OOC: Quick question - could Vehicular Combat be used against the attack?

Kal tried to spin a bit and avoid the fire incoming at him. He pulled the controls to fly almost sideways. His eyes flew about the battlefield and he spotted what he thought was the enemy commander for the attack. His eyes narrowed. "Alright, DD-3, let's see if we can end this before anyone else gets hurt on our side."

He took in a deep breath, steeled his nerve and shot forward, angling to get a good and as-safe-as-could-be attack run.

OOC: Well...that's a nat 20.
18:47, Today: Kalidyn Sunrider rolled 29 using 1d20+9.  Pilot.

19:27, Today: Kalidyn Sunrider rolled 17,31 using d20+7,5d10.  Laser Cannon vs TIE commander.
This message was last edited by the player at 01:27, Mon 07 June 2021.

For a short, glorious moment, it didn't even feel like you were really flying. The inherent jarriness of the engines, of moving your body around in the cabin, all faded away, almost as if you were floating through space. You instinctual put your ship just where it needed to be in order to dodge nearly every shot from the ensuing fighters, while still keeping your eyes on the target.

The TIE Fury, the designated craft of the Raid Commander, led the charge. The fighters behind and alongside were in a tight formation, which while allowing for maximum firepower at a concentrated target, did not allow a great amount of maneuverability. They didn't expect a single, solitary fighter to make such a bold, almost stupid flanking maneuver alone, but all it took was a solitary precise shot.

The Laser Cannons found their mark, striking the bracing points for both starboard wings. The Commander nearly lost all control of their craft. The tight formation spread into immediate chaos and disorder, to avoid colliding with one another as a result. Many were not lucky in avoiding outright collisions; the TIE Fury had, but was still not in an operable position. It headed back to the planet below, with the rest of the fighters following behind.

As it went, you receive a communication in your cockpit, on one of the secure channels. A pilot, presumably the Commander you just shot.

"You were lucky, this time. I should like to see how you compare, pilot to pilot, alone. Enjoy your victory, while it lasts, it was well earned. Happy Hunting..."

The transmission cut as soon as it started, leaving no chance to respond.

Kalidyn was almost surprised as the enemy was, he assumed, that his ill-thought-out plan actually worked - and that he didn't die in the process! He was grinning like an idiot right up until the transmission came in. The smile slid off his face and turned in to a frown.

"Yeah, yeah." he said to himself.

"What do YOU think, DD-3? Better lucky than good? Or both?" He then shook his head. "Heck, what am I asking you for, you just met me."

He watched the enemy fighters to make sure they weren't re-engaging before turning back to the Nebula to see if there was any more to do. He expected he would get either a com or a 'dressing down' in person later for 'glory seeking', even though that wasn't his intent.

"Results are more important than process." The droid chirped on-screen "Lucky? Good? Who cares? We won, and that's all that really matters."

Getting everyone back in the hangar took longer than getting them out. A number of other ships took point, look outs for a possible second wave or counter attack. As your turn approached and you slowly manuevered through the hangar, you could see there was plenty of excitement and positive energy for having successfully fought back the First Order. There was a crowd gathered around the docking location for your ship, cheering and applauding your bravery.
There was someone waiting especially close to the ladder.

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As soon as your feet found solid ground, she gave a pretty smile as she wrapped her hands around your neck and pulled you in for a kiss, living up to the reputations of Zeltron passions.

"I don't suppose you would mind flying some more sorties together?" She asked as she broke the kiss.

Before an answer could be given, you hear the voice of the Wing Commander.

"Well, Sunrider, I see you wasted no time in formally meeting your Sponsor, Tess."
This message was last edited by the player at 20:43, Fri 18 June 2021.

Kal smiled at DD-3's words. There was wisdom in it, he supposed. Getting hung up on the details and process wasn't always the best way to go.

He saw a crowd gathering and winced slightly. He wasn't looking for glory or cheers, he'd simply done what he thought would end things as quickly as possible - and he was sure the Commander would have some words for him.

He was not at all prepared for the Zeltron kiss that he received when he arrived. He blinked rapidly a few times. And then the Commander spoke and he was wondering what he'd gotten himself in to. "Uhhh...hi? Sure?"

He licked his lips and looked for the Commander. "Do the Sponsors always greet like that here, Commander?"

"I should  hope not, Junior Grade..." Dorne crossed her arms as she looked at her flirtatious subordinate.

"Negative Ma'am. I've kept my hands to myself with all the other people I've sponsored," Tess's official, professional behavior seemed to be in short bursts "Of course, none of the other sponsees were as handsome."

"Lieutenant!" Dorne shouted in a quick response

"Kidding!" Tess responded quickly and defensively "I promise, this will be the first and last time you catch me in a moment of possible fraternization."

"It had better." She pointed out of the hangar down the P-way you came in through. "The Captain would like to debrief you both, personally. You know the way, lead young mister Sunrider, and do not delay."

As the two of you start to make your way, you here a call from behind you "Tess! Sunrider!"

"...Good flying out there you two."

Kal did the best he could to school his features at the interplay between the two women, and tried not to blush at being called handsome. He DID, however, note that Tess specified it would be the first and last time that the Commander would catch her. Might have just been a word choice.

He gave a wary nod to the Commander, thinking it was unusual that the Captain would want to debrief him on his first...well...anything, really.

As they walked he couldn't help it. "Professional or not, it was a surprising but pleasant way to meet you, Lt."

He then got serious once more for the debrief.

"Oh please don't do that." She said in quiet disgust "I'm a person, not a title. Start calling me Ma'am, and I'm going to start looking for my great aunt. I'm going to call you Kal, so you may as  well just call me Tess. At least between us."

Kal almost missed a step, but recovered quickly, though blinking a few times at her. He smiled, "Well that's two 'first times' with you already. You're on a roll." He shook his head. "Never had a superior officer not want to have the rank used and respected all the time."

He gave a half-shrug and tentatively tried it out, though he had to force himself just a little. "Okay...Tess. Thanks."
This message was last edited by the player at 05:59, Wed 23 June 2021.

She waited until you both took the ladderwell to the deck below before she commented. "Imagine what other 'first times' you'll have if you stick around." She said coyly "I support the mission of the Resistance with all I've got, but I don't abide alot of the rules and structure that comes with it. One of the junior enlisted could have an idea that saves the fleet, but it has to go through a dozen steps before anyone with any power can hear it, and it'll get mangled to death along the way. But, if that's what it takes, than I'll play my part."

The P-way to the Captain's Quarters was rather obvious; the bulkheads along the way were decorated and there was a carpet out along the way. Tess approached the hatch, but waited for a moment.

"Remember we're not in trouble...probably. If this were Captain's Mast, they'd put us in our dress uniforms first. We'll be fine..."

With that, she gave a solid three knocks on the metal hatch and waited for a response before entering. Standing at the opposite end of a large meeting table was the Captain.

https://i.pinimg.com/564x/56/9...515099538e70e0df.jpg" data-lightbox="images-msg-91">https://i.pinimg.com/564x/56/9...515099538e70e0df.jpg" alt=''>

Kal's eyes widened at her and then he shook his head letting a breath out slowly. Oh she was a FLIRT alright. He'd never met a woman like her before. He was going to have to be careful as she seemed like a casual heartbreaker - maybe not even an intentional one.

"...heh." He then nodded slowly. "Okay. I feel the same I think. The mission matters but I'm not the biggest fan of bureaucracy." He smiled. "But...I love to fly."

He got serious once more as they approached their destination. He listened to what she had to say and gave a shallow nod. It was a little comforting. He had been wondering why a personal debrief from a Captain was needed after all.

He took in a deep breath and followed her inside, saluting the Captain once he was inside and saw her.

The Captain returned a prompt, picturesque salute before sitting down.

"Thank you both for coming so quickly. It's my policy to put a face to a name of everyone in my command once they come on board, especially my junior officers. Ideally, it would have happened before a battle. I'm glad that you, and your sponsor both survived the battle, and did even better than surviving. It would seem the two of you are well adapted to each other. What are your thoughts, Ensign?"

Kal hesitated for just a moment but then nodded, not even look over at Tess before replying. "Of course, Captain! I was just happy to help do what I could." Only then did he glance at, and nod to, Tess. "I welcome every opportunity to learn more, and the Lt. seems more than capable. It would be an honor to work with her, learn from her experience."

"Well, there's plenty of experience to go around in your Wing" She said briefly as she looked down at her notes "It's normal for squadrons to fly together in formation, get to know each other, and so on, but Commander Dorne takes a very different approach. I was skeptical of such a deviation from our normal doctrine, sending you all out on individual missions, trusting in your own recognizance, but it's worked, with one exception..."

The Captain leaned forward in her seat "The two of you seem to feed off your confidence and competence. What you did attacking that ship singlehanded was dangerous. I need to ask the two of you something, and I need the details of what I am to provide you not leave this room, and that you keep each other in check. Are we perfectly clear?"

Kal wasn't sure what was going on yet. He wasn't sure if he was being complimented, reprimanded, or what. It seemed he wasn't in trouble...or at least not really, but he wasn't sure if he was being given a bigger opportunity because of the risk he took, or because he'd pulled it off. Or punishment. Time would tell.

He didn't hesitate at the thought of keeping a secret, but he did barely glance at tess out of the corner of his eye, "Of course, Captain! Crystal clear!"

"The First Order has a spy inside the Rebellion." She said grimly "They've managed to break into our encrypted communications systems, maybe entirely. You receiving a message from one of their fighters on our network confirms that."

She looked down at the floor for second "And, we've lost a ship recently. A ship with some good friends, I'm afraid. We're still trying to find answers, but we haven't had contact with it in some time. The last known destination was a system devoid  of civilization, we used  it as part of a route to circumvent the blockades around the Hydian Way. If our ship went down there, it's because the First Order knew they were there, and set a trap. I'm sending you two to go fix this..."

Tess' eyes were eyed, and she squirmed uncomfortably in her seat, but was quiet.

Kal couldn't have kept the look of surprise off of his face if he wanted to at the news bomb dropped. He was shocked at the thought of someone spying for the First Order! He could scarcely believe it to be true - but then not everyone had a strong moral compass. Some people would do anything for money.

The news kept getting worse. A ship lost as well. "This is...terrible." He shook his head, looking down. He drew in a deep breath and looked back up at the Captain. "Of course, Captain. Whatever you need." He glanced at Tess, then back at the Captain. "May I ask what the plan is?"

"I need you to get out there and find a solution so that the Nebula can get out there and do what it needs to do." She said with direct crypticness "If they can intercept and read our message traffic, I can't put this ship anywhere that's going to be a significant risk. I also can't show my hand that we know we're being spied on."

"The two of you are too junior for their intelligence apparatus to pay any attention to you, which is to our benefit. I need you to approach this from two fronts; Software and hardware. We need a new encryption protocol, something they haven't broken yet. Upgraded communication arrays are also necessary. Too much of what the Rebellion uses for it's technology is adapted or improvements on Imperial technology."

"Lastly Ensign, what I'll tell you is what I've told everyone else in your Wing. What I most desperately need is another ship. The Nebula is great, but I cannot win this war as the last capital ship the Rebellion has. The ground game is getting better, we're approaching stalemate with the First Order, but that won't last. If we can't find something to push things to our advantage and soon, we will lose this war. Find me someone."

Kal couldn't help it, he looked a little surprised, maybe a bit overwhelemed. He tried to keep his voice calm as he spoke. "You want the two of us...to go investigate what happened to a lost ship, find a way to stop the First Order from tapping in to our coms and/or find a new encryption system for us, as well as find a new ship if we can??"

His voice had risen a bit near the end so he quickly cut off and cleared his throat lightly, looking down. "I just want to make sure I'm understanding all that is being asked of us, ma'am."

"Do not go searching for that ship." The Captain stressed. "With how long it's been quiet, it's gone, destroyed. Best we can do is look for distress signals. Even if you found them, your one man fighters wouldn't be able to help the situation." She paused a moment, taking a deep breath as she considered her words so as to not seem heartless "The Resistance has already committed what assets it can afford to risk in the search."

"What I am asking from you is considerable, but that's what it's going to take. Victory will come only through the acts of ordinary people daring to do extraordinary things, and after what I just saw, you two are up to that task. Should you succeed in any of the tasks I've set before you, medals and brevet promotions will certainly be in order. Why, if you can find us a new warship, I'll even let you command it" She said with a small laugh.

The Captain made a few clicks on a datapad near her arm, which was connected to a large display embedded in the bulkhead.

"What you move forward on is your choice. This is the information I can personally provide you..." The display first appeared with a planet with a strange purple atmosphere "This is where the Rebellions top cryptologic minds are, in a place known as Hypo Station. These people hide in plain sight, and despite their unquestioned loyalty, publicly deny any association with the Resistance or the Republic. We still don't know if the First Order implanted a spy or if they broke our encryption, so don't go making accusations you can't back up."

The screen shifted to another planet, one far more familiar "This is Correllia, undisputably the greatest shipbuilders in the galaxy, and has been under the control of the First Order since the beginning. One of their first moves was against the system, during The Blitz. If we could open up that avenue, that would change the entire theater of war, but it would take a force beyond measure to make that happen."

Shifting to another system, in a strange, murky brown color "In the meantime, we've been stuck with this. The Collective Manufacturing Confederacy, or CMC. They play both sides, building First Order and Resistance weapons of war alongside one another. These cretins built the Nebula as well as your ships. It's possible that someone took money under the table to secretly betray that nuetrality, or maybe someone was just sloppy. If they have technical schematics of our systems, they could develop bypasses that go completely around our encryption. We've tried to get them to break and work solely for us, but they believe that building weapons for the First Order is their best insurance policy. That if they stopped building weapons, that Kylo Ren or Snoke or whoever would simply disintegrate the planet with the Starkiller base. We tried to assure them that the threat was over, but after the threat of Exagol, negotiations have stalled, and I don't blame them."

"The mission is yours" She said as the display went dark and she stood up "You have the delegated authority to maneuver as you see prudent and appropriate, and the delegated responsibility commensurate with that authority."

Kal straightened up even a bit more at the Captain's directive about not going after the ship. He didn't lean away from her, however. That would have indicated fear, and been disrespectful. He listened as she went on at length.

He took note of the information, nodding occasionally. It was still a lot. And there were multiple potential facets. He didn't make a motion or shake his head or say anything, but he didn't care about medals or accolades. That wasn't why he was there, why he flew. Glory hunting led to mistakes and overconfidence.

"Understood, Captain. I can't speak for the Lt. but I'll do what I can." He glanced at Tess and then back at the Captain. "Dismissed to converse and strategize, Captain? Or do you want us to discuss and strategize our first objective here with you?"

He knew what his first choice was but would be interested to hear what Tess thought.

"Affirm, Ensign" She said, with an added warning. "Remember that you are being deployed as deniable assets. I  don't need to know, and I don't want to know. Take some time to relax, enjoy your well earned victory, get to know each other. Make sure that the two of you are fully prepared when you leave."

Kal listened to what was said and gave a slow nod. Then he gave another salute to the Captain, before turning to leave unless Tess had anything to say. He opened the door for her and then followed her out.

After he closed the door once more he said, "Well. That was...a lot." He let out a breath. "I...guess we should go talk?"

"It was." She said with a nod. "She knows how to say a lot within a short period of time, which seems like the inverse of most of the other officers." She motioned with her hand as she started walking away.

"Come on, I'll show you where the wardroom is. Should still be open for midrats, I think. We can talk there."

OOC: The Wardroom is where officers eat, separate from the enlisted. Midrats is slang for Midnight Rations, a fourth meal period on ships for people who have to work through the night or other weird periods, and is usually a little better to offset the lousy hours, and because they don't have to cook for as many.