Chapter 4

Walking through the halls of this space station was very much different from anything he had seen before. If anything this part of the station looked more like an ancient cathedral than a hall of a space station. Though this was one. Man and material were moving through many of the same halls, going about their business. Even skulls were flying around! If anything, these Imperial guys were a weird bunch. It took a few minutes for Price and his escort of soldiers to reach the planning chamber, which could be easier described as a church nave, where he would meet Ravensburg again for his briefing. And as expected, through the door he could see the authoritarian silhouette of the Lord-Admiral standing across the room.

"Morning Admiral" Price said as he saluted.

Ravensburg answered his salute "Good morning Commander. Thankyou for coming over. How are the repairs to your ship coming?"

"Your mechanicum boys are a weird bunch, a bit nervous yammering on about their machine spirit, but they do a good job. They've repaired that engine within eight days. If they keep this rate up, we should be ready to cast off by this time tomorrow."

"Good, because I have an important mission for you and your men."

Both men walked up to an electronic charting table. All known stars and planets, as well as fleets and forces were blinking at their respective positions. Most were stationary, but some were moving, and fast as well!

Ravensburg pointed to one of the systems marked with strange markings.

"We are here, Port Maw, our fleet HQ. This here.." his finger moved slightly upwards, "This is the Barbarus Costa system. This system is relatively close to us and a key point in our shipping lanes. Most ships going this direction have to move through or close to this area. Unfortunately for us, this is also home to at least a very powerful Pirate Fleet. To secure our trade routes, Admiral Mourndark and his fleet were dispatched to deal with the threat. Now however, he is in need of resupply in order to continue his offencive. Your orders are as follows: You are to meet your a small fleet of frigates at the edge of the system. There you will wait for the supply convoy to arrive, and you will escort them towards the rally point. When resupply is complete you are to engage in anti-pirate operations attached to Admiral Mourndark until instructed otherwise by me."

"Any word on threats out there? What to expect?"

"I have decided to attach a Liaison officer to your crew. He will monitor your ship and crew during actions. In addition he will have a more detailed instructions and intel on enemy positions. He will arrive tomorrow, as well as a Flight-Sergeant to evaluate your spacecraft. Do you have any questions?"

"I do, but as you said, more instructions are coming in the morning. Is Admiral Mourndark aware of my ship's arrival?"

"A message detailing your convoy, including your battlestar has been dispatched an hour ago."

"Good. Then I will await the arrival of your officers. Thankyou for your time Admiral."

"Good Hunting, Commander."

Both men shook hands before Price turned around and started on his way back.

"Pirate raids... well they shouldn't pose a huge threat. The problem is to find the buggers. They're probably tucked away in some asteroid field."

"In our system, you would be right Howard, but remember that everything in this region is a lot bigger. And hunting pirates is not our task, escorting transports is. After that we'll see."

"Indeed, what about that officer they're supposed to send? Any clue on who he is?"

"I've read his file. I reckon he'll be keeping an eye on us."

"Making sure we behave? That can be a pain in the butt..."

"Maybe, but it can also be an opportunity to get to know our allies. We'll see who our guys are when they arrive." Price barely spoke those words before the intercom started buzzing. "Speaking of which. This is Price go ahead.... Papers check out?.... Good, send em up to CIC." and he put down the horn.

Daemus Goradin, that was his name. Just another cog in the system, just another officer among thousands. He always worked hard, always did what was asked. But instead of a transfer to a line ship, he was now posted on some outsider warship! "You are the chosen one for the job!" they said, yeah right. Babysitting other unknown and probably unreliable officers, assessing and all of that crap. He wanted to lead! To show what he was made of! To show he was capable! Well, he just had to put up with it then. Maybe command would get wise and get him in a better position when he could file for transfer again.

"Whelp, let's get this over with" and with those words lieutenant Goradin stood up, shouldered his duffel bag and started walking out of his cabin, closing the door behind him. Just some cabin he had to wait in for a week. Orders always did come slowly. Instead of taking the railcar, he turned to the docking arms and walked the way towards his new posting. Looking out onto the coming and going space vessels was always a calming sight to him. Seeing those glorious vessels gliding past was an awesome sight. After a few minutes of walking the catwalks, his destination came into view.

Attached to Docking Bay Alpha-Centauri-12 was a most peculiar ship. The three kilometer long vessel did not wield an armored prow, barely any superstructure to mention. If anything the bow looked more like an Alligator head. The main hull was relatively slender, blending with the larger bow head in the front, and the large engine bay in the back. The hull was flanked by two large flight-pods At the stern there were eight huge engines mounted around the main hull. Each engine had about a quarter of the total length of the ship. Overall the ship looked well armored. He tried, but Goradin could not find many lights indicating viewports.

After a little while he arrived at the docking bay, and walked the length of it till he reached the airlock. He was greeted there by a soldier in strange uniform. Unlike the Imperial soldiers he wore not a green uniform, but a gray one. He had a strange kind of weapon slung around his shoulder.

"Lieutenant Daemus Goradin, reporting for duty. This is the Battlestar Invictus, am I correct?"

"Indeed you are sir" the soldier replied while checking his papers. "Goradin eh? We were expecting you. If you'll follow me, the commander will want to see you."

The pair walked through alleys and bulkheads, all shaped similarly and lined with indicators leading to who-knows-where. Crewmen and officers were walking to and fro, never they encountered a quiet area. Whoever these men were, they did seem to work hard.

After a last turn the soldier walked through a large hatch labeled 'CIC'. Goradin walked after him and knew immediately that he had just stepped within the nervous centre of the ship. Operators were working on their stations, officers were relaying orders to their peers and consulting each other.

The entire room was filled with activity. Although the tech here seemed less advanced and strange to him, it seemed nothing less from professional, like it was built with true purpose. This went against all he was told at the Naval Academy. Both men walked up to a two metre long plotting table, surrounded by seemingly two senior officers and a few junior ones. Their dark-grey uniforms, although straight and true, were pale to his in comparison to his blue and white uniform. Goardin snapped at attention:"lieutenant Daemus Goradin, Reporting for duty!"

The most senior officer spoke up while barely looking up at him. "You sure did take your time getting up here Lieutenant. Enjoy your coffee?" he said somewhat mockingly.

"Coffee, sir?"

"Yes Lieutenant. I'd rather think you took a nice cup of coffee before you got here than coming in late because you're reluctant to be here."

"I'm honored to be here sir...."

"Let's not lie to each other mister Goradin." the commander now took a more serious tone.

"I've read your file, I know you came from a good position and you want to move on to a better one. Instead of a star position you've been posted here. I can understand your feelings, but that must not get in the way of our jobs. I expect you to follow my orders, should I issue them to you, as well as you answering truthfully to my questions. Especially the ones regarding the safety of this ship. Out there all we've got to rely on is each other, so I need to be able to count on you. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes sir!" Daemus replied. He could not believe what he was hearing.

"Good. Sergeant Horvath here will show you to your quarters. Be sure to come back within the hour. I'd like to see that detailed mission briefing Ravensburg gave you. Dismissed."

Daemus snapped at attention again, grabbed his gear and followed the Sergeant who met him on the docks. Of all the welcomes he could have gotten, this was not the one he expected. Part of him was outraged that he was mocked, listed as being lazy and being firmly put in his place. An other part of him was impressed by the commander. He seemed to read him, knew his crew and what was happening around him. Though he was not sure how he felt about the man himself, he was somewhat relieved that he was not posted with some rag-tag group of half-witted rebel cowards. That was something at least...

"Didn't you go a little hard on that young fellow?"

"I don't think so Howard. That guy is ambitious. He had star-worth grades coming from the smaller carriers. He was bucking for promotion, a place on the big and glorious ships. Instead he is posted here, on a ship and a crew that is a virtual unknown to the brass. He does not want to be here."

"Makes sense. But still, at the end of the day we may need him."

"And he will need us. That's the reason I went hard on him, besides a bit of fun teasing the newcomer. He needs to know who's in charge, that we know what we're doing and we are not some bumbling band of idiots. That way we'll get him in line. Same as the new flight sergeant we're getting. Have you read his file?"

"Seems to be a rough type. Apparently he is a veteran of many battles and has seen a lot of action."

"Once he knows we command because we know what we are doing, and we're not just here because of our influence, he will follow."

A short silence fell between the two men, both pondering.

"XO, prep the ship for launch. Once everything is on board I want to leave as soon as possible."

"Aye sir."

Flight sergeant Mercer Trune had stood just outside of the CIC, watching this situation unfold with slight amusement. He had arrived at the ship shortly after the lieutenant, so when he saw him put in his place he couldn't resist to watch. The expression on the man's face when he looked him in the eye was priceless. He chuckled a bit and stepped through the hatch towards the commanding officers. "Commander Price, Colonel Howard? Flight Sergeant Mercer Trune reporting for duty, Sir." he said while saluting both officers.

"At ease Sergeant. Enjoying the scene, were you?"

"Well, yes a bit Colonel. I've served with LT Goradin before. Sometimes he needs to be put into place. When that happens I like to be there."

"Is your rivalry gonna be a problem, Sergeant?" Price asked with a stern voice.

"Goradin and I know our jobs, sir. You've got nothing to worry about."

"Good. You are here to assess our fighters and air-group capabilities, so I have attached you to our active squadron. You will be trained in our older Mk II Vipers with an option to transition to the later Mk VII. During this cruise I expect you to take part in combat operations as if you were one of my pilots. During this period you will not be holding a leading rank until instructed otherwise. Do you have any questions about this?"

"Not directly. But Air-group? Cruise? I thought this ship had space-faring craft."

"Both names are descended from an other time. Our vipers are space fighters capable of atmospheric flight. Your instructor will tell you more. Any information you can share with us on enemy strike craft capabilities would be greatly appreciated. If there is nothing else, one of my marines will escort you to your quarters. Your instructor will meet you there."

"Thank you sir. Looking forward to this voyage." He saluted and walked off.

While the two imperials were unpacking, the rest of the crew were preparing the ship for launch. Everything that wasn't yet fixed or stored was in the moments to come. The last checklists were run down, as with the last diagnostics to double check. Within the hour the ship was ready to cast off, with every man at his station.

In the CIC Price observed the procedure and directed where needed, but as the men and women were well trained, this was hardly necessary. In the corner of his vision he could see the Imperial Lieutenant coming through the CIC hatch walking towards him.

"Thanks for coming so soon mister Goradin, we were about to cast off. XO, status."

"The board is green. Ship reports ready for departure once the airlocks are secure."

"Alright. Signal the port we are ready to depart. Secure all airlocks and release docking clamps. Take the ship out to our jump point Howard."

"Aye sir" he replied while executing the orders. "Helm, give me a left lateral translation, slow speed. Get us away from the docking arm, and fire the Bow Thrusters."

The moment he gave the orders, all docking clamps retracted, releasing the Invictus from the station. On the bow and stern thrusters fired to move the massive ship gently away from the space station. Moments later two massive Retro Boosters mounted in the bow roared to life, pushing the ship backwards slowly. Once clear of the station the ship rotated towards its first Jump Point before her main engines fired, propelling her away. The first step to her mission in the Babarus system.