Everything was fine... Ship entered and exited the station as a couple of police halted a trader with the illegal substance, spice. This had arose suspicion on the station and led to more police traversing the long halls of the Astral Astoria. A local rodian trader looked down at his console and scrathed his head.
In galactic basic he said "whats wrong with this ship?". He began to type rodian letters into the system until suddenly ringing began.
"A transmittion is comming, sir", a protocol droid said.
The rodian answered the call by saying "Who is this?" in basic. "Help!!!" replied the man on the other ship. "Hello? HELLO!!!" Everything became silent. The Rodian trader looked out of his wondow and suddenly saw four ship come through hyperspace. It was a badly damaged correllian corvette retreating from three TIE bombers. Soon after a whole fleet of imperial ships surrounded the station trying to fire at the Correllian Corvette.
Pharax was in his Corvette. His crew were all droids. He continued to call for help...
"HELP!!!" yelled Pharax as TIE bombers blasted through his hull.
Suddenly, police ships began to fire at the imperial troops.Pharax knew he was wasting his time with the ship so he decided to fight back. He ordered all droids to fire all of the guns as he would manouver into the docks... The station began to use its station protocols and slowly started to close the docks. Pharax tried to speed up the auxilary of his ship and began to convert all power to the surviving engines. Brave people of the Republic aided Pharax and began to fire at the ships... Pharax began to beleive he wouldnt make it unless he ejected his cargo or he interedand escape pod and used perfect aim to get into the docks. Suddenly a hit that a bomber made had sepparated the port side of the ship from the rest of the ship. Droids had swiftly ran to rebuild to port side with the remaining cargo we had on the starboard side. Slowly, bombers had began to stop firing at us because of the increase in fighting the police and the brave republic traders. Unfortunatly, the port side had the life support systems on it... Pharax had began to go uncouncious... He needed aid... fast... (THIS PART IS NOW OPEN IF YOU HAD READ)
Colonel Wesley Vos looked up from the report he had been working on. Even though he was a colonel now, and even though he had ten times the paperwork as he'd had before his promotion, there were times where the large staff got on every kriffing nerve he had. He should have been in a good mood; he'd just come off a long series of victories around Coruscant. But he wasn't, and all the staff officer got was a glare.
After a moment, Wes growled, "Lieutenant, don't you know how to kriffing knock!"
The lieutenant, having been through this several times, simply saluted and replied, "Yes, Sir. Sir, an urgent report is coming through from the Astral Astoria. It's a call for an explanation. Apparently someone's hijacked Imperial ships and is assaulting the station."
Wes's fist slamed down on his desk. "Damn it!" he exclaimed. "Lieutenant, let me see that." Wes scanned the report, then said, "Send this off to High Command immediately. I want to know what Imperial operations, if any, are going on in that sector." The officer stood there. "NOW, Lieutenant!"
The officer scampered off. Wes himself headed for the bridge. By the time he arrived, a second report was waiting for him. There was not a single TNO operation in that area. Whoever they belonged to, the ships attacking the Astoria were certainly not Imperial.
Wes made one of those split-second decisions that had already given him a reputation throughout the fleet. "Captain," he said to the commander of the Vos, his current command ship,* "Comm the Tyrant, Daemon's Fury, and their escorts. Leave the Reign of Fire here on patrol. Let's go fry some ships."
***
Wes's fleet dropped out of hyperspace behind the outdated ships of Imperial design. It seemed a corvette was being assaulted by the imposters. While Wes felt no sympathy for either the attackers or the crew of the corvette, he did wonder about one thing. Well, two actually. Why the heck is a lone outdated corvette out here, and why the heck are all these ships so interested in it? Well time to find out.
"Lieutenant, open up a link with the commander of that fleet. I want to know who the heck they are."
"Sir, we can't establish a link. They won't talk to us."
"Alright then," Wes replied. "Tag those vessels as hostile. Let's do some damage."
Wes, with an Astrus and an Eternal Star Destroyer, as well as several cruisers, frigates, and gunships, far outgunned the outdated enemy fleet of cruisers and frigates. Nothing TNO's finest couldn't handle.
TNO's ships formed into stadard formation with the Star Destroyers at the center, covering each other's blind spots, and their escorts forming a wedge around them. Wes, on the Vos, sat in place behind the Destroyers, coordinating the battle. As the capital ships moved into position, he ordered, "Launch half your fighters in a standard screening formation. Keep the other half in reserve. Captain Selere, launch all Phantoms. Standard drill - take out the shields, engines, and life support systems. Lieutenant, open a channel to the Astoria."
In less than a minute, a channel was open with the head of Astoria Security. "More Imperials. Why the hell do you need that many ships to take the station? Does the New Order no longer respect neutrality?"
"Captain, this is Colonel Wesley Vos of the New Order. The ships attacking your station are not Imperial. They are transmitting Imperial signatures in an attempt, a bad one, to convince you that TNO is assaulting the station. I give you my word that we will protect you and leave. The New Order has no interest in taking the Astoria."
"And I'm supposed to believe a kriffing Imperial? What do you take me for? A grundak?"
"No. But you have the word of Wesley Vos. That does not get broken. If you need further assurances, what would TNO gain that would not be lost in propaganda by the Coalition or any other power in the galaxy? It would be a PR disaster for us to attack the station. I promise, we will leave as soon as this fight is over. We simply wish to protect the station's neutrality."
The captain thought for a moment. "You're right. It would not benefit TNO to take the station. Fine. But I expect you gone as soon as the battle is over."
Wes nodded and cut the link. "Alright, Captain Typton, you may commence the attack." The Tyrant and its fleet moved forward into battle.
The CWS Rapier and the CWS Lawmaker would be considered antiques by some, but the pair of Imperator Mark II Star Destroyers was never the less some of the heaviest hitting ships in the Commonwealth arsenal. The Vinda-Corporation and later the Commonwealth Navy had kept them in pristine condition.
At the Battle of Kirima, both vessels sustained heavy damage. The Rapier was crippled and received heavy dose of radiation. Both ships spent months in a dry dock, where they were repaired and updated.
When offered a newer command, Vice-Admiral Wilkar refused, preferring his Rapier above all others. But when he found out, that an Imperial Commander had an entire battle-group in the middle of Commonwealth Space, the admiral wished that he chosen differently.
“Lieutenant, inform Captain Littan of the Veteran of the situation and tell him to meet us at these coordinates,” Wilkar handed the communications officer a peace of flimsi containing the coordinates of Strategic Checkpoint Kilo-09. “See if you can get the Renown here too. I doubt this Imperial commander will do anything stupid, but who knows… He did bring his battle-group into the middle of Commonwealth Space.”
With his fleet rallied, Vice-Admiral ordered his ships into hyperspace. The fleet was probably one of the largest assembled by the Commonwealth since the Bug War. Five capital ships in all: The Imperator Mark II Destroyers Rapier and Lawmaker, the Victory Class Star Destroyers Veteran and Renown, and the Hapan Battle Dragon Darksword on loan from the Royal Hapan Fleet rounded out the group.
The fleet reached Astral Astoria in record time. Wilkar ordered the Battle Dragon to stay back. It was his ace in the hole. The Admiral deployed his Victories and the Lawmaker between the station and the Imperials as a screen.
Bringing his flagship, the Rapier, along side the Astrus, he opened up a channel to the Imperial Commander.
"Sir, we're receiving a transmission from the new fleet. Commonwealth, I believe."
Wes rolled his eyes. Great, he thought. I should have known they'd be interested in protecting Commonwealth space, even if the station is technically neutral. "Open up a link, Lieutenant. I'll talk to them."
In less than a minute, the Commonwealth commander's face filled the screen. Wes smiled slightly at his question. "Ah, Vice-Admiral Wilkar," he replied. "I recognize your face from the holonews. Glad you could come join the party.
"Actually, Admiral, I do know exactly where I am. I also know that there's a small fleet here composed of non-Imperial ships transmitting Imperial transponder signals. That gives the New Order an interest in protecting the station. Now, if you wish to help me eliminate the attackers, thereby hastening my departure from Commonwealth space, I'll transmit what data we have on them already. The only request I will make is that any prisoners taken are questioned by a joint force of Astoria, Commonwealth, and Imperial intelligence operatives - that way we can figure out who is attempting to sabotage the New Order. If you do not wish to help, at least leave us to solve our problem. You have the word of Colonel Wesley Vos that our fleet will leave as soon as the problem is taken care of."
Wilkar relaxed a little bit. No one was going to die today.
"Lets get one thing straight..." Wilkar squinted to see the commander's rank tabs, "...Colonel."
In the Commonwealth Proper, there's the gods, the Intersystem Congress, and then there's me. That doesn't leave you too high on pagan worshiping pole, so next time you decide to bring your pretty little battle-group into the Commonwealth...
Don't.
If there is a problem, you tell me. I will take care off it."
Wilkar watched as the last of ships falsely transmitting Imperial signals were neutralized.
"Looks like this incident has been taken care of. We'll send you the bill within an hour. You can frack off now."
With a wave of his hand, the viewscreen went blank.
"Send me the bill, will he?" Wes asked one of his aides. "Hmph. As if the Imperials had anything to do with the attack on the Astoria. Lieutenant, inform the rest of the fleet that we're departing for TNO space immediately. Then begin preparing a report of the battle. And write up something for INS to use as well." With that, Wes returned to his command chair and watched as the stars turned into blue and white streaks.
OOC: Um...this thread has been finished for over a year now. Check the date before you post. And you should probably ask before getting involved in someone else's thread. (This is Wes, btw.)
