Chapter Fifty-Nine (Kark) (2/2)
We made it to the nearest Deepspacenine station and... wow. Free repairs on my entire ship, free templates across your ranking and below, all qualified positions. Looks like all my time jumping around classes pays off, because template restrictions are being lifted. The Dakota is being outfitted with the Type-VIId engines, new warp core, new SUDS rack, new Respawn Pods, Type VI nano-forge, Type XIV Creation Engine, new replicators, the new transportation system (shielded and encrypted mat-trans beam) using the SUDS rack and error checking. Still comes with a neural degradation warning, but hey, them's the risk of the game.
Our Uhura problem was solved. Turns out she was an account sharer.
Got my name cleared for cracked templates, turns out she was actually running those templates to a ship that never showed up.
Anyway, turns out that it's a full blown Precursor Attack across a bunch of sentient systems on the other side of the Dead Zone. We're not talking a little one, we're talking full on fleets of the things. I'm trying to decide if I want the Dakota reconfigured for battle or not. I'd planned on taking a break for a couple decades after the Borg War game back in 8527 where Starfleet got stomped so bad.
Because my BattleNet rating is so high, I've even been offered the chance to come back to Starcraft or even RedAlert or 40KRTS for multiplayer VS Precursor maps.
My Spock isn't up to it. He took me up on my LFG because I was supposed to be doing a science only mission and this last mission really blew out his nerves. I feel for the guy, he's a good player, but his nerves have been shot since he had a bad Voyager run with a really bad Captain. That DeathArmada scandal a few years back really soured a lot of players.
I'll probably go ahead and see who wants to drop and run an LFG call.
--Kark 8873
Captain's Personal Log - Stardate 8532.159
The Dakota's been reconfigured to OldTrek ship classes, since you're allowed to do Cross-Season at this time. Loaded up with the good stuff, but used an OldTrek heavy superdreadnaught class that's illegal in the other Seasons.
The LFG went good. A bunch of restrictions have been lifted, so I've got some weird crew members, but they're all high ranking. My Spock is a fox-girl out of the BASS, but she's got solid rankings and actually has a few IRL science creds. My America class superdreadnaught allows me for gunnery and security positions, so I took a few heavy hitters. Even got a Riker to join us. He's a former Captain, so if anything happens to me, my crew and ship are in good hands.
We'll do a shakedown cruise on the way to the New Systems as soon as everyone gets their mandatory SUDS deep-scan done for the main stack back on Luna.
--Kark 8873
Captain's Personal Log - Stardate 8532.211
Arrived in the New Systems. It's a wreck. According to my Sulu (Wesley's are not ranked for this) the system we came into was in ”Allied Space” but within thiry minutes, before we could even get lightspeed sensor returns, we had Precursors on us. It's easy, looking at the heavy shielding and everything we play with and figure nothing can really hurt us. I mean, we tussle with the Borg players, sometimes might even fight with 40K guys, but this... this was bad. We don't have nCv rounds and it only takes a half-dozen or so hits from those to completely drop your shields.
We warped out, came out in a different system, and sure as Janeway those things jumped us again. Different ship types but lean and efficient. One on one, hell, 20 on one, I could probably take their light attack craft, but when they swarm you a thousand on one or more, well, you GTFO. Your crew and your ship are more important than pulling an Into the Darkness.
My Klingons have to wear psychic dampeners. That scream those Precursors do drive them into a Klingon battle-frenzy. Ran the nano-forge pretty hard building psychic shields for the Dakota. It was worth it. Our third system, we got hit, but we were ready. I'd ran up some kinetic shields and turned them over to my Spock and she managed to reconfigure them to take nCv hits.
My new Uhura is amazing. She managed to isolate the battle-chatter well enough that we figured out where their Big Daddy was.
We went in cocky and wow, my crew is glad that I'm not a point hound.
That ship was big. We're talking a thousand miles across and three hundred miles thick. We're talking armor miles thick, main gun batteries, not by the dozen, but by the dozens of miles. It started shedding huge amounts of parasite torchship fighters. We fired photon torpedoes and GTFO.
We're sitting in a dead system now. No life on the planets in the Green Zone and there's still lava at the bottom of the craters and canyons.
The Precursors messed this place up.
--Kark 8873
Captain's Personal Log - Stardate 8532.232
Had to have a major discussion with the crew. CONFED is offering military grade weaponry to us ”qualified” LARPers. Apparently surviving those three system sensor sweeps impressed some of the military guys. They looked over our records and complimented me on knowing when to run.
Turns out my Riker held a Reserve Space Force commission from about 200 years ago. That means he can put us on some serious weaponry.
I can't believe the DokiGurlz and the Kiwaaaaaaii Orkz got thumped so bad.
It's a mad-house here.
The crew decided that they want to keep going. Everyone knows one or two mat-trans won't blow you out if you aren't SUDS'd up, you just gotta watch it a bit. Had some of the 'neo-sapient' and 'uncivilized' xeno-species test it for us. No major neurological disfunctions.
I've got an America class which means I've got the big transporter bays. We're talking drop an entire battalion of Redshirts onto planet at once with each bay. I've got six bays. That means I can also recover as many.
It's galling to find out that these Precursors hit so hard. I was all dreaming of rolling up on them and just phasering and proton torpedoing the crap out of them. Instead, they hit back, and they hit back HARD.
But the Dakota is tough enough to take a beating. The Guild excuses my 'non-canon' modifications to the Dakota since we lost a couple of good Captains out here already. The Confed guys want us to pull refugee evacuations because we can fight back, take a beating, and bring up refugees, plus I've got the life support and medical sections to handle it all.
The crew wants to do it. My Spock said that since everyone else is rushing out to engage in combat, we need to uphold the 'true' nature of the Federation and save people. She gave an impassioned speech, joined by our Uhura, about the real message of the Federation (and Confed) isn't ”we're tough, rawr”, but rather ”We bring hope”. That everyone forgets that with the excitement of space battle.
She reminded everyone that while we've got SUDS, and don't think about mortality, those people on those planets do not. They only have one life. No respawn. Uhura asked us how we'd act if we didn't have SUDS or Respawn. How precious our one life would be.
It was almost unanimous.
The Dakota is going be running rescue operations.
It's what's right, dammit.
I'm respecc'ing.
--Kark 8873
Captain's Personal Log - Stardate 8532.238
Entered the system broadcasting a distress beacon to encounter three Goliath Class Precursor machines attacking system while CONFED forces counter-attacked.
Proceeded to integrate with CONFED forces and being rescue operations.
The Dakota is well served in such a role, as a multi-purpose early Starfleet superdreadnaught. With extensive life support and security, as well as over-redundant life support, we should be able to effect the rescue of many being who might have otherwise been lost.
Crew confidence is high.
--Picard 8873