The wide open belly of the ship is home to the hangar. Separated in three distinct sections it harbors Marco Polo's fighter craft, the shuttlecraft and the drpships. All required equipment to maintain them are nearly ordened along the central walkways, making repairs and maintenance easily possible.
This message was last edited by the GM at 11:08, Sat 04 Mar 2017.

     There is a soft whistling of  'walzing Matilda " as SHadow  enters the Hanger  bay...  he looks over  the other craft , just briefly, as he makes his way towards the figthers.

  The whistling stops  as he  bear the fighter section as his smile can't  be kept from growing

  as he  got closer, his eyes searched for the #19 on his tail fin... Most of the pilots..at least he was told...carried their  squadron insignias  with them, as way to take some  earth history into  the Void...but  he was focused on finding the   cartoon 'roo  with  the   'firing' fighter...

  reaching  his fighters.. he smiled,..Hey Lady? You miss me?  he  climbed up onto the wing.. opening the cockpit he frowned.

 climbing back down he moved to the  groundscew area and grabbed some cleaner , retruned to his  machine  wiping down the  cockpit glass, inside and out. then the   chair and control Panels. His Helmet was  on the back of the chair and  he   plug it into the  fighters, and began to flick on switches..

 alright , Lady.... tell me how ya feel....

 looking at the readouts  on the HUD, and the lights on the panel..he was soon lost in the mental checklist.

..while he watches the instruments  light up..he said to MArco......Patch me into Captain  Maxwell....

 he waited for a few,... Maxwell?.. once my Lady here is checked out... i'm thinkin' it would be all kinds of good to take for  for a few laps around the ship...not only can  i shake the cobwebs out of her, but i can take a look see at the  Bloody ship, to see if there is any damage on the outside?

  as he hears Maxwell's answer  he shrugs,..I thought  we were dead in the water?..just driftin' on  impetus ?

  He frowns,..while I'm down here, I'll check out the other  11 birds..make sure they have power...call me if ya need me....

  Putting the helmet back on its holder. The pilot slips out of the cockpit. Giving Lady a  pat on the  fuselage .

   Before he moves to the next fighter, hewalks to the hanger bay doors, looking  for a way to open a portal so he  can take a look outside.

The 24 Hellcat fighters in hangar 1 look in top shape despite having been parked for nearly 120 years. Sure, they require some TLC, maybe some new tubing here and there, fresh oil and the likes, but in essence, Shadow figures he can just take them out as they are.
The hangar doors are opened from the bridge. The hydraulic systems that open the doors are in top shape too. However oncer they open, there will be a vacuum on the deck as there is nothing to keep the vastness of space out once the doors open. Its just a big giant airlock where the ships are magnetically parked.
Shadow figures thats probably why his flight uniform has magnetic boots.

 he frowns  as he looks over the doors, but is cheered up as he checks out the fighters... One  , By one  he flicks on  switches.. he uses  the Pilot's note pads in each  fighter to make a note of what might  need tweaked or adjusted ect.

  Though he is  really happy to  be with the  fighters again, he is still, more then a little  bummed, he can take his Lady out for a spin.

  ..Hey..Capt? while i'm down here?...anyone esle wake up who can help with cleanin' the bloody house?... don't  think we can get  maid service this late....

  He frowns  as he  looks at his hands, they are a bit shakey, the   work on the batteries  didn't help much either,..Aye...I'm supposin' yer  right  Captain?.... Is the Mess open?.. or do ya have a spare cup of coffee up there?

  after making sure he shut  down all the fighters. He  gets Marco to link him to security,..On my way up, Capt.....

>>>>>Shadow to Security

<<<<<<<  From Conference room

   reaching the Hanger Dec,  Shadow will look around a bit closer now .Looking for every thing from vending machines. weapons  racks , and tool racks.

   Looking at his  machine, this  time from under her. he looks for leaks and smudges. As he  works his way back to the tail.

#19 seems to be in good shape. Most of the tubing is in perfect condition, some just slightly worn, but nothing needing immediate attention. Travelling while in a vacuum has been good on the planes. Some fresh fluids, a bit of TLC, and the hellcat is good to go.

   His smile grew as each check he made,..ah...That's  My Lady, isn't it...already ta go... well.. be   gettin' out  there in  a bit. We have to check out the outside of our  new home, make  sure she ain't hurtin'...

 ..then, I'm gonna try and help the folks see ta yer cousins and such... me an; you might be nasty out there, but its gonna  take  a few more  blokes and sheila's to protect  out home...

 He gives his  fighter  a  gentle pat on the fuselage, then he grabs a clipboard,  and a pen  and  goes from  Fighter to fighter, writing down the numbers  and looking at the cockpit for the names of the pilots, seeing if any came from  the Aussie academy, or perhaps he knew from war games and such.

None of the names ring any bells, except for one.

Yuri Timochev.

A man Kray knew all too well. A PAK-FA pilot that had thwarted him in every wargame he had been in, and one that usually rivalled him in scores. Where Shadow was one of the most well known pilots in australia, Timochev was almost a household name in Russia.
His name was on #1. His rank... Commander. So where was he, and if he was still in cryo, why wasn't he awake yet? If the guy was going to be commanding the squadron, he should most likely be awake to run things.
This message was last edited by the GM at 19:46, Wed 15 Mar 2017.

 As he got to the  fighter, he shrugged off the #1..90% of the piltos wanted that number.

 But  when he looked at the cockpit where the name was stenciled, He frowned....bloody 9 hells!... bad enough fer this... jackass  ta follow me around..now?..I'm bloody stuck with the....

  Stopping, he looked around..Marco?.... where is Yuri Timochev....?

   he jumped   down from the wing and   continued on to check off the other pilots. makes a side  note  for himself. on a separate sheet..where they flew from...

Commander Timochev is in pod 86 Kray. He is peacefully asleep.

 ..Thank You...Marco..

  Marco..Conect me  To Captain ..I mean..LT Maxwell, Please?

  After cataloging the rest of the pilot's he   walks over to the work stations  and begins to  sort out who came from where.

"Will you please not touch my babies unless asked," a voice with a slight asian accent startles Kray as he works on the lists. "You are pilot, you fly. I am engineer, I will keep them in shape. Do not interfere with my work. Go do usefull things. Sleep or something." Tech Sergeant Kong-We Lu walks up to the first hellcat, eyeing Kray with suspicion. She drags a tool cart behind her, and two other men in gray coveralls carry more toolboxes in after her.

  Shadow turned with an overly hurt look on his face, ..Fighters... are my family..and that one... I my Lady...I may not be able to do everythin' you do to keep her happy?... But  i can  help..besides?..She likes havin' me around, don't ya know?

  Looking left and  right he says,..so?..what does it take, fer me  at get  my Lady  in the Black, and have a look see  of our home?..It could answer alot of Bleedin' questions?...or?.. won't  answer a bloody one... either way?.. me and My Lady get to go fer a ride?

I get to nineteen when i get to nineteen. You are in the way. You want to fly, go to next hangar, maybe take shuttle. Maybe blow yourself up outside if broken. Captain say Lu, prepare fighters, so I prepare fighters.

Seemingly angry the tech sergeant snatches open the engine hatch of number One and shines a flashlight inside the fuselage. The two other mechanics look at Kray and shrug, a look of apology on their faces. They then get to work on Two and Three.

   Shadow turns  takes a few steps towards the fighter #1,..The Bloody Jerk who flies  that ship..is  still a bleedin' popsicle... I was out  of mine, and helpin' folks  work on the ship, before they even thought of anyone else.... I'm the only bloody bloke  who can fly one of these, who's  walkin' about right now..AND!...we bloody need ta see what the outside of the ship looks Like...

 So?...SGT Kong-We bloody Lu..Until some one with more  bloody brass comes  down here... Yer gonna get  #19 up and ready... and  THAT is a Bleedin' order!

 maybe it was her  attitude..or..the strain of the whole battery thing..or maybe it was she  went to the #1  fighter...what ever it was,it  tripped the wire.

Lu shot Kray a deadly glare, twirling her wrench in her left hand.
You pilot all the same. All do this do that. Let me tell you, lieutenant... This is MY deck. My hangar. You do not order. You request! Your rank mean nothing on my deck. I know you want go outside. You will. Patience!
She turned and continued her work on number one,ignoring Shadow further.

In an attempt to de-escalate the situation one of the other mechanics, a young man with Hanschel on his nametag, quickly rolled his cart to number 19.
I'll get her ready sir, you suit up. Forgive Lu, she's how do you say... stubborn... when it comes to these jets. Its a long story, not up to me to tell you about though.

  He looks  at Kong-We,..I ain'[t no bloody  spiut  and polsih  Offcier.. I earned my damn bars.. 10 times over.. not like that.....he waved to  the # 1  fighter.

 But  there's  two things   i don't bloody stand fer,  and that's somethign that hurts  my  fighter..and somethign that stop s me from doing my job...

  He walks over to his   ship ,..bleedin' russian might even be dead, and she's  workin' on his   gods be damned  plane?..there  could be somthing on the Hull right now..waitin' to bloody go off..so? she damn well better  get used to rank..'cause   ya disrepect me, i can be a right proper bastard...


 Looking at his hands as he reached  Hanschel, hands him the clipboard,..I did  preflight on all the  bloody figthers , before  the  called the conference he  motions to his  ship,..Lady checks out.. might need to  slip in some oil on some parts, but she's  good  enough for a bloody go 'round the MArco.... there were some little stuff on  the other  fighters... i have it marked down...

 Then  he pats the fellow's should,  his calmness returning,..thank ya,  i know ya didn't have ta do that..on the Adelaile  we treated  a grounds crew better then most, cause they kept us flyin'... we ain't never  had a NCO push buttons like that.... anyway, after i get the flight suit on.  i'll help the best I can with Lady..

Once you got your suit on, taxi her to hangar 2, I'll open the doors. Once in there I'll close em and open the bay doors. Cant have a vacuum here sucking us into space, and bay 2 isn't in use.

Hanschel grinned as he quickly checked the clipboard.

She's not so bad once you get to know her. Brilliant mechanic too. She just has... issues is the word I think?

   Kray chuckled, feeling a bit better,..aye  Mate..but don't we all...grew up.. me  father was clippin' sheep, and me mother was working the truck stop... if it wasn't fer  Football, i'd never seen university...then  the NAvy  bloke popped up  showing me this magazine..and i right took to it , i did...but every Bloody step o' the way, there was some bastard like Timochev..had all the answer, an' all the money..me?  all i had  was skill..  he winked,An' a bloody short temper.

 he  moves  to find his   Suit. checks the seals and all, gets  fitted up  with  his   weapons  secured on the suit.

 when he gets back to the  aircraft, He looks at the fellow and says,..now?  what i'm bloody hopin' fer is  i don't see a damn thing, and i come back in after a coup  laps up and  down  the top and bottom of MArco..but if  I see  somethin'..I'm callin'  right  away..somethin' isn't right..I'm just hopin' we took bloody care of it , before everyone woke up...

  he Climbs into   the aircraft and ctraps in. setting his pad on his knee, and  flicked the switches...hear the   engines warm up..using the   taxi thrusters to lift her  a foot of the deck. and ease her out of the  flight line...How's my Lassie then?..Feeling like a proper bird... Now..lets see if any buggers  messed with out home...

  'Lady' taxied  towards  Hanger 2..  the aircraft hovered in place..its wings  wiggled abit, almost as if it was  as ready to go As Shadow.

 Hookingout the  cockpit, He  grined at Hanshel.. when he opened the door, he gave the Salute as if Hanshel was a deck boss...easing  Lady out...  then fired off a few 100 yards  away from the ship...

 He banked  her  around  until he  was at the  bow end of the ship...on top... then began to make a slow cruise over the top. Looking  for anything, that may seem out of place.

<<<<<<<<  Shadow from space

 Entering the  Hanger..he hovers on thrusters, waiting to see where they what Lady Parked. Thinking he's the first one up..he should be able to hop in and Go  in a Moments notice.

  When the Time  comes , he updates his Log Book, Taps in the keys to lock his disc, so  it cannot be added to..or more important..deleted from.. then ejects the Disc,  Putting it  in his pocket to keep with him, until they  he finds out who the adjutant is. if they even have one.. Until then, he'll hang onto it.

 He Profoundly thanks Hanschel,..Thank Ya , Mate.. you don't know how mucg you helped..an'  i didn't bloody well go out there, while... we may have  added to the sheep muck we're treadin' now..I'm makin' it appoint to let the brass know that, fer certain..

  Hanging Up his  Suit and placing his log book in the locked section of his locker., then locking the locker ..He  calls out to MArco,..Marco? LT SHadow here...  Please    Ask  Lt Maxell to meet me in Cyro?.... Thank you


>>>>>>  Shadow to Cryo

<<<<<<<<<<<  from  Med tech

   Walking down the passage way, he shook his head,..he bloody 'elped  save the   bleedin' ship?...and this is his reward? he whispered  darkly. His eyes  narrowed a bit.

 Once he entered the Hnagers, he walked  down the flight lines towards his ship...but his eyes were looking down range..at Hanger 3...and?..could he see an entrance to hanger 4?

As Shadow reaches number Nineteen the first thing he notices are the tool carts around his fighter. The rear engine cover is resting one one of them, and the rear end of Techie Hanschel is just barely sticking out above the fuselage.
Every now and then some cursing resounds from where the man has his head inside the Hellcat, working on replacing all the age old tubing.
Somehow he senses Shadow's arrival though, popping up with a grin.
"I'll have her done in the morning. Readout gave a .2 delay on the right rudder response. Nothing you'd notice in flight, but it was there... Once I'm done she'll be as new."

Looking down the line, Kray can easily see Hangar 2, where the shuttles are lined up neatly. The doors to hangar 3, which should contain the dropships, are still closed. No way to see anything there, let alone find out if there is access to a bay 4...

  He smiled at Hanchel,..Thanks , Mate. Just came  down to Look her over.

 who do I have  to see about  takin' out the other craft?...figure  i take them out , throw them around The Black for  10 minutes or so,  and you folks can see what they need? Like ya did with Lady 'ere.

 ..be nice to have more then one  Craft that can fly, eh? Even if i'm the only bloke walkin' about to fly them....we dunno what's out here...an' ya gotta believe   we ain't the only ones  who can fly...

 he stands  watching as he waits for an answer, he'll hand in tools  if  he is asked.

... after  a bit, not  wanting to bother the guy, Shadow  went  for a walk to Hanger  2.... and then saw if he could get into hanger 3.

   If he  could get into Hanger  3 , he would check out the machines there as well. and work his way across the hanger to see if the  was a door  for hanger 4.

Access from two to three was as easy as the others. Sliding doors for personell, and huge bay doors for equipment or even the crafts themselves.
Immediately Shadow notices neither of those options for a fourth hangar. Nothing inside bay three even remotely suggests there is another bay behind it.

Entering bay three Shadow also immediately notices there is one dropship missing. Several transport carts line up around the place where it should be, all with completely dead batteries. Someone transported stuff here, loaded it up, and left the carts. Most likely a long time ago too.

The dropships themselves are things of pure beauty. At least four times the size of a fighter, twice the size of the older model dropships, they can contain two explorer vehicles each, or enough gear to set up a small group of people on a planet immediately. The modular design of their cargo bay makes transporting the bigger building units easier, its almost plug-and-play.
Kray remembers them from simulated trainings, but its the first time he actually sees them 'in the flesh'.

   At first he looks at the   aircraft with a bit of awe, but moves  to the  wall where the 4th Hanger  should be.. after checking it out  He Shrugs.

 , He'll have to check put the P-ways see if there is something from the otherside..or even on top..there would have to be an entrance..that was easy..do people and...'cargo'..could be loaded?


   Making Certain to  not touch anything , he hits  his COM......LT Maxwell?  This is LT  Shadow? I am in Hanger Bay  3.... there is a  spot where  a Drop ship is missin'..with a buncha  transport cart..bnatteries  are all dead... don't know if you want ta check it out?..Shadow out...

 He then moves the   one of the drop ships that are still there,  and checks it out, see if he can board it.

  The Pilot COMs back  Maxwell, ..LT SHadow .... Yeah.. gave the stuff a pretty wide  berth, just checked the batteries on the cart... I'm down here  checking out the   other drop ships.. waiting  to see if  i can take other fighters out to shake the dust off them.

The remaining dropships look to be in good order, about the same as the shuttles and fighters. That was to be expected, they had been in vacuum for the past century, and as such corrosion had been hardly an issue. Kray had expected that much.
His search for access to a fourth hangar came up empty, no access was available from here. Maybe from the R&D section that was right above where he suspected hangar 4. According to his virtual maps they were right on top of it.
For now he was checking dropships.
Pulling a lever on the first he lowers the large ramp, granting him access to to the innards of the beast. It had a large loading bay with hooks and clamps everywhere to secure cargo. A secured door lead to the cockpit.

  Waking in, and talking a look about, he'll head to the cockpit, to have a looksee . Though he hasn't handled a drop ship like this, it  couldn't be much different  then a shuttle.
 As he   sees if he can enter,  he sends a  COM to the Major,..Major?  This  is LT Shadow. I was  wondering if i could get the ok, ta  take the other fighters out...say?  10 Minutes a pop or so... give the  Tech down here and the.....SGT... some to get readouts off of..so far? mine is the only one  we know is active, and Hanschel is tweaking it now?

"That will be fine Lieutenant. However, first I'd like you to get to hangar bay two and take out shuttle 4. Take her for a spin, get a feel for the hovering mode. You'll be needed to take out a team in say an hour and a half. They will be repairing the number three engine, and will need an operating base. Dress for vacuum, they will be walking outside. And make sure the walking wires are all working please, don't want any of the engineers drifting off into the expanse."

  ..Shadow Here..Aye  Sir... On it...

   Leaving the   Drop ship and closing the ramp, again  , giving  a wide path of the  missing  shuttle.

  The On the COMs   ..he says, SGT Kong-We...and  Hanschel.. We need to have   Shuttle  #4 ready. Engineer team is going out, I'm their  Driver....

 moving back into the Shuttle hanger, Kray locates  Shuttle 4.  once he opens her up, he begins to do the pre-flight on  engines and instruments... warming the engines  a bit.

 The shuts  down, Going to the  hold section  checking the  ramp way.. and,,double, and triple checking the clips and wires..flash backs of survival came back as the dropped  to they ground in special training...

Dragging her tool cart behind her, Hanschel in her wake, Kong-We shops up soon enough to check for any problems shuttle 4 might have.
Kray's pre-flight check reveals only one issue, the onboard airconditioning is two degrees off. Though this might be an issue for the pilots at times, when in space with an open bay, its a non-issue as the entire shuttle will be decompressed anyway. Not something that has to be fixed immediately.
Wires and clamps work like a charm. In ten minutes time they have the shuttle all prepped and good to go.
However, there is the slight problem of Kray being alone.
The shuttles really need a co-pilot. If only to operate the doors, winches, cables and what not, but also to be the pilot's eyes and ears at the back of the ship. When they operate that close to the main hulk, a slight error could spell disaster.

To Shadow's surprise Kong-We starts to suit up to join him.

  Shadow  watches  as  Kong-We,..I dunno..SGT?..I mean..if  sometnin' goes sideways out there.., me and some engineers   can be replaced..but  yer  supposed ta be a wonder-kinder...

  He had  just  checked his suit... checking seals and the like......i don't look fer nothin' bad, but considering  the stuff that goes non here..Ya know..Like the stuff in hanger bay 4?

 Kray doesn't look right at her  when he brings up  ahnger Bay 4, but only starts to  put his suit on.

If she knows about bay 4 she doesn't show. Instead, she starts to meticulously check Kray's suit as he checks hers.
"Do job. Fly well. No problems."

  He chuckles,..when it  comes  time to fly...I always  do 'm best. But those  folks are  gonna be working on an engine that has a  Buttered   Vane or two....Now..stuff has  me  , more then a little  worried here.. is everyone is be secrect about stuff.. cause some fella  is dead on the bridge...an' someone tried to blow us up...if we got  woke a bit early..now?  ya think  us Military folks , at  least, would be let in on the secrets ? Cause..hey? ain't none of us going back to earth... an' information , not  given..could be what kills us all...

Lu turns, facing Kray, her face all business.
"I do not know Australia, but China, need to know basis. GNA much the same. You understand? We need to know, we will hear. Meanwhile we do job, make job easier for command."
Then she turns back to her part of the cockpit, flipping switches and checking her systems.
"You supposed to be good pilot. You show me."

"Bridge, shuttle 4 ready for launch. Test run."

  He chuckles,...ain't  no Bleedin' 'supposed' about it.... lets  see if these are any better, then the bricks  with wings they had back home.......I also wanna  make  some  back ups... test m' touch.. so when were ready for that.. ya  hook up and i'll open the  ramps   ta see .

"Agreed, back and side tests. No idea what team will need." Lu flicked some switches, suddenly bathing the cockpit in darkness except for the system lights. Sliding her chair back she then lowered a range viewer, allowing her to see three-sixty around the Rhino Shuttle.

..Right  Then..off we go......   taxing   slowly towards  the Hnager  doors  he waits for them to open. If he can see   who is openignthem, He'll give them his deck slaute and, push off into the  Black using thusters  until eh was the  required  30 yards past, the kick in the  engines...

 wtaching the indicators  as the  engines came fully to life. He moved  outward.  hid did some  left and  right  bnaks, a  climb and Dive, remaining as smooth as he was able in the 'brick'... he tried to pivot  first, on the nose...then pivot  on the tail...... He  flew Under the  MArco  , doing an immelmann  and came  back over top  to   come  down where the Hanger    doors were..

 ..No..lets  see if i can coax her to count inches..instead of  feet?

  He looks at the CAm and has the  #4 in the middle of his screen as he   uses thrusters only to back her up...watching the 4 get bigger and bigger..and watching the Numbers  dropping rapidly , from yards..to feet.. when it reached  5 feet. he hit the thrusters the other  way to stop  their momentum, and push her slightly away from Hanger bay .

 ..Screen says..5 feet 3 inches.. what do you have?
This message was last edited by the player at 13:45, Mon 27 Mar 2017.

"Five-three... Five-two... Steady at five-one. Slow spin 90 degree lengthwise please. Belly to the ship."
Lu kept her gaze locked on the viewer, working on instinct.

  flicking   the screens, he  watched that, and the windscreen.  The  shuttle  moving  with the combined touch of roll, pitch and Yaw. Shadow  was good at this  with a fighter...some times   doing this  on a pivot  during the Mock  combat..even 'torched' an instructor like that..in his academy career he had  torched  3  instructors , who started calling him'head hunter'.

 But  a scuttle had its own set of  rolls.. which was nice , in a way...  he   flicked the   shuttle's   thrusts  again to try to get as close  as he  could..looking throught the  camera where the 'boarding hatch' is.. as if   the shuttle would be locking on... he waited  to feel the soft bump of the shuttle's landing gear.

The bump was a bit harder than expected, the shuttle responding just a tad slower than Kray was used to. Still, a manouvre well performed.
Even Lu agreed.
"Good. Now at eight meters out, so I can test winches. Keep steady, slowly straight up.

  There is a nod...perhaps a light frown at the bump....8 meters out...

 slowly rising as he feels the tug of the  winches...

  Shadow watched the screen with the Cam view, while watching the  nose of the  shutting.

  He wasn't in love, with flying shuttles, his  instructors  made him take more then his share of runs with them..either to punish him..or sharpen his skills...or both.

 Either way.. he was still better then a lot of shuttle jocks and at this point? he was competing against himself.

Lee finds herself in the Hangar where she spends time looking at the Boats that are there. Looking through and trying the different types out for fit.
This message was last edited by the player at 20:51, Fri 24 Mar 2017.

Lee can only access hangar 1. Hangar 2 is depressurised because of manouvers. In Bay one she finds the 24 Hellcat fighters, and several engineers servicing them.
However, since she is no pilot, she is not allowed to sit in any of them.
She could access hangar three through the hold if she wanted.

Strolling over to the Engineers servicing the Hellcats, Lee asks if it was possible got a look inside the Vessel and perhaps even try the seat out, that's if they'd didn't mind.

"Sorry ma'am, no can do. Only pilots. Major Ascott's orders."
The young engineer shrugs apologetically before sticking his head back into the fuselage of the fighter, trying to fasten some tubing.

In reply to Hangar 1 (msg # 53):

No probs sport Lee replied the ship had so many areas that were still
inoperative she decided to heading back to her cabin.

As Kray lands shuttle 4 a crew of engineers is already waiting with several carts of gear. The moment they get the okay they start unloading the carts, securing the tools in the cargo bay.

Lu takes her seat in the cockpit again, running her post-flight sequence.
"Good work," she states without looking at Shadow.

  There is a nod, and his half smile,..Aye Mate... I know...but thank you.

  shutting the engines  down. He steps out of cockpit  to stretch his leags and wait for the team to arrive.

   While he  waited for the Engineer,  Shadow  moved to the back of the  shuttle to see if  any  damage was done by the Cables.

  ..well..... he said into his Helmet to Kong-we,..that is  one plus about workin' in Zero...don't hafta worry 'bout things bangin' around .

Was that a smile?
Kray cannot be certain, as Lu keeps her head firmly turned to her systems, but it looked like one.
"Engineer team, we are ready for you, you can load up," she communicates to the men working the cartloads outside.
Yep, that was a smile for sure.

  While the Team Loaded , Shadow  finished his turn around the shuttle, Patting the  Nose  as he  walked around to re-enter.



  Over The COMs  he says,..LT Shadow here...Engineer team Loaded...lookin' fer  permission ta take off?

 he flicked on the  hold CAM to see if they were buckled in as he waited for the call.

Word from the bridge comes back, giving the shuttle the go-ahead to get the repairs in. Dr. Cornell will be monitoring the effort from his station in engineering, coordinating the team from there. As the four engineers take place and strap up, the hangar bay depressurises and the doors open.
"We should get forcefield like sci-fi movies," Lu mutters as the pressure evaporates.

"Rhino Four, you are clear to take off. Vector one-niner, speed 4 knots. Major Ascott requests you see him upon return Lt. Shadow."

   There's a bit of a  chuckle,..that  would  fit the bloody bill alright...save time   for the ground crews too..not havin' to run out  everything  something leaves or  enters...


 Flicking the  COMs Rhino 4..Shadow here..on our  way out... I'll See  The Major as soon as we're done...


 after he eases  the Rhino out, He  Gives Kong-We  a look  as he says ,..was hopin' to take the other fighters  out, one  by one  for about   10 minutes...give you folks somethin' ta look at, make sure they'er all workin'

 Adjusting the vector,  they come  down the flank of the Marco. The  engines look even more massive this  close up. he  spins   Rhino 4  about gliding  back tapping the thrusters.

 Alright  folks.. Time Ta get us flyin' straight.... he signals the  ramp opening, waiting for thumbs up..then opens the  Ramp for  the folks to  get to work.

 He'll keep  an eye on his position,  as well as  take  a look around..... wonder if  anythin' is out there  watchin'? Heck? That stolen Rhino  could be floating out there..an' we wouldn't know it...

Fixing the bent vanes takes the team a lot less time than Kray expected. Helped by the weightless state in the expanse, they came off easily despite being twice a man in size, and placing and bolting down the new ones took only a few minutes longer. The crew worked well together, coordinating their different tasks expertly and quickly. Directed by Cornell through the numerous monitors attached to the outside of the Rhino they encounter no trouble during their work.
Within half an hour the team was back in and ready to get back to the CS-8, the three bent vanes expertly replaced.

  Once the   team boarded  and  his  checks  were  all ok on the ramp and cables, he peeled off towards the Black, so he  could  bend her in to a  nice  smooth run at the hanger doors.

  In to the COMs to the  Team he says,...gotta say?..you blokes are better  men then I am... gettin' that thing put  together like that?.. DArn good Job all around.

 Once the door  are Open   he enters, slowly spinning the  Rhino around. Once the ship settles onto the  deck. he  shuts her  down and says,..alright Mates, Time ta  disembark..That's fer flying  " air Shadow"..

 Looking over  at Kong-We, he offers her  his hand, Nice  workin' with ya.... these  bricks-with-wings need 2 sets of eyes... even if one set belongs to  a Hotshot pilot!

<<<<<<<< after   engineers fixed the engine vanes

   Exiting the Rhino after talking, He   COMs  Major Ascott....Major?  LT Shadow? I'm  back from our  fly-about..The Blokes  did a right proper job out there... Where  should a meet ya?

"I'm currently on my way to the barracks for some dinner." Ascott replies over the comm. "So either there if you are hungry, or in my office around 19.00?"

 ..I"ll Meet ya in the barrackis then, Major...sir... Could  use some coffee, and a might bit of food.

   after  returning the suit, leaving the tag  , showing  for it to be checked after use..  he will  Give  Kong-We another nod , as he walks towards  the fighter Hanger.

  If he sees Hanchel, he  stop and ask him how #19 fighter  is... then  give the  fellow a clap on the shoulder as he moves on to the Barrickss.

Shadow to Barracks>>>>>

<<<<<<<<<<<<  from Hanger 4

  returning to the Hangers, He looks around for Kong-We.   When he sees her, he  approaches and says,..G'day again SGT?... Major told me  ta see if there is anythin' ya need  'elp with..that..I could 'elp?..um..with?

  Looking around he says,..i did  preflight on all the  fighters ,'cept the  spares...  they were recorded on the   Clipboard... But? I'm supposed to  see if  i can 'elp?

  While  he waited to see if there was anything he could Help with, Kray Moved  around  to Check his  fighter over again.

   When he's  done there, the Pilot  moves to where the armory is  to see if he can get a look at the missiles  close up. Weapons were  weapons, he preferred the guns, but if they had these things, he may was well get used to using them.

Kong-We seems as distant as she was at first now that she is back to her maintenance tasks. As Hanschel notices this he grins. He makes a hands up gesture as if to say hey, what can you do?
As Kray moves to the armory the german mechanic follows him.
"Planning on a weapons run Lieutenant?"

The void missiles are small, about the size of an old sidewinder missile, with an internal engine, twelve manouvring thrusters and a large airsupply to counter the lack of oxygen in space. It's 500 kg warhead is more than enough to take out any fighter, and since its the new CT91 explosive they might work against capital ships too, at least in space. In an atmosphere they function moderately at best, designed to be used in a vacuum zero-G environment.
Their relative small weight allows the Hellcat to carry 6 on each of its eight hardpoints though, so with a load of 48 void missiles a single Hellcat can still be a formidable opponent. If the Major is right in them functioning a lot better in space that is.

"Those void missiles are nasty. You going out to try them?"

 He  nods  and shrugs as he grins  at Henschel.

 When  Henchel asks  about the  weapons  run, Shadow's  half  smile turns up.well?  I asked about  taking the fighters out   so you folks  can get some read outs on the Bloody things... The Major  said about takin' the 4 spares  out..and maybe tryin' the missles...

 he looks around  and leans towards  Hechel and says in a low voice,..nerve much liked  Missles... Like to go to guns an' all..like a dog fighter? ya know?...but?  if they work like he says..well..could  change  my mind, right quick....

"I'll get a couple of them loaded up on #22 then. She'll be ready in fifteen."
Hanschel went looking for an ammo wagon. When he found one he started to load up four void missiles.
"Go ahead if you want to pre-flight her," he added.

     There is a Nod  and a grin, as he climbs up into the cockpit. leaving it open. Checking the systems  as he  flicked  switches  and  moved  toggles.

  Looking at the control panel he double checked  the canopy light to make sure it was red.

  ...old  Flight Instructor , told us..' make sure your do your system checks with the cockpit open..

 he  peers over the edge,..never understood  why, until last year  it our flight course, we were  doing startosphere  dogfights?... One  Bloke?   British..always wore a scarf ..it got bloody caught in the seal..and the red light didn't  come on.. so?.. first deep dive he  did.  Canopy popped  under the stress.. and he was almost strangled .. he hadda  crash land the bleedin' thing...when I left for my speical trainin'..he was demoted to a classroom instructor...all? because of a bloody scarf...

..i think our  flight instructor wanna us ta make sure   the cockpit  would register..if it wasn't  closed...

..looking over the  panel , he'll record what he sees as he did  when he was by himself., Once he is  Finished he  move to his locker, double and  triple  checking the seals and such.

 When Finished  he'll hand the  clipboard to Hanchel,..That's what i can see from in here, Mate... we'll see if  anything shakes  lose  when i take her out, and have at the  Drones...

"Just fitting the last missile. I got you six of them, should be enough for four drones."
Finishing up he then clears the doors can be opened.

  Thank Ya..what i miss  witht eh  Missles..i'll finish off with guns....

 he gives the deck salute, as he takes off for target practice....

 when the doors  opened he glided in..pivoting to get the craft into its berth.

 Once the door closed  He got out of the  Cockpit..  shaking his head.That was   fun, an' that's the truth. But i'd be bloody lyin' if i said i was happy with  my performance....

 He patted  22 on the   side  as he  walked to Henshel and handed him the  Disc...She got a bloody good  work out... used a few moves i haven't used fer a while... if anythin' is loose..it should show up.

"I'll give her a decent check-up. 21 and 23 are ready for action too if you are interested. Take special care when taking out 23, she has a bit of a temper in her Left wing flap. Its more reactive than her right side. Could just be from standing still, so maybe a little workout will loosen it up. Fresh oil didn't do her much good," Hanschel states as he sticks his helmeted head out of the fuselage of number 24.

"Have they not taught you to double up the void missiles Lieutenant?" Kong-we's voice sounds harsh, almost mad. "Your gun cam shows you launched the moment you got lock. While that works sometimes, judging by your two hits, the missiles work a lot better when you give them three seconds longer. Your lock will go from red to green, meaning the missile's own locking system has found the target too. With those four drones you would have hit all of them. They should have taught you that when you enrolled in the squadron. They practiced on it for a month. Yueng would have remembered."
She looks at him, hands resting on her hips, waiting for a reaction of sorts. She could actually be considered pretty in the low light of the hangar, if she wasn't so uptight about everything.

  He  smiles a thin smile as she berates him, while he climbs out.Well..SGT you may be right about that..but 3  seconds in a hellcat is a lifetime...sometimes..literally He plops  down on the deck and walks to 23, since she may need more care then the other.

  ..now? I'm real good  at remembering.. my scores in class room and such show that...but? ya can't remember  wht you haven't been taught...

 as he looks  23 over from the outside he says. almost to himself, but its  plain he's talking to them both...I only used voids in atmo...an' let's face it.. they ain't much good in Atmo, uness you're  coming from behind....

  As he climbs up  to get into the cockpit he adds,Only had  3 days  with the Squadron, before they  put us in cold storage?... 9 'ells.. i only met  about  4 of the Blokes..and The russian?..only greeted me, 'cause  we flew with and against each other in war games..I ..um...was brought up, 'cause there was an openin'..  with a final shrug he says,..In the end? I'll get used ta them...but the pilots way back in the old days, when they had that Korea thing?..Americans fell in love with missiles.. and alot of them died..wasn't  until they started  that Top gun thing.. that less of them died in that Vietnam thing..Cause they  taught them how ta dogfight again...so?... if the  time comes  that we have ta fight something else... they know  I can use guns....

 But, them were good  tips  ya give me... theres a friendly 'Shadow' half smile...I'll keep them in mind, when i get  a few extra seconds!

 He winks  as he   slides his helmet on  and closes the Canopy.. and waits for the OK to launch
This message was last edited by the player at 03:27, Wed 05 Apr 2017.

  Entering the Hanger, the Pilot uses his thrusters to park 23 in her berth.

  Once the  Doors   are Closed and  the lights  change,  Kray pops the cockpit and the flight disc for the Techs  to see and work off of.

  ..Bloody  9 'ells , the ship kicker 'er bloody engines in as   i flew down 'er spine.... 


 Motioning to 23 he adds,..the  sticking broke lose?.. might  wanna  check the  tubing though.. there  could be some build up...I dunno..it  just felt..kinda  jerky until the fluids  started to pop through

 Happily logging in his  flight  time, on which ship  and  making notes in the note section of what transpired   with 23.

  Asking  Marco,..Marko?  Ask  the brdige if i can take another figther out?..or  does the MArco have plans...

According to the bridge you have at least eight more hours. Captain is currently running engine checks, so stay clear of the exhausts.

  Thank You Marco....

  He looks  around the Deck,..Alright...Gonna  take  21 out for a few ta see how she  shakes out....    Looking around the outside of the  aircraft he  looks  sign of fluid  leak and such, though he knows he  really doesn't have to.Since they just checked it out.. it was all part of his pre-flight habit.

 Climbing up, and Climbing in, he does  his preflight...Once everything checks... the Canopy comes  down, hisses shut.

 Giving the door  operators  a salute... the happy pilot  takes the  Next craft into the Black........

 >>>>>>>>>>>>  Shadow to space.

<<<<<<<  from space.

  gliding in and   pivoting around to find the berth...the  Hellcat looked like it was almost finding its own way.

  Once he steeled her  down. popped the   canopy, and climbed down. He  looked for  either Henschel or Kong-we. To give the disc readout to.

  ..she was a bit stiff..but worked out real well... might need  some tubes cleared though?  I'm gonna go for a bit  now, Id they  don't 'ave nothin' fer me tomorrow... I'll take a few more out.

 He nods with a smile to them, heading off to his quarters and a shaower. Slapping the side of the door as he replayed the drone tagging him, in his mind.


>>>>>>>>>>  to quarters.

"Have a good one Lieutenant," Hanschel replied as he took the disk and went to check the ship.
"Looks like you shot yourself down eh?"

  He  shook his head  as he chuckled,..right, Mate.... i wonder if i'll get a confirmed kill fer that!....he waved and was off.

The hangars are a lot busier now than the day before, with several marines working hard to check up on the gun emplacements next to the hangar doors. Some drag boxes of ammunition towards the ports, others carry buckets of cleaner or work bottles of gun oil to get them all fresh and clean.
Kong-We and her crew are busy locking down all the crafts for transport, so when needed the hangar doors can be opened without the unused fighters drifting off into space.
The only exception is number 19, which sits at the launchpad, prepped and ready in case it is needed.

   Entering the  Hangers , and watching all the Movement, He notes  his aircraft is in the ready-launch area.

  Seeing  This he  went to his Locker to check the Flight suit and Helmet. Just in Case. Once the checked them over He walked  towards his fighter,  with the  intent of checking her over himself.

 At the  same  Time he watched the other work, incase they needed a hand.

She was fully ready, and fully armed, that much he saw right away. A full load for the cannons, 8 void missiles on the wings. It seemed the Captain wanted to be prepared for anything.

    Kray smiled at the   fighter.   He  checked the   Missiles  giving a tug here and there. He  smiled at the " Angry 'Roo " painted on each side of the nose.

  ..well, Mate? we're  both in fightin' shape..just have ta be ready..eh?

  Giving the fighter  an affectionate  pat, Shadow begins to check out the other  fighters, he took out to see if they were worked on.

Most mechanics were working on #7, it's top lifted off completely and the entire engine above it in cables. Kray could barely notice Hansel hidden almost completely in the fighter's fuselage, while another he had not seen before stood by to hand him any tools he required. A third sat atop the canopy, fire extinguisher at the ready.

  He  went   down the Line  and watched, not  saying anything to distract any of them from their  work. He was interested, but he never saw a Fighter with the engine  out before...only in Computer models.

  The closest he  was taught  was  how to expose the cannon  loader in case he had to destroy the craft  if  downed behind enemy lines.

  Though he really didn't  feel useful here. This was  still 'his' place. Around the aircraft. Unless something else  came up.

 He Looked  around as he watched, but made sure he wasn't hovering, or getting in the way.

 He tried to match faces to names, and see what machines were being worked on, and by whom.


As an After Thought he COMed the Bridge,...LT Shadow here.. I am Currnatly in tha Hangers. I will stay here  for another few hours  or so, and then do some  running on my down time?..Until then, If I'm needed, I'll be here.

The bridge is quick to reply.
"Affirmative Lieutenant. You will be contacted when needed. Enjoy your run."

   Shadow would  help were he  could, even if just loading  something on a cart.

   when it appeared he would , mostly, be in the way. The Pilot went to  one of the terminals  and  started to check out which aircraft were  ready to fly, which ones  had not been checked/worked on. and what things  were  done  to those that were.

   after a bit of a sigh, he   picked up his flight jacket  and left for  his  quarters.


>>>> to Shadow's quarters.

Kong-we Lu taps her comm as she finalises pre-check on Dragon #2, "Your birds are prepped and ready in two minutes Lieutenant. They are being armed as we speak."
She slid her cart across to the next bird on the Line, starting her operational check front to back. Just a few meters from her, Timochev launched.

<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< from flight Ops

    Shadow and Kelly stand   in front of their  air craft, he says to her,..the intercom goes off..

  alright?.. we don't know  what the bloody 9 'ells is goin' on.. so?.. when we   launch.. shoot striaght out a half a mile  and we  stand together, until we can see what's goin' on...If it looks Bad.. we'll Launch Bill and  Steffan..and   Let Herni take it from there.

  While they  wait, Kray checks  Kelly's   suit, and  has  her check his...

  He is pacing a bit after wards  and tries to  walk that off  by  do  a flight  check ( again)  around the aircraft..

  The Pilot  Kept  checking the ship's  clock.

"Kray, Kelly, get in your birds. Shadow on the pad, Wallace on the primary. You both have full loads of gun ammo and four missiles. Yuri will update you on channel 8" Kong-we yelled from under Dragon 3. All around technicians were running about, carting ammunitions, changing a landing wheel, working on an engine. To Kray the hangart suddenly looked like a proper military airbase, if you ignored the roof above your head.

  ..Thank You Kong-We....... he nodded to Kelly,.. Let's go Kelly...  don't know what the 9 'ells is goin' on? But if we get to jump off... that's beats  sittin' in the bloody ship!

  grabbling  the Footholds he  Pulled himself up then placed a foot on the highest he  could reach, to vault himself to the cockpit. sliding into the cockpit..he began his preflight  check as the  cockpit hissed shut...

  He  grinned at the   HUD,..'eh  Lady... ya miss me?

   Looking  over to watch Kely mount up, then looked to see  if Steffan and  Wild Bill were suited up yet, he   flicked the switch to COM   Yuri.

  ..'eh?.. Skipper..This is  Shadow.... Kelly an' I are ready ta lunch if ya need us.... Steffan and Wild  Bill will be on deck soon.... I have Q gettin' the other blokes ready , for  the call as well.... watcha got out there?

"Nothing at all comrade," the voice came over the intercommm about as clearly as if Kray was standing next to Timochev. "A whole expanse of nothing, with the Polo at its center. I have no idea why the captain stopped the ship and scrambled us. Precautionary measures, keep an eye open is what they said. So we open an eye da?"
Outside Shadow saw Yuri and his wingman make another fly-by.

   He watches them go bye, yeah, I guess we'll just , bloody well 'hang  'ere a bit, until ya need us, or ya call us out....

  ..Did  ya  catch that Mates?.. nothin' there  yet... but  we're gettin ready ta  launch if there is...

One by one Krayś wing reported in, ready in their Hellcats, waiting for the green light. This was what they trained for, this was where they excelled.

Outside space looked black and empty as ever.

   He looked at the screens  while he waited, he said over the COMs,when we  Launch.. form up in a Diamond.. me in front, High,  Wild bill on my 6 low... Kelly starboard   and Steffan to port... If   we have to break Off,, Steffan with me, kelly with  Wild Bill...

      Kray  tries to talk with the others, cutting the tension for himself as much as  for them, as they wait.

  ..So... You  folks come here Often?..can't  say much for the view, at least until they open the doors, then .... yo can't bloody beat it!

 he  flicks on the screens to see if he can pick up blips outside the hanger.

Besides the two distinct contacts already out, and in green, space looks empty.

     while he  watched the screens, he  tapped on the stick with his right hand... he says to  the other  3  flight Members,...so?  There's this one time.... I'm gettin' ready fer our first Match... big game  against the Bombers..Essenden?.. anyway.. this Shelia is   all 'appy ta see me.. wants ta go have a drink...maybe a a bite... so?.. I get all dressed up... waiting at the  corner.. and them Esseden  bastards are laughin' me up?... seems that  she was one of their sisters, an' they  pulled the trick on me, they did... .. that's how  I feel right  now... 'ere we are.. all dressed up... an' no bloody place ta go...

"Mais Oui, that reminds me very much of a nice mademoiselle I once met in Paris," a chuckling voice cracks over the comm. "Although it was not a sports game. And it did not involve clothes either. Come to think of it, it was nothing like this really. But I am afraid I cannot share this story as there are women present. Women with decency I think."

   Shadow  chuckles,well?  se? That's the whole thing?  At lest you had the  Shiela?.. I just got laughed on? Bloody Essens..... jokes on them though?  I'm still alive..sorta...

"We're all alive Lt, one way or the other. We better make the best of it." Wallace replies. "And as for you boys being fooled by women... well, lots of women constantly being played by men, so I guess there's some poetic justice there. Especially in your case frenchy!"

 Shadow leans over to look from his Cockpit  to hers, hey?  At least Q  had some lady time? I hadda go back to the hotel and watch  TV... 'course.. i played a  bloody good  game... might not of  , if i'd had a late night!

"Ah do net get me started on the lady time. Sometimes I wish I had an early night, but then again... would not want to disappoint the ladies no?"

 Again the Aussie chuckled,..Ok  I'm askin'  you Blokes out there, since i'm the new guy?.... Does he mean he disappoints  by showing up?..or Not showing up?.. I'm a wee bit fuzzy on that!

  As he  went over his  screens  for the 1ooth Time, listening to chatter from his flight as they waited to see if they would launch,  Shadow Asked  Q

 ..Hey?  Q.. we got all the Pilots  in the ready room?  I mean.. there isn't  any bloody  bggies out there.. but  ya never know? Mabbe yry an'  'ave them in their suits?

"Looking at the pilots here, I can tell you we have already suited up mon Lieutenant. Let us hope we do not need to launch, no?"

    Yeah? well  Yuri just told me  an' Kelly to launch...  Wild  Bill and Swede  will launch in an hour, and we'll come back... Between  you and  Yuri? set up  pairs to come out  every hour  so  stretch thier legs.. unless Yuri or the CAptain  'ave  new orders?....

 ..This way we'll all get some flight  time out 'ere..

Touching down, Timochev is out of his Hellcat the moment the engines die, immediately heading to the tail and starting to remove the panneling. Soon Kong-We Lu and two other engineers join him.
"I want her fixed asap," he yells over the noise of the idling engines of Dragon three and four.

[From the Barracks]

Mariko stepped into the Flight Ops area of the hangar but stayed out of the way of the work crews who were buzzing around the fighters. She had an idea of what the Commander looked like so she kept an eye out for him. She waited for him to head her direction before coming to attention.

"Sir, Lt. Koizumi reporting as ordered."

"Who?" Timochev stated bluntly as he paced by Mariko, his attention on the jets parked on the jumpspots. "Ordered by whom?"
He made his way to the soda machine along the wall, grabbing himself a 115 year old coke.
"Forgive me, but nobody informed me of another addition to the flightlist. You never trained with us either, so I am going to assume you are a late addition to this mission. Not a problem as it is, but seeing as we are currently on hold to scramble, I have little time to get you acqainted with the rest." He downed the soda entirely in just a few swigs, tossing the empty can in a bin close by.
"I suggest for now you go to ops, look for the Frenchman Quatorze. Tell him he should get you up to speed as soon as possible."

"Ordered by the Captain, sir. I spoke to him after awakening. I'm qualified on the J-15 and the Hellcat with excellent ratings in both." She followed the Commander.

"Very good, sir. I'll look for him and give him your instructions." She snapped to attention again.

"Good, he's likely in prep at the moment. They scrambled us, no idea why, but i'm betting we will find out soon enough," Timochev gave a half salute as he returned to his fighter.
"We will talk more when things calm down miss Koizumi!"

"I look forward to it, sir!" She turned smartly on a heel and headed over to the prep area, again remembered from her tour of the ship and studying maps whilst waiting in her quarters though there was one slight problem...she had no idea what Quatorze looked like.

She stopped one of the enlisted running by. "Excuse me but can you direct me to a gentleman by the name of Quatorze?"

"He's the pirate looking guy, over in flight opps!" the ensign shouts out as he runs by, dragging a toolcart behind him.

Barracks--->

Hanger 2

Another short ride in the transit finds two armored and armed soldiers, Sgt Appigan and Cpl Schepenaers.

Appigan waves then moves to the hanger staff.

"Sgt Appigan reporting as ordered by Major Ascott".

He takes out his handheld to show the email from the Major.

"I know I'm early. We want to do our own flight checks on the bird. Just got out of cryo myself. It would be good for me to go over the controls the flight procedures. Anyone hungry?"

He takes out the last apple from Vanderbeek, having eaten the other two.

A young Argentinian engineer points over at the first Rhino shuttle in the line.
"Best take that one," he shouts over the noise of the idling Hellcat fighter engines one bay down. "It's been out this morning, she had a shakedown already."

Schepenaers nods, making a quick round of the craft, looking for any obvious defects. Then he manually rotates the eight barrels of the main dorsal goalkeeper, checking if they turn smoothly. Satisfied, he then opens up the back ramp.

Appigan nods, "Thanks."

He was glad to be assigned an already flown craft. The news of mutiny made him nervous about sabotage just about everywhere. He smiles hiding the thought that most of the problems wouldn't be sabotage just gear that was stored over a century ago.

"A century."

He stops walking. In all his "deal with the immediate" only now was it dawning on him how much they had overslept. Squeezing his eyes he gets back to "deal with the immediate".

"Alright. Just because it flew earlier doesn't mean it was checked by us. Run software diagnostics and look under the hood. We should also check her emergency stores. Check the bloody expiration dates too."

Walking around the craft he runs his hand along the control surfaces checking them for give. He'd follow up by entering the cockpit and running the onboard diagnostics.

"A century overdue."
This message was last edited by the player at 19:47, Sat 28 Oct 2017.

"Thats a simple one, the entire craft hasn't been serviced in a century Apple," Will replied through the comms. "Although I must admit there's hardly any dust anywhere."

Diagnostics show the craft in good condition. There's some faulty sensors here and there, a rusty wing flap only needed in an atmosphere, and one of the landing wheels needs a whole lot more air, but otherwise Appigan notices no problems.

"I checked the hatches and the ramp, they are all okay. Securing lines are fine too, someone oiled them recently. Two of the vacu-suits are short on air, and I'm kind of worried about these shells for the goalkeeper. Once we get back i'm reloading all the belts by hand just to make sure. All in all I think she's good to go. What shall we name her?"

Out the cockpit window Geoffry saw Schepenaers waving at him, holding a bucket of white paint and a brush. So far major Ascott wasn't anywhere to be seen.

Appigan hummed as the diagnostics came up.

"I agree on her flight status. That is, serviceable though needs improvement. I wonder if we even have enough unthawed for a proper ground crew. You weren't planning any hot dates lately were you?"

Appigan takes a breath when asked for a name.

"Name? Actually the name I've been thinking of is for you. Need a short simple callsign for comms. I was thinking Sheppard. There was also 'Wild Bill' but that was an American and you sounded South Americain. Some of them didn't like the USA very much.

As for the ship? I don't know. I'm Canadian. Maybe Bucky Beaver or Rocky the Flying Squirrel. Ah, I wouldn't want to disgrace Rocky. Let's go with Bucky Beaver"

Appigan walks through the cargo area of the shuttle on his way to come down the ramp.

"Chances are we'll be checking out the other ship. We need to sort out those spacesuits. We might even be bringing some folks back. Lets get some more suits. You and I at least should have full EVA packs stored on board. I'd like an air top up in our landing wheel. That's just not healthy."

He looks around the hanger. At full crew there would be a dozen or more people just in the hanger alone. Today it was far from that.

"How about a three course turkey dinner too."

He laughs.

"Are you flying this shuttle?"

An asian woman, short, covered in grease, comes up to Appigan, another engineer and a toolbox in her wake.
"Bridge say we send shuttles. One and Five. Rest in need of desperate love."

The technician with her deploys the tool cart, then systematically checks the shuttle's exterior.
Meanwhile 'Sheppard' is chalking a name on the side of Rhino One.

Appigan notices that further up in the line-up, Dropship 4 is missing.

"Yes ma'am" says Appigan, "Call sign Apple, shuttle pilot and combat medic. My gunner there is Sheppard. I hope you're our ground crew. Everyone's short handed I know. Hell I was in cyro until today. We're already pitching in. We just ran diagnostics so you can download those direct."

He gestures forward in the craft to the flight computers.

"My top hot point is a flat landing gear. Needs air and might have a reason for a slow leak. Otherwise a rusty areo flight shouldn't be needed today. Sensors here and there unsurprisingly need adjustment or replacement. Expecting we'll be going over to the other ship I need a bunch of EVA gear and general suits. Maybe a cutting torch, prybar and jaws of life in case we get tasked to do search and rescue. I can go haul those over while you work up the boat. Sound good?"

Appigan clearly wasn't afraid to get his hands greasy. He also respected that specific professions are better at certain tasks. He was a pilot. Sure he could do minor work but he's not a hanger tech.

The absence of Dropship 4 was barely noticed by Appigan. So many reasons why it would be away or even still in storage.
This message was last edited by the player at 16:38, Sun 29 Oct 2017.

"I not work your boat. I chief engineer. Just here to check up on who flies what. Your engineer one of shuttle engineers, not fighters." Kong-We replied, somewhat irritated. She seemed to have little patience with pilots, especially those that were not part of her combat fighter detachment.
"Your engineer Alfonso. He over there." She points at the young technician meticulously working the exterior of the Rhino. The man looked up briefly, sending a half salute Appigans way.

Hellcat 21, one of the back-up ships meant as a spare in case one of the original combat ready 20 broke down, was quickly enrolled into service by the engineer assigned to Mariko.
As she ran her pre-flight checks Yamamoto assisted her, as much to see how she did, as to make sure she was ready as soon as possible.
"Commander Timochev will assign you to a wing if we need to get out there. So far its only Dragon Flight running patrols, for another half hour at least, and we will have to wait if they send out any shuttles any time soon. hangar 2 is getting pretty busy, so I assume they will."


Doing her checks Mariko notices some oil stains near the kerosine feeds to engine two. Most likely one of the tubes has decayed with age and is leaking. Nothing too important though as in space the Hellcats run on their fusion engines, but something that does need looking after if they need to fly in an atmosphere.

In reply to Tech Sergeant Kong-we Lu (msg # 130):

Facing with a smile to the Tech Sergeant he gives a nod.

"Sorry."

His Canadian accent clearly spoken. The announcement plays of the new restaurant.

"I just unthawed and was ordered to flight duty. Haven't even cracked open my personal locker.  Perhaps you could give me a run down on who is who over dinner at the new eatery?"

“I need to put a repair order in for this leak to the number two engine. Otherwise outside checks are good.” She climbs into the cockpit and pulls out the maintenance report and turns her pad on, bringing up the check sheet. She hits a few switches and brings the bird up on batteries and starts a full diagnostic.

At Apple's suggestion of dinner Kong-We's face turns to shock, then disgust, and then into a laugh.
"Not a chance marine," she mocks as she moves over to the next shuttle.

Sheppard cannot avoid a chuckle of his own as he shoots APpigan a knowing wink.
"Women eh? God's best invention, right after the twin linked gatling." His roaring laughter fills the hangar bay.
"Heads up," he then states, shaking his head in the direction of the turbolifts.

Followed by a detachment of marines, Major Tom Ascott enters bay 2, fully geared up and packed for battle. His marines, twenty in total, are much the same. Full body armour, helmets, rebreathers, locked and loaded SA-80Xs. In a quick march they approach the shuttles.
As the marines halt Ascott steps up the load ramp and on to the cockpit.
"Are you Appigan?" he inquires.

***

Mariko's Hellcat starts up smoothly, despite having been dormant for over a century. All the dials and gages read normal, the engines purring like a big cat before a hunt.
The entire vessel vibrates with anticipation, eagerness to get out into the vast expanse and play.
Over the comms she can hear the discussions held by Dragon flight. They are working to check every inch of the CS-3 wreckage, reporting everything they see.

To Mariko's left another Hellcat takes its place on the launch pad. Its the number 13.
This message was last edited by the GM at 20:00, Wed 01 Nov 2017.

Appigan nods his head with a smile enjoying the moment of banter.



"Well what she will remember is the very first time I ever saw her I had the courage to ask her out. Puts me ahead of you doesn't it?"

Appigan laughs, far from taking himself seriously. Men learned a long time ago to count the 'yes' answers and not fret over the multitude of 'no'.



"Sir. Yes sir. Sgt Appigan. Callsign Apple. Sheppard, the techs and I have been prepping the Bucky Beaver. Is our mission going to be search or recovery from the Vasco?"
This message was last edited by the player at 20:39, Wed 01 Nov 2017.

"I'm Major Ascott, but I take it you may have guessed that much. I see you claimed this shuttle already by naming it. Good, get to know her, and your crew. She's yours. But one thing... Bucky Beaver? Thats not what you gunner was chalking down on the side," Ascott grins. Despite his auro of command Apple immediately felt at ease with the man, probably because of his no nonsense SAS background. Major Ascott after all was a man from the field, shaped by active duty, not pencils and study.
"I suggest you and him get your coordination in order."

The major tossed his pack with his rebreather on the co-pilot seat and removed his helmet. As he sat down in the engineer seat he drew a dataslate and plugged it into the Rhino. Immediately schematics of the Vasco DaGama popped up on Apple's HUD.
"Anyway, listen up," he puffed as he loosened his chestplate. "You will take a detachment of ten marines to here, the aft cargo bay airlock. There you will need to hover close, so the grapples can lock on and the crew can drift over to open the lock doors. They will go in, and conduct a search of the vessel. Just a search for now. We have no idea what we will find, so once they are in, your loadmaster-slash-gunner Sheppard will have to unlock the grapples so you can fly a holding pattern." He paused, making sure Appigan had time to jot things down if he wanted to. "Stay close though, because if we need an evac, you are the first one we will call upon. There will be fighters about running shield patrols, so you should coordinate with them how close you can get without them hindering you."

Ascott tightened the body armour again, grabbed the helmet and rebreather pack, and stood up to leave.
"I know we haven't had proper introductions and all, but that will have to wait. Business first right?"

Mariko can't help but smile at the feeling of power that sitting in the Hellcat gives her. People who aren't pilots think it's crazy but she can feel the fighter wanting to rocket into the black just as she wanted to. Woman and machine were one and she knew the fighter wouldn't let her down anymore than she would let the fighter down.

She spun up the weapons and did a quick check on load out and ammo counts before turning and giving Hiro a thumbs up. When she saw MP-13 on the pad prepping to launch she gave the pilot a two-finger salute.

"Aside from that leak in number two everything is green across the board. She's ready for flight, Captain and so am I."

"Aye Aye. Orders understood as transfer marines to the Vasco then stand off in a holding pattern for a possible emergency pickup."

Appigan gives a quick salute. He moved over to Sheppard.

"Sheppard you get that? You will be doing EVA today to clear the grapples. New priority is to check the EVA packs. I still want two heavy flight packs, spare suits and wrecking gear

Also, the ship's name comes from the pilot. We'll fix the chalking over. You did ask first and were told otherwise. I'd rather we get along but I do have rank. So right now you have to listen.

If we have a disagreement outside of hot times I can handle suggestions. Going behind my back while faking agreement is child's way of living. On a medevac shuttle stunts like that go from jokes to friends in body bags. You have to be better than that. Over 4,000 lives on this ship still depend on us. Now, go get the gear, that's an order."

During the last his tone had gone from joking to drill sergeant serious. It wasn't his preferred way but he'd been around enough death to make things clear when they had to be.

Appigan moves to the outside of the ship clearing off the incorrect chalking.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:52, Wed 01 Nov 2017.

Stepping out Appigan notices Sheppard had at least half the name right.
In white, prominently displayed on the side of the Rhino, stood the name 'Eager Beaver'.

"Understood, sir," Sheppard said, hardly suppressing a grin. Quickly he went about checking the EVA gear.

"Well it wasn't half bad," thinks Appigan.

It was a quick swipe to correct the name to 'Bucky Beaver'. He moved over to the one technician he had.

"Alfonso. We'll be using grapnels today."

Appigan joins in checking on the stores as they are brought on board.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:33, Wed 01 Nov 2017.

Carrying the supplies on board is a young woman in flight gear. She drops off a box of medical supplies labelled band-aids, then takes the co-pilot seat in the cockpit, starting up the secondary systems.
"Olja Bartosz," Sheppard mentions to Apple as they both put more gear inside. "Looks like you get the ragtag crew."
He laughs out loud.

"I don't care if you're pretty. I care how you fight."

Appigan then looks to the side. He even said it the way his old Gunnery Sergeant had done. Heck he even looked to the side the way the Gunny did.

"Bartosz. Welcome to the Bucky Beaver. Yeah, I said it. She's not a pretty bird. What matters is how she'll fly. I assume you know Sheppard. The decker is Alfonso."

Alfonso leans to look past the wheel he was working on. Making a grin he waves briefly.

"Bartosz review the Beaver's diagnostics so you know where she is right now. Once we get back all of us will put in extra hours working her up. That is an order. Sheppard that means the ammo change over you suggested. "

Sheppard looks over Appigan. At least this Pilot Sergeant listened to the crew.

Appigan steps over to the gear. Together with Sheppard they find the gear serviceable.

Alfonso says, "Wheel had a stuck valve. Its holding pressure now. She'll slide along with a dancer's grace now. I'll top up the life support."
This message was last edited by the player at 05:36, Fri 03 Nov 2017.

Mariko's gesture is returned by the pilot of 13. Her ship ID shows him to be 2nd Lieutenant Mpinkulu. He sits on the pad, awaiting orders. Several more Hellcats are idling in the line-up.
Obviously the military crews have all been woken up, judging by all the activity all over the hangar.

"Roger that. Lets hope they actually let us all out to play." Yamamoto replied.

"Guys, I'm out. Number one engine keeps stalling, its running too hot." another pilot mentioned over the comm. It was the number 6. 2nd lieutenant Jacqueline Storm. Her voice was soft, almost a whisper.

"Affirmative 6. Get off the line, get it fixed. 21, move up the line to the first wait position."

Mariko feels her adrenaline spike as the order is given. “21, copy that. Moving to the first wait position.” She spools up the engine a tiny bit and taxis to the indicated holding area.

“21 is in position and standing by. Over.” She toggles on a few systems that were on standby and seals her ship in case the order to launch is given. She flexes her hands and takes a few deep breaths, putting herself into that place of focus and awareness and waits for orders.
This message was last edited by the player at 23:54, Fri 03 Nov 2017.

Just after Apple's team finishes loading their shuttle a detachment of ten marines shows up, armed to the teeth and equipped for the vacuum of space.
The squad leader, a sergeant, came up to the cockpit to report to Appigan.
"Sgt. Appigan? Sgt. Joe Winters. My men and me will be your cargo today. Have you ever done a Tether drop in zero G before?"

Appigan looks to the arriving marines.

"You'll be happy to know I've never messed one up.

You'll be unhappy to know I've never done one.

Primary trade is infantry combat medic. Shuttle piloting was an expanded skill set. Two skills in one Popsicle. I have done de-orbits, ascents, orbital navigation and docking. Haven't heard of any combat or debris dangers so we can all do it slow and by the numbers."
This message was last edited by the player at 01:28, Sat 04 Nov 2017.

"No worries," Winters replied with a grin. "If you can hold her still, all my men will need is a single cable. We do a quick push 'n slide and will be out of your hair in a jiffy. I trust your cable system is in order?"

Looking back into the load bay he saw his men having taken their seats, ready to go. He tapped his throat comm.
"Major Ascott, team one ready sir."

"Lieutenant Mpinkele, Lieutenant Koizumi. This is the bridge. Launch for shuttle protection duty. Designated callsigns Hydra One and Two. The pad is clear. Repeat, the pad is clear."

Outside her cockpit Mariko saw the technician scuttling about to clear their gear so she could get to the launchpad as soon as possible.

"Bridge to Shuttle One. Sgt. Appigan, launch immediately and head out towards the coordinates of Dragon One. They have found a life pod with active life signs, we would like you to go and retrieve that right away. The marines will have to wait."

Appigan lights up.

"Tally ho!

Next time Winters. Beavers, life on the line."

He smacked the controls to close the doors.

Bartosz says, "Exited diagnostic mode. Spinning engines."

Schepenaer shifts to the seat at the fight engineer station.

Outside Winters and the marines shuffle away from the shuttle. The whine of the engines growing louder.

"Chocks away," yells Alfonso.

He was hustling to the side carrying those angled structures that kept wheels in place.

Appigan flips through his preflights. A check that the hanger door ahead is open. He glances out his side window while Bartosz does the same on her side. A check that people where clear of the shuttles launch plume.

"Shuttle One to tower. Launching now."

In a few heartbeats the shuttle clears out the hanger.

--->Space
This message was last edited by the player at 17:24, Sat 04 Nov 2017.

Mariko takes the controls of her bird and flips the last few toggles and makes sure all lights are green. "Copy that, Bridge, callsign Hydra 2."

She spins the engines up, makes sure the board stay green. "Hydra 2, launching."

She clears the hangar and hits the black, picking up the shuttle and Hydra 1 and joining the formation, checking long range sensors for their target.

----> Into the Black

Space--->

Bucky Beaver slides back into hanger two. Its control jet pulsing to correct the final vector.

On its wheels it drives a turn to point the rear ramp toward an open area. The ramp descends. Appigan and Sheppard in their EVA suits are on either side of a rescue pod. They start undoing the straps they had just put on it.

Appigan looks for the medical and/or guards to arrive.

Appigan sets his comms briefly to transmit to the space group and control tower.

["Apple here. To search and rescue assets. I have a date of launch of the pod: November 5th, 2033. That is 124 years ago. Recommend reversing the orbital trajectory of the wreck and celestial bodies. Our searches need to consider where other pods may be free floating. Also anyone who sailed off in a powered craft like a shuttle may have gone to a celestial object that was nearby at that time."]
This message was last edited by the player at 04:28, Wed 08 Nov 2017.

Within minutes a team from medical shows up at the Bucky Beaver, Colonel Genassi himself leading them.
"How is the patient Sergeant?" he inquires as he enters the shuttle, giving the pod a quick check. "Do we have lifesigns?"

Appigan shows the pods data stream.

"Lifesigns viable. Pod has been out for over a century. Definitely a deep freeze. We will be wanting to talk to them about what happened over there. When it is safe to do so."

He pauses for a moment.

"I do recommend keeping them under security protection. What with the mutiny here and possible one there. Sure there are scenarios where this is a random innocent. They would still be a target for any hidden agent left here. To blind us a little longer. There is a slim chance this is a mutineer from the Vasgo. Actually, more than slim as the mutineers would have planned an escape route like to this pod before doing whatever they did."

Communications come in from Space.

Appigan leans away to answer, ["Transferring delivery now. Take off to follow new loading."]

Working like a well oiled machine the medical team quickly loads the pod up on a couple of carts, and soon the transport it off the shuttle. The colonel, after noting down Apple's suggestion of adding security, goes ahead of the team, getting back to medical quickly to see about his other patient, Cpl. Patterson, as the rest of the medics gently move their precious cargo towards the turbolifts.

Appigan was glad his suggestion was noted. Once the medical detail departs he waves up the marines.

"All right marines. You think you are paid hourly? Mount up."

Appigan heads back to the pilots seat. Bartosz already got launch clearance.

(Assuming the marines mounted)

Sheppard gives a visual check that each is properly in their seat. The ramp closes.

"Passengers snuggled in."

Shuttle Bucky Beaver takes off from the deck once again.

---->Space

shadow  from Space<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

   One  By one the  Dragon Flight lands., he  shuts  down his CAMs , Climbs out  to fill out his report. He looks   for Kong-we, but if he can't find her, he tells  the closest Ground crew guy to  keep them ready, incase Yuri has to call them out.

  Handing  in  the disc, he takes  a new on and slots in in the rack, and waits on his   flight.

"Some funky shit sir," Swede yelled out as he climbed down his cockpit ladder. "This seriously can't all be a coincidence. We waking up, having these issues, then finding the DaGama out here, 115 years too late. Funky shit brother."

"Shush you big ape," Wallace chimed in as she handed her discs to the engineer hooking up her Hellcat to the terminal. "Even if its all a set-up, who the hell would go through all this trouble 115 years after we were supposed to build a colony?"

"Lets eat," the big ape replied laughing. "You coming LT?"

  Shadow nodded,..yeah...we 'ave to be a bit worried... Lets  go to our place for now.. we want to talk this over amoungst ourselves 

  ... But i'm thinkin' ..all them years EArth has been around.. there's some Bloody idiot trying to take it over? So? if they kill off al the Colony folks... and only certain ones live?...

 ..Comon?... Lets go.. I need something cold  ta drink..

 Shadow, dragon  Flight..Flight Ops...>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>