The corvette responds rather promptly.

"I.N.S. Sharshana, this is the Rosax Guardian," an even female voice begins crisply - and, sure enough, the transponder ping is returning that identity. "Are you here searching for this yacht? It bears Navy markings. We were hired to investigate disappearances in the area, and just found this wreck out here. I'm not sure what that complex is down below; they haven't responded to us, so far."

There is a short pause. "If you do intend to take over search operations, I'll stand down the team that we're readying to go over there, but I do want us recognized as the finders, if so. You may see it as mercenary, being navy, but we aren't bankrolled by the Imperial treasury, and this find could have been our payday."

"Sensors team, do you detect anything on the planetoid?" inquired Iita.
The Sensor team rolled 7 using 2d6+2 ((3,2))

"Understood, Guardian. Standby" Jacqueline transmitted. Omce they were no longer broadcasting, she looked to the captain. "A navy wreck, and Rosax security here.. that's ominous."

The Baron's posture and demeanor changed in an instant. A smile crossed his face, almost even a proud look and his tone shifted from its typical iron hard edge to the friendliest tone that anyone on the crew had ever hard the Captain use.

"Rosax Guardian we are here on routine patrol. The Imperium appreciates your attempts to conduct a rescue. Your efforts will be duly noted and I will pass the message along to get your salvage claim recognized.

Hold while we get into position just in case an emergency evacuation is needed. If you have rescued any survivors please start prepping them for transfer once we arrive. Sharshana out."

As soon as the comms were cut the familiar anger and tension rippled through Reziilka, and when he issued orders there was that gleam in his eyes as he sensed the prey before him.

"Lay in a course for the wreck. Keep our weapons and systems offline but the second we get within optimal firing range we are going to power up and lock onto them. They think they can raid an Imperium ship and have the audacity to claim it for salvage? They really must think we are idiots.

Marines, stand by for boarding actions. Weapons, prepare firing solutions to target their engines but you must do it only with passive sensors. The second we fire up the targeting systems proper they will likely bolt.

With any luck we can take them alive and bring them back to high command for a proper and public execution for their crimes. But barring that a burial at space would work as well."

The Chief-Engineer was surprised by the captain-baron's tone. To anyone who knew him, this speech was out-of-persona and bad acting, but to any other, it may almost look the part [OOC: although if I was the GM, I would still ask the player to roll for Deception, to see if he breaks character on a 2 ;)]. While she checked the passive sensors and fire-control data feed, she felt the captain's ruse was very relevant and his orders were the best tactical option to choose.

"Acknowledged, Sharshana."

The corvette remained quiescent as the Sharshana began its approach. Its weapons were offline and there was no jump-surge; the M-drive was powered but idle.

While pinpointing them at this distance was out of the question, there were low-grade power emanations from the structures on the planet, consistent with the sort of generators that would be deployed to run a small rockball facility. Visually, the outlines indicated a landing area surrounded by outbuildings, though perturbations in the landscape signaled that there were areas completely belowground as well.

In contrast, the yacht appeared completely lifeless, which took on a more ominous implication when Gvoellaekh, speaking from his duty station at the aft bridge, stated - a little more slow-spoken than even his usual, as if punctuating every word - "Sir. That is the Sunburst Scatter. Our entry in the Trin-Deneb yacht race."

The Baron gave a slow nod. So far so good. If Rosax had no idea they had been found out the Sharshana could pull right alongside them and punch a hole right in their M-Drive before a fight could even start. Then they could proceed with the boarding and "enhanced" interrogation.

Not that anyone else knew it right now but seeing the Sunburst Scatter in such a shape meant that he wasn't expecting any of the Rosax crew to survive. He would get what he needed from them and then let the cold vacuum of space dispense the appropriate justice.

"Damn" Jacqueline said quietly, and closed her eyes for a moment, mourning and praying for the crew of the Sunburst Scatter.

"When will we be issuing the demand for the Guardian to surrender, sir?"
This message was last edited by the player at 05:41, Mon 09 May 2022.

The Baron was studying the tactical map, the intensity in his eyes as if he was hoping he could close the gap through sheer force of will.

"If they let us we will engage at optimal firing range for our batteries. If they show signs of running earlier then that is when we strike."

All was quiet as the Sharshana steadily closed the distance on the Rosax Guardian, which was holding its position near the wreck of the Sunburst Scatter. The distances clicked down, one diameter at a time.

The ship was nearing that optimal firing range when all hell broke loose planetside.

Tactical systems began to signal warnings as the ship's sensors detected multiple missile launches from five positions across the rockball's surface, and fusion signatures flared in several locations as minor vessels powered up - without doubt, skipping a checklist or two along the way - and put power to their M-drives. It was probably no surprise that the Rosax Guardian's drive systems came to life a moment later, thrusting hard away from the planet at a perpendicular angle to the Sharshana's course.

Chasing it down wouldn't be a problem. Though still some distance off, the streams of incoming missiles, along with who-knew-what from the gaggle of vessels rising from the surface, might be.
This message was last edited by the GM at 17:34, Thu 12 May 2022.

The Baron transitioned smoothly into his battle stance.

"Gunnery stations open fire. Defensive batteries prepare for missile and small craft interception. Nuclear screens on standby if radioactive weapons are detected. This is it. Today we wipe out Rosax for the glory of the Imperium! Remember, we are the spear of the Imperium!"

Jacqueline gasped. Odd as it might sound, she seldom thought of naval service as something dangerous; it was there to engage her mathematics and let her see the galaxy. Who was going to challenge the Imperium this far into Imperial space? A navigation specialist, she did not quite know what to do with herself in a fight and concentrated on plotting potential courses the enemy could take and trying desperately not to look frightened. She looked over at the captain and tried to take inspiration from him.

The Sharshana came about and sped toward the Rosax Guardian, easily outpacing the far smaller vessel; moments later several of the fusion bays lit the void between them, easily hulling the smaller vessel and reducing much of it to slag; flames plumed briefly from the wreck as the air mix from the life support mingled with hydrogen in a high-pressure and high-temperature context, though the invading vaccum quickly snuffed all trace of it.

Gunnery was also tracking a mass of incoming missiles. There were - if sensors were catching everything amidst the confusion - five points of fire on the planetary surface, very likely buried beneath it, all of them launching without cease. Stopping that would mean spinal strikes, but that wouldn't be an option until they came about and drew closer.

As for the mass of smaller vessels that had begun to take off... they weren't heading for the Sharshana. No, they were clearly scattering, presumably with the intent to jump out as soon as they reached even a partially-safe distance. There was no reasonable way to catch them all, and more of them were likely to escape due to the Sharshana's bolt away from the planet in pursuit of the Guardian - very possibly a calculated move on the Guardian's part, buying the others more time to escape!

There wasn't any other activity from the main surface facility; either everyone was trying to abandon the place on the smaller vessels, or they were keeping any further tricks in reserve.

"The rats are leaving the ship...", mused  Lt Tsetsegmaa, with a scorn worthy of her captain himself.

Thenroy nodded with satisfaction as the smaller ship was knocked out.

"Dispatch recovery vehicles to capture any survivors. I want a bay full of prisoners to take back to high command and stand trial for what they've done. Come about and prepare for bombardment of the asteroid. If they think this is a fight they can win then we will will have to change their minds one bombardment at a time."

Jacqueline felt a thrill of excitement during the battle, none of the moral qualms she had back on Beaxon. She calmed down a bit and wasn't so nervous when the enemy vessel was destroyed. Always good to remember the Imperial Navy had no rivals... not this far into Imperial space, anyways.

"Coming about, aye." she responded to the Captain.

"Pretty loyal for a bunch of mercenaries... sacrificing themselves to let their comrades escape" Jacqueline said. "I think there's something more to them than we know. Especially with this whole base... seems like quite a setup"

The Sharshana undertook a stately half-spin to face the asteroid as the drives worked to slow and then reverse its momentum. The first of the missiles were closing rapidly, and it appeared that there were many more yet to come.

The small flurry of ships that had lifted off were indeed scattering, clearly intent on making it to the jump limit (or at least a less-dangerous distance for an emergency jump) rather than on intercepting the Sharshana. Getting a solid read on them for later identification would be problematic, however: the sensor stations were thoroughly occupied with the task of jamming as many of the missiles as possible, and taking even one or two off of that task would greatly increase the amount of ordnance that made it through. Comms was likewise wrestling with the task of trying to pick out any information from the midst of the chaos.

Gunnery was ready on both fronts: the main batteries and the spinal cannon were all ready to fire on Thenroy's orders, distance allowing, and the point defense systems and turrets arrayed all over the ship were close to first engagement with the incoming fire. Everyone would soon learn the worth of the preparations and drills that had followed the news of the missing missile shipments.


"I agree with Lieutenant Yune," Gvoellakh spoke, ponderously as was his custom, over the holo-comm system between the aft bridge - where he was stationed per standard protocol - and the main one. "This is a strategic operation. For intelligence purposes, I recommend capture of the base rather than its destruction, Captain."

Thenroy considered Gvoellaekh's musings and then gave a nod.

"Gunnery, hold fire on the spinal weaponry. If we can contain their barrages with our defenses then we will try and capture the base intact. However if their weaponry proves a danger to the ship then we will destroy them and focus on the wreckage for intelligence.

Besides, it is likely if they are abandoning that base they have rigged it with traps or explosives to cover their tracks."

"Captain, may be the spinal mount could do a demonstration of force, blasting out a near asteroid, and then you'll threaten the same, and negotiate a surrender." She reflected one-half second more: "Of course you don't have to fulfill your promises to scoundrels."

Gunnery officer Sidare spoke up as well, having scrutinized the layout. "Sir, we should be able to strike the areas that they're launching missiles from without hitting the main base. If those launchers are powered from the base then it might cause them some issues, but unless they're actually running an ammunition feed all the way out to each of them then the structure itself should survive."
This message was last edited by the GM at 17:05, Thu 14 July 2022.

Jacqueline smiled gently. Between her success astrogating the ship here and her insight getting the XO's approval, she felt like she was on a roll. The captain pointing out the base was probably trapped certainly ruined any plans to explore it, though.

"I mostly agree, but we won't get a lot of surrenders if we go back on negotiations" Jacqueline responded to Iita.

"Those launcher should be easy to turn into ash" she said confidently. All the same, she flinched as the missiles approached.

In theory, the ship's protections should prevent any damage to the crew. In practice, who knew what advanced weapons the pirates managed to smuggle? Iita broadcasted an image of herself putting on her vacc suit.

"Tsetsegmaa to the Damage Controllers. Remember to cross-check the damage with human reports. Sometimes the damage also impacts the alerts, so if there's no alarm in a section, that does not mean it's safe."

She remembered she had a career to take care of. "Trust the crew and the captain.

Be confident people. The INS Sharshana is redoubtable and has already refused to give up and die even when gutted by enemy fire. She got her crew home many times and she’ll do it again!", she recited from an old engineer's rant. [All checks connected with emergency damage control (but not proper repairs) gain a +1 DM. There is no physical reason for this; it is a manifestation of the crew’s confidence in their ship’s ability to survive anything. Thus the crew will approach damage control with greater confidence and attempt tasks that might otherwise be given up as impossible.]

Thenroy bobs his head back and forth, visibly weighing the options being presented and then finally nods.

"Update. Gunnery target the launchers but try to avoid collateral damage on the main base. If possible. If not...so be it."

The Sharshana's point-defense systems and turrets provided a close-range display of destructive firepower and resulting pyrokinetics against the missiles that reached engagement range; it was either a spectacular or unnerving show depending on one's level of confidence, although the occasional stray warhead did make it through, producing a discernible thud that reverberated through the struck section of the ship, though the Sharshana's armor kept the damage at bay save for the occasional knocked-over deskware or other loose item sent tumbling. A lighter vessel, or even a squadron of such, would have been in very deep trouble.

The Sharshana's main gun powered, released, and cooled several times in succession, blasting into the planetoid's crust and sending material showering both across its surface and even into space. Two hits were enough to take out one launcher, producing a far more impressive chain-reaction explosion as the remaining missiles ignited; drilling down to the next launcher over took three, and the next one, its structure perhaps weakened by the tremors released by the other two, went up in a single hit.

Two more launchers remained, but the price of chasing the first ship and focusing on the launchers was that the other vessels had gained enough time to scatter and make jumps - not all of them at a completely safe distance, but far enough out that they'd probably made it somewhere.

The base itself appeared to be weathering the impacts relatively well; there was still power, and there had been comms operating right up until the last ship jumped. This implied that they still had people down there, and that their stay-behind was part of an organized (albeit perhaps improvised) plan; this was definitely not the work of a ragtag band of desperate cutthroats.

Iita silently cursed the captain. She told him the base wasn't going anywhere, and that they'd better chase the other pirate ships. Now they were escaping, to kill elsewhere, and all sensors were focused on the 'roid, so they didn't even record engine signatures...

This was also the reason why two ships had to travel in concert. Some navy tactics were still true after Ks of years...