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Post by Skyler on Oct 9, 2006 20:21:36 GMT -6
Skyler watched his friends climb up into the Raider... He turned and scanned the landing bay. The bodies of a few troopers lay among the carnage. He flashed back to another such battle on a far off planet. The death and destruction of that day still haunted his dreams. He wished he could being them back, he hated leaving them behind, even if it was just the empty shell. All had been checked, and the ID tags removed, he atleast knew they would get the proper honors render for them. He hoped the information they had retreived was worth the cost. He entered the hatch and noted they had left the center command chair open for him, and he flopped down into it.
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Post by Brie on Oct 11, 2006 14:11:02 GMT -6
There was nothing unusual about the landing of Dropship One. The wounded were unloaded first, followed by the other passengers. Someone from Bronze Squadron had been badly wounded and was soon surrounded by medical staff, a male member of Bronze stood by, obviously shaken. The only Gold Squadron member that Brie saw exit was Lieutenant Ike, she breathed a small sigh of relief that Skyler wasn’t on the ship. She wouldn’t be able to speak to Ike until after decontamination. She stood back but close, hoping to not get in the way.
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BRIK
Viper Pilot
Posts: 227
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Post by BRIK on Oct 12, 2006 3:07:38 GMT -6
Skyler entered the hatch and noted they had left the center command chair open for him, and he flopped down into it. Looking over the controls and shaking his head for just another quick moment, Brik turned to address Skyler as Logan continued her portion of prepping the vessel for launch. Another low booming noise came from the sealed corridor. "Sir, this baby is nothing like what we've seen before. Luckily the basics are still the same so Logan thinks we've got a good chance to make it fly and get home. Hopefully we won't need the bells and whistles." He turned back to the console to finish his portion of the pre-flight sequence, cotinuing to speak as he worked. "Now..." click, click "...this ship seems to have more efficient engines and better shielding, almost as good as our Vipers. Almost." He grinned absently as he spoke the qualifier that still gave Vipers the upper hand. He paused. "Now I have to say...with these 'power-ups' I don't know if they've made changes to the comm system or not." Skyler looked mildly confused. "In other words, I'm sure we could use the comm system to call the Callisto and get them to postpone blowing us out of the sky. But I have NO IDEA what the range may be on this Purp transmitter and, for all we know, could be calling the Cylon Throneworld." Brik and Logan looked at each other in a quick glance that they had shared many times, the one that meant"Thanks for being my friend", "I love you", "I'm glad you're not dead" and "Frack, we may actually make it home" all rolled up in one. Then they made their final adjustments that allowed the Cylon-built engines to come smoothly to life. The low booming noise sounded again. It was a bit louder and caused a small vibration that could be felt above the rumble of the Raiders engines. "Well, if we can't use the transmitter what can we do? Use flags or hand signs???" asked Skyler, slightly agitated. "No Sir. I've read many of the old Blue Squadron mission reports. We waggle. Just a suggestion though, I fly "By Your Command". He grinned at his joke... "We WHAT" Skyler hadn't noticed the joke. "We waggle." Logan looked at her friend and supressed a chuckle and a grin. Barely.
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Post by Amy81 on Oct 12, 2006 17:02:52 GMT -6
Janey fell through the escape hole from the core as she tried to ease her way down. The pain from her broken ribs was just too much, and in an instant she'd lost her grip and dropped to the bottom. Hush did his best to break her fall, but they both were flattened to the deck and lay there gasping for breath.
"Ho...down" Janey managed to weaze out. Hush looked over at her and began to laugh. Janey started to, but then her sides began to hurt again. "Hush" she said, "I can't do it. It hurts too much." She tried to sit up a bit, then bit her lip to keep from screaming out. "Go" she said, "before it's too late. I'll just slow you down..."
"No way" Hush said. "WE are getting out of here. WE. Got that?" He got to his knees, looking both ways down the corridor. Thankfully it showed clear as far as he could see. Something must be keeping those purple cylons occupied, he thought with a smile. Bless the Colonial Infantry...
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Post by Amy81 on Oct 14, 2006 13:37:18 GMT -6
"Come on" Hush said, getting to his feet. He reached down to help Janey up. She tried not too, but began to cry as she got to her feet. She pushed him away and leaned against the wall.
"You have no idea how much..." she began to say before a sharp pang took her breath away. "Hurts..."
Hush moved in close again, taking her head in his hands. He looked her in the eyes. "I'm not leaving without you, got it? And I'm not changing my address to silver barracks on a baseship, ok?" His voice was gentle but stern. "Let me see your side. I can wrap it up."
Janey nodded. She dropped her jacket, and lifted up her tunic. Hush was taken aback at the deep deep bruises he saw there. And signs of maybe some internal bleeding. It was far worse than he thought. "Okay, okay" he said, trying to recover. He took the material he'd found in the core and unraveled it. "Now this is going to smart some, but I've got to wrap it up so it doesn't move so much, okay?"
Janey nodded. And bit her lip until it nearly bled as he wrapped her ribcage tightly. "Better?" Hush asked at last.
Janey made some cautious movements, trying it out. She nodded. "Better" she said. "You know Hush, I'm not a wuss."
"Never said you were, pretty lady. You're the toughest chick I know." Hush smiled. And was surprised when Janey suddenly took his head in her hands and kissed him, took a breath, then really kissed him. He wasn't sure how to react, but slowly brought his hands up and cradled her head, kissing back. He could feel her chafed lips as they locked with his.
"What was that for?" he asked when it was over. It had only been a split-micron, but in that time everything had melted away and it was just her and him in the universe. But now all he could think of was Logan, and how guilty he felt. Then he wondered why he felt guilty. Nothing had happened with Logan, and probably never would, assuming they managed to escape, and if Logan had made it back too.
Janey managed a smile. "For in case I don't have time to thank you later" she replied.
Hush grunted. "Don't thank me yet lady. We aren't out of here yet." He looked both ways down the corridor, and picked a direction. "This way" he said, taking her hand....
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Post by LucianG on Oct 14, 2006 18:04:17 GMT -6
They'd made it, but the young Trooper hadn't.
Lucian lowered the sheet over the young man's face. Just a little beyond a boy, really, almost young enough to have been Lucian's son...IF he'd ever had a son. Lucian bit back the tears that welled up inside him. He knew why the Colonial people had to fight and die, but he could never, would never, understand why the Cylons hated and pursued them so. The human race was on the edge and it was only the brave sacrifice of young people like this that kept them from being swept off that sharp precipice to extinction. Life was fleeting, life was short, but men and women like this made it worthwhile for those who carried on. With the future so uncertain, one never knew how long life might go on before his or her time was up.
Feeling his mortality bearing heavily upon him, Lucian rubbed the wetness and grime from his eyes as he made a decision about his future.
* * *
( Dedicated to Michael, whose time ended far too soon.)
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Post by Logan on Oct 14, 2006 18:51:22 GMT -6
Logan just shook her head at Brik's suggestion that they waggle to let the Callisto know they were friendly. She had read the old mission reports as well and knew that it made sense. The exploits of Apollo and Starbuck were legendary, especially in the Academy among the pilot trainees. It was a safe bet that they could communicate who they were by repeating one of the duos most daring missions. But it might not come to that.
The equipment was advanced, but remarkably user-friendly. The deeper Logan went into the systems during the pre-flight check, the more obvious it became that this bird could basically fly itself. She didn't think the comm system would be that difficult to break through, although any coded signals underlying the main comm protocol may be hard to recognize.
The Raiders engines came to life and the steady vibration of the panel under her fingers almost relaxed her. The feel of a ship under her control always calmed her nerves, even if it was an enemy ship and they had bare microns between them and a hostile force to ensure survival.
The techs back on the Callisto are going to have a field day with this, she thought as her adjustments brought up screen after screen of telemetry data and schematics. Just as she was turning her head to give the all ready to Skyler something caught her eye.
"Holy frack. I don't believe it." Before Skyler or Brik could ask her anything, she turned in her seat to look at Skyler. "I'm picking up lifesigns. Two humans are still alive out there."
Skyler's face showed his surprise and the look in his eyes was fierce as he was already lifting himself out of his seat. "In the Bay?"
"Negative." Logan's fingers were a blur on the keypad in front of her. Pulling up a schematic of the Baseship and cross-referencing the lifesigns on the grid, she gasped despite herself. "They are outside the Bay, just down the corridor we escaped through...and that we just sealed."
Brik stated what they were all thinking. "You mean, on the other side of that mob of Cylons trying to break into the Bay?"
Logan's expression was grim as she turned to look at him. "Exactly."
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Post by Amy81 on Oct 15, 2006 7:30:32 GMT -6
Hush and Janey followed the corridor, finding evidence along the way that Skyler and the others had been this way too. There were signs of confrontation at various points, and the unmistakable damage that Hush figured came from the arsenal Brik and Logan had carried with them.
Then they found the intersecting corridor where it seemed the group had made some sort of stand. Climbing over some debris, Hush suddenly stopped short.
"Frack" he said. "Oh frack." He climbed over the top and knelt down by Weasel. Janey came over the top and was soon at his side. They both were overcome by the death of their friend.
"I...I pushed him through" Hush said. "He was safe with the others. I was hoping they'd all made it but..." He lost his voice as he remembered Logan.
Janey just stared at Weasel, then gently closed his eyes. "We'd better find a way out soon, Hush. We're really on our own here..."
"For nothing" Hush said. "It was all for nothing..."
"I don't see his computer" Janey said. "They still might have made it. Come on..." She stood up, trying to pull Hush to his feet. "Come on..."
As if to spur him on, there was a noise down one of the corridors leading away from the intersection. It may have been a hunk of debris falling, or maybe...
Hush seemed to snap out of it. He placed a hand on Weasel, giving him a silent goodbye. Then he stood up, looking around. "This way?" he said pointing.
They ran in unison, blasters drawn, making their way down the corridor. It wasn't long until they started hearing noises up ahead. It stopped them cold.
Hush crouched down, and Janey did as well, breathing heavily. "What?" she asked.
"Centurions" he whispered. They strained to listen to the robotic voices up ahead.
"Try again" one droned.
"Agreed" said another. This was followed by rumbling and flashes of blaster fire.
There was a third voice, of a different pitch. Hush thought it might be a gold cylon. "Progress?" it asked.
"We are almost through" one droned.
"Keep up the reports" the gold one droned back.
Hush turned to Janey. "The bay has to be on the other side."
She nodded. "Sounds like these centurions are silver ones. A whole bunch maybe."
"Maybe. Lets not stay to find out" Hush said. He looked back the way they came. "Double back?" he suggested.
Janey shook her head, pointing to a panel in the wall across from them. "Ducts. It worked getting us in." She smiled as Hush nodded, smiling back.
In a micron, they were in the ducts, worming their way up one level....
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Post by Logan on Oct 15, 2006 9:04:56 GMT -6
Logan's mind was racing as she stared down at the readouts that showed the two small blips on the move toward the Bay. Who is it? Who is it? She scanned her memory for the faces of the Troopers and Warriors she had seen in the Bay prior to the dropships launching. Everyone that she had seen dead along their escape route. Was this some sort of trick? Could the Cylons be transmitting false information to the ship? But, that didn't make sense. They had only entered the Raider after the Bay had been sealed. Did the Tin Heads have some sort of alert system functioning on this thing that made them aware of the Colonial's attempt to steal it?
Hush. Janey. Her hope was there before she was consciously aware of it. She also noted that Bulk-Up hadn't been seen since he tore down that dark corridor at the beginning of the mission. Had he somehow made it and found another survivor along the way? She couldn't stop her hopes that Hush was one of those lifesigns blinking on the screen, no matter how impossible it seemed.
"What is their exact position?" Skyler's voice brought her back to the situation at hand. Without even looking, she knew he was out of his seat and she heard the hiss of the access hatch as he released the locking mechanism.
Looking back at the screen, she was halfway out of her chair as she said, "They're up in the ducts above the corridor, moving this way. The access panel they're heading towards is above and behind us...here." She pointed at the schematic as she turned to Skyler, his eyes focusing over her shoulder at the readouts.
"Sir?"
Skyler gave her that look. The look that she knew meant he knew she wanted to go out there with him. The look that came when she called him Sir, because she didn't call him that unless she was trying to talk him into something he had already decided against.
His eyes showed that he understood her plea. And sympathized with her desire to rescue their fellow Warriors. But there was also the practical, battle-hardened look of survival there as well. "Logan, I need you to finish the pre-flight and be ready to blast the frack out of here as soon as I'm back aboard. If anything happens out there, if those Cylons break through, one person won't stand a chance in Hades of getting this ship out of this Bay. Understood?"
Logan knew he was right. She hated it, but only nodded grimly at him. She looked at Brik, seated beside her, and saw that he had that same look in his eyes. The stricken need to save their comrades and also to make it out of this hellhole in one piece. She turned back to the console and booted up the weapons systems, just in case.
"What are you going to do if those Cylons break through?" Brik asked Skyler.
It was a good question. The tank was fried. One blaster wasn't going to be much use against a squad of Cylons. And they had no idea what shape the survivors were in. If they weren't able to fight their way through, it could get ugly.
Skyler grinned at them as he hesitated on the threshold of the hatch. "I have a plan."
Logan frowned. "Why doesn't that make me feel any better?" But Skyler was already out and making his way towards the spot where the access panel was located.
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Post by Amy81 on Oct 15, 2006 17:06:27 GMT -6
"How are you holding up?" Hush asked as he looked up ahead, trying to make out Janey in the darkness.
"Don't ask" Janey huffed, breathing heavily. "Any idea where we are?"
Hush half-laughed. "Not a clue. The few times I've been able to see out a side vent, it's all been dark."
"Same here" Janey replied, continuing to squirm along. "You know, what if those cylons send in another minesweeper?"
"I won't blow up, will you?" Hush joked.
"What does it do if it hits something other than a mine?" Janey wanted to know. Then, before he could answer, she said: "The bay! Hush, the bay is down there..."
"Yeah?" Hush asked excitedly.
"Yeah. Can't see much though. Got to move up more..."
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