Stardate:2406.11.28 (USS Boudicca - Ready room - Engineer Debbie Weston- 0835) Debbie Weston had been enjoying her stay on the Nimitz. since she joined the crew from the old cargo vessel she'd found a little niche for herself. By nature Weston was a fixer. that's why she did so well on something like hauling anti-matter across the universe. However, she found that on this starship there was always something to fix, or make better. It was almost as if the ship was designed to be continually upgraded. She also like the way Lt. Zzt ran the department. he really didn't lay down any rules. He gave you a job to do and he expected that job to be done, he didn't care how. That was her kind of boss. If you didn't do what he wanted, woe betide you. But if you did, more often than not, it wound up in a big bear hug. To be honest, she kind of liked it. Although she was sure that most of her confederates were not as enamored by the prospect of recieving a hug from their chief engineer. Even Captain Sash seemed a lot nicer than she imagined he'd be. Much like Zzt, Sash let the department heads run their departments how they deemed to, and only complained when things weren't working out. It was never anything he'd ahad to do with engineering. First of all, she wasn't sure how Zzt would react to harsh words from his surrogate father figure. Secondly, she knew that Zzt would never let that happen to begin with. Then came the call for engineering to be battle ready. Zzt was giving orders, as he should. Weston waited for the smoke to clear and headed over to where she figured the most help would be needed. The shield generators. It would be the first thing to go, and the most important thing to get back up first. There were two others there, Ramirez, a capable but totally unimaginative engineer, and Sol. She wasn't sure what species he was, and couldn't even beging to pronounce his real name, but he was as capable as she was for fixing the shields. He had the knack. She saw O'Neill pass by, in a hurry. "Hey O'Neill," she shouted over to him. They had struck up a friendship over the past few months. She kind of liked him. Kind of. "Where you headed?" (reply O'Neill) (posted by Al Muir) Stardate:2406.11.28 (USS Boudicca - Main Engineering - Ensign Miles O'Neill - 0835) ~I've always wondered what one of these big battles would be like. I remember fondly of running simulations of battles like this when I was a kid. Though I never considered some of the other aspects, like the crew. Now that I'm in one of these, I feel a whole lot different.~ Miles thought as he was checking the warp core for any inconsistencies. He was going to a station monitoring the impulse reactor when Debbie Weston stopped him. "Hey O'Neill," she shouted over to him. "Where you headed?" "Hey Debbie, I was just going over to the impulse reactor console to check for any problems. This whole battle's got me anxious, I'm constantly going to and fro to check different systems." Miles replied. (Reply Weston) "Thanks. I gotta go, see you later." Miles replied. He started towards the consoles with the impulse reactor specs. (USS Nimitz - Main Engineering - Ensign Miles O'Neill - 0935) Miles now was standing over the master display console, monitoring the ship on the whole. He was slightly relaxed, everything was working perfectly, and things have slowed down somewhat. Until the red alert klaxons started blaring, that is. ~Oy.~ Miles thought as everyone in Engineering started working up a storm. He watched the Nimitz deploy the probes, and to Miles' delight, they worked. ~Now I know that I didn't work on those for nothing.~ Miles thought with a smile. (Reply any) (Posted by Matt Kirk) Stardate:2406.11.28 (USS Georgia - Bridge - CO - Captain Horatio Mandrake- 0836) They had followed the trial of the traitor Sevant with great interest. Mandrake held no special feelings for the Vulcan, but even he had to admitt that the trial was only for show. He didn't disagree with Sevant's fate, just the way that they tried to justify it. They should just get it over with. He was surprised that the traitorous LoDona hadn't sent someone to rescue him. Even Sevant's own ship hadn't come looking for him. Was it possible that they still didn't know where he was. Obviously command thought so, since the planet was only supported by himself, Delano, and Viper squadron. Not much if LoDona really came in force. Of course, they still had other resources close by. The report from the planet of Sevant's impending execution was starting to iritate Mandrake. It was one thing to kill a man, but to put on this dog and pony act, it really was too much. He wouldn't be surprised if they didn't have entertainers performing before the "Main Event." The captain of the Georgia just shook his head and mumbled to himslelf. "Captain," an alert call came from Lt Solara, at Tactical, "something has just come into range of the sensor grid." Mandrake was on his feet and looking over the Vulcan's shoulder. Not that he doubted Solara's word. Like most of his crew, Solar had been with him for a long time, and he was not prone to exageration. He was the most Vulcan like human that Mandrake had known. "Sovereign class," Solara continued to report. "It's a little blurry, hard to make out details." With a few adjustments he managed to get a clearer reading. "NCC7578E. It's the Nimitz sir." Mandrake took a step back. ~Captain Devan Sash.~ Sash had become quite infamous lately, even before his runin with the Alamo. Mandrake was no fan of LeBeau. The man had a cruel streak, and was a known kiss ass for Doenitz. As far as he was concerned, Sash did the universe a favor by getting rid of him. However, he fired on another Federation starship and destroyed it, and that could not go unanswered. "Do they have copmpany?" he asked. "Hard to tell captain," Solara replied, "that interferance is hard to break through. It's partially from the pulsar, but the Nimitz is emitting some kind of dampening field aswell." "At warp 7 how long until we intercept?" Mandrake asked. Jolai at Ops replied, "At warp 7 we would intercept in 45 minutes, but our power reserves would be lowered. If we went at warp 6 it would be an hour and we would have greater reserves." Mandrake nodded. "Set course and engage at warp 6. Signal the Savana and inform them of our intentions. I think that Delano is going to want a piece of this." (reply none) (posted by Al Muir) Stardate:2406.11.28 (USS Nimitz - Bridge - OPS - Ensign {SG} Dartena Bixx - 0846) Dartena carried out the command to integrate the helm with her station so the two officers could share things, just incase there was a problem. She felt suddenly... afraid. Sweat began to bead and form on her brow. Dartena had never been in this kind of position before. A few days ago she was oblivious and working in her shuttlebay. Now, she was on the bridge, facing down battle... and the possibility of death. ~This is NOT what I signed up for. I wanted to see space, to explore. I hadn't thought about battle, what am I going to do?~ the Ensign thought, as she complied with the power demands of K'ven and attempted to boost available power to tactical and shields, as Casely was now requesting through his console. This was it, the big leagues. Dartena felt a slight wave of panic move through her. ~I can't let this get the best of me, I can't be afraid. I need to do my job effectively and I REFUSE to be a coward!~ thought Dartena definantly. She had no mastery of emotions like Vulcans did. Bolians often wore their hearts on their sleeves, they were fun loving and understanding of other people's emotional peeks and falls. Dartena began to mentally prepare herself for what could happen, the possibility of death. Bolians had a special relationship with death, the tended not to fear it and not to run from it. If the time was right, there was nothing you could do. Dartena's problem wasn't with her own death, it was with doing something wrong at her station and causing the death of others by accident. Dartena pulled out a small swath of cloth and mopped her brow gently. "Permission to divert power from auxilery systems Captain, I don't believe we need replicators and holodecks, at least not until we're finished with those ships out there," stated Dartena as strongly as she could muster, "Besides, I'm sure shields and phasers could use the boost." (Reply Sash) (Posted by Jeff Bergeron) Stardate:2406.11.28 (USS Nimitz - Bridge - CO - Captain Devan Sash- 0935) They had picked up the ships coming at them at warp 6. This would cut down their wait to engage in conflict. At this moment Sash was engaged in a game of mental chicken with the captains of the incoming vessels. They were coming at him, and he was going straight at them. he was hoping that it might unnerve somebody a little to see that they were not afraid of them. "Mr. Casely, release the probes now," he ordered. (reply Casely) "Go to red alert," Sash ordered. "Battle stations everyone, we are about to meet with the other side. Prepare for evasive maneuvers, but do nothing until my signal. Power up phasers and load all torpedo tubes. This is it gang, hold on tight, I don't want to lose anyone on this first pass." (reply all) (posted by Al Muir) Stardate:2406.11.28 (USS Nimitz - Bridge - ACSO - Ensign T'pau Vorik - 0935) Vorik listened to the Captain as they detected the enemy ships coming at them at warp 6,he sounded rather tense even though they were outgunned T,pau was convinced they were going to win. "It is simple logic we have the experince and they do not"T,pau told himself. "Mr. Casely, release the probes now," ordered the Captain. T,pau watched the readout on his sensor station as the probes were released. It was quite impressive, one minute there was only the Nimitz on the sensors but now the rather intelligent Mr.Casely had made it appear to the enemy at least that there was now six powerful ships coming at them. Power up phasers and load all torpedo tubes. This is it gang, hold on tight, I don't want to lose anyone on this first pass."The Vulcan caught the last part of the Captain,s orders and immediately took a firm grasp of his station."My first battle situation,this could get messy."Those and a thousand other fears raced through Vorik's mind as the ship was struck by the first of the phaser fire. (Reply Sash,any) (Posted by Scott Hepburn) Stardate:2406.11.28 (USS Nimitz - Bridge - TAC/SC- Ensign {SG} Paul Casely - 0937) "Probes away, Sir. Holographic matrix holding stable. Moving in for EM Pulse delivery," stated Paul watching as suddenly several Federation vessels began to appear flying in formation with the Nimitz. Paul brought up a small screen version of what it must have looked like to the enemy to see them coming towards them and he looked on in awe. (Reply Sash, any) A bevvy of starships, including the Nimitz, flew in tight forward formation towards the enemy with several of them starting to break off towards the two flanking Intrepid, leaving the Nimitz unimpeded. With two craft breaking off to each side, two more moved forward towards the Makos. Paul watched the sensors as it seemed like all six craft began to power up weapons and shields. Paul matched their movements carrying out both the Captain's orders, and trying to make it seem like they were all a uniform fleet. Paul watched and listened as the Nimitz's Red Alert signal began to sound. ~Hope the Captain orders that muted.~he thought to himself. (Reply Sash, any) Paul heard Holis alert the Captain as to the timeframe before the EM burst. He continued to track the probes, they had done it, or so it seemed. Through a collaboration between Engineering, Science and Tactical they had created a fairly formitable weapon in those probes. He knew that the EM pulse would be much more damaging towards the Makos than to the Intrepids. Unless they had been seriously upgraded, the Makos were still using isolinear technology while the Intrepids used biogel packs. The biogel would be interrupted briefly, much in the same manner as the body's functions would be by the EM charge. It would be the same as getting a severe shock from an electrical system. Then, they would carry on. The Makos could expect a good deal more damage. "20 Seconds until EM burst Captain, the probes are within range. The holographic matrix is still holding, but barely. However, I don't believe its a bad thing for the ships to think that 'harmless' probes are coming towards them instead of starships. We can expect an interruption of systems of between 5 and 7 seconds on the Intrepids and probably 12 to 15 seconds on the Makos. Phasers are powered and ready, photon and quantum torpedoes armed and loaded. Shields at maximum," stated Paul, "Awaiting your orders, Sir." (Reply Sash, any) (Posted by Jeff Bergeron) Stardate:2406.11.28 (USS Nimitz - Bridge - CSO - Ens (sg) Holis Gralen- 0938) Sensors were showing the enemy vessels closing and tension on the bridge was thick. Holis had already double checked the status of the probes and now triple checked them as they sped on their way then suddenly a bunch of Sovereign class vessels appeared on sensors as though coming out of cloak and and approached their enemy who was nearing the sensor net. It appeared as though the defenders had been lured into a trap against superior forces. Holis chuckled as the countdown began for the meat of the run, the release of the probes energy that would blind their enemies. The sensor suites of the intrepids were not up to the standards of protection offered by a Sovereign and their available distance window had now climbed to 123,000 kilometers, as long as they released the stored up energy within that distance the effects on the sensors for the ships would be devestating. Holis waited for the distance to close as he watched the final approach with glee, he could only imagine what the reactions of the enemy Captains would be. "Captain, probes are functioning normally and distance closing, now at 400,000 kilometers, estimate 83 seconds before the EMP burst sir." (Reply: Sash, any) (Posted by Charles) "Mr. Casely, release the probes now," he ordered. (reply Casely) "Go to red alert," Sash ordered. "Battle stations everyone, we are about to meet with the other side. Prepare for evasive maneuvers, but do nothing until my signal. Power up phasers and load all torpedo tubes. This is it gang, hold on tight, I don't want to lose anyone on this first pass." Stardate:2406.11.28 (USS Nimitz - Bridge -CO- Captain Devan Sash- 0942) "Mr. Casely, release the probes now," he ordered. "Probes away, Sir," Casely stated. "Holographic matrix holding stable. Moving in for EM Pulse delivery," "On my mark," Sash said, watching the display as the fighters approached. They suddenly slowed and veeered, avoiding the probes that now looked like starships. The red alert klaxon continued. ~I thought I had that thing put on a timer. I'll need Casely to do something about that.~ "Kill that klaxon," he shouted, and the alarm was silenced. He watched as the two Intrepid class ships were split by the probes, allowing the Nimitz to go between them. "Captain," Gralen reported, "probes are functioning normally and distance closing, now at 400,000 kilometers, estimate 83 seconds before the EMP burst sir." The Makos were now the only thing between them and the planet. He knew this wouldn't last long, but hopefully the EMP would take care of the Makos for a while. "20 Seconds until EM burst Captain," Casely continued the count down, "the probes are within range. The holographic matrix is still holding, but barely. However, I don't believe its a bad thing for the ships to think that 'harmless' probes are coming towards them instead of starships. We can expect an interruption of systems of between 5 and 7 seconds on the Intrepids and probably 12 to 15 seconds on the Makos. Phasers are powered and ready, photon and quantum torpedoes armed and loaded. Shields at maximum," stated Paul, "Awaiting your orders, Sir." "Lock onto the Makos," Sash ordered. "We've a better chance of surviving through two ships rather than all seven." "Permission to divert power from auxilery systems Captain," Bixx asked. She sounded more than a little nervoous. Sash moved behind her. "I don't believe we need replicators and holodecks, at least not until we're finished with those ships out there. Besides, I'm sure shields and phasers could use the boost." "Excellnt suggestion," Sash smiled and put a comforting hand on her choulder. "Do it." Then a little softer, so that onl she could hear, "Relax, you're doing fine. Everything will be just fine." (reply Bixx) There was a shake as the Makos began their assault. Instinctively Sahs grabbed the back of Bixx's chair. He turned to Casely, "Initiate the EMP. " (reply Casely) Sash watched as the holograms surrounding the probes suddenly disappeared and there was a flash from the EMP. The scene with the Makos was almost comical, if it hadn't been so serious. They seemed to just suddenly stop their straightline progress and began to simply drift in space. "Now," Sash called out, "target and fire." (reply Casely) There was a sudden jolt and an explossion as, what must have been, a quantum torpedo exploded against their shielding. Then a lesser shaking as they were hit by a barrage of phaser fire from both ships. "Evasive maneuvers," Sash called out. "Take us to 358 mark 267. Evasive pattern delta 2." (reply Bixx) There was an explosion as a conduit blew under the helm. Suddenly Xavier was on the ground. Sash hoped he was still alive. "Medical team to the bridge." He sat down in the pilots seat and reconfigured the helm for power. "Status report." (reply Casely, K'ven) "Engineering, we need more shields," Sash knew he was hoping on miricles there, but Zzt had never let him down before. (reply Weston, Zzt) "Keep returning fire." Sash ordered. (reply All) (posted by Al Muir) Stardate:2406.11.28 (USS Georgia - Bridge - CO - Captain Horatio Mandrake- 0942) Mandrake had been watching as the ships sped toward each other. Watching the Nimitz's flight pattern he realized that Sash had, indeed, gone insane. He was flying his ship directly at theirs. "What is he playing at?" he said softly to himself. "Captain, simethings happening at the Nimtz," came the call from Solara. "Something is emerging from that dispersion field. it's two other ships, both Sovereign class, no identification yet." Mandrake wheeled around and glared at his tactical chief. "I want to know what ship they are and who their CO's are.Damn it, why didn't we know they were there?" "Apparently they were hiding in the "shadow" of the Nimitz, and that dispersion field made them harder to see. Still no ID. That's strange." "Let's boost the shields," Mandrake said. That put's them 3 to our 2. Thank goodness we have those Mako's with us. Prepare to open fire with the ship on the right. Torpedo launch sequence alpha, fire. Full phasers, fire. Target those nacelles." The Makos made to move under the Nimitz to their predetermined attack program. "Energy build up in the ship on the right. Now the one on the left." Mandrake watched the screen. The outer shell of the ships shimmered then disappeared. ~Damn!!~ "Hard to port, brace for impact!" Mandrake called out. There was a sudden flash as the EMP went of. The shock wave hit the ship and power went down. Within seconds it was back up. By the time the view screen came back on line the Makos were no more than a debris field. Mandrake chuckled. he had to give it to Sash and his crew. It's not often that anyone gets one up on Horatio Mandrake, but today was that day. "Very good, Captain Sash," Mandrake smiled an evil smile, "but now it's just you, and me and the Savannah. I think you've finally bit off more than you can chew." "Weapons are online," Solara reported. Mandrake sat in his command chair and looked out at the ship facing him. "Ahead full impulse. keep firing at their nacelles. I want that ship dead in space." (reply none) (posted by Al Muir) Stardate:2406.11.28 (USS Nimitz - Bridge -TAC/SC - Ensign {SG} Paul Casely - 0946) Paul worked furiously to get the probes towards the Makos. Keeping the holographic matrix stable had become of chief importance until the order was given to send the pulse. Finally, they were in range. "Initiate the EMP," Sash suddenly ordered. Without a second thought, Paul keyed the sequence and there was an explosion of electro-magnetic energy. Paul watched as the Mako class ships hung in space, dead in the water for now. With that done, he turned his attention to the two Intrepids as the Captain gave his orders to fire and keep firing. Despite their small size, Paul knew that two of them were dangerous. Paul could feel himself sweat as he fired at the first ship, several shots hit their shields, he was sure they were starting to weaken, but would it be enough? He knew that their own shields were also starting to weaken. Soon, the bridge shook and Paul could smell ozone hanging in the air. He vaguely heard a medical team being called to the bridge, suddenly the Captain was asking for a status report. "Sir, fore shields are a mangled mess, I need more power. I'm trying to boost them now, but they'll weaken the other sides. Our phasers are starting to fry as well," stated Paul. He knew this wasn't going well and it could be a pitched battle, "Sir... how much do you trust me?" Paul suddenly had an idea, but he would need cooperation of the departments... this was going to be more than a little unorthadox. "I have an idea, but I'll need cooperation from all departments in short order." he stated just as another jolt shook the ship. Paul keep the fire coming, sending another volley of torpedos at the vessels, but it was all he could do to keep things stable, and he also knew it was a matter of time before he lost power to his phaser banks. (Reply Sash) (Posted by Jeff Bergeron) Stardate:2406.11.28 (USS Nimitz - Sickbay -CMO- Dr. BigWill Kinkaid- 0948) Injured crewmen had started to pour into sickbay. Most of them were minor injuries, caused from falls, or burns from exploding consoles. A couple were were more serious, and required the attention of himself and Dr. Kirien, who still seemed to be not quite all together. But she was an excellent doctor. =^=Medical team to the bridge.=^= That was all the message was. Kinkaid had no idea what had hapened or who was hurt. Kirien was busy with a patient with plasma burns, and Janet was taking care of triage. Besides he didn't want to subject her to what might be a pretty nasty scene. He grabbed a med tech, Turner, and headed out of sickbay. (USS Nimitz- Bridge -CMO- Dr. BigWill Kinkaid- 0951) As Kinkaid stepped off the turbo lift another olt ran through the ship and he and Turner had to grab at the wall to keep their feet. "Where's the medical emergency?" he asked, looking around the room. Everyone seemed healthy, although they were sweaty, and some were soot smudged. He didn't see Sash at first, and then his heart jumped a little. With the captain down... No! He didn't even waant to entertain the thought. He was shown the bod laying on the floor and then Kinkaid saw Sash at the helm. It must be the pilot, Xavier, or whatever his name was now. Qickly he moved down to the injured man. His tricorder was already out and scanning as he knelt down. The pilot was out, but not dead. He had third degree burns on his hands and part of his face. It would e a long recovery, but he should be fine, eventually. At least physically. Sash looked over at him with a look of concern. "He'll be fine Captain," Kinkaid offered. Sash accepted his assurance with a nod and turned back to saving the ship. "Let's get him back to sickbay," Kinkaid told Turner. "They picked up the man, one at each arm, and carried him to the turbolift. It was a good thing he was unconscious. He took one more look around the bridge before the turbo ift door closed, and offered up a silent prayer for those who defending himself and the others on this ship. (reply none) (posted by Al Muir) Stardate:2406.11.28 (USS Nimitz - Bridge -CO- Captain Devan Sash- 0950) Sash tried to remain in his seat as the two Intrepids continued to hammer away at their defenses. He could hear the status reports coming as shielding began to weaken. His hands flew over the helm controls as their own ship managed to dodge shots and torpedoes. At one maneuver he was worried as the stress of a high speed change of direction made the nacelle strut alarms go off, as the stress sent the monitors into the red. Casely reported in. "Sir, fore shields are a mangled mess, I need more power. I'm trying to boost them now, but they'll weaken the other sides. Our phasers are starting to fry as well." He sounded a little worried, but then his tone changed, "Sir... how much do you trust me? I have an idea, but I'll need cooperation from all departments in short order." Another torpedo struck as Sash was just able to turn the ship so that it struck in the stongest shielded port side. He had to hold onto the console in order to not be thrown from his seat. Bixx was not so lucky and wound up flying from her seat, landing in Sash's lap. Sash smiled at her and winked, "No time for that right now Darteena." (reply Bixx) With Bixx back inher seat he took a moment to turn around. "I suppose I trust you with all our lives Paul. " He tapped his comm badge. "Sash to all departments, coordinate on Mr. Casely's commands. His directions are from me. Sash out." He gave Casely a confident nod as he turned back to the conn. "You have the ball Ensign Casely." Then he mumbled to himself. "and may the gods have mercy on us all." (reply Casely, Bixx, anyone else) (posted by Al Muir) Stardate:2406.11.28 (USS Boudicca - Ready room - Engineer Debbie Weston- 0950) The readings on the shielf generators suddenly went through the danger zone as the ship began to rock. Debbie worked hard at maintainingthe power levels, but she already realized that they were fighting a loosing battle. She had managed to reroute as much power as she could. All but essential systems had been powered down. Running power through alternate pathways saved any conduits from blowing out, inadvertantly. When one realy blew, it was easy enough to transfer to another. The rest of the time she spent trying to stay on her feet as the ship got thrown around by the enemy fire. When the captain's call came in for more power she did what she could,with the systems she had. Miles had come over to help out. =^=Engineering? I need you to boost the shields as much as you can on the side the Georgia is firing on!=^= Debbie was about to answer when O'Neill cut in. She was a little irritated. After all, this wasn't his station to begin with. Didn't he trust her to do her job right? But when he answered for the second call, she got a little huffy. After all, she thought she liked him, worse, she thought maybe he liked her too. Men! they had to have all the control. Suddenly she wondered why they needed all of that power to the fore shields, other than they were the lowest readings that they had. They had been down to 20%. she'd have to have words with Miles later. fior now they were in battle and she would swallow her pride a little. Then Casely's voice came on through the general intercom. =^=This is Ensign Casely, I would recommend that you strap yourselves down and hold on tight.=^= Debbie and Miles looked at each other, uncertain as to what that meant. All of her iritation had disappeared. she flew into Miles' arms as the ship suddenly went into high warp, then came out of it. "What the..." she began, but was unable to finish the staement. The ship shuddered again as hse noticed the tractor relays some to life. "What are they doing up there?" When the ship went to warp again, she thought that she could hear the screams fromthe engines with the strain. Then and explosion went of and the inertail dampner station went into flames. Now this was her territory. No matter what she was the fixer. She stepped over the body of the engineer who had been manning the station, not taking the time to look at who it was. She didn't have time for that. Without the inertail dampners they would be in big trouble. Debbie threw open the side panel and began to reroute power relays. In seconds they had 40% power to the damponers. She hit her comm badge. "Weston to bridge, inertial dampners are shot. I've given you ," she looked again, "42%. It should do us alright for slow turns, but I wouldn't go to warp with them this way." (reply Bridge) (posted by Al Muir) Stardate:2406.11.28 (USS Nimitz - Bridge - CSO Ens.(sg) Holis Gralen - 0951) The bridge was reminded Holis somewhat of a roller coaster at times as the Nimitz tried valiantly to dodge the barrage of torpedoes and phaser fire from their remaining enemies. Holis was hanging on for all he was worth as a panel blew out injuring one of the officers whom Dr. Kincaid promptly whisked from the bridge. Holis thought it amazing that not only was the ship holding up under the bombardment but the Intrepids were also still in the fight, the amount of energy being exchanged was enormous. Holis grinned when he heard the Captain speaking to Ms. Bixx, apparently she had fallen into his lap and he could feel their embarassement. It was Paul Caselys question of whether the Captain trusted him or not that provoked the most interest from the Betazoid. Captain Sashs answer and order were loud and clear and Holis replied. "Science is at your command Paul." (Reply: Paul Casely) Holis looked around at the Vulcan at Science 2 as there was another crash of a torpedo explosion against the shields. "Mr. Vorik route secondary sensors through the primary induction buffers, I'm losing definition on the port lateral array." (Reply: Vorik) (Posted by Charles) Stardate:2406.11.28 (USS Nimitz - Main Engineering - Ensign Miles O'Neill - 0953) =/\=Engineering? I need you to boost the shields as much as you can on the side the Georgia is firing on!=/\= stated Paul. "You got it, Paul!" Miles said as his hands flew across his console. "I'll need to re-route a lot of power, though." He kept on working as multiple phaser and torpedo hits rocked the ship. ~I never thought this ship could take this much beating!~ He thought. He watched a small screen as he worked, but kept his attention on his console. Miles watched, and felt, Paul's maneuver to disable the Savana and damage the Georgia. ~My God.~ Miles thought as he stared at the screen. Paul's voice snapped Miles out of his stare. =/\=Engineering, I need a boost to shields on the fore.=/\= stated Paul. "Uh, right! I'm working on it now." Miles thought as he started working again. When he allocated as much energy as he could, he said into his comm badge to Paul, "I've reinforced as much energy as possible into the fore shields." (Reply Casely, any) (Posted by Matt Kirk) Stardate:2406.11.28 (USS Georgia - Bridge - CO - Captain Horatio Mandrake- 0954) Things seemed to be going well. A little too well. this always made Mandrake nervous. If things seemd to be too easy, there was a reason for it, and it was usually to lull you into a false sense of security. He turned to his scinece station. "Keep a close watch with the sensors," he ordered. "I want to know when anything happens." "Aye sir," Jefferson replied. "Their fore shields are starting to buckle captain." "Bring us around," Mandrake replied.Wioth that, the Nimtz turned all its attention to the Savana. They had targeted the other ships saucer section. It might have proven to be their final mistake. "Target all weapons on the Nimitz's nacelles." "The Nimitz is preparing to go to warp," came a report. "FIRE damn it!" Mandrake yelled, but it was too late. All they hit was the image of where the Nimitz was. Now they were somewher else, and pounding the Savana. "Damn, retarget. Let's go people." By the time they had reaquired their target, the Nimitz was now heading straight at them, pushing the Savana in front of them. "You have got to be kidding?" mandrake said. There was no avboiding a collision. Mandrake had to make a choice. he could save his ship at the cost of the Savana, or they could both go down. There was no choice really. "All shields to the fore, NOW! Full reverse." There was a hum as the power transfered jsut as the hull of the Geogia plowed into the hull of the Savana. "Shields are failing," came the call from ops. "Get us the hell out of here. We're sitting ducks without shields. Then try to hail somebody on the Savan. Find out who's still alive over there. If we have the power start transporting the surviving crew members." With that Georgia pulled away from the wreckage of the Savan and headed to the far side of the planet. Mandrake was wondering why the Nimitz wasn't in pursuit. he knew he would be. That little maneuver probably took its toll on their systems. Oh there will be a rematch here. (reply none) (posted by Al Muir) Stardate:2406.11.28 (USS Nimitz - Bridge -CO- Captain Devan Sash- 0955) "Helm!" Casely called out, "Plot a course so we're saucer section to saucer section with the Savana! Warp 9 now!" Sash plotted the course and Bixx hit the warp engage and a moment later the two ships were kiloometers apart. You could almost smell the ozone form the two sets of shields colliding. Sash's stomach was still moving after the sudden deceleration form warp. The tractor beam activate and they had a hold of the Savana. "Helm, hard about, maximum impulse towards the Georgia!" Suddenly Sash got a general idea of what Casely had planned. ~This should be very interesting.~ His hands were moving over the controls as Casely was giving the orders. Now that he had the idea of what was going on, he could anticipate some of the orders. When they turned to face the Georgia, he was pretty sure what was next, but it sure wasn't the call to go to warp. Thje captain just hoped the ship could handle the stree of the high warp turn. He released the tractor hold on the Savana as the Nimitz turned. The smell of frying curcuits and conduits permeated the bridge. Sash moved his hands quickly as the relay to the inertial dampners burst into an arch of sparks. The whole ship shuddered and he grabbed the sides of the panel to keep his seat. he looked over to see Bixx sprawled across hers. Looking back he could see the others picking themselves up off the floor. "Paul," he said, "next time you ask me to trust you, remind me of this moment." (reply Casely) He looked at the view screen to see the Georgia extract herself from the remains of the Savana and limp away from the battle scene. He could make out the bodies of some crewmen floating in space. He couldn't even imagine the body count. He checked on Bixx, to make sure she was alright. "How you doing?" (reply Bixx) Seeing that she had the helm under control, Sash went to see what else had happened to his ship. "Status reports," he called out. (reply Casely, K'ven, Gralen) The report from engineering came in about the loss of the inertial dampners. That could be bad, but as long as the Georgia was on the run they should be ok. "Good job"!stated Casely. "Do your best to get them back up to spec again and let me know when you do. We're still in a combat situation here." =^=You'll know I've got it as soon as, well, as soon as I've got it.=^= "Ok, let's get a sensor sweep of the Savana," Sash ordered. If we can, we need to start picking up survivors." With that comment he looked up at Casely, who was looking a little green. "How many people did I just murder?" he asked. Then Sash looked at Casely. His idea was shear genius, but he was sure that right about now, the tactical chief was feeling much less than genius. Sash moved up to him and put his hand on the man's shoulder. "How are you holidng up Paul?" Paul considered the question for a second. It wasn't an easy one to answer. On the one hand, he did his job, protected the ship. On the other, he'd killed scores of people doing it. "I'll be ok Sir, I guess. I never thought..." Paul trailed off, catching his breath. "Listen, you did what you had to do," Sash said softly. "It sucks that it had to happen, but we really don't have time to lament on it right now. I need to know, can you handle it right now?" "Yes Sir, I'll be fine. What are your orders Sir?" said Paul almost mechanically. He didn't want to talk about it, he didn't want to deal with it, he wanted to work, to do his job. He would push it into the back of his mind for now. "Good man," Sash patted him on the shoulder again. "Let's see if we can do some good with this and get as many survivors as we can. I'm sure that the Georgia is probably doing the same, but they won't be able to get all of them. Paul, that's your job." (reply Casely) "K'ven I want you to continue monitoring the sensoprs. I'm pretty sure we haven't seen the last of the Georgia. That's your job. I want to know the moment they return. Stay at red alert people, but let's get damage control going." (reply all) (psoted by Al Muir) Stardate:2406.11.28 (USS Nimitz, Main Engineering, CEO, Lt. (SG) Zzt, 0955) Zzt stood at the Master System Display table over looking the Nimitz various systems, keeping a close eye on everything as the battle unfolded. From here Zzt could, if need be modify any of the Nimitz systems, redirecting power, or altering system configuration as needed. Here Zzt was completely in his element, in the heart of the mighty star ship. His paw on it's pulse, keeping everything running as smoothly as possible. Barking out orders to his staff as needed. Even as the Nimitz shuddered under phaser fire and torpedoes, Zzt simply swayed and rocked with the ship, keeping his paws beneath him as he worked his console. =/\=Sash to all departments, coordinate on Mr. Casely's commands. His directions are from me. Sash out.=/\= ~Wonderful.~ Zzt thought as he acknowledged the signal. =/\=Engineering? I need you to boost the shields as much as you can on the side the Georgia is firing on!=/\= O'Neil replied before Zzt could, so Zzt just remained quite, watching, his paws moving over the MSD assisting O'Neil as possible. =^=This is Ensign Casely, I would recommend that you strap yourselves down and hold on tight.=^= ~Just what is he doing?~ Zzt thought as his paws worked over his console seeing if he could deduce just what the Ensign was planning. As the Nimitz's tractor beam activated and the Nimitz engines powered up and began to over load, Zzt's eyes went wide. ~By the Goddess Claw!~ Zzt's paws moved quickly redirecting power to the ships structural integrity fields, concentrating on the Nimitz lower decks. Luckily many of the modifications Zzt had made prior to their run in with the Alamo where still in place. Zzt used these modifications to once more super charge the Nimitz SIF system, stealing power from many other ships systems, including life support, but it was the only way to keep the Nimitz in one piece as she slung another Sovereign class vessel by her tractor beam alone. Power relays began to explode through the ship as she groaned under the strain. ~Hold together! Hold together!!~ Smoke filled Main Engineering as the tractor beam was disengaged just seconds before it's circuits fused into a useless mass. Zzt cursed. Zzt listened as others in Engineering reported system status to the bridge. Zzt was already assessing the damage caused by the maneuver, his mood quickly growing sour. One sure way to get on the large engineers bad side was abusing *his* ship. =/\=Good job! Do your best to get them back up to spec again and let me know when you do. We're still in a combat situation here,=/\= Casely replied to one report. "Never mind that," Zzt said, suddenly cutting in on the conversation, "You lucky you not rip tractor emitter off ship. It fried now, useless. Whole emitter need be replaced. Zzt have to super charge structural integrity fields to keep Nimitz in one piece. They now at 32%. Warp drive off line. Power distribution system also heavily damaged. You will notice a significant decrease in phaser power till we have chance to complete repairs. Life support at 67%. Next time, you warn Zzt before do something like that again. Should have limited, and Zzt mean *limited*, warp drive again within the hour. Will take 2 to 3 days to get all this damage fixed, so no even *think* about doing that again any time soon." (reply Casely or anyone on Bridge) As the connection closed, Zzt started barking orders to his staff. He was mad and it was obvious to all. Engineers began running in every direction as they moved to carry out the angered CEO's orders, fixing the Nimitz's badly damaged systems (USS Nimitz, Main Engineering, CEO, Lt(sg) Zzt, 10:29) Repairs were progressing well, Zzt had a wall panel open and was working on one damaged power transfer conduit when the comm opened again. =/\=Casely to Engineering. Someone needs to set up a containment field in cargo bay 4 capable of keeping a warp core safely at bay. Once you're done with that, please beam the Savana's warp core directly into the containment field. Please make sure I have access to it, including the ability to transport it again.=/\= ~Oh yes, we not have enough to do already!~ Zzt thought sourly, tempted to tell the bossy young Ensign to do it himself. Instead, Zzt snapped his claws and pointed at a couple of crewman. "You two do, but quick. Use emergency generators to provide power. Ships power systems too unstable at moment. Move!" Zzt growled at them before tapping his comm-badge. "Team en route now. Be few minuets." ~You lucky Captain tell Zzt to listen to you or you be in for a good pawing.~ (Reply Casely, Bridge, Any) (Posted by Wes) Stardate:2406.11.28 (USS Nimitz - Bridge -ACSO - Ensign T'pau Vorik - 1015) Vorik watched the viewscren as mr.casely's plan was put into action,the Nimtz warped around the Savannah and then again around the intrepid,he could only stare in horror as the two ships collided into each other. The Intrepid was dead in space and the Savannah's saucer section was tore to pieces almost all the way to their bridge. T'pau heard the tactical officers voice sounding rather shaky"How many people did I just murder?" Vorik wondered if he would have been able to handle being responsible for so many deaths but then again it was them or us. The other Intrepid ship was gone, the fight seemed to be over for now. Stay at red alert people, but let's get damage control going."T'pau heard the Captain's order loud and clear. The ship was in good shape considering.There was alot of debris all over but the main system seemed to be in working order.T'pau moved over to the CSO. "Sir can I be of assistance with repairs?"Asked the Vulcan. (Reply Gralen) (Posted by Scott Hepburn) Stardate:2406.11.28 (USS Nimitz - Bridge -TAC/SC - Ensign {SG} Paul Casely - 1022) Silence hung on the bridge as everyone watched the Savana's saucer section literally fall apart. Paul looked out, knowing that the Nimitz would be safe for the moment at least. He swallowed hard. It looked like hundreds of red, blue and yellow dots hung in space around the wreck. ~The Saucer section... the most populated section of the ship,~ thought Casely as the enormity of his actions began to strike home. He blinked a few times trying to digest what he'd done... who he'd become. Intrepid class ships held a crew compliment of about 150. "H-Holis... How many?" asked Paul, his voice quavering. The possibility of having to kill was always present, especially for a tactical officer, however it had never dawned on him in the Academy that his enemy would be other Starfleet officers who honestly believed they were doing their duty and trying to eliminate a dangerous rogue element. (Reply Gralen) "How many people did I just murder?" responded Paul looking out at the wreck hanging in space and blinking back the sudden tears he felt rising. He had to keep his composure. His duty to the ship was his first priority, his anguish would have to wait. (Reply Gralen, any) (Posted by Jeff Bergeron) Stardate:2406.11.28 (USS Nimitz - Bridge -TAC/SC - Ensign {SG} Paul Casely - 1025) Paul snapped back to it in time to get a response... multiple responses... from Engineering. He was certain he wasn't their best friend right now. =^=Uh, right! I'm working on it now. I've reinforced as much energy as possible into the fore shields.=^= "Thanks, do the best you can to keep them stable, we're not out of the woods yet," said Paul, he was beginning to sweat now... profusely. Then another voice from engineering came across the intercom. =^=Weston to bridge, inertial dampners are shot. I've given you 42%. It should do us alright for slow turns, but I wouldn't go to warp with them this way.=^= stated the Engineer. "Good job! Do your best to get them back up to spec again and let me know when you do. We're still in a combat situation here," stated Paul. He hoped he didn't sound too pushy, but then again these were dire circumstances. (Reply Weston, engineering) Paul looked to his screens, and then to the main screen. "They're leaving!" he called out, barely able to contain himself. "Captain, the Makos are still hanging there... do you think there is any way we can get aboard them and use them, there is little doubt that other ship will be back. We could take some security teams." (Reply Sash, any) (Posted by Jeff Bergeron) Stardate:2406.11.28 (USS Nimitz - Bridge -COUNS - Ens. (sg) John Harrison - 1026) The counsellor was sitting in his chair next to the Captain and observing what was happening. Outwardly, he knew what was going on, but inwardly he was lost. What did a counsellor do during a combat situation? Memories of the previous mission, his first mission, had come screaming back to him, but this battle was beyond what the Nimitz had endured then. He kept cool and calm, projecting that feeling to his crewmates. If they saw that anyone was panicking, they themselves would panic. And then, Ensign Casely had put his plan into action. Harrison had just watched in amazement and fear. He knew that Casely would never have endangered so many lives on purpose, but to actually seeit happen and to know that his friend had caused it left the counsellor at a loss for words. To him, the screen seemed to be showing scenes that he had hoped only existed in films. But this was real, this was happening now, and that was a cold hard fact that he found hard to accept. What happened to the days when humanity built starships to explore? Had things really deteriorated so badly since then? He listened in disbelief at what was happening around him, he listened to Paul's confused query into how many he had murdered, words that the counsellor knew would haunt his friend for the rest of his life. He remained in his chair, his hands pressing against the arms so that he could stand up and help someone if need be. But he was a counsellor. His place was the chair on the Captain's left, and until he was needed elsewhere, his duty was to stay there. His duty was to support the Captain, to remain stony-faced in front of the crew and pray that the situation would improve on the screen before him. (reply any) (Posted by James) Stardate:2406.11.28 (USS Nimitz - Bridge - TAC/SC - Ensign {SG} Paul Casely - 1028) The Captain had done his best to be reassuring after the event. Paul appreciated the gesture, but he was still shocked by what he had done. He felt himself begin to submerge that part of himself as he tightened his face into an emotionless mask in an effort to cope. "Good man," Sash patted him on the shoulder again. "Let's see if we can do some good with this and get as many survivors as we can. I'm sure that the Georgia is probably doing the same, but they won't be able to get all of them. Paul, that's your job." "Yes Sir," stated Paul and he immediately got on the intercom with security. "I want you to lock down cargobays 7 to 15 immediately. Remove anything that could be used as a weapon and lock down the replicators so they can only produce basic food and water. Once that's done, start transporting the survivors from the Savana into there. Leave them locked down, monitor their actions from the outside. If you detect any are seriously injured, beam them directly to Sickbay, but alert the medical staff first." Paul's command was followed by an affirmative. While he wanted to help as many people as possible, he also didn't want them roaming the ship. They still were, technically, the enemy after all. He then reconnected with Engineering. "Casely to Engineering. Someone needs to set up a containment field in cargobay 4 capable of keeping a warp core safely at bay. Once you're done with that, please beam the Savana's warp core directly into the containment field. Please make sure I have access to it, including the ability to transport it again," said Paul. If the Georgia came back to make another pass, he'd have a surprise waiting for them. (Reply someone, anyone, in Engineering) With that, Paul turned to Sash. "Sir, we're commencing beaming survivors into a secure location in cargobays 7 to 15. I've also requested that the Savana's warp core be beamed into a containment field on cargo bay 4. I believe it might allow us to give anyone else who comes after us a little surprise. Are there any other parts of the Savana that you believe could be useful to us Sir? Perhaps some inertial dampning circuits?" After all, the starship was just hanging there and... ~parts is parts.~ thought Paul. (Reply Sash, Engineering, any) (Posted by Jeff Bergeron) Stardate:2406.11.28 (USS Nimitz - Bridge - CO - Captain Devan Sash - 1030) Sash listened as Zzt gave the bridge a piece of his mind, and in the process give his status report. =^=You lucky you not rip tractor emitter off ship. It fried now, useless. Whole emitter need be replaced. Zzt have to super charge structural integrity fields to keep Nimitz in one piece. They now at 32%. Warp drive off line. Power distribution system also heavily damaged. You will notice a significant decrease in phaser power till we have chance to complete repairs. Life support at 67%. Next time, you warn Zzt before do something like that again. Should have limited, and Zzt mean *limited*, warp drive again within the hour. Will take 2 to 3 days to get all this damage fixed, so no even *think* about doing that again any time soon." Sash had to fight back a smile. The situation was too serious, but Zzt's petulance was quite noticable. They had hurt his baby, and that was unforgivable. To make it worse, they hadn't told Zzt what was going on. "I'm sorry Lt," he offered, "we barely knew what was going on ourselves until it actually happened. I promise you this, it will not be happening again. Let's make warp drive the priority, right after the inertial dampners and SIF. I want us to be able to get out of here in a hurry when we have to." The channel closed, and Sash knew that the numbers Zzt threw at him were a lot greater than he would probably need. Zzt had the ability to motivate his people to work harder and faster than normally prescribed. For the next half hour people moved throughout the ship, effecting the repairs needed. But Sash continued to be unsettled. He knew that the other Intrepid class ship was out there, probably doing the same thing they were. He could only hope that they had as many repairs to effect as the Nimitz had. Sash paced between Casely and K'ven looking over their shoulders on their sensor screens. There was no sign of the Georgia. He seriously doubted that the captain would give up. Sash had heard of Horatio Mandrake. He was a good man, who seemed to be caught on the wrong side of the line. It left a bad taste in his mouth that there would be emnity between them. Casely had the warp core beemed to a cargo hold, aswell as certain other "parts" that they thought would come in handy. Included in these parts were inertaial dampner relays and a highly prized tractor emitter. he thought he heard Zzt actually clap when he heard that piece of news. They had also pulled in 96 survivors. Sash went back to his seat and sat down, for the twentieth time, and then stood back up again. he went up to the view screen and looked at it carefully, as if he could actually see something more clearly by being closer to it. "Where are you Mandrake?" he said to himself. "What next?" (reply none, any) (posted by Al Muir)