[u][b]Task Force 141 Supernovae class (Aurora) VFA-30 ( The Raven wings) Lieutenant Jasper Cane [/b][/u] [img]https://i.pinimg.com/originals/89/b3/0a/89b30a4a2c7995fd489f7a1bf3112653.jpg[/img] The fleet carrier Aurora had six runways and could launch the entire strike wing in a relatively short amount of time. Up to two aircraft could be spotted and launched at one time, on any given runway. Being in the middle of the hangar bay, Japser and the crew of the lucky watched the bay slowly empty before it was there turn, the boredom being broken by a radio transmission from the landing safety officer. “ Runway four…” the officer quipped prompting a short reply from jasper before he was towed to the aircraft elevator. Runway four was the upper runway, which meant the craft were taking off in the vacuum rather than starting in one of the internal bays with a catapult. Two craft with their towing equipment could fit on the elevator at once, after which they would be under their own power for placing themselves for take off. The Hangar bay itself was a closed system, sealed by airlocks formed by the rising elevators, this increased the maneuverability of the technicians below, allowing them to work in normal clothes and not bulky environment suits. Each crew member wore a thin basic environment suit, not designed for space walks or excursions on dead planets but enough to keep you safe for a few hours if you needed to bail out. Boot and wrist cuffs kept the suits integrity around the joints and, while reflective strips down the legs and arms allowed for easy identification if lost in space. The helmet was the expensive part, communication, targeting, information sharing and oxygen supply all flowed through the helmet, making it easy for pilots to fly and complete various tasks. Each member of the crew had one, although it was mostly wasted on the guys in the back. The Cordalis, another bomber from VFA-30 was waiting for them as they moved towards the elevator. The white wings on the top edges of the wings designating the craft as a member of the Raven Wings. “ Here we are again Jasper” he heard over his personal radio over the short range band. “ Do you believe that we wont meet any resistance?” the voice quipped again “ That’s what the captain says….” Jasper responded with a visual shrug as he looked at the pilot of the Cordalis. The two craft slowly rose above the hangar bay before forming a seal with the elevators walls with a quiet popping sound. Almost as quickly as the seal was formed, the sound of air rushing past the cockpit could be heard, followed by complete silence. Looking up, Jasper could see the eerie darkness of space, spotted by the silhouettes of other ships in task force. The elevator came to an abrupt stop, and both craft were left facing the glowing lights of the runway. Jasper pulled down the visor on his helmet, revealing the myriad of information and flight data in the HUD. Looking to his right, he saw the Cordalis speed off down the runway and into the growing mass of craft circling above. “ VFA-30 cleared for launch” Jasper heard over the radio, before a green light blinked on Infront of the craft. Pushing the throttle forward, a slight shudder could be felt before the craft sped down the runway, quickly leaving the carrier as it rose into the formation above. Here the scale of the task force could be seen. A normal task force included one fleet carrier, two escort carriers, a battleship, two cruisers and a perimeter of destroyers for increased security. The number of ships in a strike force varied, but they were always made up of at least two carriers and two larger combat ships. Two task forces could be seen in low orbit over the planet, to ensure around the lock air superiority, a relic of the early Mordant campaign. Starships seemed to stretch as far as the natural eye could see, lights and reflective glass surfaces reflecting off the local star’s glow. Lucky and the remainder of the strike force circled for a while before, finally being able to push towards the target. Bombing runs were always painfully boring, followed by a quick moments of sheet excitement and terror. Almost as soon as it started however, the boredom returned for the often-long trip back to the carrier. Crew members read, slept or talked amongst themselves during the trip to the target area and today was no different. The loud snoring of the radar operator lulled the crew of the Lucky into a sense of safety and familiarity, only cut short by the decent into the planet’s atmosphere. The craft bucked and shook as the formation dropped into the atmosphere, before the familiar sound of air rushing over the craft could be heard. Suddenly, the formation came alive, breaking the silence of the past few hours. “ VFA-30, turn to heading 283, wedge formation” the flight leader said as the different strike groups split up, turning off into the distance to hit their assigned targets. The mega-city of Luiza could be seen in the distance, the huge spires of the various towers rose above the horizon as they sped closer. The large columns of smoke could be seen billowing over the city as well, obscuring even more of the metropolis behind the thick columns. “ Remove Safeties, 10 minutes out” the flight lead quipped again, prompting a number of clicks behind Jasper as the weapons officer began prepping systems. “ Whoa….radar contact, bearing 089” the radio officer almost yelled in a surprised “ Air contact…..wait…just lost it” he finished. The crew remained silent, as they pushed into the target area but the worry amongst the crew could be felt. Why were they getting other radar signatures in the air Jasper thought, the words of his fellow pilot echoing in his head. Suddenly, his thoughts were cut short as the first AAA shell rushed past the cockpit, exploding high above the craft. “ Locking AAA emplacements!” the weapons officer yelled as the craft bucked and shook from the explosions around it ,the sound of shrapnel hitting the armor plating echoing through the cockpit “ Two minutes to target” the weapons officer yelled again, his face almost glued to the screen at the weapons station. Jasper swallowed heavily, tracking their progress on the navigation display before another large explosion rocked the ship, cracking the cockpit glass. “ Shit…” Jasper said under his breath as he tested the pressure of the cockpit, sighing briefly as the seal integrity remained. “ Weapons away!” the weapons officer yelled as the craft shifted away from the weight of the falling bombs “ Get us the fuck out of here!” the officer finished as the craft began to rapid rise above the city and pull away. Letting out another audible sigh, Jasper allowed himself to be lulled into a familiar sense of accomplishment, his bombing run was complete. Sinking back into his chair he relaxed his body, seemingly taking his first breath since they began taking fire. Suddenly, a shrill alarm began sounding, a sound that almost seemed alien to the crew before terror flashed across Jaspers face. “ Missile warning!....bearing one t………” he weapons officer was cut short as an explosion rocked the craft, flipping it inverted as system displays flashed and malfunctioned. “ VFA-30 Lucky is hit….Lucky is hit” Jasper yelled over the radio as he struggled to remain in control of the craft. The displays inside the cockpit flickered as warnings flashed inside his helmet display, the engine sputtering before finally failing altogether. The craft, was silent for a moment, before inverting again, the damaged airframe pushing the craft into a flat spin. Smoke filled the cockpit as the reserve fuel stocks began to burn. Jasper watched in horror, pinned against the canopy of the cockpit as a sky scraper quickly grew larger and closer to his vision. “ BRACE!” he yelled largely to himself, as the intercom system had failed at the moment of impact. Closing his eyes, he did his best to brace himself for the oncoming impact before the craft smashed into a skyscraper. [b][u] Solis Class (DD-211- Holy Light) Commander Jun Leiar[/u][/b] [img]https://i1.wp.com/othjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Deep-Space-Ops.png?fit=624%2C415&ssl=1[/img] Scouting or as the navy called it, perimeter combat patrol, was another one of the main tasks for Solis class destroyers. Fast ships and small crews made them adept for these long range patrols into fringe space. It also allowed these craft to be the first to intercept transmissions from other nations. These long range scouting destroyers weren’t staffed by normal staff officers and naval crew, they carried advanced communication and electronic warfare equipment, they were crewed by intelligence officials, specially trained naval officers, an elite recon team and solar priests. The solar priests of the ecclesia are not normal priests in the traditional sense of the word. They are tasked with preaching the holy sermon of the stars and missionary work like a traditional priest, but their true purpose is much darker. They are classified as intelligence agents and are chiefly responsible for political action, disruption and warfare. When they set up churches, they are established for the purpose of preaching, missionary work and other humanitarian goals. However, these are also the headquarters for political action, sabotage and other political disruption efforts. Ultimately, these priests are the tip of the spear for the ecclesia’s assimilation efforts. Being currently deployed to the fringes of ecclesia space, the destroyer Holy Light first intercepted the dominion address to its people, quickly logging it as just another dominion message to be relayed along at normal pace. However, shortly after receiving the dominion message, another more cryptic message was intercepted. W..WA..RNN...IN..G.... M...AI....NNNN... SY...TE...S....OFFL...NE.... DIA...NO...S..T...CS.......FA...LED!.... SEEEE....DIN...G........DI..ST.....RES....S...G...NAL..... DISTRESS SIGNAL: "This me..sage is auto.....ated......." "Required immediate repairs... Sy.....te...ms... dama...ged.... Warning.... assi...tan...ce... ne.....ded.... Warn---" After lengthy parsing by the ships onboard computer and code breaking software, the final message could be read with a good degree of accuracy Warning, System offline, Sending Distress signal Required immediate repairs, Assistance needed Being outside of the norm for the type of message usually intercepted. The Holy Light decided to drop radio silence, revealing its position to anyone watching and/or listening and send a direct message to naval headquarters. -DD-211(Holy Light)- - Location: 45 AU, 34.32N,-43.00S,AZ-12 degrees- -MESSAGE FOLLOWS- At 23:31 ZULU DD-211 intercepted distress signal originating from SECTOR-102. Recommend further investigation. DD-211 requests to travel to LOCATION: 53 AU, 45.22N, -12.00S, AZ-6 degrees. -MESSAGE ENDS-