare red as klaxons sounded, and the hangar doors began to shut. [i][color=lime]ALL HANDS, PREPARE FOR FTL JUMP. ALL HANDS, PREPARE FOR FTL JUMP.[/color][/i] The kitchen-lounge had been relatively quiet, until Steiner, Sanders and the rest of the remaining Wargods suddenly burst into the lounge, sprinting for the room's comm-pad, the hangar's only communication link to the bridge. [color=thistle]"Delay the jump!"[/color] Sanders screamed, even before he managed to jab his finger into the comm-pad. [color=thistle]"Commander Simms hasn't landed yet! Delay the jump!"[/color] [i]No can do,[/i] crackled the voice of Rexer through the comm-pad. [i]The Solace needs to jump now![/i] [color=firebrick]"Thats bullshit!"[/color] Steiner yelled indignantly. [color=firebrick]"A damned escape shuttle got in the way! We can't leave Simms out there to die!"[/color] [i]If we stay any longer, we'll all die. Now watch your tone, lieutenant.[/i] came Rexers withering reply before the comm-pad abruptly shut off. [color=thistle]"Damn you Rexer!"[/color] Brit growled, as he slammed his fist against a wall. Moments later, their stomachs dropped and the ship lights flickered for a moment as the ship rumbled. They were in hyperspace. There was a brief pause before the doors to the lounge opened again, and several men in pilot jumpsuits bearing "CPDM" patches on their shoulders walked in, all looking a bit ragged, but relatively relieved. [color=palegreen]"Man, I'm glad we got here, we almost didn't make it!"[/color] One of the pilots said, with a chuckle of relief. [color=palegreen]"Hey kid, you got any coffee to spare?"[/color] he said, eagerly eyeing the pot of coffee Erwin was brewing. Three days later, the relatively quiet ship jumped into normal space, where it encountered UEE contact for the first time since Cerol. [hr] [color=lime]7th Squadron Spaceport Haven[/color] Built in the mined-out husk of a massive, ages old asteroid, Haven was a known romping ground for criminals, terrorists, and malcontents since before the war. It was a former huge mining station built, from which all that remained were twisting streets populated with homes, shops and warehouses. Haven's inhabitants were particularly lawless, even by FEZ standards. Territory within the asteroid is often controlled by the strongest gang in that local area and as a result, frequently changes hands. Destruction, reconstruction, and subsequent destruction of the original space station's design by war and power struggles have given way to haphazard expansion by whomsoever felt like building onto the station at that given point in time. With the base devoid of materials to mine, it now served as a large spaceport for its host planet, Arias, a desert planet of relatively sparse population and little tactical value. The planet, while rich in ore, was prohibitively hostile, and commonly wracked with sandstorms, making mining expeditions onto the planet a costly endeavor for anyone, especially when pirates and mercenaries in the system were likely to try robbing any miner once they had finished. Needless to say, the Lincoln's appearance in local space wasn't the most welcome. While Coalition and Empire ships were both present in the system, none were near the size of the Lincoln. A small contingent of FEZ ships immediately powered up and began approaching the Lincoln and its escorts, a mish-mash of haphazardly redesigned and re-purposed ships with weapons strapped to them. Alongside the ships were a flight of a dozen or so aerospace craft and MAS. [i]"Ships from Haven Spaceport approaching."[/i] a tech from the Lincoln's bridge called out. [i]"5 Ships of destroyer ratings, weapons and shields spooled but not active. I count a dozen escorts, Hellio Fighters, and Gowser MASs. They're hailing us"[/i] [i]-UEE Ships-[/i] crackled a voice over the comms. [i]-State your business.-[/i] Before anyone from the Lincoln could say anything, another tech piped up. [b]"Captain! Two jump signatures, incoming! UEE signatures!"[/b] As he spoke, a pair of ships jumped into view, the stocky, squarish shape of none other than the UEE Solace, and a civilian-grade ship, identifiable as the Agincourt, a logistics ship. [i]"FEZ fleet weapons are powering up..![/i] a bridge crewman said nervously. [i]-UEE Ships! What is the meaning of this?!-[/i] crackled the voice from the FEZ Ships, his angry voice distorted by the sound of static.