The Galactic War: Rogue Element ~The Beginning

[Estelore]

<<Thank you, Sir; I would not think of it.>> She averts all four eyes at the compliment he pays.

<<How do you propose to achieve trust with them?>>

[Luke Skywalker (Ossanlin)]

Ossanlin sighs internally.  <<It will be difficult.  We will need to take the first step.  They have no choice but to trust us, and that sort of trust breeds resentment.  Our former countrymen destroyed their home and killed hundreds of their friends and comrades...that leaves us holding the blade.  I have asked Keslin for a list of those he believes would be trust-worthy, I plan on corroborating that list with Myitt.  I would say it would be a good idea to ask the uninfested humans first, but that would merely lead to a false sense of security.>>

<<I have also allowed Keslin access to certain information.  Nothing that would allow him to compromise the ship or crew, but I believe it's a safe step to take.  I believe we should allow them all access to non-dangerous information.>>

Ossanlin pauses again before continuing.  <<I trust that you understand, Enorryma...if anything should keep me from performing my duties, you will need to assume command of the Tyrennian.>>

[Estelore]

She averts her eyes again and the second mention of her holding any office or duties beyond those of TO.

<<I will do what my Captain requires of me.>>

[Aluminator (Kit)]

<True,> says Aetheas, trying to control his breathing for the run, his hearts pounding now. <The Tyrennian should not have gone rogue with less than the full crew compliment.> He bounds around a tree, then leaps over a shrub that seems to have come out of nowhere. <It almost seems we need these Yeerks more than they need us. I suppose the Captain must have a lot of faith in this 'Myitt' to be willing to cut us off from all support to help them. I am not sure I agree with his decision, but it is too late for second thoughts now.>

[Chad32]

<His reaction to what happened may have been a bit rash, but all we can do is stand by him and support him.> Claxter as he began to struggle to keep up. Either he was getting too tired, or Aetheas was just faster than he was. His legs burned as he pushed himself. <It is true I'm not sure the rebels really need us as much as we need them. Who knows if they have some other base somewhere, fully stocked with supplies? It surprised me a little when I heard he was going to leave the military, but I knew I couldn't leave him.>

<I did something regrettable that probably would have come back to haunt me if I had left Prince Ossanlin. Even though I have grown past what I was, and still struggle a bit with it now.>

[Aluminator (Kit)]

Aetheas finally stumbles, nearly falling on his face, and slows to a trot, panting. In spite of himself, he's smiling. There isn't much he likes more than a good run.

<Of course I support the Captain,> he says with an air of pretension. <This crew operates outside of the politics of the Electorate now. We may actually be able to make a difference like we never could have before. I, for one, am hoping that these rebels turn out to be all you claim.>

When Claxter begins speaking about something that might 'come back to haunt him,' Aetheas looks away slightly. He's never particularly interested in hearing the tales of woe of his fellow Andalites, but thus far he's not yet managed to find a non-awkward way of avoiding such conversations. <I... also could not leave the Captain,> he says neutrally. <He is the first commander I've had since leaving the Academy who's been able to look past my... disability.> His voice grows quiet when he mentions his 'disability'-- it's clear he's not comfortable talking about it.

[Chad32]

Claxter slowed to a trot as well, almost moving his tail to help catch Aetheas, but the Aristh recovered well enough. Claxter was kind of glad he didn't pry about the regrettable thing. Everyone would probably find out one way or another, though. At least his problem had the fortune of being on the inside, instead of outside like Aetheas'. Fewer people would look at Claxter, knowing nothing about him, and scorn him for what he was. <Prince Ossanlin is a great Andalite.>

<That was a good run. I believe that gets the standard training done that we can do while in Z-Space. For flight practice we can either hit the simulator, or wait until we're back in real space. We can take another break first, though.>

[Aluminator (Kit)]

Aetheas nods a stalk eye. He's not entirely sure 'progressive' is the same thing as 'great' when speaking about Ossanlin, but it's definitely a start. He's not about to voice that opinion to Claxter, though.

Aetheas closes his main eyes and sighs, attempting to steady his breathing. His hearts are still pounding. If they use one of the simulators, they'll definitely go past their scheduled time together, and Aetheas would as soon get back to his own free time as anything. On the other hand, though, he has been itching to get back behind the controls of a star fighter.

<Let's hit one of the simulators,> he says. He turns and begins walking towards the exit to the dome, taking his time to allow his breath to recover. <I would like another chance at the obstacle course.> The thought of his last performance in that particular simulation makes him wince.

[Chad32]

<Simulator it is.> He waited a few more seconds, and started walking back to the room. He turned on the obstacle course piloting simulation. The goal was to chase a bugfighter through space with a lot of other ships, big and small. You had to avoid colliding with other ships, dodging blasts and debri, all while performing tight maneuvers while trying to shoot what must be the best bugfighter pilot in the galaxy. Claxter intended to sit this one out. He would soon be training to fly the Tyrennian, and would be on the bridge during future space battles.

[Terenia]

Efaen blinks slowly, trying not to let the overwhelmed feeling make it to her face. It is a lot of information to absorb at once, but she nods, walking over to the control panel, her main eyes flickering over the various functions. Her stalk eyes remain facing forward as well, a habit she has formed from spending so much time in human form. <Primary thrust, vectoring thrusters, atmospheric fins,> she echoes, resting a hand over each in turn. She takes a deep breath, then exhales. <Let us begin simply. How do I turn it on?> She glances at him and smiles a little with her eyes.


Keslin wraps Chris' arms around Myitt, holding her close. He doesn't move for a long time, letting her cry and crying himself, feeling incredibly helpless. "I need to sleep," he finally murmurs, kissing the top of her head tenderly, his lips moving in her hair. "Chris is dead on his feet, and we can't function much longer." Sighing, he pulls away. "And I need to see to Tess. But Myitt...we need to meet. All of us...us survivors. Free of Andalite ears." He smiles faintly, reaching up to wipe at his eyes. "We need to pull together, or we're just going to fall further apart."


"I'm not working with him," Terenia says, her voice scratchy. It is the first she has said in a long time, but the words are forceful enough. "We need to find the rest of our people and put as much distance between us and these Andalites as we can." She doesn't look up, her eyes on the protein bar that she has only taken a single bite of.

[Luke Skywalker (Ossanlin)]

<That's a good question, Efaen.>  Eleric smiles back.  <There are several ways to start a Tail-Fighter.  You can perform a cold-start with the panel controls, or by individually controlling each component, but the easiest way is to merely select one of the pre-programmed start-up sequences.  Activating one of the programs by thought-speech will initiate the corresponding start-up.>

<There are four primary startup programs for Tail-Fighters.  Alpha, Beta, Zeta, and Omega.  The one you'll be using is Alpha, it's the most commonly-used startup sequence.  It brings the components online in the safest, yet most-efficient manner possible.  This is also referred to as a "soft-start," as it allows the components of the fighter to come on gradually, reducing overall system stress.  Startup sequence Beta, known as a "hard-start," gives the components less time to "warm up" as it were, increasing stress on the entire system, but also significantly reducing startup times.  Sequence Zeta is a diagnostic startup.  It soft-starts and tests each individual component before bringing it online.  Zeta is used mainly for diagnoses and repairs when you don't have access to a facility such as there is onboard the Tyrennian.>  Eleric pauses a moment before elaborating further on the final sequence.  <Startup Omega should never be used except in the direst of circumstances.  The Omega sequence brings the fighter online and off the ground in the absolute quickest manner possible with complete disregard for the safety or maintenance of the ship.  Omega has dire consequences, even if they aren't immediately apparent.>

He smiles again.  <For now, simply address the computer with thought-speech and instruct it to begin Startup Sequence Alpha.>

[Aluminator (Kit)]

Aetheas dons his simulated ARC display stations himself at the controls of the simulated Tail-Fighter, placing one hand on the control stick, feeling the familiar subtle vibration of the idling ship through his hands and his hooves. He activates the ARC's HUD, groaning when he sees its analysis of the debris field outside. three Blade Ships, one Pool Ship, and what looks like the remnants of an entire Andalite fleet and a good portion of a Yeerk one, floating in a thick asteroid field. This is not going to be an easy run.

He eases the fighter off the deck of the little simulated hangar ship that served as the starting point for this particular simulation. The layout of the debris field requires him to fully open the throttle almost immediately in order to avoid the Dracon fire from the nearer of the Blade Ships that rips apart the hangar ship as he exits-- he barely clears it as it explodes, the fireball singing his own fighter. Luckily, this is a newer model fighter, and he barely feels the acceleration. He makes an attempt to use some of the asteroids for cover as he rockets towards the target Bug Fighter, but heavy fire from three sides forces him to dodge wildly, turning, diving, rolling. He finds he's not really mentally prepared to be thrown so quickly into the thick of this simulation, and his flying is somewhat erratic while he tries desperately to regain his bearings.

Finally, however, he manages to fly into the thick of the debris field, and the fire from the larger ships dies away as they shift to try to get a better angle on him. Aetheas lights up the engines and rockets through the inside of a broken Mark II dome behind the Bug Fighter, then eases off the throttle a bit to follow its zig-zagging path through a particularly dense patch of smaller asteroids. The whole time, he stands, tensed, with his tail tucked down as though he's running, and keeps his main eyes glued to the Bug Fighter. His stalk eyes frantically scan the area above and below and to the sides of his craft, watching for obstacles and fire and Blade Ships. He finds himself wishing, as he usually does when piloting a fighter, that he had another set of eyes.

[Chad32]

Claxter hadn't meant for the difficulty setting to start quite this high. He wondered if one of the more daring pilots had run this simulation last, and forgot to set the difficulty back. Still, he'd have to start it over to dial it back, so Aetheas would just have to deal. <make sure you keep an eye ahead of the bugfighter to try to predict which way it will move. Use allied ships as well as cover to keep from being fired at.>

It was exciting to watch, but he couldn't just stare in silence.

[Aluminator (Kit)]

Aetheas twists out of the field of little asteroid chunks, watching as the Bug Fighter gets away. He searches, frantically, for a path through the debris that will allow him to gain ground. Thanks to this search, he happens to be looking exactly at the spot where a second Yeerk fleet emerges from Z-space, followed, seconds later, by a large Andalite fleet.

Great. It's one of those scenarios.

Within moments, the space around him has erupted with an endless hail of blue and red fire, explosions and new debris exploding everywhere. Swarms of Bug Fighters and Tail-Fighters erupt from the capital ships as though they can't get out fast enough. At least the new ships seem to have distracted the three Blade Ships from concentrating all their fire on him.

For a few moments, in his surprise, he loses sight of the target Bug Fighter, and is unable to pick it out until he orders his ARC to mark it for a moment-- a minor cheat that will cost him some points in the final score, but at least it will keep him from losing the target Bug entirely.

As he banks hard to avoid an asteroid he'd almost plowed into, a nearby explosion rattles the fighter. <Remind me to check the difficulty settings before running this simulation next time!> he yells. For the most part, Aetheas and Claxter have been the only ones to use this program, since most of the pilots tend to stick to more realistic scenarios, so it seems they've both gotten used to simply activating the program, but it looks like one of the pilots decided to give the 'obstacle course' a shot recently. This is a significantly higher setting than they left it on. <Yaaahhhhhh!> he yells, weaving between a trio of Tail-Fighters that blow by him, heading the opposite direction with engines and Shredders blazing.

[Chad32]

This was getting to be too much for Claxter keep track of, and he wasn't even sure what sort of advice to give. Things happened so fast, just watching it made him dizzy. <If you can land a hit or two on it, it will make the bugfighter easier to distinguish. After that, it may be best to try to swing around the outside of the combat, and look for an opening from there. Just try to stay out of the core of the battle and try to get your bearings. That is, if you aren't just supposed to stay on its tail regardless, trying to get off at least one clean shot. Right now I kind of forget the exact objective.>