"We've reached Jupiter beacon 118, " the helmsman said.
"Excellent. Send word to the station of our arrival and scan for traffic," Philana orders.
"No response from Jupiter station, Commander," the Comm officer says,"Very strange.. Wait. We've got something. It's garbled but I think they're saying they're under attack."
"Damn!"
"Confirmed. We have 6 Styme medium class cruisers in system."
"Just like Proxima."
"What happened at Proxima?"
"6 of their cruisers attacked the shipyards there. Wrecked the whole place. By the time anyone got there every human being was dead. Inform the Hyperion of the situation and request assistance. We're going to have to chase these buzzards off. Kell take tactical. Jump to normal space, now, " Philana orders sitting in the captain's chair

The Andromeda emerges from hyperspace. Immediately, the displays light up detecting the multiple targets blue for friendly, red for enemy. Three yellow markers, signifying neutrals or unknown were leaving the area. The forward facing weapons of the Andromeda begin firing on the red targets. The Styme cruisers turn from their destruction and head out towards the smaller lone cruiser.



"Styme vessels, I order you to disengage and leave the area before you get destroyed."



"Just the who the hell are you to be ordering the 6th scout squadron of the great Styme collective?"
"Grand Admiral Kerensky of the Singian Federation. Our leader, Supreme Warlord Kell, is also here to witness the slaughter of those who hit our outpost at Proxima." Philana responds.
"You may proceed with the test, Admiral," Kell says apparently quite bored.
"Your ship's weapons are no match for us. We will be victorious." The Styme commander replies, eager for slaughter.

As the group of cruisers move to assure complete destruction, a gigantic jump-point forms behind them. From the hole into hyperspace emerges a Gladiator-class warship, the only one of her kind still in service. "Hyperion command to Andromeda. Ready for test."






Almost immediately, the Hyperion begins deploying her full complement of 75 Phoenix fighters, which engage the larger cruisers. The fighters harass the Styme as the Hyperion moves to block them from the station itself.




The Andromeda drops out of the circle and heads towards the station, to assess damage and the intentions of the three yellow markers. Station personnel identify the unknown ships as members of a Colonial science group.

"Hyperion on the Comm, 'Admiral'."
"Andromeda here."
"Styme threat eliminated for now. They ran for hyperspace as soon as they got the chance. We took some damage but repair systems are cleaning off the blood. How's the station?"
"Hit pretty bad. StarFleet is going to have a conniption when they hear about it, but maybe now they'll take this threat seriously."
"We're going to give chase. They-"
"No. Wait. The Styme will engage and destroy you as you enter hyperspace, I know. I was at Proxima when they did it to us then."
"Impossible. No one engages in hyperspace. Both sides lose every time." The Hyperion, having collected their remaining fighters enters hyperspace.

************
"The captain's aboard."
"Good set course for the rendezvous point with the Taloma. Kell, we better move you out of those soft quarters so the 'captain' can have his 'soft, comfy bed'."
As the Andromeda enters the hyperspace jump-point, they encounter a debris field about 40 miles wide by 200 miles long. "The Hyperion. Notify StarFleet it's gone and warn the station that the debris could cause harm to ships passing through here. The debris field is being spread by the hyperspace currents."


--Darren

"For the crew of the Hyperion. May they rest in
peace. Their captain, although nameless, was gallant and not quite as bright as he should be. The crew was ill fated to join the ranks of many who have died already."
-- Memoirs of Philana Kerensky, Commander.

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

"Knight seven to lead, my long-range scans are picking up hyperspace trails over near Jupiter. Should we break and investigate?" came the voice of Vagabond, one of Jayce's new squadron-members.

"Negative, seven. I'll send word back to Talona; they've got better scanners, anyway. If they tell us to respond, we'll go, but I doubt we'll be effective. Jupiter's too far away for a rapid response from us." Jayce wanted to go check it out himself, but he had new responsibilities now. He couldn't just ditch his squadron and fly off like a hot-dog any more. Then again, he could bring the whole squadron with him...

"This is Talona air-traffic command. Black Knights, break off patrol and investigate disturbance near Jupiter. Your Banshees are jump capable, change course to vector 297, and engage warp. Good hunting."

"All right, Knights, you heard the orders. Form up in quadrant... 235 and prepare for jump to Jupiter," Jayce ordered. Within minutes, all 12 Banshee class starfighters were on their way to Jupiter II Observation Post...

By Tony (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

Lal ran along the corridors, dancing and smiling. She had certainly picked up some humanity from Greyfox during the time in his head. Funny, this meant that her Neural Net was capable of being configured to be completely human, yet she'd never quite attained it through her own actions. In effect, she'd evolved faster than expected as a result of the contact. So far, it didn't seem like a problem...

Still, she had this unsettled feeling, like something was really wrong with Greyfox. He had saved her, but what of his Dark Half? She had read that all humans have a dark half that they keep hidden from the world, even themselves, but it was unsettling all the same. How lucky I am she thought, to be an android. I hide nothing, I simply am who I am. Maybe he can benefit from me as well.

By Tony (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

Data stared out from the main window of the bridge. Space looked so different when travelling at Hyper-speeds. The Fourspace Drivers were working at maximum efficiency. The VAXMigrator had been moving for 2 weeks now, speeding out of the Void and back to civilized space. Soon, they would be on the boundary.

Data had a cup of coffee. It was good.

"Nearing the Amherst Red Giant," said Powers, "It's within 100 parsecs."

"Slow down, then, major," said Captain Data, "we do not want to miss it."

The VAXMigrator slowed down into a low orbit. "Solar collectors are deployed."

Two probes the size of automobiles flew into space, then plunged headfirst into the star. The surface erupted where they hit. Meanwhile, on the vessel, a dimensional crack opened up inside the engine core.

"Ready!" smiled Powers.

"Have the probes reached the sun's core?"

"All readings are within tolerance."

"We need to refuel the Drivers. This ship hasn't been fully charged since... well, since it left Earth. Begin the process."

Readings verified that the energy of the sun's fierce fusion-core was being transmitted directly into the VAXMigrator's systems. Suddenly, every light on every deck brightened by a factor of 10.

* * *

"Well, now," smiled Lincoln in the Engine Room, "that's what I call power!" The giant turbines began whirring at breakneck speed, primed by the power of the Giant.

* * *

"Disengage," said Data, "We are now powered up to the maximum. Major, bring the probes out."

A minute later, the probes rose out of the fireball, each glowing white with the intense heat of the star, even with shields at full power. Each took on a high sun-orbit and deployed solar panels.

"Shall I call them back?"

"No, we may be in need of additional power at a later time. I have programmed these probes to respond to our hails. We can therefore transmit additional solar energy through subspace to our vessel at any later time desired."

"I don't remember us having those before," said Patukkus.

"We did not," commented Captain Data, "I created them for emergency use at my leisure, but then realized that it would be a simple matter to boost their effectiveness by using a dimensional crack. The technology is actually decades old, it has simply not been used in this way. In any case, disembark, max speed."

The VAXMigrator took off, moving faster than it ever had before.

* * *

Lincoln watched as the great beast began to creak and tremble. He strode to the panel and COMMed in. "Captain?"

"Yes, Mister President?"

"The engines are moving at maximum speed. I don't think we can keep this up for long."

"Actually, we can. Please run program Data-Beta-Seven. Data out."

As Lincoln ran the program, protective shielding sprung to life around all sensitive parts of the engine, protecting them from harm.

"We never had enough electricity to do that before," said Lincoln, and returned to his duties.

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

>On the flight deck of The Talona<

"Major! What in the Hell was the meaning of that little stunt you pulled back there!" boomed the voice of an irate rescue-ops colonel. Jayce simply continued to disembark from his fighter, coolly looking at the man as he stormed ever closer along the decking. As Jayce lifted himself from his cockpit, the colonel rattled his ladder. "Well, I'm waiting, Major! You wanna be known as 'The Boy Who Cried Wolf,' or what?" he yelled again, his entire face glowing a deep red. Jayce knew he was in some kind of trouble.

"Sir, it was the only way to be sure the base was receiving help, and--"

"No way, Brilliam! I read the transcripts of your sensor logs and transmissions. In case you've forgotten your new assignment, Major, we have more than 250 fighter craft which are quite capable of handling any situation we encounter! You were assigned to investigate and help if necessary. When you detected that warp signature, you should have signalled ahead... No, way, Major. Wrong choice. And that hyperspace course you plotted and navigated? You passed far too close to Ganymede there. What the Hell were you thinking?" The good colonel was interrupted by Quicksilver's hand on his shoulder.

"I think he gets the point, Colonel Drake. I'll take it from here," she said smoothly, looking the larger man straight in the eye with a firmness as if to say 'back off'. Drake opened his mouth to say something further, but she just raised an eyebrow and said, "Thank you, Colonel." He stormed off, cursing all the way. Jayce looked down at his C.O. and shrugged.

"I'm sorry, Ma'am. I guess I just made the wrong choice," he said, dropping his gaze as he descended to the deck.

"Actually, you made the best choice--given the circumstances," Quicksilver replied. Jayce looked up at her, a little confused. "And I said, drop all this ma'am stuff." She just smiled at him. "Look, I'm a pilot, too. I know the quick choices that need to be made when we're all up there. Drake, he flies a desk. He's more concerned with logistics than the reality of what it's like to fly combat." Jayce looked more at ease, and started walking with Quicksilver toward his flight locker. She continued, "Look, Drake will scream bloody murder for pilots being unsafe when they switch off some redundant system, or use some passive system aggressively. As soon as we grow a brain, he gets upset that it isn't safe." They both smiled. "Fact of the matter is, flying combat is unsafe to begin with. Don't worry, Jayce. I'm right behind you. You have my support." As she finished her last statement, she let her hands rest on Jayce's for just a moment, looking up into his eyes. Jayce noticed again how beautiful she really was, before she smiled, turned, and started to walk away. As she left, she called over her shoulder, "Debriefing in 15. Squad room six."

"I'll be there," he called back, as he turned and began putting his flight suit away. He chuckled, shaking his head, remembering how foolish Drake had looked as he stomped around, yelling.

"Raptor, we in some kind of trouble?" Jayce looked up to see Vagabond leaning next to his locker, a concerned look on his face.

"No. We're not in trouble Vagabond. Drake's just blowin' his horn about having to commit vital rescue shuttles for non-flight personnel," Jayce replied, shaking his head.

"Oh, yeah. Almost forgot to warn ya about good 'ole Colonel Drake. He's just a real tight-wad. Don't let him get to ya. From what I hear, he's not coming with us when we transfer," Vagabond said, smiling. Jayce just nodded.

"Good," Jayce replied. Vagabond clapped him on the shoulder and chuckled some, then turned to leave. "Oh, by the way, Vagabond," Jayce spoke up. "Debrief in 15. Squad room six. Spread the word."

"Will do, Boss," Vagabond nodded, then jogged off to tell the others.

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

>On the bridge of The Vesuvius<

"Coming up on Sol system now, sir," Ensign Ripley announced, preparing to ease the great behemoth of a ship out of warp-speed.

"Revert to realspace, Ensign. Lieutenant Jones, send a signal to Saturn's Rings Starbase informing them of our arrival in-system, and request a projected time-table of our departure to rendezvous with The VAXMigrator."

"Aye, sir," both officers replied at once, each seeing to their respective tasks. Admiral Kraken sat at the helm, his arms folded over his chest, as he watched Saturn appear on the viewscreen before him.

"Sir, all ships report no difficulties," Jones announced.

"Good. Standard picket formation, Lieutenant. Mr. Ripley, ahead one quarter."

"Aye sir," Jones said.
"Ahead one quarter, aye Sir," Ripley responded. As The Vesuvius moved forward, the 8 ships around her fell into a defensive perimeter. If they all lined up, end-to-end, they would be approximately equal in length to the much larger Vesuvius. It was the pride of the fleet, along with her sister-ships, St. Helens, Hood, Fujiyama, Rainier, Ararat, Jefferson, and Trident, which were on patrol along the frontier with the Cylons. As the task force neared Saturn, The Talona came into view, in free orbit around the planet, roughly 100 km above the rings. The viewscreen on The Vesuvius sparked to life, and an image of Captain Harris appeared.

"I am Captain Harris, on board the TCS Andromeda. I will assist in escorting The Talona to our rendezvous point," Harris reported.

"Hello, Captain. I'm Admiral Kraken. I hope this doesn't turn out to be a waste of our valuable time," Kraken responded, watching as the smug smile faded from Harris' face. "Yes, Captain, I thought you'd recognize me. How's life treating you since your transfer to Jupiter II?" Kraken allowed himself to smile this time. After all, it was Kraken who had headed up the tribunal investigating the Wraith Squadron incident. Harris had lost his Admiralship as a result of his giving faulty intelligence to the squadron, resulting in their deaths. Kraken was shipped out after that tribunal, so he had no involvement in the hearings which Nimitz held concerning Jayce Brilliam, but he had read the transcripts all the same. Almost made him want to quit Confed right there, the way they treated a man whom he personally considered a hero.

"Life has been faring well for me, Admiral," Harris replied, shaking Kraken from his brief walk down memory lane.

"That's good to hear, Captain. Glad to have you with us. I expect you will transmit your ready status to us soon?" Kraken raised an eyebrow to accentuate his desire for haste.

"Of course, Sir. I will mobilize our forces as swiftly as possible and--"

"I was hoping for a specific time, Captain," Kraken interrupted.

"12 hours, Sir. I am transmitting our flight plans and courses to you--"

"Thank you, Captain, but we already have a much more efficient flight plan. I will transmit it to you. Kraken out." The viewscreen went blank. On the bridge of The Andromeda, Harris was clenching his fists, repeatedly, Phi and all of her staff just looking at him.

"You heard the Admiral! Re-plot our course and send word to The Talona of the change. I'll be in my ready room," Harris ordered harshly, as he turned and walked off the bridge. Phi and crew complied, slowly, all the while shaking their heads...

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

>Meanwhile, near the Styme's home system<

sub-matrix 637, grid 275, activate. enemy vessel detected. report. Blackness flickered off, revealing the distorted, greenish view of the cluttered technology around him. The Borg drone detached from his grotto, moving stiffly among the other drones to his post at an observation station. He began pressing buttons and keying up sensor logs. vessel contains relevant technology. species 62793, humanoid physiology, strong insectoid influence. warp capable, relevant weapons systems. prepare for assimilation. The drone continued pressing buttons, other drones efficiently attending their varied tasks. As the Borg Cube moved closer to the Styme cruiser, several others flickered into existance, apparently de-cloaking. sub-matrix 637, grid 964. cloak technology detected. adapt. Another drone complied, pressing buttons and turning dials. adaptation complete. species no longer a threat. grid 852, open communications with enemy vessels. The drone complied.

"Species 62793, we are the Borg. Your genetic and technological uniqueness will be added to our own. You will be assimilated--resistance is futile." As the Styme commander watched the message play out on his viewscreen, 12 white-skinned, heavily cybernetic humanoid forms materialized on his bridge. The security chief fired his laser at one, dropping it like so much technological junk. The rest of the bridge officers took the hint, opening fire on the drones, watching in horror as green force-fields sprang to life whenever one was hit. One of the drones bent and began tinkering with the fallen Borg, and the commander watched in horror as it twitched its neck, then stood slowly, resuming its former path. He watched as a drone reached forward, placing his hand mere inches from one of his crewmen's neck, as 2 prongs shot from its wrist, directly into the Styme's neck. Total fear gripped the commander as he saw his crewman's skin pulsate, as if some vast amount of liquid had just been injected under his skin. Then, the unthinkable happened. The crewman's eyes glazed over, and he stood stiffly, turned, and started walking towards the Borg! The last thing the commander saw was another drone reaching for him. He screamed...

sub-matrix 637, grids 431-562, prepare new drones for service. assimilation complete. grid 437, change course to one-alpha-nine-two: homeworld of species 62793. prepare for assimilation. The Borg Cube moved off, leaving 15 Styme cruisers drifting aimlessly in space, most of which barely being held together, since the Borg had taken most of the technology from within the hulls of the alien ships. The entire incident lasted barely 4 hours. It was a silent testament to the efficiency and precision which was The Borg...

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

>In the officer's lounge on board the TCS Talona<

Vagabond and Maniac sat at one of the tables, across from each other, a huge stack of metallic chips in the center of the table. A small crowd of other pilots had gathered around as Jayce entered on the scene. Maniac had a huge smirk on his face, and Vagabond just sat, cool & collected, as he peered over his cards at his opponent. Vagabond then pushed all of his chips into the center of the table, then glanced up at Maniac, who was chuckling nervously.

"Betting it all, huh?" Maniac said, shifting in his seat. "All right then. I'll match it. I call. Drop your cards," Maniac said triumphantly.

Vagabond showed his hand, proudly announcing, "Full house, Kings over tens." The audience gasped, and Vagabond smiled. Maniac dropped his head and his cards.

"Two pair. You win again, Vagabond. How do you do it?" Maniac asked.

"Pure skill, my friend. Pure skill," Vagabond responded, scooping up the chips into a paper bag at his side. "Play another hand?" Everyone nearby declined Vagabond's offer, since he had just won the last 10 games in a row.

"Hey, Vagabond," Jayce spoke up. "Do you ever lose?"

Vagabond stopped and pondered for a moment. Then he smiled, saying, "Yeah. The only game I ever lost was the night before I joined Confed. Since then, everything's been coming up aces!" The whole crowd chuckled. "I say, the best way to live is to not get tied down in one place. You gotta keep on wandering--only way to stay happy, as far as I'm concerned." Vagabond smiled again, before standing and walking over to Jayce, clapping him firmly on the back. "Come on, boss. I'll buy you a drink."

Jayce nodded and smiled. "Yeah, thanks Vagabond. I could use a drink."

As they approached the bar, Vagabond spoke in a lower tone, a serious expression on his face. "I heard The Vesuvius has entered the system. We're supposed to ship out sometime tomorrow." Jayce shrugged his shoulders. Vagabond added, "I heard Admiral Kraken is in command, and Captain Harris is coming with us. There's no love lost between those two."

Jayce felt a cold lump in his gut, and felt as if all the blood had just rushed out of his head. Recovering slightly, he added, "Weren't they involved with the Wraith Squadron investigation some years back?"

Vagabond nodded. "That's what I've heard. I heard Harris used to be an admiral, but got busted down because of his involvement with the whole thing. Something about false information resulting in the squadron's destruction. Man, I wish I could have flown with them. Slick unit." As the drinks arrived, Jayce was slightly relieved. Vagabond had no idea he flew with Wraith Squadron.

"So, Vagabond," Jayce asked with a smile, "you feel lucky?"

Vagabond shrugged, a slightly confused look on his face. "Lady Luck is my mistress, Boss. You should know that," he chuckled, taking a sip from his beverage.

"Good," Jayce replied, smiling, "then skill won't get in the way when we hit the simulators." They both laughed.

"You got it Boss," Vagabond said as he laughed. The two got up and walked down to fly head-to-head in the simulators...

By Tony (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

"Activate Long Range Sensors," said Mister Data.

"Nothing, sir."

"Estimated time until rendesvous," asked Data.

"Unknown. These are unfamiliar constellations."

"Boost power to the sensors. I am certain that our direction is correct, but notify me when a known body is detected."

"Aye sir."

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

>All command personnel, report to conference room 10, deck 37. Command personnel to conference room 10, deck 37.<

Jayce was in the middle of executing a perfect inverted tail-loop to catch Vagabond, when his simulator went totally dark. Confused, Jayce looked around, about to protest, when a thumping noise came from the other side of the simulator wall. Then a muffled voice.

"Major Brilliam, you're being paged!" Jayce opened his simulator's blackened canopy to see who it was. There stood Maniac, a smug smile on his face, holding the program card which was, up until a moment ago, in the back of Jayce's simulator pod. "Seriously, old man. They just called a command staff meeting on deck 37. Want me take over for ya? You didn't look like you were doing too good in there, anyway," Maniac chuckled as Jayce clambered out of the simulator.

"Knock yourself out, Maniac," he said as he walked out of the sim-room, handing his helmet to a flight mechanic as he left. Maniac slotted the card back in the simulator and hopped in, letting out his trademark 'YAHOOOOO!' yell as he swept in on Vagabond from the rear.

"Hey there, Vagabond! Here's a game you won't win!" he transmitted to the other simulator.

"If I were a betting man, I'd put my money on you... Losing!" Vagabond replied, pulling out of Maniac's stream of laser-fire at the last second in a perfect corkscrew barrel-roll. "You call that shooting? No wonder you never made Major," Vagabond said with a laugh as he looped around to catch Maniac's tail. "Where's Brilliam?" he asked, as he let fly a laser barrage of his own.

Maniac silently cursed himself, then brought the nose of his 'fighter' up, quickly changing the grip on his stick, then shoving it almost through the floor. The result from Vagabond's perspective was a fighter which stood on end for a moment, just above a torrent of laser-fire. When he readjusted his aim, Maniac's ship tumbled forward into a nose-dive, and Vagabond was forced to fly right over him. "Old man Brilliam had to go to a meeting, to hob-knob with the other 'brass'," Maniac replied sarcastically, bringing his ship back in line behind Vagabond's. "Besides, I figured you could use a little bit of a more challenging opponent. Now hold still, will ya?" Maniac let fly another torrent of laser-fire, only one shot splashing off of Vagabond's shields as he pulled the same maneuver Maniac had just executed. Maniac knew how to counter that move, and so headed into a dive, hoping to catch Vagabond when he started his own dive...

Vagabond, rather than dive, decided to pull a 3/4 loop, knowing Maniac would then be just in front of him, diving on the trajectory which Vagabond was supposed to be on. Once on Maniac's tail, and VERY CLOSE to Maniac's tail, Vagabond let fly 2 heat-seeking missiles, and watched as Maniac's digital ship exploded. "Nice try Maniac. How much do you owe me now?" Vagabond said, laughing, as Maniac sat in his shaking simulator, a HUGE red YOU ARE DEAD flashing on the screen.

"Lucky shot Vagabond. You watch out... One day, your luck's gonna run out," Maniac said as he left the simulator-pod. Vagabond was still chuckling...

>in the meeting<

Jayce sat in his assigned chair, next to Quicksilver and Lt. Colonel Richardson, and looked down the length of seated people. Looked like all the commanders and department officers from at least 9 other ships were here. Then, he saw Captain Harris, who stood up and started to speak.

"Hello, and welcome to task force Omega. I am Captain Harris. As you may or may not know, we are to rendezvous with a Battlestar in deep space, which is in dire need of personnel and fighter-craft. I will be transferring as well, as commanding officer of the Battlestar. I will now turn this meeting over to Vice Admiral Kraken, who will brief us on the details of this assignment. Admiral?"

"Thank you, Captain," Kraken said as he stood and activated the holo-emitter table. A detailed, 3-D map of the solar system sprang to life. As Kraken gave his briefing, the holographic images changed accordingly. "Now, we will depart Saturn's rings and travel out-system, taking this route past the asteroid field at the system's edge." Harris cleared his throat and shifted uncomfortably. Kraken glanced at him, then continued. "From there, we will travel through warp-space to the Kiterra System, where we will make the rendezvous. Specifically, we will rendezvous near the 3rd moon of the fifth planet, where ConFed has an established resupply station. We are to remain for as long as The VAXMigrator requires us, then we are to report to the Syldanite System, where we will receive our own transfers. From there, we begin a 5-month patrol of the frontier systems. Are there any questions?" Harris raised his hand. Kraken just glared at him.

"Sir, wouldn't it be safer, as well as faster, if we made the hyperspace jump from Saturn, rather than travel through the asteroid field in normal space first?" Many other people nodded.

"Yes, Captain, it would be. But ConFed observation posts in the area have been picking up some strange energy fluctuations, and have even reported several scouting vessels disappearing over the last week. It's enough to warrant a deeper, military investigation into the matter. Any other questions?" Kraken looked around the room and saw that everyone was understanding. "Good. I want full readiness reports by 0930 tomorrow. Dismissed." Kraken turned and left, the rest of the officers milling about and breaking up into their own little groups for coffee and donuts...

By Tony (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

Sonya smiled at the image of Spiffy on her viewscreen. The ninja blathered on and on.

"Yes, I'm glad you got promoted to Toilet Scrubber at the Towne Pub," said Sonya, "Your last job was just too demeaning. Yeah, I miss you, too, but you and I both know that duty and responsibility have to come first."

Spiffy cried in his beer.

"Don't worry, I'll call often. I always do. I hope you like the present I got you."

Spiffy presses his new Chopsticks proudly against his chest and uses them to pick his nose.

"Ha ha, Spiffy, you are so creative. Just be sure to clean those before dinner time! And whatever you do, don't use them on your new job, ok? I know, I know they work great, but that's why they gave you the plunger. Oh! I have to go... love you too... bye bye."

Sonya switched channels.

"Captain."

"Lieutenant Blade, please report to my ready room."

"Yes, sir. I'm coming."

Sonya lingered on a holograph of Spiffy, buttoned her collar to the top, and strided out. There were preparations to be made.

By Bryan (Houdini) on Unrecorded Date:

Sam Jarrah walked into his temporary quarters
and slumped into bed. His comm badge chimed. Being a senior officer it was fited with caller id. It was Ensign Lynch. Jarrah taped his comm badge.
"Jarrah here. What is it ensign? This had better be important, I was about to get some shut eye."

"Sorry Sir, Admiral Nimitz wishes to speak with you on subspace immediately, he said it was urgent."

"Very well, patch him through to my quarters, on secure channel one. Maximum fractal signal encryption."

"Yes sir. Lynch out."

Jarrah sat before his vidcom station and switched it on.

Please enter voice authorization for secure transmission., the vidcom screen prompted.

"Jarrah seven-alpha-tango-theta-five"

Secure transmission approved. Thank You Doctor
Jarrah.

Nimitz appeared on the screen.

"Ahh, Sam, I trust your stay aboard the Talona has been a pleasant one?"

"We can dispense with the pleasentries Admiral. What do you need me to do? Sir."

"That is what I like about you Jarrah, you get right to the point."

"And what might that be SIR?!"

"Good Lad. Listen. There has been a change of plans. Certain developments...... have given rise to a new opportunity. When you arrive on the Vaxmigrator, you are to hear Data and the Doctor's briefing on Greyfox. Then you will declare Greyfox medically insane and unfit for duty. "

"Oh, so then one of your cronies will take command, I see. And what makes you think I won't just report your arse to the federation council."

"Oh, don't worry, you WILL do as I say and much much more. You WILL keep silent about it. Or I will have your niece... could suffer an unfortunate accident. Keep your side of the bargan
Sam and nobody will get hurt. Kapish? Nimitz out."

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

Admiral Nimitz ended his communication with Jarrah, and began turning his plans over in his head. Sam was loyal to Lynxor, but he had much stronger feelings for his niece, Alana, which Nimitz was using to his advantage. Jarrah would cooperate, for the time being, as long as he wasn't asked to do anything too outrageous. Yes, if played properly, Jarrah could be controlled quite nicely.

Brilliam, on the other hand, was unpredictable in the extreme. Fiercely loyal to his own convictions, he had no family members or lovers or friends with which Nimitz could manipulate him. All he had was his love of flying. Nimitz had to keep his eye on Brilliam. Any pilot who had enough skill to survive the Wraith Squadron incident was to be handled carefully. Pilots like Jayce Brilliam carried entire fleets to victory in the past, just by reputation and example. Which is why, if Nimitz's plan was to succeed, he had to turn Brilliam into a traitor, so the common people would not stand behind him...

Harris was another story altogether. He had been Nimitz's lap-dog for years. During the creation of Wraith Squadron, Harris was primary Intel Officer. Nimitz chuckled when he thought of how he arranged for Harris to take the fall for Wraith Squadron--and Harris never found out. 'Some intelligence officer,' Nimitz thought. Still unquestioningly loyal to Nimitz, Harris seemed to be the best person to carry out 'Plan B,' if the need arose. If Harris ever found out that Nimitz had actually sent Wraith Squadron to the paradox rift in order to 'test' the abilities of Greyfox, as well as cover them up by faking his death, there was no telling how he would react. The loss of 10 pilots seemed insignificant next to the potential of harnessing the flow of time and using its power for 'the good of all humanity.' Nimitz chuckled again...

Admiral Nimitz, coded transmission on secure frequency Epsilon-3. Shall I patch it through?

"Yes, computer. Clearance code 73259-gamma-6." The video screen flickered, then jumped to life. On it was a very nervous-looking Captain Harris. "Yes, Captain? Are there any complications?" Nimitz asked calmly.

"Possibly, sir. We've made our rendezvous with task force Omega, but an unexpected colleague is in command," Harris began.

"Yes--Admiral Kraken--I know. It's all part of the plan. What better way to bring the most decorated admiral in The Confederation in line with us, against the VAXMigrator?" Nimitz said, smiling. Harris looked confused.

"But sir, he's ordered the force to investigate several disturbances in the asteroid belt--reports from ConFed observation posts. He's sure to discover the plan," Harris added, looking to his left and his right as he spoke, as well as lowering his voice to just above a whisper. Nimitz laughed out loud.

"And when the good Admiral finds nothing, he will travel onward, not wishing to waste valuable time chasing after ghosts. It will be his fatal mistake, for once the ships leave the system, Earth is left primarily defenseless." Harris looked even more confused now, but shook his head, determining that Nimitz obviously knew best in this matter. "What of the reports from Jupiter II that another alien force attacked it, causing severe damage?" Nimitz changed the subject.

"Yes, sir... Commander Philana Kerensky informs me that it was an insectoid species known as the Styme, and that she has had dealings with them before, out in the Border Worlds. Largely piratical in nature, they tend to hit-and-fade, usually against poorly armed opponents. I guess they attempted to try their luck here before the task force was to arrive..."

"Indeed, Captain, but how did they get the information to begin with?" Nimitz interjected, as he leaned back in his chair, folding his hands under his chin. Harris again looked puzzled, but when realization hit him, it was as visible as if he had been struck by a support beam. Nimitz smiled again, then nodded, saying, "Yes. I released the information, so they might strike us in our home system, to convince the loyal citizens of The Confederation that the threat from other species was real, and even more potent than the Cylon threat. We need 2 things for this 'peace treaty' to work. One is, a new enemy. The second is, the destruction of all the things the people associated as being a 'heroic symbol' of humanity's righteousness in the war with the Cylons. The people's faith and morale need to be broken, and we need to do our best to arrange for the surrender of Earth to the Cylons." Harris nodded somberly, then saluted into the video screen, before flicking it off.

Nimitz leaned back in his chair and folded his hands behind his head... Yes, everything would fall into place soon enough... Soon, Earth would be his, and the Purification of the Stars could begin...

By Tony (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

Sol started - and received a vision.

It was a jump-point... but not just ANY Jump-Point. This was Alpha-Tori, a natural Jump-Point, a mystery to modern science. Alpha-Tori was discovered a mere month before the disappearance of the VAXMigrator, a Jump-Point that lay at the very outer-edge of known space. At the time, no one knew where it went, but it had since been discovered that the other end of Alpha-Tori emerged in the far reaches of the WEB, a distance so far that no Starfleet ship had ever even seen it before.

This, the Outermost mouth, was VAXMigrator's first destination, the gateway back to the extreme outer reaches of known space.

VAXMigrator was still many months away from Alpha-Tori at current speed, and even after that, it would be some time before they reached the rendesvous point. Still, Alpha Tori was absolutely vital. Without its presence, the distance would be so great, so galactically vast that they would never, never make it home again, and all communication impossible.

Sol reached out with his mind, witnessing the sheer beauty of this natural phenomonon. Man-made jumppoints were eons behind, covering relatively short interstellar distances. Nature is always the greatest creator thought Sol as he watched in his mind the red and orange radiation eminating from the event-horizon.

Then, suddenly, he realized that Alpha-Tori was changing, shrinking! In the all-encompassing sight of Sol's mind, he watched it dwindle, dwindle, and collapse into nothing.

Sol became solomn. This vision meant the end of their journey. What he had forseen would occur in 3 months time.

"Computer, how long will it take us to reach Alpha-Tori?"

Even before the computer spoke, Sol knew the answer. "At maximum speed, with Captain Data's upgrades, 5 months."

There was no time to lose. With the image of the closing Jump-Point fresh in his mind, Sol went deep into meditation.

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

The Doctor sat at his workstation, poring over his last series of tests and observations. Greyfox's physiology was unlike any he'd ever seen before... But, from what he could surmise, Greyfox should have been awake and active by now. He glanced up at the still form resting on the medical table once again. For the last 3 days, Greyfox had remained on that table, appearing to be perfectly healthy, albeit asleep. The Doctor had one last test he wanted to try before giving up, however. He placed 2 neural stimulators on Greyfox's forehead, one on each temple. He then opened an electrical access panel under the medical table, pulling out 2 sparking red wires. He then attached them to the neural stimulators, and watched as Greyfox's form shook and jumped on the table-top...

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

>At Saturn's Rings Starbase<

The Vesuvius began its turn toward the out-system route, Admiral Kraken at the comm. On the smaller displays surrounding the main viewscreen, a schematic of each of the other ships in the task force spun slowly, in 3-D. He looked at the viewscreen as the Talona moved into position, and let out a low sigh of approval.

"She's a big ship, sir," said Ensign Ripley. Kraken acknowledged his statement with an "Mmm-hmm" before giving his next series of commands.

"Task Force Omega, this is Admiral Kraken. All picket ships move into fleet escort positions, all ships with a fighter complement, have 2 squadrons on standby at all times. Report," Kraken stated into the open comm channel. After all the ships reported in as ready and standing by, Kraken nodded at Ensign Ripley, who turned and put his hand on the throttle control. "All ships, ahead three quarters." Kraken watched as the ships visible on the viewscreen began to move at their seperate acceleration rates, then stabilize as the stars began to shift slightly. Saturn disappeared off the bottom left corner of the viewscreen as Task Force Omega made its way to the Sol System asteroid belt...

By Bryan (Houdini) on Unrecorded Date:

The next morning...

"Allright listen up people." Jayce said as he began the mission briefing, an instant hush fell over the room. "Upon reviewing our latest intelegence reports, we now suspect that their is a 78% chance that the cylon energy signatures that were discoverd yesterday are the result of some form of cloaking device. Talon will brief you on your mission."

"Allright pilots. Here is the deal. Three wing teams will be used for this mission.
Gold Team and Red Team will fly into the asteroid field cloaked. So, all we will have to do is fly in under cloak, scan the disturbances for
a while, then bug out back to the carrier. I shall be acompaning Gold Team for this mission. Good luck!"

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

Jayce sat in the cockpit of a Dragon class fighter, examining the instruments and weapons loadouts. Only the equivalent of one squadron was flying this mission, and it included some of the best pilots from The Black Knights and Aurora Squadrons. Jayce would be flying with Vagabond, Quicksilver, and Panther as Black Team. Talon would fly with Maniac, Wolf-man, and Breeze. Red Team's members were Viper, Vaquero, Cobra, and Maverick. As the 12 Dragons were moved onto the launch deck of the Talona, tillemetry and astrometrics were downloaded to the on-board nav computers. Jayce went over a mental checklist, then readied himself for flight. This patrol was to last several hours, as the larger ships made their way through the asteroid field more carefully. There were fully 4 squadrons on scramble-ready stand-by, as well as 2 in the air pulling fleet escort. Back-up would not be a problem. Still, something was gnawing at the back of Jayce's mind as he strapped himself into his chair, awaiting the launch sequence count-down...

3... 2... 1... LAUNCH!

The 12 Dragon fighters tore into the blackness of space, then split into 3 teams of four. Quicksilver started giving orders.

"Black team, engage cloaks," she ordered. Jayce watched as the two fighters in front of him faded into nothingness, then remembered what exactly was nagging at him earlier. Flying formation with cloaked ships was next to impossible, since all visual and sensor traces of the ships were gone. Jayce decided to mention this.

"Black lead, this is two. With cloak engaged, we really shouldn't fly formation."

Quicksilver responded, "No problem, Raptor. Switch your visual scanners to the following frequency..." A frequency number was displayed on his HUD, and Jayce keyed it in. He watched in awe as his entire cockpit canopy seemed to glow an incandescent red, and the faint outline of the two Dragons in front of him appeared. "Did that work out, Raptor?"

"Yes, lead. It did. This is a fun little toy, isn't it?" Jayce responded.

"Yeah, boss. It most certainly is," commented Vagabond, as he flew up behind Panther.

Panther's lovely voice piped up over the comm, "Hey Vagabond, ease off some. You're cramping my style up here." Her statement was followed by a chuckle.

"I'm sorry, Panther. I mistook you for Maniac, the way you took off back there," Vagabond responded. The entire group chuckled.

"Hey! You kids quit foolin around back there, or so help me, I'll stop this car," Maniac shouted over the open comm channel. Jayce rolled his eyes.

"Was anybody talking to you, Maniac?" he asked sarcastically.

"Well, actually, Vagabond said--" Maniac was interrupted by Quicksilver.

"We know what he said. It was funny. We laughed. Now, shut up, Maniac! Radio silence begins now." Quicksilver switched to the alternate frequency, as did the rest of Black team. They were entering the asteroids, and so had to begin their sensor sweeps...

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

Maniac grumbled under his breath. Talon popped up on his comm screen, so he shut up.

"Gold 3 standing by," Maniac said.

"Good. Maniac, you and Breeze split off and patrol those big ones to starboard. Wolf-man & I will start scanning deeper--see what we can find," Talon said. Maniac wondered why he was even taking orders from this kid--fresh out of academy and already bossy. They may have held the same rank, but Maniac had time in grade over this fella by a long shot.

"No problem, Talon. Any time you wanna see some real flying, just glance over my way. I'll show ya how it's done," Maniac said as he peeled off to fly with Breeze. "Hello, Lovely Breeze," Maniac began.

"Don't even start, Maniac," Breeze said abruptly. She wasn't in the mood to take any of his crap today--especially while flying.

"Come on! I was only trying to--" Maniac said, his ego bruised just a little.

"Stow it, Maniac," Breeze began. Then she said something she knew she'd regret later. "Save it for when we're not in the cockpit, would ya?"

"Yes, Ma'am," Maniac said enthusiastically. Breeze knew she'd be in for it when they got back to the Talona. She rolled her eyes as the duo flew into the asteroid belt.

By Tony (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

Sol stared around. He had made it... he stood within the heart of the ship's engine. He touched a panel... hot! He could see steam coming off the walls of the engine's interior. One piece after another threatened to come apart, but time and again, a forcefield sprung into place to prevent disaster. The whole thing whined with the sound of metal fatigue, and Sol was amazed that it was holding together at all. Reaching out with his mind, Sol could feel that the engine was at its physical maximum... around, outside in the void, VaxMigrator sped through the spacescape with blurs of light on every side - the points of light appeared as straight lines at this velocity.

Sol opened his mind... far ahead, beyond Sensor Range was Alpha-Tori, closing. Sol knew that the VaxMigrator, even at this incredible speed, would not make it in time. And if it failed to reach the vortex, it would never be able to reach home again. Sol estimated that at the time Alpha-Tori would collapse, VaxMigrator would be 2 months away.

Sol closed his eyes and spread his legs apart. He put his hands palm-down on the burning-hot titanium of the reactor-drum's interior. He could feel the flesh melting off of his hands, but ignored the pain. Suddenly, a metal coil sprung loose from the belly of the engine and attached itself to Sol's abdomen. Sol recoiled slightly as the cord plunged into his stomach. The ship jolted forward ever-so-slightly, Sol could feel a tiny increase in speed. A live energy-wire shook free from the vessel, and a second... these dangled limply from the ceiling, then as if drawn to Sol's body, connected with him. Sol's eyes lit up, the light reflecting ominously off his glasses. Sol gritted his teeth. Parts and pieces of the engine started to come apart and bond with him, wiring him into the mechanism, more, more, Sol screamed at the top of his lungs. He looked at his arms, wires of all types puncturing his flesh like intravenous needles. The ship almost wanted to feed upon him, needed to. Sol could feel the energy drain out of him, but with redoubled effort, a huge auric surge went through him, and the ship itself was energized. Where parts and components had threatened to blow apart just moments before, they were now sleek and shiny. Where smoke had been before, there was now supra-efficient operation. As his body weakened, Sol redoubled his concentration. His skin came away and his arteries sprung forth from his frame, attaching themselves to the generators and coupling nodes. His blood coursed into the ship, nourishing it, and there he was, suspended in mid-air by veins and wires and cords, held tightly at the very center of the engine core. His eyes locked onto something, something distant, and Sol became very quiet as the ship began to jettison at unbelievable velocity through the void, star-lines breaking away to form a holy tunnel-of-light all around the ship as it pushed on through to the distant Alpha-Tori.

By Tony (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

Data turned to Greyfox. "The ship seems to have made a leap in speed. All engine readings normal... I do not understand how this is possible, but we shall now, according to instruments, reach the first jump-point within 3 months, 12 days. Major Powers, please prepare a full report. I shall return."

"Admiral, perhaps you would be interested in joining me for coffee."

"Coffee?"

"I do not drink it so much myself," winks Data, "but I feel it adds a... social touch to any occasion. We must talk, now that you are back on your feet. I am interested in hearing about your experiences in the void."

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

"There's really not that much to talk about," Greyfox responded as Data walked over to the replicator. He folded his hands in his lap and adjusted his collar slightly, loosening it. When Data returned, Greyfox managed a smile. "It is the void, after all." The two officers laughed.

"Admiral, according to our current rate of travel, we will be reaching our first jump-point coordinates ahead of schedule. I feel obligated to take this time, before we reach Sol Sector, to refamiliarize you with all aspects of the ship's operation. It has been a while since you last were in command, Sir," Data said, sipping from his coffee mug. Greyfox nodded, then opened his mouth to speak, but Data's comm-badge interrupted him. "Yes?" Data said into thin air.

"Commander Data, sir? I've run a full diagnostic on the engine systems and energy outputs... The ship has increased its energy expenditure by 500%--but fuel consumption has been reduced by 50%," Major powers reported.

"Five times the speed on half the fuel?" asked Greyfox incredulously. Data nodded his silent concern.

"Major Powers, send an engineering team to the engine room to assess what might be happening," Data ordered, tapping his comm-badge off. Privately, he said to Greyfox, "I ran my dimensional rifting theorems through many simulations, but never encountered this result. I had no idea dimensional travel could yield such efficient results."

"It can't. Not unless a very disciplined mind is willing the efficiency to exist. Even so, the physical body is put under great strain when such energy expenditure is brought into being," Greyfox said as he stood. Data raised an eyebrow.

"Sir, where are you going?" asked Data.

"To engineering. I may be needed to assess the multi-dimensional metaphysics of what's happening down there. I am still the admiral, right?" Greyfox said over his shoulder as he left Data's ready-room. Data nodded, placed his mug on the desk, and followed Greyfox...

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

"MANIAC! What the HELL do you think you're DOING?!?" shouted Quicksilver over the comm-channel. He didn't respond verbally, instead flying straight through the closest formation of Cylon ships while firing his tachyon cannons. Two ships evaded, crashing into two others on the way, causing all four to erupt in balls of flaming debris. In one maneuver, Maniac had eliminated half the hostile bogeys. He followed through on his pass, taking out a fifth ship with his guns before passing by the remaining 3. Jayce had to admit, Maniac surely was a good pilot. Then, the Cylon fighters began pouring out of the asteroid-base, so many that Jayce lost track of the nebulous clouds which were made up entirely of the machines of death.

"Maniac! Activate your cloak and bug out! You can't take out all those fighters alone," Jayce yelled as he watched the swarms close on Maniac's ship, which was dodging and weaving every which way, barely skimming asteroids and enemy fighters alike.

"Then why don't you come and help me, Brilliam?" Maniac said sarcastically as another Cylon fighter blew up near him. Jayce was put on the spot.

"Vagabond, Quicksilver--Maniac's in trouble. I'm gonna plow the road so he can drive home clear," Jayce said as he started powering up his weapons.

"I'm with ya, boss," Vagabond said, following Jayce's lead.

"Major," Quicksilver said tersely, "You go in there, and you'll be disobeying a direct order from your CO." She sounded unhappy.

"Understood," was all Jayce said as he dropped his cloak and rocketted forward, into the fray, his guns blazing a trail in front of him as Cylon fighters erupted whenever they flew in front of him. Vagabond's attacks had similar results. A third and forth series of tachyon blasts accented the cluttered asteroid field, and Jayce heard Quicksilver's voice over the comm.

"Damn you, Jayce," Quicksilver said through grit teeth, "I can't just let you die out here." Panther chuckled as she flew up to defend Vagabond's wing...

>on the bridge of the Vesuvius<

"Alert all ships! Send what fighters we have already up into the asteroids to aid the recon team. Send the Ajax and the Apollo for heavy support, and move the rest of the ships back out of here. Our maneuverability is severely hampered in these rocks--I don't want to fight the Cylons on a battlefield they've chosen for us," Kraken ordered as Red Alert was sounded. The 2 destroyers moved away quickly, almost as fast as the fighters, and began making their way toward the location of the fight.

Harris watched the activities from his viewscreen on board the Talona, shaking his head and balling his fists.

"Sir? What are your orders," the helmsman asked.

"Come to bearing 150, 90 degrees yaw," Harris said calmly.

"Sir? break formation with the fleet?" the helmsman asked.

"You heard the order. Obey it!" growled Harris as he turned to regard the young ensign.

"Aye, sir. Making way out of the plane of the asteroids."

"Increase speed to flank, transfer all power to shields," Harris amended as he turned to watch the other ships disappear off the bottom of his viewscreen.

"Aye sir. All ahead flank," replied the helmsman, too scared to question or argue Harris' order.

Kraken saw the Talona bring her hammer-head nose up, perpendicular to the plane they were on, then lurch forward as the main star-drives kicked in. "What's she doing?" he muttered aloud as he watched scores of asteroids evaporate harmlessly off the forward shields of the Talona as she sped away and up. "Send the Sheffield and the Essex into the worm-trail Talona is leaving," Kraken ordered. "Whatever Harris is doing, I don't want him to be without escort."

"Aye sir," replied Lt. Jones, his hands full with all the communications filtering in from the battle, as well as the other ships in the task force. "Sir, I've picked up a new signal... Enemy capital ships have just de-cloaked to starboard... 5000 kilometers and closing," Jones reported with urgency.

"Shields up! Scramble a fighter screen, and charge weapons. They want a fight--we'll give them a fight!" Kraken ordered as he sat in his comm chair and strapped himself in...

Breeze and Wolf-Man saw them first, then Talon transmitted to the rest of the team. "Hey, looks like the cavalry's coming in!" he shouted, as the Ajax and Apollo flew in, their fighter-turrets blazing.

"Thought you could use some help out here," said the commander of Ajax. It was the understatement of the millenium... Nearly 150 Cylon fighters swarmed throughout the area, and only 12 ConFed Dragons were doing the best they could to stay alive... By sheer volume, the reconnaissance team had already taken down nearly 40 Cylons, but their fuel cells were running low and they'd also taken some minor damage. When the destroyers arrived, they claimed more fighters were following, and sure enough, an entire wing showed up.

"This is Black Lead to Recon Team," Quicksilver said over the comm, "Start converging on that asteroid-base. We need to take it out." The rest of the teams responded in the affirmative, and broke down into their respective wingman-teams for a better approach. Maniac and Breeze flew straight in, taking out as many Cylons as possible before breaking off their run as the asteroid base started firing at them.

"DAMN!" yelled Breeze. "I didn't know it had defensive guns!" Maniac just chuckled.

"Oh, yeah... Every one of these beauties has enough firepower to bring down a super-carrier," he said nonchalantly, as if it were no worry. An explosion near his right wing caused him to roll defensively, and as he rolled back, he heard Breeze scream. "BREEZE!" Maniac yelled as he watched, helplessly, as her fighter erupted on the end of a stream of energy from the base's guns. Talon and Wolf-Man flew nearby, chasing a duo of Cylons.

"Wolf-Man, form up on my wing! I'm gonna take out that mother!" Maniac yelled. Wolf-Man dove into formation as Maniac charged back in toward the base. The destroyers were pounding into it with their heavy guns, but no real damage was being done.

"Where do you think you're going?" yelled Talon as Maniac and Wolf-Man made their approach.

"To hell," replied Maniac as he made the final adjustments to his targetting computer, then armed 2 torpedoes...

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

"Maniac break off your appro--" the transmission from Talon was cut off when Maniac blocked his frequency with a jamming signal. Wolf-Man flew a defensive pattern just in front of Maniac, drawing the base's fire as Maniac adjusted his trajectory for the best torpedo run possible.

"Maniac, if you're planning something, do it quick," said Wolf-Man urgently, as piercing streams of blue-white energy sizzled past his fighter. He moved evasively and began to roll, the blasts scorching past his wing and cockpit by only a few feet. "I think they're adjusting their lock on us--" Wolf-Man was cut short as a Cylon fighter flew through his ship, causing both to erupt in an impressive explosion as Maniac looked on, stunned.

"That's it!" Maniac yelled. "You mothers are going DOWN!" He punched his afterburners and watched as his targetting reticle closed in tighter to the asteroid-base. He counted down the seconds until the torpedoes locked, comparing it with his range from the base. It was going to be close. Energy blasts tore through space before him, and he dipped his nose slightly to avoid it. Red energy blasts came from his rear, and he glanced down at his radar to notice three red blips directly behind him. Seeing the blasts from the asteroid base targetting him once more, Maniac got an idea...

"Boss, looks like Maniac's in it up to his ears," Vagabond said to Jayce as they hunted down stray fighters in the surrounding asteroids. This battle was turning hellish for all. So far, 3 squadron members had gone down, and 3 had been so badly damaged they had to eject. All that remained were Black Team, Maniac, and Talon.

"Let's see if we can help him out then, partner," Jayce replied to Vagabond as he adjusted his course to get closer to Maniac...

Maniac pulled his nose up, actually getting closer to the oncoming blasts from the asteroid base. He cut back his throttle slightly, allowing the Cylon fighters to draw closer. In that brief moment, his fighter seemed to flounder in space, almost standing still for a split second. As the Cylons opened fire, Maniac punched his afterburners and threw his stick forward, executing a power dive for a moment, then levelling out about 30 meters below. Glancing up, he watched the fruits of his plan as the 3 Cylons got caught in the tracing fire of the asteroid base, erupting spectacularly as the blue energy ripped them into oblivion.

Lock Achieved displayed on Maniac's HUD, and he smiled. "Now you're mine," he growled as he kicked his afterburners to full and charged at the asteroid base's hangar door--something he had done no more than 10 minutes before. As he got to the holographic rock wall, he cut his engines completely and turned his ship hard to starboard. With the forward momentum, he glided sideways, into the hangar bay, his nose aiming at the wall. With a triumphant yell, he launched both his torpedoes inside the asteroid base...

Jayce and Vagabond were cutting a swath towards the asteroid base when Jayce saw Maniac disappear into the rock of the asteroid. A moment later, the entire asteroid erupted in an immense explosion, creating a multitude of smaller asteroids and technical-looking space debris. There was no sin of Maniac anywhere...

"YAAAH-HOOOOOOO!" came the familiar yell, "did you miss me?" Maniac yelled triumphantly as his ship emerged from the asteroids beyond where the base had been. With the 2 destroyers and the wing of fighters in the area now, the battle had become a mop-up exercise. Maniac had actually won this battle for them...

"Good job, Maniac. Fall into formation with the rest of us, and head back to the Talona," Quicksilver ordered as the remaining 6 Dragons of the reconnaissance team flew out of the asteroids, back toward the Task Force...

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

Admiral Kraken glared at the viewscreen, which showed the images of fully 5 Cylon capital ships. He knew the torpedo bombers couldn't take all of them down on this sortie, so he had ordered all the weapons systems on the Vesuvius to be powered up. Two of the Hades strike cruisers went with the fighters, while 2 remained with the Vesuvius to provide cover. The Andromeda had followed the Talona to wherever it was she was going. Kraken looked truly concerned. He was sorely outmatched, facing 5 enemy Dreadnoughts with only 4 strike cruisers and one Dreadnought. The odds were not in his favor...

"Sir, the Ajax and Apollo report their task complete. The reconnaissance team is returning for re-arming, and the enemy base is destroyed. We lost 10 pilots in that skirmish, 3 of them from the reconnaissance team. 12 others were rescued by the Ajax," reported Lieutenant Jones as the communications flowed through. "The Sheffield and {Essex} report the Talona is leaving the asteroid field, apparently unconcerned about the current situation."

Kraken nodded grimly, then ordered, "Lieutenant, send word to the reconnaissance team that they are to report to the Vesuvius for re-arming. Have flight crews standing by with Bearcats for them to fly. Have each one loaded with 2 torpedoes--maybe they can take down one of those Dreadnoughts."

"Aye sir. Transmitting now," Jones replied.

"Mr. Ripley, turn to heading 130, 15 degrees Z-axis, engines to battle speed," Kraken commanded. "Commander Byrne, arm starboard torpedoes and prepare for broadside."

"Aye sir," the officers replied as they set to their respective tasks. Kraken watched as the initial shots were fired in the fight to take down the 5 Cylon Dreadnoughts...

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

"Reconnaissance team, fly to the following coordinates for re-arm and transfer to Bearcats. The Talona has left the area, so you will be landing on the Vesuvius."

Quicksilver channelled the transmission to the other fighters, adding, "Alright--you heard the news. Make all speed for the Vesuvius for a touchdown-blitz. You know the drill, people." The other 5 responded in the affirmative, and Jayce found himself checking his fuel guage. He couldn't find any. Then he remembered these Dragons used the ion-drive technology most capital ships used, and would never run out of fuel--only energy.

"Quicksilver, why do we need to land? Can't we just fly straight into the fight under cloak and start taking out those cap-ships with flash-packs?" Jayce asked. Silence followed his statement. Then Quicksilver responded.

"I'll send word forward to the Vesuvius. I've got the coordinates of the enemy cap-ships locked in. Activate cloaks and start charging weapons," Quicksilver ordered, as her Dragon faded from sight. Jayce, Vagabond, Maniac, Talon, and Panther followed suit, leaving the rest of the fighters to escort the 2 cruisers back to the Vesuvius.

"Hey, Brilliam," Maniac transmitted. "Thanks for plowing the road back there." He sounded sincere enough.

"I didn't think you even noticed, Maniac," Jayce said with a chuckle. "Besides, it was the least I could do for an old friend."

"Alright, hit the burners. I just received word that the battle has been joined," Quicksilver ordered. Soon, all 6 Dragons were speeding along at 1600 k/s, making good time toward the Cylon Dreadnoughts...

By Tony (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

Data and Greyfox arrive in Engineering, and discover that Lincoln is playing a game of Peaknuckle with the other heavies.

"Mister President, why is no one manning his station?"

"Captain Data," says Lincoln, "Can't explain it, but the ship's flying itself. We can't do anything about it."

As Greyfox and Data approach the reactor, they realize a certain stickiness on the floor. There is an amber liquid leaking out of the engine. "What the...?" says Greyfox.

Data dips his fingers into it and smells, making a sour face. "Amniotic Fluid," he says, "highly unusual."

"And how would you know what amniotic fluid smells like?" asks 'fox, "never mind, Captain, never mind."


--Data and Greyfox

By Tony (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

The Doctor observed the vial carefully. "Amniotic fluid, alright. But this is the interesting part. The DNA is that of Solenoid, our Ambassador of Peace. Is he inside the Engine Core?"

"Negative," said Data, "All scans reveal that he is in his quarters. He has, in fact, been there for the past 8 days, nine hours."

"Then, what...?"

"Although I am usually against it," chuckled Data, "in this case I used a recursive decrypting sequence to gain access to Solenoid's personal log."

"Well," said the Doctor, "let's hear it."

(to be continued)

By Tony (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

"Ahem," said Data, taking on Sol's voice as he read the personal log, "I have been convinced as a result of my vision that under current conditions, the Migrator will not reach home at all. As a result, and with not a second to waste, I have been forced to employ a method of time-space manipulation which I learned 10 years ago known as Time Pedalling."

"Time Pedalling?" said the Doctor incredulously, "Never heard of it."

"This is not surprising," said Data, in his own voice, "as it is a methodology created by Ambassador Sol. By changing the speed at which time flows, an object can appear to gain great speed. This technique is extremely draining, however - it can only be performed, as the Admiral pointed out, by the strongest of minds. That Sol has executed it for so long without rest is unheard of. He must be under unbelievable strain."

"Just 2,600 more dollars, uh, parsecs to go," jabbered Powers.

"Yes," said Data, "but will we make it in time?"


Data
Sol
Greyfox
Doctor

By Tony (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

Suddenly, a terrible CRACK erupted throughout the ship.

Data called up to the bridge. "What is our status?"

"Sir," came the static-filled voice, "that was an asteroid. The VAXMigrator has entered an asteroid field!"

"Are the controls still off-line?"

"Yes! I can't alter our course in any way! All controls are <zzz> automatic... we're going in, like it or <zzzzz> not. It's huge, I tell you, endless. Scanners can't detect the border."

Data considered Sol, wired into the ship's mechanism, and also considered his warnings... I'm taking control, else we won't make it to the Natural Jump-point in time.

"Just one option..." Data and Fox looked back and forth between each other... "Gunner stations!"

By Tony (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

Deep in the un-ness stood Greyfox, exiled from his own mind. He could only describe where he was as one thing: hell.

Naenor, he thought, I know you are testing me, but why have you taken my life away? Mere weeks ago, I was Greyfox, Admiral and ShadowKnight. My life had meaning... and now?

'Fox looked up into the aether... there was no response. In fact, he'd had no real contact with his old life since he arrived here. In the back of his mind, far in the back, he realized that Darkfox had surfaced, but this was like a fragmented memory... he wandered for a long while in the void, his beard growing long, his face aging, only his piercing blue eyes giving any hint to who he was before.

There was a glint of light in the distance, what was this? In an instant, 5 years fell away from Greyfox's face, and immediately his body moved from where he was to the source of the light...

He fixed his eyes on a man floating in air, gold-rimmed glasses, around 35 years old. This figure was clad in a sky-blue uniform, his body heavilly supplemented by electrical circuitry of all kinds. Encircling his body like Saturn's rings were 7 bands of mind. Greyfox could see that the man's body was actually coming apart, drifting away in all directions, but somehow harnessed back together by the rings of force. There were cords and coils attached to his body at all locations as he levitated in the air, and even in this meditative world, the man seemed to meditate, his eyes squeezed shut, his brow creased in concentration.

The Solenoid breathed Greyfox, I remember you.

Yes, I too, said the Solenoid, his voice in Greyfox's mind. Somehow, the physical figure of Sol changed not at all, but the voice was animated and alive. How ironic that I have too much to do, and you too little.

Greyfox let Sol's knowledge wash into his mind. He saw the VAXMigrator as he remembered it, then saw how fast it was moving. Far ahead, Alpha-Tori, closing, imploding.

The ship WILL make it, observed Greyfox, but you are pushing the ship too hard, taking shortcuts through asteroids. The ship will be destroyed!

No, said the Solenoid, I estimate that there is a 6% chance that we will survive.

6%? I don't care for those odds, Sol.

We must get home. At all cost. All cost. Before the window closes.

Greyfox's mind filled with images of the ship being torn to shreds by extreme velocity combined with an unanticipated asteroid.


Greyfox
Solenoid

By The One Known Only as (Greyfox) on Unrecorded Date:

"There may be something I can do to help," said Greyfox seriously. He closed his eyes, allowing his consciousness to seek out his other self, Darkfox, and perhaps escape into reality once more...

By Tony (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

Yes intoned the Solenoid, Yes, chances for success have increased. Your assistance is appreciated, Greyfox... now, I must return to my purpose... Sol's eyes glaze over, half a smile twitching on his lips.

By Tony (Sol) on Unrecorded Date:

Everyone crowded around Darkfox as the ship punched through the Asteroid Field. "Excellent!" Data congratulated him, "Admiral, you have saved us all! Cheers come from all around, and Darkfox retracts his arm, managing a smile.

"Captain, on the long-range scanners... it's the jump-point! We'll arrive within 11 days."

"Thank you, Major," said Data.

"Let's celebrate!" said Meyers, putting her hands on Darkfox's huge biceps.

"Yes, this is a good idea," says Data. "But first, Admiral, I shall need a moment with you."

By System Administrator (Admin) on Unrecorded Date:

END OF STORY ARCHIVE