Vance heaved a sigh, scowling for a moment at Bixby's comment...then got up on his seat, so as to be seen over the heads of all the standing people exchanging questions.  "WHOA, HOLD UP!" he called out, holding his hands up.  The moment people realized who'd yelled, the volume dropped...he was apparently the bearer of all unofficial news, and they didn't want to miss it.

"There's a lot...and I mean A LOT...that we can't answer.  We just don't know.  I haven't been ordered to keep it classified, so I'll tell you now...but know that this information could become classified at any time, so don't go shouting it from the rooftops, or you'll get us all in trouble, okay?"  He didn't wait for a response.

"Yes, the SDF-1 is operational. Where she's been and what she's been doing is anyone's guess, I know we've all heard rumors about what happened to her during the alien attack on Earth and I can't clarify any of them.  We never got close enough to make contact, we spotted her leaving Mars a while ago and have been trying to track her progress, but the aliens keep a pretty tight cordon around her and we couldn't get close enough to punch a clear signal through their ECM and signal scrambling, so they don't know we've seen them, and we've only got bits and pieces of comm chatter and internal signals to let us know what's going on.  No idea how many are still on board, no clear idea what condition they're in...we just know that whoever's still on board is fighting like hell because the aliens STILL don't have her and based on their behavior for the last few weeks, since we saw the SDF-1, it's a good bet they've been badgering her for months."

His voice got somber...a little strained as he tried to keep his emotions in check as he spoke.  "They've likely got no idea any of us are still left...but they're still fighting.  So, no matter how grim things may look, I don't think any of us have excuse to make any less effort than they have."  He looked around the assembled faces, and found himself blinking back tears for a moment.

"They're fighting on faith...that we're here, that between them and us, we can fight off the aliens.  We've gotta fulfill that faith.  They keep getting blocked from a direct path to Earth, but even with all the tacks and jogs their course has taken, they keep working closer and closer...and when they get here, we've gotta be ready to leap into the fight, tooth and nail, and show them they were right to have faith in us.  You with me on that?!"

Cain Stands in support of his CO and raising his fist in Defiance to alien aggression calls out LOUDLY, "Can I get a HELL YEAH?!?!?"
This message was last edited by the player at 20:45, Thu 01 Apr 2021.

Smiling at Vance's impromptu speech, Hanako listens as he explains both what they know and what they explicitly do not know, thankful that he's including the latter.  She stands up to position herself by his side, her role as XO effectively second nature to the point she doesn't even realize she's doing it.  When he finishes, she punches high into the air with her left hand and shouts in enthusiastic support, "Ou!"

However, she is both tiny and surrounded by much larger people, so it probably sounds more like "ou~" in comparison.

Kelly stands with the rest, and participates, though not as small as her squadron mate, she is unlikely to stand out in comparison to Cain.

But.. "Hell yes!" is where her feelings lie.  Besides, participation is key when it comes to these morale boosters, and to see one of his own team lounging would have been detrimental, appearances matter.

The place fell silent as Vance called out for their attention, and stayed so quiet that pan lids could be heard clinking softly as they popped up to release steam and fell back into place.  He finished...Cain leapt up and called out...the other two pilots jumped in.  Bixby sat, semi-rigid, listening and gauging reactions.

For a moment, the cries of the Ranger pilots hung on the air, alone...and then the room erupted.  "If they had the planes and ships to do it, they'd charge out there right now," Bixby said.  It would have been a muttered aside, quite likely, in different circumstances--but he had to yell to be heard, even by the other pilots right next to him.

There was a swarm of personnel coming up to shake hands, clap them on the back, offer some voice of support and appreciation...enough that it was all but impossible to get back to eating anything (Bixby tried, repeatedly...)  And it seemed as though the crowd kept getting larger...no doubt, people heard the yelling and came to investigate, or were given a rundown on the news by cohorts in the chow hall and came down.

As things began to settle into a dull roar, as opposed to a deafening one, a major stepped up to Vance and leaned in, close, speaking in his ear.  "Thank you," he said.  "I don't know how true any of what you told them is...don't even care.  They've needed to hear something encouraging for a long time, now, and UEDF hasn't exactly been reaching out to anyone beyond the planet's surface.  They...WE...needed this."

Vance's face flickered a look of surprise, that he subdued quickly.  "I'll be honest, Major...I have no idea what our chances are.  But if the SDF-1 can survive, alone, for a year out there, the last thing I'm gonna do when she comes back to Earth space is roll over and die."  A grin of irony flickered across his face for a moment.

"One thing I've learned, fighting those aliens...it's amazing what some firm resolve and a little inventive thinking can accomplish.  Our gear may be outclassed...but I'd stack our pilots up against theirs every day, and history is full of stories about how the guy behind the stick is more important than the plane he's flying."

He wasn't sure exactly how confident he was of his own words...but he was confident enough to say them with conviction.  When and if it came to a last stand, Humanity would make a good showing for itself.  Of that, he was certain.

He just didn't know if there would be enough of them left for anyone to celebrate their resolve.

He forced that thought to the back of his mind, smiling and shaking hands, exchanging encouraging words with the base personnel...and glancing around at the others that had accompanied him with an expression that showed some degree of disbelief at the scale of the reaction.

"Bollocks!  Our gear is damn well good enough, our Valkyries can hold their own or better.  Even numbers we always win.  They got some aces, but their rank and file ain't all that.  Our pilots our as good or better, and our gear is often a damn sight better too in a dogfight, but you got to be on your toes."

She had stood up and looks a bit outraged.  Those regular pods were weak, sure then Z's had some stuff that was hard to take down, and they had better drives, but their Valkyries were outstanding.

Cain smiled, and decided he'd said enough and might be better if he say no more...least he reveal something the LC wanted kept to himself, and focused on eating his meal.

He did give Lt Jones a thumbs up of agreement with her sentiments but said nothing focusing on his own thoughts.

Cain answered with simple short answers for the greetings and thanks from the Base personnel.. unused to be treated like a hero... but it was nice he had to admit.

Bixby quirked a grin, and leaned over to Kelly.  "Sure, the Valkyries more than hold their own against the aliens...but most of the Earth defense forces aren't flying Valkyries.  The Lancers are lucky if they stack up one-to-one against alien craft, and those are the primary craft of the UEDF for orbital and suborbital defense.  If the odds were only fifty to one and everyone on our side was in a Veritech, I'm sure the Commander would have a different outlook.  The odds are more like five hundred to one, and only maybe a third of our defensive force is in Veritechs...so he's got a point..."

He was analytical in his assessment...dispassionate and apparently accepting of the situation as he saw it.  Made no sense to him to downplay the odds...if they made it sound like every Human defender was worth sixty or seventy of the enemy, morale would take a huge hit when the ranks of the more basic Lancers starting getting cut down.

"If Command looks at our tactical assessment and tweaks the battle plans so our pilots aren't all flying textbook formations, the odds will be better.  But I don't think there's been a war yet where some Old Guard officers insisted that adherence to outdated tactics would somehow turn the tide...so you can bet some of the groups, especially planet-side, won't be quick to change things up.  There's only a handful of people down there who flew in the initial attack...most of the experienced pilots got rounded up and shifted to the Ranger or Moon Base."

The words were kept at a low tone, just above a murmur, just loud enough to be audible at close distance.  To most of the people in the mess hall, they barely even added to the background noise.

"The Ranger should be here in another couple of hours.  Then they'll get down to the business of deciding just how much information we really have and what we can share, officially."

She nods slowly to Chief Bixby, her face becoming more serious.  She also replies in a low tone so that they are not overheard.

"Right Chief.  Valkyries were made to fight those giants specifically.  I will.. not say more."

She nods more.

"I hope they listen, we got us a fighting chance if we use what we have learned.  Just wanted to give them a little confidence... but did not think about the Lancers a bit.  A little hope, right?"

She smiles then to the Chief.

"Thank you."

Bixby returned the smile.  "Even as limited as the Lancers are, they should do better if they can adopt some of the tactics we've been developing.  Part of the problem we had when Earth was first hit was that the Lancers all flew in tight formations...the thought being that the combined firepower of the formation could cover up for lesser maneuverability.  And if they'd been flying against an equivalent force, it probably would."

He shrugged, and continued, "Against the kind of firepower that was brought to bear, it just increased the casualty rate.  One big blast, instead of taking down a single plane, brought down half a squadron.  The Veritechs don't fly like that...the moment combat is imminent, the formation scatters and it's a furball, with pilots largely handling their own confrontations but knowing that help is just a call away.  Cuts way down on mass casualties, and makes it damned near impossible for the aliens to try and counter our tactics, because they just don't think in terms of individual actions.  They fly like the Lancers did...except they had the firepower to make it work.  The good news for us is, that makes their flight patterns predictable."

He looked around the room, speculatively.  "If Command allows it...and if the flight ops officers are smart...they'll get copies of all our gun-cam footage.  Better yet, they'll get the holo replicas of our battles, because then you can see the whole confrontation, instead of the narrow view of single planes.  They can look at what we did, how we changed it as we learned, how the results improved...and how the aliens didn't change.  More importantly, they'll start teaching pilots that when the aliens do THIS, it means you can do THAT..." and he used his hands as representatives of the combat craft in a fight, maneuvering around each other, "and you come out with the bogey in your sights and ready to go to guns on him."

He frowned again, looking at his drink for a moment, and added, "IF Command allows it..."

"If Command has any sense, they will definitely allow it, but I suspect anyone given such information will also be put under a gag order of some sort, at least in relation to civilians." Hanako sighs as she stands with the others, letting the ones with more information, authority, or just stronger opinions speak.

Mostly because if she started to truly speak her mind, nobody would be able to get her to stop.  And she might get a few demotions for insubordination.

Yes, this is well after spending a great deal of time around Bixby, too.

"It would be nice if Command was as sensible as Captain Wilson and the others."

Cain shrugged, still stuffing down his meal,"... I just wish we knew what the aliens wanted? They are not attacking earth or our ground military installations...when we know they have the fleet size to pound earth silly, and they seem to be chasing the battlefortress.  But looking at their huge armada... they don't need it and yet they haven't blown it to kingdom come yet either... so what do they want? Why are they here in sol system? They clearly have been building a war fleet for some time ~ its huge but for what purpose? Who are they fighting that they'd even need a fleet that large? If they were just here to conquer why have they pretty much ignored earth?  It makes no damned sense honestly!"
This message was last edited by the player at 05:53, Thu 13 Oct 2022.

Vance had set back, partly taking advantage of the chance to get something to eat, and partly to hear what his people had to say on the subject.  He'd known them long enough to realize that they were doing a fair bit of self-censorship...and he appreciated that.  Wouldn't look good to call someone out in front of the crowd.

"Well, in all fairness, there's not much we've learned about the aliens that would be any use to the civilians.  Maybe to civil defense forces, but those were getting pretty scant around the planet, last I heard."  There was a chance, of course, that UEDF had reconstituted many of those units, which had all gotten chewed up in the initial alien assault of the planet...he hadn't been planetside in...

He blinked a couple of times in surprise as he realized he'd completely lost track of how long it had been.  His last time planetside had been shoreleave, and that felt like a lifetime ago.

"If I know Captain Wilson, he'll make the offer to share our updated tactics...I figure the orbital commanders will all accept it right away, they've all faced off against alien formations at some point and have an appreciation for what we'll be tackling."  His voice dropped as he said, in tones meant for the group at the table, "It's the command structure planetside that I'm not sure about."  He shot a meaningful look at his people, thinking about the awkward 'welcome' they'd received when they arrived, from an officer in an old-style UEDF uniform...something that marked him as one of the 'old guard' officers on the planet.  "They may have their own notions about what will work and what won't, and they lack the actual experience in the field to really be aware of how well their intended tactics will hold up."  He sighed, and continued, in an even quieter tone, "Then it becomes a question of whether their egos are made of the same stuff as their brass, or whether they'll listen to experienced voices."  History of the last century or so pointed strongly to the former.

Bixby regarded Cain, his mind still obviously in analytical mode as he processed the barrage of questions and statements the lieutenant uttered.  "Well...looking at their pattern--well, what little of it we've actually seen, so far, at least--they may not need the SDF-1 as a warship.  Like you said, they have plenty of those, and there always seems to be more coming from somewhere.  But there must be something about it that they DO need, or else why bother with the long-duration harassment?  I mean, I only know some scant information about it...the technology base for the Veritechs came from it, although I don't know how, and I believe all of our facilities to produce additional Veritechs were copied from it, but I couldn't swear to that one.  But it was on Earth for, what...ten years?  Completely alien technology, most of which was completely unlike anything we'd ever seen or dreamed of before.  I'd bet all of your commissions that we were only just starting to scratch the surface of the secrets aboard that ship."

He quirked a grin, and added quietly, "Of course, that's a completely safe bet for me to make.  If I'm wrong, I lose nothing..."

Hanako listens as the others discuss why the SDF-1 hasn't been outright destroyed, and why the aliens haven't used their readily apparent overwhelming force to decimate any and all opposition, because they all know that if the aliens really wanted to, there wouldn't even be a fight.  Having had plenty of time to muse over that herself, she offered her opinion.

"As Bixby says, it could be a technological thing, as what I know about the SDF-1's capabilities place it above what we've seen from the enemy forces.  After all, that main cannon blast when it was still on Earth was far and away more destructive than any individual ship, even their largest, has not even come close.  Alternately, it could be of deep cultural or political importance to them, and we really do have no idea about that side of them.  We have not exactly had a chance to talk, after all.  But whatever it is, it is working in our favor, and I for one am glad for it."

As it became apparent that the five pilots from the Ranger had no further enlightenment to offer, conversation again lapsed into pockets of murmuring with an occasional outburst of laughter...but there was a tension, an excitement in the air.  However, the Ranger detachment was left to finish their meal in peace.

After they finished up, a young private...young enough to make all five of them feel old, by comparison, although much of that was based on experience, more than age...escorted them to a suite of rooms off a common lounge.  "With the General's compliments," the private said, managing not to stammer in front of what were apparently significant VIPs.  "The General thought you all might appreciate a chance to clean up and relax a little before the Ranger docks."  He paused for a moment, seeming to mentally check to make sure he'd said everything correctly, then gave a small nod, a relieved look starting to creep into his face, before he tensed up and saluted sharply, nervous all over again that he'd almost overlooked important military protocol.

Cain looks at the cabin suite, and smiles sadly, "...feel drained.  Wish I'd brought my guitar~ ..oh yeah I smashed it."

He looks at the private depressed expression on his face, "...I guess getting a bottle of booze to nurse the night away is right out huh?"
This message was last edited by the player at 17:07, Tue 18 Oct 2022.

With a chuckle, Hanako looks up at Cain and says, "Easy, Edwards.  Bixby has not broken this one in, so we will need to let our ranking officer speak for us here.  Remember, we're not on the Ranger right now."  She then looks at the poor kid who is clearly out of his depth and gives him a sympathetic smile and shrug.  As she says, it is time to let the 'ranking officer' speak, and she gently nudges Vance's side with an elbow, although due to her size it comes dangerously close to his butt instead.
This message was last edited by the player at 17:02, Tue 18 Oct 2022.

Vance flinched, ever so slightly, at the elbow, as he'd already opened his mouth to speak when Hanako had mentioned 'ranking officer' and the elbow actually distracted him momentarily from what he'd been about to say.  He quickly gathered his wits, though.

"I don't think we're going to be here long enough for you to make good use of a bottle of booze, Cain.  We were only a few hours ahead of the Ranger, and between the debrief and that scene at the mess hall, we've lost two of those...I'm guessing Ranger will be docking in three, maybe three and a half hours?"  He looked to Bixby, as the Chief was infinitely better at on-the-fly mathematics than Vance had ever been.

"That leaves us enough time for a good shower, if they have them available, and maybe a short nap, if you're so inclined."  Vance had been on the Ranger long enough that any occasion for a nap usually was taken...he'd mastered the art of falling asleep quickly.  "But anything more than a couple of shots will have you inebriated when the Ranger arrives, and we have no idea what our assignment may be at that point...so I'd strongly advise against drinking anything stronger than soda or coffee, really."

Cain stiffened and frowned, "I wasn't thinking of drinking the whole bottle alone?!? Right?!?"

He huffed, making a dismissive gesture with his hand, "...whatever, See you all in two clicks... I'll just crash some rack time ~ alone!"

Then walked into his cabin and shut the door.

---

Inside he looked around... bleakly.  Then got out of his flight suit...

It was the silence of solitude that was... often times the hardest cause there were no distractions, no easy social self-delusions one could grasp on ~ to keep the painful memories away. The failures from screaming at the corners of the mind, the haunting faces of comrades lost in battle...

Cain found there was a radio in the room and was actually pleased to find a channel playing jazz.  Slipping out of his flight boots he decided not to turn out the lights... the dark was worse when he was in this kind of mood.  He simply laid down on his back forearm over his face...listening to the jazz and tried to sleep, and hope not to dream.

He grumbled, 'Some people drink to remember, some people drink to forget ~ neither way seems to work for me.  Lucky me.'

Eventually, his breathing became regular as sleep came.. jazz playing in his ears...

A quiet, gentle rap on the door sounded (at each of the rooms), with a muffled voice on the outside stating courteously, a few seconds later, "Ranger is ten minutes out from docking, our CO thought you'd want to know..."

Bixby, in his room, hadn't been sleeping, so much as he'd fallen into some kind of meditative trance.  He found the time spent in the practice was very helpful...so many little details competing for his attention, his meditations were often a mental sorting, and filing things away if they didn't seem they would be relevant any time in the near future.  His eyes opened slowly at the knock, and he nodded to himself at the message.

"Thank you," he acknowledged, and began sorting himself out to go welcome the ship in properly.

Vance had learned, early on, to catch sleep where and when he could, so the downtime meant a solid nap for him.  Part of that, however, was having an almost preternatural sense of time passing and an uncanny ability to become fully awake instantly.

When the knock came on his door, Vance was already dressed and pulled the door open.  The poor yeoman who'd been sent to alert him about the Ranger's arrival jumped in surprise.  "Uh...sorry, LC.  The Ranger's coming in to dock..."

Vance gave a nod.  "Right on schedule.  Thank you..."  He gave a reassuring smile to the (very!) young man, and headed for the docking facilities.

For her part, Hanako knew that taking a proper nap on a bed would likely give her bedhead, and she really wanted to avoid that, so she instead sat in a somewhat comfortable chair and meditated.¹  So it was that when the yeoman knocked on the door, she startled and stood up, hastily making sure she appeared presentable before opening the door with a smile - and then a yawn, which she was very much trying not to let happen in front of the poor soldier.  Fortunately for her, he had moved on from the door by the time she opened it, and she let out a quiet sigh of relief before more properly straightening out her uniform and heading out to the docking facilities, meeting Vance on the way and giving him a happy smile.

"I see you also want to welcome everyone when they arrive," she said in a cheerful tone.  Clearly, meditating² did wonders for her mood.

¹She took a nap.
²Napping.

Cain at first did not stir at the knocking at his door.. the jazz music covering the sound when the knocking paused for the music to cease at the end of a song and begin again he woke with a start!

He had not ...'napped' well... and he pondered the need perhaps for some sleeping pills if the Doc would allow it.  Bleary eyed he got up went to the door and cracked it..

His tone was ... petulant, "What?"

When explained by the Young yeoman, "Uhm.. sorry sir. The Ranger has arrived ah~... "

Cain suddenly realized how he must appear and his curt tone and raised a hand, "Sorry ki~ er... Yeoman... ", looking at his chest uniform tag, "...Rand. Not a great rest. Thanks.. I'll be there."

He closed the door with no further word.. got into his flightsuit but not bothering to zip it up fully ... pulled on his boots. Looked in the cabin mirror and grimaced commenting, "... Flight suit ~ Check, Boots ~ Check, Still look like Shit ~ Big Check!!"
The critical accusing voice in the back of his mind jabbed at him ~ noting how like his father he appeared just now...

{If only Dad could see me now...? He'd sneer first ~ Always first! Then laugh... ... Fuck him!!}

He sighed tousled his wild sandy brown mop of hair to ...'sort of' cover the bed head... and headed out of the cabin...

His step was almost a light jog without actually 'jogging'.. but he met up a few seconds later with LC Vance, and Lt Hanako.. slowing to match their stride... he had no words... and made no comments his slowing to match their stride in step speaking nothing but conveying his support and solidarity with his fellow pilots...

He indeed looked like shit, but the fire in his emerald eyes and the set determination of his jaw said.. he was prepared to take on the universe and defend his fellow pilots and humanity to the Bitter End... if needed...
This message was last edited by the player at 09:52, Tue 31 Jan 2023.