The Interstellar Broadcasting and Reception Office was hard at work within the Spire. It was in charge of receiving and transmitting all Committee broadcasts in the galaxy, as well as receiving unidentified transmissions. A Yhei was playing a game secretly on his terminal. He had been bored all day, and it wasn't the first time his job required him to do nothing. He was in charge of any foreign broadcasts being sent in the direction of the Spire outside of the known galaxy, and it had very little action since its creation. His mouth curled in frustration as he lost in his game, but before he could start a new one, his headset started to pick up static. His yellow eyes blinked curiously, exiting the game and bringing up the frequency of the broadcast. After listening to it for a few seconds, he took off his headphones, looking over at his boss. "Uh, sir... You'e gonna wanna listen to this..."
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"It was an S.O.S. signal, no doubt about that. It matched Committee procedure to the tee."
"Then why are we bringing this up?"
"Because.. It's frequency wasn't within Committee boundaries. It was picked up by our Extraterrestrial Unit."
"Lets listen then, Commander."
The Grand Chairman's office was filled with the Head representative of every race on the council, including the Commander of the IBRO. If the Commander was to bring this to the Committee's attention, it had to be important.
"....elp, Help!...Stranded...Planet is....We need Assistance from anyone willing to help... So many dead! Oh, Oh god...!" Through the static there were sounds of men and women screaming, gunfire, and the growls of something hideous. The room was silent.
"Where was this broadcast?" The Grand Chairman finally spoke up, stroking his gray beard.
"We aren't sure, Chairman. It was off the grid, uncharted territory. We aren't even sure we know who they are, but like I said, they sounded military, providing an S.O.S. beacon."
"We should send a combat unit out there." The human representative said, looking over at the chairman.
"Not a chance, we are already spending millions of credits trying to protect colonists from bandits and other threats. Not to mention the Rebellion happening on Drawni..."
"Then why not contact our allies near the coordinates to see if they can spare some forces?"
The Yhei Representative laughed a bit. "No one would dare go to rescue a group of strangers after listening to that tape."
"I think we have another option." The human representative said again, stepping forward. "We can send in an expedition unit--"
"Oh please." The Furtim spoke up. "They would just waste resources and time. None of them are truly qualified to handle these types of situations."
"You're forgetting something." The Human representative stepped forward. "We actually have the Monroe on standby, in Quadrant 34 I believe. And as we know, they are the most efficient and successful expedition force since its creation."
A small amount of silence filled the room. "Would the crew on the Monroe be willing to investigate the S.O.S.?"
"They're criminals! All we have to do is tell them to do it, and they'd be forced to! And besides, It'd be a relief to finally be rid of Raymond Chase and his crew of criminals--"
"Marauders, I believe they call themselves." The Human replied, smiling a bit. At that time, the Chairman coughed and silenced the room. "Captain Rivers, call the crew of the Monroe, and brief them on their new assignment."
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The Monroe had been informed of their mission. They were on the Spire at the time when Chairman Rivers boarded the exploration vessel, and interrupted the recruitment process that was going on. This resulted in the full crew to be brought into the
meeting room, and played the S.O.S. Of course this was a great way for some of these new members to be introduced to their line of work... This isn't a paradise vacation to see what good the galaxy had to offer. Each mission was considered a suicidal one. One that wouldn't guarantee your safety. As they were ordered, the Monroe eventually took off, and everyone learning their stations and roles quickly. Luckily the ship's AI can be literally everywhere at once, being able to instruct and answer any questions the crew had. Its name is T8NG0, but the Captain calls it Tango.
It wasn't long for the Maruaders to slip into Hyperdrive, going right in to the unknown. Since it was outside of the known galaxy, it would take a day of FTL travel, which was fine for the Captain of the Monroe: Raymond Chase. It gave him time to prepare, to listen to what they were up against, and the more he listened to the signal, the more his spine chilled.
"Turn it off, Tango." The voice of Raymond Chase said, running a hand through his dark brown hair. He was now in his Captain's quarters, a much larger room than the others with its own personal shower and bedroom, as well as a study with numerous artifacts, maps, and relics from Earth.
He had been pacing the room in his usual attire: A athletic fit Exploration Force T-shirt, with patches of the American Flag, the Galactic Committee, and the Marauders on his short sleeves. He wore Space-ready pants (a fancy and high tec version of cargo pants), boots, and his side holster for his revolver. He finally managed to sit down at his desk, tapping his finger slightly on the surface, trying not to think about their new mission. At least, for now. He had spent hours figuring out what he wanted to do. Instead, he turned his attention to the new crew members' files.
It had been a little bit since Committee approved criminals joined the team. Of course, Kaite had only been here for a couple months, but by no means was approved by the Committee. The more he read into the files, the more he felt comfortable. He liked knowing his crew; their ins and outs, strengths and weaknesses. He had to know what he had to keep them all safe. He definitely had a unique crew this time around... And a psychiatrist that actually wanted to come aboard? Oh, boy. She has no idea what she's getting into with these characters.
Suddenly the ship made a horrible screech noise, and was yanked sideways, sending Raymond flying out of his seat, and hitting a wall.
"Captain, we have been pulled out of the Hyperdrive sequence. Tango's metallic voice echoed through his quarters. Raymond gave a silent curse, and stood up, grabbing his pistol and glove from the floor, and walking out.
"What are we up against?" The Captain asked, moving very quickly through the silver halls of the Monroe.
"Pirates, documented by the Committee for years. Three assault class frigates, one cargo vessel. One of them seems to be damaged already.""Why would they attack with an injured ship?" Raymond asked to himself, entering the large room to the bridge. As he entered the ship rocked a bit as it got hit by a blast.
"Carthas, lets not be a sitting target! Tango, activate the guns. Ray said as he looked out the large window to see the view. There were definitely four ships alright, and they were all moving to position to try and lock the Monroe into place.
"Looks like they picked the wrong fight..." Raymond tapped his ear to activate a device the broadcasted his voice throughout the ship.
"Crew of the Monroe to your positions! We got a pirate raid, four ships one injured. Make yourselves useful, and get to work! Anyone with a fighter get to it. We need to analyze their ships, find their weak spots, someone get on that! Raymond's voice wasn't shaky, it wasn't unsure, it was calm, but very much in control. The Captain of the Monroe had led them to many instances like this, and he was sure this wasn't going to be their last fight. No way that Raymond Chase would let his ship be taken down by pirates.
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