Karl's response to Spartan's comment about needing to keep him safe was nothing more than a low chuckle that was audible over the comm system.  His plane wasn't really made for this kind of engagement...but as was true with a great many ground-attack planes throughout history, it was proving more versatile than the designers had ever imagined.

When the order came through for the pair of ships to set off on their own assignment, he clicked on the transmitter.  "Copy that, Hermes.  Time to put the ranch back in order, Morningstar is under way."  Again, flying like a shuttle full of personnel, rather than a combat plane with a hold full of ammunition magazines and loaders, Karl peeled off from the fleet, laying in a course with casual ease.

"Ed, I want a heads-up on ANY new traffic that appears.  Don't wait until it's identified to call my attention to it..."  Part of his masquerade was flying with mostly passive sensors online...he'd wait until they were closer to the potential engagement zone before he fired up the combat sensor suite, because once that switch was hit, there was no chance of passing the Morningstar off as a shuttle...

  anyone looking  at the screens, can see a red and grey Ball in the distance... a lot of  movement as the planet does its  trading

    Evert, Hennings  and Bale  stood By a smaller  table, outside the war room, so they could see the screens and the Window. Evert is fuming at not being allowed to go to Veria  to be with her Husband.

  ...I still see no reason why i could not be with my family..on a routine  search and destroy?

  Because...Admiral Evert.. you are part of the Beta Board as well... and I want you here to witness, and  failing that i may have to address, after this  mission....

   COM 3 Opened up and St Gual Appeared ,why do we need  all this ships, Admiral HAck?.. I could have  just as  easily been aboard the Hermes and...

 Hack smiled   at St Gaul,..do you really think, that the Empire  doesn't know the Delta Fleet is here?...and do you doubt, they aren't looking for a chance to show what they can do?

 But...Admiral Hack?  we have had no problems  with ze Hyrians? Why stir up the nest of hornets?

 We  are here..Admiral St Gual....Admiral   Evert... to smash that hornest nest, so no one needs fear being stung again...

 St Gual looked perplexed as her head turned to her  own forward screens to watch Pentrax growing nearer  with each heartbeat

  Beth Speaks up. I have a COM being Sent from the  ISIS to Pentrax.... not sure where on the ship  it is coming from...

  Block it... take care of it , inyour normal manner.... Admiral Everet... you will have noted this?.. as   the rest of the board...

 BAle and Hennings  tap into their  Vid Boards  as   beth's hands  fly over the controls...Already Done, Admiral Hack..... Feedback..in ...3...2...1....

 Shortly after the countdown an Older Man's face appears on a screen,Admiral Hack!.. we have  had  an explosion in  our Rec Dec.. we need to...

 here is what you need to do... You sail on...You will contain any fires and such, and your damage control people , will act like they are in the fleet and do thier Jobs.... You will find out  everyone who was  around that explosion, and if they are still alive, you will lock them in your Brig...and..you  best hope  no one else  sends  uncleared  messages   to  a target location.......is that understaond...Captain Foss?

 Foss looked  shocked, even worried  at HAcks  words,Understood, Admiral HAck.... already done....

  he smiled at Beth who was grinning...Well Done  LT Morrow

"Hold on to your behinds guys." Spartan banks the 'Crow slowly away from the fleet and slams the throttle lever forward. He grinned at Gordan who slowly began to turn a little greenish. In old freighters like the Scarecrow sometimes people suffered the same effects as they would at see. It would soon pass. He handed the kid a bisquit with a comforting smile.

"ETA to buoy one fourteen minutes. How are you guys doi9ng in the hold?"
"Depressurising now," Zeon's reply came. "Security harness secured, cables attached. Mac is prepping the first buoy as we speak captain. Looks like he done it once or twice before. Say the word and we open the bay so I can go for a walk."

Thomas Spartan couldn't help but smile. His crew was a ragtag bunch, but they knew their jobs. He leaned over and pointed to four orange blips on Gordan's screen.
"See those kiddo? Soon as they turn as big as the others you tell me. Those are the sat-buoys we are after. If any of those red blips get text under them, let me know too. Soon as they get text under them they are getting close enough to identify. And that means close enough to shoot us."

"Morningstar, we are go for deploy of buoy one in T minus 12. Dont come too close, we will be having a spacewalker."

In the distance the first old buoy came into sight.

Once on board, Jesse speaks quickly with the group she'd be leading in and focuses and making sure that Hirr can see and hear as well.

Lt, she says to feline.  I'm letting you lead your group in first.  You go in, clear out, scout ahead per se and clear the way for Carl.  Me, Melia, Baker, and Hunter will be going in with Carl as a first line of defense.  Everyone else, cover our backs.  Mechs and Garrat, you'll be making sure that we aren't followed and if so, covering our asses with fire power.  Supe you'll keep me up to date on our back ends, Hirr, you're my voice for ahead of us.

Spencer and Lyri have their own operatives...so you'll have to trust in me that I know what I'm doing.

Everyone got it? she says firmly and quickly.  She opens up the top of the crate and shows the spray can like canisters in her box. These are my creations, iMeins.  They can be spray explosives, or grenade like explosives.  They can be used for static discharge or spray out and when in contact with movement, explode.  Thus far, they've been helpful in some situations.  The verians and back on our last mission in the mole hill.  Take one if you are comfortable using them.  It's to get your ass out of a situation if you don't see an out.
(There are 15 cannisters...Jesse has two in her side pouches)

No heros.  Got it? She looks about her team and takes a deep breath.  You have questions...nows the time to ask.

  "Naw, my dad was a watch maker an I was to much a wanderer to stay with it and became tinkerer of music instruments. latter I just got good at general operating wih all the sound and camera systems I set up for concerts..."  Joseph squints at the unit and the parts that make it up.  "say, these aren't to bad on the recievers.  They could probably gather more info than they are programmed for with the right software."

The Ironwood traveled in position holding her speed to match the Hermes and the rest of the fleet. Sarah sits calmly in the command chair watching readouts and numbers change on her displays.

LT Termaine sends out a series of instructions to the two Hermes shuttle pilots giving precise speed and exit vector instructions for the launch point. "We're going to take you in and executing a rolling maneuver as we approach the target.  This info will allow you to approach your drop points balliatically and reduce your chance of detection,as well as taking you clear of our super structure as we maneuver." he explains, additionally he links the pilots to a countdown timer that will alert them to their exact departure time and order.

Sarah looks over at Alister, "Mr. Exec bring us to general quarters." he nods and the flashing lights start up indicating battle conditions. Bulk heads slam shut, and crew members not already at their stations rush to get there.

Melia sits back as Jesse fills them in on the iMeins. She forgoes taking any preferring her grenades.  She waits patiently for their part of the mission

 The Task Forces  Move  forward, Pentrax gets bigger  and Bigger. A freighter, nearly as big as one of the transport Bases is heading towards  them, But a Good  200 MIles  to the Hermes' portside.

  Captain  Koliv? You will take the Ra and detain that Frieghter... its markings say it is of  Nivarian homeworld.

Another  screen came to Life, a Woman who looked to be in her  30's ( meaningless in the age of  angelfood) ...But....Admiral HAck?.. this is  considered...Free  Space  and..........

 CAPTAIN.....Koliv.... He snapped  then recovered,..this is  not 'free space'. It is   the   boundry , between Verian  Space,  Everest space and Hyrian  Space....no ships will enter..or leave this  sector without being  searched....

  He Looked at CAptaine Fontane , who stood next to St Gaul on the Bridge.I have sent orders to all Beta  fleet ships, they will now detain and search all vessels that have not been cleared by ESN custom searches..... any ship found with slaves, prisoners,  NOT, of war or enemy agents will be seized as prizes, and added to the fleet.... the seizing Vessels , will of course, get  thier share of Prize money, the rest of the  Creds will  be split  between the AP fleet and the Beta fleet, operations...

 St Gaul spoke up,..trade  could  fall off, because of this!

 Hack smiled  slightly,Honest merchants  will welcome it.... and the fleet  can always use more ships.... he waves a hand to Captain  Koliv,..You have your orders,  Koliv... I expect a report within 30 Minutes  of your  search...

 Koliv nodded,Already Done...Admiral Hack....


 with in the minute, the Ra, veered off its  course and set a vector to catch the  freighter...

 Beth speaks up,The Ra is hailing the Freighter now  sir... The freighter isn't happy, but it knows it can't  out run the RA..she's powering down...

  Scarecrow is closing in on the Buoys..

  Gorden points  at  a red. Text says ' Hyrian Frieghter'..it is moving away from Pentax and is a good 100 mile on  the Hyrian side of ..The Line..That's a Bad guy..right?

 The Buoy  can be seen by Spartan.about as big as a  COM Traffic  pole. and Perhaps 40 feet in diameter.  Rungs for climbing it run the  whole length and several access panels   have   red lights  to show where they are... at the top and Bottom  are Huge arrays  of three  dishes  rotating in all directions.

..................................

  The Ironwood waits  for the signal to veer off

........................

 Shadow   with his People and Von Bern with his, are a good 200 Miles ahead of the  Fighters,  As they crossed into the 'boundry' of Pentrax  space.   a Face Popped up on the 8 fighters  Screen. A smiling Mull greeted them. Greetings..Captain Von Bern..how can Pentrax  address your Needs....

  I am afraid, Brek, That LC Shadow  has the answer for you.....

 the  furryface opf the Mull dropped for a second  as his eyes shifted to the screen that had  Shadow's  Image...LC Shadow?

  ..Greetings, Brek, From the  Delta Fleet... behind  us  is a TAsk force of Beta and Delta fleet ships... the APF is now in charge of this  region...you will be recievig your Orders as how ships  will be reported, handled and searched....any Questions can be answered by sending COMs to General Bale, who handles all  legal stuff like that..

 The Mull looked stricken,But ...we are free space and....

 SorrY Brek..you and whatever leaders you have  on Pentrrax will have to meet with  the Admiral....


 But  Admiral St Gaul is......

 ..Under orders from Admiral Hack... I am not a legal guy...but  i am assuming  we can set up a Military  group of sorts to Run  Pentrax....If folks fall into line, even smugglers  can make out in this deal...enemies  of the APF...well..not so Much....Shadow ..out...

 once the   feed was Cut   , Von Bern said , by way of warning...dis es  Going to be very bad, for  dis Quad.... people...vill die....

  Aye... that they will... its our  job to make sure, most of them  are on the Empire's side.... rather then feeding them side dishes..... Get ready to move  on my signal...

 the  8 fighters moved  passed Pentrax..  docks  surrounded the  small planet like prickly pear... some ships were just docking, another one was Pulling out, headed towards  Vera.... That planet was , just , visible   as a grey/white dot,

  Shadow sadly mused as he viewed Pentrax, the 'AI' he bought..and what it had led to...Shadow Group, passing Pentrax... will veer off of in 10....

 Hack's  Voice  came onacknowledge  LC... be brutal..but be careful.....

 LC?  I...I do not understand.. are we not to be  seizing  ships  for  searches....

 Si's Voice  came on the COMs...we have to do some clean up first, Captain Von Bern. Then the routine of search and sieze will begin...No allied ships , need fear our  searches, unless they are carring the wrong  cargo... enemy  merchants Just need the right papers, and the right cargo... there will be some...unhappy..folks... but in the end, this  quad  will be as safe as Fuji...

 Supe  settles   down and  checks his weapons, for the 10th time since boarding. Hodden's Helmet was by her feet she was  staring  at the floor, her arms resting on her   thighs , hands  clasped  as she   rocked  back and forth a bit.  Tucker,  checked his  Belts  he hand around his   chest, and the two canisters  at his  feet.

  Lyri  Took a pack of Stim  gum out of her   suit, it was beat up, and opened.. only one stick was missing, and it had been that way...for a very long time... she gave a snort  and  tucked it back into her suit.

 The Felrites were eager..hungry... they waited. looked at the screens that had no feeds... as far as  anyone looking in?  two cargo shuttles  arrived on the Ironwood.

 She listened as Jesse explained the imeins, hesitated briefly then took two just in case. After makes sure that she knew how to use them she tucked them into her belt where they were handy. She waited for their turn to exit the shuttle briefly wondering why med techs were first in but didn't say anything.

 She closed her eyes and centered herself, seeking calmness before entering into chaos of battle.

 Hunter sits there quietly takes two of the new grenades, and clips them on to his armour. "Once more unto the fray", he says to Melia

Again, Karl's initial response was that low chuckle.  "I was under the impression I was flying escort...not piggy-back.  If I'm intercepting people to prevent them from complicating your job, I'll do much better engaging them beyond weapons range of you.  Pretty sure your spacewalkers will be safe from any interference from me."  He kept an eye on all the contacts his sensors were showing, waiting for any of them to begin moving in the direction of the Scarecrow.

In reply to deploy (msg # 13):

Justin watched as the Delta, Beta mix Flight broke away accelerating towards Pentrax. Looking down at the onboard battle display he noted the position of the flight sending a request for the attached fighters to adjust their position to  bring them in closer to the others in B flight.

   The two  Ironwood  fighters settled in to the  'V' of Be flight that was left  after  Shadow and  his   wing people  moved  steadily  ahead.

  The Ra had  finally stopped the   Merchant ship and was slowly   getting  their boarding party together.

"Scarecrow commencing procedure."

As Spartan closed the crow on the buoy he let Zeon and Mac know the mission was a go. Keeping a close eye on the screens he opened the bay doors, allowing the new buoy to drift out in zero gravity.

In the cargo bay Zeon drifted out with the buoy, attached to a strong filament wire. Together they drifted to the old sat, where Zeon then clamped the new buoy tightly to its predescessor. He set to attaching all the wiring, following directions given by both Spartan and Mac. If they managed to not only link them, but also plug in the old one seperately, they would be able to backtrack old messages too.

After eight minutes that seemed like eternity Xondoloo reported he was back inside. With a flick of a switch Spartan activated the buoy.

Three green lights.

He grinned.
"Hermes control. The bucket has been stacked. I repeat, the bucket has been stacked."

    Hack  got the COM from Spartan,..Very Good, CAptain Spartan... Please to continue the Best you are able..... let us know  each time your stack grows.....


  Beth Grinned   as she  saw the light  turn pink on her   main board....Its  working... there is a Hyrian Freighter heading  towards  home....got numbers and everything...

 Hack smiled, then Hit Mission COMs,..Ironwood... the Door is opened.... time to fly through.....

  he  hit the COMS  again......Shadow?..... Time  to have some fun, Son....


 Frans?..... gather the fighters  and Buffer the space  between  Limbo and Pentrax... any thing  no APF,, either   surrenders, turns  around..or dies...

  Admiral St Gaul...Battle Stations... we are headed to Limbo....Time to pretend you are in the NAvy....

   Shadow Laughed...Lets Go Von Bern... and I hope   for all of our sakes, the  people you picked  can fight...we are going to Dark... and were going to rake up Kills.....

  ACK!...you are mad!...that ...that is  an act of war!

 Even Si could be heard  giggling at that.

 ...We ...ARE..at war... you just haven't  been fighting... now?..you fight..or you die...

 We have  only....8 fighters?  They have......they Have....

 They have  between 50 and  80... we will be getting  help.... but we are hitting them first

 Oh?...and  just so you beta  Boys know?..you run.... I'll break of  and  Blow you to atoms, before i come  back and finish making dog meat...

 Then with a serious, but friendly  tone....Kase?.... take care of   our  new folks with you...Frans  will be Giving orders, shortly...

  The 8 Broke  Off heading towards   Dark  at all speed... Von Bern could be heard praying in his cockpit.

 Kat and Flores  were trading  jokes about  dogs

  Si  was following them

   Frans  lead the Hermes  Fighters  and  the fighters  that were released  from  the sister ships, as  well as the few fighters  from the Beta Fleet... the  beta fighters   were  surrounded... if any of them thought about Running...it wasn't going to Happen.

 The Hermes  led the Line of ships, followed  By The Odin,  then  the Anubis, Then the ISIS, then the Nemesis settled in  at the rear..

 Admiral Evert... how  can we let this Happen....!!!

 Evert Looked to HAck , who was grinning, Hennings  himself  hid a smile, but very poorly.. BAle   just shook his head.

 Hack held  up a Hand to forestall Evert,...Admiral St Gaul... there is only one way to end this war.... that is to turn Hel into a cinder... we are working our way, to do , JUSST, that..but  we aren't going to be stupid about it...As Shadow will tell you.. a very old saying in our line of work...'don't let live enemies , behind you'.... The Beta  quad may be quiet , but its the wrong kind of quiet.. you didn't chase anyone off..you didn't  crush them...you made deals.. a few lives here or there.. for  living the highlife?....Well..My way costs us lives  as well..but... the people doing it aren't in chains, or a dinner plate... they have weapons in their  HAnds.... I will give you this  one warning....how your people act, in the next few hours..we decide  who i put in charged of Everest....

As the fleet jumped into action everywhere Scarecrow made haste to the second buoy, following the same procedure as with the first one.

"Next buoy in two minutes guys. Mac, whatever you do to those things to make em work better, coordinate with Beth at all times. Zeon, Think you can do it in less than eight minutes this time?"

The 'Crow slowed as she neared buoy two. Immediately the bay ramp came down, and another sat drifted out. Again Zeon attached to it with a filament wire. After seven minutes and fifty seconds Spartan was able to send Hermes another comm.

"Bucket two stacked."

Scarecrow set course to number three.

In reply to Fighters (msg # 22):

Already done LC happy hunting Out Justin replied then greeted the recently assigned Pilots, just as a brief of their service records came through from Beth. Quickly assessing these to determine how best to assign them.
This message was last edited by the player at 02:09, Fri 24 June 2016.

  Gorden looks at the screen as the second buoy is turned....Captain?.... this red dot just popped up..its  getting bigger?

 another  dot was growing larger, even as the freighter they had seen was getting smaller

  Shadow and the other s   were closing in on Dark....Dark made  Pluto look  like  Jupiter ... but it  did  have  Atmo, and the  Base  was well laid out... Fighters   resting, waiting for their turn  at patrol, or perhaps to hunt down a juicy target

 On their Screens, they could see a pair of  fighters  flying lazy circles  around the   base..whether they were testing  repairs, or training  flights, not  could tell...and From Shadow's view..he flat out didn't care...

  On My Call... Form a Line..all Delta   fighters  to my  right..Von Bern  to my left, and Beta  fleet fighters  to his left... when the BAttle is Joined..Brake off into pairs...don't worry about how many you shoot down.. gun cams will take  care of that..Chew them up..better to shoot up 5, then shoot   1  down...

 ...but..you know... kill as many as you can....

 Kat will go with me...Flores  with the Commander...

In reply to Kick off (msg # 21):

Sarah allowed herself a slight grin before answering her voice clear and professional. "Already done, sir." She says to Admiral Hack, turning to her crew "Helm, take us to full military power and execute operational plan Alpha." ENS Klattenhoff responded with an "Aye Skipper, already done."

The engines went from a thrum to a roar as the Ironwood leapt like a sprinter from their mark at the sound of a starters gun. The Ironwood easily passed the rest of the ships in the fleet as if they were standing still as cones of blue fire formed cones formed behind the engine. The crew was pressed into their seats as the inertial compensator struggled to keep up with the sudden acceleration.

Sarah sat calmly in her command chair as reports and readouts streamed across her screens and various crew members called out vital or key information. LT Termaine started the countdown timer for the shuttle pilots.

  Stoly watched and Listened  as the Ironwood  shot forward,he called to shuttles,..Alright  Bo... warm them up..shut the  O2 vents....Buckle up and get ready..... we will land  right below the  horizon... SGT Maj?...Captain... that's going to give yu folks about a  half mile to cover...Bo?..we stay put until called for... good  Hunting....