Chapter Nine: Taken The Long Way

[Fel]

Outer Sectors Chapter 9: Taken The Long Way

Patrick Calder sealed the envelope and placed it on the chair in his office aboard the Chimaera. He'd made a special request for this area to be brought up to full life support levels. And that it be held this way until everything was finished. The dock officer had scrambled to complete the request, but it was done in time. Calder looked around one more time, making sure he had not forgotten anything. Then he took his RIP from his chest and placed it on top of the envelope, turned, and left for his shuttle. At last he was returning to Brunswick.

Home.

==========

Vortagh marched through the facility, flanked by La Forge, Steel, and a few junior officers. Most of the systems aboard were burned out, almost to the point of unusable. Unsurprising, however, for a facility that had changed hands twice in the recent past.

"No major hull breaches, but a lot of turbolasers are not operational, sir," one of the juniors said.

"Fuel supplies on board are low; the Rebels probably tried to jettison them."

"An electrical fire broke out in one of the input chambers to the production lines. Damage was contained but the whole room is a mess."

"Captain, we've pried open most of the cargo holds. There's one we can't get open," said the first of the junior officers. "Deck twelve. Our last remaining option is demolition."

"Let's go there ourselves," Vortagh decided.

==========

A few moments later, Vortagh stood outside the cargo hold as a Warhammer crew placed the last demolitions charges. "Ready, sir!" said one of the demolitions officers.

"What's on the other side?" asked Vortagh.

"Nothing terribly dangerous, that we can tell, sir. My scans show the hold is full of calcium."

Calcium?

Vortagh already knew what he would see. "Blow it."

"Aye, sir." The demolitions officer blew the charges as everyone maintained a safe distance.

Nothing could have prepared La Forge for what he saw -- and smelled -- next. Two of the junior officers got sick all over the floor.

Bodies.

Piles of bodies.

Some of them still with their pirate rank insignias on.

La Forge ran down the hall until he ran up against the bulkhead, and there he stopped. Only because he could run no farther.

The Rebels claimed to be for peace, freedom, dignity, choice, and so many other noble-sounding words... but the atrocities they had committed here were by no means unique.

La Forge slumped against the bulkhead, not knowing what to do.

==========
Some time later, the command staff was back on the Warhammer and preparing the after-action report for Admiral Fel.

"Captain Vortagh, I've got two incoming transmissions!"

"Report!" Vortagh's voice dominated the bridge.

"Two distress signals... very similar. One from Korriban and one from Ord Mantell." She paused for a moment to listen further. "Rebel blockades of the planets, sir. I don't have much beyond that."

"Get me Wedge." Vortagh pressed a button. "La Forge to the bridge, right away!"

Wedge's voice came over the comm. "Go ahead, Vortagh. I had a feeling you'd be calling. It always happens when I try one of my strategy holo-sims."

Vortagh chuckled. "Not my fault."

Wedge sighed. "No, I suppose not."

La Forge entered the bridge quietly, still shaken from before.

"We have a problem. We've received two distress signals: One from Korriban, one from Ord Mantell."

"Divide and conquer, then?"

"Not so fast. They're so similar, that we think one is a fake."

"Ah, but which?" mused Wedge.

"Precisely," Vortagh said.

La Forge piped up: "Suppose it's both?"

"Ah, but what if it's neither," said Vort, "and they are a ruse to draw us away from something?"

"The shipyard," Wedge finished.

"Exactly," Vortagh agreed.

"Tell you what," Wedge said. "I'll head for the shipyard. There was nothing worth doing at this supply depot anyway. You go for Korriban or Ord Mantell. Up to you."

"Works for me," said Vortagh. "Speak to you soon. Warhammer out." He turned to La Forge. "Relay this data to comms, get them to tell me which is more likely to be authentic. They have five minutes."

"Aye sir," La Forge jumped into the crew pit and headed over to communications.

==========

"Looks like the dust storm is clearing!" Mitchell reported in from his position, cut off from the main group of stormtroopers.

A giant windstorm had come up in the area where the army had landed on Geonosis, and it had lasted quite a while. The whole group had been pinned down seriously for the whole time. Mitchell's scout party had taken shelter in a cave, since they weren't able to make it back to base camp.

The bulk of the storm had moved off, at least according to Mitchell's scanners. Soon they would be heading back out, to try to take the pirate world. The pirate stronghold was going to be a tough nut to crack after all. A successful capture could end the pirate role in the whole campaign, leaving the Empire free to crush the Rebels!

But, as General Jansen kept saying: It would not be easy.

==========

The Warhammer dropped from hyperspace, turbolasers charged, pilots in their cockpits. As soon as the hyperspace effect was over, Zeta and Iota burst out from the belly of the VSD-II... to nothing. Korriban was not under attack. The Warhammer scanned and moved to the dark side. Nothing.

Vortagh was angry. "We've got to get to Ord Mantell. Recall all fighters! And get me a channel to Wedge. NOW!"

Iota and Zeta scrambled back into the hangar, and the Warhammer turned and left at full speed.

===========

[Fel]

Mission Assignments!

VSD Warhammer: No mission assignment this round!
Epsilon Squadron: ERS92-XvT
Gimel Squadron: ERS93-XWA
Army: ERS95-GB (May not be online until General Jansen notifies in the thread)

[Jacob Jansen]

When I was testing the GB mission last night, I encountered a few errors. Until it is fixed by the mission creator, no GB missions for this chapter. I hope to have it done shortly.

As I promised last chapter, all army officers will be given an extra assignment to make up for the lost scores last round. For chapter 9, you are to send in an after action report. A fiction report on the assault of the pirate planet of Geonosis.

Report must be at least one page long and no more than four pages long. Just keep in mind to respect all officers mentioned in the report. Anyone can turn in a report, but only Army Officers will be granted extra credit for their summations. Everyone else will be given normal scoring

If you have any questions please let me know! COA@Empirereborn.net