Once  everyone  was aboard,  Stoly COMed the MED TECH,.. This   Is LT Stoly..we  are lifting off from the fan tail area  and on out way in we  Got one wounded that needs  care, and another one that needs to report...

Cora  said...Hey!...I'm fine!

  Stoly fixed  her with a stare   and she sighed.I'll back up so the  ram can breach the static   field  and Unload the Largs and the wounded..

  The   Largs  sat  down, Larry rapidly  thumping his  tail. Nok seemed happy but had a few  'duct tape' patches on his   suit.


Shade  was sitting with some of the  others, he looked relaxed as he took off his head   gear to  try and clean his visor.

  A few moments later the ramp opened   into the static  field   Hoke was carried out  , cora  reluctantly   left as well, and Disna  took  Larry  and Nok off the    shuttle.

  Rivest came over   looking in,Ye  all may as well get out, we kin use  a Hand,,, SM? Ye gotta go see General Bale , his by the war  room....

 Hemsly  looked at Zob,ye wanna  carry that  crate to the QMs?..if not, me and Brooks  kin do it...

 the people filed off , Shade would walk  with  Roy to the General who was standing next to  Captain Morris.

 Stoy  nods  to the others,Take  Jonesy's  Body... no use letting him lie here... I'll take the  Spade up to the spine until things  are ready to land...

 even as he spoke, a craft from the LG   arrive, brining in  two service  mechs to help move the  shuttles.

>>>>>>>>> to hanger

After flying in circles for a while, even Tulliun tires of flight. So, he decided to land on the hull of the Hermes and wait for a while, till the called him.

Well, LU-NM. I'm gonna be sitting here a while, waiting on them to call for this cargo. If you'd like, we can see about getting you out of that seat, so you can get inside and do whatever you soldiers do after a battle. After you're off duty, I'll get you that drink I told you I'd get you.

LU-NM  said  through the   opening,I'm fine... good thing i am not a pure blood  angel, i wouldn't have been  able to  fit in here like this... us 'green Angels' are more  human sized...some  who have been bred through Burians   are even shorter?... must be , what ever is  in Bura's soil, or water... even turns   other folks' skin green, and Natives  are dark green.

  the was a whirl as the  bubble   swept around as  LU-NM  looked for  any 'heroes' the Empire might have.....LC will have an 'after party'... once all the fighters and such have landed  Captain Morris  and the LC will go over Gun Cam films, and there are awards for aces and the Blue Max..some who got thier  first Kill...we have a toast to the dead, and then the party starts, to both...i guess..forget  our losses, and remember our comrades... in the Morning we have the Official  send off...that is more formal..

In reply to meadowlark (msg # 516):

He chuckled, You know, I'd forgotten you were green.  Just a good man behind a pair of big guns. Haha.

Tulliun nodded thoughtfully, as if his gunner could see him. First kills eh? I suppose I may have got mine. I've shot down raiders before, but nothing like this. You're a Private, did you already have kills before this? It's so hard to tell, what, with how war ages people so fast, but Angel food makes them age slow.

You know, I've read about that kind of thing, 'celebrating the victorious dead'. Humans on earth been doing that for as long as they had a sense of honor. He let the silence settle again, not sure how to talk to a soldier about honoring dead comrades.

  LU-NM chuckled,its all in how you handle this?... For Burians, The Hermes and the ESN  saved us..brought us into the APF, now we are doing our part..The  demons and Largrans  were trying to ravage our planet, but never  got much of a foothold.There was a research Human on Bura..came up with a gas that melted the skin off demons, and  had some lesser, adverse  effects on largrans.. he was  saved  by the Hermes assault troops, and the battles that day, set us  up to be free... They returned a bit later, to help  us  rid my home world of Empire  scum, for good

 ..for the party, and the send off... it is all in how  take it in... LT Stoly is  walking over this  way....

 outside, Stoly clicked across the  Hull looking  around, the top buttle of his shuttle  had  Guns   sticking in the air, and No Metaglass.. the other two Bubbles had  gunners.

Unsure of what to say in response, so he just said, I wonder if he's coming to scold me for leaving that Cap ship too early too.

Tulliun looked over at Stoly as he walked over and gave a casual, two fingered salute. He let the ramp down, unsure if Stoly would want to climb over the crates.

He stood at the cockpit end of the cargo, What can I do for you LT?

  Stoly   stepped in , looking at the crates, then looked to Tulliun.. Killing time, waiting  until we  can go home..... you lose  anyone?... I lost my top  Bubble gunner...

 he seemed  tired  as he sat  down on the  very end of the portside   benches.

In reply to hull (msg # 520):

One of the Burners got vaporized by those damned lizards. he thought of the sight, he tried to remember if everyone else made it home.

 I didn't expect to end up like this when I got those original crates with those hive busters..

 His face fell as he thought about the last few hours since the battle started.

Did you know him well? Your top gunner?

  Stoly  nodded his head, his  elbows on his  knees, as he looked out the ramp , watch  far off  explosions  as  more fighters  died, either  runing away, or chasing someone...

  we get a team? two side bubbles and a top gunner, as well as the two burners... we  work together... we do sims together, practice  loading and unloading   the MGs a Burner can fire  a weapon, but not as  good as a gunner.... a Gunner can cut? but he would  do it as fast or as neatly as a Burner....I've lost gunners before.... it  gets to be  a bad business....we try not to leave  anyone  behind......its easier  on  the ground, then in The Black

A thought occurred to Tulliun. So, does that mean the crew I had today will be on here every time I'm involved in an action? How often will LU-NM be my gunner?

He was still so unsure on how any of this stuff works. Or are you planning on requesting 'any shuttle but this one'? he spoke up to let LU-NM know he was talking to him.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:51, Sat 04 Dec 2021.

 Stoly    turns his head back to Tulliun,You'll be different, I suppose, since your  a merc of sorts.... if  they send  you on something,  They  provide a gunner....

 LU-NM chuckles.... if the SM  does not send me elsewhere, and you need a Gunner.. I'll shoot for you.

Roy peeled off his helmet as he approached the scaffolding that comprised the 'war room' on the deck.  "General Bale, Sir...Captain o'Reilly said you needed to see me?"  The request was unusual...it was common for Roy to report in after actions, but to Admiral Hack, rather than General Bale...

But then again, 'usual' was becoming an increasingly meaningless term in this war.

He waited to see what the issue at hand was...hoping it wasn't a case of General Bale taking over after-action reports because he was the only Board member in any condition to do so.  The boarding had been as ugly as it had sounded over the comms, to judge by the look of the deck.

It was Tulliun's turn to chuckle. I suppose I'm a bit of a wild card when it comes to planning and who's on what shuttle.

Thank you Private. I appreciate that. By the way, can I call you LU (Lou)? I don't know what your customs are when it comes to names. Some cultures are particular about names. Nothing wrong with that, I just don't want to offend you.

 I am Burian by  birth, Angel only by DNA..so, names  do not trouble  us as much as it may in Paradise...

 Captain SI, a;ways  went  by  Si...her  first name . Nil, is only used by  those who are close to her...she has  never used  Admiral Hack's last name, because she  wants to be consider   the Falg Captain of the Fleet, not   'Oliver's  wife"

Well, if it brothers you at all, I won't do it. He said flatly, wanting to make it clear he wanted to be considerate of this man.

Is that really an issue? Even in this environment?  I would have thought they'd weeded out sexism like that decades ago. Tulliun was truly taken aback by the fact that a successful captain like Si had to make such a point of being separate from he husband.

 Stoly  chuckled  again... we don't have much problems  with woman in command  and all that...what you have to realize, Paradise  Angel , think humans  are  Monkeys who wear clothes. Haviung   the Daughter of    The Guy who lead the 'salvation' of the human race, hook up with a human?..that doesn't set well with the 'proper' Angels....

 The Moon Angels are more like us....

Tulliun chuffed indignantly, How is it that our ancestor race, that is so much more advanced than us technologically, is so much behind us in terms of basic decency. Present company excluded, of course.

 Stoly  held out his hands,as if he  surrendered,Our people..thought they were gods, and  fairies and such..the others  were  demons and monsters.. people were killed in thieer 'name'...sacrifices made, Gold handed over to them...so? why would  they not think were  were Gava Like?.  The Delta fleet have raised  more races  the the  Angels or demons ever did? i would imaging, the Empire never  raised  any, so they had  more  food value...

 to the Paradise  Angels? , any Angel bonding with a human, might be committing bestially, even though the   Angels  from the overseer  ships  sent thier seed through  the very people the imprisoned here, and those people also bedded  Humans...

Tulliun could only shake his head, mulling over the atrocities done in the name of these beings. He stared off out the rear hatch, into the black.

  Stoly   heard the COM call...well?  Time  for us to go home..... Make sure you come to the After party... it  does  most folks good...ebven those who are more hard core, get some  relief..

 he  walked down the ramp , and over to the Spade.

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

 Already Done Beth..... OK..I don't want to here  any complaints, or questions.. batter  birds  go first.. lets do it. And before you say anyhting..I'm coming in Last.. Perks of being  WC.... get going!

 Shadow  messes  witht he wiring a bit , of the damaged   consle, his  cockpit had a  hole , that had to have been from a Largran round... and his O2  was low in his   suit, but he had plenty  to last until they landed.

  he barely got a reading  of the fighters... there were a bunch missing..

In reply to outside (msg # 533):

Tulliun let out a sigh of relief when the call came. Stoly left in such a hurry, Tulliun had to direct com him.I didn't get hit at all, so I'll let whatever's left of you other three in first. I don't know if you want to let the other two know or not.

He sat in the cockpit and started the ramp back up to closing.

 Lizzy sent out a comm," Ok lets give this a try all my hydraulics are gone this could get interesting Hanger Dec better be ready for a hard landing." Lizzy would slowly and carefully head for the Hanger Dec static field. She lined up her entry and got ready for a possibly interesting landing. Lizzy comms the Hermes Hanger Dec," Phoenix here coming in no hydraulics at all, be prepared."

----->>>>>> To Hanger Dec

Tulliun watched the other three shuttles come in ahead of him, disappearing below the crest of the Hermes.

After the last of 3 shuttles came in, he waited a couple of minutes, and then took off casually and headed for the static field.

He came in forward, so he could see what he had to contend with as far as litter and damage.Meadowlark calling Captain O'Reilly, I'm coming in right now, where do you want me to park to unload this cargo from the Aura Moon?

   slide  to the  left of the shuttle  line, and move  down to the QMs, , you'll be   away from the  main activity then. Rivets responded

  the other  shuttles  had their  burners getting off and Unloading   the extra  , or empty , ammo crates.
This message was last edited by the GM at 20:56, Sun 05 Dec 2021.

In reply to hanger Dec (msg # 537):

Solid copy Captain. Tulliun worked his shuttle around the Hanger doors and through the static field.

-------->>>>>>To Hanger Dec