SD241911.09 || Terran Union Log || "Dark Wings, They are Descending"

Posted on 09 Nov 2019 @ 8:30pm by Lieutenant Colonel Marcus Raynor

854 words; about a 4 minute read

Mission: Tyr's Hand
Location: General Stanton's Officer, Solaris Station

=/\= Begin Log =/\=

After getting back from this...USS Odin and meeting with Captain Thorne, General Sadie Stanton had gone straight to her office.

This was a strange development, and something that she had to give a lot of thought to as the commander of the Solaris Sector. She spent quite some time doing just that--thinking--while her tactical mind worked over it from all the angles she could think of. One such angle was just who she was going to send to keep an eye on things...

Sadie pressed the button to call her yeoman. "Send for Lieutenant Colonel Raynor."

Summoned from the flight deck, Lieutenant Colonel Marcus Raynor moved through the depths of Solaris’ flight operations center to the similarly entrenched command section that “ol’ Ironsides” presided over. Though the yeoman had given him passage to enter, he still made an effort to rap his knuckles on the plasteel door frame; his propensity for simply ‘appearing’ around people despite the size and shape of him had caused numerous occasions of jump scares.

“Lieutenant Colonel Raynor, reporting as ordered, General,” he snapped to a crisp attention and salute after his knock.

“At ease, Colonel,” Sadie said with the sort of tense casualness that a long-time military officer could achieve. “Sit if you like. Or don’t. I really don’t care.” The red beam of light from her cybernetic eye swept over him as she waved dismissively. “Given that rumor grows like fungus on this base, I’m sure you’ve heard about our…strange guest sitting outside?”

“It did stand out a bit on the tac-scan,” he replied at ease, moving to stand in front of the general’s desk without sitting. “Since we haven’t scrapped it into so-many parts by now, I take it that it’s at least non-hostile?”

The general grunted. “They have. They aren’t a threat to us, at least not in a straight shoot out. As it turns out, they are from a…different timeline. Keeps a day interesting, eh? Their own time is far more peaceful. I’ve given them some leave to head back out when they’re repaired, but I want a few union personnel on board to keep an eye on them. And to learn what they can. I’m assigning a stated observer, but I’m also sending you as my…more covert eyes.”

It was…not necessarily the first time Wraith had been tasked for something low-profile. “Objective?” he asked discreetly.

“Intelligence gathering,” she replied. “This is a unique set of circumstances, Colonel, and all we have right now is surface information. I want to know more. I want a better profile and threat analysis past what we’ve determined so far. I want to know what they do once they leave the station.”
“Cover?” he asked simply.

Sadie smiled slightly. “You’re going to command their air group. I want to know about their fighters, too.” She gave another dismissive wave. “The captain will not like it. She will be resistant and will not trust you. You’re going to need to ingratiate yourself to learn what you can.”

“If they’re as peace-minded as you’ve determined, that may not be as difficult as we are used to – unless there is a lack of discipline and adherence to orders. But that would be quite a bit of intel on its own,” he mused, considering. “You said a different timeline – that means the elephant in the room needs calling out. Whose timeline is right?”

“Who’s to say?” Sadie said with a smirk. “But this is the one we’re in, and it’s the one they are now in. We all have to learn to live with it.” She shrugged slightly. “No sabotage or undermining. Do the duty assigned, observe and report. Understood?”

“Understood, General. Counterintelligence was never my forte as it were. Do they…have any idea about the war going on?”

“I’m sure they will soon enough,” Sadie replied. “They have guest-level access to our database to read and study. You may be called upon to fill in some of the blanks, and I’ll trust your discretion on what to share.”

Marcus nodded. “Combat situations may make this…difficult. Having an air group who could be gun-shy at any possible turn could be hazardous. Will there be assistance within range if needed?”

Sadie nodded as well. “You know we keep things locked pretty tight and there are generally ships close. I struggle to imagine anyone who puts together fighter pilots who can’t fight, but there’s a first time for everything. Get on board and find out, but you should always have backup somewhere in range.”

“That’s all I can ask for. Whether they can fight or not, I won’t have them slaughtered for nothing,” he said soberly. He lifted his chin. “Anything else, General?”

“No,” she replied with a shake of her head. “You’re dismissed, Colonel. Get things in order on station and report to the Odin. Good luck.”

=/\= End Log =/\=

General Stanton & Lieutenant Colonel Raynor
Terran Union

 

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