The Burden of Duty 25.03.2268 Volochkov felt like a caged animal as he waited for the stolen LST the Indies used as a courier vessel to dock with his corvette. He had survived another meeting with MacDuff, and returned to his awaiting ship across several jumps, navigational detours and many hours of endless LDS … Read more
Heliopause 24.03.2268Alpha Centauri System76 A.U. from Alpha Centauri B Dupuis had received the call to meet the Captain in his office almost immediately after he heard the sounds of the Linear Displacement drive ramp up and engage. He was learning to recognize Redoubt‘s different sounds, and the familiar sound of the LDS drive brought … Read more
Random Vector 24.03.2268Saltlake Naval BaseL5 Earth Orbit “Incoming message. Coded. Priority One,” announced the soothing electronic voice of someone’s idea of the perfect virtual secretary. “Jesus.what is it with this place?” Wexler grumbled as he flung back the covers and pulled his robe about him. “Lights.” He rubbed his eyes, squinting in the brightness. … Read more
Capsule Jumped 23.03.2268Capsule SpaceEn route to Alpha Centauri B Capsule space never ceased to impress him, no matter how often he saw it. Ferris watched the barrage of light and colour displayed before them in the tunnel effect they perceived in this distortion of physical space. The destination point was nearing, which meant that … Read more
Detente 23.03.2268. 0950 GMTPriesthole Independent Naval BaseEpsilon Eridani System Volochkov watched space-suited workers move like ants over the surface of a dry-docked corvette from the observation deck of the cavernous Priesthole base. The immense volume inside the hollowed out asteroid base made the corvette look tiny as it received hull patches, new graffiti and … Read more
Things That Go Bump in the Night 23.03.2268. 0230 GMTSaltlake Naval BaseEarth Orbit “Senator Hartwick. What a pleasant surprise. To what do I owe this honour?” Vice Admiral Wexler said, as he opened the door to his private suite, blinking at the brightness of the corridor lights. “Cut the bullshit, Wexler,” the senator grumbled, … Read more
Stolen Thunder 22.03.2268. 2230 GMTSaltlake Naval BaseEarth Orbit With a familiar clang vibrating through the hull of the ship, and the slight nudge felt as air escaped the airlock seals, McMichael knew that the ship was clear of the station before the readouts could tell him. He touched the controls to gently ease the … Read more
Room Without a View 22.03.2268. 1545 GMTSaltlake Naval BaseEarth Orbit Lt. Dupuis had fretted away his entire last day before departure, wondering why he’d been singled out for this kind of misfortune. The Independence War was about to cease being an abstraction for analysis and data flow modeling. It was about to become a … Read more
Errand Boys 22.03.2268Tau Ceti system “Captain Volochkov, this is Fleet Commander Guzman. Nice to have you back in the fold.” He could almost see her smiling at her own pun over comm. His espionage training and experience hadn’t prepared him for the possibility that he would actually like the people he was supposed to … Read more
Taking Sides 22.03.2268. 1033 GMTSaltlake Naval BaseL5 point in Earth orbit Ted Allbright hefted his kit over his shoulder and walked the last few steps from the docking ramp into the main airlock that joined Saltlake Base to the CNV 534 Redoubt. The Universal Docking Collar and main UDC shaft at the core of … Read more