Retaking the Mountain Pt2
Posted on Tue Sep 29th, 2020 @ 11:02am by Fleet Admiral Mike K`Wor Bremer & Captain Patrick Dow & Captain Paul MacLeod & Commander Leksander Draven & Colonel Danny Lennox & Commander Jonathan Roebuck IV & Lieutenant Commander Rann & Lieutenant Commander Clint Cross & Lieutenant Nick Archer & Lieutenant Catherine Mclintock & Lieutenant David Hannigan & Lieutenant Heath Carter & Lieutenant Karl Ballard & 1st Lieutenant Taz & Lieutenant K`Wor & Ensign Robert Harper & Ensign Becca Bremer & Master Chief Petty Officer Mark Branson & Gunnery Sergeant Marcus Ermey & Gunnery Sergeant Agtx & Corporal Nas & Tom Vercetti & Vito Russo & Major T'Lana & First Ramata`tar & Commander Robert Stark & Admiral Deela T'Lar & Commodore Leon `Lee` Pike & Colonel Ezekiel Bagwell & Captain Jack Solomon & Commander Hades,MD & Lieutenant Commander Croesus & Lieutenant Commander Ariana Monroe-Wayne & Lieutenant Commander Carolyn Corrigan MD & Lieutenant Commander Nicholas Coleman & Lieutenant Rachael "Ripcord" Yamaguchi & Lieutenant Commander Anna Bagwell & Camron Wayne & Commodore Alexandra Harrison & Captain Torilla Yamaguchi & Colonel Jack Pike & Lieutenant Colonel Chuck McDaniel & Commander Sarah Rodgers & Lieutenant Samuel Carrington & Lieutenant Olivia O’Riley & Lieutenant Kah'lyn Chiara-Rivers & Admiral Tomalak
10,446 words; about a 52 minute read
Mission:
Episode 107 – Recovery
Location: Various Ships and Starbase 400
Timeline: MD2 - 1730hrs
ON:
USS Pegasus, Bridge
"Admiral, message from Starbase 400." Hannigan said.
The Pegasus shook from a hit as Mike walked over behind Hannigan at Intel.
Mike then tapped his comm-badge. "Pegasus to all ships, the strike team has control of the station but they have uninvited guests. We need to break through their lines, now."
A moment later, there was a reply over the comm. "Enterprise to Pegasus, my section can get through. Have the Ark Royal, Kearsarge, Falcon, Dakota, and Tenaran form on us and be ready to jump to warp." Worf said.
USS Ark Royal, Bridge
Jack sat forward in his seat as he heard the orders come over the speakers on the secure comm line from Captain Worf. He looked over at Yosemite and nodded and straight away she was stood beside Raven at the Helm and the new co-ordinates were inputted to join the Enterprise and her section of starships.
As soon as the Ambassador Class Starship started to turn, Jack moved over to the nearest comm panel and patched in the Dakota.
"Ark Royal to Dakota, follow our lead and stay in cover of the Ark Royal, we're turning to join the Enterprise and her group," he ordered.
TAG: Kearsarge, Falcon, Dakota,
Mike replied over the comm, "All ships, you heard Captain Worf, cover the Enterprise and her escorts so they can get clear."
Mike took his seat and looked at the time. He wondered what happened with the Endeavour.
"Ark Royal to Pegasus, orders acknowledged, we're turning to join the Enterprise and her group now. Arl Royal out," Jack responded.
USS Waterloo
Yamaguchi regarded the tactical display before her, the battle was turning into a massive slugfest, which would benefit the Typhon Pact mostly as they had more ships available to them. A rather dark smile graced the middle-aged Halanan female. "Answer affirmative. Stand by whatever ordinance we have left..." she paused. "But be ready for the enemy counter to our counter..." she paused. "It should come from their left flank..." she commented.
USS Thinin
Commander Elizabeth Yamaguchi watched the battle rage. "Damage report?" she asked her operations officer, he turned to look at her. "Shields are at eighty percent, minor damage only."
"Good," Yamaguchi answered quietly. "Sir' we're being ordered to support the Enterprise."
"Answer affirmative..." as she smiled, she felt the cool touch of experience and wisdom. "How many warheads we got left?" she asked.
"Two hundred and forty-two sir." came the unexpected response.
Arm them all... Aim them all along a heading of one four marks two-three... Set to activate on Typhon Pact warp signatures only... I don't want to hit our own guys... But tell anyone in the way to clear out..." she commented. "Once they clear the lane... Then open fire..."
The various bridge crew nodded as they went to work.
SS Tenaran
=^= Tenaran to Enterprise, message received and understood. On route to you now. Vox out.=^= Vox engaged the impulse engines, strengthen the shields and head to rendezvous with the Enterprise.
=^= Dakota to Enterprise, message received we will start working our way toward your position.=^= Cameron sent the message just as the ship shook rather badly. "What the heck was that?" Asked Cameron coolly
"Sir we just missed a torpedo strike from one of the pact ships. his guidance system must be screwy returning fire with a volley of 6 torps." Said the crewman from the weps station.
"Keep up with the ark but I want to watch that strike." Said Cameron firmly 6 torps was almost a third of their store but it might be worth it. "Aye sir sensor footage will be saved it might be nice to see what happens." Said the crewman from the science station.
USS Endeavor-Bridge
Coleman had received word from his team on the planet that they had found several samples of the mold samples that they needed to completed their research. He was anxious for them to get everything and get back to the ship, so that they could get out of the Triangle.
As he looked over the most recent data that was sent up from the team on the surface, Coleman was amazed at what they were finding down there as well. Not only was it just the mold, it appeared to be an ancient colony, possibly of the Ancient Shadai that they had just recently unearthed. Coleman knew this would be an incredible find, for another day.
Coleman knew that he also had a Tholian fleet that was less than 30 minutes off his back and that he had to get his teams back up before they got there. Tapping his combadge, Coleman said, "Coleman to away teams. Are you finished getting your samples?"
THE SURFACE - THE BEAM OUT POINT
Matt tapped his commbadge, "Ready to get the hell out of here! We had a flyover of what looked like to me three Tholian shuttles. I know that the Tholian Ambassador wasn't real keen on anyone snooping around here. I think he decided to make sure no one paid a visit. They appeared out of no where Captain, right before our eyes. If that isn't cloaking technology then I'm a monkey's uncle. Long range tri-corder scans indicate a sandstorm moving in. Ready as we can be. First team is ready with the organic sample in stasis chamber."
ENDEAVOR BRIDGE
All of the sudden, the security officer behind Coleman said, "Sir, we've got a problem. That Tholian fleet is way closer to us than we originally thought! They used some refracted imagining to trick our sensors! They're less than five minutes out and they've found a way to block us from entering Slipstream!"
Getting up from the CO chair, he walked over to the Ops Officer and ordered him to beam up the entire. landing party. Looking back at the Security Officer, Coleman asked, "What speed are the Tholian ships rated at?"
"It appears that they're top of the line ships for the Tholians. Warp 9.8 is their max speed, which they appear to be going for. Also, our teams are all aboard with their samples," the security officer replied.
Coleman didn't wait for nothing. "Helm, get us out of here. Maximum Warp! Ops, get me Admiral Bremer or Admiral T'Lar!"
Admiral T'lar was having problems of her own but answered the hail anyway, "Lieutenant Commander Coleman. This is Admiral T'Lar. What is the urgency?"
"I think our mission is complete. But, we're being chased down by a Tholian Fleet. They're a bit faster than we are and we need some backup. They were able to keep us from engaging our Slipstream Drive," Coleman said over the open channel.
Deela acknowledged him, "I am not able to myself. I've lost communications with engineering and slipstream is out of the question right now. Where are you now and how much time do you have before they reach you?"
"I'm making a bee-line to Starbase 400, but they'll reach me right before I hit it. Also, I'm just now learning that Plumeri wasn't beamed up with the rest of the equipment, Away Team, and samples. He said to get the samples to you guys in the note that he left and that his species has a high tolerance for different ecosystems. So, I'm pushing the Endeavor as fast as I can and I'll make every second count!" Coleman said over the open Comm line.
Deela frowned, "That doesn't give us much time. I will do my best to get you some help."
Essex Bridge
Deela didn't know what was going on with her ship but she contacted a bunch of ships on a private coded channel, "Any ships that are available, the Endeavor needs assistance immediately!" She gave the coordinance and hoped that someone was able to assist.
USS Pegasus, Bridge
The ship shook from a heavy hit.
"Bremer to T'Lar and Coleman. I'm sending the Enterprise's section with the Ark Royal, Kearsarge, Falcon, Dakota, and Tenaran through the lines now to engage the fleet around Starbase 400. We're counting on Draven and Vercetti's team to get the weapons online and hold out until the Marines are beamed aboard. They should be able to support the Endeavour too!
Essex Bridge
Deela was relieved which wouldn't last. "Acknowledged. Thank you." The Essex was far out of the woods. She hated it when she things would go wrong. She could sense something, fear maybe, or it was just her imagination. She waited for Lieutenant Yamaguchi to report.
Lieutenant Commander Croesus looked to the command seat as he found the extra power for forward shields, from of all places reroutes from, the kitchens microwave system.
" Shields modulated but don't anybody order anything from the replicators," Croesus joked.
BACK ON THE SURFACE AS ENDEAVOR SPEEDS OUT OF ORBIT
LT. Plumeri watched as Endeavor left orbit. He had a sinking feeling in his heart as he watched their source of water, food and protection speed away and leave them. He looked around the vast emptiness of the planet, the ominously dark clouds of the approaching storm. He turned to the crewman who was also left behind and said, "They're coming back for us. The arrival of the Tholians is unexpected. And I ain't much for dying or becoming a permanent resident of this rock. Let's get into those caves near the ruins we saw earlier. The rock is thick and it might hide our lifesigns from the Tholians. It will also give us shelter from the storm. Let's move!"
IRW D'Trell
"SubCommander, we've lost our datalink with the starbase." And officer reported.
The SubCommander turned, but Tomalak had heard the report. "Find out..."
"Admiral, we're now getting a report that a Starfleet infiltration team has beamed aboard the base. The defending ships were able to beam a Tzenkethi force aboard to retake it." The officer added.
"How did Starfleet get a ship passed our fleet and beam personnel aboard without being seen?" Tomalak said.
"Never underestimate Starfleet." Sela added with an angry expression. "Send a dozen ships back to help. We can't lose that base, and we still more than out number their forces here."
"It will be done." The SubCommander replied.
The SubCommander anxiously reported a moment later, "Admiral...the Tholians, they're breaking formation and setting course for Starbase 400. There's another group of Tholian ships chasing a Starfleet ship heading for the Starbase as well."
"What is General Tozrax up to?" Tomalak asked.
The SubCommander shook his head.
"Target the Pegasus's group. We eliminate that damned ship and their lines will crumble here. Have the Krazzle concentrate on the Essex and Voyager groups. Have the Kziniti/Miradorn group engage the Defiant and Enterprise groups and tell the Gorn to focus on the Cardassian/Ferengi group." Tomalak added.
"What about the Klingons? They're trying to turn our left flank now." The SubCommander asked.
"The Tzenkethi, Breen, and our reserves will have to hold them off." Tomalak replied. "This isn't going as planned.
With the Tholians pulling back and chasing the Enterprise's section with the Ark Royal, Kearsarge, Falcon, Dakota, and Tenaran back to Starbase 400 the numbers of ships on each side evened out.
USS Pegasus, Bridge
The Pegasus took another hit.
"Our port nacelle is venting drive plasma!" Branson reported.
The Pegasus took another hit and Lieutenant Roebuck was thrown against the back wall.
His brother jumped up and tapped his commbadge, "Commander Roebuck to Sickbay, medical emergency on the Bridge!"
There was a brief pause as, several decks below, Doctor Corrigan finished calling out orders to the medical team and sidestepping the latest arrivals before grabbing a medical kit. “On my way, Commander,” she replied as she hurried for the nearest turbolift. While it was a short journey, it was far from pleasant as the ship continued to take a pounding and she breathed an inward sigh of relief when the doors parted to let her step out onto the Bridge.
A quick glance identified the reason for the call and trying to stay out of everyone’s way she got to work.
The Pegasus took another hit and Science Two exploded killing the Ensign there and sending Gilmore to the deck from her Science One position.
"Roebuck, take Tactical. Return fire!" Bremer said.
"Shields on that Type-C Warbird are still holding and their our maneuvering us.
"What do we know about that ship Hannigan, any weak points?" Bremer asked.
"Scanning, but nothing Starfleet Intel knows about. That ship is brand new and only encountered once." Hannigan replied.
"Chiara, keep aux power to the shields facing that ship and pull power from where ever you have to." Mike ordered.
The Pegasus turned and juked but the Romulan ship stayed with her and kept firing. The Yorktown and Vanguard both straffed the Romulan vessel but it got a few more hits in.
"Hull breaches on Decks Ten-Fifteen aft, we've also lost the doors to the main shuttle bay. Forcefields are holding." Roebuck reported.
"Admiral, ahead, more than two dozen Romulan ships decloaking!" Hannigan reported nervously.
On the screen, Romulan d'Deridex and Valdore Warbirds as well as several older Battlecruisers and Birds of Prey, and even one Scimitar Type Warbird appeared. There was no time for the Pegasus to turn, but the ships didn't fire. Instead, they passed the heavily damaged Pegasus and fired on her pursuers, destroying three and driving off the Type-C Warbird.
"Incoming message from the RRW Rakal, it's Commander Tamarith and Major T'Lana and Admiral Vernar aboard the RRW Esemar" Roebuck said.
"On screen." Mike said as he slowly stood.
"Apologies for being late." Vernar started.
"We were assisting Chancellor Martok's attack on K'Vak Station. It's been retaken from the Typhon Pact." Tamarith added.
Mike stood silent for a moment. His hatred for the Romulans, ALL Romulans since the death of his wife finally seemed a little misplaced to him. "Thank you."
"Our ships will help hold the center." T'Lana said.
Mike took his seat and glanced at his sensor display. The right flank was barely holding and the center of their lines was starting to buckle. Mike then glanced at the Pegasus's dedication plaque on the wall, "No, the situation is excellent, we attack!
USS Waterloo
Yamaguchi regarded the tactical display before her, the fight was now looking a lot more even, the Federation and their allies had been reinforced which Yamaguchi had been expecting but the enemy reinforcements were now heading off, chasing down a small Federation battlegroup, was something she had not been expecting.
Yamaguchi paused. "Resume firing tachyon surges into the enemy ships shield grids... Inform all ships in our group to do the same, once they reset their shields... fry them," she commented, her tone indicated she was ordering lunch from the menu in the officers mess rather than fighting a battle for her very survival.
USS Thinin
Commander Elizabeth Yamaguchi watched the battle rage. She was about half her mothers age and while she was no tactical expert as she came up the ranks as a medical officer, she had come to hate the enemy that the Federation and their allies were facing on this fine day. "Answer affirmative, but arm all of our remaining torpedoes... Prepare them for launch... Target enemy ships that have had their shields reset and throw everything that's not nailed down..." Yamaguchi paused. "Nails and crushed glass... If we can afford to lose it, see that it's lost..."
USS Luna
The Luna and the IKS Fek'lhr, IKS J'Ddan, IKS Qo'tor; One Vor'cha class ship and 2 Birds of Prey where heading towards the rest of the ships "Pike to Bremer, where would you like us sir?"
"Cover the Enterprise's group so they can get to the Endeavour and Starbase 400." Mike replied over the comm.
Lee "Acknowledge sir, we're heading there now." He tapped the comm informing the Klingon ships of what was going on then the 4 ships headed towards the Enterprise.
USS Endeavor
Coleman was sitting at the CO seat in the middle of the bridge as the entire ship was shacking around them. They were speeding away from the Triangle at maximum warp and was being trailed by a fleet of Tholian ships. The fleet had a good warp factor or two over the Endeavor and Coleman was fearing for his ship and crew.
Getting up and talking to the Conn officer, he asked, "Time to Starbase 400?"
The Conn officer replied, "One hours and the Tholian fleet will reach us within 15 minutes before that." The Conn officer looked up at Coleman and gave him a grim look.
Coleman was nervous, but he knew that he shouldn't show it. Turning around, he found the officer with highest rank and told him to take control of the bridge. Heading over to the Turbolift, Coleman had an idea to get the data to the Federation Fleet, no matter what.
USS Ark Royal, Bridge
As the Ark Royal made her way towards the Enterprise and her group, Jack ordered damage reports from the various departments so he knew where they stood before joining the Federation Flagship and her group. As he sat over at the Auxiliary Operations station reading the various details that were coming in, it was becoming clear that the Ambassador Class Starship was showing her age after the pounding that she had taken so far.
Jack took a breath as he paused for a moment and started to prepare for the next engagement. He knew that they would pay for every step they took forward, however it was all worth it once they stepped back on board Starbase 400. Suddenly a report from Engineering took his notice about The magnetic interlocks showing signs of stress that were higher than the safety norms. Jack slapped his combadge.
"=/\= Solomon to Quan, talk to me =/\=," he said as he re-read the report to make sure he was misreading it
"=/\= Quan to Solomon, good of you to call. No, you're not misreading my report. We've taken quite a pounding on the Engineering Hull and my people are doing everything they can to stabilise the situation. The old girl is taking a hammering =/\=," Quan explained.
"=/\= Clever green-blooded bastards. Very well, do what you can and keep me updated if the situation deteriorates =/\=,"
Jack nodded as he understood the strategy that the Romulan ships had been employing against the Ark Royal. Several of the ships that they had been attacked by were Mogai Class Warbirds and they had been quicker and been able to employ heavier firepower against the older starship. Despite being able to have picked off each of their aggressors, this was taking its toll and now Jack had a big issue on his hands.
SS Tenaran.
The Tenaran was in close formation with the Enterprise group along with the Ark Royal, Kearsarge, Falcon, and Dakota. Vox was managing to avoid getting too much fire but every so often he was unlucky and the Tenaran got a good thump from enemy fire.
#Sheilds are at 54%, Rae. # The main computer advised.
"Ok Tenaran, divert any power from non-essential systems, for example, Turn off gravity on decks we are not using and that are not occupied and transfer it to the shields. "
#In progress. Shields back up to 62%. #
"Good" Vox replied. He Taps the coms =^= Tenaran to Enterprise Group, Anyone care to give me some cover? My ship was never designed to take such a thumping from high powered weapons. =^= He said just as the ship took another wack, causing her to violently shake. # Shields down to 48% # the computer advised. =^= Now would be a good time folks =^= he added on the coms.
USS Pegasus-B, Bridge
Bremer watched his small sensor display on his chair's right arm rest as the Enterprise's group with the Ark Royal, Kearsarge, Falcon, Dakota, and Tenaran finally warped away from the group.
The Pegasus took another hit as vapor filled the air on the Bridge again.
"Shields are down to forty-one percent." Roebuck reported.
"Chief, change course 331 mark 87. Commander, target that Type-C Warbird. If we can take our their flagship their resistance may crumble." Bremer ordered.
USS Kearsarge, Bridge
Lennox was now in the center seat after Jewel had been injured and taken to Sick-Bay.
"Messsage frrom the Enterrprisse Colonel, when we arrrive at Sstarrbasse 400 they want uss to engage the defending Typhon Pact forrccess with the Arrk Rroyal and Falcon so the Dakota and Tenarran can beam theirr Marriness overr. Severral of theirr esccorrtss will ssupporrt uss. The Enterrprisse and otherrss will continue on and asssissst the Endeavorr." Taz reported.
Lennox nodded, "Understood. Make sure the Ark Royal, Falcon, Dakota, and Tenaran are aware."
The Kearsarge was in relatively good shape after the prolonged battle, so far. Repairs were ongoing, but deep down Lennox was hopeful the strike team on Starbase 400 had maintained control of the station and her weapons systems would help while Marines were beamed aboard.
Thirty Minutes Later
USS Pegasus-B, Bridge
The Pegasus had got a few hits in the last thirty minutes on the Type-C Warbird but had taken some too. She was slowed down, a couple of phaser arrays were offline, and one of her aft torpedo launchers was offline.
"Sir, the Ark Royal, Kearsarge, Falcon, Dakota, and Tenaran as well as ten of the Enterprise's escorts have arrived at Starbase 400. They're trying to beam Marines aboard now and engaging the defending Pact ships!" Hannigan reported from Intel. "The Enterprise and the rest of her escorts are trying to get to the Endeavour, she's about to be caught by pursuing Tholian ships."
"Tell Captain Worf to get the Endeavour to SB400 as quick as possible...we're breaking through this blockade line now!" Mike replied.
SS Dakota, Bridge
Smoke was slowly filling the bridge as the Dakota weathered another hit from the pact ships. "Ops we have to keep the transporters online until the maines are off the ship take power from life support, gravity Hell take it from the phasers if you have to but keep the transporters operating and keep the shields up." Said Cameron firmly they were home now but he and his crew had a job to do and one that they were being counted on to finish. "How much longer?" asked Cameron as the ship shook again from another near miss.
"Sir we need at least 10 more minutes to get the marines and their supplies on the station shields are down to 35 percent and we are down to our last 6 warheads." Said the ops officer calmly or at least as calmly as he could.
~Ok 10 minutes is not that long.~ Thought Cameron "Dakota to Falcon we could use some help over here if you are able to." Said Cameron over the comm link.
The USS Falcon was near the position of the SS Dakota. They were primarily supporting the Pegasus. When the call came in for tactical assistance.
The ship was already at battle stations, when Ezekiel looked over to the helm. "Mister Carrington, alter our course to provide tactical assistance to the Dakota." Ezekiel called out in a confident tone.
"Aye Captain." Samuel called out, as he inputed a course correction, to the SS Dakota.
"Commander Rodgers, signal the Dakota back, and tell them we are on our way." Ezekiel called out, from his command chair.
Sarah signaled the Dakota and waited for their amswer. She didn’t take her eyes off her console when she spoke. “They have been signaled and acknowledged.”
Samuel began his flight plan to have the USS Falcon come along side the SS Dakota. The ships sudden movement and course correction, allowed the ship to take some of the incoming weapons fire off the Dakota, and place it on his ship.
"We've given them something new to shoot at, Mister Reynolds, kindly return the favor." Ezekiel called out.
"Aye Captain, targeting the lead vessel." Dustin called out from his tactical station. He was hyper focused on his duties. He wanted to get out of this situation, alive and in one piece.
"Commander order the Dakota, to withdrawal to the secondary line, will provide tactical support." Ezekiel called out. He knew the ship would not last long in a weapons barrage of fire.
Sarah quickly gave out her captain’s orders. She watched for a moment and called out. “The Dakota, has dropped back to secondary.”
USS Ark Royal, Bridge
As the Enterprise's Task Group made its way towards Starbase 400, the Typhon Pact fleet now recognised what was going on and suddenly enemy ships were turning and trying to intercept the various starships in the task group.
Aboard the Ark Royal, Jack held firm against the railing as he gave out various orders to the crew sat at the various Operations, Helm and Tactticval stations on the Bridge. The ambassador Class starship shook with each hit she was taking from the Mogai class Warbirds that were bearing down on them, sending sparks flying and causing consoles and junctions to overload around them.
Jack heard his combadge beep over the din of the various pounding that the ship was taking as she made her run home and he slapped it hard.
"=/\= Solomon here, go ahead =/\=," he said.
"=/\= Quan to Solomon, We're taken quite a pounding on the Engineering Hull again and my people are doing everything they can to stabilise the situation. The old girl is taking a hammering. We're maybe twenty minutes from a core breach if this continues =/\=," Quan explained.
"=/\= Dammit, we're almost there. Do everything you can to stabilise that core! If it's going to blow, we'll evacuate the ship, Solomon out =/\=," he said.
Whilst he was on the call, Jack didn't notice Yosemite move to the Auxiliary Operations console and start to work at the console itself.
Once the task group arrived at Starbase 400 and took their positions, Jack felt almost triumphant, but now the hard part came.
"Ops, stand by to begin emergency transport of our teams aboard the Starbase. Tactical...lower shields, to allow for transport. Keep firing at any enemy ships that come in range. We have to hold the line for as long as possible. Helm, hold station and prepare to leave at maximum impulse once transport is complete," he ordered.
Taking a breath, Jack gave the order. "All Transporter rooms, begin mass transport now!"
As Taloris oversaw the mass transport procedure, Kolani at Tactical called out. "Captain, we have incoming, several more mogai class warbirds have locked on to us and will be within weapons range within the next thirty seconds!"
Jack slammed the rail as he turned around. "Open fire on them as soon as they are in range, we've got to get our teams aboard in one piece!" Jack answered as he held on to the rail whilst the starship rocked under more weapon fire.
minutes passed by before Taloris reported back from the Ops station. "Captain, all teams are aboard the starbase," she said in her calm Vulcan way. Suddenly the bridge lurched to the right as everyone felt and heard a large explosion.
"=/\= Quan to Solomon, times up, we're five minutes from a warp core breach and there's nothing I can do to stop it! =/\=," Quan explained.
"=/\= Solomon here, understood, evacuate engineering and get your people out of there, Solomon out =/\=" he ordered. Looking around at everyone on the bridge, Jack hit the shipwide comm button.
"All hands, abandon ship, beam over to Starbase 400 and prepare to defend yourselves on arrival!" he ordered. As everyone began leaving the bridge, Jack walked over to his first office Yosemite.
"That includes you too, XO, time to go," he said to her. Yosemite turned around from her station and stood up. Within a moment, she'd slung an engineering kit over his head and slapped an emergency transport module on his chest.
Jack looked up in shock as he transported away from the Ark Royal Bridge and found himself on 400. He ran to a console and ran a sensor check on the Ark Royal itself. His results showed that the starship was turning away from the station with maybe three minutes before the core breach taking place, still with her shields down and with only one life sign left on board: Yosemite.
Once the Ambassador Class starship was clear, he saw her go to warp one final time on a course for a group of Typhon Pact starships. Minutes later, there was a blinding flash. Checking the readouts, he saw that the core breach had taken place, destroying twelve Typhon Pact starships with it.
He waited only a beat as he removed the emergency transport module and then headed to Ops itself.
Kearsarge, Bridge
The Galaxy class ship took a couple of his from Romulan Warbirds and Tzenkethi ships.
"Transporters are offline! Repair team is working on it, power couplings are down." An officer at the Bridge Engineering station reported.
"Evasive maneuvers, return fire!" Lennox replied.
Starbase 400, Ops
"I'm working on it, someone is trying to lock them out as fast as I bring the power online." Draven said.
Tom watched the sensors as the Federation ships were quickly surrounded.
Solomon ran into Operations and slid into his position at the Engineering station. Feeling at home once more, despite his hidden grief, he fired some random commands into the starbase's main computer and then back those up with his Command codes to make sure that his lockouts against the Typhon Pact forces were complete.
Once he received a confirmation from the computer that his efforts had succeeded, Jack re-routed Auxiliary Power and looked over at Draven.
"Ok, try it now," he yelled, making sure that he kept the power levels stable and constant.
"Got it!" Draven said.
"Now, how about we show that Typhon Pact bastards who owns this station once more eh?" Solomon said as he saw the Weapons Batteries come online and begin targeting Typhon Pact starships once more...
Kearsarge, Bridge
The ship shook again.
"Two Valdorre type Warrbirdss clossing....and a damaged Battlecrruisserr on a collission courrsse!"
"Brace for impact!" Lennox called over the ship's intercom.
Just before the old Romulan ship hit the Kearsarge the battlecruiser exploded as the Galaxy class ships flew through the fire and debris.
"Nice shot!" Lennox said with a smile.
"That wassn't me, that came frrom Sstarrbasse 400!" Taz replied.
Finally, the Starbase's weapons systems came to life. Phaser and photon torpedo fire shot forth from the Starbase. Two Romulan ships and several Tzenkethi ships were quickly destroyed.
"Kearsarge to Dakota and Tenaran beam your Marines aboard the Station as quickly as you can!" Lennox called over the comm.
SS Tenaran
Vox got the message loud and clear. He signalled to the marines aboard his ship to prepare for mass transport. He then, from the bridge, remotely beamed all the marines onto the Station. He had programmed the system to drop the shields on the command to start the beam down process, with a slight delay to allow the shields to be down before beam out. Once the system registered the transport successful, the shields went back up immediately.
=^= Tenaran to Kearsarge and Dakota, marine deployment completed. Shields back up. Any further instructions? =^=
Kearsarge, Bridge
"Clear the area, you're no match for these ships and we'd had to lose that Gallery discount you promised." Lennox said with a smirk.
Essex Bridge
Deela's ship was taking a beating and still no word from Yamaguchi and Engineering. "T'Lar to Yamaguchi. T'Lar to engineering. Report?" Shields were barely holding and they were immobile. She sighed when there was no answer. She was tempted to go to engineering herself.
The Steadfast was helping the Essex but she was taking a beating as well. But Alex wasn't going to let her friend down.
Yamaguchi's voice came back over the com system. "The Chief's dead, we have heavy damage down here... And a good chance of a warp core breach..." as a sudden alarm could be heard, as if pronouncing everyone's doom. "Warning... Warp core breach imminent."
Yamaguchi's voice came back. "I'm going to try resealing the articulation frame. Give me a minute... Parker, with me." she called.
Engineering was a madhouse with people trying to keep ahead of the holes in the hull.
"Warning... Warp core breach imminent." the computer intoned.
Ripcord knew that unless she got this issue resolved properly, she and everyone else on this ship was about to die, she went over to the core as she began the process of the repairs. Parker assisted the smaller female as he was over six feet in height and massed over three hundred pounds.
Ripcord sighed softly as she went about the repairs. "Computer, status of warp core articulation frame.?" she asked
"Microfracture sealed, breach averted."
Ripcord sighed softly. "Gods, I'm getting too old for this crap..." she whimpered.
Back on the bridge Lt Commander Croesus once again reallocated power where it was needed.
"Shields holding," Croesus reported.
It had been a long 10 minutes but Cameron could finally send the message he needed to send "Dakota to Kearsarge marines and supplies are on the station we are clearing out at best possible speed." Said Cameron as the Dakota headed away from the battle under full impulse though she was trailing drive plasma and oxygen from several hull breachs.
USS Thinin
Commander Elizabeth Yamaguchi watched the state of the battle unfold before her. The scene was organized chaos as ships were busy slugging away at each other like medieval knights, often reduced to stabbing at each other with whatever they could wield. Yamaguchi turned her head as she spotted a Dreadnought that was preparing to make a run on the various Federation ships nearby. "Warp everyone present about that Dreadnought..." she commented. "Target that Dreadnoughts sensors... and fire phasers... Save our remaining torpedoes..." she commented.
"Sir, that Dreadnought has been drastically weakened but it's still able to fight." the tactical officer who's name Elizabeth had forgotten, he was a replacement for Lieutenant Danilov who had been taken to sickbay because of wounds from the battle.
"Sir, we don't have enough firepower to take them out..."
"We don't want to take them out El-Tee..." Yamaguchi answered. "We wish to drive them from the field..." she paused. "Helm, take us in..." as she narrowed her eyes, while she regarded the tactical display in front of her. "Interesting, subtle... That Dreadnought is bait in a trap." she paused. "Helm, veer off... Tell all ships present to open fire on the Dreadnought, torpedoes only. Maximum offensive salvo." she commented.
Yamaguchi's knew that the Thinin had just started a high-speed banking turn as the ships relative view to the Dreadnought changed, as torpedoes launched from the various other ships present began impacting into the Dreadnought, whittling down its shields.
Yamaguchi turned her head. "Resume firing tachyon surges into the enemy ship's shield grids. We have to penetrate their shields..." she ordered, it was like watching a boxing match as the Dreadnoughts shield went down, before warheads began directly impacting into the ships hull. Moments later the Dreadnought exploded in a massive explosion.
USS Endeavor
The Tholian Fleet was right on the back of the Endeavor, but there was a Federation Fleet heading towards them, commanded by the USS Enterprise and Captain Worf. It was a relief to see the fleet coming closer, but that relief was quickly shattered when Coleman felt the ship shutter under what felt like a torpedo blast.
"Report!" Coleman said as he stood up from his command chair. Looking back at the young security officer that had been given the monumental task of making sure the shields were up and held, said, "Sir, it looks like the Tholian Fleet has caught up with us. They're firing some sort of phase-modulated torpedo. It's got a bit more of a kick to it. I'm counting about five or six Tholian ships in their little fleet."
Turning around, Coleman said, "On-Screen." With that, the Tholian ships came onto the screen and looked rather massive, especially when compared to the Endeavor. The Ensign reported, "Sir, we've got about five or ten minutes until the Enterprise and the fleet reaches us. What would you like me to do?"
With another shutter, two or three more torpedos hit the shields and the Ensign reported the shields weakened by five per cent. Coleman looked back and took his seat as he said, "Battle-stations. Arm aft torpedos and launch when ready. If we're going to have to fight, then let's give them a hell of a fight."
A wane smile came across the Ensign's face as he acknowledged the order and within moments, a silo of torpedoes came flying out of the aft torpedo launchers. It hit two of the closest Tholian ships but did very little damage.
Hitting his combadge, Coleman said, "Coleman to EMH. Are you prepared down there?" Without missing a beat, the EMH responded, "Yes, sir. My newly minted Mobile-Emitter is on and I'm standing by."
Looking around to his crew, he said, "This is a battle I don't know if we're going to win. But, we are going to make sure this mission is a success. Let's give it our all and see where it takes us. Doctor, will you please join us on the bridge, please?"
With that, the men and women under Coleman's command got to work and began a fight for their lives.
Ten Minutes Later
The Enterprise and the Federation fleet arrived to where the Endeavor was fighting off the squadron of Tholian vessels. While the Endeavor was able to keep her own during that time, it was just a Nova-Class vessel. So, she was taking a beating.
When Worf opened a channel to the Endeavor, Coleman was relieved. Opening the channel, Coleman said, "Captain Worf, you're a sight for sore eyes. We've taken damage to the hull and warp core. If you can get them off our backs, that would be great."
With a warrior's smile, he chuckled and said, "You've fought like a true warrior today. We shall get them off your back, so I can buy you a glass of blood wine on Starbase 400. Worf out."
Closing the channel, the Enterprise and the fleet began their work of fighting off the Tholian Fleet. However, a few straw torpedoes and phaser shots hit the shields and eventually the outer hull of the Endeavor. As the USS Brogan took out the last of the Tholian vessels, Coleman got the report he didn't want to hear.
Like he was a telepath, the Security Ensign said, "We're being hailed by Captain Worf. Patching him through."
The face of Captain Worf came onto the screen again and he said, "We're detecting a warp core breach in progress. Are you able to stop the breach?"
Coleman looked over at his Engineer and she shook her head in the negative. "How much longer do we have before the ship goes under?"
"We've got about three minutes, sir," she said. The Endeavor had taken worse beatings than this in the past, so Coleman wasn't sure why the core was going down so quickly.
On the screen, Worf said, "We can have Engineers over there in under a minute to try and stabilize the core." Coleman simply shook his head and said, "No, Captain. It's not worth the risk. We've got important information about the Tholians to get to the Federation and we can't do that if we're dead. Start beaming my crew aboard and once they're all aboard, give me a signal. I'm going to see what I can do from here."
Worf nodded as he turned to his Ops Officer and ordered the evacuation of the Endeavor. As the transporter beams began to engulf the bridge officers, Coleman looked at the silver object in his hand and attached it to his uniform sleeve as he headed over to the Engineering station aft of the Captain's chair.
As he sat down and began working, he said, "You're our last hope if the Endeavor doesn't make it."
About two minutes later, Coleman heard a chirp from his combadge and he heard Captain Worf's voice. "Captain, your core breach has accelerated. The last of your crew have beamed aboard the Enterprise. You need to get out of there, NOW!"
"I've got twenty more seconds! I can do this!" Coleman said, as he desperately tried to save the Endeavor. Not only was it his ship, but his brother's too. It saw the aftermath of the destruction of Romulus and Remus, various battles with the Typhon Pact, among other things. This just couldn't be the end.
"Captain, I was there when the Enterprise-D was destroyed by a ship of my own people. Kirk saw the original Enterprise go up into flames over the Genesis Planet. The Enterprise-C was destroyed by Romulans. As with the Enterprise, the name Endeavor will go on! But, you will not if you die a senseless death. Now, please beam aboard," Worf said, trying to plead for the other Captain to give up the ever more futile attempt.
Looking around, Coleman saw the bridge going up in sparks. Finally realizing the futile nature of his attempts, Coleman stood up, Coleman grabbed the silver device on his uniform sleeve and said, "One for emergency beam-out!"
Worf said, "Beam straight to the Bridge." As the swirl of the transporter beam took ahold of Coleman, the Endeavor blew up around him. The transporter chief of the Enterprise had a little trouble since the ship blew up around Coleman, but compensated and beamed him directly in front of the Enterprise Bridge Crew.
Walking up to him, Worf extended a hand and said, "Good battle, sir." Taking the hand of one of the most famous men in Starfleet, Coleman said, "Thank you, sir. Now, we need to get this to Starbase 400 and Starfleet."
Coleman shook the silver object in front of Worf. Worf smiled and told the Conn officer to take them back to the battle for Starbase 400.
USS Waterloo
Yamaguchi regarded the tactical display before her, the fight was now looking like a barroom brawl with half the lights shot out, she was now all out of torpedoes and the Waterloo was damaged. "Status.
"Shields are at thirty per cent and falling..." came the expected response. "Sir, the Firefly..." the Ops officer indicated one of the Defiant-class ships that were accompanying the Waterloo as she took one strike from a plasma torpedo, which caused the small Defiant-class ship to start corkscrewing along her main axis, one moment she was a functioning ship of the line and the next, she was a dying, smouldering wreck, wreathed in fire.
Yamaguchi was quick. "Beam those people over here, now!"
The Operations officer was even faster still, beating her to the punch as he began doing just that, beaming anyone he could grab from the dying Defiant-class ship.
Yamaguchi watched in silence as the small sip suddenly smashed into one of the two Romulan type-22 class warbird's that had been attacking Yamaguchi's group of ships, the impact imparted enough force to overcome the shielding and the heat released from the explosion of Firefly's warp core was more than enough to disintegrate both ships. "You lived up to your name little guy." she said quietly, referring to the name 'Firefly'
USS Pegasus-B, Bridge
"Admiral, report from the Enterprise, the Endeavour has been destroyed," Hannigan said.
Mike stood as the Pegasus took another hit.
"Shields at thirty-one per cent!" Roebuck reported.
"Coleman? The Crew?" Mike asked Hannigan.
"Aboard the Enterprise. Most of the ship's database was saved, as well as some Tholian artefact. They're en-route to Starbase 400 now. Reports also suggest Marines have beamed aboard the Station and the remaining enemy fleet there is crumbling." Hannigan replied.
The Pegasus shook again, this time because the USS Dagonet beside her exploded from Krazzle weapon's fire.
"That last hit damaged our environmental controls, attempting to compensate." A Lieutenant at the Environmental Systems station reported to Mike's right. Another violent shake later and that Lieutenant was killed when his console exploded.
"We're losing power all across the ship, there's a cascade failure in the power grid!" Added the Ensign at the Science 3 station as she looked back at dead Lieutenant beside her on the deck.
"Chiara, divert power to the shields and weapons, whatever it takes you to keep them online!" Mike said.
“I’ll do what I can Sir!” Chiara rapidly got on trying to divert power but She was fighting a losing battle.
The Pegasus turned and lined up on the Type-C Warbird's belly...finally getting the shot she wanted.
"Mister Roebuck, fire," Mike said with an angry expression on his dirty face.
The Pegasus unleashed a beam of phased energy from her cannon followed by a spread of Hellfire and Quantum torpedoes, then another and another blast from the cannon. The fire phaser hit impacted the new Romulan ship's shields nearly breaking through. The Hellfire torpedoes skipped passed and ripped into the ship's hull. The Quantum torpedoes finished off the shields and tore into the ship's port wing while the last two phaser beams pierced through the ship and out the other side.
IRW D'Trell
"Engineering to Bridge, shields are down and impulse power is offline. Bridge!" The Centurion called over the comm.
"Don't bother, they're all dead or incapacitated." A Tal Shiar Major said as she walked into Engineering. I'm taking control of the ship from here."
The D'Trell slowed and turned to face the Pegasus.
USS Pegasus-B, Bridge
"Power's out to the helm Admiral, we're drifting," Branson reported from Flight Control.
"Weapons are down, shields are buckling," Roebuck reported from Tactical.
Mike tapped his comm-badge as he lowered his head. "Pegasus to closest ships, we're abandoning ship."
The USS Pathfinder, the first of her class, the Curiosity class ship USS Vasco da Gama, the Odyssey-class USS Lancelot, as well as the USS Yorktown, were the closest ships and they started to beam the crew off of the proud vessel.
USS Yorktown-F, Bridge
"We'll beam the Bridge crew here," K'Temoc said over the comm.
"Oh shit!" K'Wor said as he tapped in a few commands.
K'Temoc looked over at K'Wor's panel. "Beam them off now!"
The Type-C Warbird opened fire with its three Type 22 Disrupter cannons and plasma torpedoes onto the bare hull of the Pegasus. The weapons fire ripped into the saucer section and nacelles of the Galaxy Class Refit. Debris and fire engulfed the ship.
"They're warping away!" Danielle said from the Science station. "Looks like everyone was beamed off safely."
"Their lines are collapsing," Cross added from the Intel position. "What's left of their fleet is pulling back and warping toward New Romulus."
The Starboard side egress door opened and Bremer walked through having been beamed off just before the Pegasus was hit one last time.
Mike just looked at the screen for a moment as the Pegasus-B drifted afire.
"You okay?" K'Temoc asked his brother.
Mike nodded. "Signal the fleet to reform and set course for Starbase 400. Have the Tirpitz, Cutlass, Warspite, Laffey, Dorsetshire, Conqueror, Crockett, Ranger, Kashin, Thresher, Princeton, Constantinople, Avenger, and Cairo to remain here with the Mercy to search for survivors and to keep the enemy and scavengers away from the drifting ships." He kept looking at the Pegasus-B.
After a moment, K'Wor replied, "Message sent."
"All ships have formed up," Cross added.
"Engage," K'Temoc said after a moment.
Chiara took one more look at the old Pegasus onscreen before moving across to the Ops station to see if she could be of any assistance.
USS Enterprise-Bridge
Coleman was looking over the count of those that were beamed off of the Endeavor before the warp-core breached. Everyone except for Plumeri and one science officer was accounted for. Looking over the data, he realized that the missing science officer was with Plumeri. So, it would be a double effort to get them both back.
The Enterprise had met the Endeavor halfway between Starbase 400 and the planet the mold was found on. So, the trip back to the fleet wasn't long. The Conn Officer brought Coleman out of his fog that he had been in since being rescued. The Conn Officer said, "We're coming out of Warp. It looks like the Pegasus is on fire, but Admiral Bremer is on the Yorktown. They're ordering us to rejoin the fleet and we're heading into a closer formation around Starbase 400."
181st Fighter Wing
The 181st deployed to fill in the gaps as they neared the Starbase. Many targets still to ward off, Lt Colonel Chuck McDaniel pointed his Valkrye and had his pilots follow.
SS Dakota-Bridge
Cameron felt helpless now that his part in the fight was over they had picked a heading that would take them away from the battle and had stopped at a distance that would ensure they would not be a danger to anyone else if something happened. "Alright people we did our jobs now let's start trying to repair what we can Helm take the warp core and weapons systems offline keep the shields up though and keep the impulse engines on hot standby. The rest of us have some systems to repair and if we can not repair them then either take them offline or patch them as best you can." Said Cameron as he headed for the turbo lift hoping that it at least still worked and he could get down to the engineering deck to start repairs.
He was followed by 4 of the 5 other crew members who were on the bridge the ship had proven to be a tough lady and they were just as determined as their captain to get her repaired at least enough to keep from blowing up.
USS Falcon
Ezekiel noticed the continuous bombardment of weapons fire on the USS Pegasus, ships like the Falcon and the rest of the support vessels did what they could to provide cover, but the enemy numbers were to massive.
Ezekiel could not believe what he had heard, that the USS Pegasus was abandoning ship. Her destruction seemed inevitable by this time.
"Captain, shields are holding at 62%, attempting to reroute power from the engines to bolster shields," Dustin called out from the tactical station.
"Commander Rodgers signal the Yorktown, that we stand ready to assist," Ezekiel called out, wondering what type of shape Admiral Bremer was in, after abandoning his ship.
Sarah contacted the Yorktown and called back over. “They have acknowledged my signal, Captain, we are standing by for their order.” She was concerned for those on the Pegasus.
"Acknowledge, we are standing by for new orders folks. Remember your training and will do fine." Ezekiel called out to the bridge crew. He was proud of them all. So far they had performed remarkably well.
Sarah knew the crew needed to hear those words from the captain. “The Yorktown is hailing for assistance, Captain.”
USS Yorktown-F, Bridge
"K'Temoc, beam to straight to Ops," Mike said. "Roebuck you're with me."
K'Temoc nodded to Cross who tapped a few buttons. A moment later Mike was back aboard Starbase 400.
Starbase 400, Ops
Mike looked around for a minute, then looked at the strike team. "Well done, all of you."
Draven smirked.
Mike took a breath for a moment, "Roebuck, take Tactical. Target any Typhon Pact ships with come within range. Lek, open a channel to the enemy fleet."
"Channel Open," Draven replied.
"Typhon Pact forces, this is Fleet Admiral Bremer, back aboard Starbase 400. The battle is over. We've not only reclaimed Starbase 400 but the Klingons have retaken K'Vak Station as well. There's no more need for additional bloodshed this day. Withdraw from Federation Alliance territories at once!" Mike's tone was serious and straight forward.
"Our Marines have pinned down the Tzenkethi boarding parties on the Promenade Level 108 and a few near the Upper Observation Lounges on Level 135 and Observation Lounges on Level 310. They will have full containment soon." Ermey reported.
"I want a damage report as soon as possible," Mike said.
"I've been pulling information from the computer systems sir, but until we get Engineering teams aboard we won't know the Station's full readiness," Harper replied.
"I'll get to work on that damage report, we beamed over the Engineering and Operations teams from the Ark Royal before she...was destroyed," Jack said. "I'll get that information as soon as I can."
"Admiral, we've just destroyed another Krazzle Tigris class battleship, and the Romulan Type-C Warbird is withdrawing. It looks like the vast majority of this forces are now pulling back to Romulan space!" Roebuck reported.
Mike let out a deep breath as a smile crossed his face. "Signal all Alliances forces to rendezvous at Starbase 400."
Jack turned around and got to work once more at the Engineering station. Fearing that Deela may have seen the Ark Royal go up in the core breach, he decided his first course of action was to send her a message.
"Ark Royal destroyed in core breach, crew evacuated to Starbase 400. I'm alive and safe in Ops. Yosemite piloted Ark Royal into Typhon Pact group to buy us time. See you when you get home...and yes, we're still getting married. Solomon out," he said before sending the message as a priority one to the Essex, making sure it was for her eyes only.
Then he returned to working on getting all of the information form the various damage control teams on board the station.
USS Enterprise-Bridge
Coleman had been listening in at the Science Station on the Enterprise bridge as the ship had been ordered to various places, in order to help fight off several attackers that had come and gone from the Typhon Pact. The Enterprise had encountered and fought off every single species that aligned itself with the Typhon Pact and just made Coleman wonder about the future.
However, while the Enterprise fought off the Tholians that had attacked and destroyed the Endeavor, not all of them were destroyed themselves. They hadn't seen them recently, but with the Breen and Romulans aligning themselves with the Typhon Pact, it was anyone's guess where they might've hidden themselves.
The Enterprise and the rest of the fleet had been ordered to meet up at Starbase 400, which meant that the station had been retaken by Federation forces. Coleman was relieved to hear that when the news came in. Yet, the news was short-lived when the shields of the Enterprise were knocked by the impact of Tholian weapons.
The Tholians had been following the Enterprise after they destroyed the Endeavor, where they thought the information had been destroyed with the ship. But, when they realized the information had been transferred back to the Enterprise, with the artefacts and the information in the small silver device, they wanted it back and knew it would take another starship being destroyed.
When the shields buckled, Captain Worf immediately went into action. Standing in front of his command chair, he turned to his tactical officer and said, "How many ships do we have attacking us?"
"It looks like three of the original Tholian ships that destroyed the Endeavor are still with us sir. I thought we destroyed them sir, but it appears they weren't and they managed to hide themselves by inverting their warp fields and masking their engine emissions as background radiation. However, only one is a true Tholian battleship. The others are frigates, sir. A few quantum torpedoes should take care of them," the officer replied back to the Captain. Worf nodded and replied, "Fire when ready."
With a few swift movements of his hand, the tactical officer aimed and fired a few good quantum torpedoes at the two smaller vessels, which took major damage due to them. One of the smaller vessels exploded within seconds, while the other smaller vessel was heavily damaged. A few more phaser hits to the Enterprise shields could be felt, but the last Tholian ship that was still functional quickly turned off and headed back to meet up with the rest of the Typhon Pact fleet.
The bridge erupted into a cheer as they knew that we had finally won this part of the war. While the entire war was far from over, Coleman and the bridge crew of the Enterprise knew they were one step closer to getting a conclusion to it.
Captain Worf smirked and looked at the helm officer and asked, "How far are we from Starbase 400 and the Federation fleet?" The officer replied they were less than an hour away from the Starbase and within subspace range of the station.
"Open a hailing frequency to the Starbase. Tell Admiral Bremer he owes me a case of Klingon Bloodwine and that we've got something very important for him," Worf said, smirking as he looked around at his crew.
USS Essex, Bridge
Word spread fast that Starbase 400 was reclaimed. She looked over at the crewman who took over for Yamaguchi, "Set a course for Starbase 400. We're going home." The demeanour of the Essex crew changed immediately but Deela couldn't celebrate, not when the Chief Engineer was dead and others injured. All she could think about was the task that was ahead of her and she was not looking forward to it.
Suddenly the com system beeped. "Engineering to Bridge... I have limited warp drive for you... Speed limited to warp six...I might be able to get you warp eight in a few hours..."
"Good." She was relieved, "Keep working on it."
Deela was informed that there was a message for her waiting. She stood up, "I will be in my ready room if needed." She stepped into her ready room and sat down at the console. She read it and was a little shocked. She had no idea that the Ark Royal had even been destroyed. The Essex almost met the same fate. Her eyes slightly teared as emotions ran through her. Between losing her Chief Engineer, missing her kids and almost losing another loved one, her Vulcan upbringing couldn't help her this time.
SS Dakota, Bridge
Cameron had watched the battle on what he had for long range sensors and knew that the fleet had won but it was a costly win. "Alright guys looks like the fight is over and we won let's you all back to the station so you can get back to doing what you were intended to do. Helm set course for SB400 half impulse power. No point in putting unneeded strain on the ship then we do not need to.". Said Cameron calmly it would take them an hour or better to get back but at least they all had a home to get back to.
USS Waterloo
Yamaguchi was still seated in her command chair, as she smiled, she was having a great time, her crew had performed with distinction and she was proud to serve with each and every last one of them. Waterloo had proved herself on this day. Her moment to herself was suddenly interrupted.
"Sir, we're getting orders to warp for Starbase 400, along with the rest of the fleet."
"Answer affirmative," Yamaguchi answered. "Match speed with the rest of the fleet... and prepare to get underway..." Yamaguchi answered. "Tactical. report?"
"Phaser arrays are fully charged but we are down to thirty photon torpedoes, we are out of all other types of ordinance." came the report which Yamaguchi had been expecting.
"Understood," Yamaguchi answered as she tapped her combadge. "Yamaguchi to Koraan... Report?"
"Six dead, fourteen wounded..." came the answer that Yamaguchi had been expecting and dreading, both in equal measure. "Doctor, I need everyone at their posts..." She hated to do it but she did need her people at tip-top shape.
"I won't keep anyone here a second longer then I need to skipper. Koraan out."
Yamaguchi knew she would be writing more letters home, packing out more crewmates quarters, and sending them home on their last voyages. She let out an angry sigh. "Typhon Pact bastards..." she muttered. She hated them, she reviled them and she knew she was right to do so.
USS Thinin
The Operations officer turned his head. "Captain, we're getting orders to rendezvous at Starbase 400..."
Yamaguchi left unsaid that there were dozens of disabled and crippled ships that were being left behind, along with dozens of ships that had been lost on both sides. Elizabeth was sure that the Battle of Kaleb would be one for the history books. "Answer affirmative... Let's prepare to get underway." she paused. "Helm, match speed with the fleet and take us to our destination at their speed, whatever that it..."
"Aye Captain." came the response.
Yamaguchi was tired, she knew that due to her medical experience, she would be better suited to assist with the wounded below. She was considering turning over command to her first officer and heading down to sickbay. The large human-looking female turned her head. "John... report?"
"I have phasers for you but no torpedoes of any kind..." Pertama answered with a nod of his head.
"Understood. Let's hope these Typhon Pact fools don't come back to toy with us again..." Yamaguchi answered.
Starbase 400, Ops
Several minutes later
Mike smiled as the Typhon Pact fleet left Federation space.
"Signal Captain Dow's group to assume defensive orbit of Kaleb IV and beam down relieve forces and supplies." Mike said.
Draven nodded.
Mike continued, "I want any prisoners taken to the to the brig and engineering teams to go over the Station with a fine tooth comb." Mike took a breath as he looked around for a moment, "Signal our ships to enter orbit of the Station except for the vessels assigned to guarding the battlefield and the ships there." Mike paused again, thinking about the Pegasus-B.
"I'm going to check out the restaurant." Tom said to Vito before giving Bremer a respectful nod.
"I'm coming with you." Vito replied.
With the doors open, Mike waited for everyone to return to Starbase 400 while they took stock in what they lost reclaiming the mountain.
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