Alliance Central Access Network
Presents: Arrhythmia
The Story Of One of the Finest Ship in The Ghost Fleet
ACAN v 1.0
ARRHYTHMIAIn Production throughout the year 2001.
Chapter 4
“Oh man, Jonathan you should have been there!” Trevor exclaimed as he walked down the hall of the Royal Military University, “That Lieutenant was totally awesome! You should hear his stories.”
“Unbelievable,” Rachel chimed in as she walked in between of Jonathan and Trevor, “I can’t believe we talked to the pilot of one of the Segan Monarchy’s planet-killer! Can you imagine?!?!”
“Seriously, man, I especially loved his story about how his ship blew up three Carnian battleships right out of the sky!” Kane added as he pretended to make an explosion out of his hands.
“Okay, Okay, enough with the reminders,” Jonathan pretended to hide behind his padds as the group of friends headed towards their classroom.
Trevor Palladin, Rachel, Jonathan, and Kane were all best friends here at the Royal Military University. Trevor and Jonathan had gotten to know one another as roommates and boyfriends who had been steady for a year but had decided their relationship was better if it remained as friends. Rachel, a Hokian, had arrived with Kane who was her twin brother. The two looked exactly alike, and it was Trevor’s acquaintance with other Hokians that had made him naturally interested in Rachel and Kane. Over time, the relationships amongst the four grew, and they were all now each other’s best friends. They hanged out together at the University Bar, they participated in the same sports, and they even had gone into the same majors even though some of them had thought of taking different majors. Rachel, who was a diligent pilot, had always been better suited at Operations Management. Jonathan was an excellent strategist, and although he could fly a fightercraft as well as any tactician could be expected to, it was his ability to target and destroy that compensated for his average flying skills. Trevor and Kane were the best pilots in the group.
Trevor Palladin was a human born in the Segan Special Administration Zone in the Delta Quadrant. The son of two officers of the Segan Expeditionary Forces, a branch of the military specializing in exploration and colonization, Trevor Palladin had never been sure about himself or his future. While Trevor possessed the capabilities that would make him amongst the best pilots in the Segan Monarchy, he proceeded to do his tasks in a cautious manner, never sure whether he could or could not do the task at hand. With Kane as his wingman, however, he had been able to squeeze through the grades that were fit to him. As he chatted with his friends, he knew he had found something, which he would hold onto for life. He winced as he heard the school’s bells ring incessantly as Trevor and his friends turned into their classroom. Dog fighting Skills 107, taught by Mr. McGregor, the teacher was reputed as being one of the hardest teachers in the University.
The friends kidded one another talking about relational conquests, as well as continuing with their gossip about the Lieutenant who was a pilot of one of the Segan Monarchy’s planet-killer ships. The planet-killer types were the biggest starships in the Segan Fleet, with only three or four built and maintained by the Segan Monarchy at any time. The planet-killers literally had the ability to kill entire planets, and they were most reputed for their maneuvering difficulties and their massive inertia. It required the best of pilots, and for these future pilots of the fleet, the possibility that they had just met one of them had gotten the group of friends on a gossiping roll. As they settled in their customary seats, Mr. McGregor walked in with a military officer, Thomas almost shrieked as he whispered to Kane.
“Oh my Quadaz!!” Thomas whispered, “It’s him! The same guy we talked to in the bar!”
“Jeez, you’re right, damn what’s he doing here?!?” Kane replied, equally surprised.
“Settle down class,” McGregor shouted as he sat in the professor’s chair, looking up at the students, “I’d like to present First Lieutenant Cameat Laude, he is hear to introduce you your next assignment.”
“Thank you Mr. McGregor,” Cameat turned to the students as he stepped in front of McGregor, “Juniors, I am First Lieutenant Cameat Laude, I am the representative from the Royal Armed Forces, and I am hear to introduce to you your next assignment. In two days, you will all be transferred to the Verneas Star System at the same time. Six other military academies in the region will send their own pilot-elects in. Over the next three days, you will be involved in intense dog fighting as your school will try to win against the six other competitors. This isn’t a traditionally graded assignment, your personal performance will be observed by the Armed Forces and it will be used to assist Captains in determining whether they should accept you or not aboard their ships. Your mission will be to either destroy all vessels that are not in your team, or to capture the enemy flags of all the teams. Each Academy is sending approximately 24 pilots, you will be the class representing the Royal Military University and I will be responsible for observing your actions. You will receive more information about the mission on your padds later today, if you have any questions you see Mr. McGregor who can answer them for you.”
*****
“Tealfox to Articus Swallow,” Trevor talked into his microphone in his helmet, “Proceeding zero-zero-two clicks, reading no signs of enemy tangos, over.”
“Articus Swallow to Tealfox,” Kane replied as his fighter maneuvered in a parallel pattern, “Proceeding zero-zero-four clicks, no signs of enemy tangos here either.”
“Fairy to Articus Swallow and Tealfox” Rachel came into the communications channels for the group, “Watching your rears, you’re looking beautiful from my view.”
“We’ll remember to moon you next time, Fairy,” Kane laughed over the intercom.
“The Royal Military University has always been so childish,” An unknown voice came into the communications channels of the Royal Military University, “We see you University… Do you see us?”
“Articus Swallow to all Royal Military University fighters,” Kane’s laugh immediately turned serious, “Who the hell’s transmitting?”
Trevor’s fightercraft proximity alarms sounded, as it warned of a lock on the fighter, “Oh damn it! Mayday, Mayday, Tealfox to Articus Swallow, enemy lock attained on me, initiating evasive patterns!” Trevor had his fightercraft do a one eighty spin as it began to dive towards a lower plane of space; the lock on the fightercraft disappearing instantaneously as Trevor’s fighter was rocked by phaser fire.
“Articus Swallow to all Royal Military University fighters in the area, we’ve got enemy tangos detected in Sector 9, repeat, enemy tangos in Sector 9, Fairy form up on my wing, we’ve got to help Tealfox NOW,” Kane shouted as he activated his after-burners to get to Tealfox faster.
“Shields down to 79%. Hull integrity stable,” the computer shouted as the fighter shook slightly from the phaser blast. Trevor knew he had to keep the missile locks away from him as he attempted to get his fighter on a position to intercept his friends Kane and Rachel.
“We got you, sucker,” The unknown voice spoke through the communications channel, “And you can’t even detect us.
Trevor changed his communications patterns as he sent a limited broadcast to Rachel, “Tealfox to Fairy, I’m on a private channel. Use your Operations skills, what would they be using to block our sensor scans and how can we make them detectible to us?”
“That’s easy Tealfox, they’ve changed their shield frequencies to one of the higher bands, it’s a little known fact that the Zachary Class fighter craft’s sensors can’t detect vessels hidden behind shields of the higher bands. Though it makes the shields extremely weak, it’s a strain on the power matrix. Fire a dispersal spread of torpedoes aimed at the higher bands and you’ll have them. Hang in there, we’re 2 minutes away.”
“Stand by, they’ve got a missile’s lock on me,” Trevor shouted as his computer’s proximity alarms rang out again, “Fudge! Missile away! I can’t fire counter measures.” The missile hit the fighter craft’s aft shields taking them down, as Trevor returned to communications, “I’m programming the torpedoes, I sure hope you’re right Rachel,” he shouted through the intercom.
“Hang in there, we’ve got problems of our own, tangos just ambushed us, it’s the Royal Military Academy who’s pulling this stunt,” Rachel replied in a calm voice as she tried to take down her marked target, “Come on you bastard.”
“Firing torpedoes,” Trevor replied as he fired three torpedoes spread on wide-rang dispersal, “They hit, they hit! Damn it, three tangos on my tail, their forward shields are only slightly down!”
“Articus Swallow to Tealfox,” Kane replied, “I’m seeing your tangos, hang in there, reinforcements are underway, give them ten minutes pal!”
Trevor forced his fighter into a ninety-degree spin as he tried to evade the enemy vessels’ phaser discharges, “You damn well know I can’t do that!”
“Come on Tealfox, trust your abilities a little,” Kane shouted through the intercom, “Splash one bogey!” Kane’s fightercraft cleared the explosion as Kane moved on to his next target.
“Articus Swallow to Tealfox,” Kane turned to the intercom as he spinned his fightercraft away from one of the enemy fighters, allowing Rachel to get a missile shot in.
“Splash one bogey!” Rachel shouted in glee, “We’ve got one more and he’s running away.”
“Tealfox here,” Trevor replied as his computer announced that he had lost starboard shield, “I’m in trouble here, when the hell are you coming?!?”
“There’s only one thing we can do to split that gang-bang,” Kane stared across the sensor readings, as he turned, “Fairy, let’s get to course 124 mark 88, that’s two clicks from here. Afterburners on, they’ve reenergized.
“Fairy to Articus Swallow, that’s an affirmative, reinforcements will reach us in 5 minutes,” Rachel replied as she activated her after burners, “Fairy to Tealfox, hang in there trooper!”
“Articus Swallow to Tealfox,” Kane replied, “Come on buddy, I know you can do it. Get your butt over to bearing 124 mark 88, you’re gonna do your maneuver.”
“Tealfox to Articus Swallow, damn it the hull integrity won’t hold against those kinds of stresses,” Trevor shouted as one of the rear consoles deactivated to stimulate it was shot out, “I only did that in the simulations to show off!”
“They worked in the simulations, and you’re the best pilot here, so come on! Do it!” Kane glanced over his consoles, “We’ll be there, and you just make sure you’re there too.”
Trevor’s fighter made a hard turn to the right as Trevor activated the after-burners to his fightercraft. Pursued by the three enemy fighters, his fighter’s engines whined as they were pushed to the limit. Three clicks away, Kane and Rachel were trying as fast as they could to make up the time differences that existed. Trevor knew what he was about to do would strain this fightercraft to its limit, simulation or no simulation there were some elements to this game, which were quite real. Trevor’s fighter rocked one more time, as the aft shield generator was knocked out of action. Trevor’s fightercraft couldn’t handle much more of these assaults, but he was in luck. As he entered the agreed coordinates, Kane and Rachel had made it too. He began his maneuver, cutting forward engines and putting aft engines on full, his fighter craft’s proximity alarm shouted to announce a new missile lock, if that missile hit him his mission was over. The fighter craft’s sudden reversal of engines forced the fighter’s nose to point up as the entire fighter shifted planes. The fighter craft’s hull stress jumped immediately to two hundred percent over the norm. Trevor was fighting to remain conscious with the G-forces that had been created by the stress. The enemy missile was off, Trevor activated his afterburners and headed straight up as Rachel’s and Kane’s replaced his fightercraft.