Captain Brad \u201cReptile\u201d Adkins settled in to the\ncommanders office on the Solaria with a frown on his face. The desk nameplate\nfrom the previous occupant, Commander Jesse Green was still on the desk. None\nof the crew had survived and that meant there would be ghosts on this ship.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Adkins knew he should be happy to be alive. The hit on his\nMark VII Viper had been devastating, destroying the entire plane, triggering\nhis ejection seat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If ever there were a dead-end job, this was it. Just under\n2,000 civilians had been crammed into barracks that had not been updated in\nforty years. The rule, requiring the able-bodied take duty shifts and help out,\nthough necessary to run the ship had sparked a rebellion. Each and every person\nwith a gripe was still in shock about losing their families a month ago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He sighed and looked at his electronic calendar for a free\nappointment and then sent the invite to the leader of the civilians. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
There were less than two hundred properly trained crew\naboard this fifty year old museum. Morale was low because the Jupiter class was\nlike living in the stone age compared to the Mercury class.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There was a buzzing three tone sound going off right now.\nAdkin\u2019s looked around for another moment and then remembered the three-note\ntone on the analog phone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He leaned over and picked it up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The lights flickered and the ship wide intercom announcement\ncame on with a crackle and a voice began to speak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSet condition one throughout the ship. This is no drill.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Adkin\u2019s pressed a button on the phone which was cradled in\nhis hand. \u201cWhat is it?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
His face froze with horror in the ensuing seconds. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThree. I\u2019ll be right there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He went about getting into a uniform like a fireman.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He strode into the mostly empty CIC which was set up like a\ntheater and designed to be operated by dozens. At least some automation had\nbeen installed here during the refit. The ship itself if it moved would damage\nto scaffolding being used to convert the starboard landing bay from a museum to\nat least be able to recover vipers and raptors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He looked up at DRADIS his XO an unknown lieutenant without\neven any flight experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThree base stars Sir,\u201d the LT reported. \u201cLaunching raiders.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSpin up FTL. Get all external workers back in the bay. How\nmany vipers can we put in the air?\u201d Adkins realized that he was totally\nunprepared for this job.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cForty one are ready in the tubes Sir,\u201d the LT replied.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cLaunch Vipers. They need to screen for us and then conduct\ncombat landings when we well before we jump. Pod\u2019s have to be retracted on this\nbird, right?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Adkins got an affirmative reply via a head shake.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cVipers are launched forming a picket line. The repair ship\nis complaining we are going to damage their repair scaffolding!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe will come back for it. Gun crews prepare a flak\nbarrier.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cCaptain Adkin\u2019s we are short of gun crews. Only topside\nguns will be manned.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBe sure to show them our good side LT.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The young woman did not get the joke.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cVipers are short on ammo Sir,\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cRecall them, combat landings,\u201d Adkins ordered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cJump key is in FTL drive is spooled and NAV has the\nemergency jump coordinates.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The next two minutes passed with only position reports.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAir wing is\nrecovered,\u201d the LT reported. \u201cCivilians are demanding to know the sitrep.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThey can fracking wait until we have one,\u201d Adkins snapped.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAir wing is aboard.\u201d The LT got on shipwide and her voice\nsuddenly boomed. \u201cRetract the pods,\u201d she ordered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There was a terrible screeching sound that shook the entire\nship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A minute later they had jumped to safety. Since he was\nreally a CAG his first thought was to get a status to Mercury so they would not\njump home and end up in a crossfire coming from three base stars.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSpool up two recon raptors and have them jump to the battle\nzone with our status update. Jump, take readings, exchange secure messages and\ncome on home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYes Sir,\u201d a nineteen year old who did not look old enough\nto smoke acknowledged the order, picked up an ancient analog phone with a cord\nand relayed the orders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After relaying the orders the teenager spoke to Atkins. \u201cWe\nhave a problem Sir. Though we have assigned and trained enough gun crews to man\nand fire the topside and underside guns and the guns protecting the pods less\nthan a third of the assigned crew have responded to the battle stations alarm.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOh really,\u201d Captain Atkins said. \u201cPut me on ship wide.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The young woman with floppy curls hanging wildly to each of\nher shoulders pressed a few buttons, got a feedback squeal, and then pressed\nanother button. \u201cSt\u2026Stand by for the commander,\u201d she said. With a delay and a\nburst of static, her voice echoed through the aging museum ship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis is Captain Atkins. I\u2019m going to be honest with you. I\ndid not want this assignment.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the unsanitary, out of date crew quarters people looked\nup with full attention. The elderly, women with small children. Adult men and\nwomen who were assigned duty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI was a CAG, Commander Air Group on the Mercury. That I s chief\npilot in plain language. It is the ultimate job for a Viper pilot, it is what\nwe all dreamed of fifteen years ago in the academy and flight school.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He cleared his throat and went on. \u201cBut I got that job because\nAdmiral Mueller and Colonel Rogers died in the Cylon attack. The old CAG who is\nwell known as a great pilot without classic command training had to give up\nflying and take up a new role which she was unprepared for. Commander of a\nBattlestar and military leader of our people. She did not complain about her\nfate. She put her head down and started working hard on pursuing a one warship\nwar against the Cylons.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cToday she is on a mission to hit a fuel depot and deprive\nthe Cylons of the fuel they need to pursue the survivors of the Colonies. The Mercury\nmay be in trouble. She may need our help.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMost of the billions in the Colonies are dead. They did not\nchoose their fate. They had it taken away from them by the Cylon. We need to crew\nour gun batteries. Less than a third of those assigned to crew them have answered\nthe battle stations alarm.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI know. You don\u2019t want to be here. I want to be out in a\nViper killing toasters.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou think you are unlucky, sentenced to a slow death with\ndisgusting, dilapidated and unsanitary quarters. I get it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou don\u2019t need to accept that premise. You are the lucky\nones. You are on the best protected civilian ship in our little fleet. We have\narmor protecting us, and an air wing to fight for us. Most important we have\nbig guns that can be used to fight back and show the Cylons we will not accept\nthe fate they have for us.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Atkins raised his voice almost to a shout. \u201cWE will LIVE!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe will man our guns and learn to fire them and maintain\nthem and spread death and havoc among the machines that wish to exterminate us.\nI say we step up and give them hell. I say we have some pride and show the\nfrackheads on Mercury that we don\u2019t need fancy computers and luxuries to be a\nfighting force and kick some toaster ass.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On a roll now, Atkins went on. \u201cI will tell you something\nelse. We should take pride in our living quarters and start to fix them up. If\nyou need supplies and support you come up to the commanders quarters and let me\nknow what you need.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe need to stand up and man our posts. We need to do this\nto show the toasters we will not go quietly into the night.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe pods are finally retracted Sir,\u201d the teenager reported.\n\u201cWe are ready to jump. So say we all Sir!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cJump.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Before the FTL jump Atkins thought he heard \u201cSo say we all!\u201d\nechoing through the half empty bowels of the ship.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Captain Brad \u201cReptile\u201d Adkins settled in to the commanders office on the Solaria with a frown on his face. The desk nameplate from the previous occupant, Commander Jesse Green was still on the desk. None of the crew had survived and that meant there would be ghosts on this ship.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1001880,"featured_media":932,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_eb_attr":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[98],"tags":[116],"class_list":["post-1072","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-book1","tag-book1"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/battlestarmercury.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1072","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/battlestarmercury.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/battlestarmercury.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/battlestarmercury.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1001880"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/battlestarmercury.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1072"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/battlestarmercury.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1072\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5090,"href":"https:\/\/battlestarmercury.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1072\/revisions\/5090"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/battlestarmercury.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/932"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/battlestarmercury.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1072"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/battlestarmercury.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1072"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/battlestarmercury.com\/wordpress\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1072"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}